Transcript of message from TV Broadcast 805 -- taken from Closed Captioning Text

-- Brother Phil Enlow: Just ask the Lord to help me this morning. You know some of us were talking the other night about a particular need. It's not critical what that need is, but while we were talking I just kind of had a picture in my mind of something and my mind went to a scripture that's very familiar in Ephesians chapter 6. And I just felt like I saw it in a fresh way that just blessed me. It helped me, and I pray that it will help others who will consider this.

Of course it's the scripture about Christian warfare beginning in verse 10. And I believe I'll just go ahead and read it and then perhaps we'll go back and comment. It says, "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. Therefore..."--in view of this--"...put on the full 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.

"Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints." ( NIV ). Well that's a good encouragement right there, isn't it?

( congregational amens ).

We need to keep on praying whether we gather together or not, we need to be praying. Now I hardly know where to start to try to convey, but I want to first of all remind us of where this fits in this book. You know, first of all Paul, in the beginning of the book, describes the place that we occupy in Christ. He's lifted us up out of sin, out of death, out of all that was wrong with us, to a place of authority and victory in Christ. We're seated with Him in the heavenly places. That's our position. We don't feel like it most of the time. We don't see it with our natural eyes but in the mind and the will and the purpose of God, that's where He has placed us.

And so he develops that truth and then he comes to a certain place where he begins in the light of what God has done for us, how should we as Christians live? And so we have a couple of chapters or more about Christian living and it deals with a whole lot of different situations--our relationships between husbands and wives, and parents and children, and masters and slaves, which would be bosses and employees in our world. But all the different things about how we ought to live as Christians in the world, and so he develops that truth.

But now he comes to a simple fact that I believe anybody who's served the Lord very much is well acquainted with--that we are not unopposed in the Christian life. We have an adversary who is very cunning--full of trickery. He doesn't fight fair. He will do anything that is within his power to do to resist us and to oppose us in our efforts to serve God.

And if we're going to serve God successfully, we're going to have to reckon with this enemy. We're gonna have to deal with him every day. We're gonna have to learn how (as Paul exhorted Timothy) to, "Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life..." There is something for us to do.

But you know, where this came to my mind and the context and the emphasis that came to my mind when I thought of this scripture is this--it talks about the fact that we are called upon to stand--to take a stand. But now, I got to thinking about this. If you're taking a stand that implies something, doesn't it? It implies that there is a place where we take that stand. A stand is not just some 'oh I'm taking a stand'--kind of vague, without reference to anything in particular. It's not just some sort of feeling we get that's religious and then we go out of the church and we forget all about it. There is a practical reality that I believe that God wants us to understand so that we can apply what he's talking about here to what our lives are like every single day of the week. Do you believe God is interested in every area of your life?

( congregational amens ).

I believe He is. I believe He's concerned with us. And so, I thought about this place and there's some wonderful truths about it. And the first thing that really came to my mind is a very simple thing--that every 'place'...if you want to use that word...to which we come in our Christian journey, is a place where our Lord has been. We're never called to go into uncharted territory. We're never called to go into a place where the Lord has not gone before us--where He has not already laid out the course that is set before us.

You know Paul talked about the race--in one place, "... the race that is set before us." He talked about running the course that God had appointed to him. Do you believe God has a place and a path charted out--mapped out for your life and for mine? I believe He does. I believe there is a journey that when we set out to serve Christ...when we put our lives in His hands, there is a pathway so long as we are in this world, that stretches out before us and that pathway consists of a long succession of places, does it not?

At any given time, we're not back there, we're not way up here. And so those things that are behind, those things that are ahead of us, we can leave in the Lord's hands. But at any given point in time, we occupy a particular place in our pathway and that's what we need to be concerned about. But the thing we need to realize, as I said, is that Christ has walked this way before us. There is no temptation that has taken us...as the scripture was read the other night...but that which is common to man. And also that, he was tempted in all points--all points. There's not a single thing you and I face that in one way or another our Lord has not faced head on, as a human being with all of our weaknesses--that He has not faced ahead of us. And so we have a Lord sitting in Heaven, praying for us, who has been where we're at.

( congregational amens ).

There's nothing that ever takes Him by surprise. There is no place where we find ourselves, where we do not have help--where we do not have the resources that we need to live as a Christian life, because this is not disconnected from what's come before. You see all of this that he's talked about--how to live as a Christian in the world is what this is about here, because at even given point we are called to be Christians in one situation or another.

In a sense, we have a choice. Are we going to react and act as a natural human being, the way other people live and react, or are we going to be Christians and overcome the impulses of our nature, the whisperings and the temptations of the enemy, the pressures of the world? Which way are we gonna go? And that's the battle that we face every single day.

