Secure Your Belt, Breastplate and Sandals!

THE ARMOR OF GOD (PART 10), by Pastor Atukwatse Onesmus

“You cannot stand before your enemies until you have removed the things under the ban from your midst.” Joshua 7:13

It is never safe to take off the belt of truth, breastplate of righteousness and sandals of peace! Even the weary Roman soldier grabbing a few moments of rest from the battle would keep these three pieces of armor firmly in place. And so must we, as children/soldiers of God.

• Philippians 4:8 exhorts us to let our minds dwell on what is true.
• Romans 13:14 urges us to put on the Lord Jesus Christ (who is our righteousness) and to make NO provision for the flesh in regard to its lusts.
• Philippians 4:6,7 commands us to be anxious for nothing but in everything with thankful prayer, let our requests be made known to God. When we do that we will be soothed by the ever-present peace of the Prince of Peace.

Before we learn to take up the other three pieces of the armor of God, we must make sure the first three are secure. There is no safe way to bypass these things.  Scripture is true and cannot be short-cutted and will not be short-circuited.

• My brother or sister in Christ, will you let the word of God examine your heart today?
• Are you strong in the Lord?
• Do you know who you are as a child of God, or are you performing to try and win the approval of God, others or self?
• Are you secure in the Father’s arms, or are you hoping to gain a sense of value through your job, your income, your house, your car, your family, your degrees or…?
• Do you know what it means to be strong in the strength of God’s might?
• Have you humbled yourself to acknowledge that apart from Christ you can do nothing, or are you smug and confident in your own experience, wisdom, intelligence or strength? Until you raise your empty hands to God and cry out to Him to fill you with the Spirit, you will be no match for the enemy of your soul!

Are you developing the habit of meditating on the word of God day and night?

Psalm 1 says then you will make your way prosperous and then you will have success. The truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth! That is what you must fix your mind upon. Away with the foolishness of TV shows, music, books, magazines, movies, videos, conversations, computer games, web sites, chat rooms, etc. that are filled with the lies and values of this world. Set a guard around your mind and be vigilant and diligent to allow no thought or attitude to take hold that would displease our Lord.

Are you filled with fear or anxiety?

Fear is the antithesis of faith and anxiety is the opposite of peace. Put on faith and love as a breastplate today, and affirm out loud if necessary that God has not given you a spirit of fear (timidity) but of power, love and a sound mind. Cast every anxiety upon the Lord, because He cares for you. Relax in His sheltering arms.  Let Him hold you.  Stop trying to control circumstances and people. You cannot and you must not. Pray instead, thanking God for His wisdom and His timing and His power. His peace will flood your soul today!

The one thing I am convinced of more and more is that a casual, lackadaisical, nonchalant approach to the Christian life will not cut it. This is warfare, my friend, and so I urge you, take up the full armor of God so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything to stand firm! God bless you as you do!

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Step Out!!

THE ARMOR OF GOD (PART 9), by Pastor Atukwatse Onesmus

“You cannot stand before your enemies until you have removed the things under the ban from your midst.” Joshua 7:13

Seeing souls saved and captives set free is the purpose of spiritual warfare!

In fact, any so-called “spiritual warfare” ministry that does not serve both of those purposes is missing the mark. The heartbeat of God is to seek and to save that which was lost and to purify His precious bride for the upcoming marriage supper of the Lamb!

And so, the good soldier of Christ Jesus must be ready to bring the good news of the gospel to a dying world and a needy church. The third piece of armor reminds us of this solemn responsibility in Ephesians 6:15:

“…and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace.”

This verse immediately brings to mind two other passages of Scripture that reinforce this clarion call to preach the gospel:

“How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news, who proclaims peace, who brings glad tidings of good things, who proclaims salvation, who says to Zion, ‘Your God reigns!’” Isaiah 52:7

“But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear.”  1 Peter 3:15

The gospel, Romans 1 says, is the power of God for salvation for everyone who believes! Therefore, we must always be ready – in season and out of season – to bring good news to all who will hear!

You ought to have with you at all times a personal testimony of what God has done in your life. And a few gospel tracts to give to people you are unable to talk with extensively is a must as well.

As you engage the enemy face to face, nose to nose in personal witness for Jesus, you must make sure you have the right “footwear” on! The Roman soldier’s sandal was well-cleated on the sole for maximum stability and mobility. And the straps of that sandal fit snugly around his lower leg, making it very difficult to turn an ankle or be knocked off balance.

Before you go out to preach the gospel to sinners and teach the gospel to saints, make sure you are protected by the peace of God!

Your heart and mind will be a target of the enemy’s attacks of fear and anxiety. He will try to knock you off balance and keep your focus inward rather than outward. Let Philippians 4:6-9 be your stability today, and remember, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.”

“Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

”Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy – meditate on these things.

“The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do, and the God of peace will be with you.”

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Recovering Your Stolen Virtues

Jesus said that the thief comes to steal and to destroy.

The devil is the most serious thief in the universe.

Somebody who is not interested in stealing your TV, but wants to steal your eyes is a big thief. Of course, what is the use of a TV when the eyes have gone?

