Armored Up

I have a friend who likes to admonish us all to "armor up!"  I think about that when I read about the weapons of armor featured in Paul's letter to the Ephesians.  Today, we are looking a little more deeply at getting dressed for battle, the spiritual battle, not only raging all around us continually, but which also features us as key players.

The passage we looked at yesterday, we'll examine again:  Ephesians 6:10-17.

10 Finally, be strengthened in the Lord and in the strength of his power. 11 Clothe yourselves with the full armor of God so that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world rulers of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavens. 13 For this reason, take up the full armor of God so that you may be able to stand your ground on the evil day, and having done everything, to stand. 14 Stand firm therefore, by fastening the belt of truth around your waist, by putting on the breastplate of righteousness, 15 by fitting your feet with the preparation that comes from the good news of peace, 16 and in all of this, by taking up the shield of faith with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 And take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

Belt of Truth
This is the first weapon listed, and I believe it is for a reason.  The Bible is such a complex book that it is possible to use it to teach error.  Discerning the truth from studying the Scriptures is imperative because, otherwise, we live out some distortion or some heresy.  I went to visit a family friend in the hospital many years ago, as a teenager, and noticed some literature that a well-intentioned soul had left.  I asked her about it and made the comment, "But, Martha, they are so sincere!"  "Yes," she replied, "but they are sincerely wrong."
It is easy to conclude, without looking at all the passages on this topic, that the way to heaven is to be a good person, to "work" your way there.  But, that is not what the whole of Scripture teaches.  This is but one example.

Breastplate of Righteousness
Where do we get this second weapon?  How do we become righteous? This breastplate refers to our salvation in Jesus Christ.  As we learn the truth of the Scriptures, we understand that we cannot earn our salvation or "work our way to heaven", but that righteousness is only found in Jesus Christ and His sacrificial death, burial and resurrection on our behalf.  I've elaborated on this truth in earlier posts. Each day we must put on this breastplate to remind us that our righteous comes from Him and because this weapon protects our hearts from wandering.  We are to live in and practice the righteousness we received from Him.

Gospel Shoes
As a warrior for Jesus Christ, we are commanded to take the gospel of peace to others.  This weapon is referred to as covering for our feet because we are intended to TAKE it to others in the nexus of the battle, those who need to come to know Jesus as Savior.  Why is it called the gospel of peace, in this passage?  Because the finished work of Jesus Christ enables us to have eternal peace with God.  For those of us who have already made Jesus our Life King, we can have peace in the middle of the spiritual war that He is already the Victor.  We know that we fight for the side that will ultimately score a decisive and eternal win.

Shield of Faith
As a warrior, we will be called upon to fend off many spiritual attacks, on a daily basis.  The shield of faith deflects those weapons and prevents them from doing us spiritual harm.  But, we must use this shield!  When attacks cause us to question our relationship with Christ, or what He has called us to do, we must respond in faith, trusting Him to lead us rightly.
I don't know about you, but there are times when I have no problem holding up my shield.  There are other times when my shield tends to waver, falter and fail.  In Scripture, we are told to "exercise" our faith.  2 Peter 1:5, Philippians 2:12-13, James 2:14-26.  In that last passage, James points out that if your faith is not exercised, that is, if it is not evidenced by the good deeds you do, it would be prudent to examine yourself to see if you ever really accepted Jesus as Savior.  That is, it would be good to investigate to see if you HAVE a shield of faith.

Tomorrow, we'll look at the remaining weapons in our spiritual arsenal.  In the meantime, don't ever forget: be vigilant!   Remember!  As The Message translation puts it (vs. 12):  we are engaged in "a life-or-death fight to the finish against the Devil and all his angels."

Good morning, Lord!  Thank you for not leaving us defenseless against the Enemy, Satan.  Thank you for these weapons that give us spiritual victory over the evil one.  Help us to reflect on these as we go through our day and to not only wear them, but to use them in the daily battle.  I am so grateful for the Truth you have given us through your Holy Word.  In Jesus' name, Amen.