Ephesians 6 | Belt of Truth
Ephesians 6:14, “Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth...”
For this week’s BlogThursday post, we will delve into the first part of the Ephesians 6 (Armour of God) series, that is, the belt of truth. We will explore the meaning of truth, how we can use truth in battle when fighting against our spiritual enemies, and the depths of how powerful a weapon truth is.
What Is Truth?
The Bible defines truth in one statement. In John 14:6, Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me”. We live in a day and age where truth is seen as relative and subjective. Nowadays, people have their own truths, we hear people use terms like “your truth” and “my truth”. However, when Jesus made this statement, He made it clear as day that truth is absolute and objective, claiming that there is only one truth, that is, Himself. Notice that Jesus said that He is the truth and not a truth. Having multiple truths causes confusion, and that is exactly what Satan’s agenda is - to cause confusion, especially in the young generation. 1 Corinthians 14:33 says that “God is not the author of confusion but of peace...”, so clearly the idea that truth is subjective and can change over time is from the enemy. People claim that whatever they believe is truth, and this is completely false and unbiblical. Just because a human believes that they are a donkey, and that is “their truth”, doesn’t mean that is the truth. Just because someone who hasn’t put their faith in Jesus believes that they’re going to heaven, and that is “their truth”, doesn’t mean that that is the truth. When people have such “truths”, they have them solely to try to justify their sinful lifestyle to suit their own desires so that they can enjoy the way that they live without having to feel the guilt of their sins. They don’t want to accept the “Truth” (Jesus), because they don’t want to reject their sin.
Biblical Truth
If we know that the truth is Jesus, we also know that Jesus is the Word of God (John 1:14 says that “The Word became flesh...”), so the Truth is the Word of God. The Bible also says in John 17:17, “Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth.” Now, in order to be secure in battle, we must know the word of God. In Hebrew, the meaning of the word “know”, is a personal and intimate type of knowing. If we don’t have an intimate relationship with the Word of God, how can we know what the truth is? Many don’t know their identity in Christ because they don’t know what the Bible says about them, so when spiritual warfare comes, they immediately faint because they don’t know who they are. It is crucial that we personally and intimately know our identity that is rooted in biblical truth. If we don’t know who we are in Christ, we’ve already lost the battle. It is quite fitting that Paul mentions truth as a weapon before all other spiritual weapons; this suggests that “putting on” Jesus (the Truth) and being rooted in biblical truth must come first for the rest of the spiritual weapons to stand firm and have a strong foundation. Without truth, the other weapons would come crumbling down; without truth, we would come crumbling down.
How To Use Truth As A Weapon In Battle
A belt is a defensive weapon (not offensive), so truth is meant to be used to protect and defend us when in spiritual warfare, fighting against our spiritual enemies. The way that we can use it to defend ourselves is by simply knowing the truth, through knowing the word of God. Knowing the truth of who we are is very powerful. Jesus said in John 8:32, “Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” Knowing the truth alone has the power to set us free from bondage. Let me give you some examples of how powerful it is when we intimately know the truth: when the world says that we are sick, we are unconvinced, knowing the heavenly truth that “By His stripes we are healed” (Isaiah 53:5); when the world says that we are a nobody, we laugh unpersuaded, knowing that heaven views us as kings and priests (Revelation 1:5-6); when Satan comes with condemning thoughts, we rebuke those thoughts, knowing that there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ (Romans 8:1). See how powerful it is to know the truth of our identity? When we became born again, we went from being an orphan to His child, a sinner to a saint. Romans 12:2 reads, “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind...” Now, in order to “gird our waists with truth” in battle, our minds must be renewed with the truth, so that we do not conform to the lies of the world and the enemy; if not, we then believe that the lies are truth, and then we believe that the truth is a lie, which makes us easy prey for Satan and his demons; so it is vital for our minds to be sanctified with biblical truth before we enter the spiritual battlefield.
Prayer
“Dear God,
Thank you for giving me another day. Today I ask that you would help me to see myself through Your eyes. When the enemy attempts to bring his lies into my mind, may You give me the discernment and strength to reject them and declare the truth of the word of God over my life. Give me the strength and patience to meditate on Your word for me to know the truth of my identity in Jesus. Spirit of Truth, lead me into all truth.
In Jesus’ name,
Amen.”
I’ve attached a link to a worship song down below for you to listen and meditate on the victorious truth of your identity in Christ for the rest of your week.
Worship song: Champion - Bethel Music & Dante Bowe