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Sermon: Being Soldier for God in Christ Armor, Protect your Mind with Prayer

Updated on August 12, 2016

Social/Religious Question

Do the Bible teaches that it is right to use force to make converts to the faith?

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Armor of God

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Soldier of Jesus Christ: Point I

II Timothy 2:1 Thou therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. 2 And the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also. 3 Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. 4 No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of [this] life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier. 5 And if a man also strive for masteries, [yet] is he not crowned, except he strive lawfully.

This book of II Timothy is written at the end of the Apostle Paul’s life. Paul is facing imminent death by a cruel Roman government for nothing more than preaching to Gospel of God. At this time of his life, he gives these words to his “son in the faith,” Timothy.

Paul in his many epistles shows that he was a very physical person. It is likely that before his eyes started giving him trouble, Paul was an athlete and martial artist. I Corinthians 9:26 “I therefore so run, not as uncertainly; so fight I, not as one that beateth the air:” Paul loves to make reference to such things in his writings. So, here again, in II Tim. 2, he applies the analogy of being a soldier to the faith. We know that Christ’s kingdom is not an earthly kingdom. We do not fight a physical fight, but a spiritual one. And our spiritual fight is no less rigorous or demanding than a physical one can be.

Paul tells us that we must endure hardness as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. A physical soldier must set aside many things that others can enjoy. He must set his attention and time on things that civilians do not need to worry about. So, as Christians, there are some things that we need to set aside. We should not be entangled with the things that the worldly and unsaved get bound up with.

I. A good Soldier will not Flee from the Fight. vs. 2 “teach others also

The Soldier of Jesus will not run from a fight. We know that there are struggles before us. If we shrink away because of fear, we are not walking by faith. The fear of the wicked will come upon him, but God calls us to rest in the assurance of His presence and power. So, the requirement of every soldier is that we not flee or fear, but rather stand strong. James 4:7 “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” Notice the natural next step when a person submits themselves to God. They will resist the Devil. If you are not resisting the Devil, it is probably because you have not submitted yourself to God properly.

Notice that the soldier of Christ will fight for the truth. That is why Paul says in II Tim. 2:2 “And the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also.” Our battle as disciples of Christ is an ideological one. It is a battle over truth and deception. We need to find out what we believe and why. Then we need to hold on with dear faith in our Savior that is able to keep us from falling.

This belief in absolute truth is a very unpopular belief these days. The world and society derides us Christians as bigoted if we claim that we have the truth. But the fact is that if we do not stand for God’s revealed truth, we will fall for anything. They do not want us to even believe that it is possible to know the absolute, objective truth. If they can take our assurance of truth, then their lies can stand on equal footing with the words of God.

Matthew 10:36 “And a man's foes [shall be] they of his own household. 37 He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. 38 And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me.”

      A. They attack the Perfect Scripture

The world attacks God’s Word because it wants to exalt their ideas and moralities to an equal footing with God. This is really the spirit of Anti-Christ. I say this because the Bible says that the Anti-Christ will exalt himself above everything that is called god.

The Bible, however, is a protected book. It is perfect because God promised to keep it that way. You can be assured that we do have the perfect Word of God. If God’s Word has not been protected, then our faith is also up for question. Our salvation is based the Bible. If the Bible has not been protected, then how do we know that we have the right gospel? How do we know that we are saved the right way? This is why Satan is so eagerly attacking our Bible.

      B. They attack the Pure Savior

Today, the world casts as much doubt as they can on the Person of Christ. There are a thousand heresies to muddy the clear teaching about Jesus in the Word of God. The Gnostics say that Jesus was not human. The Jews, Muslim, and Jehovah (false) Witnesses say that Jesus is not divine. The Mormons say that Jesus was the brother of Satan. And “Oneness” Pentecostals say that Jesus is God the Father. We have the people that say the opposite. These false heretical Trinitarians say that God is three different gods as opposed to one God in three Persons.

Here’s the thing. If we get the wrong Jesus, chances are you got the wrong salvation. That is why Satan wants to so muddy the spiritual waters that no one will be able to see clearly and be saved.

Jesus is the Creator of all things. He was born into human flesh so that He could die for sinful humans. He rose again in perfected flesh. He will come again in that glorified human flesh. He is all man and all God, co-eternal with the Father and Spirit.

      C. They attack the Precious Salvation

If Satan and sinful men can confuse the key of how we get to heaven or how we have peace with God, they will have accomplished their goal. Do not be mistaken, my friends. There are people that know the truth of God’s Word and His salvation, and they choose to hate it. They hate God even though they know He exists. They hate the Bible even though they know it is His holy Word.

