The Shield of Faith
Ephesians 6:16
In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. (New International Version)
What Does it Mean?
The fourth piece of our spiritual armour is known as the shield of faith. As with the other pieces of armour, its symbolism rests in the armour of a Roman soldier. The shield that the Roman soldier carried was around 4ft by 2ft in size, and was made of wood covered in a very tough kind of leather. Its purpose was a fundamental one – to protect the soldier from spears, arrows and fiery darts. It also had a unique design feature that allowed lines of soldiers to interlock their shields so that they could march towards their enemy like a solid wall. This reminds us that as Christians, we are not in the battle alone!
The shield of faith is an important part of our spiritual armour. Like the Roman soldier’s shield protected him from arrows, spears, and fiery darts, the shield of faith is what protects us from the fiery darts that satan likes to fire at us. The key word here is faith – it is our faith that provides the substance of our shield. The darts that satan fires at us can take many forms, such as lies, blasphemous thoughts, hateful thoughts about others, doubts and burning desires for sin. We have to have enough faith in Jesus to be able to extinguish these darts as soon as they are fired at us.
We never know when satan is going to launch an attack on us, so we need to keep our shield of faith ready at all times. If a Roman soldier did not use his shield, his enemy would have a distinct advantage over him. Likewise, if we don’t exercise our faith in Jesus Christ in our everyday lives, then we are giving satan an advantage over us.
Ponder-Points
How strong is your faith? The strength of your belief in Jesus Christ has a direct impact on the strength of your shield of faith and your ability to deflect the attacks of the enemy.
Think of some of the forms that satan’s fiery darts take in your life. How can you use your faith to extinguish these darts?
Can you think of any weak areas in your faith? If you can, talk to a more mature Christian about how you can strengthen your faith in these areas.
Think back to the list you made on day one. How can the shield of faith help you in your fight against the enemy?
Prayer
Father God, we thank you for the shield of faith that you have given us to protect us from the attacks of the enemy. Thank you that we are not alone in this battle, and the symbolism of the shield of faith reminds us of this. Thank you that no matter what form the enemy’s attack takes, you have empowered us, through our shield of faith, to withstand the attack. Father God, forgive us for the areas of weakness in our faith in you, and help us to grow in those areas, so that our shield grows stronger in accordance with our faith. Amen.