Armor of God

Ephesians 6:10-18 (New International Version)

The Armor of God

 ¹⁰Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. ¹¹Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. ¹²For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. ¹³Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. ¹⁴Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, ¹⁵and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. ¹⁶In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. ¹⁷Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.



¹⁸And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.

Remember
Our Warrior God protects us from Satan and his schemes by giving us:-
1) salvation (helmet)
2) righteousness (breastplate)
3) readiness of peace (shoe)
4) faith (shield)
5) truth (belt)
6) Word (sword)

More on Grace

1. What is grace?
undeserved mercy, undeserved kindness, undeserved favour, undeserved forgiveness.

We do not deserve to receive.... but by God's grace, we receive....

2. God's grace is sufficient for us...

2Cor 12:9  and then He (God) told me, "My grace is enough; it's all you need... "

God's grace is given to every one and it is sufficient.

3. Do not compare. Who is first or who is last?

Matt 19:30 But many who are now first will be last, and many whio are last, will be first.

4. Parable - Matt 20:1-16
[Vineyard = kingdom = church ]

eg: 3 types of animals (like us)
* ants - work voluntarily,
* cat - needs to be pushed to work,
* bear - push but still will not move.
which category do you belong?

What is the problem?
Comparing wages. Envious of others.

Grace can not be compared.
Do not compare who gets more and who gets less.

5. Philippians 2:5-7  Jesus did not compare, why do we compare?
So, copy jesus.

6. Application:
* Do not compare Grace
* Do not be not contented and not satisfied, grumble and complain
* By God's grace, we are to live out a Christ-like life (Jesus is our model.)

Note from Patricia.

Grace

What is grace?

1. Grace is God's unmerited favour. ie grace is God doing good for us that we do not deserve.
2. Grace can be defined as God's sufficiency/fullness in the life of the believer. God told Paul, "My grace is sufficient for you; for my strength is made perfect in weakness." (2 Cor 12:9).

Useful in depth on grace is in http://www.learnthebible.org/what-is-grace.html

God has right to give us grace.And, we have privilege to receive grace, irregardless of how old or young we Christians are. Consider the workers in vineyard. (Matt 20:1-16).


 ¹As Jesus was telling what the kingdom of heaven would be like, he said:
   Early one morning a man went out to hire some workers for his vineyard. ²After he had agreed to pay them the usual amount for a day's work, he sent them off to his vineyard.
    ³About nine that morning, the man saw some other people standing in the market with nothing to do. ⁴He said he would pay them what was fair, if they would work in his vineyard. ⁵So they went.
   At noon and again about three in the afternoon he returned to the market. And each time he made the same agreement with others who were loafing around with nothing to do.
    ⁶Finally, about five in the afternoon the man went back and found some others standing there. He asked them, "Why have you been standing here all day long doing nothing?"
    ⁷"Because no one has hired us," they answered. Then he told them to go work in his vineyard.
    ⁸That evening the owner of the vineyard told the man in charge of the workers to call them in and give them their money. He also told the man to begin with the ones who were hired last. ⁹When the workers arrived, the ones who had been hired at five in the afternoon were given a full day's pay.
    ¹⁰The workers who had been hired first thought they would be given more than the others. But when they were given the same, ¹¹they began complaining to the owner of the vineyard. ¹²They said, "The ones who were hired last worked for only one hour. But you paid them the same that you did us. And we worked in the hot sun all day long!"
    ¹³The owner answered one of them, "Friend, I didn't cheat you. I paid you exactly what we agreed on. ¹⁴Take your money now and go! What business is it of yours if I want to pay them the same that I paid you? ¹⁵Don't I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Why should you be jealous, if I want to be generous?"
    ¹⁶Jesus then said, "So it is. Everyone who is now first will be last, and everyone who is last will be first."


So, let us thank God for His grace bestowed upon us.

And also pray for Samuel Chan, to be healed.. as he has been given grace to rest at home, for his injuries are severe.