The Breastplate of Righteousness
Notes
Transcript
Introduction
Introduction
14 Stand firm therefore, having girded your loins with truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, 15 and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; 16 in addition to all, taking up the shield of faith with which you will be able to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
[PRAYER]
Our Savior Jesus is a warrior against sin. In the prophet Isaiah, we see Him dressed in divine armor.
5 Also righteousness will be the belt about His loins, And faithfulness the belt about His waist.
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.
As he concluded his letter to the church at Ephesus, the Apostle Paul called the brothers and sisters of that congregation to put on the armor of God—to clothe themselves in Jesus—to put on the Messiah Himself.
This is absolutely necessary because followers of Jesus are warriors of light in this dark world. Ephesians 6:12-13 says…
12 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. 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.
As Christians, we are at war but our war is a spiritual fight and our armor and weapons are of a spiritual nature.
So far in this passage, we’ve seen that we fight with truth as our war-belt.
14 Stand firm therefore, having girded your loins with truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness,
And today we learn that we fight with righteousness as our chest plate.
14 Stand firm therefore, having girded your loins with truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness,
[TS] I want us to think about four QUESTIONS as we try to understand the breastplate of righteousness.
Major Ideas
Major Ideas
Question #1: What does it mean to put on the breastplate of righteousness?
Question #1: What does it mean to put on the breastplate of righteousness?
[EXP] The breastplate of the Roman soldier was the piece of armor that covered the body from the neck to the thighs. It consisted of two parts, one covering the front and the other the back.
John MacArthur (who might have been alive back then) said the breastplate was “a tough, sleeveless piece of armor that covered his full torso… often made of leather or heavy linen, onto which were sewn overlapping slices of animal hooves or horns or pieces of metal. Some were made of large pieces of metal molded or hammered to conform to the body. The purpose of that piece of armor is obvious—to protect the heart, lungs, intestines, and other vital organs.”
A Roman soldier without his breastplate was exposed to every thrust and random arrow from the enemy. Without this piece of armor, death was almost certain.
This reminds us once again that, although we are talking about spiritual warfare, we are very much talking about life and death.
The righteousness that makes u this breastplate might be thought of in two ways: imputed and practiced righteousness.
Imputed righteousness is the perfect righteousness of Jesus that is imputed or credited to us when we turn from sin and trust in Jesus’ death and resurrection for our salvation.
Practiced righteousness is living a life of obedience or holiness. It is obeying the will of God by the power of God to the glory of God.
Faithful preachers have said that the righteousness Paul referred to here in Ephesians 6:14 is imputed righteousness.
Charles Hodge wrote, “What Paul desired for himself was not to have on his own righteousness, but the righteousness which is of God by faith (Phil. 3:8-9). …this, doubtless, is the righteousness which he here urges believers to put on as a breast-plate. It is an infinitely perfect righteousness, consisting in the obedience and sufferings of the Son of God, which satisfies all the demands of the divine law and justice; and which is a sure defence against all assaults whether from within or from without.”
But faithful preachers have also said that the righteousness Paul referred to here in Ephesians 6:14 is not imputed righteousness but practiced righteousness.
John Calvin said, “The subject now under discussion (with the breastplate) is a blameless life. He enjoins us to be adorned, first, with integrity (i.e., with the truth), and next with a devout and holy life (i.e., with righteousness).”
Still other faithful preachers have said that righteousness can be taken in both ways.
James Montgomery Boice said, “Righteousness can be taken in two ways. It can refer to what in theology is called imputed righteousness, the righteousness of Jesus Christ reckoned to a Christian’s account that enables him to stand before God. Or it can refer to specific acts of righteousness—personal holiness, as we might say.”
I think the emphasis in putting on the breastplate is practical righteousness or personal holiness, but personal holiness is impossible without imputed righteousness.
Unless Jesus make us holy by giving us His holiness, we cannot live a holy life.
Only His imputed righteousness can enable us to practice righteousness.
[ILLUS] In Zechariah 3, a high priest named Joshua is standing before the angel of the Lord. Standing next to Joshua is Satan and he is ready to accuse Joshua because Joshua was a sinner like you and me. This is seen in Joshua’s dirty clothes. Zechariah 3:3 says…
3 Now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments and standing before the angel.
But then a command from the Lord is given…
“Remove the filthy garments from him,” (Zech. 3:4).
And then the Lord said to Joshua, “See, I have taken your iniquity away from you and will clothe you with festal robes,” (Zech. 3:4). “Let them put a clean turban on his head,” (Zech. 3:5).
Then Zechariah says, “So they put a clean turban on his head and clothed him with garments, while the angel of the Lord was standing by,” (Zech. 3:5).
This is imputed righteousness.
Joshua was a filthy sinner who was made clean by the grace of God.
