Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 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. Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth...(Ephesians 6:11,13, & 14).
After you have done all to stand, this is the hour that you must stand your ground like never before. The Bible has much to say about standing. We are exhorted to stand still, to stand fast, to stand fast in faith, to stand fast in the Lord; and, then after we've done all, just stand!
"And Moses said unto the people, Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord..."
(Exodus 14:13).
"Ye shall not need to fight in this battle: set yourselves, stand ye still, and see the salvation of the Lord with you..."
(II Chronicles 20:17).
"Watch ye, standfast in the faith..."
(I Corinthians 16:13).
"For now we live, if ye stand fast in the Lord"
(I Thessalonians 3:8).
"Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil"
(Ephesians 6:11).
"...Having done all, to stand. Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth"
(Ephesians 6:13-14).
Yes, the Bible does exhort us to stand! In fact, the word "stand" appears 274 times in the Bible. But, beloved, what does it mean to stand?
The Bible definition of the word "stand" means to abide, to continue, to hold up, to stand forth, to stand still, to stand up, to be stationary, to station yourself, to endure and to persevere. Wow! That's absolutely awesome!
Now, if that definition didn't make you shout right out of your socks, Webster's dictionary definition will. Webster defines "stand" as to take up or maintain a specified position. Not just a position, but a specified position. For example, to stand fast in faith concerning your healing. That's a specified position. That is a position of faith concerning healing (I Peter 2:24)! Glory to God! Also, to stand fast in the Lord concerning your children and spouse being saved. That is a stand of faith in the Lord and in His covenant promise concerning your whole house being saved (Acts 16:31).
Also, Webster defines "stand" as to maintain one's position, to hold a course. I like that holding a course. When you hold your course as a Christian during a storm, you refuse to allow the pressures and winds of the storm to turn your ship and take you off course. You refuse to allow the helm to be turned away from God, away from God's way of walking by faith rather than by sight or away from the Word of God which strengthens your faith and helps you to maintain your course.
Holding your course also implies that you refuse to allow the pressure and force of the storm to influence your heart condition. You resist the force of fear which is striving vehemently to make your heart fail under the pressure of the storm.
Standing and keeping your course, beloved, is holding firm in position the helm which controls your senses and your thoughts. A helm is a lever or wheel which controls the rudder of a ship for steering. Through controlling a small helm, the Captain is able to turn his ship whatever direction he desires.
Keep your mind stayed on the Word of God. Guard your heart. Guard what you expose yourself to. You feed your spirit man by what you listen to and what you see. Guard your thoughts. You beloved, can control what you allow to stay in your mind. The devil constantly bombards our mind with thoughts, but we have control over what we allow to remain in our mind. We have the ability to reject thoughts that come into our mind. That's why the Bible exhorts us to CAST DOWN IMAGINATIONS, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bring into CAPTIVITY EVERY THOUGHT to the obedience of Christ (II Corinthians 10:5).
When the storms of life come blowing your way, and they will come, you must have your feet firmly planted upon God's Word so that you will still be standing after the storm has ceased.
If we did not have control over our thoughts and could not do this, we would not be told to do it. God is not going to cast down imaginations and bring those contrary thoughts, which come from the devil, into captivity for us. We have to do it. We must stand our ground firmly and maintain our course even in what we allow ourselves to think. It is only when we keep our mind stayed upon Him and His Word, which implies maintaining our course in His direction, that He has promised to keep us in PERFECT PEACE! Isaiah 26:3 declares, "Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee."
Webster also defines "stand" as to support oneself on the feet, to rest or remain upright, to remain stationary. Glory to God! Do you see it beloved? Are you getting the revelation concerning standing?
To stand, beloved, simply means to firmly maintain your position and stand your ground on God's Word no matter what you're facing. It implies remaining unmoveable the same way you do when all is going smoothly.
The only way that you can stand your ground firmly during the storms of life is, you must have your feet planted on the Word of God. Ephesians 6:14 calls it having your loins girt about with truth and exhorts us to just stand after we have done all we can do to stand.
