Ephesians 6:15 “…and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.”

Have we ever thought about the important role our feet play in everyday life? Our feet touch the ground whenever we are standing, walking or running and they are an extension of your legs, which help move you. They are the foundation of your body and keeping them healthy can help keep you healthy.

This third piece that we are to put on in order to be “strong in the Lord and the power of His might” has reference to our feet and shows that our entire personality is involved. Nothing is more important in the Christian life than balance. If we were to think through our life we would find that many of our troubles are due to a lack of balance and the enemy capitalizes on it. We must keep in mind that our Christian life does not consist of section and portions, but our faith takes up the whole life, the whole man and we need protection at every point.

Paul, in Corinthians 12, shows the unity of the body in how every part is important and that we are to treat each member with respect. This is true with the Body of Christ, the true church. So just like the internal organs and their importance, so it is with the feet.

We know that in any physical warfare the feet are important. Soldiers in battle are always told to keep an extra pair of socks that were dry to be able to put on the feet in order that they might stand, run and fight.

Paul tells us here in Ephesians 6, in this spiritual battle, we are to have on our feet the preparation of the gospel of peace. But what does this preparation mean? A number of ways to interpret this word “readiness,” is to prepare, provide, equipment, etc. So, what does Paul mean here? The RSV translation brings out the idea of equipment, so could this be what Paul is meaning here? We have the right equipment on our feet to be ready with the gospel of peace. Titus 3:1 brings out the same idea: “Remind the people to be subject to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready to do whatever is good” The word “ready” is the same word in our text for preparation.

So, does this mean that we need to be ready to take the gospel of peace to the places where the gospel has not gone before? Does it mean that we are to be ready to preach and evangelize? Yes, we should be ready for all of this, but we must keep in mind that the footwear we put on is for battle. It brings out the idea of being firm in our standing, confident in what we believe – so we can stand.

1 Corinthians 16:13 says that we are to “stand fast in the faith.” Faith here could be translated ‘the truthfulness of God,’ keeping in mind that God is not a man that He should lie, or does not keep His promises.

The writer of the Hebrews tells us in Hebrews 2:1 that we must be careful in paying attention to what has been said lest we drift away or slip. The reason for the footwear is to make sure that we do not slip in the battle that we are in. Here in this passage we see that many of God’s people are slipping, drifting and sliding simply because they do not understand or know what to believe. Are we ready to stand on the Gospel?

In first Corinthians Paul spends 14 chapters telling the Corinthian Christians that they are standing and dividing over the wrong issues. Finally, in chapter 15 Paul says: “Now, brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand.” What are we to stand on? The Gospel. The question in this battle is: Are we ready to stand on the gospel that is outlined in 1 Corinthians 15:1-4?

We have propaganda telling us what to stand on. For example, the modern fads for today, or what the powers to be tell us what to stand on, such as in “political correctness.” We live in a world where there is a tremendous spin, or smear machine, telling us what is real and what is not.

What Paul is telling us is to have our feet shod, or rather equipped with the gospel. This is what we are to stand on.

Ephesians 6:14, “Put on the breastplate of righteousness.”

Another important piece of our armor is the breastplate because it protects the vital organs of the body. Often the Old Testament writers would use the names of different organs to express feelings, affection, etc. This is the reason why the breastplate of righteousness is so important in this conflict that we find ourselves in; that of wrestling with the world, the flesh and the devil. We need to protect our feelings, affections and our conscience, as well as our desires and our will.

The conscience is very important. We see that Paul puts the conscience second only to our faith in 1 Timothy 1:19, “…having faith and a good conscience, which some having rejected…” We know from the rest of the verse that those who have rejected a good conscience have become shipwrecked in their faith. The conscience is very important and the devil will attack us in this area, and many are held captive by the devil at this point.

We also have desires and there is nothing wrong with desires as God has given us ‘desire’ and many of our desires are good. They are part of who we are, however, what the devil tries to do is bring inordinate desires, or to inflame the desires that we have. Through all of this the will is affected and that is the reason why the breastplate of ‘righteousness’ is so important.

What do we mean by righteousness? Are we talking about moral rectitude, or should it be translated as integrity? Or could this be a righteousness that is provided by God Himself? I think so. For example, consider Apostle Paul. He was a man of integrity as well as self-righteousness, but like we read in Philippians 3:7-9, “But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith.” So, this is the breastplate of righteousness that we need to put on.

Another example of this is found in Luke 18 where the Pharisee talks about his self-righteousness. Listen to what he says: “I fast twice a week, I give a tenth of all that I have.” Yet it was the sinner that said: “God, be merciful to me a sinner!” (Luke 18:13) The sinner went home ‘justified.’

