Spiritual Warfare Provisions - Shield of Faith

Ephesians 6:14 - 17 (NKJV) - " Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. And take the helmet of salvation...."

Belt, breastplate, shoes - when do we get to the Sword? Have patience, it is coming. Right now, God is teaching us about the defensive provisions. Today we will muse over the Shield of Faith. Up to this point we have considered the provisions that we wear. The shield is different. Paul tells us that the shield is something we must take up, something we are required to raise. Just strapping it to our arm won't do any good at all if we don't make the effort to hold it aloft and use it.

The Roman shield—the scutum—was not the standard shield most picture in their minds upon hearing the word. It was instead a very large, slightly curved rectangular shield featuring at its center a large metal knob (called a boss). The scutum was an impressive line of defense. Because of its sheer size (some were three and a half feet tall and almost three feet wide), soldiers were afforded a great deal of protection from enemies. Because of its slight curve, it was able to deflect attacks without transferring the full force of the assault to the man holding the shield. Because of its boss, it was able to deflect even the more vicious blows and function in a limited offensive capacity as a means of knocking an opponent backwards.

So, Paul calls this the Shield of Faith. If faith is "the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen," then this has far-reaching implications. Substance is tangible, and evidence is solid proof. Faith is, by definition, not some hazy emotion without any grounding in reality. It is the irrefutable truth. It is real. The Shield of Faith is a real provision to deflect the enemy and protect us from harm. What are some things the shield does?

A shield guards. While a physical shield protects us physically, faith can protect our spiritual lives even in the middle of physical trials. A shield deflects. Satan is always hurling his fiery darts of fear, doubt and worry in our direction, but the only time they can hit us is when we let our shield of faith down—when we stop believing that God is in control; that He is working everything out for our good; that whatever happens is for the ultimate best of everyone involved, however little it seems to be that way. A shield is the first line of defense. While the rest of our armor helps protect us from Satan's onslaught. A shield can incapacitate. The boss (the metal knob in the middle) on the Roman shields allowed soldiers to give their enemies a stun-inducing shove that would allow them to follow through with an attack. Our faith in God can also give Satan a good shove backwards and give us a chance to fight back by doing God's will and work. Because God tells us that faith cannot just be in our minds, it must produce actions—works of obedience and service (James 2:20).

When the Roman army joined its shields together, it became an almost unstoppable force. And if we in God's Church join our shields—that is, strengthen each other with our faith, building up and serving within the Body as we are able—we will become an unstoppable force able to take on any challenge.

Today, consider if you are using your Shield? Are you joining with others to make a difference in the world today.