The Belt of Truth (Part 2 of 2)

In the middle of the ongoing virtual battle we face.

We have to constantly be on guard.

There is a deceitful enemy who wants to see us fall show how we stand up for truth in a world that is filled with lies today on Truth for Life. Alistair Begg encourages us to tighten up our belts to engage in the battle will continue in Ephesians chapter 6, but today we begin the book of Isaiah. Isaiah 5917. He put on righteousness as a breastplate and a helmet of salvation on his head and he put on garments of vengeance for clothing and he wrapped himself in zeal as a cloak when you read the Old Testament is always the Bible is pointing forward to the fulfillment in the Lord Jesus is the reason I mention this is because it seems to me that the basic elements of the armor of God, if you like from Paul's pen, not simply in light of the picture of the Roman soldier, but in light of his knowledge of the Lord as the divine warrior, why would this matter and how would it help me tell you, do you remember when we studied in the fruit of the spirit and when we study the fruit of the spirit we were at pains to make sure we understood that this is actually fruit and we said when we read concerning the fruit of the spirit. This is not things characteristics designer labels that we attach to ourselves spiritually, but it is rather that which is produced by the Holy Spirit within us that you need to understand that it's not about trying to become more like Jesus, so that I might be victorious in the back. It is about standing confidently in Christ's triumph, which has already taken place over Satan in the cross that Jesus Christ is the volume warrior who is to come, he is gone toe to toe with the evil one in the wilderness in the temptations he has answered him in the same way that we are to answer him. As we will see later on by taking the sword of the spirit which is the word of God.

That's how Jesus handled that there and then going face-to-face with him in the cross, he has triumphed over the evil one over death over Satan over the grave he has accomplished all of it. That's why the him that we just sang red prude on the gospel armor put on the gospel armor. What is it mean the gospel armor simply what it says that our armor is ultimately the gospel is to food on the gospel. In other words, when the evil one comes to insinuate to attack to say I can't believe that you think those thoughts. I can't believe that you left undone. I can't believe that you are as you are and so on. The answer does not lie and are saying overweight a minute I had a very good week, two weeks ago did you come that or I'm doing this rendering that know the answer is to confront our accuser and tell him Jesus die because what you say you're saying you to your best shot evil one. And Jesus died for our sins, triumphed over them and we are now in him we are united in it. Some of you will have those dolls at home, identical in Russian dolls and I I have some with Gorbachev on it and and Yeltsin meant and some others and and when you are fun to play with you and Ali are you take you that you take them apart and then you go further and further down and eventually got a tiny little fellow in here who doesn't come apart anymore and then when you've done that then you put them all back together again. That's about the fun of it for an afternoon.

But but there there is something of a picture and that is in there that I am the tie. I am the tiny little person include enclosed in Christ is even evil and comes wizards know I'm I'm I'm I'm very strong I'm I'm I'm making great progress. I'm feeling amazing.

You know the will and those this this fall is going down for sure. Noisy. There's only one place in the place is safe in the arms of Jesus is hidden in the gospel. That's why you see the issue is always the gospel. That's why the issue is do I know Christ in this way have I come to entrust myself to a fire admitted who he is and who I am and why I need him in so long, I just a religious person seeking somehow or another to do my best as I make my journey.

There's all the difference in the world. Paul remember in chapter 1 is writing to those who have Herod the word of truth, the gospel of their salvation.

Another picture then is pretty straightforward isn't the question is, is Paul. Then when he talks about the belt of truth talking about truth as, in truth, in the inner man or sincerity, or our own personal truthfulness or is he speaking about truth in an objective sense, that is, in the sense of that which is outside of us, and in Christ and in the gospel. Well, without delaying on it is possible to Mark Marshall.

The Bible evidence in support of both positions are up already has talked about speaking truth with our neighbors in chapter 4, and he does that throughout his letters. He also though is concerned to make sure that people understand the nature of the truth and so long in my own simplicity of mind. I have concluded that it needn't be either or and is probably safe to say it's both and that surely to take up the belt of truth is to ensure that since Jesus is the truth. And since the gospel as come to us is the truth. Are one of the evidences that we are truth thrusters is that we are truth tellers so that the subjective die mention of the work of grace is in evidence in our lives.

