Stand
therefore,
having your loins girt about with truth
What is
"truth"? i know you've heard that question. Usually
from a non-believer trying to argue against the Gospel. But they
are not really arguing against the Gospel, but against Scripture.
So the question stands ... What is Truth? Is it the Scriptures?
No.
The Scriptures are of course true. They are without flaw or
wrinkle, complete perfection, the very WORD of GOD written. But
this is not the "TRUTH" we are looking for, though we
can find it through the Scriptures. We will discuss the Word
later when we study the Sword of the Spirit. Long before we are
able to wield the power of our Spiritual weaponry, however, we
must complete our armor. So we are back, searching our Spiritual
closet for our girdle.
We have learned to think of The Gospel as the Bible (the Scriptures). Or, at least, the New Testament. We share the Gospel, we quote Scripture. "For GOD so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son..." "We are saved by Grace, through Faith, but that not of ourselves it is the gift of GOD, not of works lest any man should boast" So is this the "Truth" we need to girt ourselves with? Do we need to wrap ourselves up in the Bible, protect ourselves with its pages? We are getting closer. But still we are playing with our sword when we should be getting dressed.
Look at the Words within the Scripture; loved, gave, grace, faith, gift. See a pattern developing. Let's look at our selection from Colossians 3:12-17: "Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering; Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye." There it is !!!
Truth is not something that happens to be true, it is a state of being. GOD is TRUTH. Jesus is Truth. The Gospel, the 'Good News', is Truth. This is the Walk itself, the deepest part of our relationship with our Lord. This is the Truth that the Holy Spirit leads us into. It goes beyond words, beyond emotions, it links us with our Creator through His Son. We can not even understand the Scriptures if we do not have this Truth in the deepest parts of our being. This is the gift of GOD, through which we are able to commune with HIM. HE gave us this TRUTH, without it nothing else fits. We can not put on our Breastplate of Righteousness, hold our Shield of Faith, or even wear our Helm of Salvation, and we surely should not try and wield our Sword of the Spirit, without first putting on Truth.
This is the Walk, that we should be molded into the likeness of Jesus. We must, as Paul said, walk in mercy, kindness, humbleness, and meekness, forbearing and forgiving all, even as Christ. We must take up our cross and follow our Lord. This is TRUTH, to be as Christ, in word and in deed. To worship our Father in Spirit and in Truth, to walk in obedience, and stand in meekness.
i would like to suggest two books that every warrior should read. "In His Steps" by Charles Sheldon and "Foxe's Book of Martyrs" , both are Christian Clasics. "In His Steps" has been popularized in recent years through the phrase "What Would Jesus Do ?". The text for "In His Steps" can be found online at: http://ssnet.org/bsc/ihs/ihs.html
You can find an electronic version of Foxe's clasic online at: http://www.chick.com/reading/books/foxe/foxe_contents.asp
Girt yourself, walk around a little, get use to moving in Truth. Then when you are able to Stand, under the awesome weight and restriction of your Girdle of Truth (though it is liberation beyond imagination), then you may lift up the Breastplate of Righteousness and continue to prepare yourself for battle.