Feet prepared with the gospel of peace...

There is a story about Vince Lombardi, legendary coach of the Green Bay Packers. According to the legend, Coach Lombardi, on the first day of training camp, told his players that they were going to start with the fundamentals. He then proceeded to instruct these seasoned players in the science of putting on their socks. Of such importance is the footwear of one preparing to engage an opponent, whether on the gridiron or in combat.

As the Apostle Paul continues to prepare us for battle "against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places,” he tells us, "Stand therefore... having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace." (Ephesians 6:14-15, emphasis mine) Our next piece of equipment is foot protection, so we can stand confidently before the enemy of our souls. The Roman soldier had the finest footwear available. David Guzik wrote in his Commentaries on the Bible,

"Josephus described them as 'shoes thickly studded with sharp nails' . . . so as to ensure a good grip. The military successes both of Alexander the Great and of Julius Caesar were due in large measure to their armies' being well shod and thus able to undertake long marches at incredible speed over rough terrain."

The soldier needs to be prepared to cover ground in the prosecution of war. In order to do so, he must have reliable shoes, or in the case of the Roman soldier, sandals. Paul was undoubtedly recalling Isaiah 52:7 as he penned his description of the full armor of God:

How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news, who proclaims peace, who brings glad tidings of good things, who proclaims salvation, who says to Zion, "Your God reigns!"

The Christian soldier brings the good news (gospel) of Jesus Christ to a world in bondage to sin; a world NOT at peace with God, and therefore devoid of peace altogether. He needs to be prepared with a solid understanding of the gospel of peace; a clear grasp of sound, biblical doctrines of theology, anthropology, and soteriology to carry him over the rough terrain of the world's skepticism, rationalizations, and even the probing questions of those who sincerely seek answers from him.

The Apostle Paul tells the Christian soldier:

Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone. (Colossians 4:6)

Just as an army boot, for all its toughness, is of little value to the soldier, if it is abrasive enough to cause blisters, so, the gospel of peace is to be delivered in all its power but always with grace. Jesus always, ALWAYS met people where they were living at that moment...and always with grace. Zachaeus, the tax collector; the woman at the well; the woman caught in adultery all had a lesson in the gospel of peace. Jesus dealt with the core issues of their hearts, but never with condemnation. He was about making peace between them and their Heavenly Father.

Jesus sent us forth to "...make disciples of all nations..." (Matthew 28:19) We are commissioned to spread the gospel of peace. We must be “...shod...with the preparation of the gospel of peace.” To go forth into the world without such preparation is like going into battle barefoot. We would be early casualties. But when we have “...the preparation of the gospel of peace” to stand on, we can march confidently, wherever the Spirit leads us. “For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline.” (2 Timothy 1:7) Remember, Christian, "Blessed are the peacemakers." (Matthew 5:9) Be shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace, and you will be prepared to go marching as to war.

The Breastplate of Righteousness

OK, you Christian soldiers. It is time to put on the breastplate of righteousness. What, you may ask, is a breastplate? It literally is a metal plate, molded to fit the contours of the soldier's body. In Roman times it was often decorated with animal, mythological and chest muscle designs, no doubt with the hope of intimidating the enemy. The function of this armor plate was, obviously, to protect the vital organs of the soldier and to keep him healthy and functional as he engaged the enemy in battle.

The "breastplate of righteousness" similarly is a protector of our very lives. The American Heritage Dictionary defines righteousness thusly:

1. Morally upright; without guilt or sin.
2. In accordance with virtue or morality.

In Genesis 15:6, as God makes a covenant with Abram, we read, "And [Abram] believed in the LORD, and He accounted it to him for righteousness." And Paul wrote to the church at Corinth, "For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him." (2 Corinthians 5:21) When we believe God, it is accounted to us for righteousness. In the book of Romans, Paul tells us that "[Righteousness] shall be imputed to us who believe in Him who raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead." (Romans 4:24).

Righteousness, then, comes from God. So, how do we get righteousness so we can "put it on?" Returning to 2 Corinthians, we see that Christ became sin for us, so that his righteousness might be imputed to us by faith (belief) in God. Putting on the breastplate of righteousness is, in essence, trusting God. Random House dictionary defines trust:

Reliance on the integrity, strength, ability, surety, etc., of a person or thing.

Whom we trust we follow. When we put on the breastplate of righteousness, we submit unconditionally to Christ. He is our righteousness. Paul wrote to the Roman church, "Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one’s slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness?" (Romans 6:16) He refers here, of course, to obedience to Christ.

What happens when we are obedient to Christ? Are we immune from physical illness? No. Are we guaranteed happiness? No. What, then? We are delivered from the tyranny of sin. We can live in the light. God gave the commandments we find in the scriptures to protect us, not to punish us. Being obedient to them protects us from any number of consequences of sin, from legal entanglements to domestic strife to sexually transmitted disease. In other words, the function of the armor plate of righteousness is to protect the Christian soldier and to keep him healthy and functional as he engages the enemy in battle.

One of the most frequently heard criticisms of the church is, "The church is full of hypocrites." No one can argue with that criticism, but Christian, if you put on the breastplate of righteousness, not self-righteousness, but the righteousness of Christ, the enemy will find you mighty intimidating. The battle is upon us. Put on the breastplate of righteousness now!

The belt of Truth

As we gird up for battle by putting on the full armor of God, the Apostle Paul tells us first to "put on the belt of Truth." In fact, the word gird means to bind up as with a belt. Since Paul lived in the 1st century A. D. in Roman-dominated Palestine, it is safe to assume that his references to armor were intended to invoke the image of the fearsome Roman soldier.

