Ephesians Lesson 39 of 39 part 3

Ephesians 6:15

"And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;"

Can you imagine a Roman soldier out on the battle field in briers and sharp rocks with nothing to protect his feet? Of course they had to be protected, otherwise he would have been powerless against the enemy. They had a sandal which laced up above the calf, which had a hard leather bottom sole and for battle this was changed for one with spikes fixed in place on the bottom. This they would set hard into the soil which made them immovable and then they would lock their shields to make a wall which would cover them. But we too must have our feet shod with the preparation of this Gospel of peace. There are a couple of good verses for this, where we have the feet referred to in the Old Testament as well as the New Testament. Always remember, the feet are beautiful in the sight of God when we take this Gospel to other people. Though because of the veil which masks our vision and perception, in the beginning of our walk, many still do not truly understand nor except this Gospel of Grace. And therefore resist the kingdom which both John the Baptist introduced and Jesus brought about. A heavenly kingdom of Grace, Peace and Love for all mankind, who will live in Truth as a personal choice through death of self will, the enemy within us. For those who resist as a personal choice after hearing the True Gospel of Grace by Religious preference, remain in their sin of self will. And will be so judged as having grieved the Holy Spirit given them as a deposit for better things yet to come.

Ephesians 6:15

"And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;"

Go back to the Old Testament first and that will be in Isaiah chapter 52:7. This is a verse that most of you are aware of, but we like to show that the Old and New fit so beautifully in so many ways.

Isaiah 52:7a

"How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace; that bringeth good tidings of good, that publisheth salvation;..."

We made the comment recently, that the primary purpose of the Bible from cover to cover is that one word "Salvation." The main purpose of the Word of God is to bring lost and the unbelieving people to a knowledge of Salvation. Remember God is not willing that any should perish! And if they are not to perish, then they need to get the remedy (the revelation of Christ) from the Word of God. And as we have said so often, this remedy can only be found for the Church Age in Paul’s Gospel, as we see in I Corinthians 15:1-4 which is faith + Nothing in the finished work of the cross and the LORD's ascension. So whether it is the Old Testament or the New Testament, salvation is the main purpose for mankind to have a Bible. 

Isaiah 52:7

"How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bring good tidings, that publish peace; that brings good tidings of good that publish salvation; that say to Zion, Thy God reigns!"

This portion of Scripture was written explicitly to the nation of Israel, and the overall concept is still the same. Back to the New Testament to the book of Romans where the Apostle Paul uses much the same language with regard to the feet, of the one that is taking good news to the world. Remember, this is not limited to pastors, preachers, and evangelists, but rather this is for every true believer, whoever they are, and wherever they are. We should always be ready to proclaim the good tidings of this, so Great a Salvation. So let’s look at Romans chapter 10 for a moment.

Romans 10:15

"And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written*, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!"

*and here is where Paul goes back to the verse we just read in Isaiah.

Beautiful feet, because this Gospel always lifts people out of their misery. Now we do not make the claim that when we become a Christian everything suddenly becomes a path of roses or smooth goings, but it is such a far cry from the misery of the world, that words can’t explain it. Always remember where we as believers come head and shoulders above the rest of world is, yes we are going to have problems, we are going to have trials, we are going to have tribulations, but the Lord is within us, and He takes us through it, and that is what makes the difference. Because He has over come the world of self willed mankind and destroyed the enemy within by so doing. So be ready to take the good news of this Great Salvation wherever you are, and the moment you do, you are using your beautiful feet. Now coming back to Ephesians chapter 6, and looking at verse 16.