The Full Armor of God - Belt of Truth

"Stand firm therefore, having girded your loins with truth..." Eph. 6:14

I have failed as a mother.

No matter how hard I try, I can't get my teen-aged daughters to wear a belt.

It really has little to do with the fact that empty loops around one's waist is rather annoying, and a lot to do with the functionality of holding one's pants up. But for some reason, they would rather complain that their pants don't fit right, than put on a belt.

Belts can be fashionable and an "accessory," but they also are functional.

When Paul writes to the church at Ephesus to gird their loins with truth, this growing church knew exactly what Paul was talking about. To gird your loins, you would gather the access fabric from your clothing, pull it between your legs and up through your belt, and then yank it back down again. You could go from a flowing robe to pants that would allow you to move more efficiently. Your belt was key.

Now, some think that girding was for running, as if Paul was saying, "Be prepared to run away from Satan and his fiery darts." But this is not what Paul is suggesting. To gird was to prepare yourself to engage in the battle, to increase your mobility and agility, to provide protection for your "loin" and put yourself in a ready stance. It was the first thing a soldier would do - gather his skirt and tuck it in place, so that he was able to move more freely and aggressively.

Note the item that is holding our spiritual armor in place is truth. It is a belt of truth. We know that Jesus is truth (John 14:6), that God's Word is truth (John 17:17), that Jesus testified to the truth (John 18:37), and that truth sets us apart from the world (John 17:17).

So when we gird our loins in truth, truth is what is holding everything together. It is what is making us agile and mobile. Because we have truth, we are prepared for the battle. Without truth, without our belt, we are unable to protect ourselves and stand firm.

So what exactly is truth? Well, here's a taste:

*God exists

*He is the Creator of all

*Man separated himself from God by choosing to disobey

*God's holiness requires perfection

*Hell is a real and eternal destination

*God chose the nation of Israel to bring salvation to mankind

*Jesus is God and man

*Jesus fulfilled the Law and became the perfect sacrifice

*Jesus bore the wrath of God on the cross by taking man's sin upon His perfect Self

*There is no other way to eternal life but through Jesus Christ

*In giving Him your life, you exchange one master for Another

You get my point. The Bible is God's revealed truth for mankind and is what holds our faith together. Paul is telling us, "Don't go into battle without knowing Jesus. Don't go into battle without the Word of God, because that is what allows us to stand firm."

When you get up and dressed in the morning, do you gird yourself with the belt of truth? Do you have a sincere and genuine relationship with God? One that believes that what He says is divinely inspired and given to you to enable you to stand firm against the enemy?

Knowing God's Word is where we start and I think you will find that it is the foundation of the other items given to you for your battle gear.