The Bible equates life in this earth to warfare. The presence of evil, the acts of the sinful nature, and each person doing what is right in their own eyes has released trouble upon every soul in the earth. True believers in Jesus also experience attacks because of their faith. Many live in fear, others “buddy up” to the enemy hoping he will leave them off his attack list. Others seek a life of comfort in hope of escaping the battle of life. One thing is for sure: trouble is an equal opportunity presence. It will visit everyone no matter what their response to life is. You have a choice: you can choose to win over the evil of this life or you can choose to take another stance and be defeated and manipulated by evil and trouble and sell out your eternal destiny.

If you choose victory, there are four things you must do:

1. Be strong in the Lord.
2. Put on the full armor of God.
3. Know who your enemy is.
4. Pray God’s will in prayer.

God has supplied for you the same armor that Jesus wore in His victory over Satan and this world. When you put on the armor of God, you are putting on the Lord Jesus Christ. We’ve discussed the parts of the armor that cover the torso. Today, we talk about our battle stance. The Bible tells us that we are to have our feet shod with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. Let’s take a look at a few important things to know about this.

In biblical days, the Roman army was the most formidable fighting force in the world. Its legions were well trained and equipped. In Bible days – as is still the case in many instances today, the army which occupied the “high ground” had a tremendous advantage. The army on the high ground didn’t have to worry about defending their flanks. The army opposing them had to fight an uphill battle which was taxing on their energy and limited their tactics. As believers in Jesus, we occupy the “high ground”. The Bible tells us this in Ephesians 1:18-21 & Ephesians 2:6. What does this tell us? The same power that raised Jesus from the dead is at work in us and through us and we are seated in the seat of authority and victory over our enemies! This limits the enemies’ options as he fights us. He cannot control or manipulate us like he can nonbelievers so his weapons are limited to the areas of intimidation, temptation, and discouragement. If he can’t scare you, he will tempt you. If he can’t get you to fall for his counterfeits, then he will try to manipulate something in the natural realm to get you to doubt God and quit the fight.

The Roman legions of Bible days wore footwear that had hobnails sticking out from the soul. These hobnails were metal and they were sharpened so that the soldier would not slip as he fought in close quarters against his enemy. If a soldier slipped, he would have to drop his hands to catch himself. This lowered his shield and sword and gave the enemy an opportunity to strike him. The Bible tells us that our feet are shod with the readiness of the gospel of peace.

The Gospel (euaggélion) includes the entire Bible, i.e. it is not limited to how a person becomes a Christian. The good news.

eirḗnē (from eirō, "to join, tie together into a whole") – properly, wholeness, i.e. when all essential parts are joined together; peace (God's gift of wholeness).

This means that the soldier of the Lord is ready to face any type of situation that comes along; they are ready to go anywhere the Lord leads because they are founded in the good news that they are whole in Christ! They don’t slip on temporary bad news and drop their shield of faith or their sword of the Word. They stand in God’s truth that He is their wholeness and they trust His lordship over every situation!

Today’s Scriptures:
· Ephesians 6:10-18 (NIV)
· Ephesians 1:18-21 (NIV)
· Ephesians 2:6 (NIV)

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