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THE NORTHERN KENTUCKY SEARCHER VOLUME 5, NUMBER 7, FEBRUARY 20, 2005 INSULATION – PHYSICAL AND SPIRITUAL The work on the classroom wing of the church continues to move right along at a surprising and impressive rate. The time for drywall to start being put up is right around the corner. The framer is done, the electric has been roughed in, and the furnaces have been placed and the ductwork pretty much completed. The rough work of the plumbers has also been finished. If I am not mistaken, all of the underground work is done. The next big chore that we will do ourselves is the installation of the eight-foot insulation. The attic space will have blown-in insulation. We will do the exterior walls and the walls between rooms ourselves with rolls. I started thinking about the insulation and just exactly what it accomplishes. It is essentially a barrier, meant to keep the cold air and the hot air out, depending on the season; and to keep the cool air and the warm air in, depending on the season. It is the most efficient method available to us to keep the bad out and the good in. I guess you could say it’s a lot like having weather armor around you. Having lived in a home with insufficient insulation several years ago, I can personally attest to its importance. When you can sit in the living room of your home in the dead of winter, and for an experiment strike a match and watch it get blown out just by the cold air coming through the windows and the walls, you come to appreciate what insulation can do. I am reminded of Paul’s words found in Ephesians 6:11-17, where he wrote, “Put on the full armor of God, that you may be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore, take up the full armor of God, that you may be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. Stand firm therefore, having girded your loins with truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; in addition to all, taking up the shield of faith with which you will be able to extinguish all the flaming missiles of the evil one. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” I find it interesting that as Paul brings the wonderful letter to the Ephesians to a close, in the end he presents the life of a Christian as a military challenge. Christians are in a fight with eternal consequences. If we leave ourselves unprotected we will fail. He urges us to “put on the full armor of God.” In the shed behind the house there are enough rolls of insulation stored to completely insulate the entire new addition. That building will be warm in the winter and cool in the summer, but only if we take the insulation out of the shed and put it up. The same is true with the armor of God. He has provided us with everything we need for the proper protection, but we cannot just sit back and think that this armor is going to somehow magically envelop us with no effort on our part. The armor God provides will keep out the bad and help keep in the good, but only if we put it on. As we examine this armor, what do we find? We find that our loins are to be “girt about with truth.” This brings to mind a statement the Lord made in His prayer to the Father found in John 17:17. Jesus prayed, “Sanctify them in the truth; Thy word is truth.” The armor also consists of the “breastplate of righteousness.” In Romans 10:1-3, Paul writes about his Jewish brethren in the flesh. “Brethren, my heart’s desire and my prayer to God for them is for their salvation. For I bear them witness that they have a zeal for God, but not in accordance with knowledge. For not knowing about God’s righteousness, and seeking to establish their own, they did not subject themselves to the righteousness of God.” Where is the righteousness of God revealed? In the Word. The armor also involves protection for the feet, “the preparation of the gospel of peace.” The gospel is the “good news” of Jesus. It contains commands to be obeyed, facts to be believed, and promises to be embraced. To be fully protected, one must pick up “the shield of faith.” Where does faith come from? Romans 10:17 tells us, “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.” There is protection for the head in the armor of God, the “helmet of salvation.” Paul wrote in Romans 1:16 , “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.” Again, it is tied to the gospel. Of course, there is also “the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” It is easy to see that all of the armor God has provided for us is connected to His word. The only way to put it on is to fill ourselves with the word. That takes time, effort, and true dedication. But being properly attired with the knowledge of the word of God, we will be protected, like a building insulated against the weather. We will be “able to resist in the evil day.” We will be “able to extinguish all the flaming missiles of the evil one.” We will be “able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil.” Indeed, “having done everything,” we will be able to stand firm. So, when the new addition is finished and you walk back in to it in total comfort, cool in the summer and warm in the winter, take a moment to think about the insulation that envelops the building. Then determine to add yet another layer of the “armor of God” which provides the protection we all need in the battle for eternity. Greg Litmer I’D RATHER DEAL WITH A FELLOW WHO IS ENTHUSIASTICALLY AGAINST ME THAN HALF-HEARTEDLY WITH ME!
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