The Belt of Truth (Part 1 of 2)

As believers in Christ we are engaged in a spiritual battle. We are soldiers in God's army and we have to be prepared for combat.

So how do we get ready to face the enemy? Today on Truth for Life, Alistair Begg introduces the belt of truth and explains the ultimate purpose for this foundational piece of spiritual armor. Ephesians 6, and reading from verse 10. Finally, be strong in the LORD and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil.

For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil 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 firm. Stand, therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. In all circumstances, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one, and take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God, praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication.

To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints, and also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains, that I may declare it boldly as I ought to speak. Amen. We come, gracious God, entirely dependent upon the work of the Holy Spirit to open our eyes to the truth of your Word, to grant us grace in order that we might believe and rest in it. So accomplish your purposes, we pray, for Jesus' sake. Amen.

Well, I hope by now we're clear about a number of things. One, that the same grace which reconciles in Jesus us to God is the same grace which antagonizes us to the evil one. That as we are reading here, we're involved in a spiritual battle—a battle which is being fought against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. And that is of significance, because earlier in the letter, Paul has explained to his readers that in our union with Christ, we have been raised up and seated with him in the heavenly places and in the heavenly realms. And so, having been removed, as it were, to the reality of being included with Christ, our union with Christ has brought us immediately into conflict with the devil.

And this picture of warfare, although it is shied away from even in the church today, is nevertheless solemn, it is clear, and there is nothing that is, if you like, airy-fairy about it. Although we are seated in Christ in the heavenly places, we are also living down here on earth. The initial readers were in Ephesus, we are in Cleveland—some of you are from different parts of the world—and it is in the routine of life, if you like, in the humdrum nature of life, that we face the challenges that are described here in the section we're considering. And we've tried to make sure so far that we are not separating this section at the end of Ephesians from all that is gone before, and particularly from all that we had been considering beginning halfway through chapter 5. Because it was there that we began to see what the Bible was saying concerning the nature of marriage, and then the realities and responsibilities of family life, and then the privileges and challenges in our everyday work events. And we tried to make the point—I reiterate it now purposefully—that it is in these very areas—not exclusively, but definitely in these very areas—that many of us become most aware of the fact that we're up against the devil's schemes.

And so I find it helpful to realize just how solidly realistic Paul is in teaching us in this way, saving us from any sense of naivety or superficiality. I remember years ago reading a description of troops who had embarked upon a ship in the United Kingdom heading for France, and the writer describing the scenes on board wrote as follows. If from a group here and there came a song or noisy demonstration, it was from the young soldiers going out to the front for the first time.

The others remained impassive, silent. Experience had taught them that mere knowledge of their duties and a fleeting devotion would not suffice to bear the long and bitter ordeal of battle. They required a spirit proved in the crucible of discipline. I find that very helpful as I think about spiritual warfare—the idea that if I just do what I'm supposed to do, or if I have a strong surge of emotion, this will manage to sustain me in the warfare.

That is naive. And those who have battled long with the evil one who've lived their Christian life over a period of time know just how naive it is. And it's for that reason that Paul is urging his readers here to make a stand—to take a stand. We've noticed that.

It comes again in 11, and then in 13, and then in 14. And he doesn't just say to them, Now go ahead and stand. He always does what he does here, and that is that he reminds them of how they can stand—be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. He's already, back in chapter 1, prayed for them that they might have an understanding of the strength and power of God, the immeasurable greatness of his might, he says, towards those who believe. That has been manifested, ultimately, in the raising of Jesus Christ from the dead. And so, from the very beginning of his letter, he has wanted his readers to understand their identity in Christ, to understand what it means to be in union with Christ, so that when the exhortations come, they're aware of the fact that divine equipment is required, is essential, if we are going to be successful in dealing with the evil one. That's why in the hymn that we have just sung, you have that lovely couplet there, The Arm of Flesh Will Fail You, You Dare Not Trust Your Own.

You just can't get by by saying, you know, if I feel strongly enough about this, I'm sure I will handle it. So, the encouragement to be strong in the strength of his might is then followed by his exhortation to take up the armor of God and to put on the armor of God. In passing, it's important to remind ourselves that the picture here is a united picture.

Although we tend to think of this in individualistic terms, as we must in measure—well, what does it mean for me? In actual fact, he's talking about the united front, as it were, of the believers in Ephesus. Make sure he's saying to them that together you are equipped for battle. And what he provides us with is an illustration or a picture. And we are looking only at this one phrase in verse 14, having fastened on the belt of truth. Having fastened on the belt of truth. Now, we know Paul enough to know that his imprisonment meant that he was in the company of soldiers. When he wrote to Philippi, a garrison town, the Roman soldiers were everywhere, he knew that his readers understood the battle equipment that a Roman soldier enjoyed. And so there is little doubt that that is in his mind, and in the mind of his readers, when he speaks in this way.

