AWAKE, ARISE, AND TRIUMPH
Friday – April 29, 2022, Nisan 28, 5782
GIFTS – PART ONE HUNDRED-TWENTY-EIGHT
ARMOR OF GOD – PART SEVENTY
THE SHIELD OF FAITH – PART TWO
Greetings dear and precious saints of God and welcome back to our series entitled “Gifts” currently focused on the “Armor of God”. As you can see in the title, I have been dealing with this for well over a year, seventy weeks counting today. Please take a moment and share this teaching as widely as possible to expand our reach with the best news anyone anywhere ever heard. Thank you so much for sharing, you are a vital part of this Ministry.
Before I delve into our study for today let me again ask us all a vital question. What is more important to me, to you, than the Word which is Jesus, the Logos of God, the Rhema of God, the very person of God? Perhaps all of us answered that no other person, no activity, no thing, was more important than Jesus, the persons of God. Let us reflect upon ourselves, our thoughts, our words, our actions to see if we answered truthfully. Now let’s turn our attention to our primary Bible text. This week, I will continue focusing on “the shield of faith”.
Ephesians 6:11-18 (KJV)
11 Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.
12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.
13 Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.
14 Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness;
15 And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;
16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. (Bold added)
17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:
18 Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;
To help with clarity in our thinking let’s look at the sixteenth verse in the Complete Jewish Bible translation.
Ephesians 6:11 (CJB)
11 Use all the armor and weaponry that God provides, so that you will be able to stand against the deceptive tactics of the Adversary.
Last Friday I ended with a brief look at the phrase “Above all” in verse sixteen. This phrase the shield of faith can be translated as to rest upon, in all circumstances, or in every situation. Let’s take a moment to remind ourselves of a few things concerning faith. One, we cannot please God without faith.
Hebrews 11:6 (KJV)
6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.
The power or the motivation of faith is love (agape).
Galatians 5:6 (KJV)
6 For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love.
Faith seen is the foundation of the stuff which brings our hopes from the unseen to seen realm.
Hebrews 11:1 (KJV)
1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
So, we see that faith is intimately intertwined with love (agape) and hope. Faith without love as the motivation has no reward, no approval in the sight of God. Hope is the image in our imagination in which we see ourselves (prosperous, healed, etc.). If we cannot see ourselves in the promise, it will not manifest in our lives.
1 Corinthians 13:13 (KJV)
13 And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity. (charity = agape [love])
Lord willing, I will pick up right here next Friday. Remember, we love you and there is nothing you can do about it.
2 Chronicles 20:20 b (KJV)
20 … Believe in the LORD your God, so shall ye be established; believe his prophets, so shall ye prosper.
Receive the blessing in Jesus’ name!
Numbers 6:24-26 (MSG)
24 GOD bless you and keep you,
25 GOD smile on you and gift you,
26 GOD look you full in the face and make you prosper.
By: Dr. David R. Wood, Author, Bible Teacher, and Prophetic Voice
PRAYERS AND QUESTIONS – please contact us and we will respond. Our goal is to build a solid foundation upon which children of God can become sons of God, stand and do exploits in Jesus’ name.
PARTNERSHIP AND GIVING – Those of you who are not Partners of this Ministry and you find this ministry to be of value to you and perhaps others with whom you share it, we ask you to consider becoming Partners. A Partner is one who prays for the Ministry on a regular basis and contributes to the Ministry on a regular basis (monthly, quarterly, annually). Thank you and may the Lord be pleased with your decision.
CONTACT E-MAIL: pastordavidwood@gmail.com
BLOG: https://awakeariseandtriumphministries.org
FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/awakearisetriumphministries
TWITTER: https://twitter.com/PastorDavidWood
MAILING ADDRESS: 15007 Rock River Street, San Antonio, Texas 78247-3030
MY BOOKS: https://awakeariseandtriumphministries.org/shop/
