The Whole Armor of God - Stand Therefore

"Wherefore take unto you the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand", Eph 6:13. Application; Application; Application; We must be seated in Christ, before we can walk in Christ, and therefore before we can stand in Christ. Paul goes through much pains to try and express this throughout the Book of Ephesians; we are first and foremost seated in Christ; but we are not seated alone; for we are all members of the Body of Christ. This is so important for us to live out in our daily lives, as we walk in Christ, let alone, as we stand in Christ. In chapters 4, 5 and the first 9 verses of chapter 6, Paul expresses how to live out Christ's love in our daily lives: "That He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might by His Spirit in the inner man; that Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that you being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; and to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that you might be filled with all the fullness of God. Now unto Him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, unto Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen", Eph 3:16-21. This is something that must be applied to our lives in order to stand; and it is applied by putting it into action in our daily lives. An easy way for me to explain this, is found in Eph 5: 25 -31; "Husbands love your wives, even as Christ loved the church, and gave himself for it." We can not just say we love our wives, we must demonstrate it out; just as Christ demonstrated out His love for us on the cross. We must live out that love for them; by nourishing and cherishing them in the love of the Lord; as if they were a very delicate flower, (as if a man could care for such a thing); we must do all we can to make that flower as healthy and as beautiful as it can possibly be; and at the first sign of drooping, we must do all to restore it's vibrant luster. Now, that was just one example; Paul lays out many, to address almost everyone; but to address a very basic principle, he says in Eph 4:29-32, "Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers, and grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, whereby you are sealed unto the day of redemption. Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice; and be kind one to another, tender-hearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake has forgiven you." We have to understand this: When we come out against a fellow believer, we wound ourselves, because we are one body; we are not doing all to stand when we chop off our own foot. This I believe is one of the fundamental problems within the church today; it is the cause of many of us being weak in our walk. When we think ill of another, and especially when we speak it out; we are in essence thinking or speaking ill of ourselves; and thus weakening our own image of the body of Christ; which in turn, causes us to believe less in the power Christ has to transform our lives. 'But for the Grace of God, so go I'. Let me have Paul explain it best; Eph 2:4-10, "But God, who is rich in mercy, for His great love wherewith He loved us, even when we dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace you are saved); [assured] and has raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace, in His kindness towards us, through Christ Jesus. [confident] For be grace are you saved through faith; and not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, least any man should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them." [persuaded] Having done all to stand; therefore stand!