Ephesians 6:14b - Christian Armor Putting On Righteousness.
Ephesians 6:14b: Christian Armor " Putting On Righteousness.
Ephesians 6:14b (KJV) and having on the breastplate of
righteousness;
Ephesians 6:14b (ESV) and having put on the breastplate of
righteousness,
Ephesians 6:14b (NLT) and the body armor of Gods
righteousness.
Ephesians 6:14b (ICB) And on your chest wear the protection of
right living.
INTRODUCTION
There exists a world outside of our own - a world we cannot
see, a spirit world where real battles are fought. When you became a
Christian, you took a side against evil in this cosmic struggle - and you
became a part of it.
The battle is not against enemies of flesh and blood.
Instead, we battle the demons over whom Satan has control, the fallen
angels who joined Satan in his rebellion and thus became perverted and
evil. These are real and powerful beings, not mere fantasies, and
believers must not underestimate them. What are their tactics? Demons can
at times cause physical, psychological, and emotional turmoil. More
often they seek ways to keep nonbelievers in unbelief and render
believers ineffective through moral failings.
God does not leave us without protection and weapons,
however. With this host of spiritual forces arrayed against us, we need
God's full armor. Our enemy is powerful, but he is also a defeated
foe. As you prepare to engage him in spiritual warfare, don't be
intimidated by his influence. Use the full armor of God and stand together
with other believers. [The One Year Bible for New Believers re
Eph.6:10-17]
We must depend on God's strength to defend against the attacks
of Satan and his army. God has provided us with his power by
filling us with his Holy Spirit. It is his Spirit that cloaks us with
protection: the belt of truth, the body armor of righteousness, the shoes of
the Good News, the shield of faith, the helmet of salvation, and the
sword of the Spirit - God's Word. And as we fight spiritual battles,
we must constantly rely on God's Spirit to guide us. And you don't
have to fight alone. God's army - the church - is filled with God's
Spirit as well, uniting us together against the mighty powers in
this dark world.[One Year NLT SB re Eph. 6:10-17]
The armor is Christ himself. Putting on the armor is equivalent
to putting on Christ. The power of Christ is sufficient to stand
against all evil and temptation that a believer will encounter [New
Bible Companion]
WORD STUDY
Righteousness: it signifies the principle of righteousness; it
signifies the practice of righteousness, or living a holy life; it
signifies God's method of justifying sinners; and it signifies
justification itself. Here it may imply a consciousness of justification
through the blood of the cross; the principle of righteousness or true
holiness implanted in the heart; and a holy life, a life regulated
according to the testimonies of God... so this righteousness, this life of
God in the soul of man, defines everything upon which the man's
spiritual existence depends. While he possesses this principle, and acts
from it, his spiritual and eternal life is secure. (Adam Clarke
Commentary)
COMMENTARY
"Righteousness" provides a significant defense; it gives the
evidence that we have been made right with God and that this
righteousness has been given us by the Holy Spirit. Believers have been made
righteous through the blood of Christ. The believers then want to live in
uprightness and integrity, desiring to please the One who saved them. Yet
that won't be easy. Satan is ready for battle at every turn, willing
to hit us unfairly from behind if given the chance. Righteousness
is the opposite of Satan's complete wickedness. Satan seeks to
thwart righteous living.
When the enemy, the accuser (Rev 12:10), tries to convince us
that we are not really saved, that we just keep on disappointing God,
and that we're "poor excuses" for Christians, we can stand up to him
because of the righteousness we have been promised through our faith in
Jesus Christ. "This righteousness from God comes through faith in
Jesus Christ to all who believe" (Rom 3:22 NIV). (Life Application
Commentary)
The breastplate covered the body of the soldier from the neck to
the thighs. It was used to protect the heart. The believers heart
is focused upon the Lord Jesus Christ and His righteousness, and
that focus must be protected. The sign of the Christian soldier is
righteousness. When a man is saved, God imputes the righteousness of Jesus
Christ to him, or to say it another way, God counts him righteous.
However, it is not enough to stand in the righteousness of Christ. The
Christian soldier must protect his heart. This he does by living
righteously. Righteousness keeps the heart from ever being wounded and losing
its focus. The Christian soldier is...
to strive after the very righteousness of Jesus Christ.
to live righteously in this present world. [Preachers
Outline & Sermon Bible]
Righteousness: We stand in the imputed righteousness of Christ,
and we walk in the imparted righteousness of the Holy Spirit.
