Put on the whole armour of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. (Ephesians 6:11)

The ‘whole armour’ is the full set of equipment needed to wage warfare, and translates πανοπλία panoplia, whence English derives ‘panoply’.  Doubtless, he had in mind the Roman soldier fully furnished with helmet, breastplate, sandals and short sword.  To the Ephesians, Paul has already used the analogy of believers clothing themselves, ‘putting on’ (the verb ἐνδύω enduo, to be clothed or enveloped) the new self, the spiritual part downpayment of the new creation; but Paul would also have it known that this new spirit can come under attack.  

For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.  (Ibid 6:12)

All the Apostles encountered opposition and were not preserved from beatings or martyrdom, but whether it was the Roman or Jewish Authorities, Paul is clear, men and women are not the enemy.  In Christ, the Christian is raised above any oppressor in that no spiritual harm can be done:

Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? As it is written,

‘For your sake we are being killed all the day long;
    we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.’  

No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.

(Romans 8:35)

Speaking to the disciples, Jesus predicts persecution, speaking of ‘when’, not ‘if’, but assures that heavenly blessing is secure:

Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.  

(Matthew 5:11-12) 

While Jesus does not promise to protect any follower from mortal harm – quite the opposite – they can trust that as God has justifies them, their soul and the eternal salvation can never be impugned – and this includes any spiritual enemy:

For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers,nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.  

(Romans 8:38-39)

And clearly as God is sovereign then, of course, Satan and any demon are subject to his will.  We see this demonstrated in an exchange between Satan and God regarding the ‘upright’ Job.

Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came among them. 

The Lord said to Satan, ‘from where have you come?’ 

Satan answered the Lord and said, ‘from going to and fro on the earth, and from walking up and down on it.’ 

And the Lord said to Satan, ‘have you considered my servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, who fears God and turns away from evil?’  (Job 1:6-8)

We note from this that has license to roam the earth, but also that it is God who brings Job to Satan’s attention.  God effectively says ‘look at Job, what do you think of him?’  The God lists Job’s many qualities, almost flaunting him in front of Satan –  provocatively, one might say.  To script, Satan reacts with scepticism:

‘Does Job fear God for no reason?  Have you not put a hedge around him and his house and all that he has, on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land. But stretch out your hand and touch all that he has, and he will curse you to your face.’ (Ibid 6:9-11)

Satan questions whether Job’s piety is genuine, if he is protected and never tested by adverse circumstances.  God’s reply may surprise many, in that he grants Satan the licence to test him but it is not unlimited sanction:

And the Lord said to Satan, ‘behold, all that he has is in your hand. Only against him do not stretch out your hand.’  (Ibid 1:12)

Satan gleefully destroys all Job’s possessions, kills his children and bring him to ruination.  Yet God is still able to find no diminution in his Job’s righteousness and says so to Satan:  

‘(Job) still holds fast his integrity, although you incited me against him to destroy him without reason.’ 

Then Satan answered the Lord and said, ‘skin for skin!  All that a man has he will give for his life. But stretch out your hand and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will curse you to your face.’  (Ibid 2:3b-5)

Satan remains sceptical saying Job’s piety remains unshaken because he is personally untouched.  So, God extends the sanction, saying

‘Behold, he is in your hand; only spare his life.’  (Ibid 2:6b)

Several observations then arise.  God is in control and Satan, at best, has limited agency – yet he is God’s agent, nonetheless.  Also, Satan may want to think he’s working for himself, but he’s under no illusion, demons are subject to God’s authority even if they disdain it.  Also, we may note that Satan is given no power over Job’s life, including his eternal life.  Job’s soul is never put on the table.  

So, several startling conclusions must be drawn from this.  The first is that God can and does test the relationship of his faithful but this a form of discipline which is always to the benefit of the disciple: 

‘My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord,
    nor be weary when reproved by him.
For the Lord disciplines the one he loves,
    and chastises every son whom he receives.’  

(Hebrews 12:5-6 quoting Proverbs 3:11-12 and Psalm 94:12)

And we should remember that God restores Job and rewards him with a double blessing.

The second conclusion is that God will use Satan to test those that love him, indeed God the Father did not preserve his own son from both spiritual and physical ordeal:

… Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness for forty days, being tempted by the devil. And he ate nothing during those days. And when they were over, he was hungry. (Luke 4:1-2)

Satan is Ha’ Satan, the accuser, and it is his job to accuse the faithful before God as being insincere and can be sanctioned to put any to the test.

This being the case, then, why does Paul ask the believer to put on spiritual armour.  If God is calling the shots, what is the point of the armour?  Must it defend the believer from God and his will demonic servants? Would Paul have God’s will be thwarted?  In any case, how could any armour protect against God, whence any power derives.  Paul prefaces this passage this way:

Finally (or henceforth) be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might.  (Ephesian 6:10)

The answer to this confusion is that this highlights the paradox of God’s sovereignty and human responsibility.   This is antinomy where two truths, in this case, Biblical, are mutually incompatible.  Can and does God protect all he has justified and nothing reverse that salvatory status?  Of course – because he is God, as God tells Job:

‘Shall a fault-finder contend with the Almighty?
    He who argues with God, let him answer it.’  (Job 40:2)

But does God expect all to avail themselves of spiritual protection, to exclude the assaults of the accuser, yes of course.  The two propositions co-exist separately and are only incompatible when we try reconcile them.  

Paul is revealing a truth that every believer remains at risk of harm, even after justification, and moreover, the threat might be subtle and under-estimated.  The most effective attack is not head on.  Satan’s stealth weapon is the insidious whispers as they are beguiling for being specious.  It was this form of attack that devasted humanity in the first instance, when he came in the form of a serpent:

(Satan) said to the woman, ‘did God actually say, “you shall not eat of any tree in the garden?”’ (Genesis 3:1b)

It is notable that of the warrior’s panoply that Paul exhorts the believer to don, there is but one offensive weapon – the sword of Spirit, ‘which is the Word of God’ (Ephesians 6:17).

When the test comes, it is only knowing and adhering to Biblical truth that will protect the believer from being led astray.  Jesus grants freedom to his followers to submit to his Lordship, but this is surrender, not subjugation.  All may, and many do, reject Jesus as Lord.  But if any would be saved, then faith is demonstrated by obedience to his commandments.

Too many now reject God by questioning or even ignoring the Word of God – and this Satan’s deadly insinuation: ‘did God actually say…’

Throughout his various letters to correct and even rebuke the Church, Paul would have all know who the ultimate enemy is, and that is neither other people nor demons.    If any would deny God, that they have made an enemy of him, indeed that is the default state, for which Jesus makes the way for reconciliation:

… while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life.  (Romans 5:10)

It is human choice then that can affect the destination and nature of eternity.  Ultimately each person is in fact their own worst enemy; indeed, through Christ, the only enemy left standing is oneself!  The full armour of God then protects the unsteady and wavering against the self-inflicted wounds that spiritual attack would occasion!