How to Find Real Strength
Ephesians 6:10-13
Open your Bibles to Ephesians chapter 6.
Introduction: This morning I am starting a series entitled “Eight Essential Exercises for Building a Better Body.” Let’s face it, most of us could use a little body building. Most of us are undisciplined, soft, out of shape and ill-prepared for any kind of real contest or struggle. In fact, most of us would be easily defeated by an opponent with just a little strength.
With that hard fact firmly in focus, we all would probably admit that we could use a little tuning up. We need some body-building. We need to improve our bodies.
Now, I’m not simply talking about our physical bodies. Although the statements I just read are probably true for most of us physically, and although it is unhealthy, even dangerous to be out of shape, flabby and weak, there is a greater danger we face.
You may be asking yourself, “If the pastor isn’t talking about the physical body, then what body is he talking about?” I am talking about the body of relationships you are involved in daily.
The relationship between you and your spouse
The relationship between you and your children
The relationship between you and your parents
The relationship between you and your brothers or sisters
The relationship between you and your co-workers
The relationship between you and the other parents at little-league
The relationship between you and the person sitting in the seat next to you this morning.
The “body” of relationships that make up our church, which is called “The Body of Christ.”
This body of relationships that we all have is the context in which we live life. Now, I don’t know about you, but I tend to think that life can be kind of difficult at times. Life is often hard. But we don’t have to just endure life, we can thoroughly enjoy it and live it to the fullest. Jesus tells us in John 10:10 “…I came that everyone would have life and have it in it’s fullest.”
The full life that Christ came to give us starts in a personal relationship with him, and it is daily lived out in the context of the relationships we have with others, inside the church, inside the home, inside the office, etc. Jesus wants us to live the full life and he gave his very life so that we can do just that. It is His free gift, offered to us. However, to truly experience all the fullness that he offers to us, we need to make sure that the body of relationships we live in is a healthy body. That’s why we’re going to spend the next eight (8) weeks considering the essential exercises for building a better body.
These exercises, or principles, for building a better body are found in the Bible, God’s Word to us. The biblical principles I am going to look at over the next eight (8) weeks can be applied to our relationship within the local church and they can be applied to our relationships with our families. These principles can be applied to any of the relationships you have, at church, at home, at work, on the athletic field, at school, whatever. These biblical principles, these eight exercises can be applied to every relationship you have. In fact, they are essential exercises if you want to build healthier, stronger relationships.
Now, since these are Biblical principles, or principles based upon what the Bible teaches, then the first thing we need to do is to look at the Bible and see what it says to us regarding these eight essential exercises.
Look with me at Ephesians chapter 6, verses 10-18. We’re going to look at this passage of scripture with an eye toward building a better body.
Ep. 6:10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power.
Ep. 6:11 Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.
Ep. 6:12 For 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.
Ep. 6:13 Therefore 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.
Ep. 6:14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled round your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place,
Ep. 6:15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.
Ep. 6:16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.
Ep. 6:17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
Ep. 6:18 And 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.
When we look at these verses we see the eight essential exercises needed to build a better body of relationships.
Allocate Strength
Act with Integrity
Attain Righteousness
Advance Real Peace
Assert your Faith
Align Your Thoughts With Christ
Acknowledge the Word
Approach Christ in prayer
Today I want to consider the first element or exercise that is essential to building a better body. If we want to truly have a better body of relationships, then we have to learn to allocate true strength.
Let’s face it, maintaining healthy relationships is hard work. It takes a high degree of strength, and most of us don’t feel like we have the strength or energy to do what is necessary to maintain healthy relationships in all areas of our lives.
Keeping a relationship healthy involves a high degree of maintenance. And relationship maintenance means using a lot of your strength. It takes mental strength, it takes emotional strength, it takes spiritual strength to keep a relationship happy, and when you have to apply that strength to the relationships you have at home, at work, at church, etc. you quickly begin to run out of strength.
The fact is neither you nor I have enough strength to really keep all of the relationships we have in a state of good health. We are just over stretched.
However, I have good news for you. There is a source of strength that we can have as strength is needed. Our strength can be supplied from God Himself.
Look with me again at Ephesians 6:10 “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power.”