But I don't think it is actually Paul's underlying picture, as I'll point out to you presently. First of all, though, the belt that was worn by the Roman soldier was not a belt that was provided for decoration. I was in a store in the last two weeks, and there were a whole series of belt buckles that were quite magnificent. And I thought about… You know, I wasn't going to buy one, but I thought, I suppose this individual doesn't really wear the belt to keep their trousers up as much as to wear the buckle, so that you can say, Oh, what an amazing buckle! Yes, but does it keep your trousers up?

That's a real question. So what he's talking about here is not something by way of decoration that we can walk around and display it, but rather it is foundational. The Roman would be dressed in flowing garments that would be over armaments many times. And so the potential for progress being impeded as a result of tripping over your stuff was a real one. And therefore, part of the function of the belt was to be able to secure all that might otherwise affect our ability to move and our readiness. And that, of course, is a picture that runs through the Bible. At one point, Moses is giving instruction to the people of God concerning the eating of the Passover, and the word to them is, In this manner… This is Exodus 12. In this manner you shall eat the Passover with your belt fastened. That's an interesting thing. You're going to eat the Passover with your belt fastened.

Why is that? Well, because of the potential threat of antagonism around them, and therefore they want to be engaging in the pursuit of God in a way that they are ready to take a stand for God. And that's the picture here. In the English Standard Version, which we're using, it's fastened on the belt. Perhaps in the NIV it's buckling.

I don't actually recall. But I do recall that in the King James Version, with which many of us were brought up, the phraseology is having your loins girt about with truth. And so that's as good an argument for a more modern translation as any I know. You ask your teenage son as he's going out for the evening with his girlfriend, let me just ask you before you go, do you have your loins girt about with truth? Now, they may come back to you and say, I'm not sure what that means. You tell them, well, let me tell you exactly what it means. That is the picture that Jesus uses when he speaks to his disciples. He says, Let your loins be girded about. Translated, make sure that you stay dressed for action. Or in 1 Peter, when you have the same phraseology, girding up the loins of your mind. Peter is applying the picture that his readers would understand.

You know what it is, to grab a hold of things and tuck it into your belt so that you don't trip yourself up and fall over and cause others difficulty. So he's saying the same thing in relationship to your minds. In other words, in essence, it is a metaphor for preparedness. For preparedness. There's no sense in which, now, as you read the letters of the New Testament, the call to the Christian is anything other than really a call to warfare.

I know it's not a very contemporary and acceptable picture, but nevertheless, it is impossible to read the Bible without understanding that that is what is being said. There's no sense of dreamy carelessness. It's rather a decisive readiness.

Now, we understand this in our own day in some measure, don't we? Our cars all ring bells to make us buckle up. You will be more secure—and other people would be more secure—if you will buckle up. Before you take off on an airliner, they almost inevitably will say, Make sure that your seat belt is fastened low and tight across your lap. And if you hit turbulence on the way, it's not uncommon for somebody to come on and say, You might want to give your belt just another little tug.

Which usually is a warning, for you might want to give it a very, very big tug. But the fact of the matter is, we get the picture. There's a measure, there's a sense of readiness.

When you think in terms of austerity, we use the phraseology, tightening one's belt. So that is the picture, and that is understandable to us all. But what I want to say to you and suggest to you— and this is to come back to what I mentioned earlier—that while there is no question that the picture of the Roman soldier is before us, I'm not so sure that that was what was underlying Paul's emphasis here as a Jewish man who had a solid understanding of the Old Testament Scriptures. Because, you see, the battle with the devil and victory in battle with the devil has been secured, accomplished, in the Lord Jesus Christ.

And when we've studied the Bible together, we've often said to one another, in the Old Testament, Jesus is predicted, and in the Gospels he's revealed. He's predicted, anticipated in the Bible, in all kinds of pictures—one of them being that of a mighty warrior. So, for example, in Psalm 24, that is often sung antiphonally when it is sung in the metrical form, the question that is asked by the worship leader, who… Open up the gates so that the King of Glory may enter. The one person says, Who is this King of Glory? The response comes, The LORD, strong and mighty in battle, He is the King of Glory.

Well, who is that? Ultimately, that is Jesus. He is the mighty warrior.

He is the one who is valiant in battle. What you have in the Psalms you have also in the prophecies. And this, I suggest to you, underlies what Paul is saying here. For example, we read Isaiah 11 routinely, and we often stop short of verse 5, where we have this picture of the mighty warrior striking the earth with the rod of his mouth, and then it says, Righteousness shall be the belt of his waist, and faithfulness the belt of his loins. In Isaiah 52, it describes the shoes that are worn by the mighty warrior, pointing forward.

How lovely on the mountains are the feet of them that bring good news. And Paul's saying a little later on, he says, and your feet need to be shod with the gospel of peace. In Isaiah 59, you have the same thing.

