Strength To Stand-11 Series

STRENGTH To STAND-XI—Ephesians 6:10-20

Attention:

Self-Conscious At The Gym:

I was self-conscious about going to the gym, because I thought the pounds I had put on would make me stand out among the spandex-clad regulars. I chose a treadmill in the corner so I'd be inconspicuous.

However, as I exercised, my worst fears came true. At least a dozen people turned to stare at me periodically. I thought it might be my imagination, but then one woman even squinted to get a better look.

Mortified, I stepped off the machine to leave. When I turned around, I realized that the gym's only wall clock had been hanging just inches above my head.

She lost her strength to stand under the ‘critical scrutiny’ of others!

God’s people must find their Strength to Stand firm in Christ & in our Heavenly Father.

Need:

Courage—to stand firm for & in Christ—against the lost world’s direction.

Confidence—knowing that we cannot compromise with the opponent.

Perseverance—knowing that the Lord’s armor holds & protects thru every battle.

Paul urged the Ephesian church to find their strength in the Lord by effectively arming themselves.

The church must acquire God’s strength to stand victorious.

Where & How can the church find strength to stand victorious?

12 distinctions of the Christian soldier’s strength for victory.

We have found that—

...God’s people acquire strength to stand victorious..or..acquire victory thru a distinct...

1. STRENGTH(:10)

2. ENSEMBLE(:11)Clothing/Array/Dress

3. CONTENTION(:12)

4. RESISTANCE(:13)

5. REALITY(:14a)Truth

6. MANNER(:14b)Righteousness

7. PEACE(:15)

8. FAITH(:16)

9. SALVATION(:17a)

10. WORD(:17b)

11. COMMUNICATION & DIRECTION(:18)Prayer

12—God’s people acquire strength to stand victorious in a distinct...

MISSION & MESSAGE(:19-20)

Explanation:(:19-20)Ambassador/Boldly sharing the Gospel

:19-20—“& for me, that utterance may be given to me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains; that in it I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.”

Paul’s reference here is to :18’s call to PRAYER for every Christian’s proper preparation in the battle against the spiritual aspects of wickedness(:12).

Just like you & me, the apostle Paul needed prayer in order for his flesh to be surrendered to God’s call for his “utterance.”

“& for me,

Paul ‘coveted’ prayers for himself as he sought to fulfill God’s call upon his life.

“And”—kai—

“For”(See :20)—uper—Prep.—1) In behalf of, for the sake of; 2) Over, beyond, more than; 3) More, beyond, over. Strong—a primary preposition; "over", i.e. (with the genitive case)of place--Above, beyond, across, or causal, for the sake of, instead, regarding; with the accusative case--Superior to, more than.

“Me”—emou—Pronoun 1st Genitive Sing.—1) Me, my, mine, etc. Strong—From egw; a prolonged form of mou; Of me.

“that utterance may be given to me,”

The necessary word(logov—“utterance”) would be given to Paul from God, thru the conduit of prayers for that end, from the faithful.

“Utterance”—logov—Noun Nominative Sing. Masc.—1) of speech—1a) A word, uttered by a living voice, embodies a conception or idea, 1b) What someone has said, 1c) Discourse, 1d) Doctrine, teaching, 1e) Anything reported in speech; a narration, narrative, 1f) Matter under discussion, thing spoken of, affair, a matter in dispute, case, suit at law, 1g) The thing spoken of or talked about; event, deed; 2) Its use as respect to the MIND alone—2a) Reason, the mental faculty of thinking, meditating, reasoning, calculating, 2b) Account, i.e. regard, consideration, 2c) Account, i.e. reckoning, score, 2d) Account, i.e. answer or explanation in reference to judgment, 2e) Relation, i.e. with whom as judge we stand in relation, 2f) Reason, cause, ground; 3) In John, denotes the essential Word of God, Jesus Christ. Strong—from legw[a primary verb; properly--To "lay" forth, i.e. figuratively--Relate(in words [usually of systematic or set discourse; ; whereas epw & fhmi generally refer to an individual expression or speech respectively; while rew is properly, to break silence merely, & lalew means an extended or random harangue]); by implication--To mean]; Something said(including the thought); by implication a topic(subject of discourse), also reasoning(the mental faculty) or motive; by extension--A computation; specifically(with the article in John)--The Divine Expression(i.e. Christ).

“Given”—didwmi—Aorist Active Optative 3rd Sing.(TR 1550)Aorist Passive Subjunctive(RWP)—1) To give; 2) To give something to someone—2a) Of one's own accord to give one something, to his advantage—2a1) To bestow a gift, 2b) To grant, give to one asking, let have, 2c) To supply, furnish, necessary things, 2d) To give over, deliver—2d1) To reach out, extend, present, 2d2) Of a writing, 2d3) To give over to one's care, intrust, commit—2d3a) Something to be administered, 2d3b) To give or commit to some one something to be religiously observed, 2e) To give what is due or obligatory, to pay: wages or reward, 2f) To furnish, endue; 3) To give—3a) To cause, profuse, give forth from one's self—3a1) To give, hand out lots, 3b) To appoint to an office, 3c) To cause to come forth, i.e. as the sea, death & Hell are said to give up the dead who have been engulfed or received by them, 3c) To give one to someone as his own—3c1) As an object of his saving care, 3c2) To give one to someone, to follow him as a leader & master, 3c3) To give one to someone to care for his interests, 3c4) To give one to someone to whom he already belonged, to return; 4) To grant or permit one—4a) To commission. Didwmi denotes “to give” in general, opposite to lambanw “to take”; dwreomai specific, “to bestow, present”; didwmi might be used even of evils, but dwreomai could be used of such things only ironically. Strong—a prolonged form of a primary verb(which is used as an alternative in most of the tenses); To give(used in a very wide application, properly, or by implication, literally or figuratively; greatly modified by the connection).