The Gospel of Peace

November 18, 2007

Ephesians 6:10-20

Let’s begin this morning by reading today’s Scripture passage from Ephesians chapter six. This passage is known as the whole armor of God. But this morning we will focus on just one piece of the armor. Please turn there now and we’ll read verses 10 through 20. “Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace;
above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints--
and for me, that utterance may be given to me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains; that in it I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.”

This morning’s message focuses on evangelism. Why, you may ask? It comes from a growing and deepening desire to see God convert more unbelievers through our ministry.

Virtually every earnest Christian is grieved by his weakness in the area of evangelism. Did you know that? There is not a zealous Christian in this room who feels content with his effectiveness in personal evangelism. We feel guilt for our timidity and regret our missed opportunities, phony because of our lack of compassion for the lost and fear that some program of evangelism is going to be pushed on us against our wills.

One of the most freeing things is to simply get this out on the table and admit it. And then to notice that it is the universal experience even of the most devoted servants of Christ.

For example, James Ussher was an evangelical teacher and preacher in the early 1600's. Horatius Bonar says that Ussher was busy continually redeeming the time for Christ. He was a painstaking, laborious preacher of the Word for fifty five years. The very day that he took ill with his last sickness he got up from his writing and went out to visit a sick woman and spoke to her with great earnestness about heaven. But when Ussher came to his deathbed the last words he was heard to utter at one o'clock in the afternoon March 21, 1656 were these, "But, Lord, forgive me my sins of omission."

Here is a man that to everyone else was eminently useful in the ministry and blessed by God, and in his dying moment he was oppressed with his omissions! When I read stories like that, and when I look into my own heart, and when I talk to people like you, I conclude that virtually every earnest Christian is burdened by a sense of weakness or neglect or failure in this area of evangelism. We want to be used by God to win others from unbelief to belief, but have little success, and the result is often an oppressive feeling that seeks to avoid the issue and recoils in self-defense from sermons on evangelism.

Well if it helps any, I feel that way too. This isn’t easy for me to preach. I don't come with a rod. I come with a longing and with a dream. The longing is that I would be changed by this message and become more fruitful in God's hands, and that whatever in my life may hinder the saving work of God would be removed. I want there to be a new touch of power not only on my preaching but also on my personal contact with unbelievers. I want fresh guidance from the Lord concerning the scope and focus of my pastoral labor to know if I am spending my time in a way that would maximize my life for Christ's glory. That's my longing.

My dream is that we as a church would be freed from the paralyzing effects of guilt in regard to personal evangelism. That all of us would love the lost people in this town. That there would develop a way for these people into Good Shepherd Community Church and a change from unbelief to belief. That the reality of Christ would be so deep and confident and satisfying that we could scarcely keep from speaking about him to others. And that the power of Christ would rest upon us with unusual effectiveness. Isn’t this your desire? To be effective for Christ?

So I don't come with a rod this morning, I come with a deep longing for myself and with a happy dream of what it might be like if God would make us a healthy, happy, free, authentic, loving, powerful, evangelistic, outreaching, soul-saving church. If you share this longing for me and perhaps for yourself, and if you have a similar dream for this church would you devote regular, earnest time to prayer that God would make this longing and this dream a reality. I believe he will do it we seek it with all our hearts. It is my contention that our ability to speak the good news of Christ, for that’s what evangelism is – the winning of people to Christ , is directly linked to being shod with the readiness of the gospel.

Therefore, this morning, I want us to focus on Ephesians 6:15. "Having shod your feet with the READINESS OF THE GOSPEL OF PEACE."

Before we look at the word "readiness" and its place in the armor of God, I want to say a few word about the gospel of peace. The gospel that we have for the world—for our lost dad or sister or neighbor or classmate of colleague or unreached people group—the gospel that we have is the good news that God purchased peace by the death of his Son and offers it to sinners who believe in Jesus.

We have the good news that God's omnipotent wrath against sinners has been taken away through the death of Jesus for sin. And everyone who believes is reconciled to him freely by grace. And in the place of separation for God comes peace. And there is nothing sweeter in all the world than to be at peace with God.

Sometimes commentators point out how strange it is that Paul should mention a gospel of peace right in the middle of a passage dealing with spiritual warfare and conflict and armor. But it isn't strange is it? The aim of our church is that people would accept the terms of peace that God holds out, namely, faith in Jesus. And the only reason there is any conflict at all is because the power of sin and the powers of Satan are dead set against anyone making peace with God.

Look at Ephesians 2:13-18 to see Paul develop the gospel of peace for us.

