1 00:00:00,000 –> 00:00:04,740 I wonder if you’ve noticed that the Bible falls into three parts? 2 00:00:04,740 –> 00:00:08,900 The Old Testament tells us why we need Jesus. 3 00:00:08,900 –> 00:00:13,620 The Gospels tell us who Jesus is and what He accomplished. 4 00:00:13,620 –> 00:00:19,120 And then you have the New Testament letters that describe for us the life of a person 5 00:00:19,120 –> 00:00:24,139 who is in Jesus, the life of a person who belongs to Jesus. 6 00:00:24,139 –> 00:00:27,440 And then this last part of our journey as we’re moving through these New Testament 7 00:00:27,440 –> 00:00:33,139 letters there are really four things that we’ve discovered that change when a person 8 00:00:33,139 –> 00:00:35,080 becomes a Christian. 9 00:00:35,080 –> 00:00:40,500 When you came by faith to be in Christ, first, your sins were forgiven. 10 00:00:40,500 –> 00:00:43,099 Your condemnation was removed. 11 00:00:43,099 –> 00:00:44,880 You were justified. 12 00:00:44,880 –> 00:00:50,680 You entered into an entirely new relationship of peace with God. 13 00:00:50,680 –> 00:00:55,040 Second, you became a new creation. 14 00:00:55,340 –> 00:01:01,599 God’s Holy Spirit invaded your life, giving you new desires, giving you a new heart, giving 15 00:01:01,599 –> 00:01:07,019 you a new capacity to pursue a life that is pleasing to God. 16 00:01:07,019 –> 00:01:10,800 Third, being a child of God you become part of his family. 17 00:01:10,800 –> 00:01:14,839 We looked at this last week, the family of God being the church. 18 00:01:14,839 –> 00:01:21,720 We looked at the church being central to the plan and purpose of God and being the focus 19 00:01:21,720 –> 00:01:24,199 of the love of the Lord Jesus Christ. 20 00:01:24,199 –> 00:01:31,040 Christ loves the church and gave himself for it and therefore we should love the church 21 00:01:31,040 –> 00:01:34,900 and give ourselves for her as well. 22 00:01:34,900 –> 00:01:39,300 Today we’re going to focus in particularly on the fourth thing that really changed when 23 00:01:39,300 –> 00:01:40,440 you became a Christian. 24 00:01:40,440 –> 00:01:46,559 That is that when you came to be in Christ you provoked the attention of an enemy whose 25 00:01:46,559 –> 00:01:50,779 set purpose is to destroy the work of God. 26 00:01:50,779 –> 00:01:56,580 So by definition anyone who is a Christian is engaged in a lifelong battle. 27 00:01:56,580 –> 00:02:02,980 And our focus today very simply from Ephesians in chapter 6 is how you can stand in that 28 00:02:02,980 –> 00:02:04,000 battle. 29 00:02:04,000 –> 00:02:06,220 I want to begin with four observations. 30 00:02:06,220 –> 00:02:10,179 The first is simply this that every Christian is in a battle. 31 00:02:10,179 –> 00:02:12,759 Let’s get this settled in our minds. 32 00:02:12,759 –> 00:02:17,039 Verse 11. 33 00:02:17,100 –> 00:02:21,619 You may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. 34 00:02:21,619 –> 00:02:26,300 Here’s a question, and I invite you to give a response and an answer to it. 35 00:02:26,300 –> 00:02:34,339 Will the battle get easier or harder as you grow and mature as a Christian? 36 00:02:34,339 –> 00:02:35,339 Answer. 37 00:02:35,339 –> 00:02:36,339 Harder. 38 00:02:36,339 –> 00:02:39,339 Well, all three surfaces seem to be agreed on. 39 00:02:39,339 –> 00:02:42,279 And that is absolutely right. 40 00:02:42,279 –> 00:02:49,820 The wind blows harder at the top of the mountain than it does at the bottom. 41 00:02:49,820 –> 00:02:55,139 And the more you progress in the Christian life, the harder your battles will be. 42 00:02:55,139 –> 00:03:01,820 Very simply, the more you resist the enemy, the more he will throw at you. 43 00:03:01,820 –> 00:03:08,940 So if your battles are becoming more intense, actually in a surprising way, an ironic way, 44 00:03:09,419 –> 00:03:13,539 you can actually draw some encouragement from that, because this is more likely to be a sign that 45 00:03:13,580 –> 00:03:15,940 you are growing than a sign that you are failing. 46 00:03:15,940 –> 00:03:18,660 You know, I often have conversations with someone who will say 47 00:03:18,660 –> 00:03:22,419 Oh Pastor, my temptations are so strong, they’re so intense. 48 00:03:22,419 –> 00:03:26,580 Or the battles I’m facing right now, they’re so great. 49 00:03:26,580 –> 00:03:31,820 The conclusion a person draws is thereby, I must be failing, I must be doing something wrong. 50 00:03:31,820 –> 00:03:35,759 Actually, precisely the opposite may be the case. 51 00:03:35,759 –> 00:03:41,779 The higher you climb, the stronger the wind blows. 52 00:03:41,779 –> 00:03:43,360 And you find this all throughout the Bible. 53 00:03:43,360 –> 00:03:51,660 In the Book of Job, it is the godliest man who faces the greatest struggles. 54 00:03:51,660 –> 00:03:56,259 You see that in the Apostle Paul, 2 Corinthians chapter 7 and verse 5. 55 00:03:56,259 –> 00:04:01,039 Here’s the apostle and he’s engaged in pioneer work for the gospel. 56 00:04:01,039 –> 00:04:02,039 And what does he say? 57 00:04:02,039 –> 00:04:06,179 When we came to Macedonia, our bodies had no rest. 58 00:04:06,179 –> 00:04:10,740 We were afflicted at every turn, fighting without and fear within. 59 00:04:10,740 –> 00:04:13,160 Well, that was the apostle’s experience. 60 00:04:13,160 –> 00:04:18,399 See, he’s a long way up the mountain, and the wind is really blowing hard for him. 61 00:04:18,399 –> 00:04:22,000 He comes to this place, Macedonia. 62 00:04:22,000 –> 00:04:25,600 And he says, we had no rest. 63 00:04:25,600 –> 00:04:29,079 We experience battles all around us. 64 00:04:29,179 –> 00:04:34,760 And we experience tremendous fear even in our own believing hearts. 65 00:04:34,760 –> 00:04:36,500 That’s what he says. 66 00:04:36,500 –> 00:04:42,279 And, of course, you see this supremely in the Son of God Himself, the holiest one of 67 00:04:42,279 –> 00:04:43,739 all. 68 00:04:43,739 –> 00:04:47,459 No one knows the intensity of the battle that he faced. 69 00:04:47,459 –> 00:04:55,619 So, if your battle is becoming more intense, you may conclude from this that it is a sign 70 00:04:55,619 –> 00:04:58,880 that, in fact, you are making progress. 71 00:04:59,119 –> 00:05:01,040 is in a battle. 72 00:05:01,040 –> 00:05:02,899 Second, the battle is spiritual. 73 00:05:02,899 –> 00:05:08,820 Verse 12, we do not wrestle against flesh and blood. 74 00:05:08,820 –> 00:05:10,959 Very important principle. 75 00:05:10,959 –> 00:05:15,660 Your primary battle is never with people. 76 00:05:15,660 –> 00:05:21,980 There may be people who bring pain in your life, but they are not the enemy. 77 00:05:21,980 –> 00:05:26,000 They are the victims of the enemy. 78 00:05:26,059 –> 00:05:30,940 And it’s easy for us to think that if only we can get free of certain people, if only 79 00:05:30,940 –> 00:05:34,440 certain people would change, then all will be well. 80 00:05:34,440 –> 00:05:38,459 But of course, that is never the case. 81 00:05:38,459 –> 00:05:46,100 The biggest problem in your marriage is not your spouse, and it’s not you, either. 82 00:05:46,100 –> 00:05:52,200 It’s the enemy, the unseen enemy, who is determined to destroy your marriage. 83 00:05:52,420 –> 00:05:55,779 That’s the real enemy that you have to be concerned with. 84 00:05:55,779 –> 00:05:58,679 Your battle is against him. 85 00:05:58,679 –> 00:06:03,320 The biggest threat to your usefulness to Christ is not the wounds that you have suffered or 86 00:06:03,320 –> 00:06:07,140 the defeats you may have endured or the injustice that you may have faced. 87 00:06:07,140 –> 00:06:12,359 The biggest threat to your usefulness to Christ is your unseen enemy who wants to use these 88 00:06:12,359 –> 00:06:16,359 things to make you ineffective and unproductive. 89 00:06:16,880 –> 00:06:22,359 We do not wrestle against flesh and blood. 90 00:06:22,359 –> 00:06:26,200 Third, the battle will vary in intensity. 91 00:06:26,200 –> 00:06:27,920 Notice verse 13. 92 00:06:27,920 –> 00:06:34,519 Therefore, take up the whole armor of God that you may be able to withstand when? 93 00:06:34,519 –> 00:06:43,160 in the evil day Now in every life there will be seasons of 94 00:06:43,160 –> 00:06:46,220 particular difficulty. 95 00:06:46,279 –> 00:06:51,179 And Paul describes these seasons as the evil day. 96 00:06:51,179 –> 00:06:58,459 These are the times when the enemy seems to be throwing everything at you and it is unrelenting. 97 00:06:58,459 –> 00:07:05,480 And these times are invariably the most critical seasons of your life. 98 00:07:05,480 –> 00:07:13,320 You see this in the ministry of Jesus, if you ask the question was the attack of Satan 99 00:07:13,320 –> 00:07:18,760 against the work of our Lord Jesus Christ evenly distributed across his ministry? 100 00:07:18,760 –> 00:07:21,359 The answer is clearly no. 101 00:07:21,359 –> 00:07:24,500 It was focused at two particular points. 102 00:07:24,500 –> 00:07:29,619 At the beginning of the ministry of Jesus, the spirit drove him out into the wilderness 103 00:07:29,619 –> 00:07:31,279 to be tempted by the devil. 104 00:07:31,279 –> 00:07:36,839 There was a great struggle in which the enemy did all that he could to prevent the ministry 105 00:07:36,839 –> 00:07:40,880 of Jesus from even getting started. 106 00:07:40,880 –> 00:07:44,440 And if God has called you to a particular ministry the devil will do all that he can 107 00:07:44,440 –> 00:07:47,899 to stop you from even getting started. 108 00:07:47,899 –> 00:07:50,000 But of course he failed in that attempt. 109 00:07:50,000 –> 00:07:51,600 Christ triumphed over him. 110 00:07:51,600 –> 00:07:57,980 Then Luke tells us chapter 4 in verse 13 that when the enemy failed, he in effect retreated. 111 00:07:57,980 –> 00:08:05,859 Luke says, And when the devil had ended every temptation he departed from him until an opportune 112 00:08:05,859 –> 00:08:07,519 time. 113 00:08:07,519 –> 00:08:13,100 The ministry of Jesus then moves forward for three years in remarkable triumph and progress 114 00:08:13,100 –> 00:08:16,359 but then all hell is let loose. 115 00:08:16,359 –> 00:08:21,019 The enemy tempts Peter, the enemy tempts and enters into Judas. 116 00:08:21,019 –> 00:08:26,279 He works his schemes through the pride of the priests through the hatred of the crowd 117 00:08:26,279 –> 00:08:29,540 and through the weakness of a man called Pontius Pilate. 118 00:08:29,540 –> 00:08:34,140 The powers of darkness were then unleashed as never before. 119 00:08:34,479 –> 00:08:38,679 That’s Luke chapter 22 and verse 53. 120 00:08:38,679 –> 00:08:43,640 Just looking at the pattern we see in Scripture and particularly then in the life and ministry 121 00:08:43,640 –> 00:08:45,260 of our Lord Jesus Christ. 122 00:08:45,260 –> 00:08:49,599 We can draw this conclusion that Paul is pointing out for us here. 123 00:08:49,599 –> 00:08:56,140 There will be times in your life when you find yourself in the heat of battle. 124 00:08:56,140 –> 00:08:57,979 Not all your days are the same. 125 00:08:57,979 –> 00:08:59,799 There are seasons. 126 00:09:00,020 –> 00:09:04,419 There is such a thing as the evil day. 127 00:09:04,419 –> 00:09:12,159 Now, friends, I’m very, very conscious as I’ve prepared to speak today that for some 128 00:09:12,159 –> 00:09:17,659 of you, you are right there now. 129 00:09:17,659 –> 00:09:26,440 Battles with health, conflicts in the family, struggles with fear. 130 00:09:26,440 –> 00:09:30,760 Perhaps in situations that I’ve been able to think and pray about this week, let alone 131 00:09:30,760 –> 00:09:38,080 the many more that I do not know of in detail. 132 00:09:38,080 –> 00:09:42,520 The battle will vary in intensity. 133 00:09:42,520 –> 00:09:47,679 And if you are in the heat of battle, I am so glad that God has brought you here today 134 00:09:47,679 –> 00:09:51,140 so that we can focus in the Scripture on this great question. 135 00:09:51,380 –> 00:09:56,299 How now can you stand in this? 136 00:09:56,299 –> 00:10:01,840 Notice fourthly then, that your objective is to stand. 137 00:10:01,840 –> 00:10:07,700 Paul uses the word stand, on no less than four occasions, as if to keep underlining it. 138 00:10:07,700 –> 00:10:09,099 Do you see that verse 11? 139 00:10:09,099 –> 00:10:13,219 Put on the whole armour of God so that you may be able to to do what? 140 00:10:13,219 –> 00:10:15,179 Stand against the schemes of the devil. 141 00:10:15,780 –> 00:10:22,979 Verse 13, take up the whole armor of God that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, 142 00:10:22,979 –> 00:10:26,359 and having done all, here it is again, to stand firm. 143 00:10:26,359 –> 00:10:33,900 Then just in case we haven’t got it yet, verse 14, stand there for having fastened the belt 144 00:10:33,900 –> 00:10:34,900 of truth. 145 00:10:34,900 –> 00:10:37,900 Now get this clear, it’s very important. 146 00:10:38,219 –> 00:10:45,820 And when the day of evil comes, when it seems that everything is being thrown against you, 147 00:10:45,820 –> 00:10:51,719 God has set one objective for you and it’s very clear, one objective, and it is very 148 00:10:51,719 –> 00:10:55,719 simply that you stand. 149 00:10:55,719 –> 00:11:02,760 It is not that you conquer the world, it is not that you have the most marvelous testimony, 150 00:11:02,820 –> 00:11:09,419 it is not that you make phenomenal progress, it is simply that when you face the heat of 151 00:11:09,419 –> 00:11:14,859 the battle at its most intense, you will stand. 152 00:11:14,859 –> 00:11:16,380 So make this your goal. 153 00:11:16,380 –> 00:11:22,380 Don’t expect to be waving triumphant banners in the middle of the day of evil. 154 00:11:22,380 –> 00:11:29,580 Your aim should simply be to maintain your position, to stand your ground, and not to 155 00:11:29,580 –> 00:11:31,559 quit. 156 00:11:31,559 –> 00:11:33,239 Be steadfast. 157 00:11:33,239 –> 00:11:34,960 Be unmovable. 158 00:11:34,960 –> 00:11:41,919 That’s the word that we need to hear for the times when we are in the heat of battle. 159 00:11:41,919 –> 00:11:44,859 Now the obvious question then is how. 160 00:11:44,859 –> 00:11:49,919 How are we to stand in the heat of the battle. 161 00:11:49,919 –> 00:11:52,119 And we read here verse 11. 162 00:11:52,119 –> 00:11:59,080 Put on the whole armour of God. 163 00:11:59,099 –> 00:12:06,460 Now your friends we come to one of the bible’s best-known illustrations. 164 00:12:06,460 –> 00:12:13,219 And you understand an illustration is like gold dust for a preacher. 165 00:12:13,219 –> 00:12:17,280 But here’s what can easily happen with a really good illustration. 166 00:12:17,280 –> 00:12:21,140 Now, the preacher has a good illustration. 167 00:12:21,140 –> 00:12:28,200 He tells a story about a dog and, you know, it’s a really good story about a dog. 168 00:12:28,200 –> 00:12:31,640 In fact, it’s such a good story that it stays with you. 169 00:12:31,640 –> 00:12:34,659 And a couple of days later you tell this story to a friend. 170 00:12:34,659 –> 00:12:35,640 Oh, you say, 171 00:12:35,940 –> 00:12:40,239 we heard a sermon on Sunday and the pastor he told a marvelous story about a dog, 172 00:12:40,239 –> 00:12:41,960 I’ve got to tell you the story. 173 00:12:41,960 –> 00:12:44,380 And so you tell the story and then your friend says to you, 174 00:12:44,380 –> 00:12:46,020 Oh, it’s a great story about a dog. 175 00:12:46,020 –> 00:12:49,919 What exactly was the point that the pastor was trying to make in telling it? 176 00:12:50,539 –> 00:12:51,780 And you say, 177 00:12:53,940 –> 00:12:56,219 I can’t really remember, I’m terribly sorry. 178 00:12:56,219 –> 00:12:58,219 I all know that experience right? 179 00:12:58,219 –> 00:13:04,080 I know that experience that sometimes an illustration is just so good 180 00:13:04,760 –> 00:13:11,179 that it overpowers the message that it was intended to convey. 181 00:13:11,679 –> 00:13:14,099 I spoken to a couple of folks in marketing throughout this morning 182 00:13:14,099 –> 00:13:16,380 who said that’s exactly the problem that we face. 183 00:13:16,380 –> 00:13:18,760 We come up with this brilliant way of selling the product 184 00:13:18,760 –> 00:13:21,919 and people can’t remember the product that we were trying to sell. 185 00:13:22,840 –> 00:13:26,460 Now I think that that may have been the case 186 00:13:26,460 –> 00:13:29,340 with one of the best known illustrations in the Bible. 187 00:13:29,340 –> 00:13:32,380 The one that we’re looking at today, the illustration of the armour. 188 00:13:32,640 –> 00:13:35,580 Everyone who’s been through Sunday school 189 00:13:35,580 –> 00:13:40,200 has heard talks about the belt, the breastplate, the shoes, 190 00:13:40,200 –> 00:13:43,700 the shield, the helmet, and the sword. 191 00:13:44,700 –> 00:13:46,280 Depending on how old you are, 192 00:13:46,280 –> 00:13:49,179 you will have had it presented in different ways 193 00:13:49,760 –> 00:13:53,460 on a screen with a magnetic board. 194 00:13:54,260 –> 00:13:56,059 Or for some of us who are a little bit older 195 00:13:56,059 –> 00:13:57,859 all the way back to flannelgraph, 196 00:13:57,859 –> 00:14:00,400 and some of you don’t even know what that is 197 00:14:00,400 –> 00:14:02,020 but little children coming forward 198 00:14:02,020 –> 00:14:04,979 and putting these sticky pieces of armour 199 00:14:04,979 –> 00:14:07,960 on this person or also six-foot model that’s there 200 00:14:07,960 –> 00:14:11,780 and everyone comes and dresses up the soldier in the armour 201 00:14:11,780 –> 00:14:14,179 and we get the illustration, 202 00:14:14,179 –> 00:14:16,059 the problem is we forget the point 203 00:14:16,059 –> 00:14:17,940 that it’s intended to convey 204 00:14:17,940 –> 00:14:20,960 which is all about truth, righteousness, 205 00:14:20,960 –> 00:14:24,979 the gospel, faith, salvation, and the word of God 206 00:14:24,979 –> 00:14:26,520 which are the means by which 207 00:14:26,520 –> 00:14:28,840 we are able to stand in the heat of battle. 208 00:14:30,380 –> 00:14:31,299 So I’m actually going to say 209 00:14:31,299 –> 00:14:33,500 very little about the armour today 210 00:14:33,500 –> 00:14:35,059 because what I want to focus on 211 00:14:35,059 –> 00:14:38,260 is the point of the illustration 212 00:14:38,260 –> 00:14:41,460 which is how you can stand 213 00:14:41,460 –> 00:14:44,719 in the heat of battle. 214 00:14:44,719 –> 00:14:49,219 Number one, then, stand in truth. 215 00:14:49,219 –> 00:14:54,219 Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth. 216 00:14:56,880 –> 00:15:01,179 Now, Paul is not talking about the Bible here. 217 00:15:01,179 –> 00:15:03,679 We know that because that comes later 218 00:15:03,679 –> 00:15:06,080 when he says that the sword of the spirit 219 00:15:06,080 –> 00:15:09,320 is the word of God. 220 00:15:09,320 –> 00:15:12,080 What he’s speaking about here is candor, 221 00:15:12,260 –> 00:15:17,260 honesty, facing the reality of the situation you are in 222 00:15:20,159 –> 00:15:24,940 without evasion and without avoidance. 223 00:15:24,940 –> 00:15:28,659 The belt of truth is really truth as David spoke of it 224 00:15:28,659 –> 00:15:30,880 in Psalm 51 when he said to God, 225 00:15:30,880 –> 00:15:35,880 “‘Surely you desire truth in the inner parts.’” 226 00:15:36,380 –> 00:15:38,260 You want me to be honest. 227 00:15:38,419 –> 00:15:42,599 Now, when you find yourself in the heat of battle, 228 00:15:42,599 –> 00:15:44,960 your starting point must always be 229 00:15:44,960 –> 00:15:49,340 to establish what is true. 230 00:15:49,340 –> 00:15:52,020 It may well help you to get a bit of paper 231 00:15:52,020 –> 00:15:54,299 and start writing what is true down 232 00:15:54,299 –> 00:15:55,559 just in short statements. 233 00:15:55,559 –> 00:15:57,440 You’ll have many of them. 234 00:15:57,440 –> 00:16:01,020 The truth of the struggle that you are facing. 235 00:16:01,020 –> 00:16:04,900 Write down the truth, the all truth 236 00:16:04,900 –> 00:16:08,000 and nothing but the truth. 237 00:16:08,000 –> 00:16:11,119 Describe the circumstances that you face, 238 00:16:11,119 –> 00:16:13,679 the pressures that you feel, 239 00:16:13,679 –> 00:16:16,500 the sins to which you are tempted 240 00:16:16,500 –> 00:16:19,039 and the truths that you believe. 241 00:16:19,919 –> 00:16:22,960 Be ruthlessly honest. 242 00:16:22,960 –> 00:16:25,400 Start with what is obvious 243 00:16:25,400 –> 00:16:28,780 and then move to what is less obvious. 244 00:16:28,780 –> 00:16:30,580 And when you have finished writing, 245 00:16:30,580 –> 00:16:34,119 ask yourself what else is true, 246 00:16:34,119 –> 00:16:36,880 what might my mind have avoided 247 00:16:36,880 –> 00:16:38,919 because it’s a part of the truth 248 00:16:38,919 –> 00:16:42,140 that I don’t really yet want to face? 249 00:16:43,159 –> 00:16:46,400 The Bible has a whole book that models this for us. 250 00:16:46,400 –> 00:16:48,799 It is of course the book of Psalms. 251 00:16:48,799 –> 00:16:51,080 What do you find in the book of Psalms? 252 00:16:51,080 –> 00:16:54,479 You find the Psalmist facing reality 253 00:16:55,640 –> 00:17:00,500 with no hiding, no evading, no avoiding 254 00:17:00,500 –> 00:17:02,919 and if you are to stand in the heat of battle, 255 00:17:02,919 –> 00:17:05,680 this is where you must begin. 256 00:17:06,640 –> 00:17:10,319 And undertake this exercise with prayer. 257 00:17:10,319 –> 00:17:12,920 Notice verse 18, praying at all times 258 00:17:12,920 –> 00:17:16,040 in the Spirit with all prayer and supplication. 259 00:17:16,040 –> 00:17:18,579 In other words, ask God to show you 260 00:17:18,579 –> 00:17:19,719 what you’re missing. 261 00:17:19,719 –> 00:17:21,300 These things I see to be true. 262 00:17:21,300 –> 00:17:24,640 What else is true that’s pertinent to this situation 263 00:17:24,640 –> 00:17:29,040 that I have not yet seen and have not yet expressed? 264 00:17:29,040 –> 00:17:34,040 Put on the gospel armor each piece put on with prayer. 265 00:17:36,640 –> 00:17:40,560 And I was doing this in a time of difficulty 266 00:17:40,560 –> 00:17:42,400 in my own life. 267 00:17:43,199 –> 00:17:46,680 Just framing out the particular pressures 268 00:17:46,680 –> 00:17:47,880 that I was facing 269 00:17:47,880 –> 00:17:51,719 and the circumstances that were there 270 00:17:51,719 –> 00:17:56,079 and some of the emotions that were going with it 271 00:17:56,079 –> 00:18:00,000 and trying to get to the truth and the reality 272 00:18:00,000 –> 00:18:04,079 of what I’m dealing with in this particular situation 273 00:18:04,479 –> 00:18:08,119 and in the process, this came to my mind. 274 00:18:08,119 –> 00:18:08,959 You know what? 275 00:18:08,959 –> 00:18:13,959 I am giving way to self-pity. 276 00:18:17,160 –> 00:18:19,420 And that was an uncomfortable truth, 277 00:18:20,479 –> 00:18:23,160 but it was a turning point in that particular battle. 278 00:18:24,939 –> 00:18:27,199 You shall know the truth and the truth shall set you free, 279 00:18:27,199 –> 00:18:29,239 our Lord Jesus says. 280 00:18:29,239 –> 00:18:31,959 And there is something tremendously liberating 281 00:18:31,959 –> 00:18:34,040 about coming face-to-face 282 00:18:34,880 –> 00:18:37,979 with reality and to stop avoiding, 283 00:18:39,119 –> 00:18:40,760 and to stop evading. 284 00:18:41,959 –> 00:18:44,060 So you may find yourself saying, 285 00:18:44,060 –> 00:18:46,359 I am giving way to fear, 286 00:18:47,780 –> 00:18:49,420 I’m losing heart, 287 00:18:50,560 –> 00:18:52,859 I am becoming addicted, 288 00:18:54,040 –> 00:18:56,239 I am becoming a pain to live with, 289 00:18:57,300 –> 00:18:58,560 I am worn out, 290 00:18:59,560 –> 00:19:01,540 and I need a break. 291 00:19:02,180 –> 00:19:03,979 The truth. 292 00:19:04,959 –> 00:19:07,900 The place to begin if you are to stand in 293 00:19:07,900 –> 00:19:12,579 the heat of battle is an honest facing of reality. 294 00:19:15,239 –> 00:19:18,900 And you will find that close friends 295 00:19:18,900 –> 00:19:23,579 and wise counselors are able to speak 296 00:19:23,579 –> 00:19:27,579 into the truth of what you are facing. 297 00:19:27,579 –> 00:19:29,099 This is an exercise. 298 00:19:29,099 –> 00:19:31,239 Facing the truth is something that you should begin 299 00:19:31,239 –> 00:19:32,339 on your own but it should not 300 00:19:32,339 –> 00:19:34,660 be entirely done on your own. 301 00:19:35,640 –> 00:19:37,920 Allow those who know your situation 302 00:19:37,920 –> 00:19:40,900 to contribute what is true here 303 00:19:40,900 –> 00:19:44,959 that you may have missed and that you may need to hear 304 00:19:44,959 –> 00:19:48,040 and that you may need to factor in. 305 00:19:48,040 –> 00:19:50,119 And remember that avoiding the truth 306 00:19:50,119 –> 00:19:53,099 inevitably leads to defeat, always. 307 00:19:54,479 –> 00:19:58,160 But facing the truth is where you start 308 00:19:58,160 –> 00:20:00,219 when you are going to stand. 309 00:20:01,219 –> 00:20:02,959 Now one more thing before we move on here 310 00:20:02,959 –> 00:20:04,880 and I’m spending more time on this first one, 311 00:20:04,880 –> 00:20:07,579 I promise you, than on the others. 312 00:20:07,579 –> 00:20:11,660 But if you want to help someone 313 00:20:11,660 –> 00:20:13,819 who is in the heat of battle, 314 00:20:14,819 –> 00:20:16,660 if you want to be a good friend 315 00:20:16,660 –> 00:20:18,680 to someone who’s really struggling, 316 00:20:19,660 –> 00:20:22,819 if you want to be a wise counsellor 317 00:20:22,819 –> 00:20:25,699 to someone who invites you alongside them 318 00:20:25,699 –> 00:20:28,500 in the battle that they are facing, 319 00:20:28,500 –> 00:20:31,760 this is where you must begin. 320 00:20:31,760 –> 00:20:35,640 What is the truth of this situation? 321 00:20:35,640 –> 00:20:38,760 What is the reality here? 322 00:20:38,760 –> 00:20:41,459 And what you can contribute may often be 323 00:20:41,459 –> 00:20:43,079 that there is something that you see 324 00:20:43,079 –> 00:20:46,060 that the person themselves has not so easily 325 00:20:46,060 –> 00:20:47,780 been able to perceive. 326 00:20:48,699 –> 00:20:51,859 God says through the prophet Jeremiah, 327 00:20:51,859 –> 00:20:55,819 he says, I will give you shepherds 328 00:20:55,939 –> 00:20:58,040 after my own heart. 329 00:20:59,099 –> 00:21:01,900 Now what do shepherds after God’s own heart do? 330 00:21:01,900 –> 00:21:04,380 Well, there are many answers to that question, obviously, 331 00:21:04,380 –> 00:21:06,880 but what Jeremiah tells us, particularly here, 332 00:21:06,880 –> 00:21:09,640 is that the shepherds who are after God’s own heart 333 00:21:09,640 –> 00:21:14,319 will feed you with knowledge and understanding. 334 00:21:15,160 –> 00:21:17,280 That’s the particular contribution that they make. 335 00:21:17,280 –> 00:21:18,979 They’re not there to fix your problem, 336 00:21:18,979 –> 00:21:20,939 but they are able to bring, 337 00:21:20,939 –> 00:21:23,380 good shepherds will bring to you 338 00:21:23,380 –> 00:21:27,420 the strengthening that comes from a proper knowledge 339 00:21:27,420 –> 00:21:30,359 and understanding of what you are actually facing. 340 00:21:30,359 –> 00:21:31,760 The truth may be hard, 341 00:21:31,760 –> 00:21:34,380 but facing it will always be nourishing, 342 00:21:34,380 –> 00:21:37,579 and because it is nourishing, it feeds you, 343 00:21:37,579 –> 00:21:38,920 it will strengthen you. 344 00:21:40,099 –> 00:21:44,339 So wise counsel always begins with a proper understanding 345 00:21:44,339 –> 00:21:46,640 of the truth of a situation, 346 00:21:46,640 –> 00:21:50,619 which is why James says that we must all be 347 00:21:50,819 –> 00:21:53,599 quick to listen, 348 00:21:53,599 –> 00:21:56,219 and slow to speak, 349 00:21:57,400 –> 00:21:59,479 and I was struck just this week 350 00:21:59,479 –> 00:22:01,219 in my own reading of Scripture, 351 00:22:02,300 –> 00:22:06,180 by the words of Jesus speaking to his disciples 352 00:22:06,180 –> 00:22:08,459 on the night that he was betrayed, 353 00:22:08,459 –> 00:22:11,540 and he says this in John chapter 16 and verse 12. 354 00:22:13,380 –> 00:22:17,180 I have many things to say to you, 355 00:22:18,140 –> 00:22:21,060 but you cannot bear them now. 356 00:22:22,099 –> 00:22:23,020 Think about that. 357 00:22:24,060 –> 00:22:29,060 Jesus says, I have many things to say to you, 358 00:22:29,260 –> 00:22:34,260 many things, but you cannot bear them now. 359 00:22:37,219 –> 00:22:41,280 So what you say to a person in the heat of battle 360 00:22:41,280 –> 00:22:44,560 has to relate to their capacity to receive it. 361 00:22:45,540 –> 00:22:49,040 And Jesus chose not to reveal to his disciples 362 00:22:49,040 –> 00:22:52,800 more than they were able to bear at that particular time. 363 00:22:53,979 –> 00:22:55,680 The truth was that at this point, 364 00:22:55,680 –> 00:22:59,520 the disciples had very limited ability to hear, 365 00:22:59,520 –> 00:23:04,520 and a wise person will not be one 366 00:23:04,939 –> 00:23:07,400 who unloads everything that they see 367 00:23:07,400 –> 00:23:09,339 and another person has not seen. 368 00:23:10,199 –> 00:23:14,359 They will measure the truth that is spoken 369 00:23:14,520 –> 00:23:18,680 according to the person’s ability to hear. 370 00:23:19,680 –> 00:23:23,260 Now, this is the starting point for standing in the battle. 371 00:23:23,260 –> 00:23:26,439 You stand in truth. 372 00:23:27,800 –> 00:23:31,520 More briefly, moving on, you stand in righteousness. 373 00:23:31,520 –> 00:23:34,719 Stand, therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth 374 00:23:35,719 –> 00:23:40,719 and having put on the breastplate of righteousness. 375 00:23:41,199 –> 00:23:42,839 Now, the breastplate of righteousness 376 00:23:42,880 –> 00:23:46,819 is not referring here to the righteousness of Christ 377 00:23:46,819 –> 00:23:50,800 that is counted as ours when we come to faith in him. 378 00:23:50,800 –> 00:23:54,260 Remember, Paul is writing to those who are in Christ, 379 00:23:54,260 –> 00:23:57,780 his righteousness is already theirs. 380 00:23:57,780 –> 00:23:59,380 This is a marvelous truth. 381 00:23:59,380 –> 00:24:02,420 When the righteousness of Christ is counted as yours 382 00:24:02,420 –> 00:24:03,800 and you’re clothed in it, 383 00:24:03,800 –> 00:24:05,739 you do not need to put it on every day. 384 00:24:05,739 –> 00:24:10,739 It is yours in time and it is yours forever. 385 00:24:10,859 –> 00:24:13,660 So what Paul is speaking about here 386 00:24:13,660 –> 00:24:17,339 is not the imputed righteousness of Christ. 387 00:24:17,339 –> 00:24:19,839 He’s speaking here about the daily choice 388 00:24:19,839 –> 00:24:22,800 that a believer must make to do what is right. 389 00:24:23,660 –> 00:24:28,219 And here’s how you stand in the battle when it is raging. 390 00:24:28,219 –> 00:24:32,180 You determine what is right before God 391 00:24:32,180 –> 00:24:37,180 and you commit yourself to do it irrespective of the cost. 392 00:24:40,780 –> 00:24:42,660 I remember from years ago, 393 00:24:42,660 –> 00:24:45,319 it shows the value that it’s had in my life, 394 00:24:45,319 –> 00:24:49,040 that it stayed with me so clearly for so long. 395 00:24:49,040 –> 00:24:51,560 My own pastor speaking on this passage of scripture 396 00:24:51,560 –> 00:24:56,560 and saying this, that in any situation of conflict, 397 00:24:57,359 –> 00:25:00,239 the first two questions you must always ask 398 00:25:00,239 –> 00:25:02,180 are what is true and what is right? 399 00:25:03,000 –> 00:25:04,800 And you have to ask them in that order 400 00:25:04,800 –> 00:25:06,099 because you don’t know what is right 401 00:25:06,099 –> 00:25:07,479 until you know what is true. 402 00:25:08,380 –> 00:25:09,979 You see, the belt of truth, 403 00:25:09,979 –> 00:25:11,380 the breastplate of righteousness. 404 00:25:11,380 –> 00:25:13,800 So these are the first pieces of the armor you put on. 405 00:25:13,800 –> 00:25:17,319 The first questions you ask in any situation of conflict 406 00:25:17,319 –> 00:25:21,359 are what is true and what is right? 407 00:25:22,219 –> 00:25:24,099 And he gave this very simple illustration 408 00:25:24,099 –> 00:25:24,920 that’s just stuck with me. 409 00:25:24,920 –> 00:25:26,920 He said, you know, a father tells his daughter 410 00:25:26,920 –> 00:25:29,619 that she must be home by midnight. 411 00:25:30,760 –> 00:25:32,900 And when she arrives at two o’clock in the morning, 412 00:25:32,900 –> 00:25:34,880 he’s ready to unload. 413 00:25:35,500 –> 00:25:40,500 But first he must find out what is true. 414 00:25:40,579 –> 00:25:43,099 It may be that she flouted the curfew. 415 00:25:44,099 –> 00:25:46,739 It could also be that her car had broken down. 416 00:25:47,979 –> 00:25:50,300 Only when you discover what is true 417 00:25:50,300 –> 00:25:54,800 will you be in a position to discern what is right. 418 00:25:56,459 –> 00:25:59,900 Now third, you stand in the gospel. 419 00:25:59,900 –> 00:26:02,060 Notice as shoes for your feet, 420 00:26:02,060 –> 00:26:04,479 having put on the readiness given 421 00:26:04,479 –> 00:26:07,560 by the gospel of peace. 422 00:26:07,560 –> 00:26:08,760 Isn’t that a wonderful phrase? 423 00:26:08,760 –> 00:26:13,319 The gospel is the gospel of peace. 424 00:26:15,359 –> 00:26:17,939 And the good news of Jesus 425 00:26:17,939 –> 00:26:20,780 is that he has made peace 426 00:26:20,780 –> 00:26:22,400 by the shedding of His blood 427 00:26:22,400 –> 00:26:25,599 for the forgiveness of our sins. 428 00:26:25,599 –> 00:26:27,180 And that in Him, 429 00:26:27,180 –> 00:26:29,140 we have peace with God, 430 00:26:29,140 –> 00:26:30,439 You have peace with God 431 00:26:30,439 –> 00:26:32,719 even though you’re in the middle of a battle. 432 00:26:33,699 –> 00:26:37,280 Even though your sins are many, 433 00:26:37,280 –> 00:26:39,839 even though your life is not yet 434 00:26:39,839 –> 00:26:41,920 as you would want it to be 435 00:26:41,920 –> 00:26:44,420 or as it one day will be. 436 00:26:45,939 –> 00:26:48,000 And here is how you can stand, 437 00:26:48,000 –> 00:26:52,540 endure when the battle is raging around you, 438 00:26:53,439 –> 00:26:57,140 you stand in the gospel of peace. 439 00:26:57,140 –> 00:26:59,760 That is you stand in the knowledge 440 00:26:59,800 –> 00:27:04,800 that in Jesus Christ, despite the raging of this battle, 441 00:27:05,579 –> 00:27:09,119 I have peace with God. 442 00:27:10,219 –> 00:27:13,420 And no matter what happens, 443 00:27:13,420 –> 00:27:18,420 it is well with my soul. 444 00:27:19,979 –> 00:27:21,660 That’s how you stand. 445 00:27:21,660 –> 00:27:23,939 You need to know that, 446 00:27:23,939 –> 00:27:26,000 that you have peace with God 447 00:27:26,000 –> 00:27:29,060 in and through our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. 448 00:27:29,180 –> 00:27:34,180 Then number four, you stand in faith in all circumstances. 449 00:27:35,140 –> 00:27:38,099 Take up the shield of faith 450 00:27:38,099 –> 00:27:41,140 with which you can extinguish 451 00:27:41,140 –> 00:27:46,119 all the flaming darts of the evil one. 452 00:27:47,739 –> 00:27:50,939 Now I wonder if you have ever had the experience 453 00:27:51,839 –> 00:27:54,180 of destructive thoughts, 454 00:27:55,180 –> 00:27:57,859 hate-filled thoughts, 455 00:27:57,859 –> 00:28:00,699 blasphemous thoughts, 456 00:28:00,699 –> 00:28:02,300 coming into your mind. 457 00:28:03,819 –> 00:28:05,680 And when as a Christian believer 458 00:28:05,680 –> 00:28:06,900 thoughts of this nature 459 00:28:06,900 –> 00:28:07,839 come into your mind, 460 00:28:07,839 –> 00:28:08,939 you feel ashamed 461 00:28:08,939 –> 00:28:10,020 and you say to yourself, 462 00:28:10,020 –> 00:28:14,160 I cannot believe that I have been thinking such things. 463 00:28:15,579 –> 00:28:17,079 In a very real sense, 464 00:28:17,079 –> 00:28:19,500 it has not been you 465 00:28:19,500 –> 00:28:22,579 who has been thinking these things. 466 00:28:22,579 –> 00:28:26,859 These are flaming darts 467 00:28:26,900 –> 00:28:28,300 of the evil one. 468 00:28:29,140 –> 00:28:31,979 They come from outside 469 00:28:31,979 –> 00:28:33,560 not from inside. 470 00:28:33,560 –> 00:28:36,339 And the reason you know that they come from outside 471 00:28:36,339 –> 00:28:39,439 is that you hate them when they come. 472 00:28:41,000 –> 00:28:43,040 Now, how are you to stand 473 00:28:43,040 –> 00:28:44,339 against these darts 474 00:28:44,339 –> 00:28:45,540 that the enemy throws? 475 00:28:45,540 –> 00:28:49,380 Well, you take up the shield of faith. 476 00:28:49,380 –> 00:28:53,660 Faith believes that God is for you. 477 00:28:53,660 –> 00:28:56,420 That God is with you 478 00:28:56,420 –> 00:28:59,880 and that he is greater than all the forces 479 00:28:59,880 –> 00:29:01,920 that are arrayed against you. 480 00:29:03,780 –> 00:29:06,199 Now here I will make just one brief reference 481 00:29:06,199 –> 00:29:07,959 to the illustration of the armor 482 00:29:07,959 –> 00:29:11,780 because it adds something to our understanding, I believe. 483 00:29:11,780 –> 00:29:14,660 And that is that Roman soldiers protected themselves 484 00:29:14,660 –> 00:29:17,719 with two different kinds of shields. 485 00:29:17,719 –> 00:29:21,760 They carried a small round shield on the forearm 486 00:29:21,760 –> 00:29:24,800 so that for close combat, hands to hand combat, 487 00:29:24,800 –> 00:29:26,260 they had the shield for defense 488 00:29:26,260 –> 00:29:28,520 and the sword for attack. 489 00:29:28,520 –> 00:29:31,180 But obviously this small round shield 490 00:29:31,180 –> 00:29:33,260 used in hands to hand combat 491 00:29:33,260 –> 00:29:37,020 did not provide any protection to flaming arrows 492 00:29:37,020 –> 00:29:40,760 that may have been fired from a distance. 493 00:29:40,760 –> 00:29:45,319 For protection from these arrows, the flaming darts, 494 00:29:45,319 –> 00:29:50,319 the Roman soldier had a large rectangular shield 495 00:29:50,540 –> 00:29:54,959 similar to a police riot shield in shape, I guess 496 00:29:54,959 –> 00:29:56,699 by way of analogy today. 497 00:29:56,699 –> 00:29:59,619 And as many of you will know from history at school, 498 00:29:59,619 –> 00:30:04,619 the Romans developed this idea of a phalanx 499 00:30:04,780 –> 00:30:07,660 which was a small group of soldiers 500 00:30:07,660 –> 00:30:11,020 with these large shields arranged side by side, 501 00:30:11,020 –> 00:30:13,699 front and back and over the top 502 00:30:13,699 –> 00:30:16,459 so that the shields formed the kind of protective shell 503 00:30:16,459 –> 00:30:18,459 almost like the shell of a tortoise 504 00:30:18,459 –> 00:30:21,400 and then this little group together would move forward 505 00:30:21,400 –> 00:30:24,619 because together their shields gave protection 506 00:30:24,619 –> 00:30:26,979 to the entire group. 507 00:3026,979 –> 00:30:28,959 That image which without question 508 00:30:28,959 –> 00:30:31,939 was what Paul had in mind here 509 00:30:31,939 –> 00:30:33,939 reminds us of something very important, 510 00:30:33,939 –> 00:30:38,939 God never intended you to fight in the heat of battle alone 511 00:30:41,560 –> 00:30:44,880 the faith of other believers will strengthen you. 512 00:30:45,780 –> 00:30:48,459 You will stand with them with your shield 513 00:30:48,459 –> 00:30:51,300 contributing to their protection in their battles 514 00:30:51,300 –> 00:30:54,099 and they will stand with you with their shield of faith 515 00:30:54,099 –> 00:30:58,880 contributing to your protection in your battles. 516 00:30:58,880 –> 00:31:03,880 You stand in faith that does not mean that you stand alone. 517 00:31:03,959 –> 00:31:07,239 God has placed brothers and sisters around you 518 00:31:07,239 –> 00:31:09,359 who will stand in faith 519 00:31:09,359 –> 00:31:13,319 in the day of evil in the heat of battle 520 00:31:13,319 –> 00:31:16,280 when everything is being thrown at you. 521 00:31:16,280 –> 00:31:19,300 Number five you stand in hope 522 00:31:19,300 –> 00:31:23,040 and take the helmet of salvation. 523 00:31:24,760 –> 00:31:27,839 Now the Bible speaks about salvation in the past, 524 00:31:27,839 –> 00:31:30,180 the present, and the future tense. 525 00:31:30,180 –> 00:31:32,199 And very clearly when Paul speaks 526 00:31:32,199 –> 00:31:34,140 about the helmet of salvation, 527 00:31:34,140 –> 00:31:39,140 he is speaking about the hope of future salvation. 528 00:31:39,239 –> 00:31:42,520 And you see that is made explicit in a parallel passage 529 00:31:42,520 –> 00:31:47,439 in first Thessalonians, chapter five and verse eight. 530 00:31:47,439 –> 00:31:51,619 Think of how Jesus endured the evil day. 531 00:31:51,619 –> 00:31:53,479 How did Jesus get through the cross? 532 00:31:53,800 –> 00:31:58,479 He endured the cross for the joy set before him. 533 00:31:59,579 –> 00:32:02,839 And the Apostle Paul, when he was experiencing 534 00:32:02,839 –> 00:32:04,239 the heat of battle, 535 00:32:04,239 –> 00:32:07,800 he placed everything that he suffered, 536 00:32:07,800 –> 00:32:09,920 no evasion, no avoiding, 537 00:32:09,920 –> 00:32:12,140 but he placed everything that he suffered 538 00:32:12,140 –> 00:32:15,199 alongside the future glory that would be his. 539 00:32:15,199 –> 00:32:16,719 And from that he concluded 540 00:32:16,719 –> 00:32:20,160 it was worth staying in the battle. 541 00:32:21,040 –> 00:32:25,260 Now, you may not know when your battle will end. 542 00:32:26,180 –> 00:32:28,839 The struggle that you face right now. 543 00:32:28,839 –> 00:32:31,199 How will God bring deliverance? 544 00:32:31,199 –> 00:32:33,439 You will not know that, 545 00:32:33,439 –> 00:32:36,160 but this you can know beyond all question. 546 00:32:36,160 –> 00:32:40,319 God will deliver you. 547 00:32:41,760 –> 00:32:46,760 And one day, you will be able to say with the psalmist, 548 00:32:47,760 –> 00:32:52,280 I was pushed hard, and I was falling, 549 00:32:53,439 –> 00:32:56,119 but the Lord helped me. 550 00:32:56,119 –> 00:32:58,719 The Lord is my strength and my song. 551 00:32:58,719 –> 00:33:02,739 The Lord has become my salvation. 552 00:33:02,739 –> 00:33:06,939 That’s Psalm 118 verses 13 and 14. 553 00:33:07,959 –> 00:33:11,160 Then, sixthly, you stand in the Word of God. 554 00:33:11,160 –> 00:33:12,760 You take the helmet of salvation 555 00:33:12,839 –> 00:33:16,959 and the sword of the Spirit, 556 00:33:17,979 –> 00:33:21,400 which is the Word of God. 557 00:33:22,260 –> 00:33:25,000 Now, notice that the Bible here is described 558 00:33:25,000 –> 00:33:28,459 as the sword of the Spirit. 559 00:33:29,339 –> 00:33:31,280 In other words, it is the means, 560 00:33:31,280 –> 00:33:32,839 the scripture is the means, 561 00:33:32,839 –> 00:33:34,359 that the Holy Spirit uses 562 00:33:34,359 –> 00:33:37,180 to accomplish His work in your life. 563 00:33:38,239 –> 00:33:41,880 So, drip feed God’s word into your mind 564 00:33:41,880 –> 00:33:43,459 and into your heart, 565 00:33:43,459 –> 00:33:46,760 and in this way the Holy Spirit 566 00:33:46,760 –> 00:33:51,760 will enable you to stand your ground. 567 00:33:52,780 –> 00:33:54,800 So we’ve been looking at the most practical 568 00:33:54,800 –> 00:33:56,180 of subjects here today. 569 00:33:56,180 –> 00:33:58,859 We’ve been asking this most important question, 570 00:33:58,859 –> 00:34:02,660 how do you stand your ground 571 00:34:02,660 –> 00:34:05,560 when the battle is raging all around you? 572 00:34:06,640 –> 00:34:07,920 And we’ve seen from the scriptures 573 00:34:07,920 –> 00:34:10,679 that you do this as you face the truth, 574 00:34:11,280 –> 00:34:14,459 as you do what is right, 575 00:34:14,459 –> 00:34:18,520 as you rest in the piece of the Gospel, 576 00:34:18,520 –> 00:34:23,520 as you exercise faith alongside other believers, 577 00:34:24,040 –> 00:34:28,399 as you anticipate the joy of your future deliverance, 578 00:34:28,399 –> 00:34:32,600 and as you stand in the power of the spirit 579 00:34:32,600 –> 00:34:37,600 mediated through the Word of God. 580 00:34:38,300 –> 00:34:41,540 that’s how you stand in the heat of battle. 581 00:34:42,820 –> 00:34:44,260 Now, the last thing I want to say today, 582 00:34:44,260 –> 00:34:47,379 and it very briefly is just from verse 10. 583 00:34:47,379 –> 00:34:51,459 Notice this, finally be strong in the Lord 584 00:34:52,659 –> 00:34:55,979 and in the strength of his might. 585 00:34:55,979 –> 00:34:59,520 Put on the whole armor of God 586 00:34:59,520 –> 00:35:00,939 that you may be able to stand 587 00:35:00,939 –> 00:35:02,399 against the schemes of the devil. 588 00:35:02,399 –> 00:35:05,540 Thank God that there is more here 589 00:35:05,560 –> 00:35:08,340 than a call to greater effort. 590 00:35:08,340 –> 00:35:13,340 We’re being told here that God is with you in the battle. 591 00:35:14,919 –> 00:35:17,239 He’s with you in this battle 592 00:35:17,239 –> 00:35:22,199 and it is his strength that will sustain you. 593 00:35:23,620 –> 00:35:26,560 The armor of God, it’s God’s armor. 594 00:35:26,560 –> 00:35:29,679 It is the armor that God gives you. 595 00:35:30,879 –> 00:35:34,439 The truth that sets you free 596 00:35:34,439 –> 00:35:36,520 is the truth that he reveals. 597 00:35:37,679 –> 00:35:40,580 The righteousness that covers you 598 00:35:40,580 –> 00:35:42,899 is the righteousness that he gives. 599 00:35:43,899 –> 00:35:48,899 The gospel on which you stand is his gospel of peace. 600 00:35:49,959 –> 00:35:54,860 The faith that shields you is confidence in him. 601 00:35:54,860 –> 00:35:57,020 The hope that sustains you 602 00:35:57,020 –> 00:36:00,620 is the anticipation of his deliverance 603 00:36:00,620 –> 00:36:03,540 and the strength that he will give you 604 00:36:03,560 –> 00:36:08,560 comes by the Spirit in and through his Word. 605 00:36:09,379 –> 00:36:12,000 So you can prevail in the battle 606 00:36:12,000 –> 00:36:15,979 because the Savior is with you. 607 00:36:15,979 –> 00:36:19,000 Be strong in the Lord 608 00:36:20,159 –> 00:36:23,379 and in the strength of his might. 609 00:36:24,379 –> 00:36:26,699 Brothers, sister, Jesus Christ is greater 610 00:36:26,699 –> 00:36:29,500 than all that is arrayed against you. 611 00:36:29,500 –> 00:36:31,899 He has already inflicted a deadly wound 612 00:36:31,899 –> 00:36:33,379 on all of the powers of darkness 613 00:36:33,379 –> 00:36:35,120 from which they will never recover 614 00:36:36,179 –> 00:36:37,959 and their end is near. 615 00:36:38,860 –> 00:36:42,439 God controls how long the evil day 616 00:36:42,439 –> 00:36:45,340 that you endure will last. 617 00:36:46,379 –> 00:36:50,479 And he is with you in the battle 618 00:36:51,780 –> 00:36:55,500 and nothing will ever separate you 619 00:36:56,399 –> 00:36:57,580 from his love. 620 00:36:58,780 –> 00:37:01,979 Father, please take the truth of your Word 621 00:37:02,100 –> 00:37:06,120 and by your spirit work it into our hearts 622 00:37:06,120 –> 00:37:10,080 so that we may be strengthened in your power 623 00:37:11,260 –> 00:37:15,899 to stand in the battles that we face. 624 00:37:15,899 –> 00:37:18,139 May this be for your glory we pray 625 00:37:18,139 –> 00:37:19,979 and for our good. 626 00:37:19,979 –> 00:37:22,199 For these things we ask with gratitude 627 00:37:22,199 –> 00:37:25,219 for all your provision for us in Christ 628 00:37:25,219 –> 00:37:27,620 and we pray in Jesus name, amen.