The Armor of God by Jason Graham (Part I)
The Armor of God is:
Loin belt of Truth
Breastplate of Righteousness
Shoes of the Gospel of Peace
Shield of Faith
Helmet of Salvation
Sword of the Spirit
Ephesians 6: 10-18
10 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.
11 Put on the whole armor 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 armor 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:
18 Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints; KJV
ake Unto You
“Wherefore take unto you the whole armor of God…” Ephesians 6: 13
This statement raises a question about the armor that remains somewhat unanswered in this passage of scripture. The question isn’t “Who?” We are very certain that the author is speaking to the Christian church, us, “my brethren.”
The question is not, “What?” The passage makes it very clear what the armor of God is.
We need not question, “When?” for it is very apparent that we need to put on the whole armor of God right now so that we can stand in this very “evil day.”
The question, “Where?” is almost immaterial. Obviously, we need to wear it “where” the passage tells us to wear it; however, it is really a thing of the spirit and soul so the “wear-ness” of it is simply in the spirit and soul realm. Obviously, the author didn’t mean for us to physically walk around with armor on our bodies.
The question “Why?” is already clearly answered in the passage: so that we may be able to stand against the wiles (trickery) of the devil.
So what question is left? I would say it is a question that we can’t understand this passage without answering; however, it is not really a question that I hear even asked, much less answered, very often at all.
The question is this: HOW? Come on, Apostle Paul, you’ve told me the Who, What, When, Where, and Why, but how about the HOW. Well, the truth is that the How is very clearly seen in scripture even though it is not all written out completely in this particular passage. And guess what, the How is not a difficult thing. As a matter of fact, the How is accomplished for us. “Really?” you may ask. Yes, and I want to show you exactly what I mean. Let’s delve into the scripture to find out HOW.
oin Belt of Truth
This is the very first part of the armor that Paul chooses to mention because it is such an integral piece for a couple of the other aspects of the armor. You see we know that Paul’s description of this armor was allegorical to the actual armor of that day, which the people he was speaking to would be familiar with. In studying that armor, we find that the loin belt or girdle (thus the phrase, “gird up”) is what held the sword (Word of God) and the breastplate was attached to it (righteousness). The Truth is integral for us to read and understand the Word of God (Psalm 51: 6) and for us to receive righteousness. We must then understand HOW this all happens.
How do we put on the Loin Belt of Truth?
John 14: 6, 16, 17, John 1: 17—by Jesus Christ, he brought the truth and left us the Spirit of Truth.
John 16: 13, John 15: 26, Ephesians 5: 9, I John 5: 6—by the Spirit, for He is the Spirit of Truth.
How do we receive the Spirit?
Galatians 3:14, John 7:37-39—by Faith, Jesus said that those who believe on Him (have FAITH in Him) will have rivers of life flowing from their bellies, which verse 39 reveals is the Holy Spirit.
Acts 2: 38, Acts 10: 43-44—believing leads to repenting, which leads to receiving the Holy Ghost.
How do we receive Faith?
Romans 12: 3, Ephesians 2: 8—It is a free gift of God. We don’t have to do anything to get it.
Romans 10: 17—Faith also comes by hearing the Word of God, which of course is still from God, without effort on our own part.
So now we can see How to put on Truth, God ultimately does it for us. All we are required to do is have Faith, which God gave us as a free gift, to receive the Spirit of Truth, which Jesus sent unto us as a free Gift.
And now what does the Truth do for us?
John 8: 32: Explains that the knowledge of the truth makes us free. It also sanctifies us according to John 17: 17, 19. It is this truth and this freedom that Christ has given to us that our understanding of the Word (II Cor.4: 2) and our Righteousness hang upon, but I’ll go into a deeper description of those later.
reastplate of Righteousness
It is important to note the difference between Righteousness, Sanctification, and Holiness. To some extent, all three of these are intertwined; however, there is at least one difference between holiness and sanctification versus righteousness that needs to be pointed out. Holiness is a commandment, “Be ye holy, for I am Holy” (Lev. 20: 7, I Peter 1: 16). It is our choice to choose to be holy or God would never have commanded us to be so; He would have just done it for us. Of course, I would not fail to point out that we could only accomplish this through His grace, mercy, patience, and salvation. Sanctification is both accomplished by the work of God in us, for the Father sanctifies us by His truth (John 17: 17, 19), as well as a daily sanctification that we choose to live out (Lev. 20: 7, which once again ties into being holy). Paul’s description of dying daily, laying aside the things that may hinder us, and Jesus’ point of denying oneself to take up the cross are all ways in which we sanctify ourselves, which simply means to be set apart for service (I Cor. 15: 31, Hebrews 12: 1, Luke 9: 23). It is important to note that all of these things are what we are told to do. However, Righteousness cannot be accomplished by us in any way. Righteousness can only come from God.
So, how do we put on the Breastplate of Righteousness?
Romans 3: 19-24, 1: 16-17, 10: 1-13, II Cor. 5:17-21—
We receive the righteousness of God by faith in Jesus Christ. We are not and cannot be righteous apart from Jesus Christ. Our righteousness is as filthy rags (Isaiah 64: 6), but we become the righteousness of God; so, it must be clear to us that Paul is not instructing us to put on our own righteousness, but the righteousness of God. And the scripture makes it clear that this is not something that we do, but Jesus Christ (and faith in Him) does it in us.
Romans 5: 17-19—here it is referred to as the “gift of righteousness.” We do not earn gifts from God; He gives them to us freely. We receive them by faith.
I John 2: 29—being born of Christ produce “righteousness” in us. We are born of Christ by having faith in Him.
How do we receive Faith?
Romans 12: 3, Ephesians 2: 8—it is a free gift of God. We can’t do anything to get it.
