0:07 welcome to back to the Bible radio with
0:09 Pastor best-selling author and
0:11 internationally known Bible teacher
0:13 Warren where's B he has written more
0:16 than 150 books on subjects ranging from
0:18 Bible engagement to practical ways we
0:20 can move closer to Jesus each day
0:23 let's join dr. Weir's be and see what
0:26 God's Word has for us today Dan
0:29 therefore having your loins girded about
0:32 with truth the girdle that the Roman
0:35 soldier wore was not a strip of cloth
0:37 around his waist or even a narrow belt
0:40 usually it was something like a leather
0:42 apron that helped to protect the lower
0:45 part of his body this girdle also held
0:49 his sword and we find in Ephesians 6:17
0:53 that the sword is the Word of God now
0:55 what does this girdle of truth
0:57 illustrate in the life of the believer
1:01 in the Bible a girdle has the function
1:03 of pulling things together
1:06 you'll recall that people in Bible days
1:08 usually dressed in somewhat loose and
1:11 flowing robes when they wanted to move
1:14 rapidly they had to get a girdle and tie
1:17 their robes together and then they could
1:20 move rapidly you see the girdle of truth
1:24 speaks to us of a life pulled together
1:28 and lived for one thing namely the glory
1:31 of God to win the battle to the glory of
1:35 God we're talking about integrity truth
1:38 in the inner being that's what David
1:42 said in Psalm 51 6 that God wants the
1:44 truth in the inward parts it's not
1:47 enough just to carry the sword of the
1:49 Spirit the Word of God the truth of the
1:52 word of God must penetrate our very
1:55 lives so that our actions and our
2:00 motives are governed by integrity truth
2:02 it's amazing how much Paul has to say
2:05 about truth in his letter to the
2:08 Ephesians speaking the truth in love the
2:12 truth as it is in Christ Jesus lie not
2:14 one to another seeing that you have put
2:17 off the old man he's talking about integra
2:18 integra
2:22 t-that settled conviction of life that
2:24 directs us in the right direction now
2:27 the opposite of integrity is duplicity
2:30 duplicity means being double in your
2:34 life being a dr. Jekyll and mr. Hyde
2:38 duplicity means hypocrisy and the only
2:41 way the soldier is going to win the
2:44 battle is that he is determined that he
2:46 is going to win he has pulled his life
2:48 together he's pulled everything together
2:51 he's focusing on that one thing it's
2:54 Paul in Philippians chapter 3 this one
2:57 thing I do now if you and I are going to
3:00 stand our ground we must declare our
3:03 allegiance to Christ and maintain our
3:06 integrity the minute there is any kind
3:09 of duplicity in our lives division in
3:12 our lives that gives an opening and
3:15 Satan can attack us and then he gets a
3:17 foothold and then he grows in his
3:20 influence over our lives and then we are
3:22 defeated let's consider this girdle of
3:25 truth this subject of integrity by way
3:29 of explanation and then secondly by way
3:31 of illustration I want us to meet a
3:34 three winners and three losers in the
3:37 battle of life the winners won because
3:39 they put on the girdle and they had
3:41 integrity the losers lost because they
3:45 practiced duplicity Matthew chapter 6
3:49 verse 19 talks to us about this matter
3:54 of duplicity and integrity when I was in
3:56 grade school learning mathematics our
3:59 teacher said that we had whole numbers
4:02 that were called integers and then we
4:03 had other numbers that were called
4:08 fractions an integer is a whole number
4:11 integrity means a whole person
4:14 notice in verses 19 through 21 of
4:17 Matthew chapter 6 Jesus says where your
4:19 treasure is there will your heart be
4:23 also lay not up for yourselves treasures
4:26 upon earth but lay up for yourselves
4:28 treasures in heaven why for where your
4:30 treasure is there will your heart be
4:32 also don't have a
4:35 at heart don't look for the treasures
4:38 and pleasures of this world and then at
4:40 the same time try to go after the
4:42 treasures and the joys of the Christian
4:45 life now God does give us all things
4:47 richly to enjoy God does want us to
4:50 enjoy life but God does not want our
