Here in Wyoming, I learned from a young age how important belts are if you want to keep your jeans up. Talk about leaving a girl vulnerable and exposed, there is nothing worse than climbing horseback and worrying about your britches falling down!

Part of regular western attire, a belt serves so many functions; not only does it keep your jeans from falling, but it can also be used to hold a leatherman or a knife too big for your pocket. Sometimes a belt is nothing more than a piece of bailing twine that works in a pinch, but a belt is also a fashionable way to show off any buckles won in the show ring or the rodeo arena. One of my favorite possessions is an old tooled leather belt of my Granddad Mort’s with his name and brand stamped on it. I have long appreciated the function and style of a good belt. 

Just as a western belt has practical functions, so it was for the Roman soldier. The belt, or what was known as the cingulum, was an important piece of a soldier’s armor whether in wartime or in peace. The belt worked as a girdle or a sash holding up and adjusting a soldier’s long, flowing robe and tunic, allowing him to move about freely and unencumbered. The belt of a Roman Soldier wasn’t a simple piece of leather like my Granddad’s belt was but would have been thick and richly adorned with metal bands and protective pieces. Its function included carrying a soldier’s personal belongings such as money or writing utensils, as well as holding his scabbard and sword in place. The belt of a Roman soldier played a crucial role in his effectiveness in battle because, without a belt, he would essentially be left weaponless and exposed, and probably wind up tripping all over his loose-fitting robes! 

A belt for an old cowboy is important to keep his pants cinched tight, a belt for a Roman soldier is important to keep his tunic gathered, and his sword close by, and the belt of truth is of utmost importance in the armor of the Christian Believer. 

In a world that is increasingly volatile and in constant battle mode, our first line of defense is in knowing who the enemy really is, our second step is to stand. Not attack, not retreat, just stand. So often we react in our humanness to any kind of an attack when we really should just stop and evaluate the situation. In order to appropriately do that, we need to see what the truth is.

The belt of truth was the first thing mentioned in the armor of God for good reason; without the belt of truth, all the rest of the armor is useless. Just as a Roman soldier would trip over his tunic without a belt to gird it up, without the belt of truth, we will just trip over ourselves as we try to engage in any kind of battle. We need the belt of truth to hold the entire armor of God together. If we don’t first armor ourselves with truth we will be left exposed to attack.

The belt isn’t necessarily a part of the armor per se, but it’s what has to be put on first in order that all the other parts are securely in place. A soldier would remove his belt when he stopped to rest and recline, but the moment he was ready for battle he would stand up and put it on. Fastening his belt meant that he was prepared for action. 

So it is with the belt of truth that’s part of the armor God supplies us with. When we’re preparing for battle we put on this belt first, girding ourselves with the truth of God’s Word. Because this is what will brace us with a firm consistency, a moral compass, a right judgment, and with the truth of the gospel that ultimately is what defends our hearts, minds, and souls. 

Putting on this belt means that we are making the choice to stand on God’s truth and not the truth of the world, or the “truth” that our emotions and feelings try to convince us of. It serves as a hedge of protection against the lies of the enemy and the ungodly influence of the culture around us.

The word for “truth” used in Ephesians is the Greek word, “alētheia” and Strongs concordance defines it in two ways. The first is objective truth, “what is true in any matter under consideration.” This is truth in reality, the idea of a universal truth that is not subject to our human will or emotions, to time, place, or cultural shifts. It is true because God says it is reality and it doesn’t ever change. 

The second definition Strongs concordance gives us for “alētheia” is “truth as a personal excellence; that candor of mind which is free from affection, pretense, stimulation, falsehood, and deceit. Sincerity of mind and integrity of character, or a mode of life in harmony with divine truth.” Subjective here doesn’t imply that absolute truth is subject to what we believe about it, but rather it means that our will and emotions must be subject to this “truth in reality”, and we must forsake all untruths that don’t measure up with divine truth.

God’s truth will preserve and protect us from the deception that the enemy uses to attack us. Without knowing what is true we have no defense against these attacks. We have to know truth in order to oppose error, false teachings, moral decay, and to stand strong in our convictions. 

Satan will lie to us about who our enemies are, trying to convince us that it’s our spouse or child, a family member, friend, or someone who disagrees with us about politics, a global pandemic, or any other myriad of social or faith issues of the day. Satan will try to convince us we are powerless against him, he will lie to us about our identity, distract us with pointless things of this world, and use deceit to blind us to what’s true.

If we want to fight these spiritual battles we have to put on the whole of the armor God gives, not just the parts we’re comfortable with. . . and His truth isn’t always comfortable. 

So much in our current culture says that truth is whatever we want it to be, my truth might be different from your truth, which might be different from someone else’s truth. The world wants to convince us that truth is not absolute and can be subjective. I think this is such a popular idea because it’s much more comfortable to not stand strong for certain beliefs and convictions; the less we cling to truth the less conflict and disagreement there’ll be. Satan wants us to believe the lie that if everyone just believes whatever personal truth they choose we will live in a world that is all-tolerant and free of conflict.

But I believe the opposite happens. . . if we don’t have the absolute and enduring truth of God’s Word to stand on, that’s when chaos and division ensues. 

Girding ourselves with God’s truth prepares us for battle because as we daily go to His Word we will be able to distinguish what’s true from what isn’t. This is our first line of defense because Satan will use what isn’t true to attempt to distract and destroy us. As the father of lies, Satan hates the truth and will manipulate, deceive, divide and convince us that wrong is right and right is wrong. Satan will have us fighting one another in order to keep us from the real battle that’s at hand.

With so many different versions of it flying around, it seems complicated knowing what is true and what isn’t. But the bible tells us exactly where we can look to find truth: “Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” (John 14:6 NKJV). He is the source of truth, the originator of truth, and truth revealed in the promises of God. Satan will try to lie and convince us that God doesn’t keep His promises, but in Jesus we see the truth that He does in fact keep every promise He makes. We can trust Him because He is truth.  

 “Where I found truth, there found I my God, who is the truth itself.”

~ Augustine

When we don’t have the belt of truth girding us it becomes so easy to fall into the trap of deception, but Jesus tells us in John 8:32 that “We would know the truth and the truth would set us free”. The lies that Satan tells us, the lies that we believe, keep us in bondage and render us ineffective in the battle God has called us to fight. Freedom is found in the truth of Who Jesus is:  He’s the source of truth and the perfect standard of what truth is. Only by abiding in Him and in His Word will we experience the true freedom that God works in our life through His truth. 

When we don’t keep that truth girded to our middles we lose sight of it, and that’s when the enemy gains an upper hand in this battle. Jesus prayed for His disciples in John 17, that they would be sanctified by the truth, meaning that the truth we find in Him will set us apart, make us different from the rest of the world, equip us to fight the enemy. He knew we would need to fight the deceptions of this world because the enemy would keep us from seeing His truth. So Jesus prayed for His followers, that we would have His truth in order to live in the world, but not be of the world. God’s Word is that truth and it’s what sets us apart as His warriors, equipped for the battle at hand.

Truth is so incredibly important in this battle we’re fighting. It’s the first line of defense that Paul tells us we need, without having His Truth acting like a girdle and surrounding our very lives with it, we will be left defenseless and vulnerable. Satan isn’t playing games and neither should we. We need to make sure we’re armored up when we step into this battle, and the first thing we do is put on that Belt of Truth.