What is the difference between the shoes of the gospel of peace and the sword of truth which is the word?
Ephesians 6:15 - 17
ESV - 15 And, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. 16 In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one.
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Asked December 05 2016
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cindy simons
For follow-up discussion and general commentary on the topic. Comments are sorted chronologically.
Singapore Moses
In view of the fact that you have such enemies (Eph. 6:12), be clothed with sixfold Christian armor of God. It will make you invulnerable and victorious (Eph. 6:13-18).
1. Feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace (Eph. 6:15). Here Greek: hetoimasia (G2091) is used to refer "being prepared"; readiness. It is the gospel of making peace with God and of readiness to meet Him. It is one of the defensive armors for protection. Please refer Mk. 6:9; Acts 12:8; Isa. 52:7; Rom. 10:15. for more details
2. The sword of the Spirit, the Word of God (Eph. 6:17). Greek: rhema (G4487), the written Word (Acts 1:1). See Lk. 4:32; Isa. 8:20; Mt. 4:4-7. The Spirit always acts in harmony with the written Word of God. It should be quoted in times of temptation and it will cut in pieces the snares of the enemy. It is the offensive armor for conquest. Greek: machaira (G3162), sword, to destroy the enemy and bring his surrender. Besides the sword other weapons of offense were used--the spear, lance, battle-axe, club, bow and arrows, and sling
cindy simons
I love how God uses each one of us where we are at in life and speaks to each one differently. What clearly stood out for me with Paul's teaching here is he was using the armor of the Roman soldiers to illustrate to the church how important it is to put on the armor of God for protection. I'm sure every time they saw a solider it would have been a reminder to them. I researched the pieces of armor that were confusing me, the different protection they offered the solider who wore them, and how this may relate to our armor.
Shoe of peace: defense weapon. Soldiers' shoes had cleats on the bottom to give a firm grip, which we need in this world. They provided stability to keep their footing in a battle; they give us stability when everything is in chaos around us. God's shoes (peace) are my guard and protector and give me tranquility and calmness in my soul and the conviction to move forward.
Ok now, the sword of the Spirit: This piece of armor for the solider was an offense weapon and the only one Paul describes in Ephesians 6. This sword was a small one used in hand to hand combat. The Word of God is the utterance of God, the spoken Word to me in my life and we can't always take a defensive posture against the attacks of the enemy. So when the enemy is face to face, the sword of the spirit, God's Word will prevail against the attacks.
So there you have it, my take, and thanks for all the input and scriptures, and for inspiring me to research this more!