My inclination will is to view what he saying here in terms of this belt more in the objective way. In other words, what Paul says elsewhere about the importance of the faith or part of the gospel or about the good deposit that is just seems to be in keeping with the emphasis on the truth itself and certainly when we realize that it is only the truth of the gospel that can dispel the lives of the evil one and set us free. That's why I think Paul is constantly emphasizing this in in in all of his writings as he gets to the end of his life as he is now in jail for the last time as he writes his letter to Timothy, what is his great concern for Timothy.

It is that Timothy will remain committed to the truth that he will make sure that the truth of the gospel that has been, that is come to them first to his grandmother and then through his mother, and that has now become his very own that he will not deviate from course in relationship to it that he will hold fast to the truth that he will keep is a pattern of sound words, that which is being conveyed to him and in the very same letter he reminds Timothy that he has in his congregation. Those who are always learning but never able to arrive at a knowledge of the truth in Ephesians in the previous chapter 30.

As described in the provision that God is made for his church in the ministry of the apostles and in the inscription rated truth of the apostles, then append he says.

And the reason God is given this to us is in order that we may no longer be as children, tossed to and fro, carried about by every wave, and by every wind of doctrine was the key. The belt of truth that we have come to a conviction about the truth. Somebody said to his one day. Have you ever read the New Testament was and I never read. We read and we discovered that it introduced us to Jesus. We discovered Jesus, not just as a figure of history, but as a savior and as a friend and we entrusted our life's to him and we declare that Jesus is Lord and then it was Jesus. The gift was our doctrine of Scripture.

We realize that Jesus believe the Bible that Jesus taught the Bible that Jesus spoke the very words of the father had given them to speak and so we came to convictions about the truth of the Bible because we came to convictions about the truth concerning Jesus. That's how it actually happens and it stands out in distinct confrontation with the vagueness and the accommodation that is increasingly part of our culture, our culture is confused about many things, but it certainly confused about truth and whether there is such a thing as objective truth, and the pressure is so hard. I don't how you find it, but it is very hard when you're in company with a group of people who all believe completely differently from yourself is a huge temptation to become a little vague to become a little accommodating to suddenly say, well, you know, perhaps tolerance and acceptance will you know when the war a little more than truth statements last one of the schemes of the devil is exactly what is happened in churches all across the Western world ever since the particularly now the end of the 19th century and that the thought forms of German scholarship that invaded the minds of many who wanted to be thought very very wise in effect, so they thought well if we just demythologized some of this of religious dismantle some of these pieces if we just become more afraid on the engines a little more accommodating than what will find him sure is that people just flock to us and they will be delighted that you realize we really don't know what were talking about at all and it will make them feel very comfortable and what is happened.

The charges are empty.

The lights are off the doors are closed and they deserve to be John start some years ago makes this amazing statement where he says that just as the world is becoming more aware of its need the church is becoming less assured of its mission and the major reason for the diminishing Christian mission is the diminishing confidence in the Christian message that you find oppression as a letter this week from somebody wrote me say I know you teach the Bible but you need to realize Alastair that the Bible was written a long time ago and we have all moved on, and therefore the things that you're saying from the Bible are just completely irrelevant to the cc of others and others. There are nice elements to them, but the complexity of modern life is such that the Bible is just obviously inadequate. What we going to do with this was the response. You might want to give that belt.

