“Keeping it Right” doesn’t mean you are right all the time or that you won’t make

mistakes and fall away from doing things that are right. Keeping it right means

realizing, “I don’t know how to live in your righteousness, so God you teach me

and show me how.” Keeping the right heart is what matters most to God.

“It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in

the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.”

Galatians 2:20 (NKJV)

A yielded heart, a determination to love God with all of your heart, mind, soul and

strength makes wearing the Breastplate highly potent and an effective weapon in

warfare.

The Breastplate was the shiniest, most gorgeous piece of the whole armor. It was

the first thing that most people would notice. It was the heaviest piece of the

armor and weighed at least 40 pounds and sometimes up to 125 pounds.

The more that a soldier used his breastplate, the more the metal would begin to

shine. If this breastplate was put away in a room, it would lose its beauty in the

darkness. However, with use every day, the shine of the armor became

increasingly brilliant. The more you wear the righteousness of God, the more

brilliantly He shines from your life.

Righteousness is knowing that I am covered by the blood of Jesus Christ and it is

His blood that has washed me clean and has made me right before God. There is

nothing in and of ourselves that we can do or any good works done through our

actions, but totally by His blood are we made righteous. It is a gift of God! Now

we must pursue to be like our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ and keep our eyes

upon Him and allow His righteousness to shine through us.

Romans 5:17(NKJV)

For the sin of this one man, Adam, caused death to rule over many. But even

greater is God’s wonderful grace and his gift of righteousness, for all who receive

it will live in triumph over sin and death through this one man, Jesus Christ.

The Breastplate is a defensive weapon and an offensive weapon.

As a defensive weapon, the Breastplate surrounds to equip and get ready for the

offensive action. The Breastplate shields and covers vital areas, such as the heart.

Satan tries to deal an effective blow to steal, kill and destroy you. He wants to jab

at and penetrate your heart and hit you in the “gut” and take you completely out.

Remember to “STAND, therefore…”. Being fully confident that you are covered by

the gift of God and fully understanding who you are in Christ Jesus. So, throw back your

 shoulders, hold your head up high, and walk tall and confidently as all

victorious soldiers do. You are victorious before you see it. You have everything

you need. God made sure of it.

The Breastplate is also an offensive weapon.

Remember that the breastplate for Roman soldiers was made of especially bright

and shining golden brass. When that soldier threw back his shoulders, the

afternoon sunshine hit that metal and cast a blinding glare into the eyes of all who

were watching. The enemy is always watching. The enemy cannot fight what it

cannot see.

When you wear your breastplate knowing who you are, the blinding glare of

righteousness blinds the eyes of the enemy so that he cannot see to fight.

When you are dressed in righteousness, you are dressed in the Lord Jesus Christ.

The brightest light there is. You are brilliant and powerful as Jesus Himself when

you are wearing this Breastplate. God’s glory radiates from your life to all those

around you, especially the darkness.

The more you walk in your Breastplate, or God’s righteousness, the more

increasingly beautiful with light you become.

You become a warrior indeed!

Next Week: The Armor of God – The Shoes of Peace

“Get to Steppin”

Some people look at the “Armor of God” and say, “I know that already”. What I

have learned walking with God for over 25 years is that I really don’t know much

of anything. Every day I must strive to learn and grow, because of the depth of

God’s Word that can never be exhausted. In my short years on this earth, I have

only touched maybe the “surface” of the knowledge that God is giving to us each

day. Even if I live to be 120 years old, I will always strive to be a lifelong learner.

Now, let’s take time to learn more, let’s talk about the “Loin Belt” of the Armor of

God.

The Loin Belt serves as a supportive piece of armor to protect the life-giving Word

of God. It surrounds and protects and supports the other pieces of the armor.

Remember, the loin area is the reproductive or life-giving area of a human being.

This support piece is highly necessary for success in re-producing life.

Without support groups in war, we cannot fight to our best ability. In the military,

we have all types of support staff. Different groups support in different ways.

Some bring the food, some supplies, ammunition, medical help, etc., but all

support the fight for success! There are other parts of the armor that will be worn

directly in the battle as well, but never discount the supportive armor in the fight.

Every part is important!

The Written Word of God is described as a “Loin Belt” because it is that supportive

part bringing life to us every day. The Written Word of God infuses life to each

person that opens his/her heart to receive the written words on the pages. It is a

book full of life, written for us to thrive and succeed in every area. By much study,

we learn that Satan does not come for us, but for the Word that is sown into our

hearts. (Mark 4:15) Because Satan knows that without the Word, we are like a

floating ship, waiting to crash. However, with the Word, we are stable and secure

and we thrive with life, flowing from all that we do. Satan wants to steal the Word,

because of its life-giving power. The last thing Satan wants you to have is POWER!

But you better know, it’s already in you.

The Loin Belt is the only piece of armor that you can actually see. It is the piece of

armor that holds all things together, our spiritual life, our marriages, our

relationships, our finances, and our health. When applying the Word to our lives,

everything fits together according to God’s plan and God’s plan is always the best

plan. It is the only piece of armor that we can hold and touch and read each day

to receive everything that God intends for us to have. He wrote these words

directly for us and to us. To bring us life abundantly and to reproduce ourselves

and to grow in the earth.

I have told this analogy many times in my sermons, but maybe someone that is

reading this may not have heard this before. I see God’s written word in a totally

different way. They are “Love letters” to me! “My Father” is talking to me.

