THE SWORD OF THE SPIRIT
By Bro. Nic Kizziah
An article published in the The Believers Newsletter - March 2004 
THE SWORD OF THE SPIRIT
A sword is a long sharp blade of metal. It is an offensive weapon. You can cut, thrust, slice, dice, stab and pierce with it. Throughout most of man’s history it was kept close by a soldier’s side in times of war. Of course we are talking about a physical metal sword. However there is another type of sword mentioned in the Bible. It is the sword of the Spirit which is the word of God. Let’s check it out:
EPHESIANS 6:11-17
11 Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.
12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.
13 Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.
14 Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness;
15 And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;
16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.
17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:
Commentary
These are the words of Paul who was writing under the inspiration of God.
Therefore these are the words of God. Paul is writing to the
saints, that’s saved people, which are at
They command you to put on the whole armour of God that you may be able to stand against the wiles of who? The devil. Now those of us who have put our faith in Jesus are in a war. Make no mistake about it. The war is not with our fellow-man (flesh and blood.) We are up against spiritual wickedness in high places. We are up against the devil himself and his angels (devils.) That’s why we are commanded to take the whole armour of God.
Now if you are going to fight the devil and his crowd you need every piece of armour available at your disposal. What does God have to offer you in the battles of your spiritual life? He offers you six pieces of armour. If you go into battle with all of these, you win. You kick dragon. You are unbeatable. However if you lack just one of the six pieces, then you lose because that is where the devil will attack you.
The text tells us that our armour consists of the following:
1. Truth
2. Righteousness
3. The gospel of peace
4. Faith
5. Salvation
6. The word of God
We are told to have our loins girt about with truth. That’s defense against the devil. We are told to put on the breastplate of righteousness. That’s defense against the devil. We are told to have our feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace. That’s defense against the devil. Our shield is the shield of faith so that we can quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. That’s defense against the devil. And we are told to take the helmet of salvation. That’s defense against the devil.
Up until now every piece of the armour has been defensive. You need a lot of defense, but you can’t take names and kick dragon with just defense. You’ve got to have some offense too. You’ve got to have a weapon. You’ve got to have a supernatural weapon. You must have a supernatural weapon that was forged from the Lord from above. Now the devil doesn’t want you to have that weapon which is the sword of the Spirit. He will try to get you to trade it in for something like a dagger or a pocket knife. He’s not all that scared of those things. And if you’re real gullible he might get you to wave the white flag and lay down your sword all together so that you are completely unarmed.
Now what does the text say? It says to take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. Did you catch the singularity there? The text says THE sword and THE Spirit and THE word of God. So where is the sword of the Spirit which is the word of God that I must have to whip the devil with? Put it in my hand brother! I’ve got to have it! If it’s not the King James Bible then somebody stand up and tell me which one it is! I don’t hear anybody out there claiming that any of the other so called new bibles are pure and perfect. I don’t see any other so called bibles, with the exception of the Douay-Rheims version, that have been preserved through the process of centuries. There’s only one book on the face of this earth that meets all the requirements that qualifies it to be the sword of the Spirit. Praise God, I’ve got a copy of it right here on my desk.
It use to be self evident that God was real. It use to be self evident that the Bible was the word of God. And it use to be self evident that the King James Bible was the Bible. The times they are a changing, hey? There have been over 200 different versions of the scriptures that have been peddled in the English language since the real Bible rolled off the printing press in 1611. From daggers to pocket knives to steak knives to butter knives to plastic knives, they all fall short. Some of them can cut the mustard but none of them can spread it around. They are not swords. The King James Bible is the sword. It is the pure preserved word of God. It is the ancient classical text that we received from our forefathers. It has been blessed like no other book in history. So it stands to reason that it is the sword of the Spirit. All the rest of them are just pretenders to the throne. At the very best the new modern versions are daggers and you can’t whip the devil and his devils with a dagger.
GALATIANS 1:8-9
8 But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto
you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.
9 As we said before, so say I now again, If any
man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be
accursed.
HEBREWS 4:12
For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of
soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the
thoughts and intents of the heart.
REVELATION 1:16
And he had in his right hand seven stars: and out of his mouth went a
sharp twoedged sword: and his countenance was as the
sun shineth in his strength.
REVELATION 2:12
And to the angel of the church in Pergamos
write; These things saith he
which hath the sharp sword with two edges;
REVELATION 2:16
Repent; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will fight against
them with the sword of my mouth.
REVELATION 19:15
And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword,
that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of
iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness
and wrath of Almighty God.
REVELATION 19:21
And the remnant were slain with the sword of
him that sat upon the horse, which sword proceeded out of his mouth: and all
the fowls were filled with their flesh.