“But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near in the blood of Christ. 14) For he is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down the dividing wall of hostility . . .16) and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby bringing the hostility to an end. 17) And he came and preached peace to you who were far off (gentiles!) and peace to those who were near (Jews!); 18) for through him we have access in one Spirit to the Father.”

The good news of peace is that when Christ died and shed his blood for sin, two kinds of separation were overcome. The separation between God and repentant sinners. And the separation between races and factions in Christ. So Christ became our peace. That is the gospel of peace.

We have heard peace by the grace of God. We have believed peace by the grace of God. And we have been saved through it by the grace of God. And now Paul says in Eph. 6:15 that the readiness of this gospel of peace is to be put on like shoes as part of our spiritual armor. ". . . and having shod your feet with the readiness of the gospel of peace."

So let's think for a few minutes about this readiness as part of the whole armor of God. Verses 11-12 say, "Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we are not contending against flesh and blood, but against the principalities, against the powers, against the world rulers of this present darkness, against the spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places."

We learn four things from those two verses:

1. From the cradle to the grave, life is war. Your soul, your mind, your body, your family, your career are fields of conflict. Until Satan is finally thrown into the lake of fire our peace with God will have to be a vigilant peace. Because Satan will certainly give us no peace if we are at peace with God. Be ready to face conflict!

2. The war we are in is not a war with flesh and blood but with supernatural evil powers. What amazes me about Paul's words here is not what he affirms but what he denies. I'm not surprised to hear him say that we wrestle with evil angelic, demonic, supernatural powers. What surprises me is that he says (in v. 12) we do NOT wrestle with flesh and blood.

I want to say to Paul, "You've been stoned and beaten and imprisoned and run out of town and shipwrecked. Your flesh has been torn and your blood has been spilt and that has hindered your ministry again and again. The flesh of others has torn your flesh and the blood of others has boiled against your blood. What do you mean you don't wrestle against flesh and blood? It's people with their hands and their stones and rods and chains that have cost you dearly and tested your faith almost to the limit."

I think Paul would answer. "You're right. Flesh and blood is real and it can be very evil. But what I mean is this. Whenever someone's flesh attacks me, or someone's blood boils against me or my way is hindered by man, something else is also going on, something deeper, bigger, more terrible, more sinister, more destructive than meets the eye. Satan uses flesh and blood to hurt or hinder the cause of Christ. The prince of the power of the air is more dangerous than any of his subjects. We must overcome Satan in every instance of conflict, or the battle is lost."

Consider Ephesians 2:1-2. "And you he made alive when you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience."

Sure, the sons of disobedience (in their flesh and blood reality) can oppose us in our spiritual warfare; but it's more decisive to defeat the spirit that works in them and the prince of the power of the air that they follow, than simply to wrestle as though all you are dealing with is human nature.

So the first thing we see in verses 11-12 is that life is war, and the second thing we see is that the conflict will be fought with supernatural, demonic forces. If we are not ready to engage the enemy of our soul, the victory is superficial.

3. The third thing we see is that there is danger of falling in this battle. Three times Paul tells us to take pains to stand, that is not to fall. So be ready to be buffeted and tested. What is it they say, “Stand for something, or you will fall for anything”. In this case we must stand for Jesus and His gospel of peace. Are you ready? Do not despair of being too weak because

4. The fourth thing we see in these verses is that God has made provision for us so that we can stand and not fall. And that provision is armor. God is able to keep us from falling, Jude says, in 1:2424, and the way he keeps us from falling is by fitting us for successful spiritual combat. So if your aim is to persevere in the Christian life and not be defeated by the wiles of the devil, then you must put on the armor described in these verses. This is how God means to keep us safe unto the day of salvation.

That's the context in which we read about having our feet shod with the readiness of the gospel of peace (verse 15). Notice that we are not shod with the gospel. The gospel is the word of God and the word of God is our sword according to verse 17. We are not shod with the gospel. What we are shod with is the READINESS of the gospel. Now what does that mean?

I think it means, "Let your feet be ready to move with the gospel." Feet are for moving from one place to another. If you put on shoes of readiness, then the idea would seem to be readiness to do what feet are for, namely moving. And if the readiness is readiness of the gospel it probably means ready to move with the gospel—move with gospel power and for gospel purposes.

Let me show you two or three reasons why I think this is the right interpretation. It's almost certain that Paul has in mind here the words of Isaiah 52:7,

“How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him who brings good tidings, who proclaims peace, who brings glad tidings of good things, who proclaims salvation, who says to Zion, "Your God reigns."

Here we have a picture of the feet of people who are running to bring good news and the good news is good news of peace. Surely this is where Paul got his imagery. And if so then the "readiness of the gospel of peace" is surely a readiness to proclaim the gospel, a readiness to tell the good news, and publish peace and say "God reigns!"

