Life throws darts at you. Every. Day. Sometimes they fly by you so fast they seem like arrows, flaming arrows, the kind intended to destroy you. But I have good news. There’s a weapon for that. It’s the shield of faith. Your faith in Christ is a shield against the attacks of life, the attacks of your spiritual enemy, the devil.
In every situation take the shield of faith, and with it you will be able to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. (Ephesians 6:16)
The Roman shields were big, not small like Captain America’s shield. 😉
Rectangular in shape and curved back on the sides, these shields weighed more than 22 lbs each and stood more than 3 1/2 feet in height. They were made of three sheets of wood glued together, covered with canvas and leather. Their shape and size allowed for great protection against the enemy, particularly when soldiers stood together, putting their shields in front of them, making a wall of protection as their shields stood side-by-side on the ground. The canvas, leather and wood would not only stop the arrows from hitting the soldiers, but also they would extinguish all the fiery darts.
Spiritually speaking, the shield of faith is a:
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- shield of belief in God
- shield of trust in God
- shield of dependence on God
- shield of faithfulness to God
- shield of obedience to God
- shield of hope in God
God gives us a shield of faith to extinguish the flaming arrows:
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- arrows of deceit
- arrows of disobedience
- arrows of distraction
- arrows of discouragement
- arrows of depression
- arrows of doubt
- arrows of destruction
- arrows of discrediting God’s Word
- arrows of division
The shield of faith will protect you from everything that comes against you, the things trying to pull you down. And, the Lord will put other followers of Jesus near you, so that their shields of faith will help protect you too. But wait. It gets better. Not only does the Lord give you a shield. The Bible says that the Lord is your shield.
The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in Him, and I am helped. Therefore my heart rejoices, and I praise Him with my song. (Psalm 28:7)
God extinguishes the arrows — every one of them. He absorbs them. He is your shield. Hold fast to your shield of faith, your faith in Jesus Christ.
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