R398 The Believer’s Battlefield

God has an encouraging word for you and me today through the Bible-based preaching of Dr. Don Wilton and a message on the Believer's Battlefield.

There is a battle going on, but you are not alone in that. No, the Believer's Battlefield taken from Ephesians 6 is the message we're about to share with you today from Dr. Don Wilton, a well-known author, evangelist, seminary professor, pastor. And I pray that as you would open your heart today, let him be your pastor for these moments as we head to Ephesians 6 and study what it's like to be in this battle that we face every day and how we are not alone.

We have wonderful resources on our website right now called Fortified Powerful Encouragement from Dr. Wilton and another book called The Strategy of Satan because we are in a war against the enemy, but it's a war we can win. Now, let's open our hearts and God's Word together with Dr. Don Wilton on today's message, The Believer's Battlefield. I want to invite you to turn with me to Paul's letter to the Ephesians chapter 6. Paul's letter to the Ephesians chapter 6.

We're going to be looking at an introductory passage to a most remarkable set of instructions that the Apostle Paul shared with the church at Ephesus. Salvation is a one-time event that has lifetime consequences. Even though there was a time in your life that you were born again of the Spirit of the living God, your salvation, your life as a believer is worked out during the entire duration of your lifetime. You never stop being saved and God continually is in the process of saving us unto that glorious day when we shall be seated together with Him at the feast table of the King. Now, it is during that process of being saved that our salvation takes on some very interesting dynamics. In fact, the Bible very clearly tells us that it is that process that becomes the greatest hallmark of the genuineness of our salvation experience. It's not the moment in time that we testify to. In fact, there are many people in the world today who could say, Pastor, there was a time that I walked down the aisle of a church or there was a time that I raised my hand in a crusade or there was a time as a child that I gave my life to Jesus Christ. We rejoice because you know that there was a time that you repented of your sin and by faith you received Jesus Christ into your heart. And according to John chapter 3 and verse 16, that was the moment at which you were born again of the Spirit of the living God. However, the proof of that one time event is going to be inextricably intertwined into the fabric and the process of your subsequent life, the outworking of your salvation and Paul writing to the church at Ephesus in chapter 6 and beginning at verse 10 begins to place a spiritual stamp, not upon that one time event of our salvation, but upon the fabric of the progress of the journey that all believers are engaged in.

And Paul likens that to a battlefield. I wonder if you've ever read a book and you get to the first few pages and you read it and it's rather spellbinding. And so you sit down and you read a few more pages and then another 10 pages and you say, you know, I just can't put this book down. And eventually you run out of time because you know it's one o'clock and you have to get up at six o'clock to go to work and it's late. But you want to know what's going on and you're so anxious that eventually, and you have to admit this, you cheat.

And so what you do, and I know many of you have done it because I can see it on your faces, you pretend that you're not doing it, but you actually do it. It's your novel and you kind of just, by the way, it's sort of just a cursory glance. You look at the last chapter and the reason why you want to look at the last chapter is you want to know how it all ended up. Did they actually get married? Did his uncle leave him the 60 million dollars in Great Britain?

Did he catch that fish? You want to know the end from the beginning. And so you take a little cursory glimpse or a peep ahead of time. Well, there is a sense in which here in Ephesians chapter six and verse 10 following, the Apostle Paul helps us to take a glimpse at the journey of life and he makes a public declaration. And the Apostle Paul's public declaration is simply this. I want you to know that because of the Lord Jesus Christ, you can be victorious.

And Paul takes this even further. He says, not only can you be victorious, but I want you to know that you are victorious. I want you to know the end from the beginning. I want you to know that even though you have become a believer in a moment of time, that throughout the fabric of your life with all the ups and the downs, the roller coaster of life with all the pain and the suffering and the hurt and the challenges, all the joys that we experienced. Paul says, I want you to know that you can peep beyond the curtain of time. And if you follow God's instructions, you can know for absolutely certain that you can be an overcomer.

There are people here this morning and there are literally thousands of people watching by way of television this morning who are struggling to overcome. Life is filled with every kind of challenge. There is no way my beloved friends in God's word that the Bible says that when I give my heart to Jesus Christ, that life's journey is going to be hassle free, that I'm not going to be constricted, that I'm not going to have to overcome obstacles, that I'm not going to suffer every kind of conceivable attack from the evil one. But the apostle Paul says, listen, you can know the end from the beginning because Jesus Christ was and he is and he always will be totally victorious.