He steals joy, children, money, home, peace, possession, wives, husbands, etc. He steals them in his bank, and positions a strongman in front of the bank to guard them.

Read this powerful and timely message from Pastor Onesmus, and discover how you can recover what has been stolen.

WE MUST PURSUE, OVERTAKE AND RECOVER!

Be BLESSED and be a BLESSING!!

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Protection for Your Heart!

THE ARMOR OF GOD (PART 8), by Pastor Atukwatse Onesmus

“You cannot stand before your enemies until you have removed the things under the ban from your midst.” Joshua 7:13

In our nation, the once clear waters of “right and wrong” have been muddied by moral relativism and the tolerance of evil. What shocked us twenty years ago is winked at today. For those of us with small children (or grandchildren), the prospects of what might be considered “normal” 10-15 years down the road is frightening.

Perhaps never before has there been in our nation’s history such a critical day for the church to stand for righteousness. Unfortunately many believers have laid down their armor to take a closer peek at what the world is up to. We have crept closer and closer and warmed ourselves at the fires of immorality and denied our Lord whose throne is established in righteousness and justice (Psalm 89:14, 97:2).

What is the cure for this deadly “heart disease” of the church? The apostle Paul, in Ephesians 6 provides the answer:

“…and having put on the breastplate of righteousness,…” Ephesians 6:14

Every Christian is called to be a soldier. And the good soldier, in active service, does not entangle himself in the affairs of everyday life (2 Timothy 2:4). He does not let down his guard, living with a peacetime mentality in the midst of war!
Ephesians 6:14 makes it clear that the soldier of God has already put on the breastplate of righteousness. Even when there seems to be a lull in the action and the warrior is catching his breath, this crucial piece of armor remains in place.

On a practical level, we make sure our “heart” is protected from attack by putting on the breastplate of righteousness in at least two ways:

1. We stand firm in our identity in Christ. 2 Corinthians 5:21 assures us that we are the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus. This is a done deal, having been accomplished by Jesus at the cross and made true of us at our conversion. Our response is to receive this wonderful truth by faith and know today that “there is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (Romans 8:1). Truly you will never be more forgiven than you are now, if you belong to Jesus. Though your sins (and mine!) were as scarlet, they are as white as snow (Isaiah 1:18).  Praise the name of the Lord!
2. Because we are already righteous and holy, forgiven and cleansed saints, we need to make the choice TODAY to walk in holiness by the power of the Holy Spirit. 1 Thessalonians 5:8 puts it this way: “But since we are of the day, let us be sober, having put on the breastplate of faith and love…” Walking by faith in God and living a life of love toward others is the guts of what righteous living is all about!

This day, God wants you to be able to counter all attacks of guilt, shame and temptation that the enemy of your soul throws at you. How do you do that?

Make the choice today to walk in the righteousness that is already yours in Christ!

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Buckle Up with Truth

THE ARMOR OF GOD (PART 7), by Pastor Atukwatse Onesmus

“You cannot stand before your enemies until you have removed the things under the ban from your midst.” Joshua 7:13

It is not by accident that the first piece of armor that the apostle Paul lists in Ephesians 6 is truth. The New American Standard Bible puts it this way:

“Stand firm, therefore, having girded your loins with truth…” (verse 14)

This Scripture is actually an Old Testament quote from Isaiah 11:5, a prophecy concerning the Messiah:

“Also righteousness will be the belt about His loins, and faithfulness the belt about His waist.”

It is very significant that we are commanded to gird ourselves with the same armor as the Lord Jesus, for when we put on the full armor of God, we are actually clothing ourselves with Christ Himself!  Consider a parallel passage, found at the end of Romans 13:

“Love does no wrong to a neighbor; love therefore is the fulfillment of the law. And this do, knowing the time, that it is already the hour for you to awaken from sleep; for now salvation is nearer to us than when we believed. The night is almost gone, and the day is at hand. Let us therefore lay aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. Let us behave properly as in the day, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual promiscuity and sensuality, not in strife and jealousy. But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh in regard to its lusts.”  (Romans 13:10-14)

When we “gird our loins with truth”, we are putting on the Lord Jesus, who is the truth. By choosing truth, we are choosing to repudiate the devil and all his works and ways, because the devil is a liar. When we choose to know, believe, speak and live out the truth, we take away the enemy’s greatest weapon, deception.

Truth is a part of our new identity in Christ, and therefore we should have nothing to do with falsehood in any of its forms. Earlier in the book of Ephesians, Paul wrote:

“But you did not learn Christ in this way [in sensuality, impurity and greed], if indeed you have heard Him and have been taught in Him, just as truth is in Jesus, that, in reference to your former manner of life, you lay aside the old self, which is being corrupted in accordance with the lusts of deceit, and that you be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth. Therefore, laying aside falsehood, speak truth, each one of you, with his neighbor, for we are members of one another.”
Ephesians 4:20-25

As one who has been inseparably joined to Jesus, the truth, will you choose to live in the truth today, laying aside all lying, deception, exaggeration, insincerity, flattery, gossip, slander, and truth-withholding?

It is only when we do so that we are ready to pray.

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