Seven Weapons of Spiritual WarfareSýnishorn

The Gospel of Peace

My grandfather was a boot-maker during the second world war. The government at the time would not permit him to sign up to go and fight in the trenches because they said he would do much more good following his profession to make boots for the army.

An army marches on its feet. This has been the case in every war since time began. And to wage war an army must have good, solid boots that will protect their feet, keep feet healthy, and not fall apart.

An army with poor boots will be crippled and unable to move quickly to establish lines of defense or attack as they wage war.

It is the same for Christians who are fighting in this spiritual war against the spiritual hosts of darkness.

Paul writes in Ephesians 6, verse 15 that we need to have:

“…shod your feet with the equipment of the gospel of peace.”

We are called to walk with Christ, and if we are to walk we need good walking boots. The reason we must keep moving is that the darkness is following us, always trying to overtake us and darken our understanding so we do not know where we are going.

But in Christ we are walking in the light of the gospel of peace. When we walk in His gospel we can see clearly where we are going and we do not trip up as we walk with Him.

The basis of the gospel is to call us to peace. This is the good news of the gospel…Peace!

Before Christ we were at loggerheads with God. We were sinners and God said He would have nothing to do with us. Furthermore, we were at the mercy of the passions, lusts, and desires of our human flesh, and we were constantly being led astray to do evil. Temptations were everywhere, and we would succumb to temptations because we had no way to overcome.

Basically, we had no peace, either with God, with those around us, or even within ourselves. We were not at peace.

That is, until Jesus came proclaiming the gospel and teaching us how to walk in peace. It is by His sacrifice that the dividing walls of hostility between man and God have been broken down to bring peace. It is also by Jesus’ sacrifice that we receive the power to overcome in the flesh and so have peace.

And in the words of Paul in Romans chapter 1, verse 16,

“For I am not ashamed of the gospel: it is the power of God for salvation to every one who has faith.”

Call to action:

Are you at peace? If not, go back to Jesus through prayer and study of His words and to learn how to find the peace of God that surpasses all understanding. It is in the gospel of Jesus Christ.