Month: July 2018

“Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 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. 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. Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; and your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; above all, taking the shield of faith wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints; and for me, that utterance may be given unto me in the opening of my mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in bonds; that therein I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.” — Ephesians 6:10-20 KJV

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By J. Muckle (adapted from, “An Outline Of Sound Words,” StemPublishing.com)

It is of the utmost importance for the saints of God to be equipped and protected with the armor He has provided for them if they would engage in the conflict of good and evil according to His will. This was never more necessary than at the present time, close to the end of the Church’s history on earth, when Satan is using every effort to wipe out the testimony committed to the people of God. The enemy thought he had finished God’s testimony when he moved men to crucify the Son of God, but he soon found that the testimony continued. This was through the saints and servants of the Lord, in the power of the Holy Spirit.

Targets Of The Enemy
Those who have God’s testimony in this world are the saints whom Christ loves. This fact, however, makes them the object of Satan’s malice, or intent to harm, and enmity. During the past centuries many saints have passed through untold sufferings in faithfulness to the name of the Lord Jesus. Now in these lands the wily foe has adopted different means in his opposition to Christ and those He loves. The roaring lion has transformed himself into an angel of light, and his endeavors are aimed at flattering the people of God that they might be unfaithful to Christ. He entices them with worldly advantages through which they can gratify the flesh, and in this way their affections are drawn away from Him. It is undeniable that the world is in the Church, and that the Church is in the world.

Divine Resourses
Amid all the departure of these last days, God’s resources for His saints are undiminished, and His armor is available for us. We have three outstanding Scriptures that bring before us this divine armor. The first is Romans 13:12, where we read: “The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light” (KJV). We are passing through a world of darkness. It is under the authority of Satan where men do not have the knowledge of God. To protect us in such a world, we need the true knowledge of God in our hearts: His “word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path” (Ps. 119:105). The powers of darkness are repelled by the light of the armor that God has provided for us in His Word – if that Word is livingly operative in our souls.

In 2 Corinthians 6:7, the apostle Paul, while speaking of how he and Timothy commended themselves as God’s ministers, mentioned “the armour of righteousness on the right hand and on the left.” With this in view, no matter what the circumstances may be, nothing could ever excuse any saint of God for acting unrighteously. Anything unrighteous would falsify the testimony of the righteous God whom we serve, and it would bring His glorious testimony into disrepute before the world. Therefore at all times and in all circumstances, righteousness must mark God’s servant.

“The whole armour of God” is brought before us in Ephesians 6. It is given to the saints of this dispensation, or period of time, to protect them in conflict with the powers of darkness, as believers seeking to stand firm for God during this evil day. God has richly blessed His saints with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, but Satan wants to keep them from entering into this wonderful portion. We have been chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world and marked out for sonship, according to the good pleasure of God’s will. The mystery of His will has been made known to us, and according to His eternal purpose we have received an inheritance. At present, we have access to the Father and belong to the household of God (see Eph. 1:3-12). The Church has been united to Christ as His body and it soon will be presented to Him as His bride. “The mystery,” which unfolds to us the great secret of the ages, has been revealed in all its parts; and God desires that we should enter into this in its breadth and length and depth and height.

Knowing Satan’s malice and continual opposition to all that is of God, is it any wonder that he is against those who have been so highly favored with such amazing revelations and wonderful blessings? The saints have become the objects of his assaults, and especially when they endeavor to hold fast the great truths connected with the counsels and purpose of God. The enemy presents many things to attract the minds and hearts of the saints, and he will try to mar their testimony to Christ. However, God has given to us His full armor to enable us to prevail in the conflict.

It is essential for us to realize that we have no strength of our own for this conflict, as the arm of flesh cannot match principalities, powers, the rulers of the darkness of this world and spiritual wickedness in high places. To meet such foes we must be “strong in the Lord, and in the power of His might.” The wiles of the devil can only be met by divine armor; we could never stand without it. Nor can we do without it even for a moment – not until we have left this world behind and the “evil day” is over for us.

