Truth And God's Word
Ephesians 6:14
Message #6
We are in our sixth message on The Spiritual Battle, and we are rolling in the study of the spiritual armor. For four weeks, we studied the background of the spiritual battle. Then we began last week with the first article of the spiritual armor, the belt of truth. But we really didn’t get to finish it. So first, today, I’d like to talk more about the belt of truth, and then I’d like to talk about the secret to successfully putting on every piece of the spiritual armor.
If you haven’t been with us for the entire series, you can watch/listen online at the wordbymail.com website or on the phone app (search WordByMail).
The one statement that is central to this entire series - and it’s the statement I would most like you to remember – is: Your spiritual enemy is trying to influence your mind in order to influence your actions, in order to bring destruction into your life and the lives of those around you. If you can understand the battle plan of the enemy, putting on all the spiritual armor will make perfect sense.
Your spiritual enemy is trying to influence your mind, in order to influence your actions, in order to bring destruction into your life and the lives of those around you.
So much of the spiritual battle begins in our minds. I want to say the spiritual battle always begins in our mind, but if I say always, it might seem like an overstatement. But I truly went through every article of the armor and how the battle associated with that piece of armor begins, and I believe, in regards to every piece of armor, the battle (in essence) always begins in our minds. Your mind is what gets you destroyed, most of the time. It’s where you set your mind. It’s where your mind goes. It’s what you feed your mind that either leads to victory or destruction in the spiritual battle. That’s why we ended the last message with 2 Corinthians 10, verse 5.
2 Corinthians 10:5 (ESV)
5 We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ,
In the spiritual battle, we must take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ. Because every thought matters! And as we said last week, that doesn’t mean just removing the destructive lies of the enemy; that also (and more importantly) means cementing in our minds the positive truths of God. Here’s a real problem for those of us who struggle with what can be life-dominating sins. If you remove that sin without replacing it with something positive, something Christ-like, the chances of you going right back into the same sin and making it worse is really, really high. I believe it’s more important to submit in our minds this constant focus, this constant influence of God in our minds.
That is why the belt of truth is the foundational piece of the spiritual armor, because all the remaining armor, in some way, relies on the belt of truth.
Ephesians 6:14 (NLT)
14 Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth…
The belt of truth protects us from the lies of the enemy and strengthens us in the true truths of God. The enemy is constantly trying to influence your mind to destruction. And the purpose of the belt of truth in your life is to constantly destroy those lies of the enemy and replace those thoughts with the truths of God. Keeping your mind stayed on the truths of God will keep you victorious in the spiritual battle. It’s a lifestyle. It’s an environment that we are immersed in because our mind must be stayed on the truths of God in order for us to be victorious in the battle.
Isaiah 26:3 (NKJV)
3 You will keep him in perfect peace, Whose mind is stayed on You, Because he trusts in You.
We must learn to keep our mind stayed on God and on his truth. If you stay your mind on the Lord, then you trust him. “Putting off” the lies of the enemy and “putting on” the truths of God is successfully “putting on” the belt of truth. Listen, every thought matters. And remember from last week, the first three articles of the armor are character traits that we are to be clothed in (put on). All of the articles of armor are the Person of Jesus Christ, but the first three we live in, the second three we take up for the battle.
And so, the belt of truth is a lifestyle. It’s something that we are called to be immersed in. But as we said last week, we are so often immersed in our own truth. Our truth that has been influenced by our culture, by our upbringing, by our own desires, by our sin nature, and by our own logic. That is, in fact, our sin nature, easily influenced by the enemy, leading you to destruction.
We have to be immersed in the true truths of God, that are the solid, immovable truths of God and that occurs in the mind. Doing spiritual battle with the belt of truth means living a life of putting off the lying influence of the enemy and putting on the truths of God, both of which occur primarily in your mind.
So, how exactly do you do that? How do we even discern the lies of the enemy from the life-giving truths of God? And how do we go about establishing God’s truth to protect us from the lies of the enemy? Allow me to give you both a general answer and a specific answer.
The general answer: is an ever-increasing, intimate relationship with Jesus Christ that causes you to continually live by following the Spirit.