An extra talk turbulence when our friend say these things when the centers we are not very Christian in this area. How can you be so Christian. If you were to define things if you are Christian you and define things if you are a really good Christian. It would be far nicer and anyone be so authoritative, so dogmatic, so jolly annoying. Well, and what they're really saying is you know it doesn't really matter what you believe, just as long as you lead a good life and you do your best sound so cozy doesn't and you and I don't want to go all I don't know about that, but if you're going to be a Christian soldier you're going to have to go oh I don't know about Jesus says to the woman in the well when you go call your husband she will. I don't have a husband should know you're right. You fed five husbands, and you've got a live and love put his finger on her life so that he might give to her. The living water. Define the issues so that she might then be confronted with the truth. If we do not do what Scripture does, then we have no basis upon which to be able to make application of the truth. For example we all know John 316 and recorded from time to time and helpfully so, for God so loved the world that he gave his only son, that whoever believes in him should not perish, as were all going to perish perishing. As a result of our sin would not perish but would instead have eternal life wall. For God did not send his son into the world to condemn the world, that's good so we don't want have a spirit of condemnation about us, but are not of the world might be saved through him.

Good.

So we want to tell people about the immensity of his love in Jesus name we go. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already because he has not believed in the name of the only son of God. That's pretty defined, isn't when our friends tell us that their intelligence will see them through in the when they tell us that modern knowledge is able to sit in the adjudication over the relegation of the revelation of God in Scripture which cleared to return, we turn to the truth and with this I will finish. Remember when Paul writes to the Corinthians, and the Corinthians had an interest in things that was fairly rarefied and they enjoyed hi talk, and he says to them when I came to you I didn't play any of those games I didn't use any of those cards and the reason I didn't do it that I didn't try and impress you with words of human wisdom was in case the cross of Christ would be emptied of its power for the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but draws are being saved it is the power of God. Where is the one who is wise. Where is the scribe. Where is the debater of this age has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world for sins in the wisdom of God the world did not know God through wisdom it please God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe is our friend David Wells puts it in one of his little booklets that we do not. God is beyond the realm of our intuitive radar that there is no intellectual road to God that the only way we ever know God is by means of his revelation and he has revealed himself ultimately and he who is the way the truth and the life and no one ever comes to the father except through and process I want to make sure that you understand that my speech my message that were in implausible words of wisdom, but in a demonstration of the Spirit and of power fly so that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of man, but in the power of God's every time you find yourself saying you can possibly believe that. Or don't you realize that science has disproved the do you realize that that was just a perspective from the first century about gender and about marriage, don't you realize that we've superseded all of that. Surely you're not saying this you're not saying that to the extent you find yourself sucked into that Vortec ice 80 hide yourself away in the finished work of Christ and tighten the belt and engage in the battle this morning serendipitously, I went into one of the rooms upstairs, and I realize that somebody left me a copy of grace abound into the chief of sinners by bunion 17 century work by bunion bunion.

He writes of how as he surveys his life.

It's amazing to him. He says that given how bad and horrible and useless. I am the God's grace was abound to me as it happens I just turned to the conclusion not purposefully but I opened it there and and here's what it said of all the temptations rights bunion that I ever met with in my life to question the being of God and truth of his gospel is the worst and the worst to be born. When this temptation comes it takes away my girdle from me and remove with the foundation from under me all I have often thought of that word have your liens girt about with truth of all the temptations that have come to me. He says the worst that I would doubt God owed his war all how we need to fasten on the belt of truth important reminder from Alistair Begg to stand for God's truth. This is Truth for Life. Alister will close today's program with prayer in just a minute, so please keep listening.

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Her number is 888-588-7884 and if you'd rather mail your donation along with your request for the book the whole armor of God, write to us the Truth for Life. The address is PO Box 39, 8000, Cleveland, Ohio. Ohio is OH and her ZIP Code is 44139. Now here's Alister closing prayer father even as we study these things, the evil one attacks us. We thank you for the fact that although the message of the cross is foolishness to is by nature letter that a Galilean carpenter hanging on a Roman jib would have anything to say to us all these years later and certainly the idea that that there outside the city walls of Jerusalem to place the pivotal event of human history is absolute, falling to the world, but to those who believe it's everything. Lord, forgive our unbelief help us to believe talk a lot for Jesus sake.

Amen Bob Lapine, every warrior wants to know that his heart is shielded from the attacks of the enemy, but the protection Christians need is not something we can show how can we make sure we're covered here. The answer tomorrow. The Bible teaching of Alistair Begg is furnished by Truth for Life Learning is for Living