And he says, guess what? You can be an overcomer. Some of you here this morning are struggling with your salvation. You're struggling with the fact that you are not born again. And what you've done is you have begun the journey of life, basing your so-called Christian journey upon an event that never took place.

And then there are many hundreds of thousands of people all over the world today who have accepted Jesus Christ as their savior and they are going through life, but they have refused to follow the instructions that God gives to them. And so I want to show you this passage. I want you to just bow your heads with me for a moment. I'd like to pray for you. Father, I want to take privilege this morning and I want to pray for my people.

Oh God, I beseech you this morning. There are so many of us who are engaged in the warfare of life, physical demands, material challenges, spiritual ups and downs. There are people here today who are facing most perplexing life or death decisions and they love the Lord Jesus Christ. Father, how do we make decisions that stand and conform to the divine will of God if we are not prepared to put on the whole armor of God?

And so to stand. Thank you, Lord Jesus, that we know that we can have the victory. And Father, today I pray for my people whom you love so much. I pray that your blessing might fall upon this congregation for every person watching by way of television, for every hospital room, for every circumstance of life. I pray, oh God, for that parent here this morning who does not know Jesus Christ.

I pray for that broken marriage. I pray, oh God, for every circumstance of life and I thank you today on behalf of my people for the word of God. Because your word is a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our pathway. May we grow strong and may we grow deep in our understanding of what it is that you give to us so that we might be equipped and we might have strength for the journey. For we ask these things and I ask these things in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. For my people today, in Jesus name, amen. Let's look at verse 10. I want to read these few verses beginning just to go straight through them. Listen, finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes for our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. How is it possible here in the text in the context of this passage that the Apostle Paul should be saying that we need to be aware of the devil's schemes in heavenly places? Surely he's missed the mark. He should have said Bourbon Street, New Orleans.

That's what we do. We always assign Satan a place upon this earth and quite rightly so in the Book of Job, Satan went to and fro upon the earth trying to bring people down and take them away from God. But the Bible tells us, my friend, that our war and our struggle and our battlefield is not upon this earth.

It is because of spiritual wickedness in high places, in heavenly places. Revelation chapter 11, God draws the line. He says enough's enough. You know something?

The Apostle Paul draws the line here in chapter 6, beloved friends, and he says, listen, dear friend, enough is enough. You are an overcomer. You do have the victory. You do gain the preeminence. You are able to overcome that obstacle. There is nothing that is insurmountable. You do win because of Christ Jesus.

Please forgive that interruption. We'll be back in just a moment with the rest of today's message, the Believer's Battlefield. But if we win because of Jesus Christ, that's what Dr. Don just said, then we need to accept an understanding of that victory, perhaps in a fresh new way. Know that we're available to pray with you and for you anytime at 866-899-WORD.

My encouragement is to jot it down, or if you're like me, create a contact. Just hit that plus sign on the contacts and drop us in as 866-899-9673 is the encouraging word ready to pray with you anytime, also to connect you with great resources. As a matter of fact, right now, the resource pair of Fortified and Strategy of Satan has become such a tremendous resource in arming us with the armor of God.

Here are the details. Are you spiritually dressed for today's battles? As Christians, the Word of God equips us on how to prepare and fight spiritual battles.

The Apostle Paul reminds us in Ephesians 6-12 that our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against principalities and powers, spiritual forces of evil in heavenly places. Join Dr. Wilton as he unpacks Fortified, a powerful four-message series to help you understand the spiritual battle we are in and teach you how to put your spiritual armor on. Plus, to further equip you, you will receive the bonus book, The Strategies of Satan, How to Detect and Defeat Him by Warren Wiersbeek. Call us at 866-899-WORD. That's 866-899-9673 and request Fortified and The Strategies of Satan for a gift of $25.

Thank you for supporting the encouraging word as we continue to proclaim the life-changing gospel of Jesus Christ around the world. Such a powerful resource. Grab your copy of Fortified today on our website. There are also other resources there, including the brand new book from Dr. Wilton called Saturdays with Billy.