The word "truth" in verse 14 is referring to the Word of God because God's Word is truth. Jesus prayed in John 17:17 for God to sanctify us through truth, and that truth He was talking about is the Word of God.
Beloved, the only way that you can endure the storms of life without being consumed by them is that you must become rooted and grounded in the Word of God before the storm hits. It is almost impossible to build a house during a storm. It is equally as difficult to become strong in faith while you are undergoing one of life's storms. It can be done however but it takes much more strength and tenacity to build during the storm than it would when all is calm.
When you are being pulled on from all directions and the devil is bombarding your mind with thoughts of defeat, it takes true discipline and perseverance to tighten your belt, plant your feet flat and firm, stand your ground and begin to build your faith muscles by putting the Word of God into your heart. We must be wise and build before the storm hits. We must get into the Word of God now when all is calm. We must find specific scriptures, concerning areas in our life where we know our faith needs strengthening, and we must meditate upon those verses constantly and get them into our heart.
Joshua 1:8 commands us to always speak the Word, meditate upon it day and night so that we may be doers of it, and by being doers we will make our own way to prosper in every area of life.
This is the hour that we as Christians must stand firm on God's Word like never before. Before we can stand firm on the Word of God, which is truth, we must know what it says for ourselves. The Bible says that "ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free" (John 8:32).
Notice that it DOES NOT say that truth alone will make you free BUT truth that you come to know. Once you have a knowledge of truth for yourself you are positioned for freedom. Truth that you know yourself is the foundation that keeps you standing firm before the storm hits, while the storm is raging and when the storm has ended.
God's Word is the foundational ingredient to standing. Every building has a foundation. Without a foundation, no structure can stand when hit by a storm. Just like no building can stand when hit by a storm if it doesn't have a foundation, you and I as Christians cannot stand without the solid foundation of the Word of God to stand upon.
I like the parable that Jesus gave concerning the importance of a foundation.
Luke 6:47-4947 Whosoever cometh to me, and heareth my sayings, and doeth them, I will shew you to whom he is like:
48 He is like a man which built an house, and digged deep, and laid the foundation on a rock: and when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently upon that house, and COULD NOT SHAKE IT: for it was founded upon a rock.
49 But he that heareth, and doeth not, is like a man that without a foundation built an house upon the earth; against which the stream did beat vehemently, and immediately it fell; and the ruin of that house was great.
Notice that there are two different men who built houses. One built a house with a foundation and one built a house without a foundation. The one that built the house with the foundation, not only built a house upon a foundation, but built it upon a foundation which was a rock. The other built a house without a foundation all together. He just built his house on the ground.
Can you imagine the Empire State Building in New York city, which is 102 stories (1,454 feet tall) without a foundation? All the years of work that went into that building would be destroyed in minutes if hit by a major storm! Yes, it would come crashing down if it was just built on top of the earth.
Many believers have built upon earth without even realizing it. Beloved, a solid foundation goes beyond just becoming a Christian. As a Christian, we understand that Jesus Christ is our foundation and is the rock upon which everything in our lives is built. "For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is [already] laid, which is Jesus Christ... " (I Corinthians 3:11, The Amplified Bible).
As a Christian, it all begins with Jesus Christ. Now, this is where a lot of Christians stop. After they get saved they do not take the responsibility of getting into the Word of God for themselves and getting God's Word inside of them so when the storms of life come they will have something to stand on.
Let's go back to Luke 6:47-49 that confirms the importance of our foundation going beyond our relationship with Jesus. We must, after becoming saved, get into the Word of God so that we can grow. We need to build upon that foundation. That foundation which began with Jesus, but did not end there. Jesus is the rock of our salvation.
Let's look back at the parable concerning the importance of a foundation as recorded in Luke 6:47-49 (see page 2). This time when you read it, read it several times over before continuing with this article. Notice two very important words. Notice the words "heareth" and "doeth."
Did you read this passage several times? Did you notice the words "heareth" and "doeth?" Did you grasp the revelation concerning the man who was able to endure the storm? It was because NOT ONLY was he a HEARER, but most importantly he was a DOER. The comparison of the man that built his house upon earth was related to not doing what he had heard.