500 years ago, Martin Luther discovered this righteousness and by starting the reformation he changed the course of history. The question that comes is: What can we do? We can do nothing and that is probably one of the first things that we need to learn. This is why God sent His Son so that we might receive His righteousness, because God is pleased with His Son.  2 Corinthians 5:21 “For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.”

One of the great verses in the Bible is Romans 8:1: “There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.” Now that this righteousness has been imparted to us we are to work this out in our daily lives. In doing this we will find that this righteousness protects our heart, our mind, our conscience as well as desires, emotions and will.

It is important to see that the breastplate protects our emotions. Human emotions and desires are real and can be good. They play a great part in our life, but unless checked can lead us into a lifestyle that is detrimental to being holy unto the Lord. We can feel so strongly about something that it can replace the rational thought.

Praise God for this breastplate that protects us and keeps us strong in the Lord and in the power of His might!

John 8:32 “You shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”

Ephesians 6:14 “Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth.”

When it comes to the armor of God the first thing that we put on is the belt of truth, because the armor that is put on after is dependent on the belt. It holds everything else in place. But what is meant by truth here? Some say that we need to have a spirit of sincerity and truthfulness in us, and this is important, but is this the belt that we are to put on – sincerity and truthfulness?

I know that the Sword of the Spirit is the Word of God, but could the Word of God also be the belt of truth as well? Comparing Scripture with Scripture seems to bring this out. The text above in John 8, about truth setting us free, is referring to His instructions (the Word) and continuing in His teaching.

In 1 Corinthians 16:13 “Watch, stand fast in the faith, be brave, be strong.” The word ‘faith’ brings out the idea of the truthfulness of God: His Word. We are to stand fast in His Word. This is important because truth here is dealing with the Word of God; we are to be mastered by this truth, because this is what holds us together in this battle that we are faced with and also holds all the other pieces of armor that we are to put on.

Again, I reiterate the importance of the Word of God and we can understand why the enemy wants it out of the way. This is why it is now becoming banned from public offices, schools, etc. This is the reason why the enemy wants to take down the Ten Commandments from the public square. The battle today is a battle over the Word of God. The enemy will try to confuse us, create uncertainty and hinder us in this battle. The devil is a liar and murderer and will do all that he can to discredit the Word of God.

Throughout church history we can see how the enemy is always trying to produce doubt in our minds, just like he did with Eve: “Did God really say…?” We saw how important the promises of God are, but this is where Satan comes in bringing doubt. We must always remember that “God is not a man, that He should lie, nor a son of man, that He should repent. Has He said, and will He not do? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good?” (Numbers 23:19)

When Jesus closed his Sermon on the Mount, He brought out the example of two men and two houses. One built his house on the sand (without foundation) and when the storms of life began to blow – that house did not stand. The other man built his house on the solid rock (the teaching of God’s Word) and in the storms of life – that house stood firm.

So, we must ask ourselves: What ‘belt’ do we have girded around our loins? Is it the belt of truth – the Word? Or is it the fads of today, being ‘our own truth,’ or whatever the ‘power to be’ might tell us what truth is? It is of utmost importance to make sure that we have the right answer to this question.

We live today in a postmodern world where it’s believed that there is no absolute truth. A book written by Sharyl Attkisson called “THE SMEAR” shares how shady political operatives and fake news controls what you see, what you think and how you vote. This has become a billion-dollar industry employing thousands of people to do one thing and one thing only, and that is to smear one another’s opponent, and in the process – truth be dammed.

So, when truth becomes what people just think it is – there are some real repercussions:

*Words have no meeting. Things made out of words – laws, vows, contracts, etc. have no meaning.

*Values have changed. Sacrifice, loyalty, self-governing, morality, accountability, has changed to independence, personal happiness, tolerance, comfort, instant gratification, and the right to make one’s own choices.

*We see that image is more important than substance.

*Character is not important.

*We make decisions by following our heart. Jeremiah 11:8

*There is no big story. Nothing makes sense. Everything is in bits and pieces.

In this spiritual battle, we see the importance of the BELT OF TRUTH. It holds everything else in place.

Ephesians 6:11-15 “Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.  Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness.”

When we think in terms of the warfare that we are in, the word ‘stand’ is very important in being strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. We are told that we are to resist the devil and he will flee, and when we take our stand this is exactly what we are doing.

We saw that one of the ways that we can be strong in the Lord is to consider the promises that God has given us. However, what sometimes happens is that rather than standing on the promise that He has given – we flee or turn away.

