Sermon Tone Analysis

The Belt of Truth

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Intro:  The verses before us speak about spiritual warfare.

Intro:  The verses before us speak about spiritual warfare.

They remind us that we are in the fight of our lives.

Against a relentless, powerful enemy.

We are engaged in battle with a spiritual being who is intent on our destruction.

We are fighting against an enemy who hates our God, and who hates us too.

He wants to devour our families, destroy our testimonies, devastate our church, and discredit our God.

But, this enemy of whom I speak is not all-powerful.

The God we serve is, .

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While Satan is intent on our defeat, the Lord is interested in giving us the victory.

The Bible tells us very clearly that, in the end, God will have the last word, and Satan will be forever defeated and banished to the Lake of fire, .

We have all we need to stand

In the meantime, God has provided us with everything we need to “stand” for Him against everything the enemy can throw at us.

Today, we will begin to consider the resources the Lord has given to us to help us “stand” for Him, and to enjoy victory in the spiritual battles of life.

Let’s begin to study the pieces that comprise “the whole armor of God.” and 13 both tell us to utilize this armor in our daily warfare with the our enemy.

look at vs 12

The enemy is identified as Satan in verse 12.

This passage teaches us that the only hope of victory we possess if or us to be adorned in “the whole armor of God.”

Verse 13 tells us to “take unto you the whole armor of God.”

This literally means “to take up.”

It is the image of a soldier standing amid the pieces of the armor.

He only has to appropriate what had been proved for him.

When the “take it us”, verse 10 says that he is to “put it on.”

Armor does no good in the armory, and armor does no good until it is put on the soldier’s body.

This armor, if utilized properly, will enable us to do what verses 11, 13, and 14 say we are to do, and that is “stand.”

This armor will also make it possible to “withstand,” or “resist,” the daily assaults that come our way from the enemy.

Let’s begin today to examine the pieces of “the whole armor of God.”

I The Practical Example of Truth

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They could all relate to to this illustration

The standard garment for the Roman soldier was a loose fitting tunic.

The standard garment for the Roman soldier was a loose fitting tunic.

It was really nothing more than a large, square piece of cloth with holes cut for the arms and head.

It was usually worn loose, allowing it to drape over the body.

When it came time for battle, that tunic would prove itself to be very dangerous for the soldier.

Since most combat was hand-to-hand in ancient times, giving the enemy such an easy handhold would mean certain death.

Not only that, but the tunic, if left loose, would hinder the soldier’s freedom of movement.

So, before a battle began, the soldier would carefully gather the tunic around his body and hold it in place with a heavy leather belt.

The phrase “girt about” literally means to “fasten one’s belt.”

This practice was common among ordinary citizens as well.

The people in that culture wore long, flowing robes.

When he had to move fast, or do some sort of physical work, the robe would be tightened about the body so movement would be unhindered.

When the Lord would bring the children of Israel out of Egypt, and gave them His instructions concerning the Passover, He told them to “eat it; with your loins girded, your shoes on your feet, and your staff in your hand; and ye shall eat it in haste: it is the LORD’S passover,” .

They were to be ready to go.

The Lord Jesus told His people to be ready to go as well.

In He said, “Let your loins be girded about, and your lights burning.”

That is, we are to be ready to go all the time.

Our spiritual loins are to be girded, as we are to be looking for the coming of the Lord.

We don’t wear robes today, but we are to be “girded” up as well.

Our “girding” is not physical, it is mental and it is spiritual.

The “belt” we wear in our spiritual battles is not a belt of leather, it is a belt of “truth.”

The word refers to “the content of that which is true.”

If we are to “stand” in the “evil day”, then we must “stand” in the “truth.”

When Paul speaks of our being “girt about with truth,” he is referring to a couple of specific areas of truth.

Let me mention them to you today.

II The Precise Source of Truth

First, there is the “truth” found in the Word of God.

Jesus said, “Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth,” .

• First, there is the “truth” found in the Word of God.

Jesus said, “Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth,” .

Without a working knowledge of the truths of Scripture, the child of God is easy prey for the enemy.

Paul has already told us that there is a great danger if we do not know truth.

“That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive,” .

That is why the Lord gave us His Word, and that is why He gave us preachers to explain it to us.

He wants us to know His “truth” so that we might “stand” in the “evil day.”

Without the truth, the saints of God have no foundation, and they are easily led astray.

Without a working knowledge of the truths of Scripture, the child of God is easy prey for the enemy.

Paul has already told us that there is a great danger if we do not know truth.

“That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive,”

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That is why the Lord gave us His Word, and that is why He gave us preachers to explain it to us.

He wants us to know His “truth” so that we might “stand” in the “evil day.”

Without the truth, the saints of God have no foundation, and they are easily led astray.

The only way to combat error is with the “truth.”

It is the devil’s desire to defeat us, to destroy us, and to distract us.

He does this by peddling lies.

Like he did with Eve in the Garden of Eden, Satan is still seeking to altar the Word of God.

He wants wants us to ignore the “truth” God gives us and embrace his lies that are designed to lead us away from the Lord.

As I said, the only way to combat error with “truth.”

The only way to know the “truth” is to be exposed to it.

The Bible is “truth.”

The Bible is reliable.

It is accurate.

It is to be read, and it is to be believed.

Those who read it and believe it soon discover that,

“All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works,” .

Those who don’t soon find that they are casualties in the war between God and Satan.

“Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils,” .

So, the Bible is truth.

- It teaches all we need to know about life and death, Heaven and Hell, God and Satan, and sin and salvation.

- It reveals our condition before God, .

- It reveals His solution to our problem, Jesus Christ the Son of God, .

- It reveals the way of salvation, ; .

- It reveals the final destiny of the saints of God, .

- It reveals the final destiny of the lost, .

The Bible is a book to be read, believed, obeyed, and loved.

Those who do will be led into the path of life.

Those who don’t will spend eternity in death.

If you own a Bible, you should praise the Lord for it, and you should soak in the “truth” it contains daily.