“The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light.” Romans 13:12
The Apostle John wrote in his first epistle: “He that saith he abideth in Him ought himself also so to walk, even as He walked.” (1 Jn. 2:6) On the day that the Lord Jesus came up out of the waters of the Jordan River, at the moment of His baptism, something wonderful and most extraordinary occurred. Scripture tells us that “…the heaven was opened, and the Spirit descended in a bodily shape like a dove upon Him, and a voice came from heaven which said, ‘Thou art My beloved Son; in thee I am well pleased.'” (Luke 3:21,22) In that moment, when the Lord Jesus embraced fully His calling, and the ministry to which He had been chosen and prepared, the blessing of the Father was given in its fulness in the Holy Spirit, for the meeting of every need. That gracious, tender, and yet, powerful Holy spirit was given to Christ in a visible manner to declare first and foremost the great love that the Father had for the Son, but also, to equip the Son in a perfect manner, for the task set before Him. In a very real way at that moment, the Lord Jesus, in receiving the Holy Spirit for the work He was to accomplish, put His spiritual armour on. The Father, by the Spirit, was Christ’s armour, given in faithfulness and righteousness, so that the Righteous Son could, and would overcome every foe, and all resistance and deceit by the enemy. His armor was perfect and powerful because of the One who not only gave it by the Spirit, but who, in essence was that armor, God the Father Himself. So, how is the believer to “walk as Christ walked?” Paul writes to the Roman believers that they are to put on the armor of light, that armor that is of God as a gift and provision by the Spirit, but which is also Light, the very Life of Christ. In Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, he gets more specific, declaring: “Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.” (6:11) On the day of Christ’s baptism, the Lord Jesus put His armor on to go to war, to enter into conflict, to win not only a battle, but a campaign. The trek towards Calvary had begun, a walk that would require spiritual weaponry to overcome a spiritual foe. All had been provided by the Father, communicated by the Holy Spirit, so that the Son would overcome, and stand at last the declared Victor over every enemy. How then does this apply to the believer in our day?
The believer that would “follow in His steps,” is that one who likewise comes to understand the necessity and the nature of the armor that God gives. He comes to realize something of the spiritual essence of the conflict in which he is engaged. He is called upon, according to the revealed provision and purpose of God to “put on” this armor that God has provided. This armor, like that of Christ, is essentially God by the Holy Spirit, revealed in a specific manner so that the individual believer can face the foe, and overcome him. It was Charles Wesley who wrote: “Leave no unguarded place, No weakness of the soul, Take every virtue, every grace, and fortify the whole: To keep your armour bright, Attend with constant care, Still walking in your Captain’s sight, And watching unto prayer.” Herein is the believer’s calling who would follow Christ: Put on Christ, His Salvation, His Righteousness, His Truth, His Faith, His preparation of the gospel of peace, and taking the sword of the Spirit, the word of God. The armor of God is as the weapons of our warfare, spiritual, heavenly, powerful, and effective. They have been given by the Father in the Son, so that, by the Spirit, we should make them our own.
Dear Father, Give us grace to deliberately put on Christ as our armor, and to overcome. In Jesus’ name, Amen.