23-0716p Transcript

Preacher: Jim Lokenbauer

(2:16) Thank you, Mike. I know that was a lengthy reading.

(2:21) I let Roger and Tom off easy today in the morning. (2:26) They had a whole verse each. (2:29) Well, this is going to be part two of what I began speaking about this morning.

(2:37) And this morning we looked at how there is an unseen spiritual world (2:42) actively engaged in warfare to either help or hinder us in our pursuit to get to heaven. (2:51) And there are two sides in this battle that we can find ourselves on. (2:55) And these sides in the Bible are depicted as kingdoms.

(3:00) There’s the kingdom of God and the kingdom of Satan. (3:04) The kingdom of Satan is at war with the kingdom of God. (3:09) Satan has always been the aggressor in this battle.

(3:14) He engaged Adam and Eve deceitfully with the hope and intent to cause them to die in the garden. (3:22) He achieved partial success with them, causing them to fall and damage their relationship with God. (3:30) So ever since then, it’s been game on or war on against humans and against God.

(3:40) His job, which he’s very good at, is to keep unbelievers unbelieving (3:46) and those who believe in God to become unbelievers or ruin them trying. (3:53) We saw from Scripture how the unseen spirit world carries out our Heavenly Father’s will (4:00) by protecting and serving those who put their faith in him and how they affect world events and politics. (4:09) We don’t know how they affect it, but we see that they engage with different countries.

(4:19) With the war going on all around us, God doesn’t leave us unprotected. (4:25) God gives us all these necessary tools to help us to keep from being polluted by the world. (4:32) The key to spiritual survival is our faith.

(4:37) As the song goes, faith is the victory. (4:39) And I want to thank Scott for picking a most excellent song before the lesson. (4:44) As I was singing that, I was thinking, man, this hits all the boxes for what Mike read us.

(4:52) So how do we get a faith that can survive the onslaught of spiritual warfare? (4:59) We have to become intimately familiar with the Word of God. (5:04) You’ve got to read your Bible. (5:07) You’ve got to study your Bible.

(5:09) You’ve got to come together as the church. (5:12) You’ve got to talk about the Word with your friends and family. (5:16) Attend as many Bible classes or study groups as you can.

(5:20) Put what you read and learn into practice and pray, pray, pray. (5:29) But wait, there’s more. (5:34) Peter tells us in his second letter just how important it is to be continually increasing your knowledge in the Lord.

(5:47) In 2 Peter 1, verses 2 through 8, it reads, (5:52) Grace and peace be yours in abundance through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord. (6:00) His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and goodness. (6:11) Through these, He has given us His very great and precious promises, (6:17) so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption on the world caused by evil desires.

(6:28) For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness, (6:33) and to goodness knowledge, (6:36) and to knowledge self-control, (6:39) and to self-control perseverance, (6:41) and to perseverance godliness, (6:44) and to godliness brotherly kindness, (6:47) and to brotherly kindness love. (6:50) For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, (6:54) they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ. (7:03) So, in verse 2, we receive grace and peace in abundance through our knowledge of God.

(7:14) Knowledge of God only comes from what is revealed about Him in the written word. (7:20) So, read your Bibles. (7:23) In verses 3 and 4, we see it’s through our knowledge of God when we struggle to make an effort to know more about our great God (7:33) by reading, hearing, and studying His word that He gives us everything we need for life and godliness by His divine power.

(7:44) So, there’s benefits to making an effort to get to know God and gain knowledge. (7:51) He will bless you spiritually and materially, it says. (7:58) So, by reading God’s word gives you access to great riches from God’s divine power.

(8:05) And we’ll need this power to fend off the attacks of the evil one. (8:12) You’ve heard the expression power, or knowledge is power? (8:16) Well, for us, knowledge is divine power. (8:20) Because that’s what we’re reading, divine words.

(8:24) When we exercise a healthy spiritual life, God grants us all that we need to be like Him and achieve the divine nature, to be godly. (8:37) In verses 5 and 6 of 2 Peter chapter 2, Peter lists, first, He wants us to be good. (8:55) So, stop being bad.

