Unlocking the Armor of God
The Armor of GodEphesians 6: 10 -18
10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13 Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people
A Thought From the Pastor
We finished our study of I Peter last week with the message of standing firm in the faith, but also to be aware of the adversary who prowls around like a roaring lion seeking someone to devour. After the message last week, many of you reached out with requests and discussion regarding putting on the armor of God. Due to this response and request, we will be presenting a sermon series on the Armor of God from the book of Ephesians from God’s Holy Word. Paul as Peter did his his writings, implored the church at Ephesus at the end of his writing to them to be aware of the the schemes of the devil and the evil spiritual forces and to put on the armor of God and to stand firm in their faith. Here would be some steps to take this week in your life to begin the challenge of obedience and submitting to God’s will in putting on the armor of God.
1) Realize that you are in an unseen battle. Temptation, anxiety, and selfishness are examples of spiritual warfare rather than just small surface level problems. Putting on the armor of God reminds us that we are in a war.
2) Rely on God’s victory, not our own. The armor is God’s not ours. Choose to put on and take up God’s will daily and be obedient to his word and plan for your life. Facing the adversary in our strength will only lead to exhaustion and failure.
3) You must put on the whole armor of God – You can’t choose what piece of the armor you like and what you don’t. We need the whole armor of God which is the belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, the sandals of peace, the shield of faith, the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit. We then cover all of these daily with prayer.
4) Standing firm in your faith – Finally, we are called to stand firm and not attack. Stand firm this week.
Lastly, may we encourage each other in this submission to God’s will. Let’s celebrate the victories and lift each other up when we fall. This is a battle for our souls and eternity. Let’s hold hands and stand firm in the faith together in God’s victory.
Prayerful Planning
- It’s Celebration Sunday! Please plan to stay after church today to celebrate so many blessings within our church family. We will share these blessings and have some treats and fellowship.
- If you would like to be involved with volunteering with our nursery, please sign up with Bernadette in the Welcome Center and we will be communicating plans through our church texting system.
Plans and Events at PCOC
- 5/24 - Celebration Sunday immediately following church.
- 5/25 - NO COMMUNITY KITCHEN DUE TO HOLIDAY.
- 5/27 - Women’s and Men’s Bible Studies @ 6:30 pm @ PCoC.
- 5/28 - Church Prayer Group @ 10:30 am @ PCOoC.
- 5/31 - Food Pantry Open @ 12:30 - 1:30 @ PCoC.
Purpose For This Week
- Pray that we would submit our will to God.
- Pray that we would be called to put on the armor of God.
Praise Reports & Prayer Requests
- Please pray for Tammy Boucher as she begins a new step in her journey of faith which requires many dramatic changes in her life. She wants to be involving with our church family and is seeking prayers for God’s plan and wisdom in her life.
- Please pray for Ken Baker as he has been dealing with health issues and we earnestly seek God’s healing in this matter.
- Please pray for John Dempster. John is recovering from a fall and breaking his hip. He will be in Boulder Park in Charlevoix during the healing process.
- Please pray for many that are struggling with family reunification and that God would bless this desire and that he would watch over the children of the families within our church. Please cover families in our midst that are going through this and that God’s will and providence for the children and families would be done.
- Please continue to pray for Miryssa and her health as she is dealing with a pregnancy and other health concerns that could affect both her life and the babies as well.