4:53 hearts focused on the things of this
4:57 world this is integrity we have a single heart
4:57 heart
5:02 we love the treasures of God and not the
5:05 treasures of this world then in verses
5:07 22 and 23
5:09 he talks not about the double heart but
5:14 about the double mind Matthew 6:20 - the
5:17 lamp of the body is the eye if therefore
5:21 thine eye be healthy or single thy whole
5:24 body shall be full of light but if thine
5:27 eye be evil that is defective thy whole
5:29 body shall be full of darkness if
5:31 therefore the light that is in thee be
5:35 darkness how great is that darkness here
5:36 he's talking about a double-minded
5:39 person a person who's trying to look in
5:43 two directions now the eye represents
5:45 the outlook if your outlook is not
5:48 healthy then you are not going to be
5:51 healthy inwardly your outlook determines
5:55 your outcome and a double-minded person
5:59 is unstable in all of his ways James 1:8
6:02 tells us that so beware of the double
6:04 heart and beware of the double mind and
6:05 then in verse 24
6:08 beware of the double will no man can
6:12 serve two masters now here's a person
6:14 trying to submit his will to two masters
6:17 for either he will hate the one and love
6:19 the other or else he will hold to the
6:21 one and despise the other you cannot
6:24 serve God and Mammon or money wealth
6:27 treasure now the Lord Jesus makes it
6:29 very clear that we must have integrity
6:32 what causes worry in people's lives
6:36 duplicity they are double hearted and
6:38 they love the treasures of this world
6:40 but they also try to love the Lord they
6:43 are double minded they have one eye on
6:45 having the other eye on the world trying
6:47 to make the best of both worlds and they
6:50 are double willed one minute they're
6:52 serving God the next minute they're
6:55 serving Mammon and this does not work it
6:58 pulls your life apart the only way you
7:01 and I can have this beautiful integrity
7:04 is to practice that greatest of all the
7:05 commandments do you remember what our
7:08 Lord Jesus had to say about that love
7:11 the Lord thy God with all thy heart we
7:13 don't want to be double-minded with all
7:16 thy soul and with all thy mind we don't
7:18 want to be double willed and with all
7:22 thy strength this is integrity it means
7:24 putting on the girdle of truth and
7:27 saying I am totally devoted to the Lord
7:30 I don't have another master my outlook
7:33 is only to look to him looking unto
7:35 Jesus the author and finisher of our
7:38 faith I love him with all of my heart I
7:42 listen to him with all of my attention I
7:45 understand his word with all of my mind
7:48 and I want to do his will with all of my
7:50 will that is integrity
7:53 oh it's so easy for us to have a dual
7:56 allegiance instead of building our house
7:59 on the rock we build a duplex we have
8:01 part of the house on the rock and part
8:02 of the house on the sand and then we
8:05 wonder why things fall apart now by way
8:07 of illustration let's look at a number
8:10 of people in the Bible who put on the
8:13 girdle of truth that is integrity the
8:16 first war you find in the Bible is in
8:19 Genesis chapter 14 and Abraham got into
8:24 that war only because lot his nephew had
8:28 been captured by the opposing army in
8:31 Genesis 14 we find Abraham winning the
8:34 war and delivering a lot now why did a
8:37 lot get into that mess why was a lot
8:40 found in the wrong camp well because he
8:44 was double minded in Genesis chapter 13
8:47 you read about lot lot was the kind of a
8:49 person who tried to keep his eyes on
8:53 different parts of life he had one eye
8:54 on the heavenly City and one eye on
8:57 Sodom Genesis 13 verse
8:59 Tannen a lot lifted up his eyes and
9:02 beheld all the plain of Jordan that it
9:04 was well watered everywhere before the
9:06 Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah even
9:08 as the Garden of the Lord like the land
9:11 of Egypt as thou comest unto Zohar now
9:14 here you have lot taking off the girdle
9:16 of truth he's losing his integrity why
9:19 because he has a double minded approach
9:20 to life
9:23 he has a double hearted and a double