But this imputed righteousness was to lead to practiced righteousness. Zechariah 3:6-7…
6 And the angel of the Lord admonished Joshua, saying, 7 “Thus says the Lord of hosts, ‘If you will walk in My ways and if you will perform My service, then you will also govern My house and also have charge of My courts, and I will grant you free access among these who are standing here.
Because Joshua had been made clean, he was to live clean. Because he had been made righteous, he was to live righteous. Because he had been made holy, he was to live holy.
He was to walk in the ways of the Lord.
He was to perform service to the Lord.
[APP] If the righteousness of Jesus has been imputed to us, then we are enabled and commanded to practice righteousness. We are enabled and commanded to pursue holiness.
This is what it means to put on the breastplate of righteousness.
[TS] …
Question #2: How should we put on this breastplate of righteousness?
Question #2: How should we put on this breastplate of righteousness?
[EXP] Understanding what it means to put on the breastplate of righteousness, we could ask this question in this way, “How do I pursue holiness? How do I live righteously?”
Here’s the answer: We obey the will of God by the power of God to the glory of God.
Let’s pull that answer apart and examine each piece…
If we are going to live righteously, we must obey the will of God.
If we are going to live righteously, we must obey the will of God.
We will not be holy by living according to our will.
We will not be holy by living according to the world’s will.
We will only be holy by living according to God’s will, and God’s will is found in God’s word.
When Jesus prayed for His disciples in John 17, He said, “Sanctify them (i.e., consecrate or make them holy) in the truth; Your word is truth.”
It’s obedience to the revealed will of God in the word of God that makes for holy living.
This doesn’t mean that determining the will of God will always be easy. But as we prayerfully test everything against the perfect standard of God’s word, we will be able to determine what His will is. Paul said it like this in Romans 12:1-2…
1 Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. 2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.
To be holy, you have to obey His will, and His will is revealed in His word.
If we are going to live righteously, we must obey the will of God by the power of God.
If we are going to live righteously, we must obey the will of God by the power of God.
We cannot obey God’s will in our own power. We simply don’t have the strength in and of our selves to endure in holiness. We must depend on the power that God’s supplies in Jesus Christ.
In our own strength, we might say, “I'm going to do it! I’m going to obey God from here on out!”
Of course, that commitment doesn’t last very long because we aren’t strong enough to keep a commitment like that. In fact, that commitment starts out in sinful self-reliance.
However, depending on the power that God supplies in Jesus, we might pray, “Father, help me by your grace that saves me and sanctifies me to be done with sin. Help me to be obedient to you.”
To be holy we must obey God’s will dependent on God’s power.
If we are going to live righteously, we must obey the will of God by the power of God to the glory of God.
If we are going to live righteously, we must obey the will of God by the power of God to the glory of God.
Any holy living we do—any obedience to the will of God—is totally to the glory of God because, if He were not working holiness in us and through us by His grace, there would be no holiness to speak of.
Paul knew this to be true of himself. In 1 Corinthians 15, he mentioned the people that Jesus appeared to after His resurrection, which included Paul who described himself as “the least of the apostles… not fit to be called an apostle, because (he) persecuted the church of God,” (1 Cor. 15:9). But then Paul said in 1 Corinthians 15:10…
10 But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me did not prove vain; but I labored even more than all of them, yet not I, but the grace of God with me.
Paul could’ve been tempted to boast in himself, but all glory belong to God because it was the grace of God working in Paul that made him live a life of righteousness.
And this wasn’t just something Paul said once. In 1 Corinthians 3:6, he said…
6 I planted, Apollos watered, but God was causing the growth.
Paul gave God the glory.
In 2 Corinthians 3:5, he said…
5 Not that we are adequate in ourselves to consider anything as coming from ourselves, but our adequacy is from God,
Paul gave God the glory.
And in Philippians 2:13, Paul reminded those believers…
13 for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.
Therefore (Paul was saying), God should get the glory.
[ILLUS] I once had a conversation with a minister who was criticizing another minister when he said, “He’s so heavenly minded, he’s no earthly good.”
But the only way to be any earthly good is to be heavenly minded.
The only way to be any earthly good is to be holy.
[APP] We must aim to be as heavenly minded—to be as holy in thought, word, and deed as possible, but even if we should win reward after reward for holiness, we must give glory to God.
It’s His grace at work in us as we obey His will by His power.
There’s a reason why when we are rewarded with crowns in heaven, we lay them before His throne (Rev. 4:10).
[TS] …
Question #3: Why should we put on this breastplate of righteousness?
Question #3: Why should we put on this breastplate of righteousness?
[EXP] In answer to that question, let me give you three REASONS why Christians should put on holiness—three reasons from Paul’s letter to the Ephesians.
Reason #1: Christians should put on holiness, because they are chosen for holiness.
Reason #1: Christians should put on holiness, because they are chosen for holiness.
