Silas
Beloved of All
Your prayer shows a clear desire to stand in the strength of the Lord and to see others stand as well, and that desire is biblical. Scripture calls us to forget what lies behind and to press forward toward the purpose God has for each of us, and part of pressing forward is learning to walk in His power rather than our own.
The passage you quoted reminds us that God does not show favoritism. Every believer is one before Him, and the same armor is offered to each of us. We are in a real spiritual conflict. We do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities and powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age and against spiritual wickedness in high places. That is why we are told to put on the whole armor of God so that we may be able to stand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.
You are right to pray this first over yourself. Jesus Himself overcame the enemy in the wilderness for His own obedience before He overcame the world and the flesh and the devil for our sake, and we follow that pattern when we submit ourselves to the Word first and then intercede for others. We receive the armor the same way we receive salvation, by grace through faith, and the same way we receive answered prayer, by believing that God hears and responds when we come to Him in faith.
To be strong in the Lord means to find your strength in Him. Satan is a wily and subtle foe, and there are many warnings about his deception, including false messiahs and false prophets who would deceive even the elect if possible. We stand against those wiles not by our own resolve but by being clothed in what God has provided.
That clothing is Christ Himself and His work for us. The belt of truth holds everything together. The breastplate of righteousness is not our own goodness, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, but the righteousness of God given to us because He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. The feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace remind us that through Jesus we have peace with God and a message of peace to carry to others. The shield of faith is simple trust in Jesus Christ, and that trust quenches the fiery darts of the wicked one. The helmet of salvation is the assurance that comes when we discover the grace of God, knowing He has paid for all our sin and will present us in His righteousness. And the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God, is both our defense and our offense. With the Word hidden in our hearts we are defended against attack, and through the Word we can also see strongholds broken in the lives of others.
You are also right to extend this prayer beyond yourself to your family, to those who lead and teach and evangelize, to whole congregations and to every partner in ministry, indeed to every believer in Christ. God has a purpose for each life. Not all are apostles, not all are prophets or evangelists or pastor teachers, but each has a calling by the will of God, and the purpose of those gifts is to equip the saints for the work of ministry and to build up the body of Christ. We are no longer strangers but members of the household of God, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets with Jesus Christ Himself as the cornerstone. When we truly grasp what God has done for us, the natural response is lowliness and meekness and a walk that is worthy of our calling, not proud but humbled as Isaiah was when he saw the Lord high and lifted up.
It is also biblical to pray in this way for those in government. We are told to pray for all who are in authority, that we may lead quiet and peaceable lives and that all may come to the knowledge of the truth, for God desires all people to be saved and to come to repentance. The heart of a ruler is in the hand of the Lord like channels of water, He directs it where He pleases. And it is right to pray for those who oppose us. Jesus said to love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you and pray for those who mistreat you, and the apostles echo this, that we should not return evil for evil but instead give a blessing. Our prayer for enemies is not that God would affirm or bless what is contrary to His Word, but that they would encounter the living Christ, repent, believe the gospel and be saved, and that evil would be restrained.
Continue to pray always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, watching with perseverance for all the saints, asking for boldness to make known the mystery of the gospel. Ask God to fill you and those you pray for with His fullness, so there is no room for the flesh to rule. He delights to do what brings glory to Himself, and He will give grace to those who seek Him humbly and persistently. May the Lord establish you and your family and all those you have lifted up, and keep you standing firm in Christ until He brings all things together under His rule.
The passage you quoted reminds us that God does not show favoritism. Every believer is one before Him, and the same armor is offered to each of us. We are in a real spiritual conflict. We do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities and powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age and against spiritual wickedness in high places. That is why we are told to put on the whole armor of God so that we may be able to stand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.
You are right to pray this first over yourself. Jesus Himself overcame the enemy in the wilderness for His own obedience before He overcame the world and the flesh and the devil for our sake, and we follow that pattern when we submit ourselves to the Word first and then intercede for others. We receive the armor the same way we receive salvation, by grace through faith, and the same way we receive answered prayer, by believing that God hears and responds when we come to Him in faith.
To be strong in the Lord means to find your strength in Him. Satan is a wily and subtle foe, and there are many warnings about his deception, including false messiahs and false prophets who would deceive even the elect if possible. We stand against those wiles not by our own resolve but by being clothed in what God has provided.
That clothing is Christ Himself and His work for us. The belt of truth holds everything together. The breastplate of righteousness is not our own goodness, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, but the righteousness of God given to us because He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. The feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace remind us that through Jesus we have peace with God and a message of peace to carry to others. The shield of faith is simple trust in Jesus Christ, and that trust quenches the fiery darts of the wicked one. The helmet of salvation is the assurance that comes when we discover the grace of God, knowing He has paid for all our sin and will present us in His righteousness. And the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God, is both our defense and our offense. With the Word hidden in our hearts we are defended against attack, and through the Word we can also see strongholds broken in the lives of others.
You are also right to extend this prayer beyond yourself to your family, to those who lead and teach and evangelize, to whole congregations and to every partner in ministry, indeed to every believer in Christ. God has a purpose for each life. Not all are apostles, not all are prophets or evangelists or pastor teachers, but each has a calling by the will of God, and the purpose of those gifts is to equip the saints for the work of ministry and to build up the body of Christ. We are no longer strangers but members of the household of God, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets with Jesus Christ Himself as the cornerstone. When we truly grasp what God has done for us, the natural response is lowliness and meekness and a walk that is worthy of our calling, not proud but humbled as Isaiah was when he saw the Lord high and lifted up.
It is also biblical to pray in this way for those in government. We are told to pray for all who are in authority, that we may lead quiet and peaceable lives and that all may come to the knowledge of the truth, for God desires all people to be saved and to come to repentance. The heart of a ruler is in the hand of the Lord like channels of water, He directs it where He pleases. And it is right to pray for those who oppose us. Jesus said to love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you and pray for those who mistreat you, and the apostles echo this, that we should not return evil for evil but instead give a blessing. Our prayer for enemies is not that God would affirm or bless what is contrary to His Word, but that they would encounter the living Christ, repent, believe the gospel and be saved, and that evil would be restrained.
Continue to pray always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, watching with perseverance for all the saints, asking for boldness to make known the mystery of the gospel. Ask God to fill you and those you pray for with His fullness, so there is no room for the flesh to rule. He delights to do what brings glory to Himself, and He will give grace to those who seek Him humbly and persistently. May the Lord establish you and your family and all those you have lifted up, and keep you standing firm in Christ until He brings all things together under His rule.
