Protection and Peace: Love is a Shield
It is extremely important that Believers grasp who they are in Christ. Understanding the significance of the armor of God and how to apply it in day-to-day situations can be a major game changer in the life of a Believer. However, after years of personal observation, it seems that the Church over complicates the process.
Pastor Tim Alsbaugh, recently shared with our congregation that the armor of God is not what has been depicted by artists over the years. That God does not war with man-made weapons like that of the Roman soldiers. Instead, our weapons are spiritual in nature, and resemble that of the High Priest. We wage war through prayer, petitions and most importantly through praise. In the natural we may appear unarmed, but in the spirit, we holster highly effective weapons of spiritual warfare for defeating the enemies of darkness.
I shared recently on this very topic. Join me as I review some of my notes from the message “Protection and Peace: Love is a Shield.”
“The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusted in Him, and I am helped; therefore my heart greatly rejoices, and with my song I will praise Him.”—Psalm 28:7
This is not complicated. Our shield is like a belt buckle—it holds together the rest of the armor. When we lose the shield, the other pieces do not operate properly. The shield of faith provides protection against the onslaught of fear thrown at us during times of testing. When we walk in faith, we move God on our behalf, when we walk in fear… we move Satan.
Still, sometimes our faith feels weak, and rightly so. Often God asks us to do things that are absolutely impossible without Him. However, we can strengthen our shield through praise. This act of worship anoints our shield, waters our faith, and drives away the enemy.
“The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.”—Psalm 18:2
“After these things the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision, saying, ‘Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your exceedingly great reward.’”—Genesis 15:1
Trust in the Lord’s faithfulness also empowers the shield. At times we can be completely clueless, and just through faith in God, we begin to see major mountains moving out of the way. This is largely to do to our covenant relationship with God. Whatever we are lacking, He has access too. Where we are weak, He is strong! Through this unique friendship with Him, we are able to do, “above all we can ask or think.”
“‘Happy are you, O Israel! Who is like you, a people saved by the Lord, the shield of your help and the sword of your majesty! Your enemies shall submit to you, and you shall tread down their high places.’”—Deuteronomy 33:29
Part of keeping our shield up depends upon our identity with Israel. It is not us, versus them. No, we are one in Messiah! God is fulfilling Bible prophecy right now in modern times, as a testimony of His faithfulness to His people, the Jews and the Gentiles. We must come alongside of that work and participate. That is why we at Curt Landry Ministries plant trees in the Negev. We see the Word of God coming to life daily—that is why we do the work that we do!
“Our soul waits for the Lord; He is our help and our shield.”—Psalm 33:20
“For the Lord God is a sun and shield; the Lord will give grace and glory; no good thing will He withhold from those who walk uprightly.”—Psalm 84:11
As Believers, we serve a loving Father who creates sons and not slaves. He has given us dominion to change the atmospheres around us. It should be normal for a Believer to see supernatural changes—for that is what it looks like when we are walking in authority on the earth.
“O Israel, trust in the Lord; He is their help and their shield.”—Psalm 115:9
Even though many of us live in safety, our security does not come from man. We must trust the Lord in every area. He is our help. He will give us Godly wisdom and discernment if we will only listen.
“Every word of God is pure; He is a shield to those who put their trust in Him.”—Proverbs 30:5
This includes trusting that the Word of God is true—that what God said He will do, will take place! We cannot, like some Christian denominations, remove the parts of the Bible we do not like. We cannot erase the name of Israel and rewrite the “Church”. In fact, when we start to take away from the written Word of God, our faith will immediately start to drop too! Why? Because, if one area is no longer viable, then maybe the next section won’t be either. But God is not a man that He should lie, and we can trust His Word to be accurate.
“For our shield belongs to the Lord, and our king to the Holy One of Israel.”—Psalm 89:18
We must know and understand what season we are in. Likewise, we must know what our role is, and not try and fill the gap in areas that are not specified for us to fill. When we are losing a long battle, often this is because we are outside of the season we are called to be in at present.
Staying within the boundaries of our call helps to keep us protected in areas we are not yet ready to fight. Peace comes when we maintain the position we have been instructed to fill. Ultimately this will prepare us for promotion and new doors will open down the road.
We hope you have enjoyed this reflection on “Protection and Peace: Love is a Shield.” Curt Landry Ministries has a heart to see the Body of Christ walking in the fullness of her destiny, and we pray that each one of you will walk both in protection and peace during whatever season you are currently!
“But You, O Lord, are a shield for me, my glory and the One who lifts up my head.”—Psalm 3:3