Daily Fountain Devotional 2 August 2020 for Anglican Communion
TOPIC: Able to Withstand
TEXT: Ephesians 6:10-20 (NKJV)
10. Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.
11. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.
12. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual [hosts] of wickedness in the heavenly [places.]
13. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.
14. Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness,
15. and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace;
16. above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one.
17. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God;
18. praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints —
19. and for me, that utterance may be given to me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel,
20. for which I am an ambassador in chains; that in it I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.
STUDY: God has not left us in the dark about the reality of the world we dwell in. Our world is a wicked, terrible and evil. Here in the letter of Paul the apostle, it is obvious that evil days are real. God has never promised Christians a world free of wickedness here. In fact, Jesus foretold that in the last days, there would be wickedness in multiple folds(Matthew 24:12).
The description of what we are in for as Christ’s followers is a serious and heart-aching one; ‘for we are not contending against flesh and blood, but against principalities, powers, the world rulers of this present darkness, the spiritual host of wickedness in the heavenly places.’ What a terrifying revelation!
A serious soldier will not trade his weapon for any reason; even when he sleeps, you will likely see his weapon firmly by him. As Christians, having a full knowledge of our terrain, to be able to stand, one must guide his or her weapons of warfare very jealously. Remember that evil days are real and you must stand as emphasised in our text today. God has provided us with all it takes to stand against the powers of darkness of this world.
PRAYER: Father, empower me the more with your whole armour to be able to stand against the wiles of the evil one and remain firm in you even in the days of affliction, in Jesus name! Amen.
DAILY QUOTE: “Whatever makes men good Christians; makes them good citizens.” – Daniel Webste
Daily Fountain Devotional 2 August 2020 – The Church of Nigeria is the Anglican church in Nigeria. It is the second-largest province in the Anglican Communion, as measured by baptized membership, after the Church of England. It gives its current membership as “over 18 million”, out of a total Nigerian population of over 200 million.
