This is War! Putting on the Full Armor (Pt. 3)

Part 3

“Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.”

                                                                                                            Ephesians 6:14-17

Before we can effectively defend our ground we must understand how the armor God has provided for us functions. The short and simple answer is this: Armor is put on for protection! This means that each piece of armor is significant in what it protects and how it protects.

So we want to begin our discussion on the full-armor of God by focusing, on what I believe to be, the single most important piece of armor provided and that is the belt of truth:

“Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist.”- Ephesians 6:14

For the ancient Roman soldier this leather belt wrapped around his waist and was fastened securely into place by a buckle. The leather straps draping the front of the belt provided protection to the soldier’s vital organs: kidneys and liver.

However, the loin belt also had another very important function. The loin belt held all the other pieces of armor in place. Without it, everything would fall away or apart. The Apostle Paul referred to this belt in Ephesians 6 as the loin belt of truth. Truth, for every born-again believer, is the most important element of our armor. Like the Roman belt it ought to encircle our lives and be securely fastened as not to be moved. Truth cannot be a shifting part of our armor. Instability in its security will cause vulnerability with every other area.

So what is truth? Jesus defines it this way:

“Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth.”-John 17:17

Truth is not our opinion, not what is culturally acceptable, and not what is politically correct. Truth is the word of God! The unchanging, unfailing Word of God!

“Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.”-Psalm 119:105

It is this truth that David spoke of in Psalm 51:6: “Surely you desire truth in the inner parts; you teach me wisdom in the inmost place.” In fact Jesus told his disciples in John 8:31-32: “If you hold to my teachings you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth and the truth will set you free.”

Truth is essential to victory! As a believer, you cannot live victoriously without the word of God having an active central role in your life. When we cease to read and apply the word of God on a daily basis it is only a matter of time before we fall to pieces spiritually. Our ability to appropriate and understand the rest of our spiritual armor rests on our knowledge of truth.

 

Pastor Scott Burr

Lead Pastor

Dayspring Community Church

 

 

This is War! Putting on the Full Armor (Pt.2)

“Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.”

                                                                                                            Ephesians 6:13

It is every Christians’ responsibility to show up in the battle against wickedness! Ephesians 6:13 instructs that each of us are to put on the full armor of God and stand our ground against evil. This means that each of us is to show up fully equipped to engage the enemy and fight alongside our brothers and sisters in Christ.

In ancient Rome, no soldier went to the battlefield without being fully armed and dressed for battle. The Roman legions were an imposing and impressive force. The sight alone of these well trained and properly equipped soldiers would send chills up the spines of their enemies. 

This was no ragtag army. They each carried with them everything they needed to win.

Does the enemy we face see us as an impressive and imposing force? Does Satan tremble when he sees the people of God? Or are we just a ragtag army? Ragtag armies were recognized as being ill-equipped. Some had armor, others did not. Some carried a sword, others did not. Some had shields, others did not. This meant that each soldier had an area of vulnerability, which left the army open to defeat.

How then should we be dressed to face our enemy?

“Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.”

                                                                                                Ephesians 6:14-17

Each of these pieces of armor play a vital role in our war against wickedness and each of us must put on the entire armor if we are going to be effective in battle. Author Rick Renner in his book “Spiritual Weapons to Defeat the Enemy” made this observation:

“God has not left us naked before the enemy. He has provided us with spiritual weaponry that has the ability to counter-attack and defeat any scheme that the devil would try to use against us. God knows that in or for us to successfully fight the unseen powers that have been marshaled against us, we must have His special supernatural power that He has provided for this fight.”

We must then appropriate the armor God has provided for us and then stand our ground; because when we do not show up to fight we forfeit the ground we have been assigned to defend!

Pastor Scott Burr

Lead Pastor

Dayspring Community Church

This is War!!!! Putting on the Full Armor (Pt.1)

"Finally, be strong in The Lord and in His mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes."
                                                                                                                         Ephesians 6:10-11

As I read that passage this week I was struck by Paul's instruction to the Ephesians. He told them to be strong in the Lord, put on the full armor of God, and take their stand against the devil's schemes. Whether you want to believe it or not, we are in a battle against evil. This is not a war being waged on foreign soil that we watch from afar and can escape by changing the television channel. It is being waged in our hearts, homes, marriages, schools, governments, churches and communities.
It is a war that is inflicting heavy losses and countless casualties primarily because believers are deserting the battle. Why? Because we have failed to teach God's soldiers how to stand against evil without attacking people:

"For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in heavenly realms."
                                                                                                            
                                                                                                                               Ephesians 6:12

How do we stand against the wickedness and evil in our world when it is being carried out, embraced, and supported by our friends, families, classmates and co-workers? How do we maintain our integrity and stand firm in our convictions when we are being maligned by a culture that opposes our moral and biblical worldview.

