Sermon Central
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Don't Throw Away Your Shield!
Contributed by Lark Lewis on Nov 8, 2008 (message contributor)
Summary: Every Christian is born a warrior: it is his destiny to be assaulted; it is his duty to attack.
Don’t Throw Away Your Shield!
Ye mountains of Gilboa, let there be no dew, neither let there be rain, upon you, nor fields of offerings: for there the shield of the mighty is vilely cast away, the shield of Saul, as though he had not been anointed with oil.
Cast not away therefore your confidence, which hath great recompence of reward. 36For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise. 37For yet a little while, and he that shall come will come, and will not tarry. 38Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him. 39But we are not of them who draw back unto perdition; but of them that believe to the saving of the soul.
Ephes. 6:16
Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.
The most ancient and universal weapon of defense is the Shield.
In old times the Shield was prized by a soldier above all other pieces of armor. He counted it a greater shame to lose his shield than to lose the battle; and therefore he would not part with it even under the very foot of the enemy, but esteemed it an honor to die with his hand on his shield.
It was a charge which one mother laid on her son going into war: Either bring your shield home with you or be brought home upon your shield.
She would rather have her son dead with his shield than alive without it.
Every Christian is born a warrior: it is his destiny to be assaulted; it is his duty to attack.
The shield that Paul writes about was a large shield that covered the entire body!
This shield was called a “gate” or “door” because it was large enough to cover the entire body.
The enemy may throw fiery darts from any direction, so with this shield no part of the body was unprotected.
For thou, LORD, wilt bless the righteous; with favour wilt thou compass him as with a shield.
The shield of Faith is the only thing that can quince the fiery darts of the wicked one.
The shield of Faith is something you have to “Take” .
Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: 9Whom resist stedfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world.
Well; because of unbelief they were broken off, and thou standest by faith. Be not highminded, but fear:
We stand our ground by Faith!
If we lose our Faith we lose the Battle!
But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren.
Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints.
1 Tim. 6:12
Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses.
1 Cor. 16:13
Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like men, be strong.
Keep your Faith and it will keep you!
Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;)
1 Tim. 1:19
Holding faith, and a good conscience; which some having put away concerning faith have made shipwreck:
We must Keep our Faith in God and His Word.
Prepare the table, watch in the watchtower, eat, drink: arise, ye princes, and anoint the shield.
Shields were anointed to help preserve them and also to help the darts to easily glide off of the shield.
Our whole being is capable of being set on fire of hell.
There are things in us all in which the fiery darts especially appeal.
Desires, appetites, passions, lusts, which war against the soul, and which need only a touch of fire to ignite.
Sometimes the Temptation is leveled at the head...at the saint’s reasoning.
Satan will dispute truth, and if he can, will make us question what we believe.
Sometimes, it is conscience that the tempter assaults.
But faith can endure the shock:
I had fainted, unless I had believed to see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living.
Sometimes, it is the will that temptation tries to snare.
Some of God’s commands cannot be obeyed without self-denial, because they cross us in circumstances where our wills desire to rule.
