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“In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.” – Ephesians 6:16
When I was a young boy of 10 or 11 I was faced with my first challenge of God’s existence. I remember being in elementary school and a boy stated point blank one day that there was no such thing as God. His point was that God was just a lie people tried to make us believe in so we would act good. His questions were very basic, “If God exists, where does He live?”; “If there is a God, why did my Grandpa have to die?”; “Face it, there is no proof that God exists.” I remember not having an answer or the ability to defend or stand up for what I had such a strong belief in.
As I’ve aged (and Lord knows I have) I’ve come to realize that these are simple examples of Satan’s arrows that Paul refers to in Ephesians 6:16. Certainly over time these arrows have continue to be fired but now from many different directions. The age old question of God’s existence continues to baffle the minds of mankind and cause conflicts between families, friends and even countries. Every single person since the beginning of time has had to answer the same question. “Can I accept something as fact without the physical proof or seeing it.” I remember watching The 10 Commandments, after Moses led the Israelites out of Egypt and after experiencing miracle after miracle, they still questioned God’s existence. The Red Sea parted, manna fell from heaven, water poured from rock and pillars of fire and smoke covered the entire mountain, yet the people still could not follow the commands of an unseen God. As Moses goes to Mt. Sinai to receive the 10 Commandments on stone tablets from the Lord, the Israelites build idols from gold so that they might worship a physical god.
For all generations we have been asked to accept that God created the world and all that is in it. To accept that Jesus Christ was born of a virgin, lived a perfect holy life, died and rose again on the 3rd day to take away the sins of mankind. To accept that God loves us, despite how much we do against His laws and commandments. To accept that Jesus Christ will return and take His children home, and that there will be a judgment day, where all mankind will bow before the throne of the Lord. These are the truths that we are all asked to believe on faith, not on proof. I have been to Israel, Greece and Turkey and personally seen proof of buildings and a civilization that lived thousands of years ago. But this in and of itself does not signify that there is a God in heaven who gave His only Son for us. To believe that is a decision I have made within my heart and mind, not based on what I have seen, but based solely on the faith that the word of God is true from end to end, and that there is an absolute righteous truth in the world based on the foundations of our Savior’s life, love and grace coupled with God’s Holy laws given to Moses.
This faith cannot be penetrated by the fiery arrows of this world. I hold onto this faith in my weakest points, during my struggles and during my periods of temptation in this life to defend against Satan’s attack. The faith that I am born again and redeemed through the blood of Jesus Christ and that because of God’s grace I am accepted into heaven. The strength of my faith is challenged continually, in many ways, but it is durable and covers me even from death. Nothing, not a single thing can be brought forth from this world and the evil that exists, can dismiss the fact that I am loved by the most high God and that He has assured me a place in heaven one day. That is the faith that is beyond understanding, because it is not something I can prove to anyone, it is an individual covenant between me and the Lord. You must come to an acceptance of God’s promise or not based solely on your ability to accept His love on faith and not proof. Once you have come to this decision though, there is nothing that can separate you from God’s love. The fiery arrows of Satan will continue and multiply, but the shield of faith will repel all of them, when you decide to stand behind it.
As I’ve aged (and Lord knows I have) I’ve come to realize that these are simple examples of Satan’s arrows that Paul refers to in Ephesians 6:16. Certainly over time these arrows have continue to be fired but now from many different directions. The age old question of God’s existence continues to baffle the minds of mankind and cause conflicts between families, friends and even countries. Every single person since the beginning of time has had to answer the same question. “Can I accept something as fact without the physical proof or seeing it.” I remember watching The 10 Commandments, after Moses led the Israelites out of Egypt and after experiencing miracle after miracle, they still questioned God’s existence. The Red Sea parted, manna fell from heaven, water poured from rock and pillars of fire and smoke covered the entire mountain, yet the people still could not follow the commands of an unseen God. As Moses goes to Mt. Sinai to receive the 10 Commandments on stone tablets from the Lord, the Israelites build idols from gold so that they might worship a physical god.
For all generations we have been asked to accept that God created the world and all that is in it. To accept that Jesus Christ was born of a virgin, lived a perfect holy life, died and rose again on the 3rd day to take away the sins of mankind. To accept that God loves us, despite how much we do against His laws and commandments. To accept that Jesus Christ will return and take His children home, and that there will be a judgment day, where all mankind will bow before the throne of the Lord. These are the truths that we are all asked to believe on faith, not on proof. I have been to Israel, Greece and Turkey and personally seen proof of buildings and a civilization that lived thousands of years ago. But this in and of itself does not signify that there is a God in heaven who gave His only Son for us. To believe that is a decision I have made within my heart and mind, not based on what I have seen, but based solely on the faith that the word of God is true from end to end, and that there is an absolute righteous truth in the world based on the foundations of our Savior’s life, love and grace coupled with God’s Holy laws given to Moses.
This faith cannot be penetrated by the fiery arrows of this world. I hold onto this faith in my weakest points, during my struggles and during my periods of temptation in this life to defend against Satan’s attack. The faith that I am born again and redeemed through the blood of Jesus Christ and that because of God’s grace I am accepted into heaven. The strength of my faith is challenged continually, in many ways, but it is durable and covers me even from death. Nothing, not a single thing can be brought forth from this world and the evil that exists, can dismiss the fact that I am loved by the most high God and that He has assured me a place in heaven one day. That is the faith that is beyond understanding, because it is not something I can prove to anyone, it is an individual covenant between me and the Lord. You must come to an acceptance of God’s promise or not based solely on your ability to accept His love on faith and not proof. Once you have come to this decision though, there is nothing that can separate you from God’s love. The fiery arrows of Satan will continue and multiply, but the shield of faith will repel all of them, when you decide to stand behind it.
Prayer:Almighty God,
We have faith that Your word is true. We have faith in Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord. We have faith that You have a plan and are working in this world today to expand Your Kingdom. We have a hope that Jesus Christ will return and deliver us from this world to join You in heaven. We have a hope that our sins are redeemed by His blood and that we are presented blemish free on that day. We have built a faith and hope that rests on the truth of Your promises and scriptures. We rely on this faith to protect us from the evil in the world today and sustain our strength until the day of salvation is here. In Your heavenly name we pray - Amen
We have faith that Your word is true. We have faith in Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord. We have faith that You have a plan and are working in this world today to expand Your Kingdom. We have a hope that Jesus Christ will return and deliver us from this world to join You in heaven. We have a hope that our sins are redeemed by His blood and that we are presented blemish free on that day. We have built a faith and hope that rests on the truth of Your promises and scriptures. We rely on this faith to protect us from the evil in the world today and sustain our strength until the day of salvation is here. In Your heavenly name we pray - Amen
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