04 January 2009, 10AM

Apostle Andre Pelser

Eph 6:10-20

It's His power that we need be strong in, not just our own strength.

Power: The dynamo. The generator.

Might: forcefulness or ability of God.

Become strengthened in the Lord, and in the dynamo that produces His forcefulness or His ability.

Wiles of the devil: the mind-games; the schemes; the cunning craftiness of the devil.

Wrestle: a contest between 2 who endeavour to throw each other. The loser gets his eyes gorged out resulting in permanent blindness. We wrestle against the champions of spiritual forces of wickedness; hurtfulness. We need to be fully armed to stand against their tricks and their cunning craftiness.

Stand: to be appointed in a certain place; to be established; to be settled; steadfast; to stand still. Your character will be recognized that you stand firm for what you believe.

Age: each age has its own hosts of wickedness.

It is the same armour that Jesus wore.

The breastplate will protect your emotions; will guard your affections; will purify your motives; purify your heart; it will help you to have self control. Out of the treasure of the heart, the mouth speaks. What comes out of you and I when we are under pressure? What comes out of an orange when you squeeze it? Orange juice that's good for people. So when circumstances squeeze us, what comes out of us should be good for others.

It should be Christ within the hope of glory. The breastplate guards your heart so that you can have pure motives in everything. God purifies us and it's a process. It's not a magic wand. He is busy in everyone's lives, but we need to cooperate with Him. We need to want it. He won't force us. Jesus could sit and talk with sinners, but He didn't sin with them because His heart was pure.

1 Thess 5:8 – without love, nothing will work. You can have all the knowledge, all the faith, you can do anything you want to, but if there is no love it means absolutely nothing. Without love, everything is too harsh. Even if you speak the truth to someone and there is no love in what you are saying, it's too harsh. It destroys. You can say the right thing, but if you say it in the wrong way, it destroys. Love is the key factor because God is love.

The girdle of truth holds all the different pieces of armour together.

You hang your sword on it. It holds the breastplate together. It protects. If you worship in Spirit and truth it keeps the girdle in place, and it helps to keep things together in your life. Worshipping in Spirit and in truth is a great secret to flow in the Spirit.

Jn 17:17 – God's Word is truth.

Jn 8:32 – Evolution is a lie, and what it did was, it broke down morality in the world giving people the right to act like animals. God's truth builds up, it doesn't break down. God wants us to walk in the light as He is in the light because it will set us free. If you know the truth about something, it sets you free. If you know that too much sugar is bad for you, it sets you free. Sometimes we battle too much with ignorance instead of finding out the truth. It will set you free.

The helmet of salvation. Keep it on. Stay saved. Why do you want to backslide? Keep the helmet on. Don't take it off. Maybe you need to put it on again. A healthy brain. The mind of Christ. Who wouldn't like to have a healthy brain? Let the Word saturate your mind. Let the Word take over the operation of your brain cells until you begin to think like the mind of Christ. Also, take heed how you hear things. How you hear things is how you will operate.

1 Thess 5:8 – the hope of salvation. It gives you hope, and it will make your mind sober. The God of hope will sanctify you, and give you a sober mind. The truth will work more effectively in you. The helmet of salvation protects your mind and your thoughts.

Your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace.

Horses should be shod every 2 weeks. Some people never have their horses shod. They do their horse disfavour because if some of the hooves wear off quicker than the others, it puts strain on its limbs and joints and they start developing limps. They become very unhealthy if they don't have proper shoeing. A horse can't shoe itself. You can't shoe yourself either. You can't shoe yourself with the preparation of the gospel of piece. Someone must teach you. You need a mentor because you will do what you've been taught. When you are under pressure, you will do what you've been taught. You cannot prepare yourself to preach the gospel, someone has to prepare you. That is where humility and meekness come in.

Everything that you know, you've been taught. Acknowledge the people that have taught you the Way. It reminds you that you know nothing. Recognize who teaches you what. You are the sum total of what you have been taught. Thirst for knowledge otherwise you stay on the same level. You need someone to teach you how to operate and what to do. You need to be able to give an account of what you believe. You need to be able to tell others about your healing, salvation and deliverance.

Jesus said to 12 people: “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men”. You are all fishers of men. You are all people who can take the reformation into your area of influence. Wherever you are, you become the messengers. But you also need to bring the people into the kingdom. Some people fish but never catch anything. God wants to teach you how to bring people into the kingdom, how to build them into the church, how to make disciples and not just to talk to people. Preach the Word in and out of season.

The shield of faith. Above all the other parts of your spiritual weaponry, but also above all that the devil can do, use your shield of faith because it will quench the fiery darts of the wicked. What people speak against you, do against you, and circumstances, the fiery darts that want to injure you will be quenched by the shield of faith. In those days, the Romans had big leather shields with different layers of leather that were soaked in water. When they went into battle, and were shot at with fiery arrows, the arrows would penetrate but because of the moisture in the shield they were quenched.

That is what Paul was referring to as the shield of faith. In our minds, we talk about a force field. Just like an infrared ray that automatically opens sliding doors, so in the spiritual realm, the shield of faith will protect you. No one can really see it. It's a shield of protection, a shield of faith. God shields you if you believe.

Ps 91:4 – … His truth shall be thy shield and buckler.

Nothing will separate you from the love of God. The truth will shield you from all doubt, fear, accidents, sickness, problems, emotional and mental distresses. God will protect you from poisoning.

Gen 15:1 – “… I am your shield, and exceeding great reward.” That's a big one! The God that created heaven and earth is your shield.

The sword of the Spirit is the Word of God.

We must learn to use it, study it; hide it in your heart. You overcome by the blood of the Lamb, the word of your testimony and not loving your life unto death. The word of the New Covenant: let it be in your heart and mind. Learn to use it with your mouth. It's a sharp instrument. It's a 2 edged sword that divides between soul, spirit, and body. It tells you what's going on