Verse 48 says that one man's house was FOUNDED upon a rock. That rock is referring to Jesus, for John 1:14 says that Jesus was "THE WORD" that was made flesh. Beloved, this parable however is not referring to what the house was founded upon alone, it is referring to what it was BUILT UPON.
Now, let's look back at John 8:32, but this time let's look at both verses 31 and 32 of John chapter 8. "Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free."
Notice that only through CONTINUING IN THE WORD do you come to know the truth. Why? Because the Word is truth (John 17:17). As you continue in God's Word, you will come to know truth; and, the truth that you come to know, by staying in the Word, will make you free. Do you see it?
In order to stand during the storms of life, your feet MUST be planted on the solid rock of God's Word. You must have the Word of God in your heart in abundance, so that nothing will shake you from your firm stand of faith.
Ephesians 6:11-17 talks about putting on the whole armour of God. Many pieces of armour are referenced loins girt with truth, breastplate of righteousness, feet shod with the preparation of the Gospel of peace, shield of faith, the helmet of salvation and the sword of the spirit.
Ephesians 6:13-14 (The Amplified Bible)13 Therefore put on God's complete armor, that you may be able to resist and STAND YOUR GROUND on the evil day [of danger], and having done all [the crisis demands], to STAND [FIRMLY IN YOUR PLACE].
14 Stand therefore [hold your ground], having tightened the BELT OF TRUTH around your loins...
Notice however that your loins girt about with truth is what HOLDS EVERYTHING ELSE TOGETHER.
If you don't KNOW TRUTH which is found in a relationship with Jesus Christ first, for He is the way, the truth and the life (John 14:6); AND THEN CONTINUE IN THAT TRUTH which is found in God's Word (John 8:31-32), you will not be able to stand your ground in this hour! To stand, you must have something to stand on! Stand on the truth of God's Word. Stand your ground, and then after you have done all you can do to stand, KEEP ON STANDING! Victory is guaranteed when you continue to stand on the Word of God.
After you have done all to stand, this is the hour that you must stand your ground like never before. The Bible has much to say about standing. We are exhorted to stand still, to stand fast, to stand fast in faith, to stand fast in the Lord; and, then after we've done all, just stand!
"And Moses said unto the people, Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord..."
(Exodus 14:13).
"Ye shall not need to fight in this battle: set yourselves, stand ye still, and see the salvation of the Lord with you..."
(II Chronicles 20:17).
"Watch ye, standfast in the faith..."
(I Corinthians 16:13).
"For now we live, if ye stand fast in the Lord"
(I Thessalonians 3:8).
"Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil"
(Ephesians 6:11).
"...Having done all, to stand. Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth"
(Ephesians 6:13-14).
Yes, the Bible does exhort us to stand! In fact, the word "stand" appears 274 times in the Bible. But, beloved, what does it mean to stand?
The Bible definition of the word "stand" means to abide, to continue, to hold up, to stand forth, to stand still, to stand up, to be stationary, to station yourself, to endure and to persevere. Wow! That's absolutely awesome!
Now, if that definition didn't make you shout right out of your socks, Webster's dictionary definition will. Webster defines "stand" as to take up or maintain a specified position. Not just a position, but a specified position. For example, to stand fast in faith concerning your healing. That's a specified position. That is a position of faith concerning healing (I Peter 2:24)! Glory to God! Also, to stand fast in the Lord concerning your children and spouse being saved. That is a stand of faith in the Lord and in His covenant promise concerning your whole house being saved (Acts 16:31).
Also, Webster defines "stand" as to maintain one's position, to hold a course. I like that holding a course. When you hold your course as a Christian during a storm, you refuse to allow the pressures and winds of the storm to turn your ship and take you off course. You refuse to allow the helm to be turned away from God, away from God's way of walking by faith rather than by sight or away from the Word of God which strengthens your faith and helps you to maintain your course.
Holding your course also implies that you refuse to allow the pressure and force of the storm to influence your heart condition. You resist the force of fear which is striving vehemently to make your heart fail under the pressure of the storm.
