Gospel Cleats

And, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the Gospel of peace (Eph 6:15).

Football players must have the right shoes for different conditions.  For a sloppy mud pit of a field, you’ll need big, long cleats.  For the rug of artificial turf, you’ll need a molded sole with lots of small cleats.  Here Paul lets us know that God has given us the perfect footwear for hanging in there against the satanic blitz. “And, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the Gospel of peace” (v15).  The apostle tells his Ephesian friends about the gear God provides.  We’ve already strapped on the truth belt and the body armor of righteousness (Eph 6:14).  It’s time to slip on our shoes.  Very special shoes.  Not sandals.  Not flip flops.  Not Chuck Taylors.  These are spikes. 

It’s time to lace up our Gospel cleats.

So maybe you’re not down with this whole football idea.  Isn’t Paul painting a picture of a first century Roman soldier not a 21^st century offensive tackle?  Absolutely.  But historians tell us that Caesar’s storm troopers actually wore boots with nails on the sole.  These cleats kept them from slipping in battle.  So folks were wearing spikes 2,000 years before sneaker companies encouraged us to just do it and protect this house.  The apostle tells us that we’re going to need supernatural cleats for what we’re about to face.  If we’re going to “stand” and “withstand” satan’s assault (Eph 6:11, 13-14), we’re going to need the proper footwear.  Not just any cleats.  Gospel cleats.

These new kicks won’t do us any good if we don’t take them out of the box and put them on.  So pull the paper stuffing out, slip’em on and lace’m up.  I need to “put on the readiness given by the Gospel of peace” (v15).  I can’t be ready for action in just my socks.  The apostle says that by slipping on my new cleats I’m actually putting on preparation.  He uses the Greek word etoimasia.  It means the state of being ready and being prepared.  The term actually hints that this means having the right equipment.  In this case, the right shoes.

These Gospel cleats allow me to be ready.  Ready for the onrushing enemy.  Paul has a very specific reason to tell the Ephesians to lace’m up tight.  A team of spiritual hucksters have done a great deal of damage in churches just down the road in towns like Colossae, Hierapolis and Laodicea.  They’ve spread a counterfeit gospel of do-it-yourself salvation that is actually no salvation at all.  Apparently believers there weren’t ready for the assault.  They didn’t have their cleats on.  After writing what we know as Colossians, the apostle fires off another letter to the church in Ephesus, just 100 miles away.  The attack is coming.  Our opponent is going to blitz.  Gear up in God’s armor.  Get ready.  “Put on the readiness given by the Gospel of peace” (v15).  

It’s time to lace up our Gospel cleats.

These supernatural sneakers may not have a swoosh but they are clearly the latest in footwear technology.  They’re loaded with “the Gospel of peace” (v15).  The term “Gospel” is the term euangelion.  It simply means good news.  After an army won in battle, a messenger would beat feet back home to tell folks about the victory.  He would tell them the euangelion.  The prophet Isaiah uses that very same idea when predicting the day of Messiah’s arrival and the spread of the ultimate Good News. “How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news, who publishes peace, who brings good news of happiness, who publishes salvation, who says to Zion, ‘Your God reigns’” (Is 52:7).  Paul himself quotes Izzy when he talks about telling others about Jesus (Rom 10:15).  Put on your Gospel cleats to be ready to proclaim the Good News.  Put on your Gospel cleats to be ready to tell others about Jesus.

A very important feature of our supernatural spikes is “peace” (v15).  This is the Good News that our faith in Jesus brings peace with God (Rom 5:1).  Believers are no longer enemies and rebels against His kingdom.  He’s brought us onto His team even when we were playing on the other side of the line (Rom 5:10).  We certainly didn’t deserve it.  But He did it as the ultimate demonstration of His love and grace.  “But God shows His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Rom 5:8).    He’s made us a part of His team.  He’s on our side.  We can have the ultimate confidence that we can hang in there during the worst attack because of Who’s got our back.  “If God is for us, who can be against us?” (Rom 8:31).  We go from the team who is a lock to lose to sure fire victory.  That’s all part wearing our Gospel cleats.

Are you ready?  Am I ready?  Are we on our toes for the attack of the enemy?  Are we ready to tell others about Jesus?  

It’s time to lace up our Gospel cleats.