Time to Stand!
My Apple Watch is encouraging me to stand and move around even for a minute. Essentially, it’s saying stop being lazy and get up.
6.5 hours. That’s the amount of time that the average person in America sits in a day. On top of that, people spend 7-9 hours a day sleeping. This means the majority of a person’s day is in a sitting or lying position. Sitting is a relaxed and comfortable body posture. It is inactive and passive. On the other hand, running and standing are more active body positions.
Have you ever wondered about our body position in connection to worship? Typically, believers will be sitting when we are at church service. There will be some standing here and there, but generally, it is sitting. There are other body postures of worship such as bowing, lying prostrate, kneeling, and standing. With God, these are all very necessary. Each connects us to God in an intimate and worshipful way.
However, what should our body posture be toward our enemy? We are to stand. Paul commands believers to stand firm in Ephesians 6:11. It is an active body posture. Standing firm means that we are aware, active, and maintaining our ground. We are not sitting and comfortable. We understand the urgency and importance of being ready. Paul shows us how we are to stand from Ephesians 6:10-20.
STAND AGAINST SATAN
People are not our enemy. Your enemy is not the person that hurt you, stole from you, or criticized you. They are the source of our pain, rejection, and hurt. However, Paul teaches us that human beings are not the real enemy in Ephesians 6:12. The real enemy is Satan.
Evil exists and it is highly organized. Organized crime is transnational of highly centralized enterprises led by sophisticated criminals. Satan has created the most notorious organized spiritual crime force in the world. They have a clear mission, vision, and goals. Their methods are highly effective and produce results. One of their greatest tools is to tempt and influence humans. They entice and press into a human’s weakness. People choose to listen to the pain, hurt, and rejection by hurting and attacking others. Hurt people start to hurt other people. Those people then hurt others around them like family, friends, and coworkers. This turns into blaming and wanting revenge. This cycle perpetuates to the point that many forget why they are angry and who is the enemy. It is Satan. It is the evil and demonic forces that we can’t see but we can feel. We need to stand against that. We need to put our focus and attention on that evil. This is why Jesus was able to forgive people when he was on the cross (Luke 23:24). He knew that the real enemy was not those that crucified him. He came to destroy Satan’s power over us. We need to stand against evil and Satan, not our brothers and sisters.
STAND WITH GOD’S ARMOR
Paul teaches that when you stand, you need to do so with God’s armor. You can’t go to battle against Satan with your talent, ability, strength, and resume. You will stand but not very long. You need to stand in God’s armor. God’s armor is contrary to who Satan is. God’s armor is about truth, righteousness, salvation, peace, faith, and the word of God. When we put this on then we are able to counter Satan’s attacks. Satan uses lies, self-righteousness, worry, fear, and the world to make us doubt.
| God’s Armor | Satan’s Weapons |
| Belt of Truth | Lies and negative thoughts about self |
| Breastplate of Righteousness | Self-righteousness |
| Shoes of Peace | Worry and Anxiety |
| Shield of Faith | Doubting God’s faithfulness |
| Helmet of Salvation | Questioning your salvation and Jesus’ return |
| Sword of the Spirit | Self- help and self-improvement |
God’s armor leaves no opening in the major parts of a person: head, feet, heart, belly, eye, ear, and tongue. These are the areas that must be protected and guarded.
There is no armor for the back. There is a reason for this. We are never to turn our back on our foes. We don’t run away. We stand face to face against evil. We look into their eyes so we know how to defend and attack. We stand with God’s armor ready for battle.
STANDING WITH GOD’S POWER- PRAYER
Armor and weapons are not enough to win the battle. The battle is a long battle. It is not over in a day or week. It will be a lifetime battle. This means that we need strength, motivation, and power for the battle. This comes in the form of prayer. Paul commands us to “stay alert” and “pray” in Ephesians 6:18. Prayer is how we are mentally and emotionally alert and prepared for the battle. The armor protects our outer body. Prayer protects our inner heart and mind. Our hearts and mind focus on the Holy Spirit and invites the Holy Spirit to flow through us. the Spirit emboldens us and empowers us with strength and God’s power.
As believers, we need to pray with our eyes open. While we are standing firm in battle, we need to be praying. It is how we communicate to God and we listen to God. God gives us a battle strategy, encouragement, and strength. We also communicate to him what we need. He always comes through and gives us what we need. He will give you wisdom and strength during the temptation, trials, and tribulations.
We need to pray not only for ourselves but also for others. Paul asks for prayers from the believers in Ephesus. We don’t go to battle alone. We don’t stand alone. We stand with other believers around the world. We are a church family. This means we need to ask for prayers and pray for others. We need spiritual power and strength for not only ourselves but for others especially our human enemies. It is when we pray that we understand why we are fighting and who we are fighting. We understand what God is saying and how we have victory in Jesus. We stand together with our brothers and sisters in battle every day. Lets us pray for strength so that the church can stand today!
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