To obey the command to “Brethren, Be Strong in the Lord and in the Power of His Might”, found in Ephesians 6:10, we first must realize the strength of The Lord.
I am talking about “spiritual strength” here; a type of strength our Lord gives us. (He gives many kinds of strength.)
The verses following this one within Ephesians 6 describe the armor of God that we put on to stand against the wiles (plots and strategies) of the devil. Here is Ephesians 6:11-19…
Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.
12 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.
13 Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.
14 Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness;
15 And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;
16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.
17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:
18 Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;
19 And for me, that utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the gospel.
Brothers and sisters, your enemy is out to rob, kill, and destroy you! John 10:10 says so! Look it up!
So, it is TIME to BE STRONG!
I Peter 5:8 says it’s time to BE SOBER…BE VIGILANT…because why? …Because Your Adversary the devil, is as a roaring lion, walking about, seeking whom he may devour!
I wrote a song called “Strong” that focuses listeners on the fact that Our Lord IS STRONG…and IN HIM is no weakness.
Here is the link:
Strong – Elizabeth Ann Smith – Receive From Me
Here are the lyrics below to read if you don’t have time to listen to it now, or are without sound on your device:
Strong mediation on the Word
Leads to Strong affection for Jesus.
This leads to a Strong obedience
And makes our relationship Strong.
And a Strong belief in Jesus
Brings Strong delighting in His love.
Faith brings us a Strong deliverance
Of any Strong hold of Satan.
Strong Strong
Our Lord is Strong
No weakness is in Him
Nor in His Plans
Strong Strong
In Him I’m Strong
No weakness is in Him
Or in his Plans
When we have a Strong reliance
On Jesus’s Strong redemption
We know with a Strong assurance
That in Him We are Strong.
And we can be strong and courageous
For He is a strong foundation
He brings about strong unity
And leads us to a strong victory.
Strong, Strong
Our Lord is Strong
No weakness is in Him
Nor in His plans
Strong, Strong
In Him I’m strong
No weakness is in Him
Or in His plans
IN HIM, I AM STRONG
ONLY IN HIM, I AM STRONG
When we do not replace our weakness with his strength, we are paralyzed to do what God tells us to do.
Now that you have heard the song, or read the lyrics, Grasping the truth that there is no weakness in our Lord or in his plans… Allow me to continue, and speak to you of the strength of the Lord.
Grab your bible and highlight the verses I share with you, okay?
You may need them later to strengthen yourself in the days ahead:
One of my favorite verses is Psalm 29:11, which begins, “The Lord will give STRENGTH to His People”. This is a promise, yes! …But it is only to those who belong to Him. HIS denotes Lordship (ownership) over people that belong to him. So we can conclude that the first step to obtaining strength is to BE HIS. Amen? We must KNOW HIM.
Daniel 11:32 says, “The people that do know their God shall BE STRONG and do exploits.”
Yes, here again, we see the word their in front of God…a word in which they take ownership of Him too.
WHOSE are you? Answering this question puts you on the road to Being Strong in the Lord.
We need to be strong IN HEARING what Our Lord has to say! To Be Strong in an area is to believe and meditate on what God has to say in His Word about a particular area and to then put His Word above all else…no matter what it “looks like” …for this will bring about “overcoming” in our circumstances, situations, and future endeavors.
We trust what God SAYS over what we seem to be experiencing at any given moment.
Summing this up, I John 2:14 says:
“I have written to you, young men, because you ARE STRONG, and the Word of God abideth IN YOU, and you HAVE overcome the wicked one.”
We must also be strong against attacks against our minds.
You’ve heard the phrase, “the battlefield of the mind”?
Well, it is a true concept. The enemy will come with negative thoughts, evil imaginations, intense feelings and emotions, contrary opinions, and extremely worldly ideas. Satan will bring oppression and confusion to you. He will cloud your judgment, keeping you from accurately discerning things in your life that could lead to horrible consequences. Your enemy is out to destroy, while your Lord is out to give you “Life” and that more abundantly.
