The Whole Armor Of God Get Prepared For Battle Introduction 07-19-2026

July 19, 2026

Pastor John Stirewalt

Morning, church. I want y'all to come on and open your Bibles with me this morning to the book of Ephesians, chapter 6. We’re going to be in verses 10 through 13. I want to tell y'all this. I want you to think about something with me. Every single one of us woke up today in a war zone. Now, I’m not talking about overseas. I’m not talking about some far-off battlefield you see on the news. I’m talking about right here. Right now. In your living room. In your truck on the way to work. In your own mind. You ever have one of those days where everything is going fine? The coffee is hot, the sun is shining, and then—out of nowhere—the doubt hits? The temptation shows up? The fear creeps in? You didn’t go looking for a fight, church, but the fight came looking for you. That is because we have an enemy. And church, he doesn’t take days off. He doesn’t care if you’re tired. He doesn’t care if you’re hurting. He doesn’t care if you just had a funeral or if you just lost your job. The Bible says in 1 Peter 5:8, "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour." Now here’s the thing. A lot of Christians are getting devoured today. And it’s not because they aren’t saved. It’s not because they don’t love the Lord. It’s because they showed up to a gunfight with a butter knife. They are going into battle with no armor on. And that’s what this series is about. Over the next few weeks, we are going to suit up. We’re going to look at every piece of armor that God has given us—not armor we made ourselves, not armor the world offers—but the armor that God Himself has provided. The belt of truth. The breastplate of righteousness. The shoes of the gospel of peace. The shield of faith. The helmet of salvation. The sword of the Spirit. Every single piece matters. Every single piece has a purpose. And church, you need every one of them. Because the devil doesn’t fight fair. He’ll hit you where you’re weakest. He’ll attack when you’re not paying attention. He’ll whisper lies when you’re alone at night. He’ll use your past against you. He’ll use your family against you. So let’s look at our text. Let’s go to Ephesians 6, starting in verse 10. The Reality of the War First, I want you to see the reality of the war. Look at verse 10: "Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might." Church, think about that. Paul doesn’t say "be strong in yourself." He doesn’t say "pull yourself up by your bootstraps." He says be strong in the Lord. Why? Because you and I don’t have enough power for this fight on our own. I’m just an uneducated country preacher, but I know this: if I try to fight the devil in my own strength, I’m going to lose. I need the power of His might. And look at verse 11. "Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil." Now, I love that word: "wiles." That means tricks. Schemes. Traps. The devil is a deceiver. He is the father of lies. He’s not going to come at you with a sign that says "Here comes trouble." No, he’s going to sneak in the back door. He’s going to make sin look good. He’s going to make bitterness look like justice. He’s going to make worry look like being responsible. But God has given us armor to stand against those tricks. The Nature of the Enemy Now look at verse 12. "For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places." I want y’all to hear me. This is the part we forget. We think our fight is with our neighbor. We think our fight is with our boss. We think our fight is with our spouse. But the Bible says we don’t wrestle against flesh and blood. When someone cuts you off in traffic, that’s flesh and blood. But the rage that rises up in your heart? That’s spiritual. When your kids are acting out and you want to give up? That’s a spiritual attack on your family. When you feel so depressed you can’t get out of bed? That’s the rulers of darkness trying to take you out. We have to stick together, church, because we are fighting an invisible enemy. And if you try to fight an invisible enemy with your physical eyes, you’re going to miss it every time. The Call to Stand So what do we do? Look at verse 13. "Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand." "Having done all, to stand." That word "stand" is a military term. It means to hold your ground. It means when the smoke clears and the battle is over, you are still on your feet. Not running. Not hiding. Not giving up. Standing. I ask you today, are you standing? Or are you wavering? Maybe you’re listening by way of Facebook or the podcast this morning, and you feel like you’re about to fall. You feel like the weight of the world is on your shoulders. You feel like the enemy is winning. Church, I’m here to tell you today: do not quit. It ain’t time to quit. The battle is just getting started, but so are we. God has not left you defenseless. He has given you everything you need to survive this fight. But you have to put it on. You can’t leave the armor in the closet. You can’t say, "I’ll get serious about my faith next week." The enemy is active today. So we must be ready today. The Pieces of the Armor Now, in the coming weeks, we are going to break down every single piece of this armor. We’re going to talk about the Belt of Truth—how truth holds everything else together. We’re going to talk about the Breastplate of Righteouship—how living right protects your heart. We’re going to talk about the Shoes of the Gospel—how we carry peace into a chaotic world. We’re going to talk about the Shield of Faith—how faith extinguishes the fiery darts of the wicked one. We’re going to talk about the Helmet of Salvation—how knowing you are saved protects your mind. And we’re going to talk about the Sword of the Spirit—the Word of God—which is our only offensive weapon. Every piece is vital. You can’t skip one. If a soldier goes to war with no helmet, he’s a target. If he goes with no shield, he’s going to get burned. We need the whole armor. The Gospel Connection But before we go any further, I have to tell you this. None of this armor works if you don’t know the Commander. You see, the armor of God is for the children of God. If you are here today and you have never surrendered your life to Jesus Christ, you are fighting naked. You are exposed. But Jesus loves you. He died on that cross for your sins. He shed His blood so you could be forgiven. And if you will call on His name today, He will save you. He will enlist you. He will arm you. And for those of us who are saved—church, let’s wake up. Let’s stop living like victims. Let’s start living like the soldiers God called us to be. Conclusion So, let’s go to the Lord in prayer. Father God, we come before You this morning in the name of Jesus. Lord, we confess that we have been sleeping. We have been complacent. We have been trying to fight battles in our own strength and we have been losing. But today, Lord, we are waking up. We are asking You to help us put on the whole armor of God. Help us to stand firm. Help us to be vigilant. Help us to recognize the enemy’s schemes. I pray for the dads listening today. I pray for the moms. I pray for the young people. Lord, protect our families. Unite this church. Let us be a church that stands firm in the faith. And Lord, if there is anyone here who doesn’t know You, I pray that today would be the day of salvation. Draw them to Yourself. Save them by Your grace. We love You, Lord. We thank You for Your armor. We thank You that we do not fight alone. In Jesus’ name, Amen. And the church. Amen.