Peace of the Gospel

It’s good to be back in Ephesians 6 tonight and we will be doing something different tonight and tomorrow and that is we will only be looking at one individual piece of the armor. Tonight we work our way down to the feet. In the ESV translation of Ephesians 6:15, Paul says, “and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace.” Now if you were a soldier, you may not think of footwear as a critical piece of equipment but if you were a Roman soldier, you would not leave for battle without your shoes. I know that we live in a day where people buy shoes and never wear them. I guess I sort of understand that cause I’m sure that I buy books all the time that I claim that I will one day read but I’ll probably never get to. But in the 1st century, do you think that people collected shoes the way that we do today? No, shoes had to be handcrafted and it was expected that if you had a pair of shoes, you would wear them. Depending on your career, you may own a slightly different pair of shoes and depending on your wealth, you might have multiple different pairs of shoes. One thing that I noticed when researching Roman shoes, which is something that I never thought I would Google before this week, was that it was expected of Roman citizens that they would wear shoes. I know that some may think that people were just walking around barefoot back then but by the time of Paul, it was a sign of extreme poverty and shame if you didn’t wear shoes. Now this might be far more ancient shoe information than you ever thought that you would actually need in life but here is what I am trying to stress to you. Just as it was expected of the Roman citizen to leave his home with his shoes on, it is expected of the Christian to readily put on the shoes of the Gospel of peace. Paul does not look at it as an option, he looks at is as an expectation. So, we will follow the same pattern that we followed last night, I want us to look at the culture, I want to look at how we are to wear the armor, and then finally we will wrap up with how Christ Himself wore the armor. Let’s pray and then we will read Ephesians 6:10-15

Ephesians 6:10–15 NASB95

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might. Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. Stand firm therefore, having girded your loins with truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace;

Culture

Now I don’t want to spend a whole lot of time explaining the cultural side of what Paul is talking about but as we have noted the last few nights, Paul is referring to something that was a very common sight in the eyes of the Ephesian church. Paul is describing armor that could very easily be associated with a Roman soldier. So what we can do, with a relatively high degree of certainty, is name the exact type of shoe that a Roman soldier would wear and that a 1st century Roman citizen would recognize. Paul likely does not have just any old shoe in mind. Paul’s not putting this list together and thinking about crocs. There was a certain type of shoe that was standard issue for Roman soldiers, known as the caligae. It was more than just a leather sandal, it was a sandal that had an outer layer that would stick to the sandal by iron or bronze nails, and they were used to make the soldiers shoes last longer, it held them together better, it made the soldier more mobile and durable, in some ways it almost acted like cleats for an athlete. It would give the soldier a sturdier foundation to stand upon. However, unlike an athlete, a soldier’s shoe was significantly more important because the life of the soldier is on the line. John MacArthur said this, “In addition to being made tough and durable to protect his feet, the Roman soldier’s shoes, or boots, were usually impregnated with bits of metal or nails to give him greater traction as he climbed a slippery cliff and greater stability as he fought.” Now what does this have to do with the Gospel? And why is it that Paul refers to it as the Gospel of peace?

How Should We Wear the Armor?