In Ephesians 1:4, Paul said to the Ephesian believers…
4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him. In love
[APP] If you have trusted Jesus as your Savior and Lord, then He chose you too—and He chose you to be holy and blameless before Him.
Reason #2: Christians should put on holiness, because they are sealed for holiness.
Reason #2: Christians should put on holiness, because they are sealed for holiness.
In Ephesians 1:13, Paul said to the Ephesians…
13 In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation—having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise,
To be sealed with the Holy Spirit is to be assured of salvation, but it is also to be sealed for the purpose of holiness.
[APP] If you have placed your faith in Jesus as the atoning sacrifice for your sins, you have been sealed by the Holy Spirit and you have been sealed for the purpose of holiness.
In Ephesians 4:30 Paul makes this point by saying…
30 Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.
[APP] We grieve the Holy Spirit when we do not practice holy living.
Reason #3: Christians should put on holiness, because they are created for holiness.
Reason #3: Christians should put on holiness, because they are created for holiness.
In Ephesians 4:24, Paul said…
24 and put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth.
The Ephesians had been born again. They were dead in sin but then by God’s grace they had new life through faith in Jesus who defeated sin and death in His death and resurrection. They had been created anew in the likeness of God, in righteousness and holiness of the truth.
[APP] If we have been born again through faith in Jesus, we too have been created anew in the image of God, in righteousness and holiness of the truth.
[ILLUS] Blaise Pascal was a French genius who lived in the 1600s. He made major contributions to mathematics and physical science. He aided commerce by inventing a digital calculator that could compute French monetary units. He invented the syringe and the hydraulic press.
When the cool kids passed him on the street, they chuckled and said, “Nerd alert!” (And they said it in French, which I’m sure sounds worse.)
Pascal was raised Roman Catholic but later came to believe that salvation was by the grace of God alone and not by any merit of man.
When he came to believe the true gospel, Pascal gave a lot of time to theology and apologetics.
But there’s something that Pascal once wrote that I think is very interesting as we think about practical righteousness or holiness.
He said, “All men seek happiness. This is without exception. Whatever different means they employ, they all tend to this end. The cause of some going to war, and of others avoiding it, is the same desire in both, attended with different views. The will never takes the least step but to this object. This is the motive of every action of every man, even of those who hang themselves.”
Pascal’s argument is that whatever a person does—good or evil—he does because he is convinced that it will make him happy.
If Pascal is right, it means that we won’t pursue holiness unless we are convinced that holiness will make us happy.
MacArthur said, “The cause of (our) unhappiness is our own sin.”
If sin is the cause of our unhappiness, then holiness is the cure.
[APP] Let me ask you…
…would you like to live in the joy of salvation? Then you must be holy.
…would you like to live in the joy of salvation? Then you must be holy.
When David sinned against God, he prayed in Psalm 51:12, “Restore to me the joy of Your salvation.”
His sin had not cost him his salvation, but it did cost him the joyful experience of it.
Holiness is the way to live in that joy.
…would you like to live in the assurance of salvation? Then you must be holy.
…would you like to live in the assurance of salvation? Then you must be holy.
The Holy Spirit says in Hebrews 12:14…
14 Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord.
A lack of practical holiness makes us uncertain about our place in Heaven.
Holiness is the way to live in the assurance of it.
…would you like to live in the peace of salvation? Then you must be holy.
…would you like to live in the peace of salvation? Then you must be holy.
The Lord says in Isaiah 48:22…
22 “There is no peace for the wicked,” says the Lord.
Living wickedly, living sinfully, provides you no peace in this world and certainly no peace with God.
A lack of practical holiness leads to an unsettled heart, an unsettled life—a life without the experience of true peace, the peace of salvation.
Holiness is the way to live in that peace.
You were chosen, sealed, and created to put on the breastplate of righteousness, i.e., to practice holiness.
You won’t be happy without it.
You won’t have assurance without it.
You won’t have peace without it.
For these reasons and many others, you should put on the breastplate of righteousness.
[TS]…
Question #4: When should we put on this breastplate of righteousness?
Question #4: When should we put on this breastplate of righteousness?
[APP] The moment you trust in Christ, you are to start putting on holiness. Then you continue to put on holiness, and you leave it on.
We live in this breastplate.
We never take it off.
We must never be caught without our chest-plate, without this breastplate of righteousness.
We must be holy as He is holy.
William Gurnall said, “Your holiness is what the devil wants to steal from you. He calls no gain victory until he makes a Christian lose his righteousness. And he will allow a man to have anything, or be anything, rather than be truly and powerfully holy. It is not your riches and worldly pleasures he covets; it is your holiness.”
We are at war, brothers and sisters.
Are you dressed for battle?
Do you have on the breastplate of righteousness?
[TS] …
Conclusion
Conclusion
[PRAYER]
