PSALM 23:4 “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.”
EPHESIANS 6:16&17 “Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked……… and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.”
How do these two scriptures relate to each other? I had been meditating on the one and wrote down a couple of thoughts and then a week later wrote some thoughts on the other one underneath that and guess what! They fit together in my mind as having similar meaning. So just humour me here for a minute! :)
I think David, the shepherd, was expressing in Psalm 23 how fearful it was to live in this world that we aren’t going to get out of alive.........i.e. 'walking through the valley of the shadow of death'! But He didn’t fear the evil in the valley because of God’s presence and His rod and His staff.
Just like in the cartoon above, I see David, in my mind’s eye, using his staff to keep his sheep secure and safe and his rod to beat the living daylights out of a wolf to protect them. I think he was making an analogy of the rod and staff as being God’s security and protection of him as one of God's sheep. (PSALM 100:3)
We don’t have to fear evil either. In Ephesians, Paul says to use the shield and sword to get through the evil in this world. Wouldn't OUR security come from wielding the shield of faith to ward off the fiery darts (accusations, fears, doubts, anxieties) that Satan hurls at us? And the sword of the spirit, the Word of God, to beat the living daylights out of those fiery darts so that they can no longer burn into our hearts and minds.
We've got the equipment and weapons people, now let's not fear the evil but go on the offensive..............attack and be victorious!
Is your shield of faith in good shape? What fiery darts have you beat the daylights out of recently and what scripture did you use to do it with?
EPHESIANS 6:16&17 “Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked……… and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.”
How do these two scriptures relate to each other? I had been meditating on the one and wrote down a couple of thoughts and then a week later wrote some thoughts on the other one underneath that and guess what! They fit together in my mind as having similar meaning. So just humour me here for a minute! :)
I think David, the shepherd, was expressing in Psalm 23 how fearful it was to live in this world that we aren’t going to get out of alive.........i.e. 'walking through the valley of the shadow of death'! But He didn’t fear the evil in the valley because of God’s presence and His rod and His staff.
Just like in the cartoon above, I see David, in my mind’s eye, using his staff to keep his sheep secure and safe and his rod to beat the living daylights out of a wolf to protect them. I think he was making an analogy of the rod and staff as being God’s security and protection of him as one of God's sheep. (PSALM 100:3)
We don’t have to fear evil either. In Ephesians, Paul says to use the shield and sword to get through the evil in this world. Wouldn't OUR security come from wielding the shield of faith to ward off the fiery darts (accusations, fears, doubts, anxieties) that Satan hurls at us? And the sword of the spirit, the Word of God, to beat the living daylights out of those fiery darts so that they can no longer burn into our hearts and minds.
We've got the equipment and weapons people, now let's not fear the evil but go on the offensive..............attack and be victorious!
Is your shield of faith in good shape? What fiery darts have you beat the daylights out of recently and what scripture did you use to do it with?
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