 There's a portion of Scripture in the Bible that actually gives us everything we need to stand against all the attacks of the enemy. I want to talk to you about the armor of God. Before I begin, if you're watching us on YouTube, make sure you subscribe and click that notification bell when you do so that you can receive notices whenever we release new content. You can also follow us wherever you're watching us. I want to talk to you about spiritual warfare and how it affects you. Spiritual warfare in its simplest definition is simply the fight to believe God's truth over the enemy's lies. For the believer, spiritual warfare is all about overcoming deception. The way the enemy attacks you is through deception. The enemy lies to the believer and those lies, once they are believed, become mindsets or strongholds. And those strongholds cause believers to act and feel in certain ways. And when the believer acts and feels according to those lies, they cannot act or feel according to the truth. So again, spiritual warfare is simply the fight to believe God's truth over the enemy's lies. Now, of course, there are many dynamics of spiritual warfare, and it's important to note that demonic attacks affect believers and unbelievers very differently. When a demonic being attacks a believer, it's all about getting that believer to believe a lie, and of course, that lie produces deception, which produces the stronghold, which produces actions and behavior that are contrary to the way a believer should act or behave. But when a demonic being attacks an unbeliever, it's completely different. We see things like oppression and possession and so forth. But when it comes to you, God's child, it's important that you engage in spiritual warfare, knowing that you are fighting the battle for truth in your mind. Nonbelievers actually don't even engage in spiritual warfare. They don't have the motive and they don't have the means to fight back, but you do. As a believer, God has given you every single thing you need to stand against all of the attacks of the enemy. Now listen to what I'm saying here, because it's important that you hear how I'm wording it. God has given you everything that you need to stand against all of the attacks of the enemies. There's nothing that the enemy can do that God has not prepared you for. I'll show it to you in Scripture. Ephesians chapter 6 will begin at verse number 10. A final word, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power. Put on God's armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil. Now wait a minute here. The Scripture says that if you simply put on the armor of God, that you'll have everything that you need to stand against all the attacks of the enemy. That means this portion of Scripture that we are about to read will equip you to stand against every single demonic attack. And this is where believers complicate things. We add to the Scripture and instead of producing power, we produce superstition. Instead of approaching spiritual warfare truthfully, we approach spiritual warfare religiously. And in approaching spiritual warfare religiously, we get caught in confusion. We get taken off track wandering into the bizarre and the weird world of doctrines that are not founded upon the truth of God's Word. Simply put, there's nothing the enemy can do to you if you believe and live according to what this Scripture is telling us, what this portion of Scripture is telling us. There's nothing that the enemy can bring against you that God has not prepared you for. There is no attack outside of this that the enemy can act against you. I'll read it again, put on all of God's armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil. For we are not fighting against flesh and blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world and against evil spirits in the heavenly places. Therefore, put on every piece of God's armor so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then after the battle you will be standing firm. So we have to realize that we are in fact engaged in spiritual warfare. Demons are real, devils are real, spiritual assault is real. Demonic attacks affect and can heavily affect believers. That's a reality. The Scripture tells us of that reality. But on the other hand, the Scripture also gives us everything we need to combat the enemy. And if we will do this, we will stand strong against the powers of darkness. Verse 14, stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth and the body armor of God's righteousness. For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the good news so that you will be fully prepared. In addition to all these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil. Put on salvation as your helmet and take the sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God. Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere. Now I want you to notice something. Every piece of armor has to do with either fighting temptation or fighting deception. And temptation really is just another form of deception. Everything we are given, we are given to fight deception. Look at it here. Again in verse 11, the Bible tells us that we are going to stand against all the strategies of the enemy if we apply the armor of God. Now here this word for strategy means deceit, cunning arts, trickery. So deception, we're fighting deception. The belt of truth. Truth is believed in the mind. The body armor of righteousness, there again we see temptation which is a form of deception. But righteousness, in order to live righteously, you must be of the right mindset. First you believe according to the truth and then you live according to the truth. We see the shoes of peace. Peace is something that takes place in the mind. He gives you peace of mind. That peace comes when you believe the message of salvation. The shield of faith. This is belief in the word of God. Belief in the promises of God. Belief in divine truth over demonic deception. Shield of faith. Helmet of