Paul, the author of this letter, tells us exactly where we can find the strength we need. We find it in the Lord, (that’s Jesus Christ) and in His mighty power. If I don’t have the strength myself to keep things healthy, then I have to turn somewhere else to get the strength I need, and that somewhere else is really a someone else! It is Jesus Christ who gives me the strength I need.
Philippians 4:13 says, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” That “all things” includes maintaining the health of the myriad of relationships I have to exist within.
Why is Paul so adamant that we find our strength in God? Because he understands that the struggles we face go beyond just time constraints and personality issues. He knows that the real battle we face comes from a strong enemy. Look at verse 12 again, “For 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.”
He knows that the devil loves it when our relationships are in turmoil. Because when our relationships are in turmoil we cannot focus upon God as we should. It is hard to draw close to God when we are having people problems as home at work and at church. Thus since we lack strength on our own and since we are fighting a very strong, very crafty, very dangerous and evil enemy, we must find our strength in God and God alone.
So if God has the power and I need it, how do I allocate that power or strength to use in building a better body? I’m glad you asked.
There are five (5) steps we need to take to get the strength we need, when we need it, to maintain healthy relationships that honor God. Let’s take just a few minutes and consider those five steps.
I. Admit That You’re Weak Without God
Let’s be honest for just a minute. 99.9% of us don’t like to depend upon other people. We don’t like to depend upon anyone but ourselves. If we have trouble the first thing we do is bear down and try to get through it ourselves.
We’re raised that way. Our nation was founded with the ideals of independence and rugged individualism at the center of all that we believe. We view as weak those who have to lean on others to get through it.
However, if we are so good at being independent, then why are broken relationships at epidemic levels in our society? If we are so strong and have the power to fix things ourselves, why is the divorce rate as high as the marriage rate in America? Why is the divorce rate as high as the marriage rate in conservative, evangelical churches?
Why are we in a relationship crisis in our society? The reason is that we are weak, we simply don’t want to admit it. However, if we are going to allocate strength from God, we must admit that we are weak without Him.
As Lee Strobel, the former teaching pastor at Willow Creek Church has said, “We can’t be filled with the power of God until we first empty ourselves of the pretense that we can get by on our own.” (from God’s Outrageous Claims by Lee Strobel)
Relationships are hard work. It’s a tough business to maintain healthy relationships and we need to admit that we cannot do it alone. We need to admit that we need strength from God.
Power is available for all of us. There is no secret chant or special ceremony necessary to access this supernatural power from God. We simply need to acknowledge that we need it.
We are weak without His power. Jesus said in John 15, "I am the vine, and you are the branches. If you stay joined to me, and I stay joined to you, then you will produce lots of fruit. But you cannot do anything without me.” That last sentence sums it all up. We cannot do anything without Him!
We cannot build a healthy marriage… …without Him!
We cannot be the parent our children need… …without Him!
We cannot be the church member we need to be… …without Him!
We cannot have relationships at work that are marked by integrity… …without Him!
If we don’t have his strength, we cannot do what we need to do! We simply need to admit it. Admitting that we need His strength does not make it any more or less true. It is true regardless of whether or not we admit it. But admitting we are weak without God does put us in a position that allows Him to start giving us his strength.
The first step to allocating the strength of the Lord is to admit that we are weak without God!
There is a second step we must take to allocate strength. We need to affirm God’s power and presence!
II. Affirm God’s Power and Presence
The second step in allocating the power we need from God is to affirm God’s power and presence. What does affirm mean?
Affirm: To assert strongly: declare positively.
Another dictionary put it this way: To put into words positively, with conviction!
If we want to allocate strength or power from God, then we need to strongly declare, with conviction that God does indeed have power. We need to recognize that he has power and that he is the source of our power.
I Chronicles 16:11-12 says this “Look to the Lord and his strength; seek his face always. Remember the wonders has had done, his miracles, and the judgements he pronounced.”
“Trust the Lord and his mighty power. Worship him always. Remember his miracles and all his wonders and his fair decisions.”
If you want to affirm the power and the presence of God, then spend time remembering the times he has worked on your behalf. If you can’t think of any such times, then open the Word of God and read about his miracles and his wonders.
This book is full of accounts of God working wonders and miracles. It contains true story after true story of his power working on our behalf.
He led Moses and the Israelites out of Egypt and through the Red Sea! That’s power.
He knocked down the wall of the city of Jericho! That’s power.
