Having examined the girdle of truth and the breastplate of righteousness we now need to look at our footwear.
15 and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; Ephesians 6:15 (NKJV)
In this verse there are two ideas. Our footwear prepares us; it makes us ready to stand in battle. Second, our shoes are made of peace.
While Paul wrote in Greek, he likely thought in Hebrew given his culture and extensive educational background as a Pharisee. The significance is that while we translate the Greek to ‘peace’ in English, the Hebrew word, which carries more meaning, is shalom. To better understand what prepares us, here are some thoughts from a Greek-English dictionary on the meaning of the Greek word peace and a comparison to the Hebrew shalom, which also translates to peace in English.
εἰρήνη eirēnē noun – Peace, harmony, tranquility, health.
When the term was adopted by the Septuagint translators, eirēnē was an inadequate equivalent to the Hebrew shālôm. To have “shalom” in the Old Testament period meant not only to have “peace” as it is understood today; it also meant to feel “healthy” or to be “whole.” “Peace” was a state of well-being. – The Complete Biblical Library Greek-English Dictionary.
If in Paul’s Hebrew thinking he was referring to shalom then what he was saying is, ‘When we live from a state of wellbeing we are ready to stand firm in spiritual battles.’ To further illustrate this, I have a written out prayer that I regularly use as a template when I pray. One reminder I have built in for myself is as follows, ‘Remember, Jesus is never in a hurry, He walks in His Father, I walk in Him. Spirit, soul and body are designed to live in and from a state of repose.’ This serves to remind me of shalom
I fundamentally believe this. Think of Jesus. He laying sleeping in a boat in a raging storm, in an internal and physical state of repose (Matt. 8:23-26). What happened when the disciples awoke Him?
26 But He said to them, “Why are you fearful, O you of little faith?” Then He arose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm. Matthew 8:26 (NKJV)
Notice the last phrase – there was a great calm. Jesus was living out what Paul would speak to in Ephesians 6. Jesus was physically, psychologically and spiritually in shalom and He released what was within Him and it calmed the storm. This is how He calls us to function in spiritual warfare.
We might think only Jesus can do this but I remember Rick Joyner sharing a story that illustrates this point. He was with a friend at an airport near the front of the line, people were tired and angry, the flight was late and it seemed to be overbooked. Just when it seemed things could not get worse two ladies began forcing their way to the front demanding to be put on the plane. Rick said he thought someone was going to punch them. It was then that he said he witnessed a miracle. His friend got everyone’s attention and said, “Excuse me, do you mind if I give these ladies my place in line?” Suddenly peace and calm enveloped the place, Rick and his friend went to the back of the line and everyone was able to get on the plane.
To live in and function out of peace in this way we need to do something. We need to accept that we have this peace in Jesus and apply Paul’s injunctions in Philippians 4:4-9. It means choosing to let go, to stop embracing the things that bring us anxiety and focusing our minds and hearts on things like that which is good, true, pure and right. Paul says the result is peace and that readies us to stand in battle!
So, lets stand firm in the shalom Jesus left us.
27 Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. John 14:27 (NKJV)
