Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil.

Paul has just told us to be strong in the Lord. Now in verse 11, he adds to the admonition by telling us to put on the whole armor of God. The emphasis is on the word “whole.” Most of you are familiar with the rest of the passage, and so you know he is going to describe the various parts of the armor and what role they play in the offensive and defensive aspects of our battle. It’s important to have the whole armor on. With that in mind, we’ll need to pay particular attention to each piece as we get there in our study.

But remember, even the armor in its entirety, won’t do us any good if it is not put on, and put on correctly. We’re told “Put on.” The armor doesn’t just jump up on us from some shelf in the armory! In a figurative but at the same time literal sense, we need to pick up each piece and intentionally put it on.

And the reason? So that we will be able to stand against the schemes, tricks, wiles, methods of the devil. It will not be possible to remain standing during and after the battle, if we do not have the armor on. It simply can’t be done.

Satan is a master planner. He knows our characteristics and foibles. Even though he is not omniscient, he does understand human nature. He has a strategy, and if we hope to be able to be standing when the fight is over, we will need to be sure our armor is on.

As an addendum here, let me say that Banner of Truth has published a 3-volume paperback edition of “The Christian in Complete Armour” by William Gurnall. I highly recommend it for your devotional reading.