The armor of God in Ephesians 6 is one of those passages I have read and heard about, but never really slowed down and put all the pieces together.—Until this week, that is. It was the topic of a Bible lesson I was teaching to a group of kids at church recently, and as I talked through each piece of the armor, a common thread drew my attention.

But, first of all, what is the armor for? Here is the first part of the passage that introduces the concept.

“Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord,...