I mean, you can search for this and find it on your own with a good concordance. Isaiah 59 17, he put on righteousness as a breastplate and a helmet of salvation on his head, and he put on garments of vengeance for clothing, and he wrapped himself in zeal as a cloak. When you read the Old Testament, you say, Well, who is this? Well, the Bible is pointing forward to the fulfillment in the Lord Jesus. Now, the reason I mention this is because it seems to me that the basic elements of the armor of God come, if you like, from Paul's pen, not simply in light of the picture of the Roman soldier but in light of his knowledge of the Lord as the divine warrior. Now, why would this matter, and how would it help?

Let me tell you. Do you remember when we studied in the fruit of the Spirit? And when we studied the fruit of the Spirit, we were at pains to make sure we understood that this is actually fruit. And we said, when we read concerning the fruit of the Spirit, this is not things, characteristics, design, or labels that we attach to ourselves spiritually, but it is rather that which is produced by the Holy Spirit within us. And so we start to warn one another against an approach to the Christian life which essentially said, What you're supposed to do is try and be as much like Jesus as you can, and if you hang a few of those things on yourself, then you will look far more like Jesus than you will if you don't.

Which is, of course, futility. Similarly here—and this is why I point it out—it's possible to read this section as though what Paul is doing is simply urging us to be good. You see, wearing the armor here is not about becoming enough like Christ to defeat Satan.

Now, you need to understand that. It's not about trying to become more like Jesus so that I might be victorious in the battle. It is about standing confidently in Christ's triumph, which has already taken place over Satan in the cross. That Jesus Christ is the valiant warrior who is to come. He has gone toe to toe with the evil one in the wilderness, in the temptations. He has answered him in the same way that we are to answer him, as we will see later on, by taking the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God—that's how Jesus handled it there—and in going face to face with him in the cross, he has triumphed over the evil one, over death, over sin, over the grave. He has accomplished all of it. In other words, when the evil one comes to insinuate, to attack, to say, I can't believe that you think those thoughts, I can't believe that you left that undone, I can't believe that you are as you are, and so on, the answer does not lie in our saying, Oh, but wait a minute.

I had a very good week two weeks ago. Did you count that? Or I'm doing this or I'm doing that. No. The answer is to confront our accuser and tell him Jesus died.

Because what are you saying? You're saying, You took your best shot, evil one, and Jesus died, bore our sins, triumphed over them, and we are now in him. We are united in him. Some of you will have those dolls at home—I think they call them Russian dolls.

I have some with Gorbachev on it and Yeltsin and some others. And they're fun to play with. You know how they are. You take them apart, and then you go further and further down, and then eventually you've got a tiny little fellow in here who doesn't come apart anymore. And then, when you've done that, then you put them all back together again.

That's about the fun of it for an afternoon. But there is something of a picture in that, isn't there, that I am the tiny little person enclosed in Christ? You see, when the evil one comes to me, he says, No, I'm very strong. I'm making great progress.

I'm feeling amazing, you know. The evil one knows this fellow is going down, for sure. No, you see, there's only one place, and the place is safe in the arms of Jesus, is hidden in the gospel. You're listening to Alistair Begg on Truth for Life. We'll continue this message tomorrow. Our current series is titled Strength for the Battle. It's from Alistair's teaching in the book of Ephesians. If you'd like to hear the complete series that covers all six chapters in the book of Ephesians, you can own this study. It's called Grace and Peace, and it's available on a USB drive.

Search Grace and Peace online at truthforlife.org slash store. We've been learning from Alistair that in the Christian life, the battle is real. Believers are in a daily struggle against Satan and sin.

But God does not leave us to fend for ourselves. He has provided all the protection we need. Our focus today was on the belt of truth, but God's full armor includes other crucial elements like the breastplate of righteousness, the helmet of salvation, the sword of the Spirit. If you'd like to learn more about each piece of our spiritual armor, we want to recommend to you a book called The Whole Armor of God, How Christ's Victory Strengthens Us for Spiritual Warfare. You've probably heard me mention this book. It's the perfect supplement to what Alistair is teaching us. This book reminds us that life is not a picnic.

Instead, it is an armed struggle against a powerful enemy. In this book, you'll be challenged to stand, to fight, to wrestle, but you'll also be assured that we can rest in Jesus' finished victory. Request your copy of the book, The Whole Armor of God, when you make a generous one-time donation to Truth for Life. You can give your gift by tapping the image you see in the mobile app or by visiting us at truthforlife.org slash donate. If you'd rather mail your donation along with your request for the book, The Whole Armor of God, write to us at Truth for Life.

Our address is Post Office Box 398000, Cleveland, Ohio 44139. I'm Bob Lapine. As we've been learning in this ongoing spiritual battle, we have to constantly be on guard. We have a deceitful enemy who wants to see us fall. So how do we stand for truth in a world that is filled with lies? Listen tomorrow as Alistair explains why we need to give the belt of truth a little extra tug. The Bible teaching of Alistair Begg is furnished by Truth for Life, where the Learning is for Living.