These wolves will tell you every lie they can. They do it for your money. If they have the key to Heaven, they get to charge for it. They do it for fame. They have to feel important and powerful. They do it for prestige or influence. Not every sinner is one of these wolves, but there are more out there than you think.

Satan will confuse the path to Heaven with all kinds of false doctrine. He says, “You can get to Heaven by being good.” “Obey the Ten Commandments.” “Follow the Golden Rule.” “Be baptized this way.” “Do not murder or commit adultery.” “Never eat spinach with a stranger.” There are millions kooks out there that will give you their version of the Gospel.

The truth of the Gospel will change your life if you let it. And it is simple that even a child can get it. Matthew 19:14 “But Jesus said, Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven.” Jesus paid the full price. He offers you the free gift. All you have to do is ask Him to save your sinful soul. He will give you that forgiveness and give you the power of the Spirit.

Video Sermon Intro

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The fighting man.

by Andrew Grosjean
by Andrew Grosjean

The Soldier of Christ: Part II

II. A good Soldier will not Faint in the Fight. vs. 3 endure hardness Prov. 24:10 “If thou faint in the day of adversity, thy strength [is] small.”

The good soldier does not flee in fear from the battle. Not only that, but Paul goes on to say that the Soldier for Christ will not faint in the battle either. Now, how is that possible? We are so frail and weak. But God will give us the power of the Holy Spirit when we are saved. We do not have the power to fight and stand in spiritual battle except though God.

God gives us the spiritual equipment to stand in the battle. This Armor of God is found in Ephesians 6:10-18. The first thing that we need to do if we are going to fight is to stand. Paul emphasized “stand” over and over in this passage. If we do not stand, we will not be able to fight.

     A. Bound up by the Belt Ephesians 6:14 Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness;

The belt of Truth binds up our lives. The Greek word for destroy is “louomai.” It can also mean “to loose.” The opposite of being loosed is to be bound up. This is true for us today as it was in the days when Paul wrote. The soldier today relies on belts to hold up his pants as the belt for the Roman bound up the loose tunic. Truth in our lives holds us together.

      B. Breastplate

This piece of armor is important because it protects the vital organs of the body: the heart, the lungs, the guts. These are all the things that you need to live. In the same way, for the Christian, righteousness protects our heart and vital spiritual organs. The Bible says in Proverbs 4:23, "Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it [are] the issues of life." But we are not righteous and cannot be without Christ. He is the one that gives us His righteousness if we will walk by faith in Him. His righteousness is perfect. So, if we put His righteousness on, we will be protected completely and perfectly.

      C. Bearing Good News 6:15 And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;

The shoes for the Roman soldier were not like ordinary shoes of the time. They had spikes on them, nails like the cleats that the football player has. These helped him so that he could run and jump without slipping and falling to his death.

The Bible says that the Gospel is our shoes. It can take us anywhere and protect us. If you will be ready to proclaim the gospel, it will take you safely through the most dangerous places or to kings’ palaces.

I know a man that had a gun pulled out and put to his forehead just because he tried to give someone the Gospel. I had someone try to cut my throat with a knife because I was trying to stand up for the Word of God. We both were protected by faith because we were armed with the spiritual armor of God. Not only will God protect you from danger if you are carrying the Gospel, but He will take to king’s palaces as well if He knows that you will be faithful to give His Word when you are there.

      D. Buckler 16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.

“Above all” means that the next armor and weapons listed are the most important ones. The Roman soldier’s shield was long and he could hide almost his whole body by crouching down behind it. It was covered in thick leather and the shield was soaked in water all night long before a battle. The enemy would often shoot arrows that had fire on them. Well, when the fiery arrow hit the water soaked shield, it would put the fire out.

Satan’s lies are like arrows. Our faith is built on the Word of God. The Bible often speaks about the water of the Word of God. Our faith is the shield that is drenched in the water of the Word. It can put out the fiery arrows of Satan’s lies that he shoots at us. Our faith in the Word can protect us.

      E. Brain 6:17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:

Why is the helmet so important? It protects the BRAIN. A soldier would not go to fight a battle without protecting his head. You may have the strongest, fastest, fiercest body in the world, but without the brain working, it does no good. So, Satan loves to attack our minds and confuse and deceive us so that we do not think the way God wants us to. If we do not think right, we cannot do right. The helmet of salvation is vital because it keeps our minds stayed on the truth that we are saved. That fact, if remembered will protect from all kinds of spiritual confusion. If you are saved by the blood of Jesus Christ, then you know all the cults and “isms” out there are wrong, because you already have the Truth.

