WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 31, 2012
| But let us who are of the day be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet the hope of salvation. | |
I have some friends who are police officers, and on occasion, I have asked them to tell me about the utility belt they wear. They have different equipment on their belt to do their jobs. And the same goes for soldiers.
The apostle Paul wrote to the Thessalonian church, “But let us who are of the day be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet the hope of salvation” (1 Thessalonians 5:8). Paul had a lot of time to research Roman armor, because he was chained to Roman guards while he was a prisoner in Rome.
The apostle was essentially saying, “Suit up! Put on the armor of God.” Why? Because life is not a playground; it is a battleground. As a Christian, you are in a battle—whether you like it or not.
You might be thinking, I am a spiritual pacifist, okay?
Okay. Then you are going to be defeated. You had better put your armor on. You had better learn how to use your sword and march forward. You had better wake up, sober up, and suit up.
I like the way the J. B. Phillips translation puts it in Romans 13:
Every day brings God’s salvation nearer. The night is nearly over, the day has almost dawned. Let us therefore fling away the things that men do in the dark, let us arm ourselves for the fight of the day! Let us live cleanly, as in the daylight, not in the “delights” of getting drunk or playing with sex, nor yet in quarrelling or jealousies. Let us be Christ’s men from head to foot, and give no chances to the flesh to have its fling. (verses 11–14)
That is what God says to you and to me. This is how we are to live.
Psalm 121
Mark 9-10
Used by permission from Harvest Ministries with Greg Laurie, PO Box 4000, Riverside, CA 92514.
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