9:25 willed approach to life he drifts off
9:28 into Sodom when the people of Sodom were
9:30 taken captive lot could do nothing about
9:32 it he didn't have any armor on he had no
9:35 protection he lost ground it was uncle
9:38 Abraham the man with the integrity who
9:38 delivered him
9:41 I like that closing scene in Genesis 14
9:43 where the king of Sodom comes and says
9:46 to Abraham take all the wealth that you
9:48 want Abraham said I made up my mind
9:50 before this battle ever started I
9:52 wouldn't even take a shoelace from you
9:56 that's integrity Abraham didn't go out
9:57 to battle and say well I wonder what I'm
9:59 gonna get out of this he said I'm going
10:03 out to rescue my brother lot Abraham had
10:06 integrity lot didn't I'm thinking of
10:09 Joshua Joshua chapter 5 before the
10:13 Battle of Jericho Joshua was out there
10:15 looking the situation over and it came
10:19 to pass according to Joshua 5:13 and it
10:21 came to pass when Joshua was by Jericho
10:23 that he lifted up his eyes and looked
10:25 and behold there stood a man over
10:27 against him with his sword drawn in his
10:29 hand and Joshua went unto him and said
10:32 unto Him art thou for us or for our
10:35 adversaries now that's integrity he's
10:37 not saying well I wonder which side he's
10:40 on and if I can pacify him I wonder if I
10:43 can do so little politicking here no he
10:44 said whose side are you on that's
10:47 integrity when you go out to fight the
10:49 battle when you go out to face the enemy
10:51 you'd better have on the girdle of truth
10:55 and be on one side or the other in fact
10:57 at the end of Joshua's life that's what
11:00 he was telling the people wasn't he in
11:04 Joshua chapter 24 verse 14 now therefore
11:08 fear the Lord and serve Him in sincerity and
11:09 and
11:12 in truth that's integrity that's the
11:13 girdle of truth
11:16 no wonder Joshua won the battle no
11:19 wonder Joshua conquered the lamb and
11:21 defeated it any evil unto you to serve
11:24 the Lord choose you this day whom you
11:27 will serve but as for me and my house we
11:30 will serve the Lord that's the girdle of
11:32 truth no wonder Joshua won the battle
11:35 no wonder Joshua conquered the land and
11:38 defeated the enemy but you don't find
11:42 Aiken doing that in Joshua chapter 7
11:44 ache and one of the Jewish soldiers was
11:46 double minded he didn't go into the
11:48 battle to win a victory for the Lord he
11:50 was wondering what can I get for myself
11:52 he was double minded he was double
11:56 hearted part of his heart was loving the
11:57 things of the world and when he saw that
12:00 wealth there he stoled it and he buried
12:03 it he was double willed he was trying to
12:05 serve two masters and what happened it
12:08 killed him he was defeated and he caused
12:10 the defeat of the whole army when they
12:14 went to fight AI I think of David and
12:17 Saul you know why God called David in
12:22 His grace Psalm 78 verse 17 he chose
12:25 David also his servant and took him from
12:27 the sheepfolds from following the ewes
12:30 great with young he brought him to feed
12:32 jacob his people in israel his
12:36 inheritance so he fed them according to
12:40 the integrity of his heart and guided
12:42 them by the skillfulness of his hands I
12:44 don't care how skillful your hands are
12:46 if you don't have integrity in your
12:49 heart God can't use you now David went
12:52 from victory to victory because he was a
12:55 man of integrity he had put on the
12:58 girdle of truth he was a man after God's
13:02 own heart but contrast him to saw
13:05 contrast him to King Saul the first king
13:08 of the people Saul didn't have integrity
13:11 he had duplicity David came with
13:14 confessions but Saul had excuses Oh Saul
13:17 had armor and Saul had a sword and Saul
13:20 was a big man and supposed to be a great
13:23 hero but Saul did not put on the gird
13:25 of truth and therefore God could not
13:27 bless him
13:29 are you seeking to please the Lord and
13:31 to please him only are you double-minded
13:35 is there duplicity oh my friend confess
13:38 it and forsake it and follow the counsel
13:42 that joshua gave as for me in my house
13:44 we will serve the Lord