Galatians 5:16 (NCV)
16 So I tell you: Live by following the Spirit. Then you will not do what your sinful selves want.
Your “sinful self” (sin nature) is so easily influenced by the enemy that often, you don’t even know it’s happening. But if you are walking in the Spirit (following the Holy Spirit), then the Holy Spirit will convict you (give you discernment) so that you can know the difference between the lies of the devil and the truths of God.
That is the general answer, to walk (order your steps) by following the Holy Spirit. And although I can’t teach you here how to walk in the Spirit, I can recommend two separate teachings series.
First – “Abide” – is a ten-part series that teaches you how to abide (remain) continually in God’s presence.
Second – “The Fundamentals” – is a seven-part series that teaches in a practical way what we are about to talk about.
You can get both of those series from “Word by Mail.”
So, the general answer is live by following the Spirit, and you will not get so easily duped by the enemy.
But what about a specific (more practical) answer to that question? I want to be able to give you some practical way that you can put on each article of the spiritual armor, and in order to do that, I’m going to (again and again) quote a verse that is absolutely foundational for all change in the Christian life. Over and over again, I’m going to read you this foundational verse.
Romans 12:2 (NLT)
2 Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.
Romans 12, verse 1, really goes with verse 2, but I want you (for now) to really focus on the first sentence of Romans 12, verse 2.
Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think.
Your victory (or defeat) in the spiritual battle always begins in your mind. And for victory, you must learn to let God transform you by changing the way that you think.
So, let’s talk about how God does that. We have a natural way of thinking, and that natural way of thinking is bent toward our sin nature, and our sin nature is so easily influenced by our spiritual enemy to our destruction. So, it takes real, genuine transformation to not think what comes naturally to us but instead to let God transform us into a new person by changing the way we think.
So, there are two words that are the secret weapons for allowing God to transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Those words are “hide” and “meditate.” When I say hide, I don’t mean hide like “hide and seek.” I mean, hide God’s Word in your heart and learn how to meditate on God’s Word.
Psalm 119:11 (NLT)
11 I have hidden your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you
Psalm 119 is all about meditating on God’s Word and hiding God’s Word in your heart.
Under the power of the Holy Spirit, meditating on God’s Word and hiding God’s Word in your heart will transform you into a new person by changing the way that you think. But in order to do that, we’ve got to learn how. How do we meditate on God’s Word? And how do we hide God’s Word in our heart?
Well, let me tell you one critical thing to understand. God’s Word doesn’t transform you by owning a Bible. God’s Word doesn’t transform you by carrying a Bible, or by displaying a Bible prominently in your home. And listen to this one carefully. Even though hearing God’s Word being taught is important, I’ve seen people sit in a Bible-teaching church for many years and never be transformed one bit.
In order for us to “put on” the foundational piece of armor for the spiritual battle, we’ve got to allow God to transform us into a new person by changing the way we think. And in order for that to happen, we’ve got to learn how to meditate on God’s Word and hide God’s Word in our heart.
And if you will do that
God will begin to transform you
You will begin to see victory in the spiritual battle
In order to do this, we taught four very specific messages as part of “The Fundamentals” series. “Quiet Time,” “Meditating on God’s Word,” “Praying According to God’s Word,” and “Worshiping in God’s Word.” Those are the first four messages in “The Fundamentals” series. Honestly, if I could stop and teach those four messages right here as we go into the spiritual armor, it would lay the perfect foundation for true victory as we study each article of the armor. But I can’t, so you’ll just have to get the series and listen.
But let me show you a bit of what I mean by meditating on God’s Word and hiding God’s Word in your heart. When Christians really desire to do this, one of the biggest challenges I’ve seen is finding the scriptures to meditate on and to hide in your heart. There are ways to find the right scriptures on your own, but it does take some discipleship and knowing the right resources to put together the right scriptures.
But let me show you what I mean by meditating on and hiding God’s Word in your heart. Last week I made a point that it’s not just the “negative” truths that we must put on as our “belt of truth,” but it’s just as much (if not more) the positive truths. And at the end of the message, I challenged you about how many promises of God you could quote if you were asked. (One person took me up and gave me his list, which I will use.)
