Alba 6-9-2023
THE ARMOR OF GOD: TRUTH
Ephesians 6:14
A young strong man at a construction site was bragging that he could outdo anyone in a feat of strength. He kept making fun of one of the older workers. After a while, the older worker had had enough.
"Why don't you put your money where your mouth is," he said. "I will bet a week's wages that I can haul something in a wheelbarrow over to that outbuilding that you won't be able to wheel back."
"You're on, old man," the braggart replied. "Let's see what you got." The old man reached out and grabbed the wheelbarrow by the handles. Then, nodding to the young man, he said, "All right, get in."
That young man had to acknowledge a truth. The truth is, that he was not as smart as he thought he was. And not as strong either. There were things he could not do.
And there are truths that we should acknowledge. If we avoid the truth, we put ourselves into danger. For example, if we would think it is safe to walk down the middle of Interstate 44 at any time day or night, we don't know the truth!
Knowing the truth is important to our survival. Yet there are those who say that truth is relative, we can't know anything for sure. The argument is that there is no absolute truth. They will say that something might be true for you but not true for them. But there is a problem with those who say that there is no absolute truth. Such a statement itself is false. Because it assumes that their statement is absolutely true, which cannot be if there is no absolute truth.
Here is an example of that. Walter Thomas is a pastor/rabbi at two Messianic congregations in Mesa and Chandler, AZ, and a professor at Liberty University, Lynchburg, VA.
He shared the following story: “A graduate student at a public university said to me in class discussion one day, 'But Dr. Thomas, that is your truth. I have my own truth. There is no absolute truth but only the truth that I can experience.' I asked her, 'How certain are you about that?' She answered, 'I’m absolutely sure!' I then said, 'Let me see if I understand what you are saying. Are you saying that you are absolutely sure that truth is relative?' There was silence as the irony of her statement began to sink in.”
He also said that those who say that nothing is superior to anything else are themselves taking a superior position. He calls it, “A perfect picture of self-deception and arrogance.”
(What Is Truth? On sermoncentral.com Contributed by Walter Thomas on Nov 26, 2019)
We know many things are true, in fact absolutely true. And only the foolish would argue against them. For example: it is true that there exists what we call gravity. We don't float around in the air. If we try to do that, we are quickly reminded of the truth of gravity.
And even though some have tried to get around it, two and two still make four. And north is north no matter what you think. Some things are simply true. That means that there are also things that are untrue. We call them lies. You can find them anywhere.
One person told of a terrible experience with an advertisement on television saying: “I woke up and they told me that I can get one type of car for $100, and later they said I can get one house for $1000, but I have to join their group.
“The membership fee according to them is $99, but if I can call at that minute, they will reduce it to $39.99. So I joined immediately. However, on their website there is no car that is $100.00 and no house at all. But they had already taken my credit card and charged it several times before I canceled my membership.” Liar, liar, pants on fire!
Lies! Guess where they come from. In John 8:44 Jesus is speaking about the devil and says, “there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies.” (NIV)
Satan started out with lies. In the garden of Eden he deceived Eve to seek life apart from God. The father of lies is the one who told Jesus “Jump from this high tower. It'll be ok.”
Satan is the prince of this world who rules through deceit and subterfuge. Satan will use every possible lie to try to defeat us. He even encourages lies about himself. Lies such as: He doesn’t exist. He’s not all that evil. Serving him is beneficial. Or, He can bring inner fulfillment. Sorry, not so much!
Satan also encourages us to embrace lies about ourselves. He does his best to discourage us in our walk with the Lord, telling us that we will never be good enough for God, which has some truth. But God makes us “good enough”.
The devil continues to spread lies today. And it has a damaging affect on our society. Dishonesty is prevalent in our society. All around us we see people twisting the truth to their advantage. Many people think that truth can be whatever they want it to be.
Did you know that now it is possible to officially and legally lie on birth certificates? You ask, how can someone do that? Now, in many states people can change their birth certificate to read whatever sex they want it to be.
The language of several laws is written to say people may change their sex from that which was “assigned at birth.” “Assigned at birth?” You mean a doctor just arbitrarily assigns a baby's sex at birth, and later one can go back and change it? That defies logic and biology.
But that is the world in which we live today. A world where truth can be twisted to fit any narrative or agenda one wants. So is there any hope? Is there any way that we can protect ourselves from lies?
Somehow we need a barrier to keep the lies out. Something to provide strength against any deceit or falsehood that weakens our faith. Guess what? God has provided it. It is part of the armor a Christian needs to fight life's battles. God's Word tells us to put on the full armor of God.
And the first thing listed among God's armor given for our protection is found in Ephesians 6:14. “Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth.”
The King James Version of the Bible uses the word “gird” a lot. When someone girded themselves they were getting ready for something, to run a race, or work, or to go to battle.
It meant that they took the outer robe that they wore and wrapped it up around their waist using a belt to get their long clothing out of the way.
In the Old Testament the Hebrews were told to eat the Passover meal with their garments “girded” ready to move in a hurry. The King James Version of Exodus 12:11 says, “And thus shall ye eat it; with your loins girded, your shoes on your feet, and your staff in your hand; and ye shall eat it in haste: it is the Lord's passover.”
The New International Version has that verse this way: “Eat this meal with your cloak tucked in your belt, your sandals on your feet and your staff in your hand. Eat in haste. It is the Lord’s Passover.”
When people girded themselves they were getting things out of the way so they would have the freedom to move. We are told to “gird”, or to “put on” the belt of truth. Because the belt of truth is the part of the armor that moves the lies and distractions out of the way.
