The shield of faith is impenetrable.
I cannot be penetrated by any fire-tipped dart or devil-inspired wile.
Many Christians see faith as a means of receiving from God and having
their needs met, and that is true. But there is another dimension to faith
that is often overlooked, and that is: faith is a protective force.
Ephesians 6 talks about faith as a very important part of the armor of God.
Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the
wiles of the devil. Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth,
and having on the breastplate of righteousness; and your feet shod with the
preparation of the gospel of peace; above all, taking the shield of faith,
wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.
Ephesians 6:11, 14-16
The enemy will come against you with wiles, craftiness and deception. But
God has equipped you with armor that will enable you to stand and resist his
arsenal. Notice the importance given to the shield in verse 16. It says,
"above all, taking the shield of faith...." In other
words, above all, don't leave home without your shield!
The word shield in this verse means "very big shield". God wouldn't
give you a shield so small that if you moved a millimeter, you would get blasted.
This shield is bigger that you -- it's the size of a door! You can pull out a
lawn chair, put your feet up and relax behind it.
Not only that, the shield of faith is extremely effective -- it quenches
all the fiery darts of the wicked. Now the word wicked means "hurtful".
The devil is out to hurt you. But the word quench means "to
extinguish, put out, render ineffective, nullify" all the darts. The
word all leaves no exceptions.
Does the devil have any big, nuclear-tipped missiles that could blast
through the shield of faith?
Friend, the shield of faith is impenetrable. It can't be penetrated
by any fire-tipped dart or devil-inspired wile. Nothing can ever pierce through
or destroy the shield of faith. Nothing.
So keep your shield up by keeping your faith operative. Meditate on the
Word, believe it and speak it. You'll see the same kind of results the
disciples saw.
Nothing Can Hurt Me!
In Luke 10, we read t hat Jesus sent out 70 of His disciples and empowered
them to do what he had been doing. When they returned, they received a life-
changing revelation.
And the seventy returned again with joy, saying, Lord, even the devils
are subject unto through Thy name. And He said unto them, I beheld satan
as lightning fall from heaven. Behold, I give unto you power to tread on
serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing
shall by any means hurt you (verses 17-19)
In the Greek, that's stated as double negative for emphasis. It means
much more than just nothing. It means none, not at all, no way at any time
can anything hurt you!
I was listening to a CD of the Bible before I went to sleep one night.
when it came to this part, "Nothing shall by any means hurt you,"
I sat straight up in bed. I thought, Glory! Nothing can hurt me!
Then the Lord said to me, You haven't been taking that seriously.
And many, many like you have not been taking that seriously.
Does the Bible mean what it says?
Are there exceptions that we should read in between the lines? Or did
Jesus really mean that if we would follow and obey Him like the 70 did
that we would have power and authority to tread or trample on things that
sting and bite and hurt and poison?
Uncertain thoughts might try to creep into your mind: I'm just not
sure. I think we could be hurt.
Well we have to decide: Do we walk by sight and reasoning? Or do we
walk by the Word of God that promises "There shall no evil befall thee,
neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling" (Psalm 91:10)?
As long as you're standing, saying and believing what the Word says
about protection, you'll be safe. but you have to be bold and declare,
"Nothing shall by any means hurt me."
Now when you say that, most of the religious world will jump up and
yell, "Who do you think you are? A lot of good Christian people
didn't plan on having bad things happen to them. Do you think you're
better than they are?"
It has nothing to do with being better. It has to do with being a
believer, and not just believing in and experiencing the new birth, but
believing in the protection of the Most High and claiming it for your
self.
You can, by believing, by standing in faith, raise up that mighty
shield of faith and have a barrier of protection about you.
I'm not saying that you'll never have any trials or attacks. But I
am saying that no matter what is fired at you, it can't hurt you. It
can't get to you. The Psalmist said, "A thousand shall fall at thy
side, and then thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh
thee" (Psalm 91:7).
Delivered Out of Trouble
Every time we have been hurt or hit, it was because we lowered our
shield of faith. The enemy is always read to fire, so it's never OK to
drop our shield and become an open target. Remember, there is no cease
fire in this war.
While we would prefer to be delivered from ever experiencing an attack,
that is unlikely. But each time we're delivered out of the midst of one
-- that's a demonstration of the keeping power of God -- a testimony of
His faithfulness and miracle-working power. We find examples of this over
and over in the Bible.
The three Hebrew children mentioned in the book of Daniel were not
delivered from being thrown into the fiery furnace. But they believed
God, raised the shield of faith and said, "Our God whom we serve is
able to deliver us..." (Daniel 3:17). Paul wasn't delivered from the
shipwreck, he went through it. Daniel was thrown into the lions' den but
came out untouched.
These people didn't gripe, doubt, fear, rationalize or ask, "God,
why did You let this happen?" That would have lowered their shield.
In the midst of bad situations, God protected those who trusted Him, and
He can and will do the same for you.
But you have to understand that everything we receive from God, we
receive by faith. the first time you took hold of a promise in His Word
and declared, "By His stripes I am healed," you were probably
thinking, Yeah, but I'm not. Every day you have to decide if
you're going to believe what Jesus said. Or are you going to go by
experience, sight or feeling?
Nothing Gets Through Faith
If you'll keep your shield of faith raised, nothing can hurt you
because it can't get through faith. Why?
The faith that's in you came out of God Himself. It's a portion of
the same substance He used to create the universe. To get through faith,
it would have to go through God. That's why nothing can get to you. Thats
why you can't be hurt as long as you put your faith in Him.
First John 5:18 says, "He that is begotten of God keepeth himself,
and the wicked one toucheth him not." How do you keep yourself?
In faith.
A weapon might be launched against you. You might hear the thud
of it against the shield, but you won't feel it. It won't get through to
you. Ecclesiastes 8:5 says, "Whosoever keepeth the commandment shall
feel no evil thing..."
You can believe the Scriptures and take them literally, without exception.
So put your armor on. Strap on the truth. Take the swored of the Spirit and
raise that great big, door-sized shield of faith. Remember, al song as
you're behind tht shield, "No weapon that is formed against thee
shall prosper" (Isaiah 54:17).
So above all, don't leave home without it!