So, let’s take that subject, and let’s say we want to meditate on that subject. We want to hide that subject in our heart. So first, we would round up scripture that speaks to that subject. Then we would learn how to meditate on that scripture and hide it in our heart until we are transformed. Remember, I can’t teach you how to meditate and hide scripture in your heart. You have to get “The Fundamentals” series to learn that. But let’s see what happens when we put a few scriptures together and begin to allow God to change the way we think.
To “put on” the belt of truth, you must know the absolute truth of God’s promises. So, I am just going to put a few verses on the screen, and I am just going to read them back to back. You don’t have to write them down. You can watch (or listen) later to get them all, or you can download the notes from the website.
Okay, ready? These are a few of God’s promises that we must “put on” as our belt of truth.
Numbers 23:19 (NLT)
19 God is not a man, so he does not lie. He is not human, so he does not change his mind. Has he ever spoken and failed to act? Has he ever promised and not carried it through?
Romans 4:21 (NLT)
God is able to do whatever he promises.
Psalm 145:13 (NLT)
The Lord always keeps his promises; he is gracious in all he does.
Hebrews 10:23 (NLT)
God can be trusted to keep his promise.
1 Chronicles 16:34 (NLT)
God’s faithful love endures forever.
Deuteronomy 4:29 (NLT)
If you search for [the Lord] with all your heart and soul, you will find him.
Jeremiah 29:11 (NLT)
God’s plans for you are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.
2 Corinthians 1:19–20 (NLT)
For Jesus Christ, the Son of God, does not waver between “Yes” and “No.” . . . For all of God’s promises have been fulfilled in Christ with a resounding “Yes!”
2 Timothy 2:13 (NLT)
If we are unfaithful, he remains faithful, for he cannot deny who he is.
James 1:17 (NKJV)
Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow [of] change.
2 Peter 1:3-4 (NLT)
By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life . . . he has given us great and precious promises . . . that enable [us] to share his divine nature and escape the world’s corruption . . .
Romans 8:28 (NIV)
And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him . . .
Ephesians 1:14 (NLT)
The [Holy] Spirit is God’s guarantee that he will give us the inheritance he promised and that he has purchased us to be his own people . . .
2 Corinthians 1:3-4 (NLT)
God is our merciful Father and the source of all comfort. He comforts us in all our troubles . . .
2 Corinthians 5:17 (NKJV)
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.
1 John 1:9 (NKJV)
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
Isaiah 61:1-2 (ESV)
Jesus Christ came to bring good news to the afflicted, to bind up the brokenhearted and to set the captives free.
Ephesians 1:3 (NLT)
[God has] blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ.
Philippians 1:6 (NLT)
God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.
Acts 1:8 (NLT)
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you.
1 John 4:4 (NLT)
The Spirit who lives in you is greater than the spirit who lives in the world.
John 14:3 (NLT)
When everything is ready, I will come and get you, so that you will always be with me where I am.
Matthew 28:20 (NLT)
And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.
Hebrews 13:5 (NLT)
For God has said, “I will never fail you. I will never abandon you.”
Psalm 23:6 (NLT)
The Lord’s goodness and unfailing love will pursue me all the days of my life, and I will live in the house of the Lord forever.
Revelation 21:4 (NLT) – in Heaven
[God] will wipe every tear from [our] eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever.”
Psalm 23:1 (NLT)
The Lord is my shepherd
Psalm 46:1 (NKJV)
The Lord is my refuge and strength.
Psalm 18:2 (NLT)
The Lord is my rock, my fortress, and my savior . . . He is my shield, the power that saves me, and my place of safety.
Psalm 71:5 (NLT)
The Lord alone is my hope.
Psalm 118:14 (NLT)
The Lord is my strength and my song; he has given me victory.
Psalm 27:1 (NLT)
The Lord is my light, my salvation, and my fortress.
Psalm 121:2 (NLT)
My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth!
Psalm 73:26 (NKJV)
The Lord is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.
Psalm 3:3 (ESV)
The Lord is a shield about me, my glory, and the lifter of my head.
Psalm 144:2 (ESV)
The Lord is my steadfast love and my fortress, my stronghold and my deliverer.
AND SO – Psalm 89:1 (ESV)
I will sing of the steadfast love of the Lord, forever; with my mouth I will make known His faithfulness to all generations.