Try to be good. (9:00) These are very elementary instructions. (9:04) You can’t reflect Jesus' image in your life if you don’t make an effort to be good.

(9:11) So, goodness is a godly virtue we have to add as we’re changing, with the help of the Spirit, into the image of His Son. (9:23) So, in verses 5 and 6, Peter lists God’s virtues here, and if you notice, they’re in a progression, so to speak. (9:34) First, He wants us to be good.

(9:37) And then, we are encouraged to add to our goodness, knowledge. (9:43) So, who’d have thought that knowledge was a virtue? (9:48) Well, it is, that it’s knowledge about God and the Word of God. (9:53) It becomes virtuous to know your Heavenly Father.

(9:59) So, when we gain knowledge, what do we do with it? (10:03) We put it into practice. (10:05) Otherwise, it does us no good. (10:08) It takes effort.

It takes work. (10:11) We must remember what we learn and apply it. (10:16) And that takes self-control and discipline, which is the next godly virtue on the list.

(10:23) Self-control is the conscious effort of restraint. (10:29) It is the ability to police oneself, so to speak. (10:34) You must constantly be evaluating what you may be thinking or saying or do, (10:40) and compare it to God’s Word, which is our standard or our measuring line or our compass, if you will.

(10:49) The next virtue is perseverance. (10:53) Perseverance is the quality to keep at it even when you may have failure after failure and not quit. (11:06) There was a boxer from Texas.

(11:09) Most of us are old enough to remember him. (11:11) His name was Randall Tex Cobb, and he was known to have the greatest chin in boxing. (11:20) This man was a brawler, and he wouldn’t stop.

(11:24) He went up against some of boxing’s greatest heavy hitters, Larry Holmes, Ernie Shavers, Spinks, (11:33) and would go toe-to-toe with them to the full distance until the last bell rang. (11:40) He might have looked a mess, but he stuck with it, and he won a lot of those fights. (11:47) He is the embodiment of perseverance.

(11:52) He’d get thumped, and yet he’d get up and keep fighting, and that’s what Christians are to be like. (11:59) We’re going to fail when we’re learning about the different aspects of the Christian walk of life. (12:07) We’re going to be tested by God or tempted by Satan, and sometimes we’re going to fall flat on our face.

(12:14) Well, what do we do? (12:15) Just put our hands in our hips and say, I quit. (12:19) This is too hard. (12:21) No.

(12:22) Be like Tex Cobb and get up and keep swinging. (12:28) Fight the enemy. (12:31) He might give you a black eye or a bloody nose or a fat lip, but keep fighting.

(12:39) God doesn’t want quitters. (12:42) This morning I mentioned Mark 13, 13 says to keep at it, don’t give up, keep the faith until the end. (12:57) After having perseverance, the next Christian-like virtue, those have to do with love in that list that were given by Peter.

(13:09) So when you show effort in putting these virtues into practice, and then finally persevering, overcoming after trying and trying, (13:20) you start to become Christ-like. (13:23) It’s when you put these things in practice, you learn from your mistakes, hopefully. (13:28) Sometimes we get in a rut that King David talks about in Psalm 119, verses 9 through 16.

(13:35) Bayeth is the name of that section of that particular poem. (13:42) And he talks about being in a rut. (13:46) How can a young man keep his life pure by living according to your word? (13:50) I seek you with all my heart, so let me stray from your commands.

(13:54) And then in that he talks about the way to get out of the rut. (14:03) And it’s the same word used there in that psalm where a caravan of camels follow their trade route in the same path. (14:13) And they literally create a rut that they end up following.

(14:17) And so those animals can just follow the path and know which way to go out of instinct, knowing, you know, having done it so many times. (14:26) Well, that’s what we can fall into if we don’t put God’s word into practice, what we read. (14:35) And so David shows us the way how to get out of the rut, whatever our sin might be.

(14:42) And it involves reading and treasuring God’s word and putting it into practice to get out of the rut. (14:52) So we can’t give up. (14:57) And when we persevere and finally overcome, we begin to be more Christlike.