13:48 no exceptions no compromise I am on the
13:51 Lord's side I'm going to put on the
13:53 girdle of truth and I'm going to battle
13:58 in integrity Ephesians 6:13 admonishes
14:00 the believer wherefore take unto you the
14:03 whole armour of God that you may be able
14:06 to withstand in the evil day and having
14:09 done all to stand stand therefore having
14:12 your loins girded about with truth and
14:14 having on the breastplate of
14:19 righteousness stand therefore having on
14:22 the breastplate of righteousness now to
14:25 a Roman soldier the breastplate was very
14:27 important it was a coat of mail that
14:29 covered the soldiers body from the neck
14:32 to the thighs both front and back
14:35 there's a tradition that the Christian
14:37 doesn't have any armor to protect the
14:39 back and therefore he should not turn
14:42 around and run but actually the Roman
14:44 soldier Paul was looking at when he
14:46 wrote these words was wearing
14:49 undoubtedly this breastplate and it
14:52 covered his upper body from the neck to
14:55 the thighs both front and back in other
14:58 words it protected the vital organs the
15:01 heart and the lungs and so forth
15:04 now the Christian soldiers coat of mail
15:07 is the righteousness of God received by
15:12 faith in Jesus Christ it's what we call
15:14 imputed righteousness now in the Bible
15:16 you're going to find two kinds of
15:19 righteousness imputed righteousness that
15:22 which God gives to us by faith and
15:26 imparted righteousness that which we
15:29 live out in our daily lives imputed
15:33 righteousness is justification imparted
15:36 righteousness is sanctification you read
15:37 about him
15:39 suited righteousness in Romans chapter 3
15:43 beginning at verse 19 now we know that
15:46 what things soever the law Seth it says
15:49 to them who are under the law that every
15:51 mouth may be stopped and all the world
15:55 may become guilty before God therefore
15:58 by the deeds of the law there shall no
16:01 flesh be justified in his sight for by
16:05 the law is the knowledge of sin but now
16:08 the righteousness of God without the law
16:11 is manifested being witnessed by the law
16:13 and the prophets even the righteousness
16:17 of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ
16:21 unto all and upon all them that believe
16:24 for there is no difference for all have
16:26 sinned and come short of the glory of
16:30 God being justified freely by His grace
16:34 through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus
16:35 Jesus
16:38 imputed righteousness means God puts his
16:42 righteousness on our account he not only
16:45 goes to the record book and erases
16:48 completely our record but to make sure
16:50 that nothing else is written on that
16:54 page he puts his own righteousness on
16:57 that page and that settles it once and
16:58 for all when you turn to that page in
17:00 the book and there's your name written
17:02 down in heaven and under your name it
17:06 says righteous in Jesus Christ that is
17:10 imputed righteousness now we need to put
17:13 this on every day every day you need to
17:15 by faith put on the breastplate of
17:19 righteousness and reaffirm I am
17:22 righteous in Jesus Christ you're not
17:24 depending on your own righteousness you
17:26 are depending on the righteousness of
17:28 Jesus Christ why do you need this
17:31 righteousness because Satan is the
17:36 accuser you see we need to wear the
17:38 girdle of truth because Satan is the
17:40 divider he wants us to practice
17:44 duplicity we need integrity that's the
17:45 girdle of truth
17:48 Satan is the one who denounces God's
17:50 people he's the accuser
17:52 and that's why we need the breastplate
17:55 of righteousness because apart from the
17:57 righteousness of God through faith in
18:01 Jesus Christ we cannot stand against the
18:04 evil one Revelation chapter 12 and verse
18:08 10 says and I heard a loud voice saying
18:11 in heaven now is come salvation and
18:14 strength and the Kingdom of our God and
18:17 the power of his Christ for the accuser
18:19 of our brethren is cast down which
18:22 accused them before our God day and
18:27 night Satan is the accuser he accuses us
