The armor of God...the shield wall of believers
[[Eph 6:10-13/KJV]]
10 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.
11 Put on the whole armour 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 armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.
I have watched over the years as certain teachings have come and gone in the church. Like a wave of the ocean crashing on the beach everyone would teach these things and slowly they would fade away.
One such teaching was on the armor of God and spiritual warfare. these teachings ranged from the silly ( people dressing in army uniforms and yelling at the devil) to the informative ( everything you could ever want to know about how to use Roman armor).
Yet when my battles came the knowledge of how to wear my helmet or when I should use my shield was just enough information to leave me bleeding on the battlefield.
So for a few post I would like to deal with the armor of God, but with prayer and hope toward God that the Spirit will establish his truth in your heart.
Let us begin before we get to the workings of our protection and assault with some clarity. The armor of God is not our armor it is Gods; if we are not in Christ but the world or if we are living in the ability of the flesh instead of the Spirit we are not in his armor.
The second consideration is that it speaks of the whole armor. This is to say it is all or nothing...much like the fruit of the Spirit. We are not developing these things we are trusting God has given them to us and that they will complete what they where given for as we trust in him.
Keep this in mind also a roman soldier was trained, conditioned, and equipped far beyond those he faced on the battlefield, but by himself he was only a skilled fighter easily killed by a blow from somewhere out of his field of sight...but when joined with others the shield walls of Rome subdued the world for a thousand years.
We need each other..so I ask those who read this to give a moment of prayer that the Lord would use me to help my brothers and sisters faith to be strengthened and encouraged...that I may one day have the same from them...that we may all be one
The armor of God… belt of truth
[[Eph 6:14]] KJV Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness;
[[Joh 14:6-7/KJV]]
6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
7 If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him.
[[Joh 14:16-17/KJV]]
16 And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you forever;
17 Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.
[[Joh 15:26]] KJV But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me:
[[Joh 16:13-15/KJV]]
13 Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.
14 He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you.
15 All things that the Father hath are mine: therefore said I, that he shall take of mine, and shall shew it unto you.
[[Joh 17:16-19/KJV]]
16 They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.
17 Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.
18 As thou hast sent me into the world, even so have I also sent them into the world.
19 And for their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified through the truth.
[[Joh 18:37]] KJV Pilate therefore said unto him, Art thou a king then? Jesus answered, Thou sayest that I am a king. To this end was I born, and for this cause came I into the world, that I should bear witness unto the truth. Every one that is of the truth heareth my voice.
*(John 1: 14, 17...8: 32)(1John 1: 6, 8...2:20)(2John 1:2, 4, 13)(3John 1:3, 4, 8)(James 1: 18)(1Peter 1:22)(Rom 1:18)(Gal 5: 7)(Eph 4:15)(1Tim2: 4)(2Tim2:15..3: 7)(Titus1:1)
Have your loins gird with truth…the belt was to hold everything in place and carry both provision and the sword. The loins are the place from which life is produced. These things are interesting and give us much to meditate upon, but knowing the truth is what is effective to possessing what we meditate on.
Most times this truth is said to be our bible. Jesus has said both Moses and His apostles are witnesses of Him but He is the truth. We have a living way and a living truth as He is the life in us who have placed our full reliance and trust in God.
If we think of the truth witnessed in the bible as being the truth then it follows that we should learn the truth. We should study to show ourselves approved but we must never confuse learning about Him with knowing him.
If someone tells you what I said or did that does not mean you know me. Jesus concludes only the spirit of a man knows that man; in this same way only the Spirit of God knows Him. This is the reason we have been given the Spirit of God that we may be one with Him and know Him in a way that only He knows himself; this is the grace that has been given to them who place their faith in him. If we must decipher from what He says and does who He is then we have no choice but to lean on our own understanding and in that way we will never know Him.
So test the spirits if they are from God or man. How? Let all things be established by two witnesses. So if that which you believe is not found in the witness of Moses and the apostles it is not qualified as the truth.