I want us to look specifically at the phrase Gospel of peace before we really look at how Paul relates that to footwear. How do you guys think that the Gospel is connected to peace? Well think about your standing with God before you come to faith in Christ. How does the Bible describe an unsaved man and woman’s relationship to God? In Romans 5:10, Paul says that those that are separated from the Lord are enemies of God. He also says in 1 Corinthians 6:9–10 “Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God.” Unbelievers belong to the kingdom of the devil. The unbeliever is totally unable to live at peace with God and is living a life of open hostility to the One that created them. Paul puts it like this in Romans 8:7–8 “Because the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so, and those who are in the flesh cannot please God.” The unbeliever is totally unable to live any sort of life that is pleasing to God. John Murray in his commentary on Romans says, “Paul does not leave his readers to inference; he expressly states what is to the effect that it is a moral and psychological impossibility for those who are in the flesh to do anything that elicits the divine approval and good pleasure. Here we have nothing less than the doctrine of the total inability of the natural man, that is to say, total inability to be well-pleasing to God or to do what is well-pleasing in His sight.” In our lost state, we do not just fail to please God, we are completely unable to do so. In Ephesians 2:1–3 Paul says, “And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience. Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest.” Man in his unconverted state has absolutely no way to save himself, nor does he have a desire to save himself. No one seeks God unless God seeks them out first. Consider the state of your soul and just how far removed we are from the Lord. Listen to how John Calvin describes mankind: “Our souls are altogether sinful. There is neither thought nor affection in us, which does not tend to evil. All is repugnant to God and against the rule of his righteousness. When we imagine one thing or another, we can never devise anything in our minds except sin and iniquity…God knew that all that man ever had in his thought and brain was sin. Now since it is so, let us understand that although we had knowledge of good and evil, and far greater skill and discretion than we have, yet we are so depraved that all our desires and lusts rebel against God, as it were to make war against Him.” So what is the answer to all of this then? If we can’t make ourselves right with the Lord, what hope do we have? How can we have peace with God? It comes not from what we have done but what Christ does on our behalf, we mentioned this last night. Romans 5:1 says, “Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” The Gospel is a Gospel that brings peace not through our efforts but through our Lord Jesus Christ. Do you see then how we can connect the Gospel to peace? Because without the Gospel, there is no peace! So why then does Paul connect the peace that is given through the Gospel with footwear? Well, first off I believe that it is because the Gospel is the firm foundation that we stand in so that we will not be shook by the temptations of the world. The only way that we can stand confidently and boldly for the Gospel is if we have been planted firmly in the truths of the Gospel. But does Paul have the initial conversion in mind when he is talking about putting on these shoes? Not directly but it is certainly a foundational element to where he is going. No, Paul I believe is referring to evangelism. How do we know this? Once again, Paul is referencing a verse in the book of Isaiah. Isaiah 52:7 says, “How lovely on the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news, who announces peace And brings good news of happiness, who announces salvation, And says to Zion, “Your God reigns!”” So, how do these two verses connect? You guys probably already know that the Greek word for Gospel, evangelion, means good news. And that is what the Gospel is! It’s very good news because the Gospel is the news of what Christ has done and how man can have peace with God. We see this connection in Isaiah and we see this connection in Ephesians that it is a beautiful sight to see the feet of those that bring with them the message of the Gospel and proclaim peace, happiness, and salvation through the Lord. But this isn’t the first time that Paul references Isaiah 52 in regards to our sharing the Gospel. In Romans 10:15 Paul says, “How will they preach unless they are sent? Just as it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news of good things!”” There is nothing more beautiful or needed for this lost world than for messengers of the Gospel to go out with the message of truth! R.C. Sproul said, “Paul is saying that there is nothing more beautiful to see than a messenger who is bringing good news, and that is what the word gospel means. It is the good news of the peace that we have with God, having been reconciled to the Father by the work of Jesus. The gospel becomes that which protects our feet, covers our feet, and makes us mobile in the battle against cosmic evil.” What Paul is telling us is that you and I need to be ready to share the Gospel. If we are going to claim to be Christians, one of the defining marks of a Christian is His ability and willingness to share the Gospel. There should be no on or off days when it comes to sharing the Gospel, we need to always be prepared. I believe that much of what Paul charges to Timothy in 2 Timothy 4:1–2 can and should be applied to all believers. Paul writes, “I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction.” You’ve heard me say this before but if you are a farmer, there’s only ever 2 seasons. In season or out of season so Paul is making sure that we understand that we should not have any days where we are not putting on the shoes of the Gospel. I understand that a lot of you struggle with sharing the Gospel and maybe have never even told anyone about your faith. Trust me, I have not always done a good job at doing this. I can’t even number the amount of times I’ve been reading books on flights about Christianity and didn’t even think of sharing the Gospel with the person sitting next to me. I’ve been to concerts before where people ask me what I do and once I tell them, I don’t say anything else. In those moments, I’m walking around without my shoes on. Really, putting on the shoes of the Gospel needs to become natural for us. Like if you’re going to the store, you don’t go without first putting your shoes on, right? It would be weird to walk around Walmart without anything on your feet. How then do we make sure that we are putting on these spiritual shoes then? First off, I think we need to pray and we need to pray for what Steven Lawson referred to as a holy boldness to share the Gospel. I think we also need to start with asking the Lord to give us a desire to share the Gospel because if we don’t desire to see lost people saved, first I think you are a bad Christian, and secondly if we don’t have a desire to see them saved, I don’t think we will try all that hard to get them saved. Understand that God has no issue with you praying and asking God to give you a desire to share the Gospel and for the boldness to do it. Later on in Ephesians 6:19–20 Paul himself says, “And pray on my behalf, that utterance may be given to me in the opening of my mouth, to make known with boldness the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains; that in proclaiming it I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.” Even the greatest missionary to have ever lived had no problem asking for people to pray on his behalf that he would boldly proclaim the Gospel. Paul was mindful of the fact that it is entirely possible to walk around without your spiritual shoes on. You can be the most bold standing Christian on the face of the earth and you should still desire that people would pray for you and your ministry. James Montgomery Boice said, “Think of the most fearless person you know, one who presents the gospel of Christ without hesitation in the most difficult circumstances, and then pray that he or she might remain fearless. In the same way, pray that the holy might remain holy, the visionary might remain visionary, the great prayer warriors might remain faithful in prayer.” One other thing that I believe is important for us to remember is that God does not look at the conversion rate and say that is what makes your evangelism successful. What God cares about is that you simply do it and you trust Him with the results. I know that many of us are afraid to tell people about our faith because we think that we will mess up and that God will be disappointed in us. That’s not how it works. The shoes of the Gospel of peace extends far into our failures. We don’t lose peace with God because we fail telling people about the Gospel. In Luke 10:16 Jesus says, “The one who listens to you listens to Me, and the one who rejects you rejects Me; and he who rejects Me rejects the One who sent Me.” We can confidently share the Gospel because we know that submission to God’s will is the mark of successful Gospel work. Iain Duguid writes, “Jesus is with us by his Spirit, opening our dumb mouths to speak and preparing open ears to hear and soft hearts to receive his truth. He is still bringing good news to the Gentiles and shining a great light on those who dwell in deep darkness. On that last day, not one of his flock will be missing; every single sheep will be present and accounted for. With that knowledge, we have both the boldness to speak and the security to rest.” Are you ready to share the Gospel with others? What do you think could be done to better prepare you to do it? Really, how can I as your pastor and we as your youth leaders better prepare you to be prepared with the Gospel of Peace? One last question before we move on to how Christ wears the armor, who are some people in your life that you can think of that would benefit from knowing the peace of God? Maybe write their names down somewhere or put it in the notes section of your phone. That might be a great place to start when it comes to sharing the Gospel with others.

