FAITH
EXTINGUISHES ALL FLAMING ARROWS OF THE ADVERSARY
BREAD
10 Finally,
be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God
so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. 12 For our struggle is not
against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities,
against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil
in the heavenly realms. 13 Therefore
put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be
able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14 Stand firm then, with the belt
of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in
place, 15 and
with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 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. 17 Take
the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 18 And pray in the Spirit on all
occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert
and always keep on praying for all the saints. Ephesians 6:10-18 (NIV)
24 The
disciples went and woke him, saying, “Master, Master, we're going to drown!” He
got up and rebuked the wind and the raging waters; the storm subsided, and all
was calm. 25 “Where is your faith?” he asked his disciples. In fear
and amazement they asked one another, “Who is this? He commands even the winds
and the water, and they obey him.” Luke
8:24-25 (NIV)
1 Now
faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. 2 This is what the ancients were
commended for. Hebrews 11:1-2 (NIV)
6 And
without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him
must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek
him. Hebrews 11:6 (NIV)
14 And no
wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. 15 It is not surprising, then, if
his servants masquerade as servants of righteousness. Their end will be what
their actions deserve. 2 Corinthians
11:14-15 (NIV)
6 Humble
yourselves, therefore, under God's mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due
time. 7 Cast
all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. 8 Be self-controlled and alert.
Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to
devour. 9 Resist
him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout
the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings. 1 Peter 5:6-9 (NIV)
7 Submit
yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8 Come near to God and he will
come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you
double-minded. 9 Grieve,
mourn and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom. 10 Humble yourselves before the
Lord, and he will lift you up. James
4:7-10 (NIV)
16 Therefore
we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are
being renewed day by day. 17 For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for
us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. 18 So we fix our eyes not on what
is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is
unseen is eternal. 2 Corinthians
4:16-18 (NIV)
BUTTER
“God tries our faith so that we may try His
faithfulness.” Anonymous
“Faith raises the soul above the
difficulty, straight to God Himself, and enables one to stand still. We gain nothing by our restless and anxious
efforts….It is therefore true wisdom, in all times of difficulty and perplexity,
to stand still – to wait only upon God, and He will assuredly open a way for
us.” C.H. Mackintosh
“Luther
was right: the root behind all other manifestations of sin is compulsive
unbelief—our voluntary darkness concerning God, ourselves, his relationship to
the fallen world and his redemption purpose… If the fall occurred through
embracing lies, the recovery process of salvation must center on faith in
truth, reversing this condition.” Richard Lovelace
“Faith
– Forsaking All I Trust Him. It is faith
in Him not faith in us nor faith in faith, but faith in Him. Faith is the confident expectation that God
will do what He says He will do. It is
standing securely on the Truth of His Word which keeps us from being swayed by
false doctrines and it is honored by and pleases God.” BHY
“A
special faith in our Lord Jesus Christ’s person, work and office is the life,
heart and mainspring of the Christian character. He sees by faith and unseen Saviour, who
loved him, gave Himself for him, paid his debts for him, bore his sins, carried
his transgressions, rose again for him, and appears in heaven for him as his
Advocate at the right hand of God. He
sees Jesus and clings to Him…..He sees his own many sins, his weak heart, a
tempting world, a busy devil; and if he looked only at them, he might well
despair. But he sees also a mighty
Saviour, an interceding Saviour, a sympathizing Saviour—His blood…..His
righteousness, His everlasting priesthood—and he believes that all this is his
own. He sees Jesus and casts his whole
weight on Him. Seeing Him, he cheerfully
fights on, with a full confidence that he will prove more than conqueror
through Him that loved him…Habitual lively faith in Christ’s presence and
readiness to help is the secret of the Christian fighting successfully.” J C
Ryle
“Faith is to believe what you do not see; the reward of this faith
is to see what you believe.” St Augustine
“Faith
engages Christ’s power, and His power ensureth the victory.” Bogatzky
“There
is no place for faith if we expect God to fulfill immediately what He
promises.” John Calvin
“Seeking
with faith, hope, and love pleases our Lord; and finding Him pleases the soul,
filling it full of joy.” Julian of Norwich
“Satan strikes either at the root of faith or at the root of diligence.” John Livingstone
“Give our Lord the benefit of believing that His hand is leading you, and accept the anxiety of feeling yourself in suspense and incomplete.” Pierre Teilhard de Chardin
“God wants us to reconnect with the powerful and timeless things He has done in the past, enabling us to build on them rather than always starting over. He not only desires that we be encouraged by remembering His past faithfulness, but also to realize that the promises and anointings released during those seasons are still available today.” Dutch Sheets
“The
secret of faith that is ready for emergencies is the quiet, practical
dependence upon God day by day which makes Him real to the believing heart.” Dr. & Mrs. Howard Taylor
“We
should follow Christ in simplicity and faith, because the paths in which He
leads us all end in glory and immortality.
It is true they may not be smooth paths – they may be covered with sharp
flinty trials, but they lead to the ‘city with foundations, whose architect and
builder is God.’ ‘All the ways of the
Lord are loving and faithful for those who keep the demands of His covenant.’ Let’s put full trust in our Leader, since we
know that, come prosperity or adversity, sickness or health, popularity or
contempt, His purpose shall be worked out, and that purpose shall be pure,
unmingled good to every heir of mercy…..His dear love will make us far more
blessed than those who sit at home and warm their hands at the world’s fire.” Charles H. Spurgeon
HEART
SAVOR
- · “My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus’ blood and righteousness. I dare not trust the sweetest frame but wholly lean on Jesus’ Name. On Christ, The Solid Rock, I stand; all other ground is sinking sand, all other ground is sinking sand. When darkness veils His lovely face, I rest on His unchanging grace; in every high and stormy gale, my anchor holds within the veil. His oath, His covenant, His blood support me in the whelming flood; when all around my souls gives way, He then is all my hope and stay. When He shall come with trumpet sound, oh, may I then in Him be found; dressed in His righteousness alone, faultless to stand before the throne. On Christ, The Solid Rock, I stand; all other ground is sinking sand, all other ground is sinking sand.” Mote
- · My faith is in Christ alone, my Cornerstone, my solid ground. He is my strength, my shield, my song.
- · Satan always seeks to strike at our faith: “Did God really say” the adversary questions the first mother of all and he continues to whisper that question in each one of her children’s ears.