The Armor
The first part of the armor is the girdle of truth. This speaks of truth in the inward parts, the state formed in us through the Word of God as learned in communion with Christ. When addressing the Father, the Lord Jesus prayed for His own, “Sanctify them by the truth: Thy word is truth” (Jn. 17:17). As truth enters into the soul by the Word, the moral state is produced which sets us apart for God in this world. That gives us power to resist all that is not according to truth.

The breastplate of righteousness protects the seat of the affections. Anything unrighteous in the life of the Christian will give him a bad conscience, and the enemy will not be slow to take advantage of it. We cannot have communion with God if the conscience is bad. No one could successfully stand against evil with a defiled conscience. How different it is when conscience is good and the heart rests in the enjoyment of divine love – Christ dwelling there by faith.

Our feet are to be shod with the peace that is proclaimed in the gospel. How very inconsistent for anyone who speaks of the gospel of peace to be marked by traits that bring unrest and disquiet among the saints of God. Those who cause division and strife do not have their feet shod with peace; such are not able to stand against the wiles of the Devil. This does not mean that we should seek peace at any price. Rather, we should be marked by peace even when in conflict for the truth. One contending for the truth should not take up the sword in fleshly conflict or strike a single blow with the arm of flesh, for our weapons are not carnal, but spiritual.

We need the shield of faith when the enemy suggests that God is not interested in us, or at those times when he presents to the heart the least doubt regarding God’s unfailing care. Whatever the circumstances in which we are found, the shield of faith brings God in for our help and protection. There may be the need for “the trial of your faith” (1 Pet. 1:7). Those who have passed through such trials and have proved the reality of God’s help in them can use the shield of faith in the conflict of the “evil day … to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.”

For the head we have “the helmet of salvation” to protect all our thoughts and mind. Salvation has come to us from God through grace, and not a doubt regarding this enters into the thoughts of those who have the helmet of salvation. If we had any doubts about our salvation, how could we meet our wily adversary? If we are engaged with the truth brought out in Ephesians 2, we will have taken the helmet of salvation. In that second chapter we learn that we have been made alive with Christ, and even now we sit in the heavenly places “that in the ages to come He might [show] the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us through Christ Jesus” (v.7).

To wield the sword of the Spirit we must be acquainted with the Word of God. The Word becomes the sword of the Spirit when it is used under the guidance and control of the Holy Spirit. It is very important then to feed upon the Word of God, which is to become in us the engrafted Word. How essential is it that we should always live in communion with the Lord so the Holy Spirit can use the Word through us – that Word by which we have been formed after Christ.

The last part of the armor is prayer – “prayer and supplication in the Spirit.” We must ever remain in the attitude of dependence and confidence in God, being guided in all our prayers and supplications by the Holy Spirit. Jude exhorted, “Praying in the Holy Ghost” (v.20). Our ever-watchful foe will seek to keep us from prayer, but we are to be “watching thereunto with all perseverance.” Many things come in to prevent us from taking time to pray, therefore we must be watchful lest our time become absorbed with other things.

Prayer is not to be confined to our own part in the conflict or to the things that immediately engage us, but we need to think of all saints. The apostle Paul had a very special place in the conflict of good and evil, being set for the defense of the gospel and “an ambassador bound with a chain” (JND) because he was minister of “the mystery of the gospel.” Desiring to continue with this precious ministry, Paul sought the prayers of the saints, well knowing that the enemy would eagerly silence the announcing of this wonderful truth.

In these last days, when the truth of the mystery is so little known among the saints of God, should there not be constant prayer to God that this precious truth might be announced with boldness in the power of the Spirit?

“No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper;
and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn.
This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord,
and their righteousness is of Me, saith the Lord.”
—Isaiah 54:17 KJV

By Martin Girard

After being released from prison, a Christian human rights lawyer was able to phone his family. His wife was delighted to hear from him, but she could hardly make sense of what he was saying. The reason was not a poor telephone signal; rather, the isolation and torture he had experienced while in prison had left the man unable to speak coherently. What was his “crime”? He had assisted fellow believers.

