"Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power."
My paraphrase - I need to know I'm in the Lord, just as Christ was "in the Lord". He communicated regularly and was led by the Holy Spirit. Be strong in His mighty power doesn't mean his mighty power is separate from us, we are to be strong in that power ourselves.
Put the kids in a situation so they can enter the scripture in their minds. Picture yourself in a field. A band of wild natives, or an army (or whatever enemy the children may relate to from their studies), is running toward you, shrieking and waving their spears. There faces scream determination and their brows are set on destruction. What is you initial reaction? (Pause while they think about this.) Run or Charge? When we wear the full armor of God, we charge, we DON'T run, because we don't have to. We're in more danger when we run. This enemy could be sickness, financial challenges, trouble with writing or math, the temptation to hit your brother, or a sibling who's struggling with sin. We all will have places we need to stand firm and it requires not just a knowledge that God does miraculous things, but faith to activate them in your life.
"Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes."
The devil, who is real, is scheming about your life. He has been doing that since the day you were born. What have his victories been? Has he captured any of your thoughts, or used your sin as a stronghold against you. He sometimes misleads us into believing our experience is true and more accurate than the words of Christ himself. The devil schemes, as in a chess game. Every move is significant because it forms your experience. Your experience shapes your faith and your faith determines what God will do in your midst. Even Jesus could do no great work in Nazareth because of their lack of faith. It doesn't say Jesus wouldn't, it says couldn't.(Mark 6:4-6) Jesus is our model. If Jesus couldn't perform miracles in an environment where faith was lacking, then consequently faith must be a key to the greater things. We need to be armed citizens of heaven.
"For 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 realm."
Our struggle is not against flesh and blood. If our struggle isn't against flesh and blood, then why are the primary weapons we rely on largely worldly? (Ask: What weapons do we use to fight bad things?) God said that if we defeat the power source, we've defeated the problem. It's important to know who we are in Christ to fight with confidence. What is the source of our struggle according to the verse above? (They should re-read the above verse if necessary.)
"Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes,
you may be able to stand your ground."
"Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist,
with the breastplate of righteousness in place,"
A belt protects us from so many things. If we are missing our belt, we can be caught with our pants down, can't we! It's hard to fight with our pants down. Not only are we embarrassed and ill equipped to fight, but we lose one hand because we have to hold them up! (A belt can also represent protection for our vital organs.) We need to know the truth. Who is our God and who are we in Him. We are in Christ. If we don't know God's word, and don't remain in it, we can't call upon it's truth to set us free. It has to live and breath in our being so we "have our feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace". We walk into the battle in rest and confidence that we re-present God wherever we go.
"May they be also in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me.
I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one,
I in them and You in Me." John 17:21-23
"In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can
extinguish all of the flaming arrows on the evil one."
If we think of the enemy sending flaming arrows at us, we can visualize this with fire. All kids like fire. I put a candle in the middle of the table and said, "Watch." I licked my finger and charged at the candle with my two wet fingers with no hesitation. I pinched the flame out without burning myself. I just armed my fingers with the water (the shield of faith) and I knew the truth, and faith in the truth empowered me to put the flame out. (Don't let them get sidetracked into science here. It won't help the discussion.)
What We Might Do
Jack, age 6, got to try it first. He was a little unsure of himself and, while he'd seen it happen right before his eyes, he was a bit hesitant that it would work the same way for him. He approached the flame more slowly and pinched it. "Ouch!" he said as he clasped his hand in the other one. It was out, but it had left a little mark on his little finger. If we hang around the flame to long, we get burned. If we hesitate, or doubt, we don't receive in the same way. (James 1:5-7) This can be explained in so many ways. When we linger around the enemy's work we can get drawn in. It's better to discern and act, rather than empathize and strategize with what the enemy is doing. For example, we can counsel a a person with a demon, can't we, but counseling and reason won't set them free. Sometimes we are so used to the effects of the enemy in a person, that we fail to rise up in faith against the root of the problem. We choose to be comfortable with it. The waves rock around us and we hang on to the boat instead of standing up in the middle of it and rebuking the storm. It's important that we know who Jesus was and how he did things. He was to be our model of life in the new covenant. We are not under the old covenant anymore, we are the empowered church full of the Holy Spirit. Jesus said, "I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these because I go to the Father." (John 14:12) Sometimes we rewrite the gospel to fit our modern experience assume God's will by our experience. What if our faith is lacking? Do we have the faith that Jesus did in what the Father would do? I have to measure my faith according to the word. There is no room for pride if I am to gain more faith?
What We Will Do, If We Have Faith
Jon, age 11, was next to stand against the flame. I warned Jon that the flame could burn him and taunted him with a few thoughts about why he could get hurt. Perhaps the flame doesn't always do the same thing? What if you don't do it right? What if it works for some people but not for you? What if you don't believe enough? What if it only works for girls? Those are the word of doubt I tried to plant in him. He smiled at me licked his fingers and charged at the flame. The flame quickly went out.
The Power of Testimony
"Why did you do it? Didn't you hear of all those doubts I was trying to assault you with?" I questioned.
"I saw you do it, so I knew it worked." He confidently smiled.
This is the power of witness and testimony. Even though I tried to plant doubt, he knew what could be done. He had seen, and he believed. He charged against the enemy and showed no fear or weakness. He had the belt of truth firmly in place, so I couldn't shake him, even with my loving concerns for his safety. God is faithful. He said we would do greater things. He said that in His name we would drive out demons, heal the sick, cleanse lepers and raise the dead. Jesus said these signs would follow those who believe. They follow because we walk in faith and confidence and because we are in Christ. I pray just as Paul requested, for the saints, who include our children, that they always run into the battle with full armor and their hands out to pinch off the enemies flame before they even feel it's heat. When the fire looks more like a bonfire, we have a mighty hand who comes at our request to suffocate it. I love to live life dancing around the smoking remnant of the enemies attempts to bring defeat into my life and I want to teach my kids to do the same. May my life and yours be a living testimony of this demonstration.
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