The Lord has given Believers a “sound mind” according to II Tim 1:7, which says, “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.” Therefore, we must not receive every thought as being from us or God, for the enemy “plants” thoughts and uses others to do so. We must, therefore, be alert to ‘take our thoughts captive’ to the obedience of Christ.
In other words, do not continue to “think them” if you know they aren’t something Christ would be telling you! Your regenerated heart knows, and the Word guides you. The Holy Spirit is given to you for discernment and counsel as well. But we have to be “tuned in”, to fight this warfare within our minds. Tuned in to the Spirit within us, who is continually speaking to our own soul, that is.
The scripture tells us that we go from “strength to strength” (Psalm 84:7). This is because we Have the Strength of the Lord at our disposal. He IS our strength. In fact, his strength is made perfect in weakness. Part of drawing on God’s strength is to realize that our own strength is small.
II Cor 12:9 says:
“My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”
We must, however, recognize our need for anything before we can draw it to ourselves. You have to recognize you are thirsty, to drink. You have to recognize you are hungry, to eat. You have to recognize you are tired, to lie down to rest. The same is true when we need spiritual strength. We need to recognize that we are weak before we draw upon the Strength of the Lord. It is available. But not unless we draw upon it.
Now… sometimes, an appetite needs to be whetted, before it is realized… and so for you to truly see your own need for the Strength of the Lord, I am going to share some verses on Strength…
Psalm 27:1
“The Lord is the strength of my life.”
Exodus 15:2
“The Lord is my strength and my song.”
II Samuel 22:33
“God is my strength and power. And He makes my way perfect.”
Job 12:13
“With Him is wisdom and strength.”
Psalm 18:1,2
“I will love thee, O Lord, My Strength. The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower.”
(I love the word “my” throughout this verse! — David is “drawing upon” his Lord. We can do the same! He is a personal God!)
Psalm 18:32
“It is God that girds me with strength and makes my way perfect.”
(Do you see the similarity to our verse II Sam 22:33 above?)
Psalm 27:14
“Wait on the Lord; be of a good courage, and he shall strengthen your heart; wait, I say, on the Lord.”
Psalm 28:7a
“The Lord IS my strength and my shield. My heart trusted in him, and I am helped.”
Psalm 31:24
“Be of good courage, and he shall strengthen your heart, all you that hope in the Lord.”
Psalm 46:1
“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.”
Psalm 119:28
“Strengthen thou me, according unto thy word.”
Psalm 138:3
“On the day I called thou didst answer me. Thou didst make me bold with strength in my soul.”
Prov 10:29
“The way of the Lord is strength to the upright…”
Prov 24:5
“A wise man is strong; yea, a man of knowledge increases strength.”
Isaiah 41:10
“Fear not, for I am with you. Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, yes, I will help you. Yes, I will hold you up with my victorious right hand.”
Isaiah 40:28-31
“Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary; they will walk and not be faint.”
Joel 3:10b
“…Let the weak say, I am strong.”
Phil 4:13
“I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength.”
I will close with this prayer of Ephesians 3:16:
“May He grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man.”
Strength is not dependent upon man. It is not dependent upon others. Our strength comes from God’s Presence… from the Holy Spirit abiding within us, and God reaching down into our circumstances from above with his might!
We are commanded, “Be Strong in the Lord, and in the Power of His Might”, in Ephesians 6:10, so we know that He will enable us to experience His Might. Right?
The word says, “in your presence is fullness of joy” and in another place it says, “the joy of the Lord is our strength.” So, we conclude…If we live in His Presence, we will be strong… and have joy too! Hallelujah! Who doesn’t want more joy in their lives? I surely do! As we are strengthened, we will also become even more joyful!
Knowing these promises of scripture will make you alert to “your privilege”, as a believer, to call upon God and rely on Him for daily strength. Once we begin to draw on His Strength, that can be ours, we will begin to realize how weak we have been up until now, and not want to go a day into our future without reliance upon His Strength.
I pray that you will be strengthened in your inner man from this day forward!
Take a moment, now, to ponder how you will access His Strength in your own life, and in your own circumstances. Yes, grab a piece of paper or your journal and write your thoughts down! It helps seal His Faithfulness upon your heart and life.