[Wiersbe Expository Outlines]
We must put on every piece of the armor, and then stand firm.
The Lord has honored us by choosing us as His soldiers. Let us fight
bravely for Him, maintaining the right in every transaction. . . . Put
on as your breastplate that divinely protected righteousness which
it is the privilege of all to wear. This will protect your
spiritual life.
Ample provisions have been made for all who sincerely,
earnestly, and thoughtfully set about the work of perfecting holiness in
the fear of God. Strength, grace, and glory have been provided
through Christ, to be brought by ministering angels to the heirs of
salvation. None are so low, so corrupt and vile, that they cannot find in
Jesus, who died for them, strength, purity, and righteousness, if they
will put away their sins, cease their course of iniquity, and turn
with full purpose of heart to the living God. He is waiting to strip
them of their garments, stained and polluted by sin, and to put upon
them the white, bright robes of righteousness.
The truly righteous, who sincerely love and fear God, wear
the robe of Christ's righteousness in prosperity and adversity
alike. Self-denial, self-sacrifice, benevolence, kindness, love,
patience, fortitude, and Christian trust are the daily fruits borne by
those who are truly connected with God. Their acts may not be
published to the world, but they themselves are daily wrestling with evil,
and gaining precious victories over temptation and wrong.
All who have put on the robe of Christ's righteousness will
stand before Him as chosen and faithful and true. Satan has no power
to pluck them out of the hand of the Saviour. Not one soul who in
penitence and faith has claimed His protection will Christ permit to pass
under the enemy's power.
Each one will have a close struggle to overcome sin in his
own heart. This is at times a very painful and discouraging work;
because, as we see the deformities in our character, we keep looking at
them, when we should look to Jesus and put on the robe of His
righteousness. Everyone who enters the pearly gates of the city of God will
enter there as a conqueror, and his greatest conquest will have been
the conquest of self. {AG 31}
EXAMPLES AND ILLUSTRATIONS
The breast-plate defended the vital parts of the body; and the
idea here may be that the integrity of life, and righteousness of
character, is as necessary to defend us from the assaults of Satan, as the
coat of mail was to preserve the heart from the arrows of an enemy.
It was the incorruptible integrity of Job, and, in a higher sense,
of the Redeemer himself, that saved them from the temptations of
the devil. And it is as true now that no one can successfully meet
the power of temptation unless he is righteous, as that a soldier
could not defend himself against a foe without such a coat of mail. A
want of integrity will leave a man exposed to the assaults of the
enemy, just as a man would be whose coat of mail was defective, or some
part of which was missing. The king of Israel was smitten by an arrow
sent from a bow, drawn at a venture, "between the joints of his
harness" or the "breast-plate" (margin), <1 Kings 22:34>; and many a man
who thinks he has on the "Christian" armor is smitten in the same
manner. There is some defect of character; some want of incorruptible
integrity; some point that is unguarded-- and that will be sure to be the
point of attack by the foe. So David was tempted to commit the
enormous crimes that stain his memory, and Peter to deny his Lord. So
Judas was assailed, for the want of the armor of righteousness,
through his avarice; and so, by some want of incorruptible integrity in
a single point, many a minister of the gospel has been assailed
and has fallen. It may be added here, that we need a righteousness
which God alone can give; the righteousness of God our Saviour, to
make us perfectly invulnerable to all the arrows of the foe. (Barnes'
Notes)
A feeling that the Devil delights to arouse in an unguarded
heart is the FEELING THAT GOD DOES NOT LOVE US. He usually times his
attack to coincide with those moments when everything is going wrong
and we are beset by all kinds of difficulties. Then he whispers in
our ear: "Do you still believe that God is love?"
When you respond by saying that you do, he transforms himself
into an angel of light and tries another of his deceitful tactics.
"Well," he says, "it is obvious that He does not love you, for if He
did, then He would not allow you to go through these difficult
situations."
There is only one protection against such an assault; it is
to put firmly in place the "armor of righteousness." Nothing else
will avail at this point. You must point him to the truth of Romans
8:28: "We know that all things work together for the good of those who
love God." Paul does not say "we understand," but "we know."
