Complete Victory

“Put on the full armor of God…” Ephesus 6:11

In this holy season of Great Lent we need to stand strong against the devil with all his temptations and wars against us. In order to do this, we must understand how we can be victorious over him.

We must be steadfast. This word is used by St Paul repeatedly, and its original meaning is to “keep holding onto your land.” This is not a divine command to move forward to attack and capture a new land. The land which the devil is fighting for is in actuality owned by God Himself, so as heirs to His inheritance, it is also given to us as our possession.

Originally, Jesus Christ the King, through His death and resurrection, conquered the devil and was able to be victorious. Our spiritual warfare is only to keep and enjoy the victory that Christ has already attained. That is why St Paul mentions weapons of defense rather than attack. These are purity, love, joy, peace, faith, meekness and all the other virtues of the Lord. We don’t have to fight to attain these, as they are already ours. What we need to do is get hold of them by faith and make them a part of our daily life.