How Did Jesus Wear the Armor?

I wish we had more time to dive in here but I want us to look at one specific reference to how Jesus wore the shoes and it comes from a verse that I hope you remember because we’ve already spent time with it this year. In Mark 1:14–15 we read “Now after John had been taken into custody, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.”” Jesus’ ministry is a preaching ministry. What does He preach? He preaches the Gospel! He preaches the message of how man can be made right with God. One of the clearest examples of Christ proclaiming the Gospel of peace comes from Luke 4. In Luke 4, Jesus is in Nazareth at a synagogue and he is handed a scroll that has the book of Isaiah in it. Now Jesus doesn’t just pick out some random verses and preach on them but in Luke 4:17 it says that Jesus found a certain set of verses which means that He specifically wanted these verses to be read to the people. What was it then that He wanted the people to hear? Luke 4:18–21 says, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, Because He anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor. He has sent Me to proclaim release to the captives, And recovery of sight to the blind, To set free those who are oppressed, To proclaim the favorable year of the Lord.” And He closed the book, gave it back to the attendant and sat down; and the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on Him. And He began to say to them, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.”” Do you understand what Jesus is saying here? He is saying that His Heavenly Father sent Him to give good news to the poor, release the captives, restore the sight to those who could not see, free those that are oppressed and proclaim God’s favor to man. Now I hope that you understand that Jesus is not talking about purely physical things. We know this because if the Gospel message was a physical release from all physical prisons, that would not explain those that have been and are imprisoned on behalf of the Gospel. No, Jesus has something far more important in mind. What Jesus says here is so important. Jesus is saying that He has come to rescue from sins captivity all those that His Father had given to Him. He has come to totally set free those that were oppressed by sin and shame and bring them into the Lord’s peace and favor. How does He do this? How is Jesus able to rescue and to claim that these verses are fulfilled. It all comes down to the cross. What happens on the cross is the clearest possible message that God has come to rescue His people. It is at the cross where Jesus takes all the oppression that you and I would receive from sin on Himself so that we could be set free. Jesus doesn’t just put on the shoes of the Gospel of peace, He dies so that we could too. Deep down everyone wants peace but the fact is that only Jesus is able to give everlasting peace. Do you have the peace in your life that only comes from the Gospel? I don’t know about you but tonight I put my Gospel shoes on. You are here right now seeing that they are on. But are you able to put them on? Maybe the reason that you can’t is because you have never made peace with God. Today is the day where you need to have that a ha moment and come to Christ. If you are not a Christian, you have no peace with God but you need it. At some point God will not allow you to push Him off any longer. At some point the book of your life and the opportunities that you have will come to a close. What we are going to do in a minute is share communion together. Communion is the visible evidence of what Christ has done for us. It was His body, His blood that was shed so that we would be able to have peace with God and everlasting life. If you believe that you have peace with God through Christ, rejoice in this moment of communion. But if you aren’t a Christian, take this time to either make yourself right with the Lord or ask why you don’t have peace with God. Now is the time, now is the hour. Paul says in 1 Corinthians 11:23-26

1 Corinthians 11:23–26 NASB95

For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus in the night in which He was betrayed took bread; and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, “This is My body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of Me.” In the same way He took the cup also after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood; do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.” For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes.

As we come together for this moment, we remember that Christ has died, Christ is risen, and Christ will come again. As the bread and the cup are passed out, I will pray and then we will share in this moment together.