Standing For Jesus Series

Sit Walk Stand

Ephesians 6:10-17

Pastor Jefferson M. Williams

Chenoa Baptist Church

1-19-2020

Sit Walk Stand

We have begun 2020 with a study of the little book, “Sit, Walk, Stand” by Chinese pastor Watchman Nee. In week one of this series, we learned that Jesus is seated at the right hand of God and that we are seated with Him. This has titanic implications for how we view our sin, our identity, and our trials.

Once we have learned to sit or rest in our position is Christ, then, and only then, can we learn to walk in this world. Sitting describes our position in Christ. Walking described the practical outworking of that heavenly position here on earth.

Last week, we studied Ephesians 4:1-3 to see how we “walk worthy of our calling.” We ended our service praying that God would grow in us the fruit of gentleness, patience, and peace.

If you weren’t here for those two weeks, I would encourage you to watch the sermon on our Facebook page.

This morning, we will wrap up this series with a call to stand. Pastor Nee writes:

“Christian experience begins with sitting and leads to walking, but it doesn’t end with these. Every Christian must learn to stand. Each one of us must be prepared for the conflict. We must know how to sit with Christ in the heavenly places and we must know how to walk worthy of Him down here, but we must also know how to stand before the foe.”

We will spend our time today studying the last verses of the book of Ephesians. Please turn to chapter 6.

Prayer

The Christian and the Adversary

“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power.” (Ephesians 6:10)

Paul wants to give these Ephesian believers some last instructions before he closes the letter.

A. The Christian’s Power Source

He begins by commanding them to “be strong.” It’s in the present tense meaning, “be strengthened.” This is something done to the Christian.

But notice we are to be strong “in the Lord and His mighty power.” How strong you are is irrelevant. Our strength comes from our union with Christ.

Pastor Nee writes:

“Only those who can sit can stand. Our powerful for standing, as for walking, lies in our having first been made to sit together with Christ. The Christian’s walk and warfare alike derive their strength from his position here. If he is not sitting before God he cannot hope to stand before the enemy.”

In Ephesians 1, Paul wants us to know the “incomparably great power for us who believe.” This is the same mighty power that “raised Christ from the dead and seated Him at His right rand in the heavenly realm.” (Eph 1:20)

This power “made us alive in Christ even when we were dead in our transgressions…and raised us up with Christ and seated us with Him in the heavenly realms.” (Eph 2:5-6)

Paul knew this power and he knew it was not his own. He had a thorn in the flesh. We aren’t sure what it was. It couldn’t have been problems with his eyesight. But he asked God three times to take it away. God said no but told Paul:

“My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” (2 Cor 12:9)

Paul’s response shows his understanding of Christ’s resurrection power:  

"Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.  That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” (2 Cor 12:10)

Bryan Chapell reminds us that

“…we are in Christ: covered by His blood, robed in His righteousness, members of His household, sons and daughters, in union with Him, beloved. We may dread the exposure of our weakness in our battle against sin, but Paul reminds us that the strength of our relationship with our God is provided by Christ. Because we are in Him, seated with with Him, we have access to a power greater than we.”

Isaac Watts wrote these words in a hymn dated 1707:

“Hell and your sins resist your course;

But hell and sin are vanquished foes:

Your Jesus nailed them to a cross,

And sang the triumph when He rose.”

But we live in the already/not yet. Yes Christ has triumphed over the powers of darkness but we have not experienced the full fruits of Christ’s victory. That’s why we need to learn to stand.

Near the end of his first letter to the Corinthian church, Paul makes the same charge:

“Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be courageous; be strong.” (I Cor 16:13)

When you feel weak, when you feel like giving in to your sin, when you feel like your will-power is growing dim, we must remind ourselves to “be strong in the Lord and the power of His might.”