God supplies us with what we need to walk in victory and enjoy the good life He has prearranged for us. He supplies us with the armor and instructs us to put it on! The Bible says to put the armor on! Do you have your armor on? We must beware of passivity, the spirit that causes us to take NO action. God-inspired action is essential to victorious living. Weak-willed, weak-minded believers are no threat to the devil. If we are to defeat the enemy and possess the land, we must be STRONG. We need to be STRONG for ourselves and for others. GOD WANTS YOU TO BE STRONG AND STAY THAT WAY.
Joshua 1:6-9
6 Be strong and of a good courage: for unto this people shalt thou divide for an inheritance the land, which I sware unto their fathers to give them.
7 Only be thou strong and very courageous, that thou mayest observe to do according to all the law, which Moses my servant commanded thee: turn not from it [to] the right hand or [to] the left, that thou mayest prosper whithersoever thou goest.
8 This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.
9 Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the LORD thy God [is] with thee whithersoever thou goest.
In what do we need to be STRONG? In our minds.
Hebrews 12:1-3
1 ¶ Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset [us], and let us run with patience the race that is set before us,
2 Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of [our] faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.
3 For consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds.
The Word of God instructs us to keep our mind on Jesus and what He endured so that we want grow weary or exhausted, and faint in our minds. WE MUST BE DETERMINED TO FINISH OUR COURSE AND NOT GIVE UP.
Galatians 6:9
9 And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.
We must be STRONG in every way in order to properly put on and wear the whole armor of God. The devil will try to weaken you to the point where you just give up. Don't give up! Even the weak are encouraged in Joel 3:10 to say, by faith: "...I am STRONG..."
Throughout the Bible, God shows people what they are to do; and then says to them, BE STRONG AND DO IT! God-inspired, God-directed action is the key to victory. Ephesians 6:11 instructs us to "put on" the whole armor of God, but the preceding verse - verse 10- says to "...be STRONG in the Lord." We see from this that strength from God must precede all godly action. When the Lord instructs you to do something, you still must go to Him and draw strength from Him. In this way, we are truly leaning and depending on Him, and that we believe John 15:5 - apart from Him we can do nothing.
Many get started right, but they never finish. Why? Because, between the beginning and the end of anything, there will always come a time of standing. Standing requires the strength of God. Too many people attempt to stand in their own strength, and they always fail. I believe you can see that verses 11-18 of Ephesians 6 are not possible without verse 10. Strength comes from spending time with God, waiting upon Him, and purposely drawing strength from Him for every task, especially spiritual warfare.
GOD WANTS YOU TO OVERCOME ALL OF YOUR WEAKNESSES. Trusting God and praying are vital to STRONG believers who are possessing the land and exercising authority over the devil. Isaiah chapter 40 gives us the spiritual antidote for weakness:
Isaiah 40:28-31
28 Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, [that] the everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? [there is] no searching of his understanding.
29 He giveth power to the faint; and to [them that have] no might he increaseth strength.
30 Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall:
31 But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew [their] strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; [and] they shall walk, and not faint.
These Scriptures tell us that everything will become weak, no matter how naturally strong they are; but the way to continual renewal of strength is to "wait upon the Lord." Spend time with Him; enjoy His presence. When we come and wait in His presence, there is a divine exchange. He takes our weakness and we receive from Him His strength. IN OTHER WORDS WE BECOME STRONG!
REMEMBER: EPHESIANS 6:12
12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high [places].
It is the devil that we are at war with, not each other. The devil is the enemy. With the whole armor of God on we are able to STAND against him and know the methods (different means, plans, and schemes uses to entrap, deceive, ruin, and enslave) that he uses against us to defeat us. If you don't pray and study the Word of God, following the instructions of the Word to the letter you will not have the power to STAND. ARE YOU FOLLOWING THE INSTRUCTIONS OF THE WORD OF GOD? PLEASE, let me encourage you to be serious about studying the Word of God daily. Walk in obedience to ALL of God's Word. Not just the part you choose.
The 6 fold Christian Armor
1. Loins girt about with truth (v 14)
2. Breastplate of righteousness (v 14)
3. Feet shod with the preparation of the Gospel of Peace (v 15)
4. The shield of Faith (v 16)
5. The Helmet of Salvation (v 17)
6. The Sword of the Spirit, the Word of God (v 17)
REMEMBER: PUT ON THE WHOLE ARMOR OF GOD AND HAVING DONE ALL TO STAND, STAND.
Ephesians 6:18
18 Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;
PRAY AND OBEY