STANDING FAST IN THE LORD (PART 1)
TEXT:
"Therefore, my brethren dearly beloved and longed for, my joy and crown, so stand fast in the Lord, my dearly beloved."
(Philippians chapter 4 verse 1, King James Version)
Aside from being recipients of God's profound goodness in Christ, the Christian should never forget that he has a responsibility that requires him to stand fast in the Lord.
The command that we stand fast in the Lord is basically a reminder that there's an enemy standing by, whose sole aim is to hurl at the Christian a barrage of attacks aimed at impugning his stand in Christ. This enemy is satan, whom the Bible tells us to "resist stedfast in the faith" (1st Peter chapter 5 verse 9) "and he will flee from you" (James chapter 4 verse 7). The Biblical remedy against satanic onslaughts, schemes and operations is to stand fast in the Lord.
Now, what does it mean to stand fast in the Lord? The answer is found in Ephesians chapter 6 verse 10 which says,
"Finally, my brethren, be STRONG IN THE LORD, and [be strong] IN THE POWER OF HIS MIGHT." (emphasis mine).
Again, we have Apostle Paul telling Timothy his son, saying,
"Thou therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus." (2nd Timothy chapter 2 verse 1). These two Scriptures are substantially saying the same thing about standing fast in the Lord, but we have it more explicitly stated in Ephesians chapter 6 verse 10, above referred.
For the Christian to be successful against satan, he needs to be rightly positioned in Christ, which includes him taking advantage of God's graces that are made available to him in Christ. In Ephesians chapter 6 verse 10, the Bible says that the Christian is to be strong in two areas:
- Be strong in the Lord, and
- Be strong in the Power of His
Might.
Largely, to be strong in the Lord, is to be strong in His Word. But on the other hand, to be strong in the Power of His Might is to take advantage of God's Spirit and His anointing.
Being strong in the Lord, like as I said, is to be strong in God's Word. I have always emphasized that the Christian has about five approaches to the Bible:
(1) Read the Bible, (2) Study the Bible,(3) Memorize the Bible, (4) Meditate on the Bible and (5) Do the Bible.
Unfortunately, many of us have not been able, on a serious note, to carry out the first approach, let alone the other four. We all know that it was with the Word of God that Jesus overcame the devil at His temptation. His response to the devil on the occasion of his temptations was simply "It is written" (see Matthew chapter 4 verses 4, 7 and 10).
The knowledge of God's Word is an effective weapon against the devil, let alone making it your standard for living. Apart from God's resolve to watch over His Word to perform, satan has no viable appeal against God's Word. As long as it's God's Word, satan is bound to succumb to its authority.
We have to understand that it is with God's Word that we resist the devil, with the firm and unequivocal assurance that he will flee from us (James chapter 4 verse 7). Besides, the firm belief in God's Word serves to steady you in times of crisis, knowing that following God's faithfulness to His Word, there's no way satan can have an edge over you in life.
PRAYER:
Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for the numerous graces that you have provided for me in Christ. I resolve to be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might, in Jesus name.