For more than 50 days his captors had given him shock treatments by holding an electric baton to his face and piercing his skin with toothpicks. At another time propaganda had been broadcast continuously into his prison cell by means of a loudspeaker for 68 weeks. During his imprisonment the man had no access to reading material or electronic media, and he had no genuine human contact at any time. His one meal each day consisted of a single slice of bread and a piece of cabbage. As a result he lost about 50 pounds in weight as well as many of his teeth because of malnutrition. He has been under house arrest since his release from prison. Although his wife and family members have escaped to the west, the man refuses to leave his home country. He believes God has a work for him to do there.

This one man’s experience is typical of so many others. All across the world, there are individuals who are persecuted for their faith in Christ and are suffering. Those of us who enjoy freedom should be concerned. Hebrews 13:3 exhorts us to “remember them that are in bonds, as bound with them” (KJV). Do we think of those who are being persecuted, and do we pray for them? Are our hearts moved for them in their trials? We should, in a sense, know what it means to be “bound with them” as we take their distressing experiences to heart.

Did you know that the Bible has a lot to say about persecution? I decided to do a little research by looking up such words as “persecute,” “persecution,” “suffer,” “suffering,” “oppressed,” “oppression,” “trouble” and “tribulation” in my concordance. I found a lot of references! “Persecution” is just one word; the others help us to understand what persecution means. It is not an isolated concept, for it leads to suffering, oppression and trouble. The psalmist was experiencing it and asked God how long it would continue before his tormentors were judged (Ps.119:84). Eliphaz, one of Job’s friends, declared, “Man is born unto trouble, as the sparks fly upward” (Job 5:7). You will understand what he meant if you have ever stood near a fire and watched the sparks flying up into the night sky. Troubles can be plentiful. As part of the human race we are “born unto” them. Persecution is just one of those “troubles.”

Other Scriptures add breadth to the subject. Persecution is often meted out by the proud upon those who are poor (Ps. 10:2). It can result in the persecuted soul being brought very low, for those who do the oppressing are characterized by being stronger than the victims they oppress (142:6). Another fact to consider is this: Those who love God’s Word can often be persecuted on account of it. The psalmist alluded to this when he wrote: “All Thy commandments are faithful: they persecute me wrongfully: help Thou me. They had almost consumed me upon earth; but I forsook not Thy precepts” (119:86,87). He found it difficult to understand why he had to suffer for his belief in God’s Word and his love for it.

A Real Experience
There is a saying, “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.” This, however, is not always true. Unkind words can wound deeply. Paul faced reproach for his trust in the living God (1 Tim. 4:10). Nehemiah and his fellow-workers were mocked mercilessly as they rebuilt the walls of Jerusalem. They were called “feeble Jews” by their opponents, who ridiculed their efforts. Tobiah the Ammonite taunted the builders by saying the wall was so fragile that the weight of a fox would cause it to collapse (Neh. 4:2-3).

Others have faced false accusations. Charles Spurgeon, the well-known British preacher of the nineteenth century, and his wife kept some hens. Critics accused them of being mean because they always sold the eggs and never gave any away to family members or friends. It was only after the deaths of both Mr. and Mrs. Spurgeon that the truth became known. All profits from the sale of the hens’ eggs were used to support two needy elderly widows. The accusations had therefore been very unkind and must have hurt the Spurgeons.

However, if taunts do not succeed in damaging the Lord’s work, Satan will resort to other tactics. We find this in the experience of Nehemiah. When the accusations of the enemy did not cause the work to cease, Sanballat, Tobiah and their associates “conspired … to come and to fight against Jerusalem” (4:8). Nehemiah now faced the physical presence of the enemy.

Examples Abound From Scripture
Persecution can have a profoundly detrimental effect upon those who experience it, and a believer who is under pressure might sometimes question the ways of God. It is a great comfort to know that the Lord Jesus was severely tested when here on earth and is “touched” by our trials and sufferings at this present time (Heb. 4:15). He was accused of using Satan’s power to perform miracles, and His parentage was questioned by His hostile accusers who labeled Him “a Samaritan” (Mt. 12:24; Jn. 8:41,48). How it must have hurt the holy Son of God to hear their vile taunts! But there were other ways in which He suffered. Before His crucifixion He was scourged and cruelly treated by Pilate’s soldiers. Indeed, Isaiah had prophesied that His face would be marred more than any other man’s (Isa. 52:14). Truly, He was hated without a cause (Ps. 69:4).