Standing and keeping your course, beloved, is holding firm in position the helm which controls your senses and your thoughts. A helm is a lever or wheel which controls the rudder of a ship for steering. Through controlling a small helm, the Captain is able to turn his ship whatever direction he desires.
Keep your mind stayed on the Word of God. Guard your heart. Guard what you expose yourself to. You feed your spirit man by what you listen to and what you see. Guard your thoughts. You beloved, can control what you allow to stay in your mind. The devil constantly bombards our mind with thoughts, but we have control over what we allow to remain in our mind. We have the ability to reject thoughts that come into our mind. That's why the Bible exhorts us to CAST DOWN IMAGINATIONS, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bring into CAPTIVITY EVERY THOUGHT to the obedience of Christ (II Corinthians 10:5).
When the storms of life come blowing your way, and they will come, you must have your feet firmly planted upon God's Word so that you will still be standing after the storm has ceased.
If we did not have control over our thoughts and could not do this, we would not be told to do it. God is not going to cast down imaginations and bring those contrary thoughts, which come from the devil, into captivity for us. We have to do it. We must stand our ground firmly and maintain our course even in what we allow ourselves to think. It is only when we keep our mind stayed upon Him and His Word, which implies maintaining our course in His direction, that He has promised to keep us in PERFECT PEACE! Isaiah 26:3 declares, "Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee."
Webster also defines "stand" as to support oneself on the feet, to rest or remain upright, to remain stationary. Glory to God! Do you see it beloved? Are you getting the revelation concerning standing?
To stand, beloved, simply means to firmly maintain your position and stand your ground on God's Word no matter what you're facing. It implies remaining unmoveable the same way you do when all is going smoothly.
The only way that you can stand your ground firmly during the storms of life is, you must have your feet planted on the Word of God. Ephesians 6:14 calls it having your loins girt about with truth and exhorts us to just stand after we have done all we can do to stand.
The word "truth" in verse 14 is referring to the Word of God because God's Word is truth. Jesus prayed in John 17:17 for God to sanctify us through truth, and that truth He was talking about is the Word of God.
Beloved, the only way that you can endure the storms of life without being consumed by them is that you must become rooted and grounded in the Word of God before the storm hits. It is almost impossible to build a house during a storm. It is equally as difficult to become strong in faith while you are undergoing one of life's storms. It can be done however but it takes much more strength and tenacity to build during the storm than it would when all is calm.
When you are being pulled on from all directions and the devil is bombarding your mind with thoughts of defeat, it takes true discipline and perseverance to tighten your belt, plant your feet flat and firm, stand your ground and begin to build your faith muscles by putting the Word of God into your heart. We must be wise and build before the storm hits. We must get into the Word of God now when all is calm. We must find specific scriptures, concerning areas in our life where we know our faith needs strengthening, and we must meditate upon those verses constantly and get them into our heart.
Joshua 1:8 commands us to always speak the Word, meditate upon it day and night so that we may be doers of it, and by being doers we will make our own way to prosper in every area of life.
This is the hour that we as Christians must stand firm on God's Word like never before. Before we can stand firm on the Word of God, which is truth, we must know what it says for ourselves. The Bible says that "ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free" (John 8:32).
Notice that it DOES NOT say that truth alone will make you free BUT truth that you come to know. Once you have a knowledge of truth for yourself you are positioned for freedom. Truth that you know yourself is the foundation that keeps you standing firm before the storm hits, while the storm is raging and when the storm has ended.
God's Word is the foundational ingredient to standing. Every building has a foundation. Without a foundation, no structure can stand when hit by a storm. Just like no building can stand when hit by a storm if it doesn't have a foundation, you and I as Christians cannot stand without the solid foundation of the Word of God to stand upon.
I like the parable that Jesus gave concerning the importance of a foundation.
Luke 6:47-4947 Whosoever cometh to me, and heareth my sayings, and doeth them, I will shew you to whom he is like:
48 He is like a man which built an house, and digged deep, and laid the foundation on a rock: and when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently upon that house, and COULD NOT SHAKE IT: for it was founded upon a rock.