salvation. Now even if the helmet doesn't necessarily have anything to do with the mind, at least in this context, that doesn't mean that salvation doesn't ultimately come by faith. And then we see the sword of the spirit. And before I talk on the sword of the spirit, let me point out once more. Belt of truth. Armor of righteousness. Shoes of peace. Shield of faith. Helmet of salvation. All of this has to do with the mind. Overcoming deception and temptation, which again is another form of deception. The sword of the spirit. Now all of the other pieces of armor are defensive. The sword of the spirit is offensive. It's by using all of the other pieces of armor that we defend ourselves against the deception of the enemy. But it's only by the sword of the spirit, the word of God, the truth of the word of God, that we utterly destroy the lies that even lead to deception in the first place. So if we want to engage in spiritual war, we must pick up the armor of God. We must wear that belt of truth. We must walk in righteousness. We must carry the peace of God. We must use the shield of faith. I like to say that the sword and the shield work hand in hand with one you destroy the lies, with the other you defend yourself against the lies. But that sword is key because you can't live on the defensive forever. You can't just live your whole life trying to block out the lies of the enemy. You must go after the enemy in your life and you go after the enemy, not through ritual, not through incantation, not through renouncing this or renouncing that, not through special sessions that are drawn out, simply by the word of God. You will know the truth and the truth will set you free. Where the spirit of the Lord is there is liberty and the spirit is definitely in the sword of the spirit. So instead of just defending yourself and living your spirituality on the defensive, constantly worried about how the enemy might attack you, go after him with the sword of the spirit. So if the enemy tells you that you're alone, you attack that lie with the sword of the spirit by saying he will never leave me nor forsake me. When the enemy tells you that you cannot be forgiven, you attack that lie of the enemy with the sword of the spirit by saying that he is faithful and just to forgive my sins. When the enemy tells you that God has abandoned you, that you're not loved, that you're not going to make it, you fight back with the truth of the Word of God. But if you're not in the Word and you don't know the truth, how are you supposed to attack the enemy? How are you supposed to tear down those strongholds? How are you supposed to destroy the deception of the enemy? You need the sword of the spirit to fight the lies and tear them down. So yes, live righteously. Yes, live with peace and truth. Yes, put on the armor of God, but also take the sword. Fight this battle for truth. And you will find that once you begin to believe according to God's Word, you will begin to feel and act according to God's Word. See, a lot of people approach spiritual warfare from the other way. They approach it from their feelings. They approach it from their religious acts. But instead of approaching it from the outer man, approach it from the inner man where there's true power by attacking the enemy at the root of his assault. Get to the bottom of the lie. And the only way you're going to expose the lie is through the light of truth, the sword of the spirit. So it's time to take up the armor of God. He's given you every single thing that you need to stand against the enemy. Take up that sword. Take up the armor. Defend yourself. Believe the promises of God. Put on truth. Put on peace. Put on righteousness. Go and destroy the lies with the truth of God's Word. Father, in the name of Jesus, I pray right now for that one receiving this, and I ask you, Lord, to reveal truth. Help us, Lord, to be equipped with your armor. Help us, Father, to be equipped with truth, that we might destroy the works of the enemy in our lives, that we might destroy the deception of the enemy, that the light of your truth dissolve every shadow of deception. Equip us gone, that we might engage in this battle that rages in the spirit. In Jesus' name we pray. And I want you to say it because you believe it. Say amen. Well, that is it for the lesson here now is a question for conversation. What are some common lies that the enemy uses to deceive Christians? Tell me about it in the comment section. Now here are some comments from a previous video titled, Do What Jesus Did, Four Ministry Secrets of Jesus. Morgan Whitlow writes, I'm so thankful for the teachings of this ministry. I could feel the power of the Holy Spirit as we prayed at the end of the sermon. Ringu M writes, This was so inspiring, Pastor. Thank you for your ministry. Blessings from India. Judith Perez says, Thank you for sharing. The way you teach is so easy to understand. Tessie Mueller writes, Thank you so much, David, for this teaching. The Holy Spirit spoke to me through it. You inspired me so much. God bless. And the final comment comes from Emily Laramore, who writes, This teaching so blessed me, it was extremely helpful. And during the prayer, I felt the Holy Spirit's power. One more time, I want to remind you, if you're watching us on YouTube, make sure you subscribe and please click that notification bell. Also, leave a like on this video to help support and spread the gospel message. And another way you can support is by giving to this ministry and supporting it financially. 1 Corinthians chapter 12 verse 27 says, This all of you together are Christ's body. And each of you is a part of it. Do you realize that when you give to this ministry, you are joining hands with other believers from all around the world. And it's what we do together for God that yields the greatest results. When you give to this ministry, you're not just partnering with me or with Stephen Mock the zoomer or team members. 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