This brings you directly to the theme of justification by
faith, which is in fact the righteousness of Christ. You rest on this
established truth, and that is all you need. You must say to yourself: "He
would never have clothed me with His righteousness if He had not also
set His love upon me and saved me. I will have courage. I do not
know what is happening to me now. I cannot fathom it. But if He has
begun His work in me, then I know He will go on to complete it."
O God, what wondrous power there is in Your Word. I can feel
it doing me good even as I read and ponder it. Give me a greater
knowledge of Your Word, for only through its truth can I maintain an
advantage over the Devil. Amen. [Every Day With Jesus Bible with Selwyn
Hughes devotional re Psa. 89:24]
A feeling that Satan delights to arouse in a heart
unprotected by a spiritual breastplate is the FEELING OF CONFUSION. None of
us likes confusion, because it erodes our sense of competence.
Satan, knowing this, steps in whenever he can to take full advantage of
it.
Deep in the center of our being is a compulsive demand to be
in control. And to satisfy that demand, we have to live in a
predictable, understandable world. Confusion presents a serious challenge to
our desire for control and is the enemy of those who demand to have
clear answers for everything.
Whenever Satan sees that we are not wearing our spiritual
breastplate, he comes to us and says something like this: "Look at the great
problems that are all around you"earthquakes, famines, violence,
cruelty to children. How can you believe in a God of love when these
things are going on in the world?" Sometimes he presses home these
arguments with such power that you have no clear answers.
There is only one clear answer against such assaults; it is
to put on the "breastplate of righteousness." You cannot understand
particular happenings; you cannot give any explanation. But you do know
that the God who clothed you with His righteousness and saved you
from a lost eternity must have your highest interests and those of
His universe at heart. When you hold on to that, your heart is
protected from despair, even if your mind struggles to comprehend what is
happening. You can live in peace even though you do not know all the
answers.
Father God, I see that I can experience security in my heart
even when my mind cannot understand Your ways. Hidden in Christ and
His righteousness, I am safe. I am so thankful. Amen. [Every Day
With Jesus Bible with Selwyn Hughes devotional re 2Ti. 1:7]
The breastplate of righteousness protects us from the FEELING
THAT WE ARE NOT GOOD ENOUGH TO BE SAVED. We now look at a feeling
which Satan delights to whip up in the heart of a Christian"the
feeling that we are only accepted by God when we are doing everything
perfectly. The feeling gives rise to perfectionism"a condition which
afflicts multitudes of Christians.
The chief characteristic of perfectionism is a constant
overall feeling of never doing enough to be thought well of by God.
Karen Horney describes it as "the tyranny of the oughts." Here are
some typical statements of those who are afflicted in this way: "I
ought to do better," "I ought to have done better," "I ought to be
able to do better." There is nothing wrong with wanting to do better,
but in the twisted thinking of a perfectionist, a person believes
that because he or she could or ought to have done better, they will
not be accepted or thought well of by God. They come to believe that
their acceptance by God depends on their performance. They constantly
try to develop a righteousness of their own rather than resting in
the righteousness that Christ has provided for them.
If you suffer from this condition, then it's time to put on
your spiritual breastplate. You need to remind yourself that the way
you came into the Christian life is the same way you are enabled to
go on in it"by depending on Christ and His righteousness, not on
yourself and your righteousness. You are not working to be saved; you are
working because you are saved.
Lord Jesus, I see that when I stand in Your righteousness, I
stand in God's smile. But when I stand in my own righteousness, I
stand in God's frown. Help me move over from frown to smile. In Your
dear name. Amen. [Every Day With Jesus Bible with Selwyn Hughes
devotional re Rom. 5:1]
LINKS WORTH CHECKING OUT
Most Important Decision in Life:
http://www.youtube.com/embed/WGnEuGwvXqU?rel=0
Seeking God Made Real: http://vimeo.com/31489782
Prayer Made Real: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tc8VdMV26VE
LINKS FOR BIBLE STUDIES AND SEMINARS
Restoring The Power by John Bradshaw:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLRogO1SxoZN15Boa7BMon4BouVMdteVaq
Prophecies Decoded Sermon Series:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL1A435C5373550657
Glow Tract Video Bible Studies: http://www.bibleresearch.info/
ABible.com: http://www.aBible.com