The power of the Word of God will transform you. It’s not somebody talking about the Word of God. It’s the Word of God. It’s the Word of God hidden in your heart. It’s the Word of God, so meditated on by you that you are transformed by it. It is the power, the life-changing power of the Word of God. And if you want to have any hope in standing firm in the spiritual battle, you had better get used to absorbing the Word of God. It’s just standing on the Word of God.
It’s putting together lists like we just read. So, you can stand on it and say, “No, enemy. I know the Word of God. This is the Word of God, and I will read it to you.” And when he does come at you (we’ll see later) that even Michael the archangel didn’t rebuke the devil himself, but said, “The Lord rebuke you.” And when you’re close, seemingly in a spiritual realm, face to face, I want to teach you how to use the Word of God to stand the enemy down because he cannot overcome God’s Word. He can deceive you, and he can manipulate you, and he can trick you into buying into his plan, but he cannot overcome the Word of God. The problem is that the weapons of our warfare personally are weak from non-use. And that’s why the enemy takes us out. And so, if I can just help you get stronger in your use of the weapons, you’ll have much more victory over the enemy.
Do you need to tighten up the truth of God’s promises in your life? Is the enemy feeding you lies about God’s care and his love and his promises to you? The Bible says God loves you a lot. And the Bible says he’s given you everything. And he’ll never leave you, and he’ll never forsake you. He’ll never withhold one good thing from you. He’ll go before you and behind you and hem you in. He’ll guide you and lead you and protect you, and he’ll take you home to glory when he’s good and ready. That’s a good God we have.
Are you wavering or vacillating about your assurance of God’s victory in your life? It’s because you don’t have the armor on. And the enemy is capitalizing on a weakness in your life. Then these scriptures and many more like them might be just the thing you need to tighten up that belt. You can read them, and the enemy will flee.
As we go through all of the armor God has given us for victory in the Spiritual battle, please hear me when I say walking in the Holy Spirit and hiding the Word in your heart, will continue to be the foundational secrets of success. We can teach you how to do it, and we can give you scripture lists we’ve already created because you have got to allow God to transform you into a new person by changing the way we think.
As Ephesians 6, verse 11 says,
Ephesians 6:11 (ESV)
11 (So that you can) Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil.
If you haven’t been with us for the entire series, you can watch/listen online at the wordbymail.com website or on the phone app (search WordByMail).
The one statement that is central to this entire series - and it’s the statement I would most like you to remember – is: Your spiritual enemy is trying to influence your mind in order to influence your actions, in order to bring destruction into your life and the lives of those around you. If you can understand the battle plan of the enemy, putting on all the spiritual armor will make perfect sense.
Your spiritual enemy is trying to influence your mind, in order to influence your actions, in order to bring destruction into your life and the lives of those around you.
So much of the spiritual battle begins in our minds. I want to say the spiritual battle always begins in our mind, but if I say always, it might seem like an overstatement. But I truly went through every article of the armor and how the battle associated with that piece of armor begins, and I believe, in regards to every piece of armor, the battle (in essence) always begins in our minds. Your mind is what gets you destroyed, most of the time. It’s where you set your mind. It’s where your mind goes. It’s what you feed your mind that either leads to victory or destruction in the spiritual battle. That’s why we ended the last message with 2 Corinthians 10, verse 5.
2 Corinthians 10:5 (ESV)
5 We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ,
In the spiritual battle, we must take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ. Because every thought matters! And as we said last week, that doesn’t mean just removing the destructive lies of the enemy; that also (and more importantly) means cementing in our minds the positive truths of God. Here’s a real problem for those of us who struggle with what can be life-dominating sins. If you remove that sin without replacing it with something positive, something Christ-like, the chances of you going right back into the same sin and making it worse is really, really high. I believe it’s more important to submit in our minds this constant focus, this constant influence of God in our minds.
That is why the belt of truth is the foundational piece of the spiritual armor, because all the remaining armor, in some way, relies on the belt of truth.
