Peace & Preparedness



In May of 2016 I ran The Bayshore Marathon in Traverse City, Michigan. I did not train for this marathon. In fact, I decided to run the full 26.2 miles only one week beforehand.

I can honestly say that running a marathon without training is a mistake. I do not recommend it. Not surprisingly, the race was extremely challenging. Many times during the back end of the race I lamented my decision. My body and mind grew weary and I couldn't wait for the finish line. I wasn't sure if the pain was ever going to end, but eventually the finish line came into view. Despite my lack of preparation, I was able to complete the marathon. Exhausted, I fell to the ground.

I was not prepared to run a marathon. My body was not ready for the physical and mental toll of running over 26 miles. In many ways the Christian life calls us to be prepared for the challenges and trials that come with living out our faith. Jesus himself explains the cost of discipleship:

"Or what king, going out to encounter another king in war, will not sit down first and deliberate whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand? And if not, while the other is yet a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks for terms of peace. So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple." 
(Luke 14:31-33 ESV)

As disciples of Jesus, we must prepare our minds and hearts for the journey of faith, the journey of renouncing all that we have. The apostle Paul encourages disciples of Jesus with an illustration:

Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints...(Ephesians 6:13-18 ESV)

We must approach each day as if we are arming ourselves for spiritual battle.

I want to focus on the phrase, "and as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace." (v. 15)

 Readiness means preparedness. For the Christian, the gospel of peace prepares us to stand firm.

In the Book of Romans we learn, "It will be counted to us who believe in him [Jesus] who raised from the dead Jesus our Lord, who was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification. Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God." (Romans 4:23b-5:2 ESV)

The gospel of peace is the good news that sinners can have peace with God through Jesus Christ. 

Jesus lived and died. Jesus died for our sins and was raised from the dead. Sinners who believe in Jesus' death and resurrection are declared righteous by God. It is God himself who justifies us. The blood of Christ shed on the cross satisfies God's wrath for the sins of all who put their faith in Christ. We have peace with God.

 "Because the sinless Savior died,
My sinful soul is counted free,
For God the Just is satisfied,
to look on him and pardon me."

We have peace with God and so we worship Jesus! We sing praises of God's glorious grace! Having been declared righteous, we joyfully live our lives in worshipful obedience to God, praising Him for what He has done for us! And we do our best to tell everyone of the good news of the gospel so that they too can have peace with God!

 How beautiful upon the mountains
are the feet of him who brings good news,
who publishes peace, who brings good news of happiness,
who publishes salvation,
who says to Zion, “Your God reigns.” (Isaiah 52:7 ESV)

Because of the knowledge of our salvation and our hope in Christ, we feel an immense sense of peace. The peace of the Christian can be defined as:

"the tranquil state of a soul assured of its salvation through Christ, and so fearing nothing from God and content with its earthly lot, of whatsoever sort that is" (Biblewebapp.com)

 Imagine how you would act if you knew your team was going to win the Super Bowl. Would you care if anyone said they suck? Would you let a mid-season loss get you down? Would you even get upset if at times during the season it seemed like they weren't going to win? NO! Nothing would bother you, because you were assured that your team was winning the Super Bowl. So it is with the Christian - the assurance of his salvation allows him to live a life of fearless contentment. (Read Romans 12:9-21 and tell me the man who lives that way isn't at peace!) Our turbulent lives are full of uncertainty and trial, but the Christian has set his mind on things above and has set his hope on God and he lives in peace.

That's the gospel of peace. It assures us, makes us fearless, and leaves us content in Christ. So Paul tells us to put it on as "shoes for [our] feet." R. Kent Hughes explains Paul's illustration:

"The image Paul has in mind comes from the Roman soldier’s war boot, the caliga or half-boot that the legionnaire regularly wore while on duty. It was an open-toed leather boot with a heavily nail-studded sole that was tied to the ankles and shins with straps. These were not shoes for running—for example, fleeing or pursuing an enemy. 

 These boots served for marching, especially in battle. Their function was like today’s cleated football shoe. They gave the foot traction and prevented sliding. Much ancient battle was hand-to-hand and foot-to-foot, like on the line of scrimmage, so these boots gave the Roman soldier an advantage over ill-equipped foes. The “readiness” of our text pictures us being ready with our caliga firmly planted on solid ground. Thus established, the enemy is not going to be able to push us back. Rather, we are set to advance.

 The spiritual lesson here is perfectly clear. It is “the gospel of peace”—the peace that comes to us in and through the gospel and makes us immovable in battle." 
(Preaching The Word: Ephesians, "Armed for Battle II")

The "readiness" given by the gospel of peace explains that our peace prepares us. When we put on gospel readiness as shoes for our feet, we are able to stand firm even in the hardest battle. The feet of our faith have traction and do not slide or slip. Uncertain finances or health problems do not keep us from rejoicing!

Consider what Paul says after he affirms that we have peace with God:

Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us. (Romans 5:1-5 ESV)

 The peace we have with God helps us to rejoice in suffering and have a hope that does not put us to shame. A heart prepared to rejoice in suffering endures all of life's trials. My hope in God is what got me through a marathon without training! The 'soldier' who can rejoice in even in suffering is a soldier who has on his boots of gospel readiness.

What does gospel readiness look like in daily life?

 My friend David says, "For me it means reminding my friends of the gospel so they can put on their "Gospel Nikes" every day. It means believing the gospel and then treating others as God in Christ treated me. So it means not holding on to anger or grudges when people hurt me, or being okay with not being 'right.' It means being patient with others as God has been patient with me in Christ. It means keeping no record of wrongs - loving others as God loves me in Christ. It means a transfer of all my hopes in human devices and means to God's account, and waiting upon Him to bring His kingdom into the hearts and minds of people around me, and one day his very real physical kingdom with the visible return of Jesus!"

A good soldier would never enter into battle without his shoes because he would leave himself vulnerable and exposed. We have to remind ourselves and our friends the truth of the gospel of peace.

 In the fight of faith, we must prepare ourselves by remembering the good news of our salvation. 

We must remind ourselves that Jesus died for our sins and was raised to life, and in him we have life with God and the hope of glory. We have to arm ourselves with the assurance of our salvation and consistently live in ways that help us hope in God and not on the perishing things of this world. Every day we must put on the shoes of gospel readiness so that we may be able to stand firm.

The good soldier trusts in God and the salvation offered in Jesus Christ.
The heart of the good soldier is kept in perfect peace.

"You keep him in perfect peace
whose mind is stayed on you,
because he trusts in you." (Isaiah 26:3 ESV)


Do you have this kind of peace? What areas of your life need the peace of God?

 How can you live with more gospel readiness?

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