He enabled weak and frightened Gideon to take 300 men and destroy an enemy army numbering in the 10’s of thousands! That’s power.
He enabled little David to take out big Goliath! That’s power.
He healed the lame, the blind, and the demon possessed! That’s power.
He raised the dead! That’s power.
He raised his only Son, Jesus, to life-never to die again-after he had died for our sins and been in the tomb for three days! That’s power.
The Bible is full of stories of God’s power at work and that power is available to us.
One reason a lot of people who have accepted Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior continue to be weak in their faith and continue to struggle is that they don’t know the Bible. They don’t know the stories of God’s power. They don’t know the God who uses his power for the good of his people.
If you want to allocate the strength of the Lord, then affirm his power by spending time in the Word, getting to know the stories of the great things he has done!
No relationship will work and stay healthy until we acknowledge God’s power and admit our need of that power.
Look at Ecclesiastes 4:12 with me. “Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.”
King Solomon is writing about companionship, friendship, relationships here. He says one person alone is easily defeated. Two can defend themselves. But if he’s talking about two people, and the context of this passage shows that he is, why does he mention a cord braided of three strands?
God is that third strand in our relationships. It is his power, that we are able to allocate, that gives our relationships true strength.
We need to affirm God’s power and his presence in our lives and in the lives of men and women throughout the history of our faith. We can’t access the power until we acknowledge that it is there.
The first step in allocating strength is to admit we are weak without God, the second is to affirm, with conviction his power and his presence. But there is a third step we must take.
We must be willing to align ourselves with God’s will.
III. Align Yourself With God’s Will
The third step in allocating the strength of the Lord is to align yourself with God’s will.
There are few things more dangerous than a person who has power of some sort and yet doesn’t know how to use that power.
Give a six year old a power saw and you’ll see what I mean. Either they will destroy something, they will hurt someone or they will hurt themselves. A six-year-old child has no business using power tools.
Turn an inexperienced driver loose in a crowded parking lot or on a crowded free-way and you’re asking for trouble. Not because they are inherently bad or because they are evil, but because they have power that they don’t know how to use.
The same applies to the power or strength that we can allocate from God. We shouldn’t think we’ll receive any such strength if we don’t first know how to use that strength. You see, many of us want God’s strength, God’s power, so that we can accomplish what we want in life and so that we can get what we want from our relationships.
We often ask for power from God without first asking what God’s will is and then aligning ourselves with that will. That is why we lack power many times.
“You do not have, because you do not ask God. When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives…” James 4:2b-3a
Can you relate to that? How many of you have asked God for strength in dealing with “people problems” not so that you could fix the broken relationship or so that you could be a witness to the other person, but so that you could get your way, or at least get comfortable again?
If we want to allocate the strength that God make’s available to us then we have take the time to find out what God’s will is and then align ourselves with His will.
Jesus gives us the greatest example of praying for strength and receiving the needed strength as he aligned himself with God’s will.
In Luke 22:39-46 we see Jesus earnestly praying for strength, not to do what he wants, but strength so that he may accomplish the will of God.
“Jesus went out as usual to the Mount of Olives, and his disciples followed him. On reaching the place, he said to them, ‘Pray that you will not fall into temptation.’ He withdrew about a stone’s throw beyond them, knelt down and prayed, ‘Father, if you are willing, take this cup form me; yet not my will, but yours be done.’ An angel form heaven appeared to him and strengthened him. And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground.
When he rose from the prayer and went back to the disciples, he found the asleep, exhausted from sorrow. ‘Why are you sleeping?’ he asked them. ‘Get up and pray so that you will not fall into temptation.’”
Here is Jesus, on the night before his trial and execution upon the cross praying so earnestly to God that the blood vessels in his skin rupture and he sweats drops of blood. He needed strength to go through all that he was about to face. He was going to be humiliated. He was going to be beaten. He was going to be killed. But the greatest agony of all was that he was going to be separated from God and found guilty of every sin ever committed!
It says an angel came and strengthened him. Jesus needed strength, not to do his own thing, but to do the will of God. “…yet not my will, but yours be done.”
If we want to allocate the strength that God has for us, then we must first of all align ourselves with His will. That means we have to be willing to submit what we want to what he knows is best.