(15:03) And then we can add brotherly kindness to our virtues and godliness to our virtues. (15:12) And finally ending with love as a virtue, because we’re being transformed into the image of Christ. (15:20) And that’s a great tool to have, is to reflect Christ.

(15:26) So in verse 8, it tells us if we keep practicing those virtues of our knowledge in God, (15:35) an increased knowledge of His word, we’ll be able to engage in the spiritual warfare and have success. (15:45) So study your Bible, just as Paul told Timothy. (15:49) Study to show yourself approved of God.

(15:53) And again, and above all, pray. Pray for yourself. Pray for your family.

(15:59) Pray for your friends and brothers and sisters in the Lord. (16:02) Paul tells us at the end of what Mike just read, to pray without ceasing. (16:09) That’s a lot of praying, isn’t it? (16:12) So we’ve got to be doers of the word.

(16:16) We’ve got to die to self, pick up our cross daily, and follow Him. (16:20) Do everything that we can to be sure that we’re right with God in this life before it’s too late. (16:29) Since we’re involved in spiritual warfare, we should be prepared daily to engage the enemy.

(16:36) So as Mike read for us, Ephesians 6, 10-18, these verses explain the battle that we’re in (16:43) and how we can win that battle, or at least be prepared for it. (16:49) And we’ll do a verse-by-verse crunching of this. I’m not going to re-read the text.

(16:54) Mike read that for us, but we are going to go over it. (16:57) So if you’d like to turn to Ephesians 6, we’re going to look at verse 10 and do a verse-by-verse. (17:10) Paul’s words here start out, (17:13) Paul is drawing this letter to a conclusion, and he catches their attention with what’s going to follow (17:21) as being of great importance.

(17:25) Be strong in the Lord. (17:27) When we become strong in the Lord, and we trust and believe Him, (17:31) and we’re walking in His footsteps and talking to Him in prayer, (17:35) you have a relationship with God. (17:39) And as the psalmist said, look to the Lord and His strength.

(17:45) Seek His face always. (17:48) So when you remember those things and put them into practice and go to Him in prayer, (17:55) you’re going to get stronger, like any exercise, so to speak. (18:01) Exercise, you gain strength, whether it’s physical, but in this case, spiritual.

(18:08) Continuing in verse 10, we’re said, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power. (18:15) So in our Christian walk, we are tempted and tried. (18:20) It can be a real struggle at times, and if we rely on our own strength, we will fail.

(18:27) Notice it says, in His mighty power. (18:32) So Paul received this advice from the Lord in 2 Corinthians 12, 9. (18:38) It says, but he said to me, my grace is sufficient for you, (18:44) for my power is made perfect in weakness. (18:48) Through our weakness, if we trust God’s strength to get us through our struggles, (18:53) it becomes our strength.

(18:56) It’s a weird relationship there. (18:59) But His strength becomes ours when we totally give ourselves up to God and rely on Him. (19:11) Verse 11, put on the full armor of God.

(19:13) So Paul uses an armor metaphor here. (19:17) And these are our spiritual tools I was talking about this morning, (19:22) and God gives us those spiritual tools. (19:26) God provides us with the protection for the fight.

(19:29) We do not use the actual weapons of war against mankind in our battle. (19:38) Our spiritual armor is offensive and defensive in our engaging the enemy. (19:48) And the model that he describes is basically based upon the Roman foot soldier (19:54) and what they would wear into battle and how it relates to us spiritually in this metaphor.

(20:02) So continuing in verse 11, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s scheme. (20:08) So Satan, aka the devil, his name means adversary. (20:13) Very appropriate when engaging in the enemy.

(20:17) Know thy enemy. (20:18) Our enemy is Satan, and that’s where the true battle is. (20:24) So we wear this protection so we can stand against him and his schemes and not run away from him.

(20:34) He’s been around a long time, so he knows all the tricks and how to get us to fail. (20:41) Verse 12, for our struggle is not against flesh and blood. (20:45) And so what Paul is telling us here, the real battle isn’t with humans, against flesh and blood.