Here's another reason I think this is what Paul has in mind, and this is really interesting. Notice in Ephesians 6 that the passage on spiritual warfare comes right after the passage on husbands and wives, children and parents, and masters and slaves. Well, if you turn to Colossians 3 near the end you see that the same three pairs are dealt with—wives and husbands (3:18-19), children and parents (3:20-21) and masters and slaves (3:22-4:1). But then instead of a paragraph on spiritual armor Paul calls for vigilant prayer (4:2-4) and look what he says in verses 5-6,

Conduct yourselves wisely toward outsiders, making the most of the time. Let your speech always be gracious seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer every one.

Here in a context much like the one in Ephesians is an exhortation to be alert to how you can be the salt of the earth, to answer unbelievers' questions and to make the most of the time for the sake of Christ. This is what I think Paul means by the readiness of the gospel of peace. Be prepared and be alert and ready to talk about the gospel whenever anyone opens a door. Now, you mat ask, “What does that mean – an open door?” Hopefully this illustration for the life of Mel Blackaby will clarify “the open door”:

“I was twenty-one years old, driving east across the Mojave Desert in 115-degree weather—in a car with black vinyl interior, no air-conditioning, and an engine that was overheating. I was in trouble.

In the distance I saw a dark cloud coming my way. My deliverance! The rain was sure to cool things down, giving much-needed relief. But to my surprise, it wasn't a rainstorm I ran into, but a sandstorm.

Overcome with dust, feeling faint from the scorching weather, and with a stressed-out car, I searched for a place to stop and find help. I was in the middle of nowhere, but eventually I came to a run-down gas station.

The only shade available was the building's shadow, so I pulled around back and parked the car. I got out, opened the hood, and began tinkering with the engine. Suddenly I realized I was being watched. A drifter was standing about thirty feet away, just staring. His hair was unkempt and his face unshaven, and a scar went from his forehead, across his eyelid, and ended below his chin. I was nervous. No, I was downright scared!

As the man began to walk straight at me, many things went through my head. "I'm going to die; nobody will ever find my body; I want my mommy!" Knowing that I couldn't run and nobody was there to help, I decided the next best thing was to flash a big smile and hold out my hand to greet a new friend. As we began to talk, he made a fascinating statement. He said, "As I watched you work on your car, you radiated friendliness and I had to come and meet you."

Immediately I sensed in my spirit what was going on. The Lord was at work and I needed to respond. I quickly identified for the man what he saw—the Spirit of God dwelling in my life. As I expected, he was ripe for the picking and responded positively toward Christ.

What happened? The Father wanted to speak to a desperate man, and He happened to have one of His children driving by. Looking back, I know why my car was overheating, why the storm caused me to stop, and why I ended up behind an old gas station in the backside of the desert. God was at work around me...and the Holy Spirit within me was responding to the orders given.

Look for open doors. Look alertly because they are not always obvious. God wants His gospel of peace spread around – so that all will hear! So, be ready! Look again at how our key passage ends: Look at verses 19 and 20 “-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.” That should be our prayer: Lord open my eyes to see, shod my feet to move, open my mouth to speak boldly of your gospel of peace.

One last confirmation: In 1 Peter 3:15 the very word "ready" is used in the same kind of exhortation. "Always be ready to make a defense to any one who calls you to account for the hope that is in you, yet do it with gentleness and reverence."

So, coming back to Ephesians 6:15 I have one last observation. The armor of God is given to us believers, to help us stand against the devil. It is introduced as defensive armor. Verse 13: "Take the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all to stand." How to stay standing is the issue.

So what can we conclude from the fact that the shoes of verse 15 are the readiness to move with the gospel of peace. I conclude this. A ready offense is an essential part of a successful defense. And O how true this is! Take the sword of the Word of God into enemy territory. Your feet will take you peaceably so the Words of God can be given effectively.

Giving the gospel away is one of the best ways of experiencing its power in your life. The best way to taste the power of God for your own soul is to act in that power. It's the great old truth of the Lord himself when he said, "He who loses his life for my sake and the gospel's will save it." The more ready we are to move with the gospel, the more life and power and joy and security we will know in the gospel.

In giving we will receive. In dying we will live. And in telling the gospel we will hear it again with O so much more depth and power and joy.

How lovely on the mountains

are the feet of him

who brings good news, good news,

proclaiming peace,

announcing news of happiness:

Our God reigns! Our God reigns!

This morning’s message focuses on evangelism. Why, you may ask? It comes from a growing and deepening desire to see God convert more unbelievers through our ministry. And how will that happen, you may ask? By God’s people obediently putting their faith into action and sharing the good news He has given us to take to the unsaved. That’s pretty simple, isn’t it?