Ephesians 6:10-24
EPISTLE TO THE EPHESIANS,
Historical Setting. The general nature of Ephesians makes it difficult to determine the specific circumstances why Paul wrote this letter to the church of Ephesus.
It is clear, however, that the recipients were Gentiles
Ephesians 3:1 (NKJV) For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for you Gentiles—
Tiny APOHL A prisoner of His LOVE
Who were not citizens of the kingdom of Israel (2:11).
Ephesians 2:11-13 11 Therefore remember that you, once Gentiles in the flesh–who are called Uncircumcision by what is called the Circumcision made in the flesh by hands– 12 that at that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world.
If you read my book or any of my web page writings, you will see that I love conjunctions. That tells me the story is not over. So they had no hope, and they were without God, and then verse 13 says:
13 But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.
Now, thanks to the gracious gift of God, we enjoy the spiritual blessings that come from Christ.
Theological Contribution. The theme of Ephesians is the relationship between the heavenly Lord Jesus Christ and His earthly body, the church. Christ now reigns
Ephesians 1:21-23 21 far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come.
There’s that conjunction again, verse 22
22 And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, 23 which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.
Exalted as He is, Jesus did not drift off into the heavens and forget His people. He identifies with the church that He considers His body, which He fills with His presence
Ephesians 3:19-21 19 to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. 20 Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, 21 to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.
Ephesians 4:9-10 9 (Now this, “He ascended”–what does it mean but that He also first descended into the lower parts of the earth? 10 He who descended is also the One who ascended far above all the heavens, that He might fill all things.)
So, we take great comfort in the fact that He didn’t go to heaven and forget us!
(from Nelson’s Illustrated Bible Dictionary, Copyright (c)1986, Thomas Nelson Publishers)
1st. Analyze the enemy – begin by getting to know Satan and his tactics.
principality and power and might and dominion,
We need to Know Our Enemy And know that he is already defeated.
Satan is going to lose.
I’ve read the last book in the Bible; we win, so stop letting him get victory over our lives
On 10 September 1813, after defeating the British fleet in the Battle of Lake Erie, Oliver Hazard Perry, commander of the American fleet, dispatched one of the most famous messages in military history to Maj. Gen. William Henry Harrison. It read: “Dear Gen’l: “WE HAVE MET THE ENEMY, AND THEY ARE OURS.”, two ships, two brigs, one schooner and one sloop. Yours with great respect and esteem. H. Perry.”
Who is our enemy?
The DEVIL (accuser) – the main title for the fallen angelic being who is the supreme enemy of God and man. Satan is his name, and devil is what he is-the accuser or deceiver. The title “devil” appears 38 times in the Bible. In every case it is preceded by the article “the,” indicating a title rather than a name. The term comes from a Greek word that means “a false witness” or “malicious accuser.” A liar!
If you see “a devil” or “devils,” it means demons.
Several graphic phrases applied to the devil in the New Testament point out the nature of his wicked personality and the extent of his evil deeds.
The Wicked or Evil One
This phrase depicts the devil’s fundamental nature.
Lord’s Prayer asking to be delivered
Matthew 6:13 And do not lead us into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.
Matthew 13:19 19 When anyone hears the word of the kingdom, and does not understand it, then the wicked one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is he who received seed by the wayside.
Matthew 13:38-39 38 The field is the world, the good seeds are the sons of the kingdom, but the tares are the sons of the wicked one. 39 The enemy who sowed them is the devil, the harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are the angels.
1 John 2:13 I write to you, fathers, Because you have known Him who is from the beginning. I write to you, young men, Because you have overcome the wicked one. I write to you, little children, Because you have known the Father.
He is in direct opposition to everything God is or all he wishes to do.
He is the source of all evil and wickedness.
Humanity needs this deliverance:
1 Peter 5:8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.
Remember Job:
Job 1:6-7 6 Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan also came among them. 7 And the LORD said to Satan, “From where do you come?” So Satan answered the LORD and said, “From going to and fro on the earth, and from walking back and forth on it.” Sounds like one Peter 5:8, doesn’t it
He is always looking for trouble. Those not prepared for the fight.
Enemy: The devil is man’s worst enemy.
This is one enemy Jesus does not want us to love.
He is an enemy of Christ, the church, and the gospel, and he is tireless in his efforts to uproot good and sow evil.
