Daily Devotional
February 9, 2021
10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12 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 the heavenly realms. 13 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. 14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
Did you notice what verse 10 says? It does not say, “Come up with a good plan and pull yourself up by your bootstraps.” That would be doing things on our own strength. Instead, it says to be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power. These verses tell us to wrap ourselves in the protection – the full armor of God – from head to toe because the battles we face really aren’t of this world. What we can do on our own is incomplete and insufficient. We need God’s protection if we are to stand a chance against Satan. We need God’s truth and His righteousness. We need to carry the message of His love and peace wherever we go. We need the protection of a growing faith in Jesus to protect our hearts and our minds, and the mighty Word of God within us to fight for us. Only then can we stand strong. Steady. Unshaken.