We have the flesh, the world and the devil that we contend with all the time, and God has given us three ways that we are to fight. When it comes to the flesh, Paul told the young man Timothy to flee youthful lusts. So, when it comes to the flesh instead of trying to resist we must FLEE temptation. With the devil we are to resist and he will flee. Often, we get the two mixed up, so we try to fight the devil like we fight the flesh and it does not work. We will lose every time. When it comes to the world we are told not to be conformed to the world, but be transformed by the renewing of our mind.

In the Greek, the word to ‘stand’ brings out the idea of pulling ourselves together to be ready for conflict. Peter said: “Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you.” (1 Peter 4:12) We need to recognize that trials, tribulations and conflicts will come our way. This is life here on planet earth, until Christ comes and makes all things new. When these trials do come we need to make sure that we do not give in to thoughts of self-pity that come crowding into our minds and hearts, and cry, “WHY ME, LORD!”

We see this in Matthew 16 when Jesus asked His disciples who He was and Peter said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Later Jesus said that He must go to Jerusalem, suffer and die on the cross, and Peter rose up and said, “Forbid it Lord!” What Peter was really saying was “pity yourself, why should you die, what have you done wrong?” But Jesus rebukes Peter that this type of thinking was of the devil. Then Jesus said: “Pick up your cross and follow me!

Instead of pitying ourselves we need to deny ourselves and follow Christ in the way He overcame. I would say that one of the greatest sins is a sin self-pity, being sorry for oneself and allowing to enter into the mind – thoughts which cast down the truth about God’s love, goodness, care and His great promises that are for us.

So when the problems, trials, persecutions, etc. come in this spiritual warfare that we are in – we should not be surprised, but at the same time we should not be frightened. We are to stand firm on what God has said to us. Then the one who is frightened when we ‘stand strong in Christ’ is the one who will flee.

Peter said: “Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings.” (1 Peter 5:8-10)

Paul was saying the same thing to the Christians at Philippi: “….and not in any way terrified by your adversaries, which is to them a proof of perdition, but to you of salvation, and that from God.” (Philippians 1:28)

In this spiritual battle or in any battle, we cannot be half-hearted: we cannot be ‘straddling the fence,’ doubtful in any way. If we are uncertain in the fight – we will lose. Being doubtful we will also fight badly and we know from James that a “double minded man is unstable in all of his ways.” (James 1:8)

To be honest, if we find reading the Word of God is a task that must be performed or prayer being a drudge instead of a joy in having fellowship with the Ruler of the universe – then I would say that we are already defeated because of half-heartedness towards our God and Savior.

We are in this battle to win and win we will if we take our stand and not give up.

So we are to take the position that God has given us. A good example of this is in 2 Chronicles 20 where Jehoshaphat, the king of Israel, heard that a great multitude was coming against him. He sought the Lord and said: “We do not know what to do, but our eyes are upon you Lord.” Later he was given the instructions that they would go down to the Valley and told that they would not need to fight in this battle, but position themselves, stand still and see the salvation of God.

This is a battle between God and Satan and God will win, but will we?

Hebrews 12:1 “Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us.”

My wife and I (before she had her aneurysm and stroke) would go to the gym to exercise because we needed it to maintain health and an immune system to battle disease, etc. Along with that we need to eat right and what is true for the physical body is no different for the spiritual. To be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might we must exercise.

First, we are told that we are to run with patience. This means patient endurance and we see that this is one of the secrets of the Christian life. In the New Testament, the idea of spiritual exercise comes out: in Ephesians, we are told to be strong in the Lord and to stand; in Hebrews, we are told to run with patience; Jude brings out that we are to build ourselves up in the most holy faith, etc. What we find is that instead of doing nothing the Christian life ought to be filled with activity, stamina and a life of exertion.

I have been having my devotions in Hebrews for the last several days and we see that the author is telling us as well as Hebrew Christians what to do during their ‘evil day.’ The Hebrews were having great trouble, in a very unhappy state and about ready to give up like many today have. We find that the author of Hebrews does not mince words, but gives a very stern warning. He is not patting them on the back and giving them a sentimental message, but instead reminds them that in the world they will have persecution. Part of being strong in the Lord is to understand this.

Author of Hebrews reminds them and us that we are to pay careful attention to what we have heard lest we drift. Many of God’s people are drifting, because it is the easiest thing to do. It is easy to drift with the current (culture) instead of going against the flow. We see in Hosea how the Israelites went to Egypt (the world) for help and found out that their life became a mockery, a contempt because Egypt could not deliver them and this is true of the world as well. We are to look forward to the hope that we have; for now it is only a shadow of the reality that is to come.

