Lesson 1 – The Belt of Truth: Who Rules the World?

The world is becoming an ever increasingly different and perilous place. We are approaching the beginning of the end times that the Bible foretells. As sinful deeds are increasingly committed, they unleash more demonic power into our nation and our world forcing God to lift His hand of protection. Therefore, it should behoove every one of us to learn how to defend ourselves in this invisible war and to prepare for the inevitable judgment of God.

God selected the analogy of the pieces of armor the Roman soldier wore in battle to describe the spiritual counterpart in the warfare of the believer. The belt (the cingulim or apron) was thought to be the first piece of armor the Roman soldier put on as he prepared for combat. We begin by gathering intelligence for this war with the Belt of Truth, which covers the next five lessons. The Belt represents the first step in preparation for spiritual warfare. This involves a continual learning of Biblical truth to counteract deception, and developing the proper attitudes for battle.

Without a true picture of the way things really are, we are unable to have the proper perspective to convince ourselves that a war even exists, let alone be persuaded to engage it and know how to fight it with the proper weapons. In this lesson, we will be looking at our world from God’s perspective, and we’ll discover it is not what it appears to be. Then you will be introduced to your first enemy, Satan, and the background of his origin.

Lesson 2 – The Belt of Truth: The Imprint of Satan’s Character is upon the Entire World System

In developing what it takes to win this invisible war, we continue our intelligence gathering by putting on the Belt of Truth. Now that we have established who rules the world system, this lesson will define the Bible’s meaning of “world,” identify its parts, and get a true picture of the world as God views it (especially of its religious and philosophical systems). Due to the quantity of information in this lesson, this lesson is divided into two sessions.

Lesson 3 – The Belt of Truth: Mankind Reflects One of Two Fathers

In this lesson, we continue to put on the Belt of Truth by learning more about the true nature of the world we live in and also continue to lay a foundation for this study. We will enlarge on our last point in the overview of our world, “Its children” – wrapping up what the Bible has to say about how God views the world. In this lesson, we will learn more about both God’s character and Satan’s character and what sin is. A brief treatment of demonization, demon possession, and the casting out of demons will also be given.

Lesson 4 – The Belt of Truth: Satan’s War Against God’s Kingdom

A fallen superhuman angelic being has made a declaration of war. Satan’s motive for this war is his envy and extreme hatred for the God of the Bible. This animosity and abhorrence of God is also shared by the other fallen angels who ever seek to involve all mankind in their rebellion against Him. Their contempt for God is unquenchable and it extends to all that God loves and all that belongs to Him – especially God’s people.

We, the Church, are standing in his way. Therefore, the position we find ourselves in once we become God’s child is this: we are caught between two warring parties and have become the target of the devil’s hatred. So then, warfare is automatically chosen for us. Just like the nations that were forced to enter World Wars I and II against their wills, so it is not an option for us. In this lesson, you will learn more about your enemy – the specific ways Satan wages his warfare against God and man.

Lesson 5 – The Belt of Truth: Attitudes for Battle

In this session we will complete our study on clothing ourselves with the Belt of Truth. The belt was thought to be the first piece of armor the Roman soldier put on as he prepared for combat. It was the first step in his transition from relaxation to readiness for battle. It was like putting on his “game face” – a militant attitude toward his enemy. In further developing the ability to win this invisible war, the objective of this lesson is to teach about the attitudes God wants us to have as we engage in this warfare. The Holy Spirit inspired the Apostle Paul to use these pieces of armor the Roman soldier wore in combat as an analogy to describe their spiritual counterpart used in the spiritual warfare of the believer.

Lesson 6 – Introduction to the Breastplate of Righteousness: The Trinity of Man
We now leave the Belt of Truth and move on to the Breastplate of Righteousness. In Roman times, the breastplate was made from overlapping strips of iron secured by leather straps, which made it extremely strong, yet flexible. In order to comprehend the deeper spiritual meanings behind this piece of armor, we will lay a foundation as we did for the Belt of Truth. This will be the goal of Lessons 6 and 7. In Lesson 8 we will begin to define the breastplate. God created our being in a threefold composition of “spirit, soul, and body.” In this lesson, we will identify the components of our soul and spirit and learn about their functions prior to Adam’s Fall and discover more about the inner workings of ourselves.

Lesson 7 – Introduction to the Breastplate: The Effect of Adam’s Fall on Us

In the last lesson, we identified the components of our soul and spirit and learned about their functions prior to Adam and Eve’s fall into sin. This lesson picks up at that point and shows the effect that Adam’s fall had on us all, as his descendents, and God’s plan to reestablish the broken relationship. We will learn about God’s covenants with mankind and the specific responsibilities of each party, and what happens to us when we are “born again.” We will also begin to understand the relationship between the breastplate and our sinful nature. This will conclude our introduction to the Breastplate of Righteousness.

Lesson 8 – The Breastplate of Righteousness: Putting Our Sinful Nature to Death
Having completed the introductory material for this piece of armor, this lesson will now give you a better understanding of what the Bible means to “put on” the Breastplate of Righteousness. We will learn the “whys” and “hows” of putting our sinful nature to death. But first, we will summarize the results of Adam’s fall. This will set up God’s plan of salvation – specifically an enlargement of His part of the New Testament that we briefly discussed last session. We’ll also summarize man’s part.