You may have seen him interviewed on Daystar or TBN. Such a powerful reminiscence of the time, 20 plus years, that Dr. Don Wilton, our speaker here on The Encouraging Word, was the pastor, the personal friend of Dr. Billy Graham. Again, the details are on our website at www.tewonline.org. While you're there, be sure and follow Dr. Don on his socials and sign up for The Daily Encouraging Word email.

That's online at www.tewonline.org. Now back to today's great teaching from Dr. Don Wilton. Look at verse 12 again. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore, put on the whole armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. May the Lord write His word upon our hearts.

Now I'm going to do something different. I'm going to share with you the original text. I'm not going to speak Greek. Some of you think that I speak Greek anyway. I'm not going to speak Greek, and I'm not going to brag to you about Greek, but did you know that the whole of the New Testament was originally written in the Greek language?

That's the original language. I have a Greek New Testament, if any of you would like to borrow it anytime. And if you want to really understand the deep significance of what God says to us, sometimes there's great value in going back and digging a little bit deeper and trying to find out what it is that God is trying to teach us.

So bear with me for a moment. Paul begins in verse 10, he says, finally. Why would he say finally? When do you usually say finally? I know that preachers are usually notorious for saying finally and in conclusion. I hope I don't say that too often, because that sends out a signal that everybody can start looking at their watches and thinking about dinner. And many preachers don't keep their word at that point.

I've heard many finallys and in conclusion that neither concluded nor came to a finality. Paul here is coming to the point in this epistle at which he has heaped upon these believers, a mound of instruction related to the fact that they are to be imitators of Christ, and to the fact that they have to live lives which are worthy of the calling to which they have been called. And so Paul says finally, I want to leave you with something. Perhaps this would be a good commencement address. Don't you think, Mr. Anderson, at one of our high schools? I think this would be a marvellous word for those of you that are going off to college in the next few weeks.

We're proud of you. Do you know, friends, that more of our young people fall by the wayside regarding their relationship with God when they get to college than at any other time? Do you know that there are some students looking at me right now that the moment you get to college, God is not going to smell you for dust?

Now why? Do you know what my prayer is for our young people in this church? Listen, my prayer for you when you go off to college is that you are going to be strengthened by the might and power of the Spirit in the inner man, that you're going to be a testimony for the Lord Jesus Christ. You're going to take a stand. You're going to withstand. You're going to overcome obstacles. You're going to stand tall. You're going to be light in darkness. You are going to be a living testimony to the ongoing outpouring of the grace of God upon your life, and God will bless you in ways that you cannot even begin to imagine. This is what Paul is talking about. He's talking about the fabric of our lives. Now watch what happens. He says finally, in order for you to be strong in the Lord, many of us say, I don't know what I'm going to do. I don't know how I'm going to be able to handle this. Maybe your marriage is straining at the ends.

Maybe you've gone through a horrible divorce. Maybe you're facing a medical decision today that is the most perplexing decision that you've ever had to make in your entire life. And Paul here, Paul drawing from the riches of the fountain head of the grace of Almighty God, he says, listen, listen believers. He says, I know that life is a battlefield, but that's not what I want to emphasise. I want to emphasise the fact that it is while you are engaged in this battlefield, you can be an overcomer. And he says, how can you do that? He says finally, in order for you believer to be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power.

By the way, those are two synonyms there that are intertwined together. Listen to what Paul says. Paul says, in order for you to be strong in the Lord because of or together with or as a result of God's mighty power. You see, he's speaking about a subject there who is God Almighty and the sole object is the recipient of God's grace and the recipient of God's grace is you and me beloved friend as we walk through life.

He says finally, I got some great news for you today. If you want to be strong in the Lord together with His mighty power, in His mighty power, because of His mighty power, you therefore must put on. Now here we have an imperative in verse 11. He says, if you want to be strong in the Lord, you say you want to be an overcomer, you say you want to make the right decisions, you say that you want to live a life that is pleasing to God, you want to do that, you must put on the full armor of God in order that, so that what? There it is, look at it with me. So that you can take a stand against the devil's schemes.

Isn't that good news? He says you want to take a stand. He said you need to put on the full armor of God. We're going to be preaching about that over the next few weeks. Now why is this necessary in the life of a believer?