49 But he that heareth, and doeth not, is like a man that without a foundation built an house upon the earth; against which the stream did beat vehemently, and immediately it fell; and the ruin of that house was great.
Notice that there are two different men who built houses. One built a house with a foundation and one built a house without a foundation. The one that built the house with the foundation, not only built a house upon a foundation, but built it upon a foundation which was a rock. The other built a house without a foundation all together. He just built his house on the ground.
Can you imagine the Empire State Building in New York city, which is 102 stories (1,454 feet tall) without a foundation? All the years of work that went into that building would be destroyed in minutes if hit by a major storm! Yes, it would come crashing down if it was just built on top of the earth.
Many believers have built upon earth without even realizing it. Beloved, a solid foundation goes beyond just becoming a Christian. As a Christian, we understand that Jesus Christ is our foundation and is the rock upon which everything in our lives is built. "For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is [already] laid, which is Jesus Christ... " (I Corinthians 3:11, The Amplified Bible).
As a Christian, it all begins with Jesus Christ. Now, this is where a lot of Christians stop. After they get saved they do not take the responsibility of getting into the Word of God for themselves and getting God's Word inside of them so when the storms of life come they will have something to stand on.
Let's go back to Luke 6:47-49 that confirms the importance of our foundation going beyond our relationship with Jesus. We must, after becoming saved, get into the Word of God so that we can grow. We need to build upon that foundation. That foundation which began with Jesus, but did not end there. Jesus is the rock of our salvation.
Let's look back at the parable concerning the importance of a foundation as recorded in Luke 6:47-49 (see page 2). This time when you read it, read it several times over before continuing with this article. Notice two very important words. Notice the words "heareth" and "doeth."
Did you read this passage several times? Did you notice the words "heareth" and "doeth?" Did you grasp the revelation concerning the man who was able to endure the storm? It was because NOT ONLY was he a HEARER, but most importantly he was a DOER. The comparison of the man that built his house upon earth was related to not doing what he had heard.
Verse 48 says that one man's house was FOUNDED upon a rock. That rock is referring to Jesus, for John 1:14 says that Jesus was "THE WORD" that was made flesh. Beloved, this parable however is not referring to what the house was founded upon alone, it is referring to what it was BUILT UPON.
Now, let's look back at John 8:32, but this time let's look at both verses 31 and 32 of John chapter 8. "Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free."
Notice that only through CONTINUING IN THE WORD do you come to know the truth. Why? Because the Word is truth (John 17:17). As you continue in God's Word, you will come to know truth; and, the truth that you come to know, by staying in the Word, will make you free. Do you see it?
In order to stand during the storms of life, your feet MUST be planted on the solid rock of God's Word. You must have the Word of God in your heart in abundance, so that nothing will shake you from your firm stand of faith.
Ephesians 6:11-17 talks about putting on the whole armour of God. Many pieces of armour are referenced loins girt with truth, breastplate of righteousness, feet shod with the preparation of the Gospel of peace, shield of faith, the helmet of salvation and the sword of the spirit.
Ephesians 6:13-14 (The Amplified Bible)13 Therefore put on God's complete armor, that you may be able to resist and STAND YOUR GROUND on the evil day [of danger], and having done all [the crisis demands], to STAND [FIRMLY IN YOUR PLACE].
14 Stand therefore [hold your ground], having tightened the BELT OF TRUTH around your loins...
Notice however that your loins girt about with truth is what HOLDS EVERYTHING ELSE TOGETHER.
If you don't KNOW TRUTH which is found in a relationship with Jesus Christ first, for He is the way, the truth and the life (John 14:6); AND THEN CONTINUE IN THAT TRUTH which is found in God's Word (John 8:31-32), you will not be able to stand your ground in this hour! To stand, you must have something to stand on! Stand on the truth of God's Word. Stand your ground, and then after you have done all you can do to stand, KEEP ON STANDING! Victory is guaranteed when you continue to stand on the Word of God.
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