     F. Blade

This is the first weapon listed. The Roman’s sword was very sharp. It was a straight sword. It had two edges and it had a very sharp point. It was short because it was used for close up combat. In the same way, the Bible is straight, like the straight way to heaven. It is very sharp because it cuts between soul and spirit. It has two edges. It cuts any way you move it. It is also meant for close combat. It is meant to pierce deep into the soul and spirit.

And is that all? Is there another weapon of the Christian? What are the next two words? 18 “Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;" Prayer is the Christian’s long range weapon. It can reach where we cannot go. Speak for those who cannot hear us. It can protect those separated from us. It can even reach into the future though we are limited in the present.

Philosophical Question

Is there an absolute, objective truth in the universe?

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The Soldier of Christ: Part III

III. A good Soldier will not be Forsaken during the Fight. vs. 4 “he may please him who hath chosen him” Mat. 28:18 “And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. 19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: 20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, [even] unto the end of the world. Amen.”

Paul tells us in II Tim. 2:4 that the reason we fight is so that we may please Him who hath chosen us. This speaks of the fact that God does not forsake us in the battle. He watches and is pleased when we run well. He is glorified and glorifies us when we are faithful to His Name and Word.

      A. On Earth

He does not forsake us on this earth. In the Great Commission, Mat. 28:20, He assures us that He is with us here on Earth even to the end of the World. But we cannot see Him. By faith we can and do. I know that my Savior is with me right now. He watches over me and helps me. He strengthens me with the Holy Spirit when I have no strength left.

      B. In Eternity Luke 20:37 “Now that the dead are raised, even Moses shewed at the bush, when he calleth the Lord the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. 38 For he is not a God of the dead, but of the living: for all live unto him.”

Not only are we not forsaken here on Earth, but we are not forsaken when we die. Some cults teach that the soul ceases to exist when we die. And then God remembers us and brings us back into existence in the resurrection. No, my friends. God does not forsake us in death either. That was why God was the God of the living in Moses day. He was the God of the living in Jesus day and in our day! Abraham is living. Paul is living. They have not ceased to exist. They are alive. God is not the God of the dead but of the living. That was why Jesus said that those that believe in Him will never die.

Spiritual Question

Do the promises of Heaven or Resurrection affect your daily life?

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The Soldier for Christ: Part IV

IV. A good Soldier will not be Forgotten after the Fight. vs. 5 “crowned” I Thessalonians 4:13 “But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. 14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. 15 For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive [and] remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. 16 For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: 17 Then we which are alive [and] remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.”

After we die, God does not forget us. This is a great comfort that those who follow us can enjoy. They can know that they will see us again, just as we will see our loved ones again who have passed on. So, we sorrow some times for the loneliness. But we do not sorrow as the world that has no hope.

      A. Go to Heaven II Corinthians 5:8 “We are confident, [I say], and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord.”

We are not forgotten in death by God because the moment we die, He gathers our souls to Heaven. We are with Him the moment we leave these broken earthen vessels. Our spirits do not need to go to Heaven. Here is something you probably do not understand, but if you are saved, your spirit is in Heaven right now. You soul will be carried to heaven, but your spirit is there now.

     B. Get Honored shall not prevent them

God will honor in the resurrection those that have died in the flesh. He will do this by resurrecting them first. Those that are alive will not “pre-vent” those that have died. They will not go before the ones that died. The “dead” in Christ will rise first. By this, God Himself will honor them.

     C. Glory with Him I John 3:2 “Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.”

This is the utmost comfort to us. God promises to give us the same kind of resurrected body that Jesus has already received. We do not know what that will be, but we will be like Him when we see Him as He is. Do not make the mistake of thinking that that “spiritual” body is not of flesh and bone. It has both. Jesus made the point that to his disciples. He wanted them to touch and see that He had flesh and bone. The angels at Jesus ascension said, Acts 1:11 “Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.” He was physical, though perfected or glorified, before he ascended. So, He will come back in the like manner. And we will be like Him glorified with physical bodies that are able to do amazing things, just like He was able.

So, since we have these great and glorious promises, my friends, let us fight as those that are filled with the power of God. Let us not flee from the battle. Let us not faint in the battle, because we know that were are not forsaken nor forgotten.

by Pastor Andrew Grosjean

www.pastorandrew.ws

September 18, 2005 Jason Godsee; January 22, 2010sm

 

Biblical Question

Will our bodies in the Resurrection occupy time and space?

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Have you ever trusted in Jesus Christ for Salvation?

 We can know that we are saved because of the simple Promise of God. He promises to save us if we just call upon Him for salvation.

Romans 10:13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

Pray:

Dear Heavenly Father,

I know that I am a sinner and have disobeyed your laws. But I know that you love me and that Jesus died for me. Now, I ask you to come into my life and save me. Please, forgive me of all my sin. Please be the Lord of my life. In Jesus name, Amen.

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