First, every single piece of armor and weaponry in the armor of God is a God-given grace that is inexhaustible and stands ready at our disposal no matter how often we avail ourselves of them. Truth is always there. Righteousness in Christ is always there. The Gospel of peace is always there. Faith is always there. Salvation is always there. The Word of God is always there. Each of them are inexhaustible, God-given graces that if rightfully taken up are strategically suited to defeat the Enemy, no matter what he throws our way!

Second, these God-given graces are readily available because they are gifts of the Spirit to the church. The Spirit keeps these graces in abundant supply and applies these graces in fit proportion. And since it is the Spirit who deliver these graces, the supply line can never be cut off!! The Spirit is the Spirit of truth. The Spirit imputes to us the righteousness of Christ and convicts us and moves us toward personal righteousness. The Spirit delivers faith, nourishes faith, and builds faith in our lives. The Spirit regenerates us unto salvation and instructs us and strengthens us in the way of godliness. The Spirit moved upon men to write the inspired Scripture and He illumines our minds to understand it and He applies it in our hearts and lives for sanctification.

We conduct spiritual warfare through the power of the Spirit at work in our lives, taking hold of these varied graces and stopping the Enemy in his tracks with them.

Third, don’t let the useful analogy replace the intended strategy. Paul uses the soldier’s suit of armor in order to help us see that God’s graces to us are varied and sufficient for the task. The suit of armor itself is merely there for didactic purposes. In other words, we are to take up the grace of salvation. It’s about salvation, not about a helmet. The analogy of the suit of armor is to teach us about all the God-given graces which the Spirit makes sufficient in our lives in the day of battle. The strategy for this spiritual war is not about the pieces of armor, it’s about the graces that the pieces teach. They are varied, and each is essential. In other words, we are not ready for battle against the Enemy if we have an imagined helmet on our head that has salvation written across the top of it! We won’t win the battle that way. We won’t stand firm that way.

The intended strategy is that as we move through the pieces of the armor, we will run to these graces. For example, clinging to, rejoicing in eternal salvation in Christ alone, by grace alone, through faith alone ending in eternal joy before the Father in heaven for His glory alone will keep us standing firm against many of the Devil’s schemes.

Another example comes from faith. Faith is a shield because the Devil will launch a thousand fiery darts our way every single day. And every dart, every thought, is sharpened with doubt and deception. Every dart says, “Don’t believe God, don’t believe in God. Believe me. Find your joy in me. Don’t go God’s way, go my way.” And God has given us the grace of faith. And so we pray, “God give me faith to believe in You, to believe Your Word is true, to believe Christ is my treasure. God give me faith.” And the Spirit builds faith in our lives, and we raise up faith to extinguish those flaming darts.

Fourth, prayer is vital (v18). Prayer is how we put the armor on. It is through prayer that we plead for, meditate on, and take up these God-given graces. Prayer is the battleground where the lies and deceptions of the Enemy are torn down and shattered by embracing the graces that the Spirit supplies. Prayer situates us in the middle of God’s rich storehouse of abundant graces. The devil lies. We pray. God supplies grace through the Spirit. We stand firm!