WEBVTT 00:00:02.720 --> 00:00:03.359 Good morning. 00:00:03.359 --> 00:00:04.480 It's great to be back. 00:00:04.480 --> 00:00:12.160 It's the one we uh we did have a great time away uh on sabbatical, and I want to thank you all for letting us uh do that. 00:00:12.160 --> 00:00:17.920 We had a time of restoration and rest, and uh just felt like we heard from God in several ways. 00:00:17.920 --> 00:00:20.160 But I just uh want to thank you again for that. 00:00:20.160 --> 00:00:27.440 You know, we're uh we're just excited to be back, and my opportunity to get up here and uh share God's word, I'm I'm excited about today. 00:00:27.440 --> 00:00:33.119 We've been in Ephesians, as you know, for uh a little while now, all the way back through last fall, even. 00:00:33.119 --> 00:00:41.039 And uh today we're in chapter six, and uh we're gonna talk about uh some things I think are relevant maybe to where we live today. 00:00:41.039 --> 00:00:43.439 And I know God is gonna speak to us. 00:00:43.439 --> 00:00:52.960 You know, uh this morning or last night, I uh I was going to bed and I ended up uh having a problem with my eye where I woke up this morning. 00:00:52.960 --> 00:00:58.079 My eye uh kind of drained all night and I couldn't hardly open it this morning. 00:00:58.079 --> 00:01:01.200 And uh just kind of like, Lord, what's going on here? 00:01:01.200 --> 00:01:06.640 And uh so you know, there's things that go on in our life like that that uh we just struggle with. 00:01:06.640 --> 00:01:09.040 And every day there's something seemingly new. 00:01:09.040 --> 00:01:17.200 I I was uh, you know, last week my my uh daughter, uh oldest daughter, was keeping my granddaughter, my three-year-old granddaughter, Lily. 00:01:17.200 --> 00:01:26.959 And uh I've mentioned Lily before, and but they were there sitting in the floor, pen and paper in hand, and uh my daughter was watching Lily draw. 00:01:26.959 --> 00:01:30.239 And she put this, all of a sudden put this little squiggly line. 00:01:30.239 --> 00:01:44.000 I wish I could show you the picture, but uh just a squiggly line, and she stopped and she just looked at it a little bit and kind of, and all of a sudden she suddenly suddenly she said, Well, that's my life. 00:01:44.000 --> 00:01:47.280 Three years old. 00:01:47.280 --> 00:01:51.920 I couldn't believe it, you know? 00:01:51.920 --> 00:01:55.200 Uh but I thought how true, how true that is. 00:01:55.200 --> 00:01:59.519 You know, it made me think that uh that's the way we sometimes we we see our lives. 00:01:59.519 --> 00:02:03.920 It doesn't make a whole lot of sense, and it doesn't seem to be going anywhere. 00:02:03.920 --> 00:02:07.920 Um but today I want to talk to you about something that kind of relates to that. 00:02:07.920 --> 00:02:14.639 Could it be that some of the struggles that we go through really uh there's more going on there that meet than meets the eye? 00:02:14.639 --> 00:02:18.240 This is what Paul kind of is getting at as he goes through this passage. 00:02:18.240 --> 00:02:21.120 Paul would tell us, you'd better believe there is. 00:02:21.120 --> 00:02:27.439 And um, this world that we live in is uh is really larger than we imagine. 00:02:27.439 --> 00:02:34.080 And behind the scenes, really, our um reality is much of it is unseen. 00:02:34.080 --> 00:02:38.719 We know that there are angels that exist, good angels and fallen angels. 00:02:38.719 --> 00:02:52.319 And Paul talks about Paul now sees as we go through this chapter in chapter six, almost the way we need to take this perspective of what's going on in the in the other unreal, unseen realm on the dark side. 00:02:52.319 --> 00:02:56.319 And uh he's just talking about us in terms of soldiers. 00:02:56.319 --> 00:02:58.800 We need to think like soldiers, Christian soldiers. 00:02:58.800 --> 00:03:08.240 So this morning we're gonna talk about our struggles and how the dark side and the things that are real out there maybe impact us more than we might know. 00:03:08.240 --> 00:03:11.360 So uh let's just pray and ask God to help us. 00:03:11.360 --> 00:03:16.479 Father, we're thankful that you uh know what's going on in each of our lives this morning. 00:03:16.479 --> 00:03:23.599 And we're grateful that, Lord, above all, you were over everything, even the things that we're going through that we don't understand. 00:03:23.599 --> 00:03:35.280 And Lord, we acknowledge that there are uh just unseen forces in the dark side, as well as your good angels that watch over us, you watch over us, and you use them all to your purposes. 00:03:35.280 --> 00:03:42.319 And so, Lord, we just pray for that reality to sink in even before we get into looking at the armor, these weeks to come. 00:03:42.319 --> 00:03:46.319 Lord, teach us these truths and drive them deep into our soul. 00:03:46.319 --> 00:03:48.800 We pray in Jesus' name. 00:03:48.800 --> 00:03:57.360 So, what do we need to know and do to make sure that we're not taken out by this unseen enemy we've talked about? 00:03:57.360 --> 00:04:10.639 Um, when the dust all settles, we should be, as Paul says, standing and not falling, not failing in our abilities to stand and and remain in what God has given us. 00:04:10.639 --> 00:04:13.439 You know, let's just read the passage and just see what God says. 00:04:13.439 --> 00:04:15.280 It's Ephesians chapter 6. 00:04:15.280 --> 00:04:20.639 We're gonna begin in verse 10 and go through verse 13, just these three three verses. 00:04:20.639 --> 00:04:26.240 And Paul says, he's finally be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. 00:04:26.240 --> 00:04:31.360 Put on the whole armor of God that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. 00:04:31.360 --> 00:04:45.040 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. 00:04:45.040 --> 00:04:54.480 Therefore, take up the whole armor of God that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all to stand firm. 00:04:54.480 --> 00:05:00.319 You know, the Bible says, Greater is he who is in you than he who is in the world. 00:05:00.319 --> 00:05:05.439 So I don't want, as we go through this message, to give you any idea that we need to be afraid of these dark forces. 00:05:05.439 --> 00:05:12.639 We just need to be aware of them and make sure we take steps to protect ourselves and not lose what God has given us. 00:05:12.639 --> 00:05:19.120 So we come now to this final section, and uh actually that first verse says, Paul says, finally. 00:05:19.120 --> 00:05:21.600 He doesn't mean I'm tired of talking. 00:05:21.600 --> 00:05:28.000 He's saying, This is the last thing that I want to make sure you get because it's so important. 00:05:28.000 --> 00:05:30.639 Paul says, finally, there. 00:05:30.639 --> 00:05:33.360 And um, what has he talked about so far in this letter? 00:05:33.360 --> 00:05:48.399 He's talked about, first of all, sitting in the heavenlies to see that we have realities that we might not be aware of, the riches and the resources that are found in Christ, sitting there and seeing that what God has given us is something we can grab hold of even right now. 00:05:48.399 --> 00:05:52.879 He's talked about walking, walking it like Christ did in this world. 00:05:52.879 --> 00:05:57.120 And we know the last few weeks we've been talking about how to live that out in our households. 00:05:57.120 --> 00:05:58.399 Practical stuff. 00:05:58.399 --> 00:06:01.040 How do you live like Jesus in your homes? 00:06:01.040 --> 00:06:04.240 That's practical, and we need to learn from that. 00:06:04.240 --> 00:06:12.959 And now, today, there's one more thing, and that's what these really, I think he's he's telling these believers, you really need to know this. 00:06:12.959 --> 00:06:20.480 You don't need to pass it off or ignore it, and all believes that he that it even exists, and that is that we need to stand to fight. 00:06:20.480 --> 00:06:24.319 Stand to fight for what the enemy wants to take from you. 00:06:24.319 --> 00:06:25.439 And that's so important. 00:06:25.439 --> 00:06:28.399 Therefore, as we look at his Paul's mind, what's he turning to? 00:06:28.399 --> 00:06:31.680 He's turning to the ultimate reason behind our struggles. 00:06:31.680 --> 00:06:40.639 You say, well, you know, you can blame that on the enemy, Satan, everything, but you know, we do struggle with sin. 00:06:40.639 --> 00:06:44.480 But behind all evil is a personal enemy. 00:06:44.480 --> 00:06:47.199 And God makes that clear in Scripture. 00:06:47.199 --> 00:06:56.959 And so we're looking at this, even though we struggle, even though we're looking at this in terms of something we can't see, it's real. 00:06:56.959 --> 00:06:58.959 And we need to take that into account. 00:06:58.959 --> 00:07:08.240 So I want to uh just before we get into it, kind of just to look at some of the background that kind of set the stage for this, because I think it particularly speaks to us about where Paul was. 00:07:08.240 --> 00:07:09.920 Think about where he was. 00:07:09.920 --> 00:07:11.439 Maybe you don't remember. 00:07:11.439 --> 00:07:12.959 He's in prison, right? 00:07:12.959 --> 00:07:18.959 And uh, you know, we're looking at this, and uh in the imagery he uses is really important. 00:07:18.959 --> 00:07:28.560 He takes this imagery from the from the prophet Isaiah, and Isaiah is pictured as uh as pictures God as a warrior dressed out for battle. 00:07:28.560 --> 00:07:34.560 And you can look at that in Isaiah chapter 11, 29, 49, and 52 if you want to go back and see that. 00:07:34.560 --> 00:07:42.399 But we're ourselves urged by Paul to prepare for the struggle by taking and putting on the same armor that God himself wore. 00:07:42.399 --> 00:07:47.279 This is the same armor that Jesus wore to take him all the way to the cross. 00:07:47.279 --> 00:07:50.000 So this is very practical and it applies to us. 00:07:50.000 --> 00:07:53.839 We're not wearing our own armor, we're wearing the armor of God. 00:07:53.839 --> 00:07:55.439 This is what he's talking about. 00:07:55.439 --> 00:07:59.519 Second thing, remember as I say, where Paul was when he wrote this letter. 00:07:59.519 --> 00:08:00.800 He's in prison. 00:08:00.800 --> 00:08:07.519 And uh, you know, most of us probably haven't been uh for any length of time, hopefully, but you in a prison. 00:08:07.519 --> 00:08:12.079 But you might imagine uh he was pretty probably pretty discouraged. 00:08:12.079 --> 00:08:17.199 Uh we know that during his, he was there in prison for for two whole years. 00:08:17.199 --> 00:08:18.879 And uh in A.D. 00:08:18.879 --> 00:08:22.160 60 to 62, somewhere around there, where he where he wrote this letter. 00:08:22.160 --> 00:08:23.839 He wrote some other letters there too. 00:08:23.839 --> 00:08:32.320 But it says uh we know from scripture he he lived in his own rented apartment, and uh he but he was under constant supervision. 00:08:32.320 --> 00:08:39.039 In fact, Acts tells us uh he was allowed to live by himself with a soldier to guard him. 00:08:39.039 --> 00:08:41.120 Acts 28, 16. 00:08:41.120 --> 00:08:43.679 You think, well, that's just uh that's not really so bad. 00:08:43.679 --> 00:08:45.679 That's not like he's behind bars. 00:08:45.679 --> 00:08:55.440 But in reality, Paul was bound to a soldier seven days a week, 24 hours a day, for two whole years. 00:08:55.440 --> 00:08:56.799 Think about that. 00:08:56.799 --> 00:09:03.440 And he was bound by a chain that was about 18 inches long, referred to as a helosis. 00:09:03.440 --> 00:09:08.720 And this was a common way that prisoners were bound to to the person that guarded them. 00:09:08.720 --> 00:09:11.200 And so he didn't get very far away. 00:09:11.200 --> 00:09:21.120 And uh, I can imagine how hard that was, even for two years having that binding metal piece on your arms and just struggling with that. 00:09:21.120 --> 00:09:22.879 Um, one writer said it like this. 00:09:22.879 --> 00:09:30.240 He said he virtually had no privacy day or night, because the interesting thing with the Roman system is that it worked. 00:09:30.240 --> 00:09:38.000 They had a very interesting way of demanding loyalty from the Roman soldiers who were very undereducated for the most part. 00:09:38.000 --> 00:09:42.000 And that is, if a prisoner escaped on your watch, guess what? 00:09:42.000 --> 00:09:42.799 You die. 00:09:42.799 --> 00:09:47.519 You get early retirement at the behest of the Roman Empire. 00:09:47.519 --> 00:09:54.480 He goes on, he says, you know that put all these soldiers on alert. 00:09:54.480 --> 00:09:59.120 If I allow this prisoner they're thinking to escape, put all put all these soldiers on alert. 00:09:59.120 --> 00:10:03.279 If I allow these prisoners to escape while I'm watching him, then it's it for me. 00:10:03.279 --> 00:10:03.759 That's it. 00:10:03.759 --> 00:10:05.519 I'm I'm I'm done for. 00:10:05.519 --> 00:10:17.919 So even if you're a little sleepy, a little bit indifferent, or maybe even thought the inmate, the prisoner, was innocent, you weren't about to let him go because it meant your life. 00:10:17.919 --> 00:10:30.879 So these Roman soldiers were ruthless, but they were also very astute, and they had a way of ensuring that when you became a prisoner in the Roman Empire, you were a prisoner until they let you go. 00:10:30.879 --> 00:10:36.799 So Paul was constantly tied to this Roman soldier, to a different one every six hours. 00:10:36.799 --> 00:10:44.000 So they rotated, and Paul is constantly being introduced to a new prisoner, 18 inches at the short chain. 00:10:44.000 --> 00:10:47.360 And these are the elite guards of the emperor. 00:10:47.360 --> 00:10:50.879 And so they had access to the palace. 00:10:50.879 --> 00:10:53.440 And so we see what became of that. 00:10:53.440 --> 00:10:58.000 And sometimes we think that the struggles we're going through have no purpose or meaning. 00:10:58.000 --> 00:11:01.840 But I want you to listen to what Paul said about his own struggle. 00:11:01.840 --> 00:11:08.159 He writes in Philippians 1, 12-14, another one of the letters that Paul wrote from prison in Rome. 00:11:08.159 --> 00:11:23.120 He says, I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel so that it has become known throughout the whole imperial guard and to all the rest that my imprisonment is for Christ. 00:11:23.120 --> 00:11:32.720 And most of the brothers, having been confident in the Lord by my imprisonment, are much more bold to speak the word without fear. 00:11:32.720 --> 00:11:39.919 You see the impact of Paul's struggle, and nobody probably really knew until they saw the fruit of it. 00:11:39.919 --> 00:11:43.039 And often we won't know the struggle that we go through. 00:11:43.039 --> 00:11:44.399 It has fruit too. 00:11:44.399 --> 00:11:46.159 If we'll just hang in in there. 00:11:46.159 --> 00:11:47.440 We'll just hang in there. 00:11:47.440 --> 00:11:53.120 So, in other words, his his his struggle was a was really a platform for the gospel. 00:11:53.120 --> 00:11:59.519 Um, and it was like a uh a chain reaction for the gospel. 00:11:59.519 --> 00:12:00.399 Uh-huh. 00:12:00.399 --> 00:12:01.279 Right. 00:12:01.279 --> 00:12:05.440 So with that in mind, let's so let's look at this. 00:12:05.440 --> 00:12:10.480 Paul um Paul's wanting to see and show us how do you respond to your struggles. 00:12:10.480 --> 00:12:14.480 If you really want to see something come out of them, how do you respond? 00:12:14.480 --> 00:12:19.919 And and um let me just kind of give these to you in summary, and I'll I'll go through them in detail. 00:12:19.919 --> 00:12:23.039 And just I think this is how Paul puts these points out here. 00:12:23.039 --> 00:12:24.559 The first, be strong. 00:12:24.559 --> 00:12:27.279 Second, wear the armor. 00:12:27.279 --> 00:12:29.519 Third, know your enemy. 00:12:29.519 --> 00:12:32.320 And fourth, never surrender. 00:12:32.320 --> 00:12:33.519 So let's look at this. 00:12:33.519 --> 00:12:35.759 The first one isn't found, it's found in verse 10. 00:12:35.759 --> 00:12:37.840 I just call it the essential preparation. 00:12:37.840 --> 00:12:39.120 The essential preparation. 00:12:39.120 --> 00:12:42.960 He says, Finally be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. 00:12:42.960 --> 00:12:46.000 And so Paul begins with our personal spiritual life. 00:12:46.000 --> 00:12:47.840 You want to you want to stand strong? 00:12:47.840 --> 00:12:50.000 Begin with your personal spiritual life. 00:12:50.000 --> 00:12:52.240 Make sure it's healthy. 00:12:52.240 --> 00:12:59.919 Make sure that you read in your Bible, make sure that you're praying, make sure that you're coming to church on a regular basis. 00:12:59.919 --> 00:13:07.440 You know, sometimes I think, you know, I love to tell the people who come maybe maybe every once in a while, you know, you need to be here more often because your spiritual life was suffering. 00:13:07.440 --> 00:13:08.799 But they're not here. 00:13:08.799 --> 00:13:10.639 So I can't tell them. 00:13:10.639 --> 00:13:14.320 Look at this word to be strong. 00:13:14.320 --> 00:13:18.159 It's a it's a present, in the Greek, it's a present passive. 00:13:18.159 --> 00:13:19.519 And you say, what does that mean? 00:13:19.519 --> 00:13:24.399 It literally means it reads like this to keep on being strengthened by someone. 00:13:24.399 --> 00:13:25.120 That's what it means. 00:13:25.120 --> 00:13:28.480 To be keep to keep on being strengthened by someone else. 00:13:28.480 --> 00:13:30.559 And guess who the someone else is? 00:13:30.559 --> 00:13:32.080 It's Jesus Christ. 00:13:32.080 --> 00:13:35.120 Keep on being strengthened by Jesus Christ. 00:13:35.120 --> 00:13:37.519 Don't let that wane and go away. 00:13:37.519 --> 00:13:40.080 And notice we're to be strong in two ways. 00:13:40.080 --> 00:13:42.639 He says, first of all, here in the Lord. 00:13:42.639 --> 00:13:44.000 In the Lord. 00:13:44.000 --> 00:13:47.360 In other words, be strong in your relationship with Jesus. 00:13:47.360 --> 00:13:50.879 Are you strong this morning in your relationship with Jesus? 00:13:50.879 --> 00:13:54.080 Or is he just something you do on Sundays? 00:13:54.080 --> 00:13:57.200 Do you get with him in a personal way every day? 00:13:57.200 --> 00:13:58.879 Paul said, I want to know him. 00:13:58.879 --> 00:14:00.320 I want to know him. 00:14:00.320 --> 00:14:02.000 Is that your heart? 00:14:02.000 --> 00:14:04.879 Because he's the source of our strength. 00:14:04.879 --> 00:14:13.200 So make sure you maintain an intimate relationship with Jesus, the Christ, the Lord Christ. 00:14:13.200 --> 00:14:16.559 Listen to what a couple of verses uh speak to that very thing. 00:14:16.559 --> 00:14:19.279 2 Peter 3, verse 18 says, Grow. 00:14:19.279 --> 00:14:20.639 This is how you do this. 00:14:20.639 --> 00:14:23.120 Grow in the grace and knowledge of the Lord. 00:14:23.120 --> 00:14:25.840 In other words, continually progress in the faith. 00:14:25.840 --> 00:14:28.559 Don't just be static and never changing. 00:14:28.559 --> 00:14:30.159 Let God change you. 00:14:30.159 --> 00:14:31.440 Let God mold you. 00:14:31.440 --> 00:14:32.559 God shape you. 00:14:32.559 --> 00:14:38.480 Because he wants to do that, and he will if you just give him your life and surrender. 00:14:38.480 --> 00:14:41.840 You know, one day one time David was struggling. 00:14:41.840 --> 00:14:43.200 He was distressed. 00:14:43.200 --> 00:14:45.440 They had been in a battle with the Amalekites. 00:14:45.440 --> 00:14:52.639 And uh the Amalekite army had taken the wives of the Israelites, taken them all, including David's own wives. 00:14:52.639 --> 00:14:58.480 And it says here in 1 Samuel 30, verse 6 what David did. 00:14:58.480 --> 00:15:03.919 It says, But David strengthened himself in the Lord his God. 00:15:03.919 --> 00:15:05.679 Doesn't say he complained. 00:15:05.679 --> 00:15:07.360 He doesn't say, Well, that's your fault. 00:15:07.360 --> 00:15:09.919 He didn't say, Well, I know I could have done better. 00:15:09.919 --> 00:15:10.480 He didn't do that. 00:15:10.480 --> 00:15:15.440 He went directly to the Lord, got before him, and he strengthened himself in the Lord his God. 00:15:15.440 --> 00:15:17.840 So this is so important. 00:15:17.840 --> 00:15:26.480 Our relationship to Christ gives us, think of this, our relationship to Christ gives us access to his power. 00:15:26.480 --> 00:15:29.279 And if we're not with him, guess what we don't have? 00:15:29.279 --> 00:15:30.799 No power. 00:15:30.799 --> 00:15:31.759 That's right. 00:15:31.759 --> 00:15:38.320 Colossians 2, 6 and 7 says this, and it says it in a way that can bring home practically how do we do this? 00:15:38.320 --> 00:15:43.360 He says, Therefore, just as you received Jesus Christ, how did you receive Jesus? 00:15:43.360 --> 00:15:45.039 By faith and belief. 00:15:45.039 --> 00:15:50.960 Just as you receive Christ Jesus as Lord, as Lord means He calls all the shots. 00:15:50.960 --> 00:16:00.720 Continue to live your lives in Him, rooted and built up in Him and firm in your faith, just as you were taught. 00:16:00.720 --> 00:16:05.519 And then what you said, Tyler, this morning, overflowing with thankfulness. 00:16:05.519 --> 00:16:07.279 Is that you? 00:16:07.279 --> 00:16:08.399 Is that me? 00:16:08.399 --> 00:16:12.159 I say I've still got some things to work on in that. 00:16:12.159 --> 00:16:16.159 So build up your relationship with Christ. 00:16:16.159 --> 00:16:17.360 Second, how do you be strong? 00:16:17.360 --> 00:16:20.879 You be strong in your inner man or your inner person. 00:16:20.879 --> 00:16:26.080 I call this like kind of like a battle-ready heart, a warrior's heart. 00:16:26.080 --> 00:16:27.360 And this is interesting. 00:16:27.360 --> 00:16:30.799 It's the little phrase, in the strength of his might. 00:16:30.799 --> 00:16:33.840 Let's look at that just for a minute, because it's got a lot there. 00:16:33.840 --> 00:16:37.120 A couple of different words there that are kind of speaks to us. 00:16:37.120 --> 00:16:43.519 But strength is talking about the outward demonstration of what Jesus can do through our life. 00:16:43.519 --> 00:16:45.919 But there's another word that goes along with it. 00:16:45.919 --> 00:16:47.360 It's his might. 00:16:47.360 --> 00:16:51.360 Be strong in the strength or demonstration of his might. 00:16:51.360 --> 00:16:53.440 This is the inside part. 00:16:53.440 --> 00:16:56.480 In fact, it's an interesting word in the Greek. 00:16:56.480 --> 00:16:58.080 It's the word ischus. 00:16:58.080 --> 00:17:04.799 And what it speaks about is the potential that God has put in you for you to do mighty works. 00:17:04.799 --> 00:17:11.359 The Bible says those who do know their God will be strong and do exploits. 00:17:11.359 --> 00:17:12.160 Right? 00:17:12.160 --> 00:17:17.759 And so God is always at work trying to get us to be have a stronger heart, a warrior's heart. 00:17:17.759 --> 00:17:22.400 Thinking about this, maybe, and to get this on your mind is just think about a bodybuilder. 00:17:22.400 --> 00:17:28.480 And you look at him, and he's got his shirt off, and man, he's got muscles, but he's not lifting any weights. 00:17:28.480 --> 00:17:30.880 But what you know is that he could. 00:17:30.880 --> 00:17:33.440 That's inherent in him. 00:17:33.440 --> 00:17:35.599 And that's kind of this idea, this word. 00:17:35.599 --> 00:17:39.759 It's something that's there and it could be used that Christ has put in you. 00:17:39.759 --> 00:17:48.079 This means that we possess the inner character and quality and capacity to be, I just kind of say, tough in the fight. 00:17:48.079 --> 00:17:52.480 When we're struggling, the easiest thing in the world for us is to kind of give up. 00:17:52.480 --> 00:17:55.119 Just like somebody said, I'm I'm tired. 00:17:55.119 --> 00:17:57.759 Coretta said this morning, a lot of us are tired. 00:17:57.759 --> 00:18:05.200 Well, this is what gives you the ability to keep going on, keep going through it, through the hard things without giving up. 00:18:05.200 --> 00:18:06.880 Think of these words, resilience. 00:18:06.880 --> 00:18:10.400 This is a quality about resilience, it's about fortitude. 00:18:10.400 --> 00:18:13.759 And it's the quality think about this. 00:18:13.759 --> 00:18:19.680 This is Jesus having loved them, he loved them to the end. 00:18:19.680 --> 00:18:22.000 How did he do that? 00:18:22.000 --> 00:18:24.960 Because he had a warrior's heart. 00:18:24.960 --> 00:18:30.960 And that's what he wants to build in each of us so that we're not so down and discouraged and ready to give up. 00:18:30.960 --> 00:18:33.440 And I know a lot of us here are ready there. 00:18:33.440 --> 00:18:34.799 I mean, we're just feeling it. 00:18:34.799 --> 00:18:36.000 It's hard. 00:18:36.000 --> 00:18:37.839 Nobody said it wasn't. 00:18:37.839 --> 00:18:39.680 This Christian life. 00:18:39.680 --> 00:18:44.160 And he he's not talking then about something we just kind of work up in ourselves. 00:18:44.160 --> 00:18:49.359 This is not natural ability, this is supernatural ability that the Holy Spirit gives to us. 00:18:49.359 --> 00:18:54.640 And it rises up in us and sells us, I tells us, don't give up and don't quit. 00:18:54.640 --> 00:18:57.680 Keep on going, keep swimming. 00:18:57.680 --> 00:19:01.039 And God will carry you through no matter what. 00:19:01.039 --> 00:19:06.400 If you have that working in you, the Holy Spirit will do some amazing things. 00:19:06.400 --> 00:19:07.519 And you'll be surprised. 00:19:07.519 --> 00:19:08.480 I'll be surprised. 00:19:08.480 --> 00:19:10.400 2 Timothy 2 3 3. 00:19:10.400 --> 00:19:12.240 Paul said this to Timothy. 00:19:12.240 --> 00:19:18.160 He said, Endure suffering along with me as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. 00:19:18.160 --> 00:19:21.680 But we need God, we need Christ's power to do this, don't we? 00:19:21.680 --> 00:19:23.200 We can't do this on our own. 00:19:23.200 --> 00:19:26.960 Hebrews 13 5. 00:19:26.960 --> 00:19:29.119 This came to these to me this morning. 00:19:29.119 --> 00:19:31.359 He says, Don't throw away your confidence. 00:19:31.359 --> 00:19:36.799 Some of us are ready just to throw it all away and just say, I'm just gonna exist. 00:19:36.799 --> 00:19:40.960 Don't just exist in your Christian life. 00:19:40.960 --> 00:19:52.000 So we have, I think, seen two occasions in this letter that speak about the kind of power, spiritual power, that he's Paul is talking about here. 00:19:52.000 --> 00:19:55.680 And I'm taking some time for this point because I think it's really important. 00:19:55.680 --> 00:20:04.960 First is in Ephesians chapter 1, 1920, Paul states that this is the same power that raised Jesus from the dead. 00:20:04.960 --> 00:20:08.480 Same exact words he used there, he's using here. 00:20:08.480 --> 00:20:15.119 And this is the power, guess what, that Paul prayed that we would know in chapter 3, verse 16. 00:20:15.119 --> 00:20:16.160 Listen to this again. 00:20:16.160 --> 00:20:26.000 That according to the riches of his glory, he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his spirit in your inner being, in your inner man. 00:20:26.000 --> 00:20:29.759 So the inner man has a warrior's heart. 00:20:29.759 --> 00:20:36.160 He's urging us, appropriate this. 00:20:36.160 --> 00:20:37.920 It's available to you. 00:20:37.920 --> 00:20:39.359 And so, what does that mean? 00:20:39.359 --> 00:20:42.240 It requires an attitude of undying faith. 00:20:42.240 --> 00:20:45.440 You say, Well, I don't believe it, I don't see it. 00:20:45.440 --> 00:20:47.759 Start believing it. 00:20:47.759 --> 00:20:50.240 Start believing it. 00:20:50.240 --> 00:21:01.519 And what happens is, even though we still struggle, just like Paul did, even though we struggle, we do so with a confidence that we're gonna come out on top. 00:21:01.519 --> 00:21:03.200 Right? 00:21:03.200 --> 00:21:08.079 So many of us think of ourselves as victims. 00:21:08.079 --> 00:21:09.039 We're not victims. 00:21:09.039 --> 00:21:12.079 We're we are victors through Christ. 00:21:12.079 --> 00:21:15.440 We have to believe that and live through that. 00:21:15.440 --> 00:21:16.720 And how is that so? 00:21:16.720 --> 00:21:29.599 Because what what he says in Colossians, he says, He, Jesus, disarmed the rulers and authorities, and he put them to open shame by triumphing over them through the cross. 00:21:29.599 --> 00:21:31.039 Yeah? 00:21:31.039 --> 00:21:37.200 And then in 1 Corinthians 15, 57, he says, Thank God for that. 00:21:37.200 --> 00:21:43.440 Thanks be to God who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. 00:21:43.440 --> 00:21:44.880 Do you believe that? 00:21:44.880 --> 00:21:46.799 Do you believe that? 00:21:46.799 --> 00:21:58.240 So Paul wants us to understand this power, this strength and might that is so completely available to us is not our own. 00:21:58.240 --> 00:22:01.200 We can't work this up. 00:22:01.200 --> 00:22:04.000 You know how Paul said this happened to him? 00:22:04.880 --> 00:22:06.960 How did he get this power? 00:22:12.000 --> 00:22:18.079 It comes when we're humble enough to admit that we are not capable in ourselves. 00:22:18.079 --> 00:22:22.799 So we put our faith in what Jesus can do. 00:22:22.799 --> 00:22:24.640 It's a whole different mindset. 00:22:24.640 --> 00:22:26.480 It's a transformation in the way we think. 00:22:26.480 --> 00:22:28.079 I can fix this. 00:22:28.079 --> 00:22:30.880 Well, go ahead and try. 00:22:30.880 --> 00:22:33.119 And here's an example. 00:22:33.119 --> 00:22:34.640 Paul experiences himself. 00:22:34.640 --> 00:22:40.720 You remember when he says, he says, um, in Acts, he said, I had a thorn in the flesh. 00:22:40.720 --> 00:22:41.839 This is the way he describes it. 00:22:41.839 --> 00:22:43.839 A thorn in the flesh. 00:22:43.839 --> 00:22:45.680 And we don't really even know what it is. 00:22:45.680 --> 00:22:47.599 Some people think it was his eyesight. 00:22:47.599 --> 00:22:48.880 Could have been something else. 00:22:48.880 --> 00:22:50.240 We don't really know. 00:22:50.240 --> 00:22:53.599 Maybe some kind of physical physical problem. 00:22:53.599 --> 00:22:54.319 But guess what? 00:22:54.319 --> 00:22:55.759 He prayed three times. 00:22:55.759 --> 00:22:57.279 God, would you take this away? 00:22:57.279 --> 00:22:58.720 Would you take my struggle away? 00:22:58.720 --> 00:23:01.200 Would you please take my struggle away? 00:23:01.200 --> 00:23:03.599 Maybe like we pray. 00:23:03.599 --> 00:23:06.240 And what did God say? 00:23:06.240 --> 00:23:19.920 My grace is sufficient for you because my power is perfected in weakness. 00:23:19.920 --> 00:23:26.240 So therefore, I will glory in my weakness so that the power of Christ can rest on me. 00:23:26.240 --> 00:23:36.640 So when you're in a struggle and in a weak place, you know this is the hardest thing is to say, this is probably a good place to be. 00:23:36.640 --> 00:23:43.440 Because then I can see God work through me in something that I can't claim to have done myself. 00:23:43.440 --> 00:23:45.839 And you can give him all the glory for it. 00:23:45.839 --> 00:23:49.599 This is what Paul said to me, My grace is sufficient. 00:23:49.599 --> 00:23:57.920 Therefore, for the sake of Christ, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. 00:23:57.920 --> 00:24:01.359 For when I am weak, then I'm strong. 00:24:01.359 --> 00:24:07.039 That may be a total upside down the way you think about life. 00:24:07.039 --> 00:24:09.440 But that's the way the Christian life is. 00:24:09.440 --> 00:24:13.759 So when I ask you this morning, what are your weaknesses today? 00:24:13.759 --> 00:24:18.400 What are my weaknesses? 00:24:18.400 --> 00:24:26.880 Are you honest enough to admit them to God and to confess them to God and maybe to share it with someone you trust? 00:24:26.880 --> 00:24:31.599 Maybe you're a fearful person this morning. 00:24:31.599 --> 00:24:33.440 That's a struggle. 00:24:33.440 --> 00:24:39.359 Maybe you struggle with some kind of addiction and you're just like, I can't get over that. 00:24:39.359 --> 00:24:45.279 Maybe you get angry all the time and you can't seem to control that. 00:24:45.279 --> 00:24:52.799 Maybe you have a problem with pride, and you think you're always right, but then you realize, oh, that was bad. 00:24:52.799 --> 00:24:54.400 That was so bad. 00:24:54.400 --> 00:24:56.240 Why did I say that? 00:24:56.240 --> 00:25:00.640 We'll give it to Jesus. 00:25:00.640 --> 00:25:09.839 You see, some of our struggles are not just about what's going on and what happens to us, it's what's happening inside of us. 00:25:09.839 --> 00:25:16.720 And what's happening inside of us may be the very thing that God wants to allow so He can make you look like Jesus. 00:25:16.720 --> 00:25:24.160 So we see this is the essential preparation for winning in our struggles. 00:25:24.160 --> 00:25:39.119 It begins with building our relationship with Jesus and training our heart so that it is a strong heart, an enduring heart, a heart that doesn't give up in the battle before it comes. 00:25:39.119 --> 00:25:40.000 Because guess what? 00:25:40.000 --> 00:25:42.480 The battle is gonna come to you one way or another. 00:25:42.480 --> 00:25:46.559 It doesn't decide between any of us. 00:25:46.559 --> 00:25:55.519 So Paul moves now from his struggles, our strengths, to I think I could just call it the prime instigator of our struggles. 00:25:55.519 --> 00:26:00.319 And he tells us, how are you gonna deal with this, this unseen force? 00:26:00.319 --> 00:26:03.839 And this is in verse 11, the vital protection. 00:26:03.839 --> 00:26:05.519 Look at it. 00:26:05.519 --> 00:26:10.720 Verse 11, put on the whole armor of God that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. 00:26:10.720 --> 00:26:13.359 The whole armor is the English way of saying it. 00:26:13.359 --> 00:26:16.240 It's really just one word in the Greek, it's panoplea. 00:26:16.240 --> 00:26:23.200 It's like it's the whole kit that a soldier was assigned, and he was given different pieces of equipment, which we're gonna be talking about in a few weeks. 00:26:23.200 --> 00:26:26.000 But he says, don't just put on the a piece of it. 00:26:26.000 --> 00:26:31.839 Don't just carry your sword around thinking that's all you need, or your helmet. 00:26:31.839 --> 00:26:35.839 Put the whole kit on, because you're gonna need all of it. 00:26:35.839 --> 00:26:37.440 You're gonna need all of it. 00:26:37.440 --> 00:26:44.079 And this is the this is the armor that was used by the heavily uh like the heaviest armed foot soldiers. 00:26:44.079 --> 00:26:50.160 Um so we're looking at this, and Paul's emphasis here is not really yet to describe all that armor. 00:26:50.160 --> 00:26:53.680 That comes in the next few verses in verses 14 and following. 00:26:53.680 --> 00:26:55.279 What is he trying to do? 00:26:55.279 --> 00:26:57.279 Would you just put it on? 00:26:57.279 --> 00:27:00.880 Just put it on. 00:27:00.880 --> 00:27:13.359 And I think partly, and I think as we go through the Christian life, we we get used to doing this as our routine, and we forget things that the scriptures said, you know how important this is? 00:27:13.359 --> 00:27:16.000 It's more important than you think. 00:27:16.000 --> 00:27:21.039 And then maybe we just need to revisit this as the church. 00:27:21.039 --> 00:27:32.480 Paul is highlighting just how serious this warfare is for us and the danger we put ourselves in in our spiritual lives if we just think it really doesn't matter. 00:27:32.480 --> 00:27:34.799 Because the threat is real. 00:27:34.799 --> 00:27:40.079 And God so He provides the armor. 00:27:40.079 --> 00:27:45.920 And as I said earlier, it's God's armor, and he wants to give it to you to put on. 00:27:45.920 --> 00:27:49.119 So why is this so critical? 00:27:49.119 --> 00:27:54.799 Well, the armor, the spiritual armor, covers those areas where we're vulnerable. 00:27:54.799 --> 00:27:57.920 Do you know where you're vulnerable in your spiritual life? 00:27:57.920 --> 00:27:59.599 We're gonna find out. 00:27:59.599 --> 00:28:08.000 But here's the thing I know our enemy is he's crafty and he's shrewd and he's cunning. 00:28:08.000 --> 00:28:10.319 Uh, he's opportunistic. 00:28:10.319 --> 00:28:21.680 He takes advantage of you when you think you are okay, and he takes advantage of a weakness that you you have in your life, and he capitalizes on it, and sometimes brings us down. 00:28:21.680 --> 00:28:28.400 You know what a lot of times, and this is how he came to Jesus, wasn't it, in the wilderness? 00:28:28.400 --> 00:28:30.160 Jesus in the wilderness 40 days. 00:28:30.160 --> 00:28:33.039 And when did the when did Satan approach Jesus? 00:28:33.039 --> 00:28:35.599 When he was weak and hungry. 00:28:35.599 --> 00:28:36.640 Hangry. 00:28:36.640 --> 00:28:40.240 Does the enemy come to you when you're hangry? 00:28:40.240 --> 00:28:42.640 He does me. 00:28:42.640 --> 00:28:45.759 Wife said, What's gotten into you? 00:28:45.759 --> 00:28:46.880