Understanding the Armor of God: The Sword of the Spirit

​Understanding the Armor of God: The Sword of the Spirit (Read time ≈ 7 minutes)
Ephesians 6:17 (ESV)
and take… the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God,
 
Have you ever heard the phrase in sports that says, “a good offense is a good defense”? One of the greatest things you can do to bring victory to your life and the lives around you is to protect yourself. That is why in the armor of God there are five pieces of armor before we get to our attacking weapon, our offense. But our offense? Yeah, it’s pretty good! But in addition to that, there is a move with a sword called “parry”, which is a defensive move as well. So even our greatest source of offence is still a crucial element of defense as well. If there is anything we can learn from the armor of God, it is this… protecting yourself is important. On the battlefield if you are unprotected and vulnerable then you are ill equipped to protect yourself or those around you. Defense keeps you alive.
 
That being said, a sword can do some damage and it is meant to do some damage. The sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God, just like a regular sword, can do damage on the wrong targets. Can hurt people or things that are not our enemy. Remember who we are up against… If you need to, revisit the blog from a few weeks ago called, “Understanding What We Are Up Against”. Unfortunately, there are people, and spirits alike that will use the Word of God to hurt people rather than to fight against principalities and fight for the liberation of people. Even Satan and his crew will use the Word of God against people. Just as he did to try to tempt Jesus (Matthew 4:1-11). Any powerful weapon must be handled with care and precision and great consideration of what your target is.
 
“The Sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God”, this is in the same sentence and the same instance as the helmet of salvation. Last week, I talked about what this word “take” means in the original Greek language which is, “dechomai” (feel free to re-read last week’s blog to review the meaning of the word). Just like our salvation, the Word of God is something we take no part in other than embracing its power in our life.  It is supernaturally imparted into our lives. But there is another interesting element to the use of our sword. Some people believe the Bible will protect them if they carry one with them or it will keep them from bad dreams if they sleep with one on their nightstand or under their pillow. But, just like a sword, this won’t protect you any more than a sword that never leaves its sheath. For a sword to bring protection, it has to be used. There are two words used for the “Word” of God. There is the deep word that you could study extensively used, which is “Logos”. This, when studied reveals the ultimate truth and revelation of life and how it is found in God. It is a fascinating study. However, in the armor of God it says, “The Sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God” and the Greek word for “word” is not “logos”, but it is “rhema”. “Rhema” means, “a thing spoken”. This gives us a powerful understanding of how the Word of God is meant to be used as a sword, both in offense, and defense. It must be USED. It must be spoken! A sword that never leaves its sheath is a sword that will never protect you or do damage to an enemy. Likewise, the word of God that is never spoken into your life or the lives of others or against principalities, is a sword that will never do what it was intended for. The full power of the Word of God for you personally is found in SPEAKING the truth of the Word! Never opening the Bible is like never taking a sword out of the sheath. Only reading the Bible but never applying it to your life and/or never embracing the truth of the Word or using it to protect yourself and others against the lies of the enemy, is like practicing(reading) with the sword but never drawing it from your sheath on the battlefield, which is “rhema” SPEAKING the word of God in your life, into other lives and against the lies of the enemy of our souls that we face in this war. The Sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God. This sword is not for show, it’s not a decoration. This sword was supernaturally forged by God Himself and given to us with the full intention of us using it in battle. Owning a Bible is good. Reading (practicing with) your Bible is good. Using the Bible in daily life, both for defense of yourself and of others, as well as in offense of coming against the enemy of our soul, using truth of Scriptures to kill the lies of hell spoken into our lives. That is how you use the Sword of the Spirit which is the “rhema” (SPOKEN word) of God. You want to come against the gates of hell, then speak the truth of the Word of God and do it frequently.