Day 8
"So then, take your stand! Fasten truth around your waist like a belt…" Ephesians 6:14a (GW)
Paul directs our attention first to our waist or "loins." And it is there we are encouraged to put on truth like a belt.
In the day and age the apostle was writing, a belt was like a girdle, wide and wrapped tight around the waist. This belt held everything together. It kept the outfit/armor working and in place. When the person was getting ready to exert themselves, fight, do heavy toiling and work, they would tuck the long, loose flowing material into the belt so they would be able to move quickly and easily.
In this passage, Paul was telling us that truth will hold us together. All the armor that we have and put on hinges on truth to make it work right.
As we have discussed earlier, truth is a person, Jesus. And he promised that his Spirit would lead us into all truth. When we stand in experiential relation to the truth, we find that we have freedom to stand in the face of the enemy of our lives. It is not enough to memorize scripture or to study the Word, but unless it has become real in our hearts, minds and lives, it lays dormant, we will have "a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof." (2 Timothy 3:5)
It is this relationship with the truth that holds us together and makes us strong. It will help us when we are weak with doubt and fear, for it is not just the memorized word that will come to heart and mind, but the experienced, living God who embodies the Truth that will strengthen our faith and give us grace for the battle.
Prayer: "God, You who are the truth, make me to know and understand your truth. Show me your way and teach me how to walk in it. Help me to have a relationship with you based upon your truth. In Jesus I pray, Amen."
No comments:
Post a Comment