Ephesians 6:14 (NLT)
14 Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth…
The belt of truth protects us from the lies of the enemy and strengthens us in the true truths of God. The enemy is constantly trying to influence your mind to destruction. And the purpose of the belt of truth in your life is to constantly destroy those lies of the enemy and replace those thoughts with the truths of God. Keeping your mind stayed on the truths of God will keep you victorious in the spiritual battle. It’s a lifestyle. It’s an environment that we are immersed in because our mind must be stayed on the truths of God in order for us to be victorious in the battle.
Isaiah 26:3 (NKJV)
3 You will keep him in perfect peace, Whose mind is stayed on You, Because he trusts in You.
We must learn to keep our mind stayed on God and on his truth. If you stay your mind on the Lord, then you trust him. “Putting off” the lies of the enemy and “putting on” the truths of God is successfully “putting on” the belt of truth. Listen, every thought matters. And remember from last week, the first three articles of the armor are character traits that we are to be clothed in (put on). All of the articles of armor are the Person of Jesus Christ, but the first three we live in, the second three we take up for the battle.
And so, the belt of truth is a lifestyle. It’s something that we are called to be immersed in. But as we said last week, we are so often immersed in our own truth. Our truth that has been influenced by our culture, by our upbringing, by our own desires, by our sin nature, and by our own logic. That is, in fact, our sin nature, easily influenced by the enemy, leading you to destruction.
We have to be immersed in the true truths of God, that are the solid, immovable truths of God and that occurs in the mind. Doing spiritual battle with the belt of truth means living a life of putting off the lying influence of the enemy and putting on the truths of God, both of which occur primarily in your mind.
So, how exactly do you do that? How do we even discern the lies of the enemy from the life-giving truths of God? And how do we go about establishing God’s truth to protect us from the lies of the enemy? Allow me to give you both a general answer and a specific answer.
The general answer: is an ever-increasing, intimate relationship with Jesus Christ that causes you to continually live by following the Spirit.
Galatians 5:16 (NCV)
16 So I tell you: Live by following the Spirit. Then you will not do what your sinful selves want.
Your “sinful self” (sin nature) is so easily influenced by the enemy that often, you don’t even know it’s happening. But if you are walking in the Spirit (following the Holy Spirit), then the Holy Spirit will convict you (give you discernment) so that you can know the difference between the lies of the devil and the truths of God.
That is the general answer, to walk (order your steps) by following the Holy Spirit. And although I can’t teach you here how to walk in the Spirit, I can recommend two separate teachings series.
First – “Abide” – is a ten-part series that teaches you how to abide (remain) continually in God’s presence.
Second – “The Fundamentals” – is a seven-part series that teaches in a practical way what we are about to talk about.
You can get both of those series from “Word by Mail.”
So, the general answer is live by following the Spirit, and you will not get so easily duped by the enemy.
But what about a specific (more practical) answer to that question? I want to be able to give you some practical way that you can put on each article of the spiritual armor, and in order to do that, I’m going to (again and again) quote a verse that is absolutely foundational for all change in the Christian life. Over and over again, I’m going to read you this foundational verse.
Romans 12:2 (NLT)
2 Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.
Romans 12, verse 1, really goes with verse 2, but I want you (for now) to really focus on the first sentence of Romans 12, verse 2.
Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think.
Your victory (or defeat) in the spiritual battle always begins in your mind. And for victory, you must learn to let God transform you by changing the way that you think.
So, let’s talk about how God does that. We have a natural way of thinking, and that natural way of thinking is bent toward our sin nature, and our sin nature is so easily influenced by our spiritual enemy to our destruction. So, it takes real, genuine transformation to not think what comes naturally to us but instead to let God transform us into a new person by changing the way we think.
So, there are two words that are the secret weapons for allowing God to transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Those words are “hide” and “meditate.” When I say hide, I don’t mean hide like “hide and seek.” I mean, hide God’s Word in your heart and learn how to meditate on God’s Word.
Psalm 119:11 (NLT)
11 I have hidden your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you
Psalm 119 is all about meditating on God’s Word and hiding God’s Word in your heart.
Under the power of the Holy Spirit, meditating on God’s Word and hiding God’s Word in your heart will transform you into a new person by changing the way that you think. But in order to do that, we’ve got to learn how. How do we meditate on God’s Word? And how do we hide God’s Word in our heart?
