Chapter 4

D. Protection for your general body. (vs. 16)

    1. Ephesians 6:16 says, “Above all, taking the shield of __________, wherewith ye shall be able to ____________ all the fiery darts of the wicked.”

Note:  You will notice that this piece of armor is not stationary; that is, it is not fixed in one place. The shield can be quickly moved to protect any part of the body from the fiery darts of the wicked.  Of what material is this shield made? Faith. And where do you get faith?

    2. Romans 10:17 says, “So then __________ cometh by hearing, and hearing by the ________ of God.”

Note:   Now we are back to the importance of reading the Word of God, the Bible, each day. That is where we get faith.

    3. Hebrews 11:3 says, “Through __________ we understand that the worlds were framed by the ________ of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.”

Note:   How do we know that evolution is false? From reading the Bible. We are kept from the temptation of believing a foolish lie, because of the shield of faith we get from reading the Bible.

    4. Hebrews 11:24, 25 says, “By __________ Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter; Choosing rather to suffer ____________________ with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of ______ for a season.”

Note:   How do we know that a life of sinful pleasure is very short-lived and not worth it? From reading the Bible. We are kept from hurting our lives, and the lives of others, when we live with the shield of faith up, from reading the Bible.
    Jesus was tempted of the devil, and Jesus used the Word of God to defeat him. Please read Matthew 4:1-11, and answer the following questions.

    5. Verse 1 says, “Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be ______________ of the __________.”
    6. Verses 3, 4 say, “And when the ______________ came to him, he said, If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread. But he answered and said, It is ______________, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every ________ that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.”

To defeat the tempter, Jesus quoted what was written in the Bible. And Jesus used the Bible each time

to quench the fiery darts of the devil. When temptations come your way, use the Word of God as a shield.

    7. 1 Corinthians 10:13 says, “There hath no ____________________ taken you but such as is common to man: but God is ________________, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to ____________, that ye may be able to bear it.”

Note:   Using the shield of faith means that you are going to be using the Bible to quench those temptations to sin.

    8. Sometimes a fiery dart of lust is going to be thrown at your eyes, and you will need the shield of faith found in Matthew 5:28, “But I say unto you, That whosoever ______________ on a woman to ________ after her hath committed ________________ with her already in his heart.”
    9. Sometimes a fiery dart of rock music is going to be thrown at your ears, and it will start to give you the wrong thoughts. At that time, you need to bring up the shield of faith found in Ephesians 5:19, “Speaking to yourselves in ____________ and __________ and __________________ songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord.”
    10. Ephesians 6:16 “Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to ____________ all the fiery darts of the wicked.”

Note:   The word quench means, “to put out, to extinguish; to cool suddenly by immersion.” (Merriam-Webster’s 11th Collegiate Dictionary)

 

What is necessary to have a fiery dart maintain its fire? Oxygen.

When the oxygen is removed, the fire will be extinguished.

Even so, Satan’s temptations are real, but when the shield

of faith comes up, the oxygen of fleshly appetites is cut off.

    That is why the repentant drunkard can say “No” to alcohol. When he raises the shield of faith, the fleshly appetite is quenched.

    11. Proverbs 20:1 says, “Wine is a ____________, strong drink is raging: and whosoever is deceived thereby is not ________.”
    12. Proverbs 23:31 says, “Look ______ thou upon the ________ when it is red, when it giveth his colour in the cup, when it ____________ itself aright. At the last it biteth like a serpent, and stingeth like an adder.”

The shield of faith does not deflect your problem at someone else, but extinguishes it.

Note:   If you had hundreds of dollars invested in tapes or CD’s of rock music, and the Lord convicted you that that music is wrong (which it is), what would you do with all of those tapes or CD’s? Would you sell them to someone else, to try and gain back some of the money that you lost? Or would you just destroy them? You can see what the early Christians did in a similar situation.

    13. Acts 19:18, 19 says, “And many that believed came, and __________________, and showed their deeds. Many of them also which used curious arts brought their __________ together, and ____________ them before all men: and they counted the price of them, and found it fifty ________________ pieces of silver.”

If you are involved in the wrong thing — destroy it —  do not pass it on to someone else so it also corrupts them.

E. Protection for your head. (vs. 17a)

    1. Ephesians 6:17 says, “And take the ____________ of salvation…”

Note:   And what is this helmet that protects our heads? Salvation. Without the certain knowledge that you are saved, your mind is going to be filled with doubts and questions, and you are a greater target for temptation to conquer you.

    2.   1 John 5:11-13 says, “And this is the ____________, that God hath given to us ______________ life, and this life is in his Son. He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life. These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may ________ that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.”
    3.   2 Timothy 1:12 says, “For the which cause I also suffer these things: nevertheless I am not ashamed: for I ________ whom I have believed, and am persuaded that ____ is able to ________ that which I have committed unto him against that day.”

