ICS Daily Devotions
Using the Shield of Faith
Ephesians 6:16 Above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one.
The Roman soldier has a round ceremonial shield and an oblong shield for war. It is a defensive weapon called the “shield of faith”. It describes a soldier taking up a shield and letting that shield protect him from the things that are coming at him.
Arrows used in those days were equipped to carry fire. There were arrows that were dipped in tar, set on fire and shot in the air. There was another that contained combustible fluids that burst into flame upon impact. When a flaming arrow from the enemy hit its target – your emotions is thrown into a rage, anger, anxiety, unbelief, worry and so forth. It will be deadly if it hits us without the shield of faith in front of us!
The spiritual battle is very much dependent on how well we stand firm in faith with the shield of faith until the breakthrough comes. It will be determined by what we believe rather than what we see or hear. Shield is for protection of our lives and the circumstances that we are faced with. Shield was referred to in Psalms 91 and Genesis 15. It has to do with the covenant of protection. The shield is able to cover us completely. This is the picture that Paul has in mind when he talks about taking up the shield of faith to quench the fiery darts of the devil. However, we are not dealing with physical arrows but spiritual arrows that are being fired at us regardless whether you are an adult, a child, educated or uneducated, pastor or layman.
At times, we are standing alone but it is better to hinge our shield together to quench the fiery darts of the evil one! We need to be completely covered in a spiritual battle. God has given us enough faith to make us certain that we are completely covered.
These fiery arrows can be thoughts of one kind or another—doubts, fears, worries, and so on. They have only one objective. It is wickedness to kill, steal or destroy through afflictions and oppression. Some of these can come in the form of temptation to pride and selfishness, fear of circumstances including health problem or death, discouragement, despair, doubt or persecution.
Hence, we need to soak our faith in the Word of God in order to quench these fiery darts! Our faith is in God, His word. It is never on our own abilities because we are finite beings. Praise God that we are in union in Him, we are connected to Him and we are hidden in Christ!
Having faith in God requires us to move out of our comfort zone to believing God and His word more than the circumstances. Why? Some of the fiery arrows are shot at you by making you focus on the circumstances. He knows your weakness and your pride because if he can cause your emotion to go on a “roller coaster”, then you will not be able to focus on God and His promises! He will attempt to penetrate your mind and emotion, thus bringing fear to grip you and torment you. You could have come to the end of your wisdom and abilities. Solely come before God and say: in God I lay my faith.
When the enemy attacks, believers are to have faith in God and His sure promises in order to block and quench the flaming arrows. We need to be constantly connected with God and absolutely relying on Him through faith!
Sermon series: Inner Man
