Ephesians 6:13 – Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm.
The same power that raised Jesus from the dead dwells inside of His followers—Romans 8:11. Paul continues in Romans 8 to say that since the Spirit dwells in us we are debtors to God to live by the Spirit and not by the flesh. Because we are children of God, we live by the direction of the Spirit dwelling within us and not as we used to live… obeying the passions of our flesh. We put those passions to death by the Spirit living within us. If the Spirit does not dwell within us and our life is lived by obeying our fleshly desires, then we are not children of God and have not been brought from death to life. We still need God’s saving grace.
Those who have truly been saved by God’s grace battle sin and strive for love to both Christ and one another. They are not perfect but their life is characterized by dependence on God rather than giving in to their flesh. They wake up each morning depending on the grace of God for the battle each day. They do all to stand firm by the power of the Holy Spirit dwelling within them. This brings glory to God because they are relying on Him to stand firm and they delight to bring Him glory.
We all need to be encouraged in this warfare to stand firm. Many times, we become lazy in our battles against sin. We become okay with the remaining sin we have. We minimize and dismiss it as a slip-up or a stumble. We presume upon the grace of God. Paul encourages all believers to do all to stand firm. Don’t allow for any loopholes or give the enemy any footholds in your life. Don’t walk so close to the line of sin that the temptations are always upon you. Resist the devil by doing all to stand firm in your faith—1 Peter 5:8-9. Something to think about…
Do I do all to stand firm in my faith? How would God have me rely on His indwelling Spirit to do this?