ANGEL LIGHT - Fire and Ice Ministries River of Life Fellowship

A Wake­Up Call to Christians 211
justifying your sin. You want to please the Lord, but are struggling.
Those that are like this, you are forgiven, and you are holy before God
as you confess your sins. This is so important to get established in
your heart. While I was young in ministry I had typical battles most
people do with sin. We all stumble in many ways and all have a battle
with sin the Bible says (1John 1:8), but my heart was to live holy and
please the Lord. Many times I would be under such attacks of condemnation
that my heart literally was heavy. I had such a hard time
witnessing or doing anything for Jesus in those times, because in my
heart, I believed that I was unrighteous and didn’t deserve to be used
of God. This is why the breastplate is so important. Your heart is protected
from this condemnation during the war. We all struggle at times,
especially when young in the Lord. If anyone acts like they never do,
they are prideful liars. If you stumble, pick yourself up, confess your
sin, and then by faith believe you are the righteousness of God in
Christ. Don’t let the enemy condemn you and render you ineffective for
the kingdom of God. Even Paul battled while he was an apostle and
being used mightily of God. We read about it in Romans 7:21­25 which
reads,
“So I find this law at work. When I want to do good, evil is right there
with me. For in my inner being, I delight in God’s law; but I see another
law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of
my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within my
members. What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this
body of death?
Thanks be to God—through Jesus Christ our Lord.”
There was a war against sin and righteousness going on in this great
man of God even while he was pioneering churches and being a great
missionary. We all battle the desires of sinful nature, the influence of
the evil world we live in, and the demonic forces daily until Jesus
comes. We must die daily to self and live for Jesus.
The belt of truth is a foundational piece. Many Bible scholars believe
that the Roman armor that Paul used to illustrate this spiritual armor
used the belt to hold everything else in place. It was therefore a foundational
piece so to speak. There were straps to the boots; the breastplate
was hooked to the belt, the sword, and even a way to lock the
shield in place if necessary. This is probably true. It is so vital that we
study and know the word of God for ourselves. When we are established
in sound doctrine and scriptural knowledge, it is all the harder to
be deceived. We must have this center piece of our armor.