Sermon Tone Analysis

Introduction

Last week we saw that we are all in a spiritual battle.

Every day we walk into the world as a child of God we are coming up against spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.

We saw that our enemy is numerous, deceitful, and persistant.

And we saw that we are to stand against the enemy not in our own power, but in His power.

—> We are to fight in God’s power and might.

This morning now we are going to continue that conversation and look practically at how we walk in God’s strength and might.

We are told to put on the whole armor of God so this morning let’s look at the armor.

Our text is Ephesians 6: 14-17.

Let me read the text to you.

14 Stand therefore, having fastened on teh belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, 15 and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace.

16 In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; 17 and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

This morning we are going to consider I.

The Belt of Truth, II.

The Breastplate of Righteousness, III.

Shoes of Readiness, IV.

The Shield of Faith, V.

The Helmet of Salvation, and VI.

The Sword of the Spirit.

Here’s our main idea.

We fight with His weapons; not ours.

I.

The Belt of Truth (14)

“Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth...

The wooden translation of “fasten on” is to “gird the loins” —>which sounds painful —>But the idea is to prepare oneself to be able to move —> to take up ones robes and gather them off the legs and tuck them in the belt so that you won’t trip over them when you try to run.

The purpose of a belt is to kep your pants up so they don’t fall down and you don’t trip.

We see here that the work of the gospel—the work that you are called to do in the strength and might of God—is active work.

It is moving feet and hands.

The danger is that if we don’t hold to the truth of God we may trip—our movement may be hampered—and we may find as we seek to stand that instead we fall down.

Q.

What are we tripping over?

A. If we are fastening on truth then the obstacle that we can trip over is “untruth” —>Believeing wrong things.

The Bible tells us what truth is...

Jesus said of himself in John 14, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life.

No one comes to the Father except through me.”

Jesus in his prayer for you and me in John 17:17 says, “Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth.”

Despite what the world would have you believe truth is not relative—different for everyone—God’s Word is true because God himself is truth.

—> All truth flows from God who is truth.