Until I was in my mid-thirties, there was no law requiring drivers and passengers to wear seatbelts. In fact, until the late 60’s, most car did not even have them. So when the “mandatory seatbelt law” came into effect in 1984, I had to start buckling up. I resisted at first. Wearing a seatbelt made me feel constricted. But of course now, after 27 years of buckling up, I feel ‘vulnerable’ without one.
The e-dictionary defines the word “belt” as “that which restrains or confines. It is usually worn around the waist to support clothing, but certain belts are employed to secure tools or weapons.” Sounds like a good defintion for "truth."
The Scripture says the Messiah will wear a belt of “righteousness and faithfulness around His waist” (Is. 11:5). In other words, He will be constrained by truth. Paul also uses the ‘belt’ theme: “Stand your ground, putting on the sturdy belt of truth and the body armor of God's righteousness” (Eph. 6:14, NLT).
We are living in an age of relativity where there is an aversion to ‘tightly’ defined truth. Finding, knowing and believing God’s “truth” is our work mandate (John 6:29) because our lives are defined by truth. During Isaiah’s day, when the people had departed from truth, the Prophet says: “truth has stumbled in the streets” (Is. 59:14). I’ll bet it wasn’t wearing a seat belt.
Belts, specifically weight belts, are also worn by athletes to support their backs and keep their upper bodies steady while lifting heavy loads. The belt actually constrains the abs from failing which in turn hold the spine steady keeping the whole upper body in right alignment. The belt of truth, in large measure, allows us the structural support to secure and hold all the rest of our upper body armor. Got your truth cinched up tight?
ReplyDeleteA great addition to today's teaching!
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