Before I began digging into the meaning behind the armor of God, I didn’t realize how big the Shield of Faith is. This picture may look a bit strange to you.  However, the word Shield symbolically means to shield like a door.

A ‘door.’  Does that ring any bells with you?  In John 10:17,  Jesus is telling the disciples about the Shepherd and the sheep.  “Then Jesus said to them again, ‘Most assuredly, I say to you, I am the DOOR of the sheep.'”

When I was in Israel, our tour guide pointed to a herd of sheep and told us, “The fields now, and in Jesus’ time, are very rocky. If a cave could be located, the shepherds put their sheep in the cave at night and slept across the opening to protect them. If a cave could not be found, the shepherds would stack stones in a circle creating a stone corral eighteen to twenty inches tall.  They gathered the sheep inside the enclosure. After the shepherds heaped thorns and briers on top of the stone wall, they stationed themselves at the opening of the enclosure during the night. They became the gate of the sheepfold, literally laying down their lives for the sheep. If anything came to attack, the shepherd was the first line of defense. When Jesus taught about the Good Shepherd in John 10, He was referring to this kind of care.”

In 2 Samuel 22:2-3, 31,  David wrote, “The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer; the God of my strength, in whom I will trust; My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold and my refuge; My Savior, You save me from violence…As for God, His way is perfect; The word of the Lord is proven; He is a shield to all who trust in Him.”

So, in essence, our shield is none other than Jesus Himself.  What we believe about Him and His word determines the strength of our shield.

Faith is an interesting word.  It begins as a noun in Strong’s #530 and it looks like this:

 Aleph 1= God – Echad – Unity, Unique (no other like it) Means: Ox head—Strength or Leader, Most Important, First – The Strength and Power of the leader

Mem 40= Trial, Testing, Tribulation.  Means Womb, Water from the womb, Cleansing water, flowing water that brings life, Mighty, Massive Chaos, Humility, taking the low place, hidden relationship with God, Cleansing water, flowing water that brings life.

Vav  6 =  Man.  Means: Nail or Hook, to Secure, Pin together, Connect -Yeshua

Final Nun  700 = Means: Life or Action

 FAITH is: Finding our identity In Christ.  Secure in Him. (Vav) Unifying ourselves with God in strength and power (Aleph), staying in humility through a hidden relationship with Him (Mem), and acting on God’s Word. (Nun)

In Hebrew, the word faith is often defined as trust.  Faith is born out of our hidden relationship with God.  The more we know Him and trust in the faithfulness of His Word, the greater is our faith or trust is in His power and strength to act in our lives.

Faith that sees us through a storm, is a faith built on relationship.  It is not just quoting scripture but knowing the faithfulness of the One who spoke the words.  When we know that greater is He who is in us than the enemy or he that is in the world, we stand in strength.

The flaming missiles the enemy sends are nothing more than smoldering lies, burning accusations or fiery temptations to bombard our minds.  When we recognize the source of these fiery darts, we need to meet them head-on with God’s word.

Jesus used the word of God against the enemy in the wilderness shielding Himself from the deception being thrown at Him.  Every time you memorize a Bible verse or spend time with God and listen to His heart, your trust in His shield grows stronger.

This goes along with Paul’s counsel to the Corinthians in 2 Corinthians 10:3-5 

For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ.

When we take the deceptive lies and temptations of the enemy and put them alongside God’s Word, truth is exposed and the enemy is shut down.  Game over.

The next time we pick up our Shield of Faith, let’s thank God for His faithfulness and declare:

Father, I am picking up my Shield of Faith today, knowing You are faithful and Your word is true.  Holy Spirit help me be alert to the enemy’s fiery darts of deception and immediately shut them down with the Word of God.  Help me to grow in my trust and live free of fear and anxiety.  Help me take a stand for the truth and bring every argument,  false reasoning, temptation, or outright lie into captivity.  I trust You Lord and I trust in Your Word.  Thank You for this Shield of Faith.”

There are two more pieces to go.  We will talk about the Helmet of Salvation tomorrow.

Shalom ♥