(20:52) Even though we can look around and see people who are influenced by Satan, (20:58) and it’s easy to identify them by their behavior and actions and the things they say and do, (21:07) they’re really not the enemies. (21:09) They’re just symptomatic of the battle of Satan. (21:13) They’re victims.

(21:15) They need to be saved. (21:17) They need the word of God. (21:21) So our struggle is with those who can exist in the unseen realm.

(21:32) It’s a spiritual struggle, and it’s a one-on-one, hand-to-hand engagement, so to speak, (21:41) with these spirit beings, even though we can’t see them. (21:44) So following the words in the verse describe who the battle’s with. (21:51) And in verse 12 it says, first of all, it said, (21:56) take your stand against the devil’s schemes, for our struggle is not against flesh and blood.

(22:00) What follows after that tells us that the people listed here in verse 12 aren’t human. (22:10) And here’s what it says. (22:11) But against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of darkness (22:17) and the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms, those aren’t humans.

(22:23) These are the evil forces of Satan. (22:31) The real battle is the spiritual world, and they’re the ones trying to get us to fail. (22:37) They’re the ones working their evil influence upon us.

(22:41) How they do that, the Bible doesn’t really come out and tell us. (22:46) You know, what are they, this beacon of negative energy that, you know, (22:51) they’re just blasting us with negative, who knows? (22:56) I don’t know how it works. (22:57) I don’t know how thoughts, and sometimes the worst thoughts in the world, (23:02) can just pop in your head.

(23:03) How does that happen? (23:06) You can be doing something totally innocent and nice and all of a sudden, ding, (23:09) it’s like, where did that come from? (23:17) It’s up to us not to dwell on those. (23:19) You compare it to God’s word, see if it measures up, and if not, dismiss it. (23:24) Don’t dwell on it.

(23:26) Get rid of it. (23:28) Run from it if you must. (23:30) You might look silly, but run from it if you must.

(23:32) Get busy doing something else. (23:36) So anyhow, the battle is with evil forces in the unseen world. (23:42) And in verse 13 it says, (23:45) Therefore, making a conclusion to this, because those are the enemies, (23:48) therefore, put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, (23:56) notice that Paul says, not if the day of evil comes, but when the day of evil comes.

(24:05) So in other words, it’s coming. (24:08) Each and every one of us in here will have our faith challenged by these evil spirits. (24:16) Be aware of that.

(24:18) That’s the only, you have to be aware and know the tactics of the enemy. (24:25) That’s why God has this written here for us. (24:28) He wants us to learn from this, understand that we have an enemy who wants to destroy us (24:37) the same way he attempted to destroy Adam and Eve.

(24:41) I want you to die, eat this fruit. (24:45) See, it’s good for food. (24:49) I don’t know if that’s how he did it, but that’s how I’m depicting it.

(24:53) Because of the malevolence and hatefulness in him, he beguiled Eve. (25:03) That means he tricked her, he deceived her. (25:07) He didn’t beguile Adam.

(25:10) Adam, like a dope, willingly took the fruit from Eve. (25:16) Why? I don’t know. (25:17) Maybe he figured, you just ate the fruit, I’m dying with you.

(25:21) I don’t know. (25:22) Maybe he wanted to secretly know, too. (25:25) You know, good and evil.

(25:29) But the thing is, they ate, and Satan was hoping they were going to die. (25:34) And that’s what he’s hoping, each time we sin, that we’ll stay in sin and not repent. (25:42) Sin, unrepentant of, is a sin that can’t be forgiven.

(25:47) If it’s a deliberate sin and you’re staying in that rut, wallowing in that sin, (25:55) you’re a goner if you don’t change. (25:59) So, it’s only with this armor that we can stand against the schemes of the devil. (26:07) So Paul says, (26:08) Stand firm, then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist.

(26:14) And here’s our first article of armor mentioned, our first tool. (26:19) And it’s a belt. (26:19) It’s a tool belt.

