From His Heart

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Today on From His Heart, Pastor Jeff Shreve will teach us how to dress for success.

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The desire of every true Christian is to be a good soldier for Christ Jesus. So at the end of your life, when you stand before the Lord, you can hear him say to you, "Well done, my good and faithful servant, my good and faithful soldier."

Now, in order to hear that, there's one thing that's really important in order to be a good soldier of the Lord Jesus Christ. Not only do you suffer hardship as a good soldier, but you dress for success. You put on, as the scripture says, the full armor of God.

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Admit it, we often look at people and see what they're wearing and judge them. We can sometimes tell what a person does for a living or perhaps how serious someone is about themselves. We might be able to tell a little something about their personality, but in a spiritual sense, believers are to wear a certain type of spiritual clothing.

Which ones are you wearing, spiritually speaking? Welcome to From His Heart with Pastor Jeff Shreve, who today will share biblical advice on how to dress for spiritual success. Today's message is the second in a challenging and eye-opening lesson from the series We Are Soldiers.

So if possible, turn in your Bible to Ephesians chapter 6 and let's see what your answer would be if God were to ask you, are you dressed for success? Here's Pastor Jeff Shreve.

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The year was 1975. The man was named John T. Malloy. He wrote a book, it was a business book, and it took off like wildfire. He sold so many copies of this book to help business people know how to dress. He called his book *Dress for Success*. And one of the taglines of the book was this: "It's the number one book to make you look like a million, so you can make a million." It was all about how to dress—how to dress when you go on an interview, how to dress at the office, how to dress for success. The reality is true in the premise of the book: dress has an effect on your success in business, and it has a direct effect on your success in life. How you dress matters.

Now, we all know that dress has to do with appropriateness. We dress differently depending on what we're going to do. We are in a series called *We Are Soldiers*, and we're learning about how to be a good soldier for Christ Jesus. Second Timothy, chapter two, verse three, Paul tells Timothy, "Suffer hardship with me as a good soldier of Christ Jesus." Once you're saved, you're put into the Lord's army. The desire of every true Christian is to be a good soldier for Christ Jesus. So at the end of your life, when you stand before the Lord, you can hear him say to you, "Well done, my good and faithful servant, my good and faithful soldier."

In order to hear that, there's one thing that's really important: in order to be a good soldier of the Lord Jesus Christ, not only do you suffer hardship as a good soldier, but you dress for success. You put on, as the scripture says, the full armor of God. No soldier would go to battle without his armor and without his weaponry. But so many Christians do that in the spiritual realm. We don't realize that we're in a battle, that we're in a fight with the devil and his demonic horde. We don't show up for the battle; we don't dress for the battle. We're thinking that this Christianity thing is just a bunch of fun and games.

Listen, there's obviously joy in the Christian life. The Bible says, "In his presence is fullness of joy, and in his right hand there are pleasures forevermore." But we need to start thinking more like a soldier. In the last days, difficult times will come, and we need to think in terms of hardship. "Suffer hardship with me as a good soldier of Christ Jesus." If you have in your mind that the Christian life is all just fun and games and blessings, you're not going to be a good soldier. A soldier doesn't go to battle thinking, "This is going to be one big party with my buddies." He knows this is going to be hard. He has to make sure he has his armor on and that he is dressed for success.

The Apostle Paul has much to say in the book of Ephesians about how a Christian is to dress for success, how we're to put on the full armor of God so that we can stand firm against the schemes of the devil. Paul wrote the Book of Ephesians when he was in prison, during his first Roman imprisonment around the year 62 AD. He was released from that imprisonment in about 63 AD and then went on to minister some more until he was rearrested around 66 AD, put back in a Roman prison. That's where he wrote Second Timothy, from his second Roman imprisonment, and from there he was beheaded.

During his first Roman imprisonment, he was under house arrest, but he was chained 24/7 to a Roman guard. Every six hours, they would swap out the guard, and he had a chain on his wrist, chained to a guard. He wasn't going to be able to escape. Paul had in his head what a Roman soldier looked like. In Paul's day, everybody knew what a Roman soldier looked like because every time you saw one, they were dressed for success, they were dressed for battle. Paul uses that imagery by inspiration of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit impressed upon Paul's heart: "You see this soldier? You let the church know that that's how they're supposed to dress spiritually."

This is what he says in Ephesians, chapter 6, beginning in verse 10: "Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the full armor of God that you may be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore, take up the full armor of God that you may be able to resist in the evil day. And having done everything to stand firm, stand firm. Therefore, having girded your loins with truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace, in addition to all, taking up the shield of faith with which you will be able to extinguish all the flaming missiles of the evil one, and take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. With all prayer and petition, pray at all times in the Spirit. And with this in view, be on the alert with all perseverance and petition for all the saints, and pray on my behalf that utterance may be given to me in the opening of my mouth to make known with boldness the mystery of the Gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains, that in proclaiming it I may speak boldly as I ought to speak."

Paul tells us about the battle that we're in—not a flesh and blood battle. The devil uses flesh and blood; he uses people to come against us. But the battle really is in the heavenlies, in the spiritual realm. We, as God's army, are in the Lord's army, going up against the devil and his demons. The scripture tells us we need to stand firm three times: "Stand firm. Stand firm. Stand firm." Therefore, hold your ground. Don't let the devil push you back. Don't let him push you around. Stand firm. Resist the devil, it says in the book of James, and he will flee from you.