In Matthew 13, Jesus is talking about the enemy that tares among the wheat.
Matthew 13:25 but while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat and went his way.
Matthew 13:28 He said to them, ‘An enemy has done this.’ The servants said to him, ‘Do you want us then to go and gather them up?’
He plainly tells you…
Matthew 13:39 The enemy who sowed them is the devil, the harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are the angels.
Murderer
John 8:44 You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it.
Strong words from the lips of Jesus.
The devil killed Abel and the prophets, and he wanted to kill Jesus before His time
John 8:40 But now you seek to kill Me, a Man who has told you the truth which I heard from God. Abraham did not do this.
Deceiver
Revelation 20:10 The devil, who deceived them, was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet are. And they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.
Starting with Eve, the devil has attempted to deceive every living soul. Evil men operating under the power of the evil one will continue to deceive.
2 Timothy 3:13 But evil men and impostors will grow worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived.
Beelzebub, Prince of Demons
Matthew 9:34 But the Pharisees said, “He casts out demons by the ruler of the demons.”
Matthew 12:24 Now when the Pharisees heard it they said, “This fellow does not cast out demons except by Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons.”
The religious leaders of Jesus’ time were guilty of blasphemy against the Holy Spirit because they claimed the miracles of Jesus were actually conducted by the devil.
Some versions incorrectly translate “demons” as “devils.” There are many demons but only one devil.
His name is Beelzebub, the chief leader of the fallen angels known as demons.
Prince or Ruler of This World. Three times Jesus called the devil the “ruler of this world”
John 12:31 Now is the judgment of this world; now the ruler of this world will be cast out.
John 14:30 I will no longer talk much with you, for the ruler of this world is coming, and he has nothing in Me.
John 16:11 of judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.
The devil offered the world to Jesus if He would worship him (Luke 4:5-7),
Luke 4:5-8 5 Then the devil, taking Him up on a high mountain, showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. 6 And the devil said to Him, “All this authority I will give You, and their glory; for this has been delivered to me, and I give it to whomever I wish. 7 Therefore, if You will worship before me, all will be Yours.” 8 And Jesus answered and said to him, “Get behind Me, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the LORD your God, and Him only you shall serve.’ “
On Mount Calvary, God dealt a death blow to this world ruler. It is only a matter of time before God will win the final victory at the end of time.
1 John 3:8 He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil.
Matthew 25:41 Then He will also say to those on the left hand, ‘Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels:
Hell was never intended for man; God sends no man to hell; they do that to themselves.
Revelation 12:7-9 7 And war broke out in heaven: Michael and his angels fought with the dragon; and the dragon and his angels fought, 8 but they did not prevail, nor was a place found for them in heaven any longer. 9 So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.
That is Our enemy!!!
Who is not our enemy!!!
Other Christians,
Other Churches,
Other Denomination,
Satan would have nothing better than to have this church divided among itself. We need to try as hard as we can to get along with each other, even if we grate on each other a little bit; get over it, go to each other and make things right.
Ephesians 6:10-20 10 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.
powers = NT:1849 exousia (ex-oo-see’-ah); from NT:1832 (in the sense of ability); privilege, i.e. (subjectively) force, capacity, competency, freedom, or (objectively) mastery (concretely, magistrate, superhuman, potentate, token of control), delegated influence:
KJV – authority, jurisdiction, liberty, power, right, strength.
Eph 6:10 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.
Brethren, Christians, you and I, Paul said, were to be Strong in the Lord, in His might. Through His power
strong = NT:1743 endunamoo (en-doo-nam-o’-o); from NT:1722 and NT:1412; to empower: KJV – enable, (increase in) strength (-en), be (make) strong.
Jude 1:9 Yet Michael the archangel, in contending with the devil, when he disputed about the body of Moses, dared not bring against him a reviling accusation, but said, “The Lord rebuke you!”
The battle is the Lord’s, and the victory will be God’s.
Utilize our weaponry –
The devil is strong, but Christians are stronger through the Lord
Ephesians 6:11 Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.
wiles = NT:3180 methodeia (meth-od-i’-ah); from a compound of NT:3326 and NT:3593 [compare “method”]; travelling over, i.e. travesty (trickery): KJV – wile, lie in wait.