Why is it necessary? Now folks, listen to me. Have you ever been around an ostrich? Hands up all of those of you that have ever been around an ostrich. Put up your hand, okay? How many of you have ever ridden an ostrich? Put up your hand now.

Thank you very much. That's why BJ looks like he does. Listen folks, listen to me. You want to ride an ostrich, you will have the ride of your life.

Young people, it beats every roller coaster ride you've ever had. When you get on an ostrich, you've got plenty of neck to hold on. It's like standing next to Robert Moore.

You've got plenty there. And when you get onto an ostrich, he's gone. I mean, if you want a definition of gone, he's gone. And if you don't hold on, you're gone. And he has these two big wings that provide a platform behind you.

I did it one time and it's a great experience, but I fell off. Do you know what an ostrich does, folks? Listen to me carefully. An ostrich buries his head when he sees something that he doesn't want to see or deal with.

Isn't that a great solution to all of our problems? That's what an ostrich does. You just think about it. He just walks around, just sticks his head in the sand. He says, man, I don't want to see that. I mean, he just sticks his head in the sand. He says the solution to all of life's problems, just stick your head in the sand. The ostrich has forgotten one thing. You see friends, an ostrich can no longer see what he fears, but what he fears certainly can still see him.

He hasn't got rid of his problem. You know, many of us are like that, aren't we? We want to stick our head in the sand. Paul says, I want to tell you why you need to put on the whole armor of God.

It is, we're going to be looking at this the next couple of weeks. You need to be ready for it. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood. He tells us exactly who our struggle is again.

And he says in verse 13, therefore on this basis, put on the whole armor of God. And then he goes future tense so that when you face challenges, you're going to be able to take a stand. And then when you've taken a stand and you've gone through life, you're going to look back and say, I'm an overcomer. When everything is done, I have gained the victory because God has been on my side.

Such a powerful truth to finish up today with the Lord is on your side. I pray that you would not listen to the enemy who blinds you to that loving truth that God's love for you is continuous and unending. There's nothing you can do or have done to make God love you less.

Nothing you can do to make him love you more. He loves you just as you are. I pray in these moments, you've heard Dr. Wilton teach as he steps into the studio, open your heart to what he wants to share next. Are you ready to give your heart and life to the Lord Jesus Christ?

I'm so happy to hear that. Why don't you pray this prayer with me today? Dear God, I know that you love me very, very much. And I know that the Lord Jesus Christ came and died on a cross so that I might be forgiven of my sin. Today, I repent of my sin. I confess my sin to you. And I invite you to come into my heart and into my life by faith. In Jesus' name I pray. If you prayed that prayer, let me be the first one to welcome you to the family of God.

This is wonderful. I hope that you know how much I'm going to be praying for you and how very important this is for me. Call us so that we can talk to you and connect you in the right place so you can begin this wonderful journey.

And in just a moment, I'm going to come back with a final word. If you just gave your life to Jesus Christ, welcome to the family of God. Or welcome back if you've rededicated your life. Know that Dr. Wilton has specific free resources he wants you to have if you'll just call us. Let us rejoice with you.

Let us celebrate with you. Let Dr. Don know how God has moved in your life by calling us at 866-899-WORD. That's 866-899-9673. Or join us online at tewonline.org. Dr. Don would love to have an email from you. His email is simply don at tewonline.org.

That's don at tewonline.org. As a matter of fact, before we get away, a closing thought from Dr. Wilton himself. You know, these are such special times together. I'm so grateful, my friends, that we can worship together like this through the encouraging word broadcast ministry. And you're such a vital part of all that God's doing.

And I just love you, and I want you to know that. You know, this ministry goes on 24 hours round the clock all the time. We want to be involved in your life, and we want to continue to pray for you.

You can call us at any time. You can partner with us all the time through prayer and through your giving. We know that you are 100% engaged as we are in sharing God's truth with our searching world.

That's what this is all about. We need Jesus, don't we? And God is doing a great work, and I love you today. Thank God for you.

Pray for you. God bless you. It's been a great day of teaching on the encouraging word, and there's more to come. The next edition, the next podcast, the next radio broadcast is going to be starting a multi-part series on the believers commission, how we are indeed commissioned, put into service with unique gifts and abilities. God has built into you to serve him. Again, we'll know more about it as we study tomorrow on the next edition of The Encouraging Word.