Well, let me tell you one critical thing to understand. God’s Word doesn’t transform you by owning a Bible. God’s Word doesn’t transform you by carrying a Bible, or by displaying a Bible prominently in your home. And listen to this one carefully. Even though hearing God’s Word being taught is important, I’ve seen people sit in a Bible-teaching church for many years and never be transformed one bit.
In order for us to “put on” the foundational piece of armor for the spiritual battle, we’ve got to allow God to transform us into a new person by changing the way we think. And in order for that to happen, we’ve got to learn how to meditate on God’s Word and hide God’s Word in our heart.
And if you will do that
God will begin to transform you
You will begin to see victory in the spiritual battle
In order to do this, we taught four very specific messages as part of “The Fundamentals” series. “Quiet Time,” “Meditating on God’s Word,” “Praying According to God’s Word,” and “Worshiping in God’s Word.” Those are the first four messages in “The Fundamentals” series. Honestly, if I could stop and teach those four messages right here as we go into the spiritual armor, it would lay the perfect foundation for true victory as we study each article of the armor. But I can’t, so you’ll just have to get the series and listen.
But let me show you a bit of what I mean by meditating on God’s Word and hiding God’s Word in your heart. When Christians really desire to do this, one of the biggest challenges I’ve seen is finding the scriptures to meditate on and to hide in your heart. There are ways to find the right scriptures on your own, but it does take some discipleship and knowing the right resources to put together the right scriptures.
But let me show you what I mean by meditating on and hiding God’s Word in your heart. Last week I made a point that it’s not just the “negative” truths that we must put on as our “belt of truth,” but it’s just as much (if not more) the positive truths. And at the end of the message, I challenged you about how many promises of God you could quote if you were asked. (One person took me up and gave me his list, which I will use.)
So, let’s take that subject, and let’s say we want to meditate on that subject. We want to hide that subject in our heart. So first, we would round up scripture that speaks to that subject. Then we would learn how to meditate on that scripture and hide it in our heart until we are transformed. Remember, I can’t teach you how to meditate and hide scripture in your heart. You have to get “The Fundamentals” series to learn that. But let’s see what happens when we put a few scriptures together and begin to allow God to change the way we think.
To “put on” the belt of truth, you must know the absolute truth of God’s promises. So, I am just going to put a few verses on the screen, and I am just going to read them back to back. You don’t have to write them down. You can watch (or listen) later to get them all, or you can download the notes from the website.
Okay, ready? These are a few of God’s promises that we must “put on” as our belt of truth.
Numbers 23:19 (NLT)
19 God is not a man, so he does not lie. He is not human, so he does not change his mind. Has he ever spoken and failed to act? Has he ever promised and not carried it through?
Romans 4:21 (NLT)
God is able to do whatever he promises.
Psalm 145:13 (NLT)
The Lord always keeps his promises; he is gracious in all he does.
Hebrews 10:23 (NLT)
God can be trusted to keep his promise.
1 Chronicles 16:34 (NLT)
God’s faithful love endures forever.
Deuteronomy 4:29 (NLT)
If you search for [the Lord] with all your heart and soul, you will find him.
Jeremiah 29:11 (NLT)
God’s plans for you are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.
2 Corinthians 1:19–20 (NLT)
For Jesus Christ, the Son of God, does not waver between “Yes” and “No.” . . . For all of God’s promises have been fulfilled in Christ with a resounding “Yes!”
2 Timothy 2:13 (NLT)
If we are unfaithful, he remains faithful, for he cannot deny who he is.
James 1:17 (NKJV)
Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow [of] change.
2 Peter 1:3-4 (NLT)
By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life . . . he has given us great and precious promises . . . that enable [us] to share his divine nature and escape the world’s corruption . . .
Romans 8:28 (NIV)
And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him . . .
Ephesians 1:14 (NLT)
The [Holy] Spirit is God’s guarantee that he will give us the inheritance he promised and that he has purchased us to be his own people . . .
2 Corinthians 1:3-4 (NLT)
God is our merciful Father and the source of all comfort. He comforts us in all our troubles . . .
2 Corinthians 5:17 (NKJV)
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.
