“SOLDIER FOR LIFE”
Finishing Strong Principles from Ephesians 6:10-13
by Patrick Tan
June 25, 2006
Binondo Full Gospel Family Center
Good morning. Greetings in the Name of Jesus Christ!
Today’s scripture is found in Ephesians 6:10-13. Can I ask everyone to stand and let’s read the Word of God altogether:
Ephesians 6:10-13 (NIV),
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. 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.
Let us pray.
Heavenly Father, we thank you because You are our Father. You know everything about us – Everything that can be seen and everything that is hidden in secret. That is why, Father, we ask for Your cleansing as we stand before You. Cleanse our minds and our ears so that we can hear clearly what You want to say. Lord, may Your Word may compel the hearts of Your children to stand up and stand firm. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Introduction
This month we are in the subject of guarding our spirit. This is one of the components of the EPHOD discipleship called Monitor. And I believe the past messages have made a wonderful job in giving us awareness and practical measures about finishing strong in the faith. Here in BFGFC we are committed in finishing strong, meaning as followers of Christ, we will be committed to Jesus FOR LIFE (until He comes back or we go home, whichever comes first!). Just as Ptr. Zaldy had already shared to us, our Christian life is a marathon (1 Corinthians 9:24-27), it doesn’t matter how long it takes to reach the finish line, as long as you reach the finish line!
Background of the passage
Our scripture comes from Paul’s letter to the Ephesians. Just as we have studied last time Paul’s objective is to encourage and assure the Ephesian church of their salvation through faith in Jesus Christ.
• On the first half of the letter presents reasons why we are now children of God…
• And in the later half, Paul explains, now that we are called children of God, we should act like children of God, becoming “imitators of God” (5:1). In other words, Paul is saying now that we are children of God, we must strive to be children of God FOR LIFE!
o Among these acts, Paul commands us to be strong and stand firm in the faith.
In this passage, Paul patterns the manner of how we should guard our spirits to that of a Roman soldier on guard (note the choice of words that he used):
Ephesians 6:10-13 (NIV),
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. 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.
Paul then continues to describe in detail the armor which we must put on ourselves, which I will share in a little while.
Falling away in the last days
Just like Roman soldiers or soldiers in general for that matter who engaged in a physical battle, children of God are daily engaged in a spiritual war against evil.
And just like war where casualties are inevitable, it is not uncommon to hear stories of casualties among the brethren. There are people who were once on-fire for the Lord now MIA – Missing in Action. We find them back in their old life, worse. Let us not even go too far. Let’s look at ourselves. Perhaps at one time we were very passionate for the Lord – not one church activity missed, never missed daily devotion, number-one encourager of the brethren – now, puts Bible reading and prayer time in their lesser priorities and discouraged and defeated, now they don’t care if he/she misses worship time! (Do you know that worship time and offering is the time we give to God while hearing the Word is the time we receive, so let us not miss worship time.) Or perhaps some of us are living double lives, struggling in secret habitual sins that continue to torment us with shame and guilt.
In the Bible, we see lives that start up strong but wasn’t able to finish strong:
• King Solomon – He was the favored king of Israel, endowed by God by wisdom that the Bible says there is no one on earth like him. He ended up torn worship the idols of his wives and concubines.
• Judas Iscariot – He began as Jesus’ big 12. He held the company treasury. He ended up killing himself, overcome with guilt for betraying innocent blood.
Paul was keen in observing the danger of falling away in the faith in the last days.
1 Timothy 4:1-5 (NLT),
“… in the last days there will be very difficult times. For people will love only themselves and their money. They will be boastful and proud… disobedient to parents… unloving and unforgiving; they will slander others… they will betray their friends… puffed up with pride, and love pleasure rather than God. They act as if they are religious, but they will reject the power that could make them godly.”
Therefore it is very crucial to be aware of our spiritual walk with God. My sermon today is entitled: “SOLDIER FOR LIFE.” Today I will share to you 3 finishing-strong principles from Ephesians 6:10-18.
Principle #1 – Soldiers know their Captain – Acknowledging our weakness before the all-powerful God
There is a hidden-camera show in MTV called the “boiling point.” The concept of this show is to put strangers unknowingly in situations that will provoke them to get angry. If they keep their cool until a designated time, they win $100, if they lose, they are out. As a veteran, Paul knew better the limitation of man – limitation to hold on to his integrity. Man is in constant struggle with himself.
Romans 7:14-25 (NIV),
“… I am unspiritual, sold as slave to sin… For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate [to do] I do… I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out… it is no longer I myself who do it (evil), but it is sin living in me… What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death?
All of us have limitations. By our own strength perhaps we could hold on but only for a while. By our own, our love has limitations (I can only love you by this much); our patience has limitations (I can only be patient with you by this much!); even our generosity have limitations. We are tight wires waiting to snap. Many Christians do not finish strong because they do not know or perhaps ignore their limitations. Therefore Paul opens with the following command,
Ephesians 6:10 (NIV),
… be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power.
Paul knew the man’s limitation without Christ. Thus Paul commands us to be strong. For would it be redundant for Paul to instruct us to be strong if we are already strong? In fact, like superheroes, all of us have weaknesses. Therefore we ought to acknowledge our weaknesses for in it the need for Someone to fill our weakness arises. One best example of this is David,
1 Samuel 30:1-6 (NASB),
Then it happened when David and his men came to Ziklag… that the Amalekites had made a raid… on Ziklag, and had overthrown Ziklag and burned it with fire; and they took captive the women and all who were in it… and carried them off and went their way. When David and his men came to the city, behold, it was burned with fire, and their wives and their sons and their daughters had been taken captive. Then David and the people who were with him lifted their voices and wept until there was no strength in them to weep. Now David’s two wives had been taken captive… Moreover David was greatly distressed because the people spoke of stoning him, for all the people were embittered, each one because of his sons and his daughters. But David strengthened himself in the LORD his God.
