People of Truth

"Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist."
Ephesians 6:14a

There are a couple of words that define God. One of those is love. God is love. Another word that describes him is truth. God is truth. He does not lie. He cannot lie. Everything he says, we can absolutely count on. You cannot separate the concept of truth from the nature of God. He lives, breathes, and exudes truth. So when he instructs us to put on the belt of truth, we know that it is vitally important to our well-being each day. This belt is the first piece of the armor of God.
    The clothing of a Roman soldier consisted of a long undergarment and tunic. In order to keep these robes from getting in the way during battle, they wore a belt around their waists. This was used to tuck the long tunic and robes into, to keep them out of the way. The belt literally held the soldier's clothing together. This is the imagery, Paul the apostle used when he described this piece of the armor.
    At the time Paul wrote the letter to the Ephesians, he spent his days chained to a Roman soldier. He was imprisoned in Rome although he had not been charged with any crime. So he was intimately aware of the armor worn by the Romans.
    Like the image of the Roman soldier, our lives are held together by the truth that we find in God. It is in him that we live and move and have our being. Each day, we must be aware of the truth that flows from the throne of God. It is this truth that will always keep us on a steady path. It will allow us to stand firm.
    Today, when you put on the armor, thank God for the fact that he is the absolute truth. Proclaim the truths that you know: He is the Way, the Truth and the Life. You shall know the truth and the truth will set you free. These are the kinds of things we need to proclaim as we put on the spiritual belt of truth. Jesus often prefaced the things he said with this phrase, "I tell you the truth..."  Yes, he does! Let's be people of the truth.