Our biggest struggle in this war against wickedness is being able to separate the evil being done from the person who is subjecting us to it. The battle becomes personal. We attack each other by belittling, humiliating, and demeaning each other even though, and this passage is clear that, our battle is not against flesh and blood!

Satan loves this!

As long as we are attacking each other we are not taking the fight to him. The primary reason we don't take the fight to him is that we have no idea what waging war against evil looks like and consequently have become ill-equipped to fight that way:

"For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds."

                                                                                                       2 Corinthians  10:3-4

Instead of taking a stand against evil; we fight the way the world does. We attack and kill each other rather than taking the fight to Satan's doorstep. We are at war, but before we engage the battle we need to be equipped!

Making Room for Prayer (Pt. 3 of 3)

(Part 3 of 3)

“And as he taught them, he said, “Is it not written: “My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations? But you have made it ‘a den of robbers.’” The chief priests and the teachers of the law heard this and began looking for a way to kill him, for they feared him, because the whole crowd was amazed at his teaching.”

                                                                                              

                                                                                                   Mark 11:17-18

Beware of becoming religious! The response to Jesus’ declaration to restore prayer to the spiritual life of Israel was swift. Unfortunately, the response was not one of repentance and vowing to return prayer to its proper place, but instead Jesus’ plea was met with a rebellious response housed in the form of religious indignation.

If fact, the religious leaders response to Jesus’ emphasis on prayer was the classic retort of many who are unwilling to repent of their sin; kill the messenger! They would rather kill Jesus before they would toss out those things that were occupying their lives; causing them abandon prayer as a vital component of their faith.

So it is with many people today. They would rather ignore the scripture, redefine faith, belittle pastors, and degrade the church before they would toss out those things in their lives that have caused them to abandon prayer as a vital component of their faith.

Their actions speak volumes to the real depth of their spiritual maturity. In fact, in my opinion, our time spent in prayer is a better indicator of our faith in God than our praise could ever be. Praise demonstrates our appreciation and thankfulness towards God. Prayer communicates our dependency on Him.

By eliminating the place of prayer, the religious leaders of Jesus day were proclaiming that they had stopped depending on God. They had no problem praising God and offering up adoration, but they abandoned the discipline that expressed a dependency on Him.

Armin R. Gesswein once said, “If you want to see how popular the church is, attend Sunday morning worship. If you want to see how popular the pastor is, attend Sunday evening. If you want to see how popular God is, attend the prayer meeting.”

How about you? Have you abandoned the place of prayer? What is occupying the time that you spend in prayer? Do you attend the prayer meeting at your church? Does your church even have prayer meetings?

It is time to toss over some tables and drive some things out so that we can once again make room for prayer!

Pastor Scott Burr                                                                    

http://faithandworshipseries.blogspot.com/

Making Room for Prayer (Pt. 2)

(Part 2)

“Those who went ahead and those who followed shouted, “Hosanna!” “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!” “Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David!” “Hosanna in the highest!” Jesus entered Jerusalem and went to the temple. He looked around at everything, but since it was late, he went out to Bethany with the Twelve.”

                                                                                                Mark 11:9-11

One thing that caught Jesus’ attention when he entered the temple was that the passion he had just heard in their praise did not carry into their place of prayer. If the only gauge we used to measure spiritual maturity was praise, we would assume that the people were spiritually healthy. However, upon reaching the temple’s outer courts, Jesus was shocked when he observed that the place of prayer had been hijacked and was being used as a marketplace. This obvious discrepancy is what led to his addressing the fig tree in full view of his disciples.

“The next day as they were leaving Bethany, Jesus was hungry. Seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to find out if it had any fruit. When he reached it, he found nothing but leaves, because it was not the season for figs. Then he said to the tree, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again.” And his disciples heard him say it.”

                                                                                                           

                                                                                                      Mark 11:12-14

People who praise without making room to pray are like a fig tree in leaf that bears no fruit.  A person whose life is devoid of prayer will eventually, spiritually speaking, wither and die. Why?  A lack of prayer demonstrates an absolute lack of faith in God.

We pray because we believe that we serve a God that cares about us and our needs. To abandon prayer demonstrates a faith in self, lack of need for God, or the belief that He cares little about our needs. As we begin to demonstrate greater and greater trust in ourselves, we will abandon the place of prayer in our lives. The lack of prayer in our lives is communicating just how much value we truly place on it.

By overturning the tables and running out the money changers, Jesus was establishing the importance of prayer:

“On reaching Jerusalem, Jesus entered the temple area and began driving out those who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves, and would not allow anyone to carry merchandise through the temple courts. And as he taught them, he said, “Is it not written: “My House will be called a house of prayer for all nations’? But you have made it a ‘den of robbers.’”