We have the protection needed to withstand his assaults. The devil tempts, but God provides a way of escape
1 Corinthians 10:13 No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.
The three Hebrews thrown into the fire…
As we said a few weeks ago, you don’t claim this right before you are thrown into the fire; they made up their mind some years earlier.
The devil tries to take advantage of people,
2 Corinthians 2:11 lest Satan should take advantage of us; for we are not ignorant of his devices.
Learn his devices.
Then he will flee if fought. James 4:7 Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
For a season, for a while, I promise you he will be back
First submit to God, then resist.
The devil should be feared, but knowJesus is more powerful than this deceiving prince of the demons.
1 John 4:4 You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.
But understand the battle is not yours alone, but God is the one going to fight the fight for us.
So, when the devil is lying in wait, we are prepared; that’s what we are doing now and every time we come to Sunday School, Bible study, or when you study and get in the Word of God.
(from Nelson’s Illustrated Bible Dictionary, Copyright (c)1986, Thomas Nelson Publishers
And back to Ephesians chapter 6
Ephesians 6:12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.
principalities, = NT:746 arche (ar-khay’); from NT:756; (properly abstract) a commencement, or (concretely) chief (in various applications of order, time, place, or rank):
KJV – beginning, corner, (at the, the) first (estate), magistrate, principality, principle, rule.
The words which Paul uses, powers, authorities, world-rulers, are all names for different classes of these evil spirits.
To him the whole universe was a battleground. As it is to us
The Christian had not only to contend with the attacks of men; he had to contend with the attacks of spiritual forces which were fighting against God.
Our experience will tell us that there is an active power of evil in the world.
Robert Louis Stevenson once said: “You know the Caledonian Railway Station in Edinburgh? One cold, east windy morning, I met Satan there.”
We do not know what actually happened to Stevenson, but we recognize the experience; we have all felt the force of that evil influence which seeks to make us sin.
Did you know that the Church of Satan boasts that they actively pray and fast to Satan for the demise of Bible preachers? I think their prayers are being heard and answered!
In a town in Iowa just this past week, a man got up and prayed to Satan to start off the council meeting. Soon after he left the podium, someone stood up and said Let us just reverse this curse that was put on our city. Hail Satan is not welcome here
One of the best newspaper cartoons of all time is Calvin and Hobbes. One day Calvin comes marching into the living room early one morning. His mother is seated there in her favorite chair. She is sipping her morning coffee. She looks up at young Calvin. She is amused and amazed at how he is dressed. Calvin’s head is encased in a large space helmet. A cape is draped around his neck, across his shoulders, down his back, and is dragging on the floor.
“What’s up today?” asks his mom.
“Nothing, so far,” answers Calvin.
“So far?” she questions.
“Well, you never know,” Calvin says, “Something could happen today.” Then Calvin marches off, “And if anything does, by golly, I’m going to be ready for it!”
Calvin’s mom looks out at the reading audience, and she says, “I need a suit like that!”
That’s how many of us feel as we watch the news and deal with life. Sometimes this world seems quite violent, and people seem to be at each other’s throats.
A suit like that would help, so we can say with Calvin, “Whatever may come my way, I’m going to be ready for it! Bring it on!”
Where can we get a suit like that?
Do they make a suit like that?
Yeah, in this section of Ephesians tells us to put that suit on
Utilize our weaponry – we have to look at each article of Christian armor.
Now that we know who our enemy is, we know what our battle is:
THE ARMOUR OF GOD
Paul suddenly sees a picture ready-made.
All this time he was chained by the wrist to a Roman soldier. Night and day a soldier was there to ensure that he would not escape.
Paul was literally a messenger in chains. Now he was the kind of man who could get alongside anyone; and beyond doubt he had talked often to the soldiers who were compelled to be so near him.
As he writes, the soldier’s armor suggests a picture to him.
The Christian too has his armor; and part by part Paul takes the armor of the Roman soldier and translates it into Christian terms.
Ephesians 6:13 13 Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.
Not some of the armor, all the armor, the whole armor. This is important enough that he mentions it twice: The whole armor of God.
13 Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.
When you think you can’t stand another moment, God says in the next verse… Stand
14 Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness,
How? with truth as a belt about your waist.
14 Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness,
There is the belt of truth.
