The Belt of Truth

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.

Ephesians 6:10-18

Some of you have served your country in the military. Most of us have not. But there’s some amount of common sense to protect yourself in war. If you knew you were going into enemy territory, what would you do? You’d probably want to have some way to protect yourself!
We are, in a sense, like God’s paratroopers, having been dropped behind enemy lines. Paul’s audience would have understood the military analogy – especially as they were surrounded by Roman centurions. They knew that the Roman centurions were trained to stand fast and not give way, no matter what the circumstance. That same quality is necessary in spiritual warfare, and this passage from Ephesians makes our battle orders clear: We are supposed to stand firm.

Before Paul got to the individual pieces of armor, he tells his listeners to:
(verse 10) Be strong in the Lord (strengthen yourselves in the Lord)
(verse 11) Take your stand against the devil’s schemes

(verse 13) Stand your ground
(verse 13) After everything, stand
(verse 14) Stand firm

Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist. What does a belt do? It holds everything together. This is what truth does. Our culture has allowed truth to slowly be eroded, exchanging absolute truth for "whatever works for you."

We find ourselves asking the same question Pilate asked Jesus in John 18, as Jesus was standing trial (before his crucifixion). Pilate asked Jesus if He was indeed a king. Jesus answered, "You are right in saying I am a king. In fact, for this reason I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me."
"What is truth?" Pilate asked.

So what do we know about truth?

Truth can be known or discerned, but there are also false spirits and idols that lead away from the truth. 1 John 4:1-2 tells us Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.

This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God.

1 John 4:1-2.

People don’t like being called out for sin. It’s hard to even acknowledge sin at all.

In fact, as 2 Timothy 4:3-4 says, For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear.

They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.

Satan perpetuates the lie that there is no truth. But to say "There is no absolute truth" is making a statement of absolute truth! You can’t have it both ways!

The basis of truth is God, and the revealer and giver of truth is Jesus Hebrews 6:18 reminds us that because of his very nature, God is unable to lie. 1 John 5:20 We know also that the Son of God has come and given us understanding so that we may know Him who is true. And we are in Him who is true – even in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.

Truth can only be found in Jesus Christ, and that has ramifications for us. Truth does not just call for intellectual agreement. It is to be obeyed and to characterize the new life in Christ. Listen to what Paul wrote in Ephesians 4:21-32.

Surely you heard of Christ and were taught in him in accordance with the truth that is in Jesus. You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness. Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbor, for we are all members of one body.

"In your anger do not sin": Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold. He who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with his own hands, that he may have something to share with those in need.

Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.

Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.

Truth leads to action. It’s not just a concept that as long as we believe the right things then we are fine. The only things you really believe are the things you act upon. I can see that all of you believe that the seats you’re sitting on will hold your weight.

The ramifications of this are staggering. Research is showing little to no difference in behavior between Christians and non-Christians. In 2007, the Barna Group conducted lifestyle research in the areas of gambling, relationships, sexuality, property and finances, substance abuse, and spirituality. In 11 of the 15 moral behavior areas they studied, there was statistically no difference between born-again Christians and non-Christians (you can read the full article here). This is scary. If we really believe in Jesus Christ as Truth, it should have an impact on our behavior.

How should someone behave if they know and walk in the truth?

1. Admit to having sin. 1 John 1:8: If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.
2. Keep God’s commands. 1 John 2:4: The one who says, "I know Him," but does not do what He commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him.
3. Do not hate fellow believers. 1 John 4:20: If anyone says, "I love God," yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen. And he has given us this command: Whoever loves God must also love his brother.
4. Instead love them with their actions. Earlier in Ephesians, Paul talks about growing in spiritual maturity, using the gifts God has given us to reach unity in the faith and knowledge of Jesus Christ. Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming. Instead, "truthing" in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ. Ephesians 4:14-15. This is often rendered "speaking the truth in love" but it’s more than that. In Greek, it’s simply a verb form of the word truth. So it’s not just speaking truth, but acting it out. 1 John 3:18-19: Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth. This then is how we know that we belong to the truth, and how we set our hearts at rest in his presence.

This truth is what holds the entire armor of God together and allows us to stand firm. Without the Truth of Jesus Christ, none of the rest of the armor helps at all. So we put on the truth by learning more about Jesus – knowing Him more, and living out his commands, turning from our sin, loving one another, and living out the truth in every aspect of our lives. This is the belt that holds our entire spiritual armor together.