Feet Fitted with the Gospel of Peace

Therefore put on the full armor of God … with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.

Ephesians 6:13, 15

Shoes are absolutely essential to fighting. Imagine a soldier clad in armor from head to foot but with no shoes on, a barefoot soldier. Imagine how quickly the rough ground would tear his feet and bruise them. Soon, despite the fact that he had all the equipment he needed otherwise, his feet would render him unfit to fight. But with a stout pair of shoes he would be ready and equipped, able to fight. That is what this phrase means. Equipment here is really the word readiness in Greek: your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.

It is peace in the heart that makes you able to fight. What does this mean? It is Christ as our peace, our source of calm and well-being. Notice the relation of one piece of armor to another and the importance of the order. The first piece of armor tells us that Christ is the truth. This is something for the mind to understand and grasp and believe. Then we put on the breastplate of his righteousness. We come on the basis of what he has done and not what we do. And what is the result of that? Our hearts are at peace! Paul says, Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ (Romans 5:1). Calmness, courage! To use a modern term, we have good morale. We are ready for anything. No ground can be too rough for Christ — and we have Christ. Therefore we have good morale.

In the dark days in England, when they were going through the blitz and bombs were raining down all the time, the situation was really desperate. But Winston Churchill would often come on the radio and speak to the English people when their hearts were filled with defeat and discouragement. At times they would be almost ready to quit. But that one man's voice would ring out and the nation would take heart again, and their morale would be strong. This is what Christ does. He is able to speak peace to our hearts.

A word of warning: Do not try to start with peace. When you get troubled, when attacks come, do not try to start with making your heart feel at peace. This is a mistake many people make; they try to conjure up some kind of feeling of peace within and succeed only in upsetting themselves more. Do not start with peace. Start with truth. Christ is the truth. Work your way back down through the belt of truth and the breastplate of righteousness, and you will come out at peace.

Father, make these words clear, practical, and helpful to me. May my heart be lifted up by the consciousness that the One who is in us is adequate for all things. Amen.