An Impenetrable Shield!

IT CAN BE A DANGEROUS WORLD!

We live in a world, that has the possibility of harm.

We live in a world, that sometimes isn’t that safe.

That possibility of harm can sometimes quite suddenly become a reality.

Because of this, man has developed ways to minimize or eliminate the threat of that harm.

For example, when we are driving our vehicles, the law of the land says that you MUST wear a seatbelt. Wearing a seatbelt is not optional. This is to reduce the possibility of harm occurring to yourself should you get into an accident. (Did you know that seatbelts reduce the risk of death by 45%, and the risk of serious injury by 50%)

We saw recently in Greece and other countries around the world, that when dangerous fires raged out of control, the authorities initiated action to try

to keep people and property safe.

It’s very natural for us to initiate action to enhance our safety when we sense the possibility of harm occurring!

THERE IS AN ENEMY THAT WANTS TO HARM YOU

Now as Christians we are told in the Bible that there is a being who desires to see us come to harm. Who is actively seeking to try to seriously mess up your day and my day!

And that is ... as you most probably already guessed … the devil.

This enemy comes to bring doubt, depression, despair and discouragement. He does this so that we give up on the promises of God. So that we eventually give up on God.

NEVER EVER FEAR – FAITH IS A POWERFUL PROTECTIVE FORCE!

There is a passage of scripture that brings such reassurance and certainty to me. They are words that I have read, over and over and over again. And will continue to read.

These words have brought restoration of belief when there was doubt. They have produced comfort when there was depression, joy when there was despair, hope when there was discouragement.

The passage is Ephesians 6:16

ABOVE ALL, TAKING THE SHIELD OF FAITH with which you WILL BE ABLE to QUENCH ALL the fiery darts of the wicked one.

Now, I know many of us when we think of faith, we perceive it as how we are able to receive from God. And this is absolutely true! However, there is another side to faith that we can overlook. Faith is a powerful protective force.

The enemy will come at you with everything he has … and he will fail … MISERABLY ... when you put up your shield of faith.

The shield of faith is impenetrable.

The shield of faith is impassable.

The shield of faith is impervious.

The shield of faith is indestructible.

Whatever the enemy throws at you, it cannot puncture the shield of faith! Nothing he has can pierce, damage or destroy the shield of faith.

TWO WORDS TO FOCUS ON!

In Ephesians 6:16 there are two words that are abreast of one another, which always ignite a fire in my heart.

The first word is QUENCH.

QUENCH – it means

       to extinguish, to render null and void, to put out, to nullify …

I have found another meaning for quench that you may not have known. It is an archaic meaning but I really like it!

QUENCH

     -  TO REDUCE TO SILENCE     

When you put up your shield of faith IT REDUCES TO SILENCE the attacks of the enemy.

The second word is ALL!

ALL – it means

    The whole quantity, the entirety of, the fullness of, the completeness of 

In other words, ALL, leaves absolutely NO EXCEPTIONS!

When you put up your shield of faith, the attacks of the enemy are REDUCED TO SILENCE, WITH NO EXCEPTIONS!