                                                                                                            Mark 11: 15-17

Jesus was reclaiming and restoring what was being robbed from the people, by expunging those things that were occupying its space. If you abandon the place of prayer, it well get occupied with something! What’s occupying your prayer time?

Pastor Scott Burr                                                                    

http://faithandworshipseries.blogspot.com/

Making Room for Prayer (Pt.1)

(Part 1)

“Jesus entered Jerusalem and went to the temple. He looked around at everything, but since it was late, he went out to Bethany with the twelve.”

                                                                                                            Mark 11:11

What was it that day Jesus was so curious to see? In the opening verses of Mark 11 we see Jesus entering into Jerusalem. He is led in, riding on donkey, with scores of people spreading out their cloaks, waving palm branches, and praising God. They believed that their Messiah had finally come.

However, upon reaching the Temple, Jesus entered into the courts of the gentiles and found a disturbing sight. What used to be a place designated for the gentiles to come and pray and worship God had been turned into a marketplace.

What Jesus heard when he triumphantly rode into Jerusalem is not what he witnessed when he entered the temple; the passion he heard in their praise was not evident in other areas of their faith.

The next day as they were traveling back to Jerusalem from Bethany, Jesus and his disciples passed a fig tree:

“The next day as they were leaving Bethany, Jesus was hungry. Seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to find out if it had any fruit. When he reached it, he found nothing but leaves, because it was not the season for figs. Then he said to the tree, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again.” And his disciples heard him say it.”

                                                                                                            Mark 11:12-14

The tree appeared to be vibrant, alive, and growing from a distance; but upon closer inspection it did not bear any fruit.  Jesus’ experience in Jerusalem the day before was remarkably similar. They nation of Israel appeared to be vibrant, alive, and zealous for God; but upon closer inspection they were not bearing fruit.

Once past the throngs of praising people, past the beautiful edifices, and ornate temple aesthetics; Jesus discovered that the gentile’s place of prayer had been renovated into a farmer’s market!

The marketplace occupying their place of prayer made it impossible for them to pray and worship there. So Jesus went to work:

“On reaching Jerusalem, Jesus entered the temple area and began driving out those who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves, and would not allow anyone to carry merchandise through the temple courts. And as he taught them, he said, “Is it not written: “My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations?” But you have made it a den of robbers.”

                                                                                                            Mark 11:15-17

The people valued praise, but did not value prayer. How often is this scenario being played out in our lives? We make room for praise, but leave no room for prayer.

What have you set up in our life that is robbing you of your time, place, energy, or ability to pray?  Perhaps it is time to start overturning some tables!

Pastor Scott Burr                                                                    

http://faithandworshipseries.blogspot.com

Loaves and Fishes

(Part 3 of 3)

“The Pharisees came and began to question Jesus. To test him, they asked him for a sign from heaven. He sighed deeply and said, “Why does this generation ask for a miraculous sign? I tell you the truth; no sign will be given to it.” Then he left them and got back into the boat and crossed to the other side.”

                                                                                                                        Mark 8:11-13

Beware of a Pharisaical Spirit! As Jesus met the needs of the people; a religiously charged or super-spiritualized attitude rose among the religious leaders. Apparently the feeding of four thousand people with only seven loaves and two fish was not enough of a miracle for them; they needed a sign from heaven.

Jesus, concerned that His disciples may be influenced by these contaminated attitudes, addressed His disciples in Mark 8:14-15:

“The disciples had forgotten to bring bread, except for one loaf they had with them in the boat. “Be careful,” Jesus warned them. “Watch out for the yeast of the Pharisees and that of Herod.”

However, instead of gleaning what Jesus was attempting to teach them; all the disciples could focus on once again was their lack!

“They discussed this with one another and said, “It is because we have no bread.”

                                                                                                            Mark 8:16

The disciples had brought only one loaf of bread; and even though Jesus had just demonstrated what he could do with just a little; they looked at the little they had and declared “we have no bread.”

“Aware of their discussion, Jesus asked them: “Why are you talking about having no bread? Do you still not see or understand: Are your hearts hardened? Do you have eyes that fail to see and ears but fail to hear? And don’t you remember? When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many basketfuls of pieces did you pick up?” “Twelve,” they replied. “And when I broke the seven loaves for the four thousand, how many basketfuls of pieces did you pick up?” They answered, “Seven.” He said to them, “Do you still not understand?”

                                                                                                Mark 8:17-21

Jesus instruction to them had nothing at all to do with the bread! Jesus was teaching them that having little will never hinder a move of God, but a wrong spirit most certainly will.

Compassion is not about having the resource to meet the needs of the suffering; it is about having the desire to meet the needs. Some of you need to pray that God will fan the flame of compassion in your hearts to meet the needs of others. Others need to give thanks for what you have been given and begin setting it before the people. While there are some that need to abandon a pharisaical spirit  in order to see the miraculous work of God in meeting the needs of others.