But I thought about this place in another sense. Every thing--every place that we are called upon to go, is something that God has already given to us through Jesus Christ. You know, we hear often times in this place the truth of the finished work of Jesus Christ on the cross. And when I say the cross, I'm including in that, the fact that He died on a cross. But I'm including (when I say the cross) also the fact that He was put in the tomb, that He was raised from that tomb into a great eternal life--a different kind of life than you and I know anything about. And He was also...He didn't stay that way. He ascended to Heaven and is seated on the right hand of the throne. It's all of that together. And what He did there on the cross...what did He say when He was about to die? It is what?

-- Congregation: Finished.

-- Brother Phil Enlow: Finished! What was finished? Everything necessary to take care of the journey that He has set before us. There's not one thing that He has not completely anticipated in our lives. He's already given us the territory. He's given it to us, folks. It's not something where He says, all right here's my book. Go out and muddle your way through. Do the best you can. I'll sort of pick up the pieces behind you. I'll mop up all your messes. Well, I thank God He can mop them up.

( congregational amens ).

But you know, I believe God has given us the tools and the means--He's given us the territory to start with. It's ours. It is as much ours as the land of Canaan was the children of Israel's. Now the fact that a generation refused to believe in the promises of God and fell through unbelief, did not make the promises null and void. They simply weren't able to take advantage of them.

( congregational amens ).

The fact of the matter is, the message we preach--the gospel we preach is a complete package. It is a salvation that has been completely accomplished at the cross and our place is to surrender our inabilities and our efforts and our sinfulness, and to come to a place of just faith and surrender, and then we begin to cooperate with God.

And as we do, we find out that He has made provision for the journey. There is not one piece of land that He has set before us, that He has not already decreed is ours. Now my problem and yours many times, is that we begin to try to...we confront a situation, we confront a need perhaps that God brings to our attention in our lives. And, somehow the devil is successful in planting in our minds an element of doubt. Do I really have the right to stand here or not? Look at how I messed up the other day. Look at what I am. I don't deserve this thing that I'm trying to stand about. This thing, this battle that I'm trying to fight, I don't deserve to win it. Any of you ever felt like that?

( laughter ).

Yeah, just about everybody. But I tell you that's part of the wiles, that's part of the trickery of the devil, because every piece of ground that God has set before us is ours already.

( congregational amens ).

And unless we see it that way, we're gonna constantly be just driven back and held back by our own doubts. God has given us everything in Jesus Christ. It's either ours or else we are in trouble because I don't have the power to take that ground. I'm not smart enough. The devil's a wily fellow. I've got all this that's in me that fights against all God would set before me. If it's up to me, let's quit. But the thing is God has equipped us. He has given us everything that we need to stand.

( congregational amens ).

It is our ground. What did Jesus say to the disciples? He said, "...Fear not..." Fear not! How often do see in the scriptures when the Lord tells us something, knowing how we are, knowing how we react to things, knowing how easily we become afraid? The first words out of His mouth are, don't be afraid. Don't be afraid. You look at a situation. Don't be afraid of it.

Isn't that how we react? "My God, this one's gonna get me." Or the devil will plant this thought in your mind, well things are sort of okay now--I'm just hanging on by the skin of my teeth. But down the road, oh God, something's gonna come along and it's just gonna blow it all out of the water and it'll be all over. Oh, I just don't want to face the future. I'm scared of it. The Lord says, don't be afraid.

( congregational amens ).

Don't be afraid! Do you think the Lord has failed to anticipate a single battle that you and I have to fight? There's not one situation that takes Him by surprise. And no matter what He calls on us to confront...you know it's like...well I think of Pilgrim's Progress and how that Pilgrim was walking a literal pathway toward the Celestial City. He didn't always know what was coming. He might be walking along, and all of the sudden some ugly brute would come out in his path and hold a sword and challenge his right to go on. What did he have to do? He had to stand there and stand his ground and say, no, I have a right. This is my path. This is my road. Christ died to enable me to go this way and you're gonna just have to get out of my way.

( congregational amens ).

I have the sword in my hand that has the power. All it has to do is nick you real good and you're gonna have to leave. Don't be afraid, Jesus said. "Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father's..." What?

-- Brother Chip King: "...Good pleasure..."

-- Brother Phil Enlow: Reluctance? I guess I'll do it. I really...the bunch of screw-ups down there, I don't think I really care a whole lot about helping them, but I guess I'd better...well. No! It's His good pleasure. This is the whole thing that drives our Father--our Heavenly Father. That's the one thing He cares about more than anything else is us, and bringing us through.

( congregational amens ).

Oh, do you think He would go to the extent of sending His Son to the cross to die for our sins and then leave anything else undone? No!

( congregational amens ).

"Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father's good pleasure to..." What? "...give you the kingdom." Give you the kingdom--give you the kingdom! It's a gift of our Heavenly Father. Praise God!

( congregational praise ).

Our problem is not that we just don't have enough self-effort and self-will power and all that. The thing is, our problem is we just don't believe it. We don't understand it. That's where the devil gains the advantage over us. It's ignorance, weakness...whatever it is. And, those are the things that God would enable us to overcome.

But you know, I thought of another thing about this place. This place is something very specific. And the truth of the matter is, it's wherever you're at right now. This is not just theology. This is life. What issues are you confronting in your life right now? Young people in school, what issues are you dealing with? Are you dealing with a teacher you don't like? Are you dealing with homework or subjects you don't like or people around you and situations that you find challenging and difficult? Do you believe that the cross and what took place there is just some disconnected fact of theology? Or, do you believe that God means for everything that Jesus did to be a practical benefit to our life in the situations we face today?

( congregational amens ).

This is not disconnected. This is vitally connected. This is real because the benefits--the strength that you and I need, the knowledge that you and I need--every bit of it comes from what Jesus did. That's the fountain that flows, that cleanses us from sin. It's His life that came forth, that enables us, that gives us strength to fight. It's the promises of His Word that we can rely on. And oh, God wants us to understand that He's given this ground to us whatever it is. And here again, I want to go back to this. These issues of life have to do with us being Christians in real situations.

( congregational amens ).

That's what it's about. Are we gonna honor Christ? Are we gonna do the right thing? Are we going to continue to believe Him and to worship Him, or are we gonna give in to fear? Are we gonna give in to lust? Are we gonna give in to unbelief of some kind? Those are the battles. And, it's the things that you and I face this afternoon. It's the things that you and I face tomorrow. The cross means something to those things that you face, and the Lord wants you and I to know it--that He has given us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

( congregational praise ).

That's what Paul says, "...thanks be to God, which giveth us..."--giveth us--"...the victory...." And what we need to do is to learn how to believe it, and to apprehend it, and to take hold of it when the situation arises. That's what this whole passage is about. That's why he says, "...be strong in the Lord, and the power of his might." (KJV). He doesn't want us to have to confront a single thing in our own strength and in our own wisdom. We'll fail every time. That's a prescription for failure.

But I'll tell you what there's something of this Word, in every circumstance, that applies to your need and to mine. If we will just hide His Word in our hearts as it comes, open our hearts and believe it, receive it. There may be something come from this pulpit, or from anywhere. It might just come from a brother or a sister. There may be some word of wisdom and of knowledge and instruction that based upon this Word--that God would sow that seed in your heart.

Don't you worry. A time is gonna come when you're gonna need that Word. It's gonna stand between you...between victory and defeat. It's gonna be the one thing that'll come to your rescue and give you wisdom and light on your pathway. David said, "Thy word is..."--what?--"Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path." Do we need light on our pathway? I do.

( congregational amens ).

I do. God hasn't left us to muddle through. He's given us what we need. He's given us...and you see that's where all these wonderful things come into play...where it talks about, "Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist...." (NIV). If we don't know the truth, then the devil can lie to us all day and we won't have a defense. But we need to know what God has said about situations and about needs. Are we defenseless against weaknesses that we find in ourselves, or can we battle them? That doesn't mean there's some kind of solution necessarily like this [snaps fingers]. It's often times...it's a protracted fight of faith. But we can fight. We have a victory that does not depend upon what we are. It depends on what Jesus did.

( congregational amens ).

How can we live in victory over this flesh? The Word tells us that we didn't just simply...Christ didn't just simply die 'for' us. We died 'in Him.' And when He rose, we rose with Him. I don't understand that. But you know something? I believe Paul didn't either. Do you know there's a progressiveness to this whole business of what we gain and what we understand in Christ? We don't have to suddenly know it all.

You know how we learn? We learn by applying the Word of God to the situations of life. We learn by the battles that we fight and win. And we learn by the battles we fight and lose, too, because we learn how to do different next time. But that's how we fight and that's how we grow in the Lord.

David was shaped for the throne by the battles that he had fought and won. He had proved the Word of God. He proved the faithfulness of God. And so, he could step into that throne confident that God was gonna be with him, because God had already been with him. God is shaping your life and He's shaping mine by the battles He puts in front of our pathway. And you know in our pathway, as I said earlier, there are things that you and I have passed. There are battles that are behind us that God has enabled us to win. If we've known the Lord at all, there are battles that God has helped us to win. Are there not?

( congregational amens ).

There are battles that are out there ahead of us. At any given point in time, you and I would have to say, we don't know very much. We are in a place of learning and we are in a place of growing and just giving ourselves to the Lord and looking to Him. We're trusting in Him--basically, it's a walk of faith. I can't go...I can't embark on this journey with any sense that I have the resources to follow it.