It’s actually not surprising at all that the first piece of armor that we are to put on in preparation for our battle with Satan is the belt of truth. It seems that scripture is very careful here to describe the pieces of armor in the order that a Roman soldier would put his on. The belt would go on first. And that's the same order that we need to follow putting on God's armor.
Unfortunately, our idea of a belt makes that harder for us to understand this since our belts are usually one of the last pieces of clothing we put on. But what is being described here is actually more like a girdle.
The belt of the Roman soldier was most often made out of thick leather. It protected the abdomen and the lower back, and actually provided support for the lower back in order to help him stand as he carried all the rest of the heavy armor.
You see, the belt also had clips on it that were used to carry the sword and to fasten the breastplate in its proper position. The belt was not just an adornment, but an essential piece of the armor that held everything else together.
And isn't that what truth does? Something built on lies will soon fall apart. But truth gives stability and strength. Truth is the primary weapon that we use to stand firm against the devil's lies and deceit.
Truth is an essential piece of armor without which we are unprepared and compromised in our ability to do battle. Satan is the father of lies, so obviously the most effective weapon we have against him is truth.
Yet, still people will ask the question, “What is truth?” This is nothing new. 2,000 years ago, an innocent man was placed on trial and falsely accused. But the politically correct thing to do had everyone demanding crucifixion. It was a Roman governor who asked the question, “What is truth?”
Jesus had just said, “For this cause I was born, and for this cause I have come into the world, that I should bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice.” (That's when) Pilate said to Him, “What is truth?” And when he had said this, he went out again to the Jews, and said to them, “I find no fault in Him at all. (John 18:37-38)
The evidence was clear, Jesus didn't deserve to die, but the world demanded a false verdict. But in spite of the lies told about Him, Jesus Christ overcame the devil and made it possible for sin's penalty to be paid for every person's sins by dying on a cross for those sins and rising from the dead!
The enemies of Jesus want us to think that these events aren’t historically true, or that it really doesn’t matter if they are true. But they are true, we have eye witnesses' accounts. And it does matter, because all these events demonstrate that Jesus Himself is where truth is found.
Jesus said in John 14:6, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father except through Me.” He is not a way. HE IS THE WAY! He is not a truth. HE IS THE TRUTH! He is not a life. HE IS THE LIFE!
Yes, Jesus is “the truth”. Truth is not an abstract concept to be understood. It is a person. So if we want to gird ourselves with truth, we must do what Romans 13:14 says, “Put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts.”
How do we do that? How do we “put on the Lord Jesus Christ”? Well, Galatians 3:27 says, “For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.” If we are going to put on the belt of truth, we must begin by entrusting our lives to Him who is the truth.
We have to be willing to give up control of our lives, and entrust our lives to Jesus. Anything short of that and we will leave ourselves continually open to the attacks of the evil one.
Satan is a liar. So if we want to stand firm against those lies, we must be prepared for the battle by making sure that everything is held together in God’s truth. We must both love truth and live truth. And most importantly, we must be clothed with the truth. That is Jesus Christ.
If we don’t put on the Belt of Truth who is Jesus, trusting Jesus in everything, we can be taken captive by hollow and deceptive philosophies and evil principles.
Billy Graham is quoted as saying, “Truth is timeless. Truth does not change from one age to another, from one people to another, from one geographical location to another. Men’s ideas may differ, men’s custom’s may change, men’s moral codes may vary, but the great all prevailing truth stands for time and eternity.”
And do you know what? Jesus Christ is the same, yesterday, today and forever, timeless. He is the Alpha and the Omega. He is the creator of all things. All things are held together in Him. He is truth! And He tells us the truth.
Someone has counted that in the gospels in one version of scripture Jesus says seventy-nine times "I tell you the truth".
It is the truth that comes to us from the teachings of Jesus that will keep us on solid ground. Anything else is sinking sand. The teachings of Jesus are a rock solid foundation. A place we can stand our ground, and be firmly in His will.
In John 8:31-32 “Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, 'If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.'”
*It is in Jesus that I learn the truth about my sin... Because all have sinned.
*It is in Jesus that I learn the truth about God... That God so loved the world.
*It is in Jesus that I learn that I can be forgiven... We have redemption through His blood.
*It is in Jesus that I learn the truth about my identity as a Christian... Christ in me, the hope of glory.
*It is in Jesus I learn about the power of God available to me... His power is at work within us.
I need Jesus. I need Him because He is the truth! I need Him because without Him I am weak and unable to fight the battles that constantly throw lies my way. I need to be prepared for the battle by having the armor of God. I need the belt of truth.
CLOSE:
Rick Burdette, minister with Cornerstone Christian Church in Kentucky told how he has some really good friends who are police officers. One of them is named Tim Lucas who does security inventory. Tim was a State Policeman for 20 years, and now trains other policemen and also operates a security service for churches called Sword & Shield.
Rick says that he has spent a lot of time with these men as a police chaplain, and every single one of them said,
“When you click that belt together with it holding a Beretta 40 caliber, hand cuffs, pepper spray and extra ammo and a baton, you know you are headed out to do what you’ve been trained to do…a dangerous job that lets you serve people, but could also get you killed.”
So, when you buckle on God’s truth it is to prepare you for action…not to visit the doughnut shop.
What are the dangers of not wearing the belt? To the soldier, he was undone, and dangerously unprepared for battle. For us not wearing the belt: It leaves us open to spiritual attack and the lies of the devil.
We need Jesus!
