Be Strong in the Lord
Notes
Transcript
Prayer
10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.
Here we come to Paul’s conclusion to his letter to the Ephesians…
And we find this word…Finally.
If I could quickly summarize the book of Ephesians up until this point where Paul is concluding his letter with his final thoughts… I would put it this way…
Finally…in Light of everything I have already shared.
…in light that I have already told you that I want you to Know God…
I want you to know who he is… That Ephesians 1:17-23
17 I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. 18 I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, 19 and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is the same as the mighty strength 20 he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, 21 far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is invoked, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. 22 And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, 23 which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.
I want you to know what he has done for you…
have been saved, you are being saved and you will be saved.
are adopted, chosen, redeemed, marked, new creations in Christ.
that you are created in Christ Jesus to do good works
that you are sealed with the same Spirit that rose Jesus from the dead
That you are made alive in Christ
that you have been brought near by the blood of Christ
that he is our peace, that he has brought together people from different backgrounds, ethnicities and cultures and made us into fellow citizens, sibilings and a temple to serve him
In short that we are to know God and…
Be Filled with the Spirit
Finally know God and be filled with the Spirit…
Live out this Christian life empowered by the Spirit of God…which will impact all of your relationships, starting at home with you spouse, your children/parents and even work…
Finally…know God, be filled with the Spirit and
Finally, be strong in the Lord....
be strong.
In the original Greek language, the term is a passive voice verb meaning “to be rendered (more) capable or able for some task.” To be strong in the Lord does not involve building up your own strength. Believers cannot strengthen themselves in the Lord; rather, they must be empowered or be strengthened, as the Greek voice indicates.
It’s passive…meaning you cannot go to the gym and work up your spiritual strength.
And this is extremely important. Because next week we are looking again at why we need to be strengthened…what is the battle that we are in and why it’s not our strength that matters. In fact I would argue the exact opposite today. It’s not our strength that matters at all.. It’s our weakness that allows true spiritual strength to shine.
Paul wrote about this in his 2 letter to the church in Corinth.
1 I must go on boasting. Although there is nothing to be gained, I will go on to visions and revelations from the Lord. 2 I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago was caught up to the third heaven. Whether it was in the body or out of the body I do not know—God knows. 3 And I know that this man—whether in the body or apart from the body I do not know, but God knows—4 was caught up to paradise and heard inexpressible things, things that no one is permitted to tell. 5 I will boast about a man like that, but I will not boast about myself, except about my weaknesses. 6 Even if I should choose to boast, I would not be a fool, because I would be speaking the truth. But I refrain, so no one will think more of me than is warranted by what I do or say, 7 or because of these surpassingly great revelations. Therefore, in order to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. 8 Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. 9 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. 10 That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong. 11 I have made a fool of myself, but you drove me to it. I ought to have been commended by you, for I am not in the least inferior to the “super-apostles,” even though I am nothing. 12 I persevered in demonstrating among you the marks of a true apostle, including signs, wonders and miracles.
First we must recognize that to be strong in the Lord is not something that we can manufacture. For if it was from us, then we would get the glory. But true spiritual strength is not ours, it’s His…
That’s why Paul writes,
….Be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power.
Church, when we live into our spiritual weakness, Christ is able to get the glory.
One of the most frustrating things in my life right now is how weak my voice is.
I need to be strengthened in the Lord…
But notice how I said that last phrase…
I believe most of the time we think of being strengthened…is from the Lord, or By the Lord
Be Strong by the Lord- As if you just need strength from Him.
…for the Lord.
No It’s Be Strong…in the Lord.
It’s only being found in Him that gives us true spiritual strength…
1 “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. 2 He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. 3 You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. 4 Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. 5 “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. 6 If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. 7 If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. 8 This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples. 9 “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. 10 If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love. 11 I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.
You have to be found in the Lord to receive Spiritual Strength.
This is why Nehemiah called the joy of the lord his strength.
10 Nehemiah said, “Go and enjoy choice food and sweet drinks, and send some to those who have nothing prepared. This day is holy to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.”
The Psalmist agrees…Psalm 28:7
7 The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and he helps me. My heart leaps for joy, and with my song I praise him.
I found this definition and of the joy of the lord and I really like it… The joy of the Lord is the gladness of heart that comes from knowing God, abiding in Christ, and being filled with the Holy Spirit.
Joy is not something that we can manufacture. That’s happiness.
Happiness is circumstantial. Joy is unchanging.
Happiness is fleeting. Joy is immovable.
Happiness is a feeling. Joy is a fruit of being filled by the Spirit.
Faith is the victory that overcomes the world, and the joy of the Lord is our strength. Adverse circumstances, instead of hindering our faith, can actually enhance our joy.
There is an amazing story in Acts 16 where Paul and Silas knew adversity as they sat with their feet in the stocks in a Philippian jail cell. Their legal rights had been violated. They had been arrested without cause and beaten without a trial. At midnight, since they couldn’t sleep, they sang—loudly—the praises of the Lord they were serving (Acts 16:25). A miracle soon followed (verse 26).
Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power.
I love that when we abide in Christ, Christ brings us joy.
Let’s go back to John 15 for a minute
Listen to this: “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love, If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as i have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love. I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. - John 15:9-11
Joy is a fruit of being filled with the Spirit and should be a defining characteristic of the church of Jesus Christ. Our joy should be one of our biggest witnesses to this world without hope.
And that’s why James is able to write : consider it all joy, my brothers and sisters when you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete not lacking anything.”
Finally, know God, be filled with the Spirit and abide in Him.
Because when we abide in Christ…we are strengthened with true spiritual strength. And His is able to get glory, even through our weaknesses.
And when we know God, when we are filled with the Spirit and when we are abiding in Christ…then we are able to stand our Ground.
Because church there is a battle ahead…
11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.
And we are going to need all the strength that is available to us from knowing God, being filled with the Spirit and from Abiding in Christ so that we can take a stand.
One of my favorite songs is Aaron Tippin’s, “You’ve Got to stand for something
