Ephesians 2:19–3:12 (NLT)
A Temple for the Lord
19 So now you Gentiles are no longer strangers and foreigners. You are citizens along with all of God’s holy people. You are members of God’s family. 20 Together, we are his house, built on the foundation of the apostles and the prophets. And the cornerstone is Christ Jesus himself. 21 We are carefully joined together in him, becoming a holy temple for the Lord. 22 Through him you Gentiles are also being made part of this dwelling where God lives by his Spirit.
Chapter 3
God’s Mysterious Plan Revealed
When I think of all this, I, Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus for the benefit of you Gentiles … 2 assuming, by the way, that you know God gave me the special responsibility of extending his grace to you Gentiles. 3 As I briefly wrote earlier, God himself revealed his mysterious plan to me. 4 As you read what I have written, you will understand my insight into this plan regarding Christ. 5 God did not reveal it to previous generations, but now by his Spirit he has revealed it to his holy apostles and prophets.
6 And this is God’s plan: Both Gentiles and Jews who believe the Good News share equally in the riches inherited by God’s children. Both are part of the same body, and both enjoy the promise of blessings because they belong to Christ Jesus. 7 By God’s grace and mighty power, I have been given the privilege of serving him by spreading this Good News.
8 Though I am the least deserving of all God’s people, he graciously gave me the privilege of telling the Gentiles about the endless treasures available to them in Christ. 9 I was chosen to explain to everyone this mysterious plan that God, the Creator of all things, had kept secret from the beginning.
10 God’s purpose in all this was to use the church to display his wisdom in its rich variety to all the unseen rulers and authorities in the heavenly places. 11 This was his eternal plan, which he carried out through Christ Jesus our Lord.
12 Because of Christ and our faith in him, we can now come boldly and confidently into God’s presence.
Ephesians 6:10–20 (NLT)
The Whole Armor of God
10 A final word: Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil. 12 For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.
13 Therefore, put on every piece of God’s armor so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then after the battle you will still be standing firm. 14 Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth and the body armor of God’s righteousness. 15 For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News so that you will be fully prepared. 16 In addition to all of these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil. 17 Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
18 Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere.
19 And pray for me, too. Ask God to give me the right words so I can boldly explain God’s mysterious plan that the Good News is for Jews and Gentiles alike. 20 I am in chains now, still preaching this message as God’s ambassador. So pray that I will keep on speaking boldly for him, as I should.
All of us have a sense that the world isn’t really, “OK.” We feel it when we watch the news, listen to friends and neighbors who are struggling, hear differing opinions on the best practices for handling problems, and experience the stresses, trials and temptations life throws our way.
In the face of this, it can sometimes feel hard to fathom a time when there were no problems, no stressors, and everything really was OK. Amazing, actually.
Genesis 3:1 describes the moment perfectly pure goodness went down. A cryptic and complex creature we call “Satan” officially declared war on God by launching an attack on humanity – the beings designed “In His Image.” With just a few quick and easy sentences, he successfully implanted a deadly lie in his victims’ hearts to destroy their relationship with God - the source of every good and beautiful thing about their existence. The lie was that their loving Heavenly Father might not be very good, and therefore, could not be trusted. And it achieved exactly what the crafty serpent intended by spiraling human hearts, minds, and behaviors out of control, creating all different forms of spin-off lies. Their resulting soul wounds and infections then became the weapons used to wound and infect other human hearts (Romans 5:12).
“Wounded people wound” is the undisputed saying. It’s a good summary of Bible verses like Matthew 7:17-18 and Mark 7:21-23 which describe behavior as being the outflow of what is in one’s heart. Since the tragic event we call “The Fall,” evil shows up to fight God's design of goodness in every detail of human existence.
The Church down through history has correctly picked up on this theme in Scripture, viewing its purpose as uniting together to fight back. Phrases like “The Army of God,” “Onward Christian Soldiers,” and “Put on the armor of God” often serve as calls to battle.
But just like every other good endeavor, our enemy’s pointed lie about whether or not God’s ways are truly good and trustworthy can slither into the concept of doing Holy battle - turning it into a weapon against the body of Christ and all of humanity who it is called to be fighting for. Not against.
