Ephesians 6:13 Having Done All
“Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand” (NKJV).
This verse comes before the listing of armor that we are to wear—belt of truth, breastplate of righteousness, shoes with the preparation of the gospel of peace, the shield of faith, the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit. We are also told to pray “with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, which is the Word of God.” I’ve always taken this section of Scripture to mean that all our weapons were of a defensive nature because we were to stand. But, by thinking this, I neglected the three words just before, “to stand.’ Those words are, “having done all.” I’ve come to realize that “having done all” means that we were to have been on the attack, taking territory from satan and pushing him back in every way we can. Sometimes when a soldier has “done all,” he is tired and needs rest and resupply. That’s the time we are to stand—not to give any quarter, not to give up an inch of the territory we have gained while we are being resupplied. The weapons we have been given will certainly help as we stand, withstanding the attacks of satan. All the weapons provide protection, but we need to remember that these same weapons also provide protection as we charge forward. The principle offensive weapon would seem to be the “sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God.” Sooo, I need to memorize passages of Scripture so that I have my sword always at the ready. Jesus showed us when He was tempted by satan, that the Word of God drives satan back and may even cause him to go away—quit the battleground for the time being. Of all the weapons given to us by God, we control the sword of the Spirit by the effort we put into memorizing Scripture.
God has given us His Word, the Bible, but when we let it lie on the coffee table or sit on the bookshelf unopened, we nullify it as a weapon. Even reading it doesn’t make it very effective as a weapon, but when we know Scripture and can quote it—fire our guns—at satan, it becomes a powerful weapon that sets him back on his heels. And when satan is finally defeated, we will quote and sing Scripture not as a weapon, but as an expression of our understanding and acceptance of every Word written by God, the very Words He uses to tell us of His great love for us.