Breastplate
Notes
Transcript
Recap:
Recap:
Gird loins with truth:
Protecting the place that produces life in your life with the truth.
How to gird your loins with truth?
Be with God face to face and experience His love for you.
Remember or hear the details He says about who you are.
Stay in the truth place.
You gird your loins with truth by staying in the place where you know the truth of who you are and who He is.
He is good and He loves you.
What does He specifically like about you?
Remember this in all times of your life
We are walking through the full armor of God.
13 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. 14 Stand firm therefore, having girded your loins with truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness,
Breastplate???
How do you put on the breastplate of righteousness?
Righteousness:
Being in right relationship with God.
Being in the right or demonstrating the law accurately.
New covenant with God.
8 But since we are of the day, let us be sober, having put on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet, the hope of salvation.
This verse describes the breastplate as one of faith and love.
What does the breastplate cover?
The heart / the source where life flows
“Out of the heart flow the issues of life.”
If you were kicked in the nuts, would you be able to receive love?
If you know the truth of who you are and who God is you can then let His love for you sink.
If you let love for you sink it opens your heart.
The way to protect and open heart is to let your heart flow in love and connection to Jesus.
You submerge yourself in Love.
You take assertive action from a heart that is connected and loved.
How do you put on the breastplate of righteousness?
Take actions of love.
Story.
A woman who grew up trying to prove she was worth being loved. She grew up in family of all girls and her dad wanted a boy. Her younger sister was good at getting dads attention by being a girl. For some reason this girl could not get attention unless she acted like a boy. She did things like work with her dad on projects, and make jokes about girls. She grew up angry at women and angry at her dad for holding back love. She hated any women who acted feminine like her sister. Her sister loved her but she could not see it all her life because to her she just represented what she could not have. If she was emotional she would be denied love not given love. She lived most of her life with armor around her heart trying to keep safe.
She ended up walking through a healing in her 60s that helped her see how much her sister really loved her. She discovered a love that her sister had for her, her entire life. After she realized she was loved she took steps to share what had happened. She even was able to thank her dad for the gift of being an imperfect dad so she could discover such a beautiful love and acceptance in herself.
Practical steps:
Remember How Jesus loves you.
Remember who Jesus says you are and who He is.
Then-
Take some time to put your hands on your heart and thank God for a specific time of love in you life.
Gratitude, Praise, Serving,
From a place of love showing love.
You put on the breastplate of Righteousness by indulging and showing your love for Jesus and others.
We are starting to see a pattern here.
So far you put on the armor of God by being assertive not defensive.
You put on the armor of God by indulging in God’s love and goodness not defending yourself from bad.
You put on the armor of God by enjoying light not avoiding darkness.
You put on the armor of God by showing love not keeping your heart safe.
You know you have really put on the breastplate of righteousness when you can thank God for the worst thing that has ever happened to you because of what He has done in you.
Intentionally going to those places puts on the breastplate.
Closing:
You gird your loins with truth by staying in the place where you know the truth of who you are and who He is
You put on the breastplate of Righteousness by indulging and showing your love for Jesus and others.
Righteousness:
Being in right relationship with God.
Being in the right or demonstrating the law accurately.
New covenant with God.
These will al be shadows of indulging in God.
You will look like you have a righteous way of living but that is because you are living from being loved not because of will power.
You will look like a man or woman in covenant Jesus because you naturally do things that demonstrate you love Him and the people He loves.
You dont put on the armor of God by will power.
You dont put on the armor of God to defend yourself.
Assignment:
Remember what specifically Jesus loves about you and you love about Him?
Thank God for a specific memory of your connection with Him.
Think of a place in your life where you know God is leading you to be thankful for that you feel you have to defend yourself from.
Invite God into that place or memory.
Tell Him you want a connection with God in that place more than you want justice.
16 And He saw that there was no man, And was astonished that there was no one to intercede; Then His own arm brought salvation to Him, And His righteousness upheld Him. 17 He put on righteousness like a breastplate, And a helmet of salvation on His head; And He put on garments of vengeance for clothing And wrapped Himself with zeal as a mantle.