What’s the first thing you picture when you imagine a soldier prepared to fight? It probably wasn’t their feet, was it? And yet, when faced with a charging enemy, among the first preparations anyone does before they engage is stagger their feet into a ready stance. But what good is a ready stance if their footwear is not adequate for stability and resistance? The Gospel of Peace is compared to the ‘readiness’ given by a well-designed pair of battle shoes. Wake up and lace up. This is what the believer needs to do every day if they are going to be ready for the battles they will face.

Main idea: The Gospel of Peace makes you ready to stand.

Passage: Ephesians 6:16

This message continues our Walking and Warring series looking at the second and third pieces of the armor of God: the breastplate of righteousness and the shoes of the readiness given from the gospel of peace, from Ephesians 6:14b-15.

How can you tell the difference between a street fighter and a professional MMA fighter? Many things: Stance, strength, agility, body control, technique, and various evidence of training (or lack thereof). How can you tell the difference between someone equipped for spiritual fighting vs. someone not equipped? It all depends on if they’re wearing a belt: The Belt of Truth. This message on Ephesians 6:13-14 will describe the design of this belt, the function of this belt, and the effect of this belt according to God’s word. Be ready to observe your own life in light of these things to determine if you are doing everything necessary to withstand spiritual warfare.

Main idea: Get ready to do all you can by putting on the belt of truth.

If we are going to stand against the schemes of the devil, we need to be aware of what he is like.

In any feat of competition, battle, or contest, a contender is wise to be knowledgeable of their opponent. If Christians have an adversary, shouldn’t we be so wise? Shouldn’t we know the enemy’s schemes and character? Scripture says so.

Our adversary, the devil, is amazingly effective at making lies believable, sin desirable, temptation unavoidable, and error irresistible. In this message we seek to become more familiar with our enemy, so that we may stand in the evil day.

More resources from Faith.

This section of Scripture shows us our natural state and that we desperately need new life in Christ, or regeneration. Out natural state is this: we are spiritually dead and unable to save ourselves, nor are we able to resist sin, the world, the Devil and his demons, or our passions and desires.

More resources from Faith.

Ephesians 6:10-20 is the foundation which this series will be built on, and if verses 10-13 tell us anything, it’s this: Scripture is crystal clear that spiritual warfare is real, and we’re commanded to engage in it. This is a vital reminder to every Christian today. It has become too easy in our cultural moment, our own worldview, and in our sinful weaknesses to prefer ‘easy walking’ over ‘Walking and Warring.’ But the reality is God’s word tells us that if we aren’t warring, we really aren’t even walking. This challenge is a humbling one, and it will call us to do more than we’re capable of. But thanks be to God that in Christ we have all we need for the call. So, suit up. We’re in for an exciting ride.

To wrap up this dating series, Jared Millican moderates a Q&A with five of our current College Ministry volunteer leaders. Combined, these five have almost 40 years of experience with serving in college ministry. They’ve been through these dating series before, and they love to help college students think about the important questions that surround dating and marriage. More importantly, each of these leaders comes from different backgrounds of experience in their own relationships, through which they’ve followed Christ faithfully. Enjoy listening to fellow believers in Christ who are seeking to walk humbly with the Lord and who desire to help others to the same.

Questions include:

• How do you know if you’re too picky?
• What is an appropriate way for a girl to pursue a guy with whom she has interest?
• How do you know when you are ready to date?
• How should a dating couple approach accountability with each other?
• How should a young couple practice building a relationship with God together?
• How should you deal with lusts and physical attraction within dating?

“Can I ______; can I ______? What’s ok, what isn’t? I can agree sex should be kept for marriage, but I still want to show physical affection while dating.” It is unavoidable that this tension will come up in a dating relationship. In this message we consider again what tension-causers in our thinking might exist regarding these questions. Then we look at some explicit commands in scripture regarding affection and sex. Finally, we observe a handful of biblical principles which urge us to make thoughtful, careful, humble decisions in this area. As always with ‘grey area’ issues, we need to take what is clear in scripture to grow in wisdom for what is less clear. Such intentional thought in this area of discernment is necessary in a culture which equates sex with love and sinfully promotes the unreserved gratification of our sexual desires.

This message finishes where last week’s left off: Biblical principles for addressing the tension some feel about Christians putting too much pressure on dating for marriage. The two principles proposed here are (1) The believer’s first responsibility in any decision in life must be to please God; (2) The believer must remember that everything they have from God is a stewardship, including their relationships. Tune in to see how this relates to our dating questions.

It is a common claim in Christian circles that ‘dating should be for the purpose of marriage.’ And yet, what is also a common claim among believers is that there can be ‘too much pressure for marriage’ in dating. Do you feel the tension? Why is it that we agree on this first statement but are uncomfortable and frustrated with this second statement? This message seeks to address possible causes of this tension.