Stay Protected

Read: Ephesians 6:10-18

Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. —Ephesians 6:11

My married daughter called from her home in another state to report some "bad news." She had two cavities in her previously flawless teeth.

I asked Lisa, "Does your city fluoridate its water?" A couple of days later, she called me to say that it did not. As a result, her teeth were more vulnerable to decay than when she grew up drinking fluoridated water.

Admittedly, this was not a great tragedy. Worse things can happen, but Lisa's dental problems can point us to a vital truth in our Christian lives.

We would be wise to do all we can to prevent tooth decay, but it's even more important that we do all we can to prevent Satan from harming us spiritually (1 Peter 5:8-9). To ignore the prescribed protection that God has made available to us is to ask for trouble much worse than holes in our teeth.

In Ephesians 6, Paul said that to be protected from Satan's attacks we need to "put on the whole armor of God" (v.11). Verses 14-18 tell us we must put on the belt of "truth," "the breastplate of righteousness," the shoes of "the gospel of peace," "the shield of faith," "the helmet of salvation," and "the sword of the Spirit," along with "all prayer."

With God's armor we can stand and stay protected! —JDB

And though this world, with devils filled,
Should threaten to undo us,
We will not fear, for God hath willed,
His truth to triumph through us. —Luther

God's truth is the best protection against Satan's lies.

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