Tagged: engaging the evil one

Armor for Spiritual Battle (Part 1)

The following excerpt is taken from What Every Christian Should Know About Satan. Order your copy in print, Kindle, or Audible versions here.

In the previous post, we introduced God’s plan for engaging the evil one: the full armor of God. Now, let’s turn our attention to the individual pieces of armor. The order in which they are described generally is the order in which soldiers put them on. 

Truth like a belt

While many modern translations refer to “truth like a belt” (CSB) or “the belt of truth” (ESV, NIV), the KJV renders it, “having your loins girt about with truth.” Similarly, the NASB 1995 says, “having girded your loins with truth.” The latter understanding may be more to the point. 

Ancient warriors and athletes, like other people of the time, wore loose-fitting clothing, which needed to be gathered and secured before any physical activity could ensue. This was done in different ways and for different purposes (see 2 Kings 4:29; Luke 12:35-36; John 13:4-5). The metaphor of girding is used in Scripture because it describes the need to prepare oneself for the spiritual work ahead.

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Engaging the Evil One

The following excerpt is taken from What Every Christian Should Know About Satan. Order your copy in print, Kindle, or Audible versions here.

Throughout this study, we have explored various names and titles for the archenemy of mankind. Satan stands defiantly against God and God’s creatures. He appears as a beautiful and seductive “burning one” in Genesis 3. Then, across the pages of Scripture, we see his story unfold in nightmarish fashion as he slanders God, engages in hand-to-hand combat in the heavenly realms, and seeks to ruin the very beings God created as his imagers – namely, you and me. 

Often, the evil one is successful. But he wages war in a shrinking theater. First thrown out of heaven, then cast to earth, then confined to the abyss, he finally is banished to the lake of fire, a place God specifically prepares for him and his spirit saboteurs.

At every diabolical turn, the evil one finds himself set back on his heels. First, in the wake of Adam and Eve’s fall, Yahweh promises his human creatures a redeemer – the seed of woman – who is to crush the evil one’s head, although at great personal cost (Gen. 3:15). Next, God bars humans from the tree of life so they won’t be bound eternally in a fallen state (Gen. 3:22-24). 

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