Sermon Tone Analysis

Know your Enemy/Be Strong in the Lord

INTRODUCTION: As Paul nears the end of EPHESIANS, he closes with a final series of admonitions.

He challenges his readers to open their eyes to the spiritual warfare in which they are engaged.

He calls them to be sure they are on the right foundation, wearing the proper spiritual garments, fighting the right enemies, and trusting the right Lord.

Verses 10-18 are a statement about the matter of Spirit-Filled Warfare.

Be Strong in the Lord...

Be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power (vs.

10)

We are called to be strengthened in the Power of Christ Himself.

Paul writes in

The Power Paul is talking about is the same power that raised Jesus from the dead () that brought them to life when they were dead in the sins (2:1) It adequacy cannot possibly be in doubt!

God is ‘All’ powerful.

In the Hebrew language He is “The Almighty” - “El Shaddai”

Our strength is in the Person of Jesus Christ.

The Word ‘Strong’ means to be empowered; to be strengthened.

It was used to speak of someone who was on their deathbed with illness, but recovers.

What seems to be impossible become the possible.

We are weak creatures!

We are weak emotionally.

We are weak in the way we think.

We are weak in our spirits.

We are weak when it comes to temptation and sin.

We are weak in our ability to control our own wills.

We are simply weak and we need someone to help us.

The strength we need to walk in victory in the battles of life will never come from within ourselves.

The strength we need can only come from the Lord.

ILLUSTRATION: When Paul wrote about his thorn in the flesh and how he prayed to have God remove it, he said,

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.

The New International Version.

(2011).

().

Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.

In Ephesians Paul wrote: “be strong in the Lord.”

This means that any spiritual strength we can ever hope too possess must come from Him. Spiritual power can only be ours through a relationship with Jesus Christ.

This means that just as we trust Jesus and His death and resurrection to save us, we must trust Him to give us the spiritual power we so desperately need.

Just as we need His righteousness to enter into God’s Heaven, we need His power if we are going to stand against the attacks we face in life.

Just as we need His blood to take away our sins, we need His power to defeat Satan.

He says to ‘Put on’ the Armor of God.

Yes, our strength and power come from God - From Jesus.

But we are to put Him on - in

All that we need is Jesus - His truth - His righteousness - his peace - his faith - his salvation - his sword.

Truth - is found in Jesus Christ ; ;

Put on Christ… All that we need is in Jesus!

It begins with believing in the reality and truth of the fact that there is a God, One true God, who is greater than us; who created us; who provides for us; who empowers us to be strong.

It comes from appropriating the power God has given to us, by saying Yes to Jesus; Jesus I need you - I need your strength - I am weak, but you are strong.

Be my strength.

What happens is God’s truth becomes our truth; His ways become our ways; His power becomes our power; His strength becomes our strength.

It is not a magical formula… it is a majestic faith.

A faith that is willing to say, I do not understand all this but i am willing to trust in God!

One Commentary wrote: We must remember that we are not fighting for victory, we are fighting from victory.

If there is to be any spiritual power, any spiritual victory, it must come from Him.

It must be given to us by the Lord.

True spiritual power will only come to those who are “in the Lord.”

So The Source Of Spiritual Strength is Jesus Christ, and His power is only given to those who are in a faith relationship with Him.

This then brings us to the fact that we must be aware of our ‘Enemy’ Even though he has been defeated, he has never stopped trying, nor will he, to keep us separated from God.

He will use several any means to try to keep us from God...

Be Aware of our Adversary - Satan

Paul calls him the ‘Devil.’

We must know our enemy; who we are going up against.

In

A lion is the epitome of strength.

the most fierce animal in the Kingdom.

They weigh around 370 - 500 LBS.

they have a speed burst of 50 miles and hour.

He roars when he wakes and just before he sets out to hunt for prey.

Satan is a roaring ‘Lion.’

We first encounter Satan in the Garden of Eden where he uses one of his tactics to ‘deceive’ Adam and Eve.

He will use doubt, deception, Distractions, division, depression, and derision…

Satan will use Deception

Jesus tells us that Satan’s native language is “Lying.”

Many people face stronghold of fear, anxiety, addiction, and more… they are all based upon lies that Satan puts into our minds.

And it does that through circumstances, which cause us to think about things that are not true.

As we began our Study in Ephesians, what were some of the things that Paul wanted his readers to know?

They were chosen by God ()

They have been redeemed (1:7)

They have been forgiven (1:7)

God has poured out his love on them (1:8)

They have purpose (1:9)

God is in Control (1:11)

Salvation comes from God (2:8-9)

The were once in darkness, now they are in light (Chapter 4)

So what is it so many people, even Christians struggle with?

Does God really love me?

Have I been forgiven?

Does my life have any purpose?

Is God really in Control?

ALL these things that cause us doubt come from Satan who lies about God’s love, forgiveness, purpose, and control.

He is the master of false advertising.

He will lie to you about God’s goodness, trustworthiness, and what is morally right and wrong.

He uses Distractions

Satan will constantly try to get you off track!

He will even try to get you to focus on good things which are not God’s best things!

While Jesus was serving the last passover, having washed his disciples feet, alerting them of His upcoming death, they were in a sidebar dispute about which of them was the greatest ()

Jesus was teaching in Martha and Mary’s house and while Mary was sitting at the feet of Jesus listening, Martha was in the kitchen rattling pots and pans because she couldn’t take time out of her busy schedule to listen to Jesus.

()

In our day of digital demands, Satan can easily distract us by the ding of a text or a phone call.

Even while we are praying he can distract us by focusing on our ‘To Do’ list.

He uses Division

God calls the church to Unity… Satan knows that “if a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand.”

() Anger and argument among God’s people may not destroy the gospel, but they can destroy your testimony and effectiveness in sharing it.

He stirs the pot by people being at odds with others… wives and husbands against one another; children disobeying their parent, quarreling in the church.