ROMANS 13:11-14 – Besides this you know the time, that the hour has come for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed. The night is far gone; the day is at hand. So then let us cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light. Let us walk properly as in the daytime, not in orgies and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and sensuality, not in quarreling and jealousy. But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires.”
THEME OF THE DAY: DRESS FOR THE WEATHER. It is mid-January in southern New England. Yes, it is cold. Sometimes very cold. In my home we have a dog who gets walked every morning rain, snow, hot, and yes, cold. The weather doesn’t stop the daily chore, but the weather does dictate how we go on the walk. And recently, it has required heavy jacket, gloves, scarf, protective hat, and boots. We check outside by sight and then check the temperature by an app, and as goes the weather so we dress.
In the daily spiritual battles we face, we must “dress for battle” and that means two things; knowing the “elements” or foes we face and knowing the proper battle gear to wear. The Bible teaches us we face three enemies of our souls. There is the crafty devil who is malicious to the core seeking to devour us – Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour (1 Peter 5:8). We also must do battle against an alluring world that wants to entice us away from affection for the Lord Jesus – Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever (1 John 2:15-17). Our third enemy, and the most difficult of all, is ourselves or our remaining flesh. It wars constantly against God’s Spirit, and unless relentlessly fought, will bring us to constant spiritual defeat. The Apostle Paul details this intense conflict in his letter to the Galatians – But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do (Galatians 5:16-17).
Once we understand our foes, we dress for battle. In today’s scripture, the Apostle Paul direct us to “put on the Lord Jesus Christ” for He is truly the believer’s battle gear. How do we do this? Multiple ways such as the specific pieces of armor in Ephesians 6:10-18. Another way is remembering and then applying in our daily conflicts all that the Lord Jesus is to us as revealed in the following – And because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption (1 Corinthians 1:30). Jesus, as our wisdom, grants us application of His Word in battle; Jesus, as our righteousness, silences the accusations of the devil; Jesus, as our sanctification, has set us apart for His possession freed from Satan’s dominion, and Jesus, our redemption, puts us under His protective care as the One owning us by the cost of His own blood.
Dress for the weather. Dress for battle. Know the elements. Know the foes, then put on the appropriate battle gear – the Lord Jesus and all He is to us.
PRAYER: “Father, help me to prepare each day for the spiritual battles I will face each day.”
QUOTE: “Put on the Lord Jesus Christ is a command and necessity to fight the good fight of faith.”
In the affection of Christ Jesus,
Pastor Jim