Many times the battle is won or lost in the mind.

That is why it is so important to have on the helmet of salvation.

Note:   If Satan can get you to doubting, then Satan has a good chance of getting you to sin. That is exactly what we see in Genesis 3:1-6. Please read that passage and answer the following questions.

    4. Verse 1 says, “Now the serpent was more subtle than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, ________ God ________, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?”
    5. Verses 2, 3 say, “And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not ______ of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.”
    6. Verses 4, 5 say, “And the ______________ said unto the woman, Ye shall ______ surely die: For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.”
    7. Verse 6 says, “And when the woman saw that the tree was ________ for food, and that it was ______________ to the eyes, and a tree to be ______________ to make one wise, she ________ of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.”

Note:   Satan first put doubts into Eve’s mind as to what God had really said. Then he began to flat out deny God’s words. Sadly, Eve believed Satan, instead of God.

    8.   1 Timothy 2:14 says, “And Adam was not deceived, but the __________ being ______________ was in the transgression.”

Both Adam and Eve sinned. The difference was that Adam sinned knowing full well

that when it was over, they would be in trouble; but Eve thought they would really be

better off after they sinned. It was a foolish choice on the part of both of them.

    9. Romans 5:12 says, “Wherefore, as by one man ______ entered into the world, and __________ by sin; and so death ____________ upon all men, for that all have sinned.”
    10. Isaiah 55:7 says, “Let the wicked forsake his ______, and the unrighteous man his ________________: and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.”
    11. Ephesians 2:8-10 says, “For by grace are ye saved through __________; and that not of ____________________: it is the gift of God: Not of __________, lest any man should boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should ________ in them.”

Note:   If you have never put on the helmet of salvation, do it right now. Go to the inside of the back cover of this Bible Course, and find instructions from the Bible as to how to be saved and know it.

F. Provision for your weapon. (vs. 17b)

    1. Ephesians 6:17 says, “And take the helmet of salvation, and the __________ of the Spirit, which is the ________ of God.”

This is the first piece of armor for the Christian soldier that not only

protects him, but also is a weapon against the enemy.

    2. Hebrews 4:12 says, “For the ________ of God is quick, and ________________, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the __________.”
    3. Jeremiah 23:29 says, “Is not my ________ like as a ________? saith the LORD; and like a ____________ that breaketh the rock in pieces?”

What is interesting is that it is not called our  sword.

Ephesians 6:17 calls it, “...the sword of the ____________…”

Note:   This shows us that for this sword to be successfully used, we must be submitted to the Holy Spirit. If it was our sword, we would probably use it to destroy all of our enemies.

    4.   2 Corinthians 3:6 says, “Who also hath made us able ministers of the new testament; not of the ___________, but of the ____________: for the letter ______________, but the spirit giveth ________.”

Note:   The Holy Spirit wants us to use His Sword in our hands to bring about life-changing results. If left to us, many times we would use the power of the Word to destroy our enemies, like James and John were thinking.

    5. Luke 9:51-56 says, “And it came to pass, when the time was come that he should be received up, he stedfastly set his face to go to Jerusalem, And sent messengers before his face: and they went, and entered into a village of the Samaritans, to make ready for him. And they did not ______________ him, because his face was as though he would go to Jerusalem. And when his disciples James and John saw this, they said, Lord, wilt thou that we command ________ to come down from heaven, and ______________ them, even as Elias did? But he turned, and rebuked them, and said, Ye know not what manner of spirit ye are of. For the Son of man is not come to ______________ men's lives, but to ________ them. And they went to another village.”
    6. John 3:17 says, “For God sent not his Son into the world to ______________ the world; but that the world through him might be __________.”

The Holy Spirit wants to use the Sword to bring conviction

and repentance — not just immediate death and judgment.

    7. John 16:7, 8 says, “Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the __________________ will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you. And when he is come, he will reprove the world of ______, and of righteousness, and of judgment.”
    8. John 14:26 explains who the Comforter is: “But the Comforter, which is the ________   __________, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.”

Note:   We need the wisdom and guidance of the Holy Spirit when using the Sword, the Word of God.

    9. Ecclesiastes 10:10 says, “If the iron be blunt, and he do not whet the edge, then must he put to more strength: but ____________ is profitable to ____________.”

Illustration:    You may have something that is very powerful, but if it is not directed right, it will not have the desired effect. When America got involved in World War II fighting the Japanese and the Germans, we had something that was highly guarded and treasured — the bomb sights. It allowed us a measure of precision in dropping bombs that other nations did not have at the time. It is the same when using the Word of God. We need the precision guidance of the Holy Spirit when using this weapon.

    10. Romans 8:26, 27 says, “Likewise the ____________ also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should _________ for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh _________________________ for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the ________ of God.”

Note:   We have an awesome weapon, the Bible, and it comes with the Owner, the Holy Spirit. Let Him guide you in its use.

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