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Issue link: http://magazine.kcm.org/i/1476594
The moment we walk away from the power, we’re in trouble. The weaponry will begin to fall off. That’s what had happened to the Ephesians. They were saved, but they were standing naked before the enemy. In Acts 19, we read about the Ephesians experiencing mighty miracles. But by the time we read about them in Revelation 2, we see how far they’d drifted from those early days of divine power. They still had a big church. They still read their Bibles. But they had walked away from the power they’d once known. That’s why Jesus commanded them to return to where they’d once been (verse 5). Spiritual Warfare Next, we see we must “put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil” (Ephesians 6:11, emphasis mine). The word stand conveys the picture of a Roman soldier standing upright with his head held high, his shoulders thrown back, filled with confidence because of his strength. That’s who we are when we have God’s power dressing us in His divine weaponry. Against is the Greek word pros, which means standing face to face, eyeball to eyeball. When life hits us with trouble, we don’t have to slump over. We can throw our shoulders back and hold our heads high, because we have everything we need to stand confidently against the enemy. Next, Paul described the powers that are marshaled against us, using that word pros again and again because this is what we’re to confidently stand against: “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” (verse 12, emphasis mine). In the Greek, the powers described here are referring to enemy forces that are highly organized, disciplined and focused. The enemy takes no chances. He harnesses his troops and dispatches them to be malignant, malevolent and malicious. I’m not trying to scare you. I’m trying to prepare you because the enemy assaulting the church of Ephesus is the same, very real enemy we face today. They had to wake up to the assault, and so do we. Committed, Organized and Disciplined I once asked the Lord, “If we have more power and authority than the devil, if we have the blood of Jesus and the Word of God, why does it seem like the devil has so many victories?” The Holy Spirit replied, 'Because the devil has something the Church doesn’t have… commitment, organization and discipline.' The devil is serious about victimizing the human race; whereas the average churchgoer struggles to attend church once a month. What has happened to our level of commitment, organization and discipline? We have more power than the enemy. We have more authority. We have the blood. We have the Word. The devil is committed, organized and disciplined, though—something today’s Church lacks. We should, instead, see ourselves as the army of God. If we get more committed, organized and disciplined than the enemy, there will be no stopping us! Paul continued in verse 13, “Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day....” What is “the evil day”? In this particular case, Paul was talking about any day you wake up to evil around you. If you wake up and you’re sick, evil has tried to penetrate your day. If you wake up and you’ve got a problem in your finances, evil has tried to interrupt your day. Any day you wake up and find evil trying to get in your day, you don’t have to take it. You have received divine power and divine weaponry to withstand! 20 : BVOV