Have you ever received a “love letter” in the mail? Even though that person was not

there to read it to you, that letter is just as real as the person that wrote it. The

only difference is that the letter is written on pages. It is what the author would

have said himself if he were standing there with you.

That is the same for the Word of God. God wrote these letters to you, with love for

you. God has you on his mind and desires of good for your life. Stop reading the

bible like a “good book” or even more so, like a “required book”. Read it as “love

letters” to you and directly for you.

If David was indeed the author of Psalm 119, he didn’t fear God, he loved God

and His Word. He knew that everything that God wrote was pure love for us. To

bring us to a great end and to enable us to live our lives in God’s complete

blessing.

Live your life surrounded by the Word of God. The Word is our support in the

time of need. It is the lifter of our heads and the very thing that brings light in the

darkness. Without the Word of God, “our pants fall down” and we look quite silly

tripping over our own pants. Unfortunately, that is sort of what happens in life with

“No God” in it. The Loin Belt is the part of the armor that holds everything

together and keeps us grounded and focused and our pants in place. (lol) Oh

come on, laugh a little bit. Can’t you picture it!

Tighten your Loin Belt securely around you and never leave home or be at home

without it! The Written Word of God!!

Homework:

Read Psalm 119

Next week:

The Armor of God – The Breastplate – Righteousness

“Keeping it Right”

Ephesians 6:12

12 “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities,

against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual

hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.”

I would dare say that most people don’t realize who they are fighting when bad

things happen to them. When disease torments our bodies, natural disasters

strike our neighborhoods, turmoil and strife are going on in our homes; It

is “Satan!”. He and all his “dark” angelic forces that deal in this earthly realm are

what causes the chaos and turmoil in our lives. Therefore, it is so vitally important

for all of us to read our bibles for ourselves and open our hearts to hear “the God

on the inside” of us, giving us answers and revelation of the scriptures. Of course,

we need Pastors and Elders that know the bible and people that we can talk to for

our questions, but we must know God for ourselves as well.

Many times, we hear people on the news saying, “I don’t know why God took my

baby?”. God is the giver of life and Satan comes to steal, kill and destroy. (John

10:10 ) A simple truth to remember, if it is bad, it’s Satan, if it is good, it is God.

You must know who your enemy is, or you may end up fighting the wrong

person.

For you to fully understand this verse, you will have to define some words to get a

full understanding. Don’t be afraid to pull out your dictionary if some words

baffle you. In Proverbs, it says, “…In all your getting, get understanding.”

(Proverbs 4:7)

Principalities and Powers (Authorities or Rulers) – the contexts make it clear that

it refers to the vast array of evil and malicious spirits who make war against the

people of God. The principalities and powers of Satan are usually at work here;

beings that wield power in the unseen realms to oppose everything and everyone

that is of God.

Romans 8:37-38, assures us that” nothing can separate us from the love of God.”

Love is the greatest power in the universe. What is clear is that, whoever they are

(the powers and principalities), they cannot separate us from God’s love. Victory

is already ours. It would be unfortunate to dwell on the powers of Satan and miss

the main thrust of this verse, which is the assurance of what God has done to

save us.

God has given us the weapons to win in battle and in everyday life.

Let’s study a little bit more in this verse.

What “heavenly places” is God referring to here in Ephesians 6:12. Surely, He is

not referring to those “principalities and powers” to be in the same place where

God dwells? In the same Heaven? Let’s find out…

There are (3) Heavens

1. The Atmospheric Heaven – The First Heaven

“Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather in barns; yet

your heavenly Father feeds them” (Matthew 6:26 ).

The air in which we breathe and all living things is the heaven above us. The place

where rain and snow come from and birds fly.

This is also the place where Satan does all of his work against the people of God.

This is the “heavenly places” that the bible refers to in Ephesians 6:12.

2. The Celestial Heaven – The Second Heaven

“And take heed, lest you lift up your eyes to heaven, and when you see the sun,

the moon, and the stars, all the host of heaven, you feel driven to worship them

and serve them, which the Lord your God has given to all the peoples under the

whole heaven as a heritage”. (Deuteronomy 4:19).

This is where the stars and the sun and the moon dwell.

3. Heaven as The Home of God – The Third Heaven

God is not limited to one geographical area, but He does have a “Home”.

“For Christ has not entered the holy places made with hands, which are copies of

the true, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us”.

(Hebrews 9:24).

This is where God dwells.

Study through these notes and read for yourself what it says about the 3 heavens.

As we move forward in our study with the “Armor of God”, you will realize where

and why you are fighting. Knowledge is powerful, and Satan knows that. “He has

blinded their eyes and hardened their hearts, so they can neither see with their

eyes, nor understand with their hearts, nor turn–and I would heal them.”

(John 12:40)

Let’s go forward in our study with our eyes wide open and our hearts open to

learn what it means to wear our armor and why it’s so important. We won’t be like

those that beat the air, but we will win our battle with knowledge and precision.

1 Corinthians 9:26-27

26 “So I run with purpose in every step. I am not just shadowboxing. 27 I

discipline my body like an athlete, training it to do what it should. Otherwise, I

fear that after preaching to others I myself might be disqualified.”

Let’s run with purpose and learn to discipline ourselves to not only run and make

it to the finish line, but to get there strong and unscarred. Let’s fight the good

fight and win every time.

Next week we will begin to learn about our weapons of spiritual warfare. We will

learn about so many more than those spoken of in the book of Ephesians. Keep

tuning in and let’s learn and grow together.

If you have questions, please email me at the email address below.

Next Week:

The Armor of God – “Truth – The Loin Belt – The Written Word of God”