It was the belt which restrains in the soldier’s tunic and from which his sword hung and which gave him freedom of movement.
Others may guess and grope; the Christian moves freely and quickly because he knows the truth.
They would tuck their clothes in and move more freely
14 Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness,
Put on righteousness as a breastplate. As a protection, the breastplate covers the heart; so much to your righteousness that covers your heart.
When a man is clothed in righteousness, he is invincible. Words are no defense against accusations, but a good life is.
Once a man accused Plato of certain crimes. “Well then,” said Plato, “we must live in such a way as to prove that his accusations are a lie.”
The only way to meet the accusations against Christianity is to show how good a Christian can be.
Next are your shoes and boots, the protection of your feet
15 and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace;
or Proclaim the Word of God
There are the sandals. Having your feet prepared for battle, having yourself ready to run for Christ
Sandals were the sign of one equipped and ready to move.
The sign of the Christian is that he is eager to be on the way to share the gospel with others who have not heard it.
They were like cleats with spikes in the bottom pointing back. When pushed against, they didn’t give; they Held Their Ground!!!
There is the shield.
16 above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one.
The word shield Paul uses is not that for the comparatively small round shield; it is that for the great oblong shield which the heavily armed warrior wore.
One of the most dangerous weapons in ancient warfare was the fiery dart.
It was a dart tipped with tow dipped in pitch. The pitch-soaked tow was set afire, and the dart was thrown. If it splattered on you, it would give you 2nd and 3rd degree burns.
The great oblong shield was made of two sections of wood, glued together, and laminated
When the shield was presented, the dart sank into the wood and the flame was put out.
Faith can deal with the darts of temptation.
With Paul, faith is always complete trust in Christ.
When we walk close with Christ, we are safe from temptation.
As we’ve seen in Hebrews Chapter 11 Sunday morning it’s all about faith in God and trust in who we put our faith in
In all things, take faith as a shield, for with it you will be able to quench the flaming darts of the evil one.
17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God;
There is salvation for a helmet.
Salvation is not something which looks back only.
The salvation which is in Christ gives us forgiveness for the sins of the past and strength to conquer sin in the days to come.
That’s what baptism represents. Death, burial, and resurrection,
Buried with Him in death. Raised to walk a new life.
Are you walking that new life or still living the old one?
17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God;
There is the sword; and the sword is the word of God.
The word of God is at once our weapon of defense against sin and our weapon of attack against the sins of the world.
Oliver Cromwell. Or Ironsides fought with a sword in one hand and a Bible in the other. We can never win God’s battles without God’s book.
Oliver Cornwell was a controversial but influential person in British history. He helped lead the army to victory during the English Civil War and the Second Civil War and was then selected to lead the country as a Lord Protector. His men wore armor where they got the name of Ironsides, but he was a devout Christian, and he wouldn’t fight without the word of God, and he was very victorious in his battles
And then he tells you what the sword of the Spirit is:
17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; It’s your Bible
Can’t live in the will of God outside the Word of God.
Make sure you have a weapon, and Jesus even told his disciples the night before his crucifixion. And he’s actually talking about a real, true physical weapon. I’m talking about the Word of God
Luke 22:36 Then He said to them, “But now, he who has a money bag, let him take it, and likewise a knapsack; and he who has no sword, let him sell his garment and buy one.
Be well armed with the word of God, and how do you get that? By getting in Bible study, by getting to church every chance you get
Be armed with the word of God
Know your weapons. Your weapon is the word of God, and you need to put on the whole armor of God
Finally, Paul comes to the greatest weapon of all–and that is prayer.
We need to look at a few things that he says about prayer.
18 praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints–
(a) It must be persistent. Our tendency is so often to pray only in the great crises of life; but it is from daily prayer that the Christian will find daily strength.
(b) It must be intense. Limp prayer never got a man anywhere. Prayer demands the attention of every faculty upon God.
(c) It must be unselfish. The Jews had a saying, “Let a man unite himself with the community in his prayers.” I think that often our prayers are too much for ourselves and too little for others.
We must learn to pray as much for others and with others as for ourselves.
As Alan said Sunday night, having problems of our own, and then you have one person having one problem, and they call and say, ” Hey, pray for me then another, and then another one. And as I said, my kid from the children’s home, Johnny, is facing cancer. And Tim Croft, and God is using both of them, in ways only He can.