Making our way through the pages of Scripture, it is possible to compile an extensive list of individuals who experienced persecution. The first was Abel (Gen. 4), who was killed by his jealous brother, Cain. Joseph, in a similar way, faced the hostility of his own brothers. Hated by them, he was sold as a slave and transported to Egypt. There, falsely accused, he found himself in prison with his feet painfully fastened in iron fetters (Ps. 105:18). Surely he was tempted to think he had been abandoned by God! The nation of Israel suffered slavery in Egypt and were a persecuted people (Ex. 1). Moses, their deliverer, deliberately chose to “suffer affliction with the people of God” (Heb. 11:25). Others, like him, found that there is a price to pay for faithfulness. Daniel’s three friends faced the burning fiery furnace (Dan. 3), and Daniel himself was cast into the den of lions (Dan. 6). Jeremiah, like so many prophets of old, was persecuted (Jer. 17:18; Jas. 5:10). David, too, in many of his psalms described his feelings as he faced the relentless persecution of a cruel enemy and pleaded for God’s deliverance (Ps. 31:15).

The same theme runs through the New Testament. John the Baptist died as a martyr for his faithfulness in speaking the truth (Mt. 14), and others trod the same path. Stephen was stoned; James was beheaded, and according to tradition both Peter and Paul experienced martyrdom. The list is extensive and proves beyond question that many of God’s servants suffered severely at the hands of ungodly men, as Hebrews 11:36-38 teaches.

For Us Today
The prospect of persecution is one from which we cannot escape. In His discourse adjacent to the temple in Jerusalem shortly before His death, the Lord Jesus outlined future events associated with His return. He made it clear that before the “fearful sights and great signs … from heaven” His followers would face persecution and be “brought before kings and rulers” (Lk. 21:11-12). He also taught His disciples in John 16:33 that they would face difficulties in the world. His words should leave us in no doubt: “In the world ye shall have tribulation.” The final part of the verse – “be of good cheer; I have overcome the world” – is perhaps quoted more often. We rejoice that our Savior has overcome the world, but we are not so keen to be reminded that we will face tribulation in the world!

When Paul and Barnabas visited the places where they had preached the gospel in order to encourage the new believers, they exhorted them “to continue in the faith” and made it clear that “we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God” (Acts 14:22). Like their Master, these two servants did not want any new disciple to be deluded. The pathway ahead is difficult, and persecution is to be expected from the world. They believed the words spoken by the Lord Jesus: “If they have persecuted Me, they will also persecute you” (Jn. 15:20). Early on, the new believers in Thessalonica had been warned by Paul that they would face opposition from a hostile world. When it arose, Paul was concerned that they should not “be moved” by the afflictions, for “we are appointed thereunto,” he declared (1 Th. 3:1-4).

In fact, although we may find it difficult to understand this, the Lord has a purpose in allowing us to be persecuted. Philippians 1:29 states: “For unto you it is given in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on Him, but also to suffer for His sake.” The word translated as “given” actually means “graciously bestowed.” Have we grasped this? Not only has He graciously enabled us to believe in Christ; He also has graciously bestowed upon us, or given to us, the privilege of suffering persecution for His name’s sake! Although we may not like the prospect, persecution is divinely permitted and is a means by which we can be drawn nearer to our dear Savior who suffered for us.

Conclusion
In drawing these thoughts to a conclusion, two final points must be considered. What can we do when we face persecution for the sake of our Master? Psalm 119 supplies the answer: We must draw upon the Word of God. The persecuted writer of this psalm:

• Placed his hope in the Word (v.81),
• Looked expectantly for it (v.82),
• Refused to forget it (v.83),
• Acknowledged that it was faithful (v.86),
• Did not forsake its teaching (v.87), and
• Vowed that he would obey it (v.88).

We need that Word too! In the trials of life we must cling to its promises and feed upon its truth. Only in this way can we be strengthened and brought through.

If our present pathway is fairly easy, let us never forget those elsewhere who are facing the persecution of a hostile world. As they experience the heat of the furnace, let us constantly remember them in our prayers.