Hello! Here is the next in the "Armour of God" series. This is a great time to really reflect on what you have memorized up to this point. Knowing AND understanding what God's word says is critical as our children become independent and leave our homes. Isaiah 55:11 says, "So my word that goes out from my mouth; it will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it." This is the promise, His word will not return to us empty! If we invest time with our families learning God's word, talking about how to intentionally live for Jesus, we can have confidence that our children will be held tightly. Even if the path isn't how we might have hoped, we can be confident that "He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ." Phil. 1:6
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Overarching Verse - This is the verse to memorize during this entire series. Take it in small chunks along the way to memorize. For the younger ones, focus on the first verse or two. Since we are focusing on the Sword today, this is a great time to really focus on verse memorization. Go back through the verses you have already memorized together and reveiw them.
Ephesians 6:11-17 - Put on the full armor of God,so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood,but against the rulers, against the authorities,against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist,with the breastplate of righteousness in place,and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith,with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvationand the sword of the Spirit,which is the word of God.
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Song
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Illustration
For Kids:
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Read Joshua 1:9, Hebrews 4:12, Matthew 4
If you are a believer in Jesus, then you are a warrior for the Lord. Today we are taking a look at the Sword of the Spirit. Who doesn't like to play with a sword? It can be fun and you feel powerful, right? The bible tells us, "In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcomethe world.” John 16:33b. We have learnd that there is a battle raging, whether we can see it or not, this battle affects our hearts and minds, our thoughts and attitudes, and sometimes even the things that happen to us (Remember the story of Job?).
As we look at all the armor we are to put on, the sword is the only one that is offensive in nature. Meaning, it is one we can use to strike, to use as a weapon. All other armor is for our defense. Would you ever want to go into battle, a war, without having a weapon? There is a good reason that Paul gives us only a sword. And that is because it is the only weapon we need. So if we are going to fight in this fight, we need to take care of our weapon, the Word of God, remembering that it is ours to take.
How does this sword work? Have you ever had a time where you realized what you just did or said was wrong? How did you feel? Did you hurt? The sword is the reason for those moments. The word of God speaks to us and shows us where we need to grow, where we are failing and when that happens, it doesn't feel good. The word of God is stopping the enemy whose goal is to take our eyes off Jesus, take our hearts out of God's hands and make us his, the enemy's. So when you feel that little tug that the choices you are making are wrong, that is the sword at work. It is your understanding of God's word at work. So we need to know what the word says, that is how we take care of the word. This is one way the sword works.
In God's word it says, "I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you." Psalm 119:11. In Matthew 4 we read about how Jesus was tested in the desert. What did you notice about how Jesus responded when Satan tried to tempt him? Each time Jesus responded with the word of God. "As it is written..." When we hide God's word in our heart, we are not just learning words, we take those words and make sure we understand what they mean. The more we know God's word, the more we can be on the lookout for Satan's attacks. When he attacks, we can be prepared to answer with the sword.
We can live a victorious life! We don't have to let temptation, fear, anger, bitterness, hatred control us! Where might Satan be trying to win with you right now? What has been your response? Do you need to change that response?
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Discussion Questions
1. Do you think there was a warrior out there that won a battle by accident? How can we intentionally fight this battle?
2. Why is the sword the only piece that we use as our offense, to actually fight the battle and not just defend ourselves?
3. What are some ways that Satan tries to attack us? (fighting with siblings or friends, lying, cheating, disobedience, etc)
4. If you would like, share a time you felt Satan was trying to attack you. Or what area might he be trying to tempt you right now? If time allows, and you have thought of one way you know Satan uses to attack, as a family find a verse that you could use as an attack. So everytime you feel his attack, you can have a verse that you are ready to attack back. For instance, one of my children struggled with getting angry and yelling at her sibilings. A verse we have worked on is, "A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger." Proverbs 15:1. There are so many we can turn to for this, and we may work on another one, but giving her words to say in the moments she feels angry is empowering for her. Maybe there is one you might find!
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Prayer
As you go to prayer as a family, take this time to think about where you are at. Ask God to help you during times of temptation (temptation to sin; lie, cheat, steal, anger, etc). Ask him to remind you of His word so you can use it as your sword. As a family thank Him for giving you each other. Confess any times when you allowed Satan to tempt you into responding in unloving ways to each other.
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Thank you for using this resource. I hope that you have found it helpful as you incorporate Family Worship Time in your home. Please leave a note if this has been helpful to you. I'd love to hear how you implement these in your home.
Thank you!
Rachel
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