So here is our question: Are you putting on the full armor of God? Are you dressed for success? Because you're not going to do very well standing against the devil and his demonic horde if you don't have all your armor that God has given us. Take up the full armor of God that you may be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. I want to share with you seven pieces of armor that are listed here that are so important and critical for your success, for my success, for our success as a church.

The first piece of armor that he mentions is the belt of truth. "Having girded your loins with truth," he says in verse 14. Now, a Roman soldier, if you've never seen a picture of a Roman soldier, here's what a Roman soldier looked like: he had all his armor and his weaponry. He was ready to go, ready to fight. That's the image that Paul had in his mind when he wrote this as the Holy Spirit led him. The first piece he mentions is the belt of truth. The Roman soldier wore tunics—think of a toga party. They wore a tunic and had a belt that held it all together. From that belt, they would attach their breastplate and their sword. The belt of truth was a six-inch wide belt that went around them, a strap of leather that was really important. If a Roman soldier somehow lost his belt, he was in trouble because he couldn't fight; that tunic is free-flowing, and you need to secure it.

When the Bible talks about girding up your loins with truth, it means taking that free-flowing tunic and stuffing it into your belt so that you could fight, so that your legs would be free, so that you wouldn't get tripped up. In the Christian life, the belt of truth is that which holds you together. It means walking in the truth, practicing the truth, living it out all the time, and not becoming a duplicitous person who is one way on Sunday and another way during the week. We have a name for people like that. The world looks at Christians who are one way on Sunday and another way during the week.

The second piece of armor is the breastplate of righteousness. "Having girded your loins with truth and having put on the breastplate of righteousness." The breastplate is what the Roman soldier wore to cover his heart and vital organs. He would never go out to battle without the breastplate on because if he took a shot there, he could die. The breastplate of righteousness defeats the accusations of the enemy. Did you know the Greek word for devil is *diabolos*? That word means false accuser. The Bible says in Revelation 12:10 that he accuses us before God day and night. He is constantly accusing us.

The breastplate of righteousness is not your righteousness or my righteousness; it's the Lord's righteousness. The scripture says in 2 Corinthians 5:21 that he made him—God made Jesus, who knew no sin, to be sin on our behalf, that we might become the righteousness of God in him. When we put our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, a great transaction takes place. We give the Lord our life, and he gives us his life. We give the Lord our sin and unrighteousness, and he gives us his righteousness.

The third piece of armor is the shoes of peace. "Having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace." A Roman soldier didn't go to battle barefoot; he wore sturdy sandals. On the bottom of those sandals, they had little hobnails, making them like cleats so that they could stand firm in battle and not slip around. The devil comes to knock you off your feet, which is why it says three times, "Stand firm."

The shoes of peace keep you grounded and secure. The gospel of peace is that I can have peace with God. The Bible says in Romans 5:1, "Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ." Before you become a Christian, there is enmity and warfare between you and God. When you put your faith and trust in Jesus, that issue goes away. You're reconciled to God, and you have peace with God.

The Bible also talks about the peace of God. Peace with God deals with relationship; I'm not a child of the devil anymore; I'm a child of God. The peace of God is fellowship, meaning that I am walking with God. The Lord says that in that instance, not only do you have peace with him, but you have his peace. When you go through trouble and storms, even though the hard times are still there, there's peace in your heart.

We not only have the peace of God as believers, but we also have peace to share with others. "Shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace." We have what everyone needs. Every person you meet outside of Jesus Christ does not have peace. They are looking for peace in all the wrong places. But as believers, we have what every person needs, and that is peace. The Bible says, "Counselors of peace have joy."

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Do you, right this moment, know the peace that the Savior Jesus Christ offers? It could be that today you find yourself far from God. The fact that you're listening now indicates the Holy Spirit is trying to help you see your need for a Savior and prompting you to release your will to Jesus, to repent of your sin, and to ask him to come into your heart and make you new and what you were created to be in love with God.

We want to invite you to go to promisheart.org, click the "Why Jesus" link to discover how to begin your journey with Christ, how to grow in your faith, and how you can live for him each and every day. There are also some free resources there for you to download as well to help you in your walk. Again, go to promisheart.org and click the "Why Jesus" link.

You know, even for the mature Christian, there are times when you know spiritual warfare is real. You know you need to stand against the devil's schemes. You spot the lies of the devil and you want to use the truth against them because he is at work in our world with sin running amok and turning from God is celebrated.

To help you understand what is happening and learn how to live in a sin-sick world, but as a mighty warrior for Christ, able to spot the lies and become a courageous, wise soldier, we want you to get Pastor Jeff's impactful five-lesson series, "Discernment in the Days of Deception." It's our gift of thanks for your support this month to From His Heart of any amount.

From His Heart is now broadcast on over 850 stations around the nation and seen in 182 countries each week. Your support is vital for the continuation of this outreach from Pastor Jeff, who, by the way, receives no income from this ministry at all. He's our chief volunteer.

To make your gift, call 866-40-BIBLE (866-40-BIBLE) or go online to fromhisheart.org, and when you do, request the series "Discernment in the Days of Deception." You can get it in the format of your choice, and thank you for your support.

Well, that's all the time we have for today for the lesson, Part One of "Are You Dressed for Success?" We'll have Part Two on Monday. I'm Larry Nobles, hoping you'll join us then when Pastor Jeff Shreve opens God's Word and shares real truth, real love, and real hope from His Heart.

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From His Heart.

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From His Heart is the listener-supported broadcast ministry of Dr. Jeff Shreve, speaking the truth in love to a lost and hurting world.

Remember, no matter what, God loves you and He has a wonderful plan for your life.

Find out more. Go to fromisheart.org.