You know that's something that causes people who consider the claims of Christ, to back away. That's a lie the devil puts in your head as though you're gonna have to try to be a Christian somehow. That's not what it's about. It's about putting ourselves in His hands--letting Him transform us on the inside and give us this power to live for Christ.

( congregational amens ).

Praise God! You know, I thought about something Paul said that reminds...my mind goes to it often. And, it tells me that he understood the principles that we're talking about here today. But, he also understood that there was a whole lot he didn't know. And, he didn't know it because he hadn't been to certain places on the journey yet. There were things that were still yet out ahead of him that he knew he was gonna have to face some day.

But you know, he declared that the purpose of his life was this, "That I may know him...." There's a personal acquaintance that we need to have with the Lord so we're not just sort of wondering what He wants--where we're able to communicate with Him. He's able to communicate with us. We're able to learn what He's really like. He's not at all what the devil paints Him out to be--makes Him out to be in your mind...someone to sort of be afraid of, and to pull back from. The Lord wants us to reach out and to come to know that He's gracious, that He's merciful, that He's long-suffering, that He's a Father, who cares about everything in your life and everything in my life.

But Paul understood--oh, I want to know Him, I want to know Him better. But he didn't stop there. "...And the power of His resurrection...." And you see, that's where it gets into 'how can I overcome?' How can I really face the battles and win and be successful in all these battles that I fight? It's the power of His resurrection. Paul understood that the battles that he had not yet fought...there was more that he didn't understand. It tells me that Paul didn't completely understand this business about being one with Him in His resurrection, anymore than you and I do.

But, you know how we learn? We learn battle, by battle, by battle, by battle...that the life we have that's in us, is what enables us to overcome. And, as we understand it, as we believe in it, as we take our stand about the things that we're looking in the eye right now, God will give us the victory and we will learn something about what? About our power? No. We'll learn something about the power of the resurrection. There's a power that raised up Jesus from the dead that's available to His church.

( congregational amens ).

My desire is, along with Paul, to know more about that. I'd like to know more. I'd like to experience more and that was the thing that drove Paul every day. I want to know him. I want to know, "...the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death." (KJV). And oh, how he said...I can't worry about the things that are passed. I'll forget them. And I'm going to reach forth unto the things that are before.

Do you have the sense that there's always something more? This journey is a journey. There is a pathway. We aren't called to just camp here, and sit here in a certain place and wait for Jesus to come. God wants to accomplish things in our lives that have everything to do with eternity. We are called to be overcomers. But we are given everything that's necessary--everything!

We're given a perfect clean slate to start with--the righteousness of Christ. What could be better than that? He's dealt with our sins. He's dealt with everything that's wrong. His power--the power that flowed forth from His resurrection--reaches out into all of His people, gives us the strength that we need to look the enemy in the eye and say, devil you're a liar. I stand on what God has said. And, you know there's a certain point here that says, "...having done all..." what?

-- Congregation: Stand.

-- Brother Phil Enlow: Stand. Having done all, give up and go home? No. Sometimes that's all we can do. The devil just keeps right on roaring and we just say, devil, I stand. This is what God has said. I don't care what you say. God's Word is true, and I'm standing here. This is my ground. You're just gonna have to leave.

( congregational praise ).

God will back up His child that stands in faith based upon what He did. So, I don't know what place you're at in your life, but you know something? The Lord does. The Lord knows. He's intimately interested and concerned about you, and you, and you, and you, and you, and what you're facing right now. Not only is He interested, He's the one who allowed it to happen in the first place. He sends the victory so that we can become victorious. I mean, He sends the battle so that we can become victorious. How can we be overcomers unless there was something to overcome? I mean, think about it. We'd love to have a battle-less, war-less Christian life but there's no such thing.

But, oh, how wonderful it is that the Lord has given us everything that's necessary. All we have to do is just understand and believe. And even that's a progressive thing. The Lord knows where we're at. He knows what we know and what we don't know. We don't have to be anxious about that. We can say, Lord, I know who holds tomorrow. You hold it. You hold it. It's in your hands. I know you'll never bring me to a situation that you won't bring me through. So, Lord, just help me to put all the worry about the past, all the worry about the future, in Your hands and just deal with today and find grace and strength to take my stand based upon what You have said.

Do you believe God will help us and will be with us? Yes, I do. At the cost of the blood of His Son, Jesus Christ, He has won the place where you're standing. It's His. And because it's His, it's ours. And we have but to stand our ground, based upon the Word of God, and God will be with us and we'll be victorious in Him. Praise the Lord!

( congregational praise ).

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