(26:21) Or in the old days, it was considered like a girdle. (26:26) And a girdle secures all other parts of everything together. (26:31) Your sword was connected to your girdle.

(26:36) Your breastplate, your loin guard, all hooked into your girdle, your belt. (26:48) So truth, it’s called the belt of truth. (26:53) Truth is the foremost virtue the Christian needs to use, like a belt, (26:59) to connect all other virtues in place, including God’s sword, which is his word.

(27:07) John 17, 17 says, (27:09) Sanctify them by the truth. Your word is truth. (27:16) And sanctified is to be made holy and set apart as something special.

(27:21) God’s spirit and his word, the truth, do that for us. (27:26) Continuing with verse 14, (27:28) With the breastplate of righteousness in place, (27:32) the breastplate covers all the vital organs of the torso on the front and the back. (27:40) If we have no righteousness, well, we don’t have any righteousness of our own.

(27:46) Our righteousness comes from God, from Christ. (27:49) And so this righteousness is to protect us from Satan’s fiery arrows of accusation that protest to God, (28:01) This person is a sinner! He’s mine! (28:05) His fiery arrows of temptation also will come at us directly from frontal assault, (28:13) and that will be blocked by this breastplate, because Christ never succumbed to his temptations. (28:21) And those we can see coming at us, and we can brace for them, (28:25) but the breastplate also protects from sneak attacks from behind, (28:30) those temptations that blindside us, those subtle things that sneak up on us, so to speak.

(28:39) Righteousness is going to protect us from that. (28:45) So we’re covered by Christ’s righteousness. (28:48) It’s part of the grace that is given to us when we believe, (28:52) the very grace that will eventually teach us to say no to ungodliness and worldly passions, (29:00) like Paul told Titus in chapter 2 of that letter.

(29:05) So being covered with Jesus' righteousness as we walk in his way, (29:12) practicing what we learn along the way, we learn to be righteous ourselves. (29:19) And as children, his children, it’s practicing to be holy because I am holy. (29:27) In 1 Peter, Peter says that God tells us that, be holy because I am holy.

(29:35) That’s the behavior he wants us to have. (29:39) So we’re covered by God’s righteousness as his children. (29:43) We’re motivated by love, we practice righteousness by doing what’s right.

(29:48) And as John says in his first letter, chapter 3, verse 7, (29:54) Dear children, do not let anyone lead you astray. (29:58) He who does what is right is righteous. (30:01) Justice, he is righteous.

(30:03) So when we’re covered by his righteousness, we receive that as a gift when we believe (30:09) and have faith in him. (30:10) And then as we’re going through practicing all these things, as we gain knowledge, (30:17) we start practicing our own righteousness. (30:20) But we’re not saved by that righteousness.

(30:22) We’re saved by the righteousness of Christ. (30:26) But we start practicing righteousness, and we become righteousness. (30:29) And that just strengthens that breastplate of righteousness.

(30:36) And it’s expected of us to put all these things into practice. (30:43) Verse 15, And with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. (30:49) Our ancient foot armor was made in two parts.

(30:52) The boot or sandal usually had studs on the bottom to give the foot soldier grip ability, (31:00) kind of like golfers with their spikes. (31:02) But they were able to stand their ground and put their weight into those spikes on the ground (31:10) so they were harder to move when the onslaught would come at them. (31:17) And then they would also have what’s called the greave, (31:21) which is a shield that protects the upper foot and the shin.

(31:27) And so those protect vital things. (31:31) You can’t go into battle without legs, unless you’re, of course, (31:36) I don’t know if you’ve ever seen Monty Python’s Holy Grail, (31:39) and you’re the knight who says, You shall not pass. (31:43) Well, he fought with no arms and no legs, but he wasn’t effective at that point.

(31:48) But God wants us to be effective. (31:51) Thank you, John. (31:53) I’m not totally crazy.

(31:57) Anyhow, so these are necessary things to wear. (32:03) And then our feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. (32:08) So as part of our uniform, so to speak, (32:13) we have to be ready to get out that gospel message at a moment’s notice.