Lesson 9 – The Breastplate of Righteousness – Battlefield #1: Our Sinful Nature vs. Our Spirit

Just as the Roman soldier put on a breastplate to protect his physical heart and organs, so the child of God is to put on their breastplate to protect his or her spiritual heart and life. Today, it would be like a policeman or a soldier wearing a flak jacket in the line of duty. Every war has its battlefields. This lesson begins to identify the first of five spiritual battlefields on which the believer wages warfare – our sinful nature vs. our spirit (new nature) where the Holy Spirit resides. Keep in mind that much of this warfare is fought within us.

In developing the ability to win this invisible war, we will also begin to learn some of the tactics Satan uses against us (some 30 overall). This lesson will take two sessions to complete. In session one, we will deal with the first TACTIC: Let Self Reign, which is a foundational strategy that will also be applied over the next few lessons. The second session will deal with Maintaining Sexual Purity. We will learn from two of King David’s biggest mistakes in the area of temptation, his numbering of Israel and his affair with Bathsheba.

Lesson 10 – The Breastplate of Righteousness – Battlefield #2: The Things of the World vs. Our Love

In developing the ability to win this invisible war, we now explore the second battlefield we encounter. It is the battle for our love. Specifically, the devil uses the seductive things of the world system to bait and attract our love so as to compete with God for our hearts. To whom will you give this prized possession? Another aspect of the Breastplate of Righteousness is how it protects our spiritual heart – the seat of our affections. We will also learn tactics the enemy uses in this arena, and see how they were successfully used in the lives of King Solomon and Judas Iscariot. We will complete the study on the Breastplate in Lesson 12.

Lesson 11 – The Helmet of Salvation – Battlefield #3: Our Mind

A third battlefield occurs in our mind, and it is in the heat of the conflict. In developing the ability to win this invisible war, we will learn how our mind was adversely affected by Adam’s Fall, and how it can be influenced by beings in the spirit realm. Also another tactic will be presented, and we will identify the types of blows that are delivered by the enemy to our minds. We will conclude this study on the Helmet in Lesson 12 by dealing with how to get victory in our thought life.

Lesson 12 – The Helmet of Salvation: The Conclusion of the Helmet and the Breastplate
This lesson contains a mix of three things. First, we will complete our study of Battlefield #3 – the battle for our mind. We’ll deal with the fight against believing erroneous thoughts, and learn how to put on the Helmet so we can achieve victory in our thought life. Secondly, we will complete our study on the Breastplate by dealing with two more of the enemy’s tactics: creating apathy and indifference, and unforgiveness. Thirdly, we will conclude by pointing out the key elements of how to recapture spiritual territory given over to the enemy. This lesson is divided into two sessions.

Lesson 13 – Shoes for Combat – Battlefield #4: Our Christian Walk and Witness
This lesson will teach you to develop the ability to walk in victory and avoid the pitfalls and land mines on this Battlefield #4. Both God and Satan use human instrumentality to accomplish their purposes. We are all called to advance the kingdom of God in our sphere of influence here in Satan’s domain. God has a specific work for us to do and a wonderful plan for each of our lives. As we seek Him, He will reveal His assignment(s) to us.

The goal of this lesson is to show the critical importance of God’s high call upon us in representing Him before our fellow man. This involves both being an effective witness in rescuing those who don’t know our Lord, as well as being a true brother and sister in Christ to God’s people. We will also learn seven tactics the enemy effectively uses on this battlefront. This lesson is divided into two sessions.

Lesson 14 – The Shield of Faith – Battlefield #5: Doubt vs. Our Faith in God
God has ordained that in order for us to receive anything from Him, we have to exercise our faith. The Shield of Faith is an extremely important piece of defensive armor because we cannot allow our relationship with God to be injured. There is just too much at stake. In developing the ability to win this invisible war, the objectives of this lesson are first to show the critical role that faith plays in our lives. Because of its value, it becomes an object of cultivation by God and a target to assault by the devil.

Through the lives of Eve and Job, we will learn about two tactics and four types of flaming arrows the enemy launches at us to attempt to shatter our faith in God. Finally, we’ll learn how to use the Shield of Faith to extinguish these flaming arrows in our time of need. Due to its importance, this lesson is divided into three sessions.

Lesson 15 – The Sword of the Spirit

The Roman soldier used a light, short sword (gladius) with a double-edged blade in hand to hand combat. It was designed for thrusting into the enemy’s body. Spiritually, this is the first of two powerful offensive weapons God has given to us. The Sword of the Spirit enables us to fight against Satan’s kingdom of darkness – piercing it with the spotlight of God’s absolute truth. It is also a defensive weapon.

In developing the ability to win this invisible war, the objectives of this lesson are to present an overview of God’s Word, define its two “edges,” and then learn from the practical example Jesus gave us on how to use this sword in our own daily lives. We will learn nine more of the enemy’s tactics including the ways the enemy attacks the Bible. We’ll also help you to identify, and give a brief overview, of groups that claim to be Christian but do not hold to the essential doctrines of Biblical orthodox Christianity. This lesson is divided into two sessions.

Lesson 16 – Prayer and Praise

God has given to us another powerful offensive weapon – the awesome two-pronged weapon of prayer and praise. In this final lesson, we will delve into how intercessory prayer and the power of worship can effectively be used in our spiritual warfare. It is not enough for us to defend ourselves with armor. God wants His Church to be on the offensive to attack and penetrate Satan’s kingdom. In developing the ability to win this invisible war, we will learn one last tactic the enemy uses on this front. We’ll also see the necessity of being an overcomer over our sinful nature, the devil, and the world; summarize our weaponry; provide an illustrative summary of this study, and learn to pray effectively by using The Lord’s Prayer as our model. This lesson has two sessions.

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