Jesus has said there would be those on that day that said they had done things for him but He would say depart I never knew you. There were those who Jesus said prided themselves on having the scripture for in having them they believed they had salvation also some have a form of godliness by ever learning but never coming to knowledge of God.
To know God is to be made one with him. In the natural this happens between a husband and wife when their marriage is consummated. In the spirit this happens when we lose our life in the crucifixion of Jesus and His Spirit makes Gods life to be our life. This is the living truth
.Armor of God: breastplate of righteousness
[[Rom 1:16-17/KJV]]
16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.
17 For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith.
[[Rom 3:20-22/KJV]]
20 Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin.
21 But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets;
22 Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference:
[[Rom 4:4-6/KJV]]
4 Now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt.
5 But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness.
6 Even as David also describeth the blessedness of the man, unto whom God imputeth righteousness without works,
[[Rom 4:13]] KJV For the promise, that he should be the heir of the world, was not to Abraham, or to his seed, through the law, but through the righteousness of faith.
[[Rom 5:17]] KJV For if by one man's offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ.)
[[Rom 7:12]] KJV Wherefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy, and just, and good.
[[Rom 7:18]] KJV For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not.
[[Rom 7:24-25/KJV]]
24 O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?
25 I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin.
[[Rom 8:3-4/KJV]]
3 For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh:
4 That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.
[[Rom 9:30-33/KJV]]
30 What shall we say then? That the Gentiles, which followed not after righteousness, have attained to righteousness, even the righteousness which is of faith.
31 But Israel, which followed after the law of righteousness, hath not attained to the law of righteousness.
32 Wherefore? Because they sought it not by faith, but as it were by the works of the law. For they stumbled at that stumblingstone;
33 As it is written, Behold, I lay in Sion a stumblingstone and rock of offence: and whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.
[[Rom 10:3-4/KJV]]
3 For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God.
4 For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth.
Duet( 4: 2-3, 8)( 9: 14)(32:4) Psalm(36: 6)(40: 10)(65:5)(112:3)(116:4-6)(119:142)(145:17) Jeremiah(9:23-24) Isaiah(5:16)(41:10)(51:8) Micah(7:9) Matthew(5:20) John(3:21) 1Cor(1:30) 2Cor(5:21)Philippians(1:11) 2Tim(2:22)(3:16)(4:80) 1John(2:29)(3:7)(4: 4-21)(5:18) 1Peter(2:24)(3:14)
The breastplate serves an obvious function for a soldier; preservation of life. In our modern day we still wear body armor for this same purpose, but we have laid aside this gift from God claiming it is too heavy for us to bear.
We have replaced it with a badge or name tag saying sin cannot hurt me because Jesus was righteous; ignoring that sin steals, kills, and destroys the life of a believer in the same way as an unbeliever.
Let us begin with the beginning…what is righteousness? It is to do those things that naturally emanate from the life of God. The commands, statutes, and ordinances found in scripture are teachings of who we should be. It is uncircumcised ears, eyes, heart and lips(still covered by the dead flesh inherited from Adam) that see these things as things to be done. So it is if we live trying to obtain to life by our own work generated by our ability or will or even our love we will find that all we produce is sin and death.
The redeemed man must receive life in the same way Adam received life “ God breathed into him and he became a living soul”…”the same Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead will quicken(make alive) your mortal bodies.”
A quick reading of the OT scriptures listed above show that righteousness belongs to God: which is sensible since it is a description of what comes from who He is. It is also obvious from scripture that no man is righteous without imputation from God. As you depend and rely on the author of your faith to be your maker; he teaches you to rely on Him to both will and do in and through you.
When we trust him he teaches us to trust him more. So it is from faith to faith that His righteousness is revealed in our lives. We have been made one with Him. Our life is His life shared in us, and as He lives through us his righteousness acts through us.
If you are a believer and there is something in your life that you know must go DO NOT fight to remove it by your will or ability. Trust rely and depend that God has promised those who trust in his redemption and redeemer life and also that those who put their trust in him will not be ashamed.