1 John 1:9 (NKJV)
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
Isaiah 61:1-2 (ESV)
Jesus Christ came to bring good news to the afflicted, to bind up the brokenhearted and to set the captives free.
Ephesians 1:3 (NLT)
[God has] blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ.
Philippians 1:6 (NLT)
God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.
Acts 1:8 (NLT)
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you.
1 John 4:4 (NLT)
The Spirit who lives in you is greater than the spirit who lives in the world.
John 14:3 (NLT)
When everything is ready, I will come and get you, so that you will always be with me where I am.
Matthew 28:20 (NLT)
And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.
Hebrews 13:5 (NLT)
For God has said, “I will never fail you. I will never abandon you.”
Psalm 23:6 (NLT)
The Lord’s goodness and unfailing love will pursue me all the days of my life, and I will live in the house of the Lord forever.
Revelation 21:4 (NLT) – in Heaven
[God] will wipe every tear from [our] eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever.”
Psalm 23:1 (NLT)
The Lord is my shepherd
Psalm 46:1 (NKJV)
The Lord is my refuge and strength.
Psalm 18:2 (NLT)
The Lord is my rock, my fortress, and my savior . . . He is my shield, the power that saves me, and my place of safety.
Psalm 71:5 (NLT)
The Lord alone is my hope.
Psalm 118:14 (NLT)
The Lord is my strength and my song; he has given me victory.
Psalm 27:1 (NLT)
The Lord is my light, my salvation, and my fortress.
Psalm 121:2 (NLT)
My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth!
Psalm 73:26 (NKJV)
The Lord is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.
Psalm 3:3 (ESV)
The Lord is a shield about me, my glory, and the lifter of my head.
Psalm 144:2 (ESV)
The Lord is my steadfast love and my fortress, my stronghold and my deliverer.
AND SO – Psalm 89:1 (ESV)
I will sing of the steadfast love of the Lord, forever; with my mouth I will make known His faithfulness to all generations.
The power of the Word of God will transform you. It’s not somebody talking about the Word of God. It’s the Word of God. It’s the Word of God hidden in your heart. It’s the Word of God, so meditated on by you that you are transformed by it. It is the power, the life-changing power of the Word of God. And if you want to have any hope in standing firm in the spiritual battle, you had better get used to absorbing the Word of God. It’s just standing on the Word of God.
It’s putting together lists like we just read. So, you can stand on it and say, “No, enemy. I know the Word of God. This is the Word of God, and I will read it to you.” And when he does come at you (we’ll see later) that even Michael the archangel didn’t rebuke the devil himself, but said, “The Lord rebuke you.” And when you’re close, seemingly in a spiritual realm, face to face, I want to teach you how to use the Word of God to stand the enemy down because he cannot overcome God’s Word. He can deceive you, and he can manipulate you, and he can trick you into buying into his plan, but he cannot overcome the Word of God. The problem is that the weapons of our warfare personally are weak from non-use. And that’s why the enemy takes us out. And so, if I can just help you get stronger in your use of the weapons, you’ll have much more victory over the enemy.
Do you need to tighten up the truth of God’s promises in your life? Is the enemy feeding you lies about God’s care and his love and his promises to you? The Bible says God loves you a lot. And the Bible says he’s given you everything. And he’ll never leave you, and he’ll never forsake you. He’ll never withhold one good thing from you. He’ll go before you and behind you and hem you in. He’ll guide you and lead you and protect you, and he’ll take you home to glory when he’s good and ready. That’s a good God we have.
Are you wavering or vacillating about your assurance of God’s victory in your life? It’s because you don’t have the armor on. And the enemy is capitalizing on a weakness in your life. Then these scriptures and many more like them might be just the thing you need to tighten up that belt. You can read them, and the enemy will flee.
As we go through all of the armor God has given us for victory in the Spiritual battle, please hear me when I say walking in the Holy Spirit and hiding the Word in your heart, will continue to be the foundational secrets of success. We can teach you how to do it, and we can give you scripture lists we’ve already created because you have got to allow God to transform you into a new person by changing the way we think.
As Ephesians 6, verse 11 says,
Ephesians 6:11 (ESV)
11 (So that you can) Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil.