Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. (6:10)
Paul begins his instruction on the Whole Armor by giving the believer a specific imperative, or action, to be followed. He does not immediately launch into his description of the impending warfare, or planned attacks, or problems to be solved. He does not make the case in his opening line for the rationale of the battle, and then work up to what the believer is to do about it. Instead, he points them to the Lord and to his power. He tells them to find their strength in God Almighty.
Paul makes it clear that the believer does not have the strength within himself or herself to endure this conflict. One evidence of this a bit later in the passage is that none of the armor pieces refer to human characteristics, or personality, or well-experienced and honed ability. He doesn’t say, “You’ve got a great brain; use it. You’re an expert at strategic planning; do it. You’ve proven that you can earn significant wealth; you’re gonna need it. Now, go fight that mean Devil!”
No. He addresses them as a group and tells them that the strength for this conflict is not found within themselves. For them to be successful, and Paul defines that a bit later as “having done all you can, to remain standing,” then they must depend completely on the Lord. He’s the one that brings the mighty power. This is not a matter of human-strength but God-strength.
No denying it, we people have done some amazing things. From building pyramids and skyscrapers, to traveling to the moon and back. From applying science to eradicate a number of diseases, to harnessing electricity for lighting up the world. (How long would it take to give the list of human achievements?) There seems to be no end to the ingenuity and strength of people. Even so, none of that matters when it comes to combating the Enemy.
What Paul is talking about here is different. No matter who we are, we aren’t strong enough for this fight. We do not have the personal resources to fight, win, or even to stand our ground. Why? Because this is a spiritual, supernatural engagement that is beyond our fleshly realm and human capabilities.
Our strength can lead to a great weakness. It’s easy to think, “I’m a mature believer. I’ve got this figured out. I’ll know what to do in the face of the Enemy. Paul can hardly instruct me on anything, because let’s face it, I have great personal talent, a powerful prayer life, and a network of encouraging friends who will get me through this. Of course I can handle a defeated foe! I wasn’t ‘born again’ yesterday. Bring him on!” That is a recipe for pain.
Paul’s opening instruction is clear: depend completely on the Lord in this fight.
“Father, I need grace to depend on you. You have blessed me with gifts and strength. But I confess those are not enough to combat this Foe. Remind me as often as needed to depend on you in this conflict.”
Freddy Boswell 