Charles Spurgeon said I would rather teach one man to pray than 10 men to preach
18 has 4 ‘alls ‘:
18 praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints–
- Praying always – pray regularly.
- with all supplication in the Spirit – pray correctly.
- with all perseverance – pray persistently.
- for all saints – pray inclusively.
Keep praying in the Spirit at every crisis with every kind of prayer and desperate plea to God.
To that end, be sleepless in your persevering prayer for all God’s sacred people. And then he says to pray for him, verse 19
Finally, Paul asks for the prayers of his friends for himself.
And he asks not for comfort or for peace but that he may yet be allowed to proclaim God’s secret, that his love is for all men.
19 and for me, that utterance may be given to me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel,
Pray for me that I may be allowed to speak with open mouth. This is a prayer that most preachers pray or should pray, and boldly to make known the secret of the gospel, for which I am a messenger in a chain.
Pray that I may have freedom to declare it, as I ought to speak.
Any success I have had here is because of prayer. The way to have more blessings is through prayer. Sermon success is a direct result of prayer, not skill. The way I can stay in the ministry is not to feel confident that since I’ve done it many years so far that I always will…I need your prayers!
20 for which I am an ambassador in chains; that in it I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.
We do well to remember that every Christian leader and every Christian preacher needs his people to uphold his hands in prayer.
Seek His face before we serve Him.
Worship Him before we work for Him.
Pray first, and then serve.
Pray first, and then preach.
Pray first, and then make a decision.
Speak through me! Please!!!
A preacher’s prayer:
Lord, help me get out of the way;
Lord help me not make it about me;
Lord help me refrain from being the hero of every sermon.
I am flawed.
I am weak.
I’m just the messenger…
the servant of His great promises.
Let me decrease and let Jesus increase.
Let people forget about me and always remember. Jesus!!!
Amen.
- Pray regularly.
1 Thessalonians 5:17 Pray without ceasing.
This doesn’t mean 24 hrs. a day…that’s impossible, and we have other duties and need sleep, etc.
What this does mean is that our heavenly telephone should always be in service, and used often as a first plan of action, not our last resort.
We should never have to start a prayer with “Lord, we come into your presence…” because you never left His presence in the first place!
We should wake up to prayer, and before our feet hit the floor, recognize the One who has given us another day, and as we get up and begin, we should begin it with Him, and not just rush past Him into our day.
We have so much to accomplish that we MUST take time to pray. It’s time well spent, and since you can’t out-give God, do yourself a favor and take time to pray!
Traveling time is a great time to pray and worship.
Through the day, decisions will need to be made, challenges will arise, temptations will present themselves.
Walking with God means sharing life with Him, not just Sundays with Him.
We should seek Him even in small decisions, habitually. If we would ask Him to help us find our keys, He will remind us that they are in our hands, and by the way, our glasses are on our face!
Joshua defeated Jericho; he and the people were filled with self-confidence, and didn’t seek the Lord against the little village of Ai…they would be a piece of cake, right? Only a small delegation was sent, and 36 men lost their lives!
Joshua got back on his knees, and God revealed the problem to him and how to win that battle. And God would have revealed that before, just as he did after, and they wouldn’t have died!
When we fail to seek the Lord, we are headed for trouble!
Maybe you’ve driven that way as well. Not nodding off, but zoning out mentally unless something happens to awaken your attention.
When I think of praying without ceasing, I think it means that, on at least a subconscious level, you are always in a spirit of prayer, even if you don’t actually pray a prayer until something comes to your attention, which should be more often than not!
We do a variety of things all day, but are we aware of the fact that God is in the same room and thinking of us, even when we haven’t been thinking of Him?
We need to experience God in life, not just in church!
- Pray regularly…
- Pray correctly.
The disciples never asked Jesus to teach them to preach, but to teach them to pray!
We pray to the Father, through the Spirit, in Jesus’ name.
“Our Father, which art in Heaven…” [not dear Jesus!]
We are in the throne room of the Creator of the universe! Our Father. Abba Father. Daddy God.
But we pray in Jesus’ name because that’s the only basis by which we can be heard.
He is our high priest, and allows us access to the Most Holy Place, the throne of grace!
And we pray in the Spirit, or through the Spirit.
