Ephesians 6:13-16 (AMP) Therefore, put on God’s complete armour, that you may be able to resist and stand your ground on the evil day (of danger) and, having done all (the crisis demands), to stand (firmly in your place). Stand therefore (hold your ground), having tightened the belt of truth around your loins and having put on the complete breastplate of integrity and of moral rectitude and right standing with God. And having shod your feet in preparation (to face the enemy with the firm-footed stability, the promptness and the readiness produces by the good news) of the gospel of peace. Lift up over all the (covering) shield of saving faith, upon which you can quench all the flaming missiles of the wicked (one).
In order to stand our ground, or stand up against the enemy’s wicked schemes, we need to put on the full armour: the belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, the sandals of the gospel of peace and now the shield of faith!
The shield that the Apostle Paul refers to is not a small circular shield but a large, oblong, and four-cornered shield that can be as big as 4 x 2.5 feet in dimensions. This means it would have been large enough to cover the rest of the armour and allow the soldier to stand behind it fully protected.
The Christian soldier’s shield is faith—faith in God’s trustworthy Word and in the One named Faithful and True, the Lord Jesus. Such a faith firmly grounded on the Rock provides a sure defence against the fiery missiles of the evil one. Our faith is shown through our obedience to the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ.
The materials used in the shield consisted of animal hide, which the Roman soldier would have soaked in water before the battle. Arrows used in those days were dipped in tar, set on fire, and shot in the air so that that they would burst into flame upon impact. This is the picture Paul had in mind when he talked about taking up the shield of faith to quench the devil’s fiery darts. We are not dealing with physical arrows but spiritual arrows that are being fired at us. At times, we might stand alone, but it is better to hinge our shields together with other soldiers’ to quench the fiery darts of the evil one. The shield of faith must be “out front” to completely “cover” our lives and protect us from these fiery arrows. This unity in faith provides a sense of connection and support, making us stronger together in the face of spiritual warfare.
In a spiritual battle, we need to be completely covered, and God has given us enough faith to make this certain. We are wrestling with spiritual forces, and only the Word of God can help us understand their work because Jesus has revealed this to us.
Sermon: The Weapon of Our Spiritual Warfare (Part 3)
信心之盾
以弗所书 6:13-16 所以，要拿起上帝所赐的全副军装，好在邪恶的日子能抵挡仇敌，并且完成了一切后还能站立得住。 所以，要站稳了，用真理当作带子束腰，用公义当作护心镜遮胸， 又用和平的福音当作预备走路的鞋穿在脚上。 此外，要拿信德当作盾牌，用来扑灭那恶者一切烧着的箭。
为了站稳脚跟，或为了挺身对抗仇敌的阴谋诡计，我们需要穿上全副军装：真理的腰带、公义的护心镜、平安福音的鞋，现在还有信心的盾牌！
使徒保罗所说的盾牌不是小圆盾，而是长方形的四角大盾，其尺寸可达 4 x 2.5 英尺。这意味着盾牌足够大，可以覆盖盔甲的其他部分，让士兵站在盾牌后面受到充分保护。
基督徒士兵的盾牌就是信仰–信仰上帝可信的话语，信仰那位被称为信实而真实的主耶稣。这种信仰牢牢地建立在磐石之上，为抵御那恶者的烈火导弹提供了可靠的防御。我们的信仰是通过我们对主耶稣基督福音的顺服而展现。
盾牌使用的材料包括兽皮——罗马士兵在战斗前会将兽皮浸泡在水中。当时使用的箭是蘸上焦油，点燃后射向空中，这样箭在撞击时就会迸发出火焰。这就是保罗在谈到拿起信心的盾牌来熄灭魔鬼的火镖时脑海中的画面。我们面对的不是物质上的箭，而是射向我们的属灵意义的箭。有时，我们可能会孤军奋战，但最好是与其他士兵的盾牌联合在一起，以熄灭那恶者的火镖。信心的盾牌必须 “冲在前面”，才能完全 “覆盖 ”我们的生命，保护我们不受这些火箭的伤害。这种信仰上的合一提供了一种联系感和支持感，使我们在共同面对属灵争战时更加强大。
在属灵争战中，我们需要被完全遮盖，而神给了我们足够的信心来确保这一点。我们是与灵界的军队作战，只有上帝的话语才能帮助我们看清它们的工作，因为耶稣已经向我们揭示了这一点。
讲道系列：我们属灵争战的武器（第3部）
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