Stand firm then, with the belt

Of truth buckled around your waist…

Ephesians 6:14

The belt of truth is the first piece of armor we are told to put on. Just like a belt holds things in place, truth holds everything together. A Roman soldier’s belt was called a Cingulum or Balteus. It was put on first and held the rest of the armor in place so it didn’t fall apart during battle. Without truth being our foundation, the rest of the spiritual armor will be faulty.

The belt also held the sword. Jesus tells us He is the truth (John 14:6) and He also says that the Word of God is truth (John 17:17). When the Sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God, is attached to the belt of truth (Jesus), the first piece of armor is complete.

After Jesus was baptized, He spent 40 days in the wilderness. He was led there by the Spirit. During that time, he ate nothing so you can imagine how hungry he would have been. The enemy came and tempted him three times and three times, Jesus answered him with the truth of God’s Word:

The devil came and said, “If you are the Son of God, tell this stone to become a loaf of bread.” Jesus told him, “No, the Scriptures say, ‘People don’t live by bread alone.’ ”

So, the devil then took him up to a high place and showed him the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. He said, “I will give you all of this if you worship me because it is mine to give.” Again Jesus replied with Scripture, “You must worship the Lord your God and serve Him only.”

This time the devil took Jesus to Jerusalem, to the highest point of the temple, and dared Him to jump off. He quoted Scripture, “He will order His angels to protect You. They will hold You up with their hands so you won’t even hurt Your foot on a stone.” But Jesus responded, “The Scriptures also say, ‘You must not test the Lord your God.’ ”

Do you see how knowing Scripture (truth) will help you when the enemy comes to attack you through temptation or telling you lies that can sound so good? Other times his lies do not sound good. You feel defeated or insecure...you struggle with fear or doubt. That’s when you turn to Scripture because it is the truth and it tells you who are in Christ. It tells you who God is and what He thinks about you.

God is truth. Everything He says is true. As God the Father (John 17:17); as God the Son (John 14:6); and as God the Holy Spirit (John 16:13). He speaks to us and reveals His truth.

Take a minute to close your eyes…a couple of deep breaths…Now imagine Jesus as One who is ever prepared to meet with you. Picture yourself in His presence…at His throne, in the garden, or some place that you enjoy. Jesus is there with you. Ask Him to show you a lie you believe about your prodigal. It may come in the form of a thought, a feeling, a picture, or an impression. Write it down. Now ask Jesus to show you what the truth is. He may bring a verse to your mind, a thought, a picture. It may evoke an emotion. Write it down.

The Holy Spirit showed me something I had been thinking about my son. I didn’t know it was a lie. Of course that’s the way it is. When you believe a lie, you think it is the truth. You would never knowingly believe a lie. When I asked Jesus to show me the truth, He told me something that made so much sense and it brought tears and understanding. There was a sense of relief and gratitude.

What appeared to be true was really a lie. In the physical realm it seemed to be true, but God saw it from a different perspective. He sees my son in ways I am not able to see because He is God and I’m not. So I asked Him what He wanted me to do in light of this truth. This is what He said to my heart:

Keep praying and let Me work. You can’t fix this but I can. It will require trust on your part because it doesn’t look like I’m doing much. But what you see in the physical realm is not what I see in the spiritual realm. He is closer than you think. Your prayers will help you and will slow down the enemy who is fighting to keep him. But with Me on your side, the devil doesn’t stand a chance. You may think that your son hasn’t come back, but the truth is he just hasn’t come back yet.

The verse He brought to my mind was the second half of Romans 8:31, “If God is for us who can be against us?” He also reminded me of how important it is to capture my thoughts and ask Him about them. And he reminded me of something our pastor said. When you have a negative thought about yourself that involves ”I can’t” or “I don’t ever” or “it’s not true about me” type of thinking, that you can just add the word “yet” to the end of the statement. In this case, Jesus added “yet” to the end of what I see about my son.

Knowing Scripture to counter the temptations and lies of the enemy is vital. Listening to the Holy Spirit speak words of truth from Jesus or the Father is just as important. The first is the written word of God and the second is the rhema word of God or a “now” word. When we put on the belt of truth, we put ourselves in a position to hear and speak truth.

Truth is always better than a lie!

Oh what I would do to have The kind of faith it takes To climb out of this boat I'm in Onto the crashing waves To step out of my comfort zone Into the realm of the unknown where Jesus is And He's holding out His hand But the waves are calling out my name And they laugh at me Reminding me of all the times I've tried before and failed The waves they keep on telling me Time and time again. "Boy, you'll never win!" "You'll never win!" But the voice of truth tells me a different story The voice of truth says, "Do not be afraid!" The voice of truth says, "This is for My glory" Out of all the voices calling out to me I will choose to listen and believe the voice of truth Oh what I would do to have The kind of strength it takes to stand before a giant With just a sling and a stone Surrounded by the sound of a thousand warriors Shaking in their armor Wishing they'd have had the strength to stand But the giant's calling out my name And he laughs at me Reminding me of all the times I've tried before and failed The giant keeps on telling me Time and time again. "Boy you'll never win!" "You'll never win!" But the stone was just the right size To put the giant on the ground And the waves they don't seem so high From on top of them lookin' down I will soar with the wings of eagles When I stop and listen to the sound of Jesus Singing over me I will choose to listen and believe the voice of truth