A Christian Counselor on Faith, Righteousness, and Being Ready with the Gospel

In my previous articles, I discussed the concept of spiritual warfare and the weapons that God gives us in our spiritual struggle. The first article introduced the concept of spiritual warfare and argued that we are involved in a battle for our faith and need to recognize when we are under spiritual attack. The second article looked at the specifics of spiritual warfare and showed how the enemy seeks to attack our minds – and argued that we need to respond to this by taking positive action. The third article described the weapons that we should use in this spiritual struggle, namely, the helmet of salvation and the belt of truth. This article continues this discussion by looking at how we can use the shield of faith, the breastplate of righteousness, and the shoes of the gospel of peace in our struggle against the evil one.

The Shield of Faith

Holding up the shield of faith means not giving up on someone, even when it seems that they deserve it. After all, God has faith in us. We often consider the shield of faith to be the instrument that helps us to overcome doubt. That’s not bad, but faith does much more than that. Faith is what makes prayers happen and turns them into miracles. Faith keeps our sight straight and our hopes in heaven – meaning that we can ask and believe that the answer is “Yes” (2 Corinthians 1:20). Praying with the expectation that God will answer our prayer is very powerful and really fun – this is the realm of breakthrough and miracles. When Jesus says that faith the size of a mustard seed can move mountains (Matthew 17:20), He describes the adventure we are meant to live when we live through faith. If the helmet tells the devil that he is a liar and the belt keeps our actions in the Truth of love, then the shield helps us push the ranks forward.

Ephesians tells us to take up the shield “after all” the other pieces of armor. Faith is the advanced lesson and is the work of a saint; it is the solid food a child moves on to after milk, which is the basics of truth and salvation (Hebrews 5:14). Yet faith is completely indispensable, as it is held out in front of everything else. It joins with the other soldiers to form a wall and it can block both missile and melee attacks. The Word says that the shield “extinguishes the fiery darts of the evil one,” simultaneously blocking them and quenching their power. Faith may seem like an optional extra credit at certain levels, but “without faith it is impossible to please God” (Hebrews 11:6).

The Breastplate of Righteousness

The Bible is quick to bless any act of good as righteousness – even just giving a glass of cold water to one of God’s children (Matthew 10:42). The fruits of the Spirit are the evidence of righteous living.

But we are not perfect. Righteousness does not simply happen automatically when we join the family of Christ. We have to work at it; we put it on like armor. Sanctification is the process by which we resist temptation and allow the Holy Spirit to teach and change us. Selfishness is the way of the world, while righteousness is the way of the Kingdom of God. Where the Helmet of Salvation allows us to refute attacks of condemnation and the temptation to give up, the Breastplate of Righteousness provides the courage and character to move forward in obedience when the Holy Spirit convicts us, telling us to deal with our stuff. And day by day, little by little, we can look back and see how God has worked through us to produce love, joy, peace, patience, and so on.

Another point that the Bible makes about righteousness is that it should be acted out. Salvation is demonstrated through our works and through the fruit of the Spirit in us. It is obvious that someone who declares that they are righteous, yet has no discernable fruit and does no good works, may need to take a spiritual assessment the next time they look in the mirror. However, acts of righteousness alone do not secure a “Go to Heaven” pass. It is faith in Christ that makes us righteous – not our works. The slow and sure process of being sanctified means we are being “led in paths of righteousness” (Psalm 23) – and this is as good a spiritual defense as wearing body armor physically. Righteousness is also translated “acts of loving kindness” that go above and beyond the requirement of the law. It is these acts that are your enemy’s primary target. Your head (protected by salvation) is a more critical target, but the body (your character, your heart) is the best thing to aim for. It is a continuation of that war between the flesh and the spirit that started in the Garden of Eden.

The Shoes of the Gospel of Peace

Ephesians tells us to “shod your feet with the readiness of the Gospel of peace.” The footwear of your spiritual armor is readiness – the readiness of the Gospel. After all, you can’t even take a walk in The Way without first knowing and receiving the Gospel. Using the Gospel in war means being ready to share it with those you encounter. Wearing these shoes implies boldness, for sharing Christ is scary, but it is the most important thing you can possibly do. The Gospel is the weapon of the Kingdom of God – it sows peace into a world that the enemy wants to kill, steal, and destroy. Just as we are reactive when we are anxious, so everyone instinctively longs for peace – and the Gospel is the only way to true personal peace. Being ready to go to the world with the Gospel is the way to spread peace in the world.

A shoe helps you to cover ground and get somewhere; the action of shoes is to go. However, sharing the Gospel message is only one way to “go.” So often in my practice, I see that the key ingredient needed in marriages and families is active patience. This is not just sitting something out, but pushing through little by little instead of giving up. One example of pushing through could also be calling a counselor and making an appointment. Perhaps the best example is approaching someone in love. It takes courage to engage someone when they have done wrong or when you are in the wrong, but approaching the situation and dealing with it is absolutely necessary. True humility is not letting someone “walk over you,” but rather drawing boundaries with a loving heart. Someone who can undertake such a bold act is shod with the readiness of the Gospel of peace.

Christian Counseling Can Support You in Spiritual Warfare

Many of clients I have the privilege to work with are really still at the edge of the cliff of faith, wondering if they really want to give their all to Christ, take the leap, and see if He raises them up on wings like eagles. The truth is that the warfare doesn’t wait for us to choose sides. I know that my clients have to overcome the enemy’s blockades just to contact me and get started in the work of therapy. It is my hope and prayer that the counseling process will strengthen my clients and illuminate this conflict and that it will be a safe place to choose and to train in sainthood. Always feel free to ask your counselor if you can pray together – I am very happy to pray with clients over every session.

Christian counseling can help you to identify spiritual attack and to connect with God’s grace. Actively pursuing spiritual growth and healing is a worthy investment and a fine defense and offense in the spiritual war.

Photos
“Shield” by Michael Coghlan, Flickr CreativeCommons (CC BY-SA 2.0); “DSC_7664.jpg” (Warriors’ Feet), by Michael, Flickr CreativeCommons, (CC BY 2.0); “Testudo” (tortoise formation), by Hans Splinter Flickr CreativeCommon