When David was at the point of breaking, he knew when to recharge and where to draw this strength – he went to the Lord. Psalm 13 tells about David’s anguish at this time,
• David was honest with his feelings.
• David acknowledged his weaknesses.
• David believed he will be heard.
Especially for leaders and parents whom people look up to, when they are in a point of hopelessness, one must remember the Lord. What a breakthrough it is when broken people meet his powerful God. Jesus himself said,
2 Corinthians 12:9-10 (NIV),
... He (Jesus) said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” 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.
Principle #2 – Soldiers know their enemy – Declaring war against the devil
On July 2, our pambansang kamao Manny Pacquiao will be fighting with Mexican Oscar Larios entitled “Mano-o-mano.” Last January, after a comeback win on his fight with Erik Morales, Pacquiao revealed in an interview that one sure-win strategy he did was to watch the previous records of the fights of Morales and study his every move, his method of attack and his weaknesses.
Ephesians 6:11 (NIV),
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.
Like Pacquiao, soldiers who are serious in winning take time to study the strategies of their enemy. We Christians ought to be aware that we are in the middle of a war zone. The moment we accepted Jesus as Lord and Savior is the moment we sign-up into God’s army. Before we accepted Christ we are captives of Satan. But now that we have crossed over we have become a primary target of the devil who wants nothing more than to get you back on their side again. The Bible describes the devil as the one, whose goal is to materialize your downfall,
John 10:10 (NIV),
The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy…
1 Peter 5:8 (NIV),
… Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.
Paul in Ephesians 6:11-12 warns the believer to be aware of the schemes of the devil. Satan who has existed before man surely has every scheme/strategy to ensnare every human weakness. He will use different kinds of temptation for different kinds of weaknesses. Ever wonder why the temptations that come your way often are the ones you are most vulnerable to?
• If your weakness is patience he will send a very irritable person into your life (even into the church of all places!)
• If your weakness is money or materials he will bring in the “best” job that would steal your time away from your family and God.
• If your weakness is the opposite sex, he will bring into your life the most handsome/beautiful creature you’ve ever seen, a husband/wife material, but someone who doesn’t have a personal relationship with God.
• He could entangle us with sickness and world philosophies and deceptions just to ensnare you and bring you back into his territory, away from the Lord!
This is not merely coincidence. Paul says in verse 12 that our struggle/fight is not merely against what is seen or pure coincidence, but there is an invisible evil at work against us. Therefore we must be aware!
But there is good news my friends. We are not powerless from his schemes. We can wage war because we are already victorious through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ!
Colossians 2:15 (NLT),
In this way, God disarmed the evil rulers and authorities. He shamed them publicly by his victory over them on the cross of Christ.
Jesus said,
Luke 10:19 (NIV),
I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you.
In 1 John 4:4 (NASB),
You are from God… and have overcome them; because greater is He who is in you that he who is in the world.
And knowing the victory we already possess. We must muster the courage to declare war against the enemy.
Mark 3:27 (NIV),
… No one can enter a strong man’s house and carry off his possessions unless he first ties up the strong man. Then he can rob his house.
Three things Jesus points out in waging war against the enemy in Mark 3:27,
• Tie up the strong man – declare war against Satan
• Enter his house – go into his territory bearing the authority of Jesus Christ
• Carry off his possessions – bring back the lost and the stolen to Christ
Practical steps in declaring war against the enemy:
• If Satan reminds you of your past, remind him of his future
• Frustrate the schemes of the enemy
• Live a righteous life before God
• Challenge Satan by believing in Jesus’ Name, declaring His Word, praying in the Spirit, fasting, practicing and desiring the gifts of the Holy Spirit
• Pray for the lost and bring them to salvation
Principle #3 – Soldiers know their arms/weapons – Utilizing the full armor of God to its fullest
And finally like a James Bond movie, God has equipped us with His own armor:
Ephesians 6:13 (NIV),
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.
Many different interpretations of the armor have been given, and its equivalents in the panoply of the Roman soldier of Paul’s day have been discussed. But what is most important has often been overlooked: Paul here describes the armor which enables us to stand against attacks on our life together as Christ’s new community. Viewed from this perspective, what are the divine resources we have been given?
The belt of truth. Put off falsehood and speak truthfully to your neighbor, Paul has warned, for we are all members of one body (4:25). Openness and honesty gird us together; misunderstanding and hidden motives divide.
The breastplate of righteousness. “There must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed” (5:3) among God’s holy people. Righteous living is essential, guarding the very heart of our shared lives.
Feet fitted with the Gospel of peace. More than once in this letter Paul has stressed how the Gospel brings peace, reconciling us to God and making us one. In Ephesians, peace is the bond that holds the unity created by the Spirit. When unity is maintained, Christ’s church is enabled to move in full responsiveness to its Head.
The shield of faith. We maintain a confident hope in the reality and power of God. This trust extinguishes doubt. We are inadequate in ourselves, yes. But our trust is in God, who “is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work in us” (3:20).
The helmet of salvation. Salvation has brought us a new life and identity. By keeping our identity as Christ’s living church constantly before us, our perception of life is transformed. Satan’s dreams of distorted relationships cannot cloud the mind of a person who grasps the full meaning of the salvation we enjoy in Christ.
The Spirit’s sword. Why does Paul explain here that the sword is “the Word of God”? (6:17) It is because, in all of Ephesians, Paul has not discussed Scripture as he has the other elements of our armor. This vital tool is needed for us to wage our spiritual warfare.
And, in it all, on all occasions, we need prayer.
