The Breastplate of Righteousness:
Ephesians 6:14b
…with the breastplate of righteousness in place… (New International Version)
What Does it Mean?
The second piece of the armour of God is known as the ‘breastplate of righteousness’ (NIV) or the ‘body armour of God’s righteousness’ (NLT). In Isaiah 59:17, the prophet speaks of God putting on righteousness as body armour when he is bringing judgement against people who have done evil in His sight, so we can be certain that the spiritual breastplate of righteousness that we have been given is a powerful defence indeed.
In the Roman suit of armour, the breastplate was a crucial defence, covering the body from neck to waist, both front and back. It was a means of protecting the body. In the spiritual suit of armour that God gives us, the key word in the breastplate of righteousness is righteousness. Righteousness, by and large, comes from our belief in Christ – we cannot make ourselves righteous before God without Christ – it was Jesus’s death on the cross that washed away the stain of our sin and allowed us to be seen as righteous and cleansed of sin before God.
But the strength of our breastplate of righteousness is dependent on the way we live our lives. We cannot continue to deliberately practice sinful ways and still experience the same degree of righteousness as someone living out a righteous and sin-free life. For every deliberate sinful practice we indulge in, there is a hole in our breastplate that gives satan fresh opportunities to attack and try to defeat us. We need to practice righteousness in our everyday lives so as to gain the full benefit of the protection offered by the breastplate of righteousness. You wouldn’t find a Roman soldier going into battle with holes in his armour, and neither should we!
Ponder-Points
Are there holes in your armour? If there are things that you do that you know you shouldn’t be doing, your body armour is weakened! Be honest!
Make a list of the things in your life that you know are sinful and list ways you can take action to get them out of your life so as to strengthen your body armour.
Think back to the list you made on day one. How can the breastplate of righteousness be used to protect you?
Prayer
Father God, thank you that you have given us the breastplate of righteousness to protect us from all the attacks of the enemy, whether from front or behind. Thank you that by sending your Son to die for our sins, we are made righteous in your sight by the shedding of His blood. But Father God, help us to remember that we have a duty to live out our lives in righteousness. Help us to turn away from all sinful practices in our lives. Amen.