Ephesians 6:10-20: How to Fight Sin in God's Strength

Ephesians 6:10-11.. "Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil."

Within common circles of Christianity, we often hear the idea of how we aren't supposed to fight our sin in our own power, but rather in God's power. This idea is certainly a biblical one--our power and strength will never be enough to do what God has commanded of us (see Zechariah 4:6). In other words, without God's power, we will never be able to overcome sin, and we therefore must draw upon that power instead of looking inside ourselves to fight temptation. However, what I want to discuss today is how we do this. So often the adage is clear: "fight sin with God's power, not yours," but how is this actually accomplished? How do I step into fighting my sin in the strength of God instead of the strength of myself?

Ephesians 6:10-20 certainly can help us answer this question. After Paul admonishes his readers (and therefore us as well) to "be strong in the Lord" (that is, to stand firm against temptation and not have it overcome us via the strength of God), he follows this up by "put on the whole armor of God." Hmmm. It is almost as if Paul is trying to tell us how we ought to stand firm against sin in the power of God. Surely, he is. We fight our sin by the power of God by wearing the armor of God.

Think about an actual soldier. Minutes before battle, is there anything that he can physically do of himself to make him withstand his enemy's attacks? In days leading up to the battle, certain amounts of training, dietary techniques, and mental preparation could have certainly been helpful. But from a physical standpoint minutes before the battle, the only thing he can do is put on his armor. He cannot tell himself to grow a bullet-proof vest under his chest hair, or suddenly become resistant to any form of enemy attack. Rather, he must submit to the fact that he needs help outside of himself to win this battle--he needs armor.

Likewise is our battle against spiritual warfare. Though we can certainly avoid certain situations that may be more tempting for us, when the actaul battle comes, we need to draw upon strength that is outside of ourselves in order to win. We must draw upon the strength of God by wearing his armor. We must wear our belt of truth, that holds all things together as we trust in God's promises. We must wear the breastplate of righteousness, that keeps the devil from condemning our hearts. We must wear the shoes of the gospel of peace, that we might be able to stand upon the fact that we are eternally reconciled to God. We must take up the shield of faith, that even though it might cover our sight, we can take great confidence that istwill deflect the darts of the evil one. We must take up the helmet of salvation, so that our minds are protected by the fact that we are safe in Christ. We must take up the sword of the Spirit, that we will be equipped to both defend and offend (as in, "make a positive attack" not "insult") ourselves with the truth of God's Word. Taking up these six pieces of armor (and not leaving any of them behind) is how we fight sin with God's strength and not our own.

So, how have you been doing fighting sin with the power of God? Have you truly realized that to fight in God's strength is to take up the fullness of his armor? Stop trying to fight sin in your own strength. Take up your armor, and stand firm in the Lord.