Armor of God: Feet Shod with the Preparation of the Gospel of Peace

Dear Reader,

This third article of the armor of God has the longest, most complicated name. "Feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace." (Ephesians 6:15). I found it interesting, that as I confirmed the meaning of "shod" as wearing foot-gear, like shoes or sandals, Google defined it as past tense. This makes sense, but also got me thinking.

Tom Reel, Staff/San Antonio Express-News

When shoeing a horse for the first time, the hoof is scraped clean of dirt before being sanded or ground flat. Essentially, the rough edges are smoothed and leveled. Then the metal horse shoe is heated and fitted to be properly sized before it is nailed into the hoof. Surprisingly, the seeming permanence of this process is actually a temporary state. The hooves continue to grow, making it so that the horse needs to be re-shoed every 4-6 weeks.

As with shoeing a horse, we have to be level and aligned with the gospel of peace. This comes through repentance and the change that Christ's atonement can wrought in our lives. Also, like a hoof, we continue to grow and progress. Nevertheless, we must continually realign ourselves with what matters most, otherwise, we may grow in ways that will make us stumble or even halt our movement forward towards our Father in Heaven.

What does this have to do with "shod" being past tense? A shod horse is one that has already aligned itself, and placed the protective plate or horseshoe on its foot. It is not in need or want, but is ready and prepared to move forward.

New Balance Shoe

In modern society, we sometimes forget how easy it can be to wear shoes. We slip them on at a moment's notice, lacing them up lickity split, and then head about our day. There are even velcro strapped shoes, and styles that are formfitting and have no laces at all.

sandal of Ancient Israel Image Link

Even in Christ's time, their sandals only took a couple minutes to unlatch and remove. Yet there is still something proper about being prepared and ready to go at a moment's notice. The question is, what is it we need to be prepared for?

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The answer seems to lie in what having shod feet provides. For horses, the shoe helps prevent chipping and breaking of the hoof, essentially, protection from damage. Sneakers and other basic shoes provide a cushion for our feet, coupled with socks which absorb moisture helping to prevent blisters as I mentioned in my blog post about Socks, they protect our feet from the harm of stubbing our toes, and the harsh, rough texture of the ground. Then there are slippers which comfort with their softness and protect our feet from the cold. As you may have noticed, the continual theme is protection.

Roman Caligae Image Link

Our feet help us move and walk, they push the pedals to ride bicycles and drive motor vehicles. The propulsion is caused by the friction of the sock on our foot, the sock and foot against the shoe, and then the shoe against the pedal or ground. We see how this is emphasized with soccer and football cleats which have studs or spikes to help dig into the ground helping the individual gain traction. Even the Ancient Roman Centurions had metal studs in the bottom of their sandals or caligae to help them gain that traction and friction to move forward.

In our lives, we have times where fiction occurs between family, friends, education and employment. Some friction can be good, enough to keep us moving forward. Yet, too much friction can be a stumbling block that trips us and makes us fall. Thus, there is a delicate and hard to maintain balance between the stress of moving forward and the stress that causes us to stumble and fall. Nevertheless, even if we stumble and fall, it is important to get up again. It may require the strength, exertion and friction of our hands as well as our feet to get up after a fall, but once you are up, the effort needed diminishes back down to what it was before.

Hermes talaria from Chronicles of Blood Image Link

From the times of Ancient Greece, shoes or sandals have been associated with movement. Hermes talaria or winged shoes, allowed this god to fly and act as the emissary and messenger of the other Greek gods. Even in the scriptures, wings have been symbols of movement: "Above it stood the seraphims: each one had six wings; with twain he covered his face, and with twain he covered his feet, and with twain he did fly." (Isaiah 6:2). Similarly, the Prophet Joseph Smith asked God the meaning of the wings that the beasts were described as having in Revelations 4. "Q. What are we to understand by the eyes and wings, which the beasts had? A. Their eyes are representation of light and knowledge, that is, they are full of knowledge; and their wings are a representation of power, to move, to act, etc." (Doctrine and Covenants 77:4). This combined with the accounts of Joseph Smith seeing angels (Joseph Smith History 1:30-32), it points in the direction that angels having wings are simply symbolical. Wherefore, it is no leap of the imagination to say that our progression is what is being protected with preparation. Alas, we still wind up with preparation for what?

To change the wording slightly for a different perspective, we need to have our feet shod with preparation for the gospel of peace. "For" as in "before" alludes to preparing for Christ's gospel. How do people prepare for the gospel? Usually they are humble, seekers of truth with a desire to believe. Sadly, this preparation can come through loss, such as: poverty, unemployment, relocation, and even loosing a family member or close friend. Yet it can also come by more joyous means: birth of a child, marriage, and even a simple educational desire to learn more. God can use both ends of the spectrum, wonderful and terrible, to prepare His children to receive His word.

Alas, the scripture (at least in the King James Version) does not say "for", it says "of". This changes the meaning so that the gospel of peace is the preparation. Thus the next question is, what is the gospel of peace?

Image Link

Firstly, peace is quiet or calmness, serenity. That being noted, and referring back to footwear, there is a reason why flip flops are discouraged at church. It is not because of the lack of cover, for sandals and open toed shoes are fine for women to wear, it is because of the smacking flop that occurs when one walks. It disturbs the reverence of church and chases away peace. "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." (John 14:27). God's peace is peace of the heart and soul, despite the calamity that occurs. Even though it is a spiritual peace, commotion of the outside world can make it difficult to feel that peace.

The gospel of peace is Christ's gospel, having the first principles and ordinances of faith, repentance, baptism for the remission of sins, receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost by the laying on of hands (4th Article of Faith). These help to bring that peace into our lives. There are also other principles and ordinances of the gospel which include the covenants and rites performed in the temple.

Living this gospel is a life long pursuit that is not fulfilled while in mortality. Wherefore, it is likely that the gospel prepares us for after this life, where, as children of our Father in Heaven, we will be heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ if we are worthy of such (Romans 8:17), receiving all that the Father hath (Doctrine and Covenants 84:35-38).

Precluding further are the foot related ordinances in the scriptures. Because of the use of sandals and much walking, usually the feet of those in ancient times were quite dirty. In Jewish culture, it was a sign of service or subservience to wash someone's feet. There was the woman who washed and anointed Jesus' feet "against [or in preparation for] the day of [His] burying" (John 12:7). Then there is the washing of the Apostle's feet performed by Christ (John 13) which Doctrine and Covenants (88:139-141) elaborates on as a second anointing (beyond the one performed in the temple for every worthy member [Exodus 40:12-13]) that current Prophets perform for modern Apostles. This was done signifying not only how the Apostles should serve, but anointing them to the fullness of their Apostleship the night before He was to be crucified.

Though I do not expect to be a participant in such a miraculous ordinance as the washing of feet in this life, concerning the ordinances I have received and been privy to, I can testify of their truth and divinity. The Spirit of God accompanies these ordinances as they are an important portion of God's work. May we all follow Christ's example and His gospel to the best of our ability so that we can have His peace in this life and be prepared for the world to come.

Love,
Jacobugoth

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