LEARNING DAILY

Ephesians 6:15, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace,

The third piece of armor Paul writes about is the peace God gives us as Believers are involved with spiritual battle. Pastor Jim Piper, Executive Pastor at NorthRock Church, explained that war is all around us and war always has an objective behind it. In spiritual warfare the enemy, the devil, is trying to “recruit us to his side if the war”. He went on to say, “The devil is constantly whispering to our flesh with temptation and about every wrong, every sin we have committed”. He continued, “our flesh has bad habits and the devil uses those things against us”. Piper also gave us the remedy found in Philippians 4:6-7, “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be known to God; and the peace of God which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”

For the Roman soldier his sandals were very important. I am not one to go barefoot often; I cannot imagine doing battle barefoot. For me, shoes give the ability to go just about anywhere without fear of stepping on stones or thorns or anything that might do damage to my feet. Piper explained that the sandal had small “studs” in them in order to give the traction for the soldier to run into battle and not slip when engaged in the fight. The enemy not only is trying to recruit people, “he wants them to be stuck in their situation” instead of moving forward”. He does not want anyone to find peace with God so he tries to keep people focused on the difficulty of their situation, their misery, their hurt. It’s God’s peace that helps us to know He is in control of the situation, that He is handling it for us and we can move forward because of it.

The other aspect of the sandals that Piper pointed out is the thickness of it. He said it is thicker because the peace of God makes Believers tougher, better able to handle the attacks of the enemy and those people in the world who want to attack their beliefs and way they live. Nonbelievers do not understand the peace Believers have because of Jesus Christ living in them. They do not understand the desire of Believers to walk with Jesus on the narrow way into eternal life with Him. They do not understand the peace He gives when the world around them seems to be growing darker and more evil. They do not understand God not only loves people, but He will also judge those whose name is not written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.

Believers have truth. Jesus Christ is Truth and that gives Believers peace with God! God hates sin and the sinful nature is at war with God. Walking on the narrow way is not easy because of the spiritual battle that rages against Believers each day. Romans 5:1 was one of the final points Pastor Piper brought out. “Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,”. He said, “Because of that we can stand before God forgiven; because of Jesus, God is at peace with you.” I have written in my Bible, “Jesus glues together the broken pieces of my heart by His love, grace, and mercy even as I continue to mess up. God does not see me as a mess but as a saint.” The peace Believers have come because our status or standing before never has to come in question again. The Believer’s eternal salvation has been established once sin in their life has been confessed and Jesus Christ has been declared or professed to be one’s Savior and Lord. They are right before God! God has made peace with them through their declaration of faith and that peace can never be lost.

Have you put on the belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, and the shoes of peace today?