Sunday, May 13,
2018 – Eph 6:13
The Armor of
God, Pt. 18,
The Shield of
Faith, Pt. 2,
The
Guardianship of Faith, Pt. 2
Grace Fellowship Church
Pastor/Teacher,
Jim Rickard
Stand in Warfare –
Eph 6:10-20.
3. The Equipment, vs. 13-17.
Eph 6:16; Hab 2:1-4; Rom 1:17; 4:20: Heb
10:38; 11
Vs. 16
Eph 6:16, “In addition to all (the first three
pieces of armor), taking up the shield of faith with which you will be able
to extinguish all the flaming missiles of the evil one.”
“The shield,” THUREOS θυρεός. It is a military term for a “long or
large shield,” used only here in the NT.
“Of faith,” PISTIS, πίστις that means, “faith, trust,
trustworthiness, reliability; confidence, assurance, conviction, belief, or the
Word of God.” It denotes the trust one has in another, and indicates the
trustworthiness and reliability of someone, (i.e., faith in the object of your
faith.)
The basis of faith is the Word of
God and His action in history; thus our faith is directed toward God the
Father, the Lord Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit.
Faith is not a passive resignation
to life like fate; rather, it is confidence that God will fulfill His promises
and carry out His salvation plan.
Isaiah gives us a great example of
faith, using the key words “quiet” and “confidence,” Isa 30:15. Notice the volitional responsibility we have to
appropriate this faith.
Isa 30:15, “For thus the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel,
has said, ‘In repentance and rest you will be saved, in quietness and trust is
your strength.’ But you were not willing.”
In the OT, just as in the New, an
individual’s relationship to God was grounded upon faith in His promises of
grace and salvation. This concept is of the same essence as faith /
righteousness in the NT, Hab 2:1, 4; cf.
Rom 1:16-17; Gal 3:11; Heb 10:38.
Hab 2:1, “I will stand on my guard post and station myself
on the rampart; and I will keep watch to see what He will speak to me, and how
I may reply when I am reproved.”
Hab 2:4, “Behold, as for the proud one, His soul is not
right within him; but the righteous will live by his faith.”
Rom 1:17, “For in it (the gospel) the righteousness of God is revealed from
faith to faith; as it is written, ‘But the righteous man shall live by faith’.”
Heb 10:38, “But my righteous one shall live by faith; and
if he shrinks back, my soul has no pleasure in him.”
Jesus instructed the disciples to
depend upon God. In this respect faith contrasts fear, Mark 5:36.
In the Epistles PISTIS regularly
describes the life of faith worked out by the Spirit in the heart of the
positive believer, Rom 1:8; 2 Cor 5:7;
Gal 2:20; Eph 1:15; Col 1:4; 1 Thes 1:3; 3:5; 1 Tim 6:12.
Gal 2:20, “I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no
longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the
flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for
me.”
2 Cor 5:6-8a, “Therefore, being always of good courage, and
knowing that while we are at home in the body we are absent from the Lord -7for
we walk by faith, not by sight- 8we are of good courage…”
1 Tim 6:12, “Fight the good fight of faith; take hold of
the eternal life to which you were called, and you made the good confession in
the presence of many witnesses.”
The believer can:
- Become
strong in the Faith, Acts 16:5; Rom
4:20.
- Be
grounded and established in faith, Col
1:23.
- Stand
firm in the faith, 1 Cor 16:13; Eph
6:16.
- Be
“full of faith,” Acts 6:5; 11:24.
- Be
on the road to deeper faith, 2 Cor
10:15; 2 Thes 1:3.
Rom 4:20, “Yet, with respect to the promise of God, he (Abraham) did not waver in
unbelief but grew strong in faith, giving glory to God.”
Acts 16:5, “So the churches were being strengthened in the
faith, and were increasing in number daily.”
2 Thes 1:3, “We ought always to give thanks to God for you,
brethren, as is only fitting, because your faith is greatly enlarged, and the
love of each one of you toward one another grows ever greater.”
In Hebrews chapter 11, we have a lengthy series on the OT models of
faith, the “visible heroes” of faith. These saints believed God’s promises, in
spite of the apparent hopelessness of their circumstances. Without seeing the
realization of the promises, they lived and died believing that the promised
Messiah and Kingdom would one day come. Faith characterized their lives. We
could say that they realized that “without faith it is impossible to please
God,” Heb 11:6.
Heb 11:6, “And without faith it is impossible to please
Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder
of those who seek Him.”
1 John 5:4, “For whatever is born of God overcomes the
world; and this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith.”
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Property of: James H Rickard Bible Ministries
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