INTRO. - Be strong. Be strong in the Lord. We can choose to be strong in ourselves or we can choose to be strong in the Lord. TAKE YOUR CHOICE!
Most people (or many) choose to be strong in themselves. They want to be in control and do their own thing. They pride themselves on being a "self-made" person or so they think they are! But in reality, no one is self-made. We may do some things in life to improve ourselves but we are not self-made. WE ARE GOD-MADE! God made us with certain abilities or talents and we may choose to develop those talents or not. BUT NONE OF US ARE SELF-MADE OR STRONG IN OURSELVES.
ILL.- The American Idol show is over for another season and Elaine said, "what will we now watch on TV?" I told her we’ll watch her Lifetime movies. In the finals of American Idol it was a contest with two Davids. Little David Archuleta from Utah and a Mormon boy. And big David Cook from Blue Springs, MO, who was bar tender and a part-time rock singer.
Elaine and I voted for little David Archuleta to win but David Cook won instead. I think people wanted a rocker to win this year. And he’s talented. He has a great voice. In fact, there is something different about his voice and that has a great appeal to it. And little David Archuleta... What can we say about that young man? Humble, nice appearance, kind, gracious, and a tremendous voice.
Brothers and sisters, where did both David Archuleta and David Cook get those wonderful singing voices and the ability to sing? WE KNOW whether they do or not. Hopefully, they recognize that they are blessed by God.
And it is my personal opinion that we can choose in life to either be strong in ourselves and glory in ourselves or else we can choose to be strong in the Lord!
What little good I do in this life, I prefer for the Lord to get the glory! That’s the way it is supposed to be for all Christians. We’re here to glory in Him and glorify Him!
I Cor. 10:31 "So whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do it all to the glory of God."
ILL.- Toscanini, the world-famous conductor, who was very exacting and almost tyrannical in rehearsals, once practiced the Ninth Symphony of Beethoven with an orchestra.
First, it was practiced piece meal—each group of instruments alone, and then, together, at full concert strength.
At last rehearsals were over; and master and orchestra were ready for the concert performance. When the performance was over, the first violinist said to the second violinist; “If he scolds us after that, I will jump up and push him off his platform.”
He stood silent—his arms still outstretched, his deep eyes burning with an inner fire, the light of a great rapture upon his face, and a spirit of utter contentment enfolding him. After a long silence he spoke: “Who am I? Who is Toscanini? Who are you? I am nobody. You are nobody.”
The crowd was hushed. The master stood with arms still extended. The multitude waited in awed silence. Then with the light upon his face of one who had seen a vision, he added: “But Beethoven is everything—everything!”
This is so similar to us in life. We are nothing. I am nothing in a sense. But God is everything! Without Him we would be nothing and have nothing! There would be no music, so to speak, in our lives. There would be no goodness, no kindness, no holiness, no nothing. God is everything!
And He is the one who gives us strength for life, whatever that strength includes.
PROP.- Let’s think about what is required to be strong in the Lord. It requires:
1- Taking a stand against the devil
2- Putting on the armor of God
3- Praying in the Spirit
I. TAKING A STAND AGAINST THE DEVIL
10Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.
ILL.- A gentle Quaker, hearing a strange noise in his house one night, got up and discovered a burglar busy at work. So he went and got his gun, then came back and stood quietly in the doorway. “Friend,” he said, “I would do thee no harm for the world, but thou standest where I am about to shoot.”
I like that. We need to get the devil in our aim and pull the trigger!
ILL.- J. Gordon Henry wrote: "It is easier to be a preacher, elder, deacon, Sunday school teacher, or youth worker. Maintaining a daily, consistent prayer life is HARD WORK. The reason is that Satan does not want us to pray, since the only time that we are a threat to him and his work is when we pray. Therefore, he puts a high priority on destroying our prayer lives.
"Without a daily quiet time, it is easy for the cutting edge of the spiritual life to grow blunt and dull. The result is complacency. A believer should plan an encounter with God every day. Regular daily contact with our Source of spiritual life, the Lord Jesus Christ Himself, is absolutely necessary."
What Gordon Henry is suggesting is that preachers and all other church leaders probably pray more than many other Christians do, therefore they have the greatest defense against Satan.
First, I would say that prayer is a great defense against Satan. Second, I would not say, however, that all church leaders including preachers spend more time in prayer than others. SOME MAY BUT MANY DON’T.
ILL.- I had a preacher friend tell me recently that he went into his church to have a prayer and spent about two minutes in prayer. He admitted that was awful.
Brothers and sisters, it is true that if we intend to defeat Satan’s attacks on our lives we MUST spend more time talking to our heavenly Father!
Remember what Jesus did in the Garden of Gethsemane? He fell on his face and prayed. What did He pray? "Father, please take this cup from me, but nevertheless, not my will be done but thy will be done."
Jesus experience victory through prayer! Jesus overcame the temptation to not go to the cross by getting power from His Father in prayer!
ILL.- Luther once said: “I am so busy now that I find if I do not spend two or three hours each day in prayer, I cannot get through the day. If I should neglect prayer but a single day, I should lose a great deal of the fire of faith.”
