Be Strong In The Lord

Be Strong in the Lord. Ephesians 6:10-11

There is nothing that is more urgently important for all of us who claim to be called by God and those of us who say that we have been born again to understand the importance of the teaching of the particular section of the Word of God.

I say to those who say that we are Christians, because the Apostle Paul’s words are addressed to Christian folk, and Christian folk only. There is no message here for those who are not Christians. The world today ridicules this kind of statement. They refer to Christanity as old foggyism. The world does not believe in the spiritual realm at all. The world is even doubtful to whether there is a God at all. The world has no faith in Jesus Christ and therefore does not believe that there are “principalities and powers, the rulers of the darkness of this world, and spiritual wickedness in high nor even in low places.

But to those of us who say that we have been saved, sainctified and filled with the Holy Ghost these words should mean something to us. It is full of help and real encouragement. No matter what you and I are going through right now, Paul tells us don’t give up, don’t give in, but to be strong in the Lord.

There is no theme that is more urgently important to all Christians at the present time than for us to learn to be strong in the Lord. When we look at the world, and we look at life and to all the difficulties of living, especially in these confused times in which we find ourselves. Where nation is against nation and kingdom is against kingdom and mother’s are against daughters and father’s are against sons, and husband’s are against wives and wives are against husbands, we must learn how to be strong in the Lord.

I’m not suggesting that life has ever been easy in this world for the Christian. But the battle is more so as of now. There was a time when at least a man’s home was more or less shut off from the world. Where a man’s home was his castle. But now the world comes into the home in many different ways. It comes into the home in newspapers, magazines, radio, television, internet and other kinds of media. And because of the world infiltrating the home, the fight of faith becomes difficult and strenuous for the Christian at such a time as this.

And because of the circumstances of the world and because of the difficulties of this life, we are called to a battle. We are not called to a life of ease, but we are called to a battle of warfare, to a wrestle and to a struggle.

Sometimes are struggles and our warfare and our wrestling seems hopeless. Paul says that we are wrestling with spiritual wickedness in high places.

But thank God there is hope in Jesus. What is offered us as we find ourselves facing all this, this wrestling, this struggling, this combat. Paul tells us first, “Be strong in the Lord, and in the power of His might”, second, he tells us to “Put on the whole armor of God.”

We must notice that both of these are necessary if we are going to win the struggle. We can’t take one without the other. We can’t be strong without the whole armor of God. It doesn’t do us any good to put on the whole armor and not be strong.

Notice that Paul does not tell you to put the armor on first, and then be strong in the Lord. No, it is the other way around. First we must “Be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might”; then, “Take on the whole armor of God.

So often people just take one or the other of these factors. There are some folk who say, “All you need to do is to hand it over to the Lord and rely on His strength.” They never say anything about the whole armor of God. But Paul tells us to girt our loins with truth. Put on the breastplate of righteousness. Shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace. Take the shield of faith and the helmet of salvation.

There are others who say put on the whole armor of God as if they can fight the battle on their own strength. Did you not know that without God you could do nothing. Without God you would fail. Without God your life would be rugged, like a ship without a sail?

Paul says, “Be strong in the Lord, and in the power of His might.” Here is a great order issued by the mighty Apostle Paul. Here is a word sent out to the Christian army gathered together, with the enemy on the other side. This particular passage of scripture is telling us to stand up to temptation when we are in the street, when we are in our home. Stand up to temptation when you are on your job. Stand up to temptation when you are on the school yard. You ought to stand up and say for God I’ll live and for God I’ll surely die.