Romans 10: 17—Faith also comes by hearing the Word of God, which of course is still from God, without effort on our own part.
So, it is clear that God makes us righteous, and we can’t by ourselves. We become righteous through Faith in Christ; however, this faith is given to us as a free gift from God. Therefore, all we need to do to put on the Breastplate of Righteousness is to have Faith in Christ to receive this free gift. Basically, God has done it for us.
What does Righteousness do for us?
According to Matthew 13:43: the righteous will shine forth as the sun in the Kingdom of God. In ancient times, when men wore the actual armor that Paul is comparing the armor of God to, the breastplate was very shiny. It was used to blind and intimidate the enemy. As an army approached their enemy, the Sun would reflect off of their shiny breastplates and give them the advantage over the enemy. Now, as Christians, our breastplate (the righteousness of God) reflects the Son, Jesus Christ, and lets all see that we are truly children of the King. We have been adopted as sons, and when we were adopted, God imputed His own Righteousness to us. We have the advantage over our enemy.
hoes of the Gospel of Peace
First of all, what does Paul mean by the “preparation” of the Gospel of peace? The word for “preparation” in the Greek simply means to “make ready.” Paul is referring to having the willingness and readiness to share the Gospel of Peace (Acts 10: 36, Romans 10: 15). You see peace is something that is meant to be given from one person to another. If you read through the epistles of the New Testament, then you will find over and over that the writer will make a statement along the lines of “Peace, be unto you.” Peace is something that we give, impart, or speak to other people because God has given it to us. We also see Christ doing this on occasions when He had healed someone, and He even spoke Peace to the Winds to get them to settle down (Mark 4: 39, Mark 5: 34). The “gospel” simply means “good news.” So in this case, the gospel of peace can both refer specifically to the Gospel of Jesus Christ for our salvation or to just simply the “good news” that we have peace and so can everyone else. Therefore, to have our feet shod with the readiness to share the Gospel of Peace, what do you think we need first? You guessed it: peace.
How do we put on the Shoes of Peace?
Luke 1: 78-79— The “dayspring” here is the word anatole in the Greek, which means the rising of the light or the breaking forth of the day. Upon studying out other scriptures (Isa. 60: 1-2, Rev. 22: 16), it is obvious that this “dayspring” is Jesus Christ. Therefore, it is Christ that gives us peace.
John 14: 27—Jesus made it clear in this passage of scripture that He left His peace with us on the earth when He left.
John 16: 33—peace in Christ.
Romans 5: 1—being justified BY faith, through Jesus
Romans 15: 33, Ephesians 2: 14, II Timothy 1: 7—Jesus is our Peace. God is a God of peace. He gives a spirit of peace (sound mind).
Galatians 5: 22-23—if it is a Fruit of the Spirit, then peace must come from the Spirit.
Philippians 4: 6-7— To, offer up a prayer with thanksgiving is to offer up a prayer in faith that God is, without a doubt, going to do what you are asking Him for. And when we get to verse 7 we see that, once again, having faith brings God’s peace (that passes all understanding).
So, now we can see that we receive Peace through Faith in Jesus (either Him as our Peace, our Peace giver, or simply being saved by faith in Him, which brings us peace) and by the Spirit, whom we receive by faith (Galatians 3: 14).
How do we receive Faith?
Romans 12: 3, Ephesians 2: 8—it is a free gift from God. We can’t do anything to get it.
Romans 10: 17—Faith also comes by hearing the Word of God, which of course is still from God, without effort on our own part.
Now that we have established HOW we receive this Peace, let’s discuss what it does for us. Philippians 4: 6-7, once again, explains that it “keeps our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.” There are, however, two other versus (that I have found so far) that tie directly into the whole idea about having the preparation of the Gospel of Peace on our feet. Romans 10: 15: Explains that those who preach the Gospel of Peace have “beautiful feet.” Why is this? Because God “shoes” our feet with His peace when we do this, and His peace is a beautiful thing. But why the feet? Romans: 16: 20: Says that the God of PEACE will crush satan under our FEET. Why would Paul have taken special care to note that it was the God of Peace doing this? Obviously, the Peace of God is significant to understanding the devil’s position: under our feet. Peace also gives us a solid foundation to walk on. It may be hard to walk across a high suspension bridge if you are not sure about its craftsmanship, but if you have surety that the bridge will hold, “then” you will have no trouble stepping out onto it and making your way across to the other side in perfect Peace.
In the ancient armor that Paul was describing, the shoes, or “greaves” as they were called, actually covered nearly the entire leg below the knee. These were generally made of brass, which protected the soldier from sticks, thorns, and even traps that the enemy would set to injure their legs so that they would not be able to march (to continue on). Not only that, but often times their shoes would have spikes in them that were used to aid in an uphill battle, to keep the soldier rooted and stout during an attack. That is what Peace will do for you. It will make you stand strong in the face of the enemy and protect you from the things that would come against you to hinder you from running your course.
And finally, it is important to realize that Peace is one of our greatest weapons in warfare. Sound crazy? Well, remember it is the God of Peace that will crush Satan under our feet. The Peace of God will keep you settled and in the place that you need to be. Peace allows us to rest and let God fight our battles for us. It is not for us to defeat the devil. Christ already accomplished that. It is the Peace of God that will keep us from trying to “wage a war” that has already been won. Psalm 46: 10 reminds us to “be still” or “quit striving” and know that He is God. That could just as accurately be put, “Be at peace and know that I am God.” We are called the New Jerusalem. Jerusalem literally means, “City of Peace.”
God bless,
Jason A. Graham
The Armor of God (Part II) click here to read ... http://thedestinationmag.page.tl/The-Armor-of-God--k1-Part-II-k2-.htm