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Weekly Devotion
Eph. 6:14…Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness
The armor of God is a well-known, much beloved passage of Scripture. It reveals to us that God did not leave us to our own devices against the schemes of the devil. No, rather, in his wisdom and care, God has equipped his saints with the necessary protection that they need to resist and endure.
Starting from Eph. 6:14, Paul lists and explains the various parts. The second piece of armor listed is the breastplate of righteousness. The metaphor is obvious. Just as this apparatus covered the soldier's vital organs, righteousness protects the believers from the accusations of the enemy. But as straightforward as this illustration may seem, there has been much scholarly debate as to the meaning of righteousness. Namely, is Paul referring to the imputed righteousness of Christ by which the believer is justified or the ethical righteousness of the believer that is the fruit of one's life in Christ?
At the risk of sounding indecisive, I believe that the apostle had both in mind. On the one hand, God has declared us righteous solely based on the merits of Christ applied to sinners by faith. This encourages us to repent and to keep on fighting the good fight, even though we may falter, knowing that all of our sins have already been paid for on the cross. On the other hand, practicing righteousness makes us better able to resist the accusations of the devil. Slander becomes innocuous when one has nothing to hide.
And with both, we have a paradigm for Gospel-centered living. It starts with the undeserved imputed righteousness of Christ, and from that results our own righteousness as we live a life pleasing to God.