It means giving up our desires, our plans, our designs for our relationships and letting God have his way. That sounds like a scary proposition, but it isn’t. If you think about it, it’s a win, win situation. God wants for us only what is in our best interest. He wants for those we are in relationships with only their best interest, and the two need not be mutually exclusive! God’s wants our best and he wants to give us the strength so that we can do what is needed to achieve his ideal. All we have to do is let him call the shots.
If you want to allocate the strength of the Lord then you must first admit you are weak without him, you must then affirm his power and his presence and then you must be willing to align yourself with his will. But there is another step we must take if we are going to gain access to the strength that God has for us. We need to ask God for the power we need.
IV. Ask God for the Power You Need
It’s a simple enough equation; ask and receive. It’s not hard and yet we make it so much more complicated than we need to. We need to be willing to ask God for the strength we need.
Too often we want and need the strength of God in our lives, we want his intervention, but we beat around the bush. God wants us to ask him for what we need.
Let’s go back to James 4:2 “You do not have, because you do not ask God.” All we have to do is ask. Yet so often we fail to do this simple act.
We’ll acknowledge our weakness, we’ll affirm God’s power, we’ll align ourselves with God’s will and then we sit around and wait for something to happen. Folks, God is a perfect gentleman, he’s not going force himself on you. He will patiently wait for you to ask for his strength. We need to come right out and express our need for strength to him openly.
When you need strength, stop and openly ask God for the strength you need.
We need to admit our weakness without him. We need to affirm his power and his presence. We need to align ourselves with his will and we need to ask for his power. But what happens when we have done those four things and we don’t feel any different? What happens when we have taken these steps for allocating the strength of the Lord but we don’t feel any stronger?
We must take a fifth step to finally realize the power that is at our disposal. We must act in obedience to God.
V. Act in Obedience to God
Even if we have done all of the above, admitting our weakness, affirming God’s power, aligning ourselves with his will and asking for his power, we may not feel powerful. We may not feel like we have the strength needed. But it’s there.
What we need to do is to step out and act in obedience. We need to move forward, in faith, believing that God has and will give us the strength. And as we obey him the strength we need will be given to us.
God’s strength is not primarily “potential strength.” He doesn’t have this big battery full of strength and power waiting for us to tap into it.
God’s strength for us is primarily “kinetic strength.” Strength in motion, power in action.
After the Israelites had left Egypt and spent 40 years wandering around the Arabian desert, the time had come for them to enter the land God had promised to them. However, there was a major obstacle. The Jordan river, which was the eastern boundary of the Promised Land at that time was at flood stage and they had to cross it. But God had a plan. He promised he would part the waters, like he had done with the Red Sea, but this time he worked just a little bit differently. He told them he would part the waters as they stepped into the river and moved forward. As long as they stood on the river bank waiting for God to part the waters nothing happened. But when they acted in obedience and stepped forward, the water parted. (Story found in Joshua 3)
God wants the same kind of faith to be exhibited in our lives. He wants us to step forward in obedience and as we act in obedience, he gives us the needed strength.
Application: Relationships are hard work. Relationships at home, at work, at church, where-ever take hard work. The body of relationships that we find ourselves existing within must be maintained and built up.
Because of that we’re looking at the 8 essential exercises for building a better body. But to really do the needed exercises we must have strength. We need to have real power and real strength that comes from a source that is bigger than us.
That’s why the Apostle Paul tells us to “be strong in the Lord!” The strength we need to keep our relationships healthy is a strength that we don’t have, but we do have access to it. We need only to allocate it.
How do we allocate the strength offered so that we may “Be Strong in the Lord?”
1. Acknowledge our weakness without His strength.
2. Affirm His strength and His presence.
3. Align yourself with His will.
4. Ask for the strength you need.
5. Act in obedience.
This morning, as we conclude this service, where do you need strength? What relationship needs a degree of strength that is beyond you? Is it your marriage? Is it a relationship with a parent? Is it a relationship with a child? Is it a relationship with a co-worker? Is it a relationship with someone in the church? Is it your relationship with the church or more importantly, is it your relationship with Jesus Christ that needs a special infusion of supernatural strength?
Whatever the relationship, I assure God wants to give the strength you need, real power to make it work. This morning right now, start to take the steps necessary to allocate his strength and he will supply you beyond your wildest dreams! Be Strong in the Lord!
