Friday, December 7, 2012

Ephesians 6:18


Copyright Ó 2012 J. Neely
Ephesians 6:18

18 Praying [proseuchomai] always [en] [kairos] [pas] with [dia] all [pas] prayer [proseuche] and [kai] supplication [deesis] in [en] the Spirit, [pneuma] and [kai] watching [agrupneo] thereunto [eis] [touto] [autos] with [en] all [pas] perseverance [proskarteresis] and [kai] supplication [deesis] for [peri] all [pas] saints; [hagios] KJV-Interlinear

18 With all prayer and petition pray at all times in the Spirit, and with this in view, be on the alert with all perseverance and petition for all the saints, NASB

Whole or complete armor, refers to the complete and covered protection of a soldier in battle.

In these verses there are described six pieces of armor in the spiritual battle dress of the believer.

Belt of truth;
Breastplate of righteousness;
Footwear of peace;
Shield of faith;
Helmet of salvation;
Sword of the Spirit.

Praying, ‘proseuchomai,’ means to pray of course, but it also means to worship, to supplicate, to petition, and otherwise applies to the entire application and function of your spiritual life.

In the spirit, applies to the function of the Holy Spirit when you have confessed your sins and are resident in fellowship as described in 1 Jn. 1:9.

In your life, you are under control of either the Holy Spirit or the sin nature.  There is no third choice. 

Out of fellowship, which is your status when you commit a sin, you are under the control of your sin nature. 

When you confess your sins, then that control moves to the Holy Spirit.

As a human being, you have both intellect and volition with which you have some semblance of self-determination, but, there is an unseen influence out there which you cannot see or detect or measure, and that influence consists of the presence of truth, or the lack of it.

Truth is the accurate link between facts and reality. Salvation is by faith.  Jump off of a roof and gravity will dictate your next move.  These are truths.

Anything else is the inaccurate interpretation of reality based on incorrect applications of facts.  Salvation is by means of your own efforts. The spiritual life is based on your sincerity.  Monkeys have arms and legs and must be our ancestors.  These are lies.

When you are out of fellowship, then your spiritual life does not function.

When you are in fellowship, then your spiritual life functions properly, and with the addition of doctrine through study, you develop the ability to discern between truth and non-truths, and this builds legitimate wisdom and faith.

Therefore, with your continued residence in fellowship, you are in the Spirit, meaning under the control of the Holy Spirit who facilitates the spiritual process in your life, and continually complying with this verse, through your continued worship, which includes everything you do while in fellowship.

Watching with perseverance, is your continual alertness as to your spiritual status, as a soldier stands his watch, ever watching out for the enemy, which is sin and distractions and so forth, that are aimed to derail your spiritual life.

You are not only watching out for yourself when you are utilizing your functional spiritual life, but in the same token, you are also watching out for all believers throughout all of history.

The spiritual synergy of all believers whether alive here on earth or resident in heaven, is phenomenal, because it is that combined presence before God the Father, through our common savior, Jesus Christ, that gives us the spiritual muscle to look forward to the certain future or eternity in heaven that God has promised, and much more.

With each and every believer, there is just one more added fulfillment of Gods promise for all.