The belt, or cingulum, of the Roman armor was typically a rather narrow belt made of leather. It was usually adorned with plates of embossed or engraved tin. In the first century, it was also equipped with strips of leather (also adorned with plates of metal) that hung down in front to protect the groin. The purpose of the belt was to take some of the weight off the soldier's shoulders by supporting the sword (gladius) and the dagger (pugio).

Why did Paul tell us first to put on the belt of Truth? The Roman soldier typically wore his belt at all times. Is it not appropriate, then, that we should wear the "belt of Truth" at all times? Our Lord said, "I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life." (John 14:6, emphasis mine.) It seems to me, then that we are not only to cling to the Truth at all times, but because Jesus is the Truth, we are never to be without Him.

He has told us that He will never leave us nor forsake us. (Joshua 1:5) But He also told us, "I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you. This is to my Father's glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples." (John 15:5-8, emphasis mine) Speaking from my own experience, it is easy to forget to "remain in Him." Of course, whenever I fail to remain in Him, I also fail to produce fruit.

In a later post I will address "the Sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God." Here, let us simply relate the sword to the belt. If the purpose of the belt was to support the sword, Paul's analogy of the belt representing the Truth fits nicely into our Christian soldier's armor. The word of God contains only truth. We can therefore say that the truth underlies or "supports" the word of God. In addition, the truths that have been discovered through biblical archaeology always support the scriptural descriptions of historical events, cultural practices, and even miracles that are described in the word of God. So, Paul's analogy of the belt representing truth continues to instruct us.

So, what is truth? Pilate asked that question (John 18:38). I suggest you ask your friends and acquaintances that question and see what kinds of answers they come up with. Our culture has pretty much relegated truth to the scrap heap of history. Truth is widely considered in our culture to be relative (and irrelevant). But Christian, you had better know what truth is. Jesus told us, "If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." (John 8:31-32 emphasis mine)

Brother, you are called to be salt and light in a dark, decaying world. What does it mean to be "salt and light?" Salt is one of the oldest known preservatives, used to prevent the decay of foodstuffs. It also enhances the flavor of food. We are to live in such a way that we prevent the decay of our society and add flavor to the lives of those around us.

And what of light? Jesus said, "I am the light of the world." (John 9:5) A mathematical axiom is: if A = B and B = C, then A = C. So, if Jesus = Truth, and Jesus = Light, then Light = Truth. Light (truth) is that which eliminates darkness, so as Jesus said, "...let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven." (Matthew 6:16) Remember Ephesians 6:12? "...we...wrestle...against the rulers of the darkness of this age." Truth is the weapon that will rout the darkness of our age.

Christian, put on the full armor of God, beginning with the belt of Truth. If you are unsure where to find truth, may I refer you to the Holy Scriptures. Read them, hear them, study them, meditate on them, memorize them, teach them. They not only contain truth, they are truth. Jesus said He is the Truth. John said He is the Word. If you want to know Truth, know Jesus, know the Word of God, and He will set you free.

The full armor of God.

This is the inaugural post on this blog. In a sense, it is a call to arms. In Ephesians chapter 6, the Apostle Paul warns us that "...our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms." (Ephesians 6:12) We are not engaged in a political battle between liberals and conservatives or between republicans and democrats. We are engaged in all out warfare against "the powers of this dark age."

Who are those powers? Are they certain men or women who hold certain political offices? Are they greedy Wall Street tycoons? Are they the strange minds resident in the entertainment capital of the world, which Michael Medved refers to as "Hollyweird?" Would that it were so. No. Our enemy is none other than Lucifer, Satan, the enemy of our souls. These others are simply his minions; the men, women, and children whom he has taken captive with his lies. Lies like: "there is no reason to refrain from indulging your sexual appetites," "you might as well take advantage of your business associates, everyone else is doing it," "there is no reason why you shouldn't have whatever you want; you deserve it."

The fact is that Satan began his nefarious meddling in human affairs very early in human history, by lying to the woman in the garden: "Did God really say, 'You must not eat from any tree in the garden'?" "You will not surely die." (Genesis 3:1,4) Thus began the war on our souls. Satan has been lying to us consistently ever since. He is incapable of telling the truth. When we think of "the devil," we tend to think of a little red guy with horns and a pointy tail and pitchfork. If only he were that easy to recognize! No, he is very smooth, very attractive, very persuasive. He is also a complete and total loser, because Jesus Christ has already won the victory against Satan! Satan is an eternal optimist, he has even deceived himself into believing that he can win the battle that has already been won by Christ Jesus. That doesn't make him any less dangerous. Adolph Hitler increased his murder of Jews and other political prisoners, when it became apparent that he could not prevail against the allies in World War II. In the same way, Satan wants to take as many of us as possible down with him.

The Lord has already given the enemy into our hands, but we must take up arms and follow our General into the battle to free the spiritual prisoners of war, whom Satan wants to take down. When you have done with wringing your hands and decided to stand up and be counted in the army of the Lord, you have only to "...put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints." (Ephesians 6:13-18)

In future posts, I will attempt to give a cogent explanation of each piece of the armor as it has been laid out before us by the Apostle. Like any soldier, you will want to go into training and have your equipment in first class order before you encounter the enemy. My aim will be to help you with that process, but first and foremost, Christian, you must "Stand Up! Stand Up for Jesus!"