Ephesians 6:10-14

 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. 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,

Ephesians 6:10-14

We get to the last point or points in this letter to the Ephesians.  Paul's readers are told to "be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might".  AMP describes this as "draw your strength from Him and be empowered through your union with Him".  So, how are we to draw our strength from God?  Part of it is to put on his armor.  It is by putting on the armor of God "that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil".   The point of the armor is to help you stand against the devil's schemes.  Without the armor, you would not be able to stand.  Here, we get an insight into our true enemy.  We may face different enemies or difficulties with other people in this world, "flesh ans blood".  However, our true battle is "against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places".  Now, don't get confused by "rulers" and "authorities".  NLT specifies them as "evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world".  All in all, Paul is talking about spiritual warfare that goes on unseen by our physical eyes.

So, we are to be strong in the Lord.  We are told to put on the armor of God.  The armor helps us face our enemy, since there is a real battle going on in the spiritual realm.  The point is that we may stand and stand firm.  So, what is the armor of God?  Well, there's the belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, the shoes of the readiness of the gospel, the shield of faith, the helmet of salvation and the sword of the spirit.

The belt of truth is the first one.  The belt is what holds the armor or the whole thing together.  It is not the word of God, because that's the sword of the spirit.  Instead, the belt of truth is truthfulness.  Another way to put it is integrity.  It is this that holds the whole armor together.  Without the belt of truth, the armor falls apart.  How can you hold up the shield of faith or wear the breastplate of righteousness if it's not being held together by the belt of truth?  Without walking in integrity reveals chips in the armor from which it'll easily crumble.  That isn't to say that the armor itself is weak.  Perhaps it's better to just say that it won't stay on very well.

It is important to walk in integrity.  This applies to all things seen and unseen.  Yes, it's true that many of us can look the part when everyone's looking.  More importantly, how do we live and act when nobody is watching?  It is when we are alone before God that we show who we really are.  "A man is what he is on his knees before God, and nothing more."  Let us walk with integrity in our lives, living For God.