ILL.- Or as preacher Dwight L. Moody used to say, “The only way to keep a broken vessel full is to keep it always under the tap.”
And that’s the only way to stand against Satan too!
II. PUTTING ON THE ARMOR OF GOD
13Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
ILL.- Men, did you ever play cowboys and Indians when you were little? Perhaps you did if you watched the good old cowboys of days gone by, like: Roy Rogers, Gene Autry, Lash La Rue (Alfred La Rue), the Lone Ranger (Clayton Moore), Tom Mix, John Wayne, Rex Allen, Audie Murphy, Randolph Scott, etc.
Now if you were like me when you played cowboys and Indians you might strap on a gun, wear a cowboy hat, and if you had them, you put on cowboy boots, etc. That was my armor against Indians and against rustlers and crooks.
As good as my armor was, occasionally, I got shot in the arm or the leg, but it was never a mortal wound. I generally shot back and got my enemy.
Brothers and sisters, we have a real enemy in this world and he’s not using a play gun to shot at us! He’s out to kill us if he can!
I Pet. 5:8-9 "8Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. 9Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings."
I honestly don’t think any of us know how clever, wicked and scheming the devil is. However, we can get glimpse of his evil work every time we hear about the horrible violence n the news of kids killing kids and adults, etc. We think, "how evil can people get?" JUST REMEMBER WHO IS BEHIND IT ALL!
John 8:44 "You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desire. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies."
Because the evil one is a wicked murderer, we need to put on the armor of God. And we need all of God’s armor: the belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, the gospel of peace, the shield of faith, the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit.
How do we get these? How do we put on this armor? We study, pray, surrender, and serve! We do everything the book tells us to do and as best we can. THAT’S HOW!
Without the Lord and His armor, none of us can overcome or defeat the evil one in this life. Only as we go down will the Lord come down to aid us in life!
I Pet. 5:5-6 "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble." Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time."
III. PRAYING IN THE SPIRIT
18And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.
ILL.- Sometimes at night I hear Elaine praying in the spirit. How’s so? Occasionally, I will hear her talking in her sleep. Her words will be just as clear as can be and so I listen closely to hear what she has to say.
But most of the time, her words sound like what some call "praying in the spirit." Her words are not intelligible or understandable at all.
Brothers and sisters, this is what some people in Christianity consider to be "praying in the Spirit," however, in the context of this verse it doesn’t seem to be this at all.
18And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.
To pray in the Spirit is to be moved or motivated by God’s Spirit who lives within us. And haven’t you been moved to pray for others? Sure you have! That’s praying in the Spirit. To pray in the Spirit is to offer all kinds of prayers for others. SO, HOW DO YOU PRAY FOR OTHERS?
ILL.- I have a preacher friend in Texas who is planning to move to Shiprock, New Mexico, to do mission work with American Indians. Where is Shiprock? It’s in the Northwest corner of New Mexico, very near Colorado, Arizona and Utah.
I asked my friend if he could afford to make this move financially. So how do I pray for him? I pray that the Lord will provide for him and his family. It’s a need that he has and I want to ask God to take care of that need.
On the other hand, I know of others who struggle with certain problems in life so I am moved to pray about those problems they are facing. And I am thrilled when God answers those prayers.
ILL.- My daughter Holly has been teaching 5th grade in a county near hers. Holly said that one day a 5th grade girl literally tore her classroom apart. For some reason, the girl went berserk and starting throw desks and chairs all over the place. Holly had to call for help from the principal’s office. As a result of this and other incidents, Holly has been wanting to get a job next year in her own county, which has a better school system. SO DAD HAS BEEN PRAYING HARD ABOUT THIS FOR HER.
Holly had probably six different interviews and then it was a waiting game to see if she’d get offered a job. And guess what? She got offered three jobs in one day! And she took the one she thought was best and was the job she wanted. Hooray! No, praise the Lord for answering our prayer!
Brothers and sisters, I know that you do the same for your loved ones and friends who have needs in life. And this is what praying in the Spirit is all about.
It’s caring enough for others that you spend time praying for them. And a side benefit of praying for others is that you personally become stronger in your faith in Christ. Praying for others will strengthen your faith in Christ.
CONCLUSION---------------------------
ILL.- In Alice in Wonderland, at one point Alice says to the Cheshire Cat, “Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?”
“That depends a good deal on where you want to get to,” said the Cat. “I don’t much care where,” said Alice. “Then it doesn’t matter which way you go,” said the Cat.
One moral of this story is that if you have nothing to shoot for in life then you will surely hit it. And this is what has happened in the lives of some Christians. They don’t care whether they grow in Christ or not, so they do nothing. They don’t read the Word, they pray little if any, and they are spasmodic in their church attendance. They only come if they don’t have anything else to do.
BUT THIS MUST NOT BE WITH US! We must aim for greater strength in Christ and do whatever it takes to get there.
We must stand against evil. We must put on the armor of God. We must pray constantly.
