Putting on the Armor of God in Prayer
“With all prayer and petition pray at all times in the Spirit, and with this in view, be on the alert with all perseverance and petition for all the saints.” Ephesians 6:18
There’s an old hymn that goes, “It’s me, it’s me, it’s me Oh Lord, standing in the need of prayer…!” It’s awesome that Paul concludes his great message on the Armor of God with prayer! The truth is, we cannot properly clothe ourselves in God’s spiritual armor, and step out onto the battlefield as Christians to face our fiercest enemy the devil, apart from prayer. Yes! Christ has defeated the devil on the cross and by the power of His bodily resurrection from the dead, but Paul says we are no match for the trickery of the devil apart from the Holy Spirit’s leading us in warfare prayer.
In today’s Scripture verse, Paul commands the Ephesian Christians to “pray at all times” which literally means on all occasions and with all kinds of prayers as led by the Holy Spirit. How awesome! Along with the sword of the Spirit which is the word of God (Ephesians 6:17), Paul has given the Christian the offensive piece we often neglect the most in the church-prayer!
So, let us be alert and steadfast in our prayers for “all the saints” and watch with deep gratitude and to the glory of God as He works in the hearts and minds of God’s people. Let us pray!
Pastor Louie