Ephesians 6:13–18 (ESV)

13 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. 14 Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, 15 and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. 16 In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; 17 and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, 18 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

We are examining each individual piece of armor, so that we can fight the battles that lie ahead and win.  

Yesterday, we looked at the first piece of armor…

1. “having fastened on the belt of truth”

If we do not live the truth, we nullify our fellowship with the Lord and are therefore unable to see clearly how to fight our battles.

The second piece of armor is…

2. “having put on the breastplate of righteousness” (verse 14)

Let us affirm that no person is righteous in and of their own doing. So, our righteousness begins by receiving the righteousness of God in Christ. 

Paul speaks of the desire to..”be found in him [Christ} , not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith..” (Philippians 3:9)

Remember, all of the armor is to have already been put on before we even face the evil days of battle.  So, our position is that we have already put on righteousness; thus the phrase, “having put on the breastplate of righteousness.”   And this happened when we placed our faith in Christ.  This is called “positional righteousness” or “imputed righteousness.”   Because of Christ, God sees us as if we had never sinned. On the positive side, God sees us as holy through His son.

But, there is another form of righteousness that has to do with the soldier’s armor. That is “practical righteousness.”  It is the righteousness that we must practice by the way we live, thus reflecting the righteousness that God has imputed to us.

In its simplest form, to be righteous means to be right. This righteousness has two focuses. We are righteous when we are in a right relationship with God through Christ.  And we express righteousness when we live in a right relationship with others.

So in a practical sense, you are only appropriately clothed in the breastplate when you are living rightly before God and others.

Think about what the breastplate covers. The breastplate covered the major organs much as a bullet-proof vest does today. The major organ is the heart.  If the heart is not covered with righteousness toward God and others, then it is unprotected.  If the heart is penetrated by the enemy, all is lost. 

So the question to ponder today is…

Are you living today, in a right relationship with God and all others?