To protect ourselves and others from this, we must be constantly mindful of the reality that while we are called to be warriors, pushing back darkness and creating safe spaces for all of humanity, we are still wounded soldiers fighting off our own lie-infections which can become liabilities and potential weapons the enemy uses against those around us. Because of this, God does not place us on the front lines. He goes there Himself to fight off our enemy who is far too big for us to handle while placing us in supporting roles behind the front lines.
In Ephesians 6:10-18, the Apostle Paul talks about the war between good and evil as well as how God equips His people to do their part in it.
He begins by ensuring we are clear on who our enemy is. And isn’t. The fight isn’t against humans. Never against our brothers and sisters in Christ or even those who are adamantly opposed to what we believe. The war is always against evil and the darkness it creates with the lie that “God isn’t truly good, and therefore, can’t be trusted.” If the enemy can get our focus off of this and onto going after humans instead, destruction will just keep spreading. Paul makes it clear in Ephesians that protecting unity within the church and loving others with God’s love is imperative.
He then explains that God has compassionately issued uniforms for dealing with this battle we never signed up for, but find ourselves fighting anyway. They are referred to as, “The Armor of God.” Unlike the typical armor of the world (confidence in human reasoning, strength, and skills), every piece of the panoply points to our dependence on God.
First, he describes the Belt of Truth. If our enemy’s strategy is to embed lies in human hearts from which destructive behavior and words will flow, God’s Truth is our best counterstrategy. 2 Corinthians 10:5 tells us, “We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God.” Truth is given only by God who says He is the way, truth, and life (John 14:6).
Second is the Breastplate of Righteousness. Any good “fruit” that comes from our lives is dependent on our ability to “abide” in Jesus. It is in a deep relationship with Him that He can clean and heal our hearts as a way of defusing the bombs our sin-wounds can unknowingly be for others. And ourselves (John 15:4-8).
Third is Shoes made from the peace the “Good News” brings. The Bible tells us that the wages of sin is death – the death of every good thing God designed humanity to be and experience (Romans 6:23). But the good news of the gospel is that the same power that resurrected Jesus from death to life can do (and empower and resource us to do) whatever it takes to resurrect every part of us sin has brought death to. Whether through our own actions or others’. The reality that God can turn anything sin does to destroy us and turn it for good brings great peace (Romans 8:28). This provides the courage we need to keep marching out into our daily battles.
After putting on shoes we are to hold up the Shield of Faith. Without a firm, steady resolve about what we believe about God, all kinds of flaming arrows the events of everyday life can throw will penetrate our souls and take us down in so many different ways. Faith that blocks these fiery attacks comes from our knowledge and understanding of who God is, what He stands for, and what we have seen He is capable of. Not elusive feelings of belief we can hopefully muster up through our own reasoning (Romans 10:14-17).
The Helmet of Salvation protects our minds from attacks on our identities as children of God – or followers of Christ. Questions about whether or not we can truly be “in Christ” or have the right to come boldly to His throne of grace for the help we need to live as He has called us to (even after messing up) are silenced when we depend on the reality of how high a price God Himself was willing to pay for us to be able to do so (Hebrews 4:16).
The Sword of the Spirit – or “The Word of God” was inspired by Him and He uses it to speak to us – to help us sever lies from the Truth. This is important because the most crafty, believable, and therefore, dangerous of lies are made up of mostly truth, and just a little bit of deception.
Finally, we are to arm ourselves with prayer. Direct communication with the King, Himself through which we can declare our desire for His help over our own reasoning and strength, receive His marching orders, and get clarification on situations we are dealing with is critical for our well-being and protection.
From this armor imagery, there is a beautiful picture that Paul allows to emerge. As every believer stands together, each fully suited up and holding their shields of faith side-by-side, they make a bold statement to a world that desperately needs to see that it is possible to stand strong in the battles of life. And even to the “unseen rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms” who are fighting against it (Ephesians 3:10 NLT).
“For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds.” 2 Corinthians 10:3-4 NIV
Reflection Questions
How does fighting the battles of life with the Armor of God look and feel different from fighting them with human reasoning, strength and skill?
How does knowing that every problem and conflict I face comes from the lie that "God is not good and can't be trusted" influence how I handle circumstantial and relational struggles? How does it lead me to pray for these situations? (Read James 4:1-3 for insights.)
What thoughts and feelings does suiting up and holding shields of faith together (not against people, but against the lies of darkness) with my brothers and sisters in Christ bring up? What are some real-life, practical ways we do this together?