Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled round your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place,
Ephesians 6:14 NIVUK
The reign of Donald Trump as US President was hailed by some right-wing ‘Christians’. But there is no doubt that it did nothing for the reign of truth in America.
You see, to protect himself from the tornado of aggressively oppositional press and the mountains of evidence against him, Trump’s camp decided to play with metaphysics and philosophy and bend the universe in their favour. They invented a new term: ‘alternative facts’, by which their lies and the truths stated by other people could both be true at the same time.
It was an utterly selfish, utterly heinous attempt at manipulating the facts.
But Britain can’t say anything, because for the last two years we have had a man as Prime Minister who has been well known for some time for being ‘economical with the truth’. Or, as some have put it, ‘a habitual liar’.
Now, after two years of swimming in a veritable polluted sea of conspiracy theories and so-called ‘alternative facts’, it’s time we arrived at the eminently practical conclusion that the truth matters.
After decades of people telling us that it doesn’t matter what we believe as long as it’s ‘true for you’, finally our culture has seen through that transparently vapid nonsense and realises that it really matters what you believe – or, at least, you would hope so.
Paul talks here about the Belt of Truth. Now, if we were describing a Roman soldier’s armour, I doubt very much that we’d start with the belt. Not when he would carry a shield not that much smaller than himself, or a sharpened sword, or a shiny helmet.
The belt seems profoundly unglamorous. Ordinary, even.
Yet without the belt, a Roman soldier would be in big trouble.
The belt had metal fittings that contained detail of the soldier’s rank. It had leather straps, covered in metal rivets, that protected the soldier’s most sensitive parts. It held his sword and dagger.
Like a modern belt, if it broke the soldier would feel deep shame, would be sorely exposed and would be in actual danger of serious harm.
Paul is making a very serious point.
The truth might seem unglamorous, ungainly and an ineffective weapon, but nothing could be further from the truth. Without the truth in our lives – without seeking to know it and live it – then we are weak, vulnerable and in serious danger of shameful exposure.
Paul knew that.
He knew that Jesus had spoken frequently of the need to know the truth, and of Him as being the embodiment of it:
To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, ‘If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.’
John 8:31-32 NIVUK
Jesus answered, ‘I am the way and the truth and the life. No-one comes to the Father except through me.
John 14:6 NIVUK
‘You are a king, then!’ said Pilate. Jesus answered, ‘You say that I am a king. In fact, the reason I was born and came into the world is to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.’
John 18:37 NIVUK
He had also said that the Holy Spirit, sent at Pentecost, is the Spirit of Truth (John 15:26) who would guide then into all truth.
So any follower of Jesus must be a lover of the truth. If you don’t love and seek to live by the truth, then you are not a follower of Jesus.
The Ephesians lived in an atmosphere where the truth was vitally important. After all, they had been involved in a riot that was triggered on the whim of a group of idol makers who were making a living from a local legend, and could not tolerate this new Christian religion being so successful in case it damaged their trade (Acts 19:23-27).
They had been in trouble because of a blatant lie.
The corollary of this is that a Christian must repudiate lies. We cannot be involved in the spreading of ‘half-truths’, ‘alternative facts’ or ‘white lies’, no matter the cause.
For us, the truth is the truth is the truth.
When I was a teenager, I participated in outreaches to other young people in a neighbouring town. I remember some of the prayer meetings we had before we went out. Most were really wonderful.
However, it’s so easy to use these verses to prepare for ministry and to completely miss the point.
You see, many believers have an approach to the armour of God which is less Biblical and more akin to the approach taken in role-playing games – which is ironic, since churches have preached for decades that they’re evil. Like gamers imagining themselves as mighty warriors, we might pray ‘And now I’m putting on the Belt of Truth.’
Really? Do you know what that means?
It means that you’re living a life marked by the truth, governed by absolute and unstinting integrity. It means that you are not involved in spreading lies and do your utmost to believe and live by the truth, even when it hurts.
You can’t just put that on during a prayer meeting.
It’s not a game. And the Belt of Truth, like the rest of the Armour of God, is not a deadly weapon.
No. It’s a lifestyle.
So tell me, Christian, are you wearing the Belt of Truth right now?
Questions
1. How much do you care if what you believe and share is the truth? Do you think this is important?
2. Is your life governed by ‘absolute and unstinting integrity’?
3. Are you ‘wearing the Belt of Truth right now?’ What can you do to ensure this is the case?
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