Ch. 11: Equipped For Living in the Last Days Part I
Consequences of the Coronavirus Pandemic:
-governments used this exaggerated threat to their full advantage
-they introduced us to a radically altered world
-changing the way we live
-all under the banner of public safety
-people are less social
-people are preoccupied with themselves, angry, violent, lawless, and tragically, more prone to suicide
-even Christians are moving further away from God
***today, there is a fear that continues to grip our culture and world
-the fear profoundly gripping to the psyche
-powerfully seized people’s minds and hearts worldwide
-fear drove policies and protocols that affected even the simplest things in our daily lives
-a persistent fear of the unknown that caused a state of hopelessness
-fear that caused people to turn on one another
***Christians compromised and fell in line with the worldly fear even though God calls His people to courage who equips us to stand and fight
Get Dressed:
-the Lord does not expect us to engage the dark forces invading our culture without knowing the capabilities of our weaponry and how to put on the full armor of God
2 Corinthians 10: 4-5
“The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.”
-the apostle Paul tells us that our weapons are not carnal, but God’s strongholds
-God’s word exalted defeats any worldly argument
-use the knowledge of God as your spiritual armament
Ephesians 6: 10-18
The Armor of God
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. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13 Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.
***The word “finally” means from this point forward
-once armored we have incredible strength and power
-notice Paul is not talking about our own strength or might, but pulling from God’s strength and on His might
***when we put on God’s armor, we are putting on Christ
Romans 13: 12-14
“The night is nearly over; the day is almost here. So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. Let us behave decently, as in the daytime, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and debauchery, not in dissension and jealousy. Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the flesh.”
Get Wise:
-it is easy to forget that we are fighting an enemy unlike any other entity-it is not human
-the devil’s involvement in the world is real
The enemy’s Methods:
-Satan’s ability to hide his intentions and activities is why Paul warns to be prepared against the wiles of the devil
-Wiles, Greek word, translated methodeia from which we get our English word methodology
-the devil has methods and strategies to gain an advantage over humans
-the devil equips his armies with the best weaponry possible
-Satan will throw everything at us
Tactical Methods:
-wearing down tactic
-confuse and intimidate tactic
-lightning and surprise attack tactic
-open ended tactic
-hot pursuit tactic
-God, in his goodness, had made us tougher than we realize
-Jesus tells Peter that Satan asked to sift him like wheat
***Satan’s goal was to break Peter
***Statan’s goal was to destroy Peter
-God used the situation to make Peter a spiritual giant
-Peter becomes wise, mature, and battle-hardened
-Peter’s books will bless you with his insights for your Christian walk
-overwhelming opposition can be intimidating and it is easy to cower in fear
-when you look you only the physical army in front of you, but it is what you don’t see as God’s army is forming behind you
***Faith sees what fear cannot
-when circumstances shout at you to give up ask God to open your eyes
Get Strong:
-spiritual warfare is real
-to fight with good faith you need furnish yourselves with the armor of God daily
Ephesians 6: 13
“Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.”
***the key reason God has given us a suit of spiritual armor is so we can withstand the fiery darts of Satan
-your first line of defense comps from the wall of protection against what is opposing you
-that wall is designed to deflect attacks
-barriers placed in strategic locations can be an invaluable security and protection against attack
-using the Word of God will determine your level of safety during dangerous times
-when you feel the enemy pressing in with fear, doubt, or anxiety then the strategic plan is to call on the power of God believing in His promises to protect, guard, and assist in defeating the enemy
Stand Firm:
-the concept of girding your waist has to do with using a belt
-the front of the belt was to protect the lower body so they had to be strong and substantial
-the breastplate protected vital organs and had the ability to hold close combat weapons
Ephesian 6: 14
“Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place”
-Biblically girding yourself tightly with God’s truth enables you to stand firm, immovable, and to protect your vital organs
-girding yourself firmly with the belt of truth is essential because it will determine if you will stand or fall
1 Peter 1:13
“Therefore, with minds that are alert and fully sober, set your hope on the grace to be brought to you when Jesus Christ is revealed at his coming.”
-the literal Greek text for gird is to prepare your mind for action
-we cannot afford to allow our thoughts to aimlessly flap in breeze and risk losing our enthusiasm for the things of God and our effectiveness as Christians
-in the battle for truth, the opposition is subtle in its attempts to sway our thinking
-we need to be wise to who we are listening to and what we are reading
-gird your mind with pure Biblical doctrine so you don’t lackadaisical concerning spiritual things
Hebrews 2:1
“We must pay the most careful attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away.”
***the beautiful thing about truth is that you don’t need to create it
-God’s eternal truth stands–strong, steady, and unchanging
-God’s desire is that each of us would walk in the truth
-the Bible is practical truth
-God’s Word illuminates everything around you that is shadowy and distorted
-if you hold truth up like a lantern then you will be able to walk in the light
-the Bible lays down truths you should know line upon line
Psalm 119:105
“Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.”
-our responsibility is to follow the example of Jesus to the best of our ability as He is Truth
-Pilate asked Jesus the question of what is truth?
John 5:39
“You study the Scriptures diligently because you think that in them you have eternal life. These are the very Scriptures that testify about me,”
Acts 17:11
“Now the Berean Jews were of more noble character than those in Thessalonica, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.”
***there is no substitute but to consume the Bible on a regular basis and determine to put it into practice
Get Engaged:
-the days are growing darker and more evil
-God is preparing His church and is calling us to a new level even greater commitment
-we have been appointed to be alive at this moment in time
-we should wake every morning with with anticipation and excitement at what God has planned for us each day
-the church should engage in the world battling wickedness and proclaiming the gospel
-we are to be a shining light, love, and truth of Christ to a dark world
-church history is full of examples of men and women who wholeheartedly believed that they should engage their culture by taking a strong stand
Ex. William Wilberforce, Samuel Adams, William Care, Bonhoeffer
-Wilberforce used his position to affect change
-Wilberforce became an ardent abolitionist
-he campaigned tirelessly for 45 years to abolish slavery
-many times he stood alone in his pursuit
“My walk is a public one”
“My business is in the world, and I must mix in the assemblies of men or quit the post which Providence seems to have assigned me.”
-he made a speech before Parliament
“Having heard all this, you may choose to look the other way, but you can never again say that you did not know.”
-that speech changed history
-he witnessed the slave trade’s abolishment at age 47
-on his deathbed 30 years later he learned of the final passage of the Slavery Abolition Act, allowing 700,000 slaves in the United Kingdom to be set free
-his influence reached the United States
Ex. Dr. Benjamin Rush, the first surgeon general; John Adams, the 2nd president; and Thomas Jefferson
-the church militant is here on Earth, but the church triumphant is yet to come
-we will have the ultimate triumph when we stand before the Lord, rejoicing in heaven
-build a line of defense so that we can stand strong and persevere
***Jesus prayed to His Father for us as He is not of the world but came to sanctify us to Him through truth
John 17: 16-19
“They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. Sanctify them by[a] the truth; your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified.”
-the word, sent, implies equipment for a definite mission
-we can go forth with great courage because of the magnitude of support that truth provides
-the power of heaven is in front, behind, and on all sides of us
***He has commissioned us to go into this world of hostile arguments, sinister agendas, and demonic doctrines to and fro throughout the whole Earth
-the Bible tells us we should refuse to look the other way and will not back down in fear
2 Chronicles 16:9
“For the eyes of the Lord range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him. You have done a foolish thing, and from now on you will be at war.”
***be engaged, take a stand, and stay in the fight