Hi, SWORDS!

SWORDS Bible Study: Eph 6:17b…and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:

By Mari

Whether your favorite swordsman is Kevin Costner in Robin Hood or Johnny Depp in Pirates of the Caribbean, it is stirring to learn that we are learning to wield the Sword of the Spirit:

Eph 6:17b…and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God”

In the spiritual armor that we have been studying, the sword of the Spirit is the only offensive weapon with which we have been provided to overcome Satan and his evil host.  The sword of the Roman soldier was an unmistakable offensive weapon.  One look at the soldier, and you just knew that “he beareth not the sword in vain” (Rom.13:4).  But the sword of the Spirit is no common sword of steel born by some mere Roman soldier!

In the hands of a believer, our sword can do things that no ordinary sword can do…look here:

Heb 4:12 For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

Wow! How incredible is the sword that the Lord has inspired and perfectly preserved for us!  It boggles the imagination to think of the POWER of the word of God, and to think that we can hold it in our hands and speak it with our lips!

Now…think about this fact…it is THE sword…of the Holy Spirit! That means that the POWER of THIS SWORD comes from the HOLY SPIRIT of GOD!  And we are not only ALLOWED to use this amazing sword, we are COMMANDED to use it!  And since it is the only offensive piece of equipment we have, if we don’t use it, we are like the soldier who has no gun, no knife, no grenade or any source of offense to go into battle to win!

Hebrews 4:12 says that this part of our armour is “quick,” or living and active!  It cannot be less if it can pierce and divide asunder the soul and spirit…the joints and marrow…and be a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.  And yet when we take up this sword and use it properly we speak the very truth of God. When we use it to share Christ with the unsaved, it has the power to discern the thoughts and intents of their heart.

So why do we fear when we try to share Christ?

We fear for the body, for our personality being hurt or defamed, but we shouldn’t fear for our physical lives, for they are nothing…except to show and preach the cross of Christ.  And when equipped with God’s armor we are spiritually safe and secure, and equipped with the sword of the Spirit we are able to wage a good warfare against the rulers and wickedness in high places, etc! (Eph 6:12!)

We may use the sword of the Spirit to offensively engage those who preach and teach false doctrine, and those who fail to rightly divide the Word of truth!  Remembering that we are not fighting people, because we are not waring against flesh and blood!

We should correct bad doctrine, and false teachers should be reproved. We do this with the powerful truth of the word of God. In other words we are not using the Bible (i.e., sword of the Spirit) as an instrument of attack to destroy a person, flesh and blood, but towards the bad doctrine and false teaching. Our Apostle Paul tells us we are to defend his gospel, as Jesus Christ will judge the secrets of men, according to Paul’s gospel. Remembering that this truth comes with the power of the Holy Spirit!

Rom 2:16 In the day when God shall judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ according to my gospel.

We should want to use this sword the Lord has provided us because we are eternal!  Because we are of God!  Because He lives in us and we in Him…because we are not looking just to make our physical lives easier by keeping quiet, we are looking to please our God, we are looking to our eternal reward, to reign with Christ forever!

Are you as thrilled as I am?  Is it the most thrilling and humbling thing you have ever heard?  It is to me, because the Lord not only gave us defensive armor, He gave us this offensive weapon that we can use to also further protect ourselves from sin. We can, if we so choose, take advantage of what God has given us, use the sword to actively and forcefully defend ourselves in the battle with sin that we are in daily. The war waged between the spirit and the flesh.  (Gal 5:17)

It has been said that the best defense is a good offense.  We cannot lose a spiritual battle to sin if we use the offensive weapon of the word of God! Remembering how we deal with the temptations of the flesh by knowing who we are in Christ by the word of God!

Rom 6:6 Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin.

Rom 6:7 For he that is dead is freed from sin.

It is through studying and knowing the word of God that we can be joyful and at peace!

What purpose did the sword serve in the Roman army?

The Roman gladius has become known as “the sword that conquered the world.”  Adapted from a Spanish design, in close range combat the gladius was a fearsome tool in the hand of a skilled Roman warrior. When sharpened, its dual edges wreaked havoc on unarmored foes, while its tapered point could pierce through even heavy metal armor.

Of course, a Roman infantryman would go into battle armed with more than just his gladius. He would also have a dagger, several one-time use spears and lead-weighted darts.  But the sword was his main means of attack, and the sword is the only weapon Paul lists as part of the Christian arsenal.

Throughout the world there are certain individuals—real and fictional—whose identity remains almost inseparable from their weapon of choice.  From England, there is King Arthur and his sword, Excalibur. From the Middle East, Ali and his scimitar, Zulfiqar the curved sword that broadens at the tip that is associated with the Turks.  From Spain, there was El Cid (the national hero of medieval Spain) and his long sword, Tizona.  From Scotland, we have William Wallace (of Braveheart fame) and his unnamed claymore, the double-edged broadsword favored by Scottish highlanders.

May I ask if YOUR identity is as closely inseparable from your weapon of choice, the Sword of the Spirit, the word of God?  If not, why not determine to make it so! How many of you now are memorizing Eph 6:10-20?

Remember, the sword is the only item listed by the Apostle Paul that serves in an offensive capacity.  Even if we have all the rest of the armor perfectly fitted, without our sword we amount to little more than heavily armored moving targets!

Perhaps this is why we remember the name of King Arthur’s sword, and not, for example, his footwear. While the rest of the armor is undoubtedly vital, it is the sword and only the sword that allows us to attack false doctrines and teaching—to directly do the work that needs to be done. Nothing can withstand the power of this sword wielded by believers, for it is the power of God’s own word!

We can even use this sword to discern and arrest the thoughts and intents of our own hearts.  Our apostle Paul says:

2Co 10:4-5 (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;

But remember dear sisters, if we don’t pick up the sword, we cannot use the sword! And you WILL use it only when you truly believe what you are reading and studying IS the word of God!  Unless you fully believe that the Bible you hold in your hands is given by inspiration of God and perfectly preserved for you today, you will not use it.  So remember:

All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: 2Ti 3:16

It is my prayer that we all will use the sword of the spirit in what can only be victory!  After all, we don’t call ourselves SWORDS for nothing! (Strong Women Of Rightly Divided Studies)

THE GOSPEL THAT SAVES
“I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; by which also ye are saved … that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:”

– 1 Corinthians 15:1-4 (KJB)