Armor Against The DevilAs we continue our cruise through First Peter, we have now arrived at one of the final ports of call where the Apostle Peter now explains a vitally important means of how a Christian may be armored against the devil’s unrelenting attacks to enable them to continue to press on in the race. Listen as Pastor: Landis teaches us how we too can attain : Armor Against The Devil.
Old Testament Scripture Reading: Deuteronomy 32:11 – 19 (NASB)
Deu 32:11 “Like an eagle that stirs up its nest, That hovers over its young, He spread His wings and caught them, He carried them on His pinions.
Deu 32:12 “The LORD alone guided him, And there was no foreign god with him.
Deu 32:13 “He made him ride on the high places of the earth, And he ate the produce of the field; And He made him suck honey from the rock, And oil from the flinty rock,
Deu 32:14 Curds of cows, and milk of the flock, With fat of lambs, And rams, the breed of Bashan, and goats, With the finest of the wheat– And of the blood of grapes you drank wine.
Deu 32:15 “But Jeshurun grew fat and kicked– You are grown fat, thick, and sleek– Then he forsook God who made him, And scorned the Rock of his salvation.
Deu 32:16 “They made Him jealous with strange gods; With abominations they provoked Him to anger.
Deu 32:17 “They sacrificed to demons who were not God, To gods whom they have not known, New gods who came lately, Whom your fathers did not dread.
Deu 32:18 “You neglected the Rock who begot you, And forgot the God who gave you birth.
Deu 32:19 “And the LORD saw this, and spurned them Because of the provocation of His sons and daughters.
New Testament Scripture Reading: 1 Peter 5:5 – 11 (NASB)
1 Pet 5:5 You younger men, likewise, be subject to your elders; and all of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, for GOD IS OPPOSED TO THE PROUD, BUT GIVES GRACE TO THE HUMBLE. 1 Pet 5:6 Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time, 1 Pet 5:7 casting all your anxiety upon Him, because He cares for you. 1 Pet 5:8 Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls about like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. 1 Pet 5:9 But resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same experiences of suffering are being accomplished by your brethren who are in the world.
1 Pet 5:10 And after you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will Himself perfect, confirm, strengthen and establish you.
Pet 5:11 To Him be dominion forever and ever. Amen.
Transforming Power Statements:
#1) The greatest armor in the arsenal of the believer, could be reduced to one simple word: FAITH… Peter here explains another aspect of the exercise of saving faith that is an essential piece of armor for spiritual well-being. #2) God has by these verses, issued spiritual armor to be employed by believers in the ongoing conflict against the unrelenting enemies of the physical church and God Himself, which are the devil and his hosts, the world, and the flesh. As we employ the armor, victory has been promised. #3) True saving faith must arrive at the conclusion that all of the word of God is TRUE, and that the WORD itself is the final court of reasoning for every matter in life, otherwise our faith will lack the stability required to provide such armor against the devil.