Jude 1:20 (NKJV) But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit,
The Spirit helps to give us the words, and when there are no words, pray without words but from our heart with groanings which cannot be uttered!
Romans 8:26 Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.
Ever been there, I have…
You pray through the Spirit; the Spirit takes it to Jesus; Jesus gives it to the Father, and look what you’ve got: you’ve got attention to the very throne room of grace to the one that created everything.
I had a prayer closet…a special place only for that. And I’ve stopped rushing into prayer. Sometimes I’ll take a few minutes to even begin, while I wait on the Spirit. “Be still and know that I am God.”
The Spirit helps when we don’t know the right words to say to God. It also helps when we don’t know the will of God. We pray so much for our will…we should listen to the next verse…
Romans 8:27And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God.
I’m thankful for the prayers that God answers!
- Pray regularly…
- Pray correctly.
- Pray persistently.
Some Christians just Pray a simple prayer and let it go, but to really make things happen, you don’t let go until the job is done!
Ask, Seek, and Knock. The verb tense is you keep on and on.
Jesus gave a couple of parables [Friend at Midnight / Unjust Judge] about not giving up praying until you get results, when it comes to things that you know are God’s will, such as a person being saved, or you getting victory over a sin.
Now, when it’s our will, like Paul wanting a healing, you can let it rest if the Lord reveals you need to accept it.
George Mueller prayed 52 years for a man to be saved, and it happened after he died!
Our timing is not the same as God’s. Now, why would God delay an answer to prayer?
- patience – we live in an instant-everything world. God wants us to wait on Him.
- purity – when God doesn’t grant an answer I know to be in His will, I must stop and examine my life. Are my prayers being heard, or is sin in the way?
Psalm 66:18 If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me:
Is God pleased to bless me?
- promotion – sometimes God intends to grant our request, but only once we are spiritually mature enough to handle it and receive that answer. [Sometimes God says no, sometimes slow, sometimes go, and sometimes GROW!]
When your 4-year-old asks for a shotgun, you may think ahead to the day when you will indeed give him one…but that day is not today!
- Pray regularly…
- Pray correctly.
- Pray persistently.
- Pray inclusively.
We pray a lot about ourselves, but prayer is supposed to be about each other as well. You’re not the only one in this war. You may have it tough, but some have it tougher!
Samuel said to Israel, “God forbid that I should sin against the Lord in ceasing to pray for you.” [1 Sam. 12:23]
I pray for each of you. Do you pray for me?
WHAT A FRIEND WE HAVE IN JESUS
What a Friend we have in Jesus, all our sins and griefs to bear!
What a privilege to carry everything to God in prayer!
O what peace we often forfeit, O what needless pain we bear,
All because we do not carry everything to God in prayer.
Have we trials and temptations? Is there trouble anywhere?
We should never be discouraged; take it to the Lord in prayer.
Can we find a friend so faithful who will all our sorrows share?
Jesus knows our every weakness; take it to the Lord in prayer.
Are we weak and heavy laden, cumbered with a load of care?
Precious Savior, still our refuge, take it to the Lord in prayer.
Do thy friends despise, forsake thee? Take it to the Lord in prayer!
In His arms He’ll take and shield thee; Thou wilt find a solace there.
Blessed Savior, Thou hast promised Thou wilt all our burdens bear
May we ever, Lord, be bringing all to Thee in earnest prayer.
Soon in glory bright unclouded there will be no need for prayer
Rapture, praise and endless worship will be our sweet portion there.
We are Christian soldiers, and we can sharpen our skills and equip ourselves with the right tools and armor, but it all begins on our knees! Otherwise, it’s just empty armor.
Goliath Must Fall by Louie Giglio
Further instructions to put on the whole Armor of God.
Our armor is made of truth. Jesus has given us His righteousness; we have the gospel of peace in place, we have the shield of faith, we have the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit of the word of God; our armor isn’t the old clunky Armour of King Saul; that armor’s man-made and only slows us down. We were not designed to walk around in man-made armor and still be effective giants’ slayers. Our armor is God-made. It was forged in the fires of His holiness; it was handed to us by the power of His Spirit.
It is available for us to wear anytime we wish.
All that is required of us is to put it on.
Calvary Baptist Church, October 4, 2026, Wednesday Night.