(32:21) We move forward with the message of God. (32:25) We’re not retreating. (32:28) So spiritually speaking, it’s sort of a form of an offensive and defensive gear that we use.

(32:34) We need to be prepared to stand firm defensively for the gospel. (32:41) So by defending the truth of God’s word and dispelling false teachings about it (32:48) and offensively advancing the gospel to the lost world, (32:53) we have to be prepared in and out of season to tell others about God’s saving grace through Jesus Christ. (33:00) As Paul tells us, we don’t use man’s weapons of war, (33:05) but we demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God.

(33:12) And we take captive every thought and make it obedient to Christ. (33:17) That’s the kind of warfare we engage in. (33:22) And we do that by knowing the gospel.

(33:25) In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, (33:29) with which we can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. (33:35) So the shield was vitally important to the soldier (33:38) in that it protected them from the enemy’s offensive weapons, (33:44) be it swords, daggers, clubs, arrows. (33:48) Our faith is our shield of protection.

(33:51) Remember, faith is the victory that overcomes the world. (33:54) So to increase our faith, we need to have our noses in our Bible, (34:00) because Romans 10, 17 says, (34:02) faith comes from hearing the message. (34:05) And we’ve got to be familiar with the gospel message to gain a deeper faith.

(34:12) We’ve got to gain knowledge to increase our faith. (34:19) Verse 17, take the helmet of salvation. (34:23) And the helmet, of course, protects the soldiers from blows to the old melon, (34:29) which would normally be, without a helmet, a fatal blow.

(34:35) So swords, battle clubs, and the like, without a helmet, you die. (34:40) So spiritually speaking, the helmet of salvation is the peace of mind we have (34:46) in knowing that our salvation in Jesus Christ can’t be taken from us by any enemy, (34:52) so long as we are walking in the light. (34:56) Romans 8, 38 says, (34:58) For I am convinced that there is neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor demons, (35:03) neither the present, nor the future, nor any powers, (35:06) neither height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, (35:10) will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Jesus Christ our Lord.

(35:17) And there we have it. Our faith does that. (35:22) God loves us.

(35:24) And did you notice the spiritual forces it mentions there? (35:29) Those can’t take us when we have faith in Jesus Christ. (35:35) Because we’re in God’s hand. (35:39) We can’t be removed.

(35:41) Oh, we can take ourselves out of His hand. (35:44) But don’t do that. (35:48) Safety in the palm of God’s hand.

(35:50) John’s whole point of this first letter in chapter 5, verse 13, (35:58) is to let Christians know that they have eternal life. (36:03) Little children, I write this letter to you so that you may know that you have eternal life. (36:11) So that you may know, not guess, walk around thinking, oh gee, am I sick? (36:15) So that you know you have eternal life.

(36:19) Walk around knowing that. (36:23) I’m saved. Praise God.

Thank you God. (36:26) I don’t deserve it, but thank you for loving me. (36:32) Continuing in verse 17, (36:34) And the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, (36:37) to the soldier, the Roman soldier, or any soldier, (36:40) this primary offensive weapon was his sword, (36:44) and with it he overcomes his enemy.

(36:46) For us, the sword of the Spirit, the word of God, is our primary offensive weapon. (36:54) And throughout the Bible, the word of God is likened to a sword. (36:58) Hebrews 4.12 says, (37:01) For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any double-edged sword.

(37:07) It penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow. (37:14) In Revelation, John records a vision he saw of Yahweh Jesus this way. (37:20) In his right hand he held seven stars, and out of his mouth came a sharp double-edged sword.

(37:28) Those are his words. (37:30) Our sword. The Bible.

Word of God. (37:34) That sharp double-edged sword will divide one day. (37:41) Sheep from goats.

(37:44) And our best example of how to wield this spiritual weapon is to observe how Jesus himself did it. (37:52) When tempted by Satan. (37:54) Matthew chapter 4 records this, and Luke chapter 4 records this.