18:30 before God and he accuses God before us
18:33 when he talks to God about you he tells
18:35 the truth because he knows the truth and
18:38 when he talks to you about God he lies
18:40 he accuses God of all sorts of things
18:43 that God never thought or said or did
18:46 now what is Satan's strategy will
18:50 Satan's strategy is I think threefold
18:52 number one Satan
18:55 encourages us to accuse ourselves there
18:57 are some Christians who just have a
19:00 perpetual autopsy a perpetual
19:03 introspection and they're constantly
19:05 accusing themselves now if the devil can
19:07 get you to accuse yourself he's really
19:10 won a battle secondly Satan encourages
19:12 other people to accuse us I notice that
19:14 everybody in the Bible who tried to
19:17 serve the Lord was falsely accused they
19:19 accusing the amaya of trying to become a
19:22 king they accused David of doing things
19:25 he never did many of the Psalms deal
19:28 with David praying oh God silence those
19:31 Liars silence those false accusers in
19:33 Saul's Court who are telling him lies
19:38 about me Moses went through this he was
19:40 accused of being a dictator his own
19:42 brother and sister accused him of trying
19:46 to lord it over everybody the Apostle
19:48 Paul was falsely accused and you know
19:50 how Paul dealt with these false
19:53 accusations 2nd Corinthians chapter 6
19:59 and we read in verse 3 giving no offence
20:01 in anything at the ministry be not
20:03 blamed then he lists all the things he
20:04 went through
20:06 and how he was able to go through them
20:09 by pureness by knowledge by the word of
20:13 truth by the power of God by the armor
20:15 of righteousness on the right hand and
20:17 on the left Paul said there calling me
20:19 all sorts of things they're telling all
20:21 kinds of lies about me makes no
20:23 difference I'm wearing the armor of
20:25 righteousness I've got the breastplate
20:28 of righteousness on let them accuse all
20:31 they want to my how they falsely accused
20:33 the Lord Jesus accused him of being a
20:36 glutton and a wine-bibber accuse him of
20:39 being a demon-possessed man accused him
20:42 of being a liar a deceiver but the Lord
20:46 Jesus Christ did not worry or fret over
20:48 what they were saying because he knew he
20:51 was the very son of God now when other
20:55 people accuse you turn to your
20:58 intercessor the Lord Jesus Christ Romans
21:01 chapter eight puts this soul beautifully
21:05 verse 31 what shall we then say to these
21:07 things if God be for us who can be
21:10 against us who shall lay anything to the
21:13 charge of God's elect it is God that
21:16 justifier who is he that condemneth it
21:19 is Christ that died yea rather that is
21:20 risen again who is even at the right
21:23 hand of God who also maketh intercession
21:27 for us you see when you're wearing the
21:29 breastplate of righteousness you know
21:32 that the interceding Son of God in glory
21:35 is representing you before the throne of
21:38 God Satan encourages us to accuse
21:40 ourselves and he encourages others to
21:42 accuse us and sometimes he makes us
21:46 believe that circumstances accuse us oh
21:49 if I were right with God we say I
21:50 wouldn't be going through this
21:52 difficulty that's what job's friends
21:55 told him oh how they accused him they
21:58 said if the circumstances were different
22:00 we'd believe you job but what you're
22:03 going through is proof that God is
22:05 punishing you for your sins we don't
22:09 walk by sight we walk by faith and we
22:10 have on the breastplate of righteousness
22:14 and no matter what the circumstances may
22:18 be God will not forsake us Satan is the
22:20 user by faith you put on the breastplate
22:23 of righteousness and you remember that
22:25 you're wearing it and when these
22:28 accusations come from circumstances or
22:30 from people or from yourself just
22:32 remember I'm wearing the righteousness
22:35 of Jesus Christ and the righteousness of
22:39 Jesus Christ makes me accepted in the
22:44 beloved we're glad you joined us today
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22:56 forward in your relationship with Jesus Christ
22:57 Christ [Music]
