Armed and Dangerous, a Study in God's Armor for MenSample

Get Strapped In “Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth and the body armor of God’s righteousness.” – Ephesians 6:14 Have you ever worn a bulletproof vest, or tactical gear? If you are, or were, in the police or military you have likely worn it. It is the combative body armor of our day. If you’ve ever worn a vest, you would know that initially the weight might be something to get used to. But as you wear it more often, you get used to it, and may even prefer to have it on when going into violent confrontations. A vest might be a bit burdensome to wear, but when confronted with enemy fire, it may very well save your life. Likewise, for the man of God, your identity in Christ can be a heavy responsibility to strap over your shoulders. But it is also the truth and righteousness that saves your soul and enables you to fully live for God. The truth about Jesus, and the righteousness we gained through Him, makes us spiritually bulletproof. The enemy will often attack our identity, recalling the shames and sins of our past, and distracting our hopes for the future with doubts and counterfeiting beliefs. But in Christ we hold to a new identity, a new hope, and with it, a new badge of representative responsibility. Paul reminds us that we are new creations in Christ. We are His ambassadors now. We are wearing His badge, His identification, on our chests. And we are strapped in with His truth for all of life’s battles. Our sins were forgiven, and our spiritual standing made right by what Christ did for us. Taking this to heart, protects our hearts, just like a real tactical vest that covers our vital organs from blades and bullets in combat. The truth of what Christ has done and continues to do through the daily work of the Holy Spirit in our lives, are like the straps of that vest being tightened to the body to secure its stability and equip us for better movement in combat situations. We cannot have and live in righteousness without the truth of the Gospel. Neither can we hold fast to the truth about Jesus, without walking in our new identities of His righteousness. If we were to only buckle our belts in combat, we might clip our guns and badges to it, but not have any real protection on our bodies. Yet, if we were to put on a vest, but not strap it tight and buckle it in, we would only have weight plates hanging loosely from our shoulders and throwing us off balance. Therefore, Paul is reminding us as Godly men, to strap on that vest identifying us as righteous in Christ, and then tighten it to our bodies with the truth, which incidentally also holsters our weapon – the Word of God. We must remember that we have the daily responsibility of representing Christ to our immediate world and stay strapped into the truth revealed in God’s Word in every situation. Read 2 Corinthians 5:11-21 Check Your Armory: What is your understanding of an identity of truth and righteousness in Christ? How can you take up the responsibility of being an ambassador for Christ? In which ways do you often experience an attack on God’s truth and righteousness in the world we live in? How can you deal with it? What do you need to pray for today?