(38:00) And in Matthew 4, 1-8, describes in great detail Jesus being tempted by Satan. (38:07) And after he had fasted 40 days in the desert, Jesus is engaged in spiritual battle with Satan. (38:19) Satan tempts him three times that are recorded.

(38:22) And after each temptation, Jesus counters Satan with his fists? (38:29) With a club? (38:31) With stones? (38:32) No. With his double-edged sword, the Word of God. (38:38) He quotes scripture to defeat Satan, and guess what? (38:46) He had to leave.

(38:48) Luke lets us in on a little secret. (38:51) Satan left until a more convenient time. (38:55) So he’s got to leave.

(38:57) He’s got to disengage. (38:59) But he’ll be back. (39:00) Just like the day of evil that Paul talks about.

(39:05) That day is coming for each and every one of us. (39:08) Be ready for it. (39:11) So Jesus gives us the example of that.

(39:14) How to defeat the enemy. (39:16) And that’s what we must do. (39:21) So listen to Peter here.

(39:23) Be self-controlled and alert. (39:25) Your enemy, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour him. (39:32) Resist him.

(39:35) Standing firm in the faith. (39:39) James 4-7. (39:41) Submit yourselves then to God.

(39:44) Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. (39:51) Victory is ours. (39:53) You don’t have to be fearful of Satan.

(39:58) Quote scripture. (39:59) If you feel that temptation, if you feel oppression, (40:03) spiritual oppression, I’m sure as long as we’ve all been in the Lord, you’ve felt that before. (40:11) The deep urge to go out and do wrong.

(40:17) I’m going to the bar. (40:21) Resist whatever temptation comes your way. (40:27) And he will flee from you.

(40:31) Verse 18. (40:32) And pray in the spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. (40:38) And with this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.

(40:45) This isn’t a suggestion. (40:47) This is an apostolic command from Paul. (40:52) What Paul finds on earth is found in heaven.

(40:56) We’re commanded to pray for each other. (40:59) I hope you’re praying for me, because I’m praying for you. (41:04) We’ve got to pray for each other.

(41:09) And again, this shows the importance and emphasis on prayer in the believer’s life. (41:14) God knows ahead of time what his people need, but he wants us to ask. (41:20) He wants us to be totally dependent on him and his strength.

(41:24) And he’s quick to give us what we need. (41:27) God loves us and wants us to succeed in this day-to-day battle with the evil one. (41:34) So let’s not disappoint him.

(41:36) Let’s study and know his word. (41:38) Let’s put on that spiritual armor and never take it off. (41:42) Sleep with it on if you’ve got to.

(41:45) And keep praying for one another and helping each other as we all go up that narrow path to heaven. (41:54) If you were a soldier, you’d look pretty silly without your flak jacket on and boots. (42:00) Forgot your weapon, marching with all the others.

(42:05) You’d like one of them weird high school drinks. (42:06) Oh, man, I’m in my undies. (42:08) What am I doing? (42:09) I should be totally dressed.

(42:11) Don’t be caught like that. (42:15) Am I the only one that has those weird dreams? (42:19) Anyhow. (42:22) So that, I hope, was helpful to you.

(42:26) That you’ll be able to apply some of these things to stand against the schemes of the devil. (42:33) It’s a real battle. (42:35) It’s not something made up.

(42:39) So at this time, let’s go to God in prayer. (42:44) Holy Father in heaven. (42:47) Father, look down on each and every one of us here and those who are listening on the phone.

(42:53) Father, help us to be prepared for that day of evil. (42:57) Help us to glorify you by choosing to do what is good and right. (43:04) Help us to trust in your strength and to look to you all the time, Father.

(43:11) Help us to love each other and pray for each other. (43:14) Knowing that everyone in this room is feeling the same pressure from the evil one. (43:23) So strengthen us, Father.

(43:25) Watch over and protect us. (43:27) Deliver us from the evil one. (43:30) And if anybody here needs Christ’s help in prayers, we’ll be glad to pray for you.

(43:36) In Jesus' name, amen.