Your faith in Jesus gives you power to become a child of
God. When you make Jesus the Lord of your life, your spirit
is born again. You no longer belong to Satan’s kingdom. As
Colossians 1:12-13 says, you are translated into the kingdom
of God’s dear Son. You are now an heir of God and a joint
heir with Jesus Christ! What is His is yours. You have His
righteousness! This is your breastplate. It makes you worthy
in the sight of God.
As long as you see yourself unworthy, you will not experience
answered prayer to any great degree. But an understanding
of righteousness will put you on the road to success.
You have a right to resist Satan and expect him to flee.
Believers all over the world are learning their rights. They
are becoming more and more aware of their position as children
of God and joint heirs with Jesus (Romans 8:17). They
are taking advantage of the breastplate of righteousness!
The next piece of armor is for your feet. They are to be shod
with the preparation of the gospel of peace. Jesus said, “Go ye
into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature”
(Mark 16:15). The gospel is the good news that we have peace
through Jesus Christ. Isaiah 52:7 says, “How beautiful upon
the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings,
that publisheth peace….” Sharing the gospel with others is
part of your armor.
The Word says, “Above all, taking the shield of faith.” Your
shield quenches all the fiery darts of the wicked. First John
5:4 says, “…and this is the victory that overcometh the world,
even our faith.” Your faith makes you an overcomer and more
than a conqueror! “The just shall live by faith” (Romans 1:17).
This means your whole life is sustained by your faith in God.
Finally, “Take the helmet of salvation.” A helmet is protection
for the head. Romans 12:2 says, “And be not conformed
to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your
mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable,
and perfect, will of God.” Satan’s battleground is your mind.
By keeping your mind renewed to the Word of God, you will
protect it from Satan’s onslaught of doubt and unbelief. This
is closely related to having your loins girt with the truth.
Freedom is in the truth. Jesus said, “If ye continue in my
word, then are ye my disciples indeed; and ye shall know the
truth, and the truth shall make you free” (John 8:31-32). The
key is continuing. You cannot just try this. You must make a
quality decision to do it. You will then experience the freedom
from Satan that is rightfully yours as a child of God.
Your armor is the same spiritual armor Jesus wore during
His earthly ministry. “And he saw that there was no man,
and wondered that there was no intercessor: therefore his
arm brought salvation unto him; and his righteousness, it
sustained him. For he put on righteousness as a breastplate,
and an helmet of salvation upon his head; and he put on the
garments of vengeance for clothing, and was clad with zeal as
a cloak” (Isaiah 59:16-17). Jesus proved this armor before He
gave it to you. It worked proficiently for Him. Why? Because
He was here for one purpose—to fulfill God’s will in the earth.
Jesus ministered on earth as a prophet under the
Abrahamic covenant. Philippians 2:8 says that Jesus humbled
Himself to come to earth. In the original Greek it literally says
He emptied Himself of His divine privileges. Jesus walked as
a man, filled with the Holy Spirit. He said, “I can of mine own
self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is just;
because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father
which hath sent me” ( John 5:30). He wore the armor, as a
man, and then gave it to the Church!
God has set in motion a security system on earth called
“prayer.” It includes the whole armor of God and the weapons of
our warfare. The principles involved are designed to put a padlock
on Satan’s forces and give the Spirit of God an avenue through
which He can carry out God’s will in the lives of His people.
Kenneth Copeland Ministries
