Choose Your Armor

A hermit was asked why we are troubled by demons and he answered, 'Because we throw away our armor, that is, humility, poverty, patience and men's scorn.'

Roman general or emperor's armor

In scripture, a lot of things are described as “armor” for Christians. There’s a famous passage in Ephesians where Paul talks about putting on “the full armor of God”—including the breastplate of righteousness, the belt of truth, the helmet of salvation, and more (6:13-17). There’s a less famous passage in 1 Thessalonians where Paul says,

You are all children of the light and children of the day. We do not belong to the night or to the darkness… since we belong to the day, let us be sober, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet. (5:5, 8)

What’s all this protective gear for? Well, Paul mentions that shield of faith can “stop the fiery arrows of the devil.” (Eph 6:16) This spiritual armor guards us against the attacks of the tempter.

In that hermit’s case, he knew that monks were vulnerable to demonic schemes when they set aside their armor: humility, patience, and a disregard for worldly treasures and acclaim. Without that protection, they were susceptible to temptations from within (self-importance, faultfinding, anger, testiness) and from without (money, sex, status).

Each person has their unique struggles, the particular temptations that so easily hook us and reel us in. And for each specific temptation, there’s specific armor.

If you’re tempted to automatically return fire at every perceived criticism, highlight someone’s every mistake but none of their successes, or make any hurtful joke that pops into your mind, you may need to practice putting on the armor of quiet—being routinely slow to speak—and thoughtfulness—never opening your mouth without considering your words. If that’s my habit seven days a week, I’ll have holier impulses and reactions on the days when those temptations present themselves.

If you’re tempted to hurry anyone who’s interrupting your flow (“Can we get to the point?”), rage against every red light or slow driver stretching out your drive, or let your sighs or your facial expression communicate just how little time you have for this person right now, you may need to try on some armor: like humility—what I’m doing that doesn’t involve them isn’t any more valuable that what they’re doing that involves me—and love—instead of asking ‘how can I get out of this situation’, asking ‘how can I serve them in this moment?’ If I’m deliberately exercising those spiritual muscles day-in, day-out, they’ll be strong when temptation knocks.

Whatever your struggle is, there’s armor for that.

But putting on the armor you need requires some honest reflection: What temptations am I most vulnerable to? What are some habits of the heart and mind that could keep me protected when those temptations arise? Do I normally put that armor on, or do I usually throw it away?

Whatever it is—self-awareness, accountability, generosity, gratitude, intentionality, listening, apologizing, showing love to undeserving people—I hope you’ll spend some time choosing the right armor today and commit not to throw it away.

You can listen to this devotional right here!