Grace for Your Day June 14

Oliver Cromwell was an English statesman who led the Puritan forces to victory during the English Civil War in the 1600’s. He won several decisive battles eventually causing him to be elected Lord Protector of Great Britain. However, the interesting thing is how he did it. Scholars tell us that he fought with a Bible in one hand and a sword in the other. He fought while holding a copy of the Scriptures and a gun.

The Apostle Paul gives us a similar analogy in Ephesians 6:14-17 when he writes:
"Stand firm therefore, having belted your waist with truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having strapped on your feet the preparation of the gospel of peace; in addition to all, taking up the shield of faith with which you will be able to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. And take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God."

As Paul describes the armour of God, he comes to the sixth item in the list which is the “sword of the Spirit.” The Greek word for “sword” is machaira which referred to a two-edged saber used by the Roman legions in close combat that was very small. It extended for 18 inches so that it was used only when the enemy was close by but the significance to it is that it is the only offensive weapon in this list. It is the only aggressive weapon in this passage because that is what the Word of God is for us. This is what the Bible is for Christians. It is an aggressive weapon that can fend off the attacks of the Devil. It can put him in his place.

In other words, a Christian does not defeat Satan by doing a bunch of good works. We do not defeat him by saying the rosary, taking the Mass, or keeping the seven sacraments. At the same time, we do not defeat him by running away, either. We do not defeat him by fleeing to a monastery or fleeing to the mountains because Paul says that we can only defeat him by using the Word of God. We can only do it by learning what the Bible says and applying it to our lives.

The Roman soldiers were a good illustration of this because they would often carry their sword with them wherever they went. They would place it on a sheath attached to their belt so that it was always ready to use in a battle and Paul says that we should do the same thing with the Word of God. We should have it with us at all times so that it is ready to use whenever we need it which is what we are going to talk about this Sunday morning at Grace Fellowship Church.

This week, we are going to study the sword of the Spirit. We are going to look at the piece of armour that is used to slay the Devil. The sermon will be preached at our 8:15, 9:45, and 11:15 services. It will also be available Sunday morning on our You Tube Channel and website for all who cannot be with us in person. Please join us as we take a look at this final piece of armour. Join us as we learn how to use the Word of God to put a stop to our soul’s greatest enemy. – Jeremy Cagle