In chapter 5 of Hebrews we see what the problem was with the Hebrew Christians and with many believers today. They were babies and needed milk. In Hebrews 5:11 we read that they were “dull” in hearing. The word ‘dull’ means sluggish, lazy or even stupid.

Dake’s commentary brings it out this way: “Milk-feeding was a metaphor used by many writers, both sacred and profane, to express the first principles of religion and science. They applied sucking to learning; infant to every beginner; and meat to those who had learned the first principles of truth.”

We need to learn to exercise our senses regarding the Word of God. So often we try to live on a verse here and there and it does not work. We need to dig in, read and study it. We need to meditate on what we read and when we do not fully understand what we read – we can go to the Holy Spirit and ask for wisdom and He will lead us into all truth. Look at the great saints of old in Hebrews 11 and how they spent time with God and in the Word.

We concentrate on evangelism and that is good, but the way to evangelize is to build up one another (the church). We are told in Hebrews 10:24, “And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works.” The word ‘stir’ is the same word used in Acts 15:39 where Paul and Barnabas had a “sharp” disagreement over John Mark. The word for ‘stir’ is a strong word. It would be like getting a kick in the pants to get going. Quit feeling sorry for yourself. You have a “blessed hope,” you have angels encamped around you, you have the Word of God and the help of the Holy Spirit, etc. This seems to be what the author of Hebrews is telling the Hebrew Christians and us as well.

So, what are we to do? Hebrews 12:2: “Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” The word “looking” means to ‘consider.’ So, to be “strong in the Lord and the power of His might” we consider Jesus in every way.

Jesus Christ is our example. This is why the reading of the four gospels is so important.

Psalms 31:24 “Be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart, all you who hope in the Lord.”

In this spiritual warfare God is calling us to be “strong in the Lord and in the power of His might” and we have been asking ourselves the question: What does this mean and how can we put this truth into action?

We can be strong in the Lord by knowing what is waiting for us – known as the “blessed hope.” We realize that this life is passing away; we are on a journey and the real thing is yet to come. This life is only the shadow of the reality to come.

The patriarchs of old are examples for us. Abraham went out not knowing where he was going, but he knew Who he was going with. And like Moses, they were seeking a city whose builder and maker is God. In other words, they had their eye on the glory to come.

1 John 3:2-3 tells us: “Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is. And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.”

Hope is a powerful emotion and we have something to have hope in. It is this “blessed hope” that keeps us strong in the Lord and also wanting to live a life of purity, to be more like Jesus. We will see Jesus face to face when we stand before Him. “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.” Matthew 5:8

To be able to put this into practice is to realize that when we became born-again a seed was planted in us for a new life. To see this new life grow we must feed it and this is where the Word of the Lord comes in. We must maintain our physical body and so it is with our spiritual life. Just like we should eat healthy foods, not junk food, we want to feed our spirit on the Word of God and not the junk that we see and hear and are bombarded with every day.

We know from John 6:53-60 that Jesus is our food and we also know from John 1 that He is the Word and this is what we must spend time with. Moses say that we should live on every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God. The Bible gives us knowledge and true understanding that builds us up and makes us strong in the Lord and the power of His might.

Timothy was to remain strong by remembering the things that he was taught by Paul and others. This too is something that we must have and remember. We forget too easily, especially when things are not going our way.

The situation was pretty bad for Nehemiah and his team as they were building the wall around Jerusalem. In some ways it was a super-human undertaking with many obstacles and enemies trying to stop them. What did Nehemiah do? “And I looked, and arose and said to the nobles, to the leaders, and to the rest of the people, ‘Do not be afraid of them. Remember the Lord, great and awesome, and fight for your brethren, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your houses.’” Nehemiah 4:14

Like us, they had a rich inheritance that they could look back to: Moses leading the children of Israel out of Egypt; Joshua and the battles fought in taking over the Promised land; King David and the victories that came about because God was with him. So Nehemiah says: “Remember the Lord, great and awesome, and fight for your brethren, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your houses.”

With Nehemiah talking to the builders of the wall, and Paul speaking to Timothy, and to us as well – we are be challenged to always remember the Lord. He is the King of kings and this battle is between God and Satan, and God will win!

Part of remembering is the power of prayer. Prayer is not just petitions to God, it is our communication with the living God. When I am driving in the car I do not like to listen to the radio, but instead I choose to communicate with God. What a privilege we have!

Didn’t Jesus offer us an invitation in Revelation 3:20? “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.” This is not an evangelistic message, but reminding us to have communion with the living God.

The greatest saints have always been men of prayer, spending a lot of time in prayer.