The Doorpost: Ephesians 6:17—Strap on your sword
By Ray King · Jun 05, 2013
… and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
Ephesians 6:17
We have been looking at the pieces of armor we must use if we are to be obedient in our struggle against the powers of darkness. Ephesians 6 tells us this is a spiritual struggle and names all the pieces of armor we need for this. The final thing we need is our sword.
Every piece of armor we have considered so far is defensive. The sword is the first item that can be used for offense as well as defense. This passage tells us that in the Christian life, our sword is the word of God.
How can we use the word of God defensively? We can see Jesus’ example when He was tempted by the devil in Matthew 4 and Luke 4. He didn’t rely on clever arguments or His own willpower. He used the word of Truth to combat the enemy’s deceptions.
He also used the Word as an offensive weapon when He ministered to people. “For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account” (Hebrews 4:12-13). God can see into every person. His Word works in our lives, dealing with things we have managed to hide from others and possibly even from ourselves. It does the same when we use it lovingly and graciously as we minister to others.
If we are to use our “sword” effectively, we must know it well. We must be ready to use it at any moment. Scripture memorization is the most effective way, if not the only way, to truly be prepared all the time. Otherwise, we are almost certain to be caught without our sword. We must always be hiding more and more of God’s Word in our hearts so we can be increasingly effective in our struggle with the powers of darkness. If we are unwilling to do this, we probably really aren’t serious about standing as a soldier of Jesus Christ.