The Full Armor of God - Session 2

This is Session 2 of a 2-part interview presented on GeorgeAnn Hughes' podcast The ByteShow (https://www.dougriggs.org/AudioFiles.html). Pastor Doug Riggs takes a deep-dive into each of the components of the armor of God we are to have taken on so we can stand firm in the coming day of visitation.

Did you know when you were born into God's family, you were born into a war? Jesus is described as a "Man of war." (Exodus 15:3) As members of His body, we are called into battle - not against flesh and blood - but against principalities and powers.

"A struggle is to be maintained with no visible human enemy, but with superhuman and invisible forces of evil. And for this conflict a divine strength is needed. God's New Man must be clad in the very armour of God. But our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.” If the church is ignorant of the necessity to dispossess these entities from their heavenly places, the enemy continues to hold us in captivity and keeps us from gaining the inheritance God promised us. On the other hand, we keep Him from gaining His inheritance in us. God gains His inheritance in us as we gain our inheritance in Him. This requires conquest – fighting – warfare – engaging the powers of darkness in mortal combat – a fight to the death (their defeat or ours). J. Armitage Robinson

"His triumph has to be realised in His Body the Church. He was pictured by the prophets as the Divine warrior who came forth clad in Divine armour to battle with iniquity. In the same armour He goes forth again in the person of His Church, 'conquering and to conquer'. Hence the Apostle never contemplates the possibility of defeat: he is but pointing the way to a victory which needs to be consummated."

I believe we need to consider the requirements of laying hold of our inheritance as it involves two domains: 1) who we are; and 2) what we need to do. Staying an infant or remaining carnal in our spiritual life for decades will prohibit us from becoming the warriors we need to be to fight this fight. Remaining in the wilderness, not allowing the cross to deal with our self-life, old humanity, will keep us from entering our promised inheritance in Christ. That’s the ’who we are’ component. The ‘what we need to do’ has to do with engaging the principalities and powers squatting on our inheritance, dispossessing them and taking it for ourselves and for our brothers and sisters in Christ. This means war!

In this second session, Pastor Doug Riggs delves deeply into the background of the Apostle Paul's admonition for us to "put on the full armor", drawing heavenly with passages in the Old Testament. Why? So Jesus Christ can return for His church! He's waiting for us! He's waiting for the church! The body of Christ clothed and protected in Jesus Christ as the armor of God is what will bring an end to the rule and reign of satan as the prince of the power of the air, and his tool, the antichrist soon to take authority over the whole earth. We have a great opportunity and calling to rule and reign with Christ in the coming millennial kingdom, but the final warfare must be accomplished to bring this to fruition.

This warfare, a life-and-death hand-to-hand combat, is not carried out individually. It requires body life - being related to and cooperating with other members of the body of Christ - being united in purpose, vision, and effort, together as a phalanx, each in their place in order and symmetry, fully protected from our enemy by our carefully positioned shields of faith. As we wield the sword of the spirit, the word of God, we defeat our ancient enemy. Prayer warfare is a corporate calling, and any local assembly that does not have a corporate prayer ministry is not functioning as each local church is mandated.

There is coming a day - very soon - called 'the evil day' - the day that is exceedingly evil, a day specifically related to the last days of the church age just prior to its rescue (i.e.: rapture). We need the full armor of God to be able to resist the onslaught of the adversary and to hold our ground and stand firm.

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