Shield Of Faith (Daily Devotional)

Greetings and welcome to Living Supernaturally, thank you once again for this opportunity to minister God's word and spend these few moments in prayer. This week, we are talking abut Ephesians chapter 6, the armor of God and today, we will look at the shield of faith. The shield of faith is the first line of defense weapon. There are two types of shields Romans soldiers used in combat. The smaller one was called a parma which was circular and was primarily used in close hand to hand combat. The larger one was called scutum which fits what Paul is talking about here. This shield was larger in size, about 4 feet tall and about 2.5 feet wide, weighing in over 20 pounds. This type of shield was as large as a door and would cover the warrior entirely. Such a shield was not just defensive but could also be used to push opponents. When fighting as a group, flanks of soldiers could position their shield so as to form an enclosure around themselves called a tortoise. This was especially helpful to protect against arrows being launched by the enemy. Shields were often made of wood and when wet, it could extinguish flaming arrows. It is meant to be taken up in all circumstances. It is the first barrier against the enemy’s attack. Often shields were painted with identifying marks. A Christian who takes up this shield of faith identifies himself as a foot soldier who is serving in the community of the Lord’s army. Thinking of the church putting on the shield of faith collectively is very effective and practical. It maximizes its impact especially if the church stands collectively against the enemy. However, we each have individual responsibilities to take up the shield of faith. The whole point of the armor is to be able to stand whether we are in a group or alone. While there is strength in numbers, the enemy doesn’t always attack when believers surround us, he typically waits when we are all alone. For this reason, the shield is not just a community thing but an individual thing. Whether you are in a group or we are by ourselves, you and I can take the shield of faith and use it to extinguish every fiery dart that the enemy throws against us. When the Romans were fighting, sometimes the enemy used arrows or spears filled with flammable liquid. These arrows were designed to burn the soldier, however, when the soldiers had their shields up and in the right position, they were protected from the arrows. The enemy may throw a dart at us telling us that God has given up on us or we have sinned too much or God doesn’t desire to forgive us, there is only way to put off this dart by placing faith in God and what God has said. You and I must put on the shield of faith to quench every fiery dart that the wicked one brings against us. Let us pray, Father, we thank you for this shield of faith that you have given us. We thank you that your word says that faith comes by hearing and hearing of the word of God. No matter what the enemy tries to do against us, help us to fasten the shield and to know that you have given us weapons. Enable us to use it the right way, to walk victoriously and to bring glory to your name, in Jesus’ name we pray, Amen.

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Daily devotions to strengthen your faith each day. Daily Devotional for Spirit filled living. Each daily devotion is about five minutes in duration. These daily devotionals are centered around a weekly theme. So there are seven daily devotions that focus on the theme and bring you insight, understanding and revelation from the Bible. Each week’s theme is listed as a series. So you can listen to the current week’s devotions or go to any previous theme/series that speaks to your present need (https://apcwo.org/resources/daily-devotions ). Also available free sermons (https://apcwo.org/sermons), and free Christian books (https://apcwo.org/books) to nourish and strengthen your faith.