STAND ON THE WORD

“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 – 2 Ephesians 6:13

The proof of all the positive responses to God’s Word is that you are able to STAND on the WORD! God wants you to withstand and stand – strong, firm, and fully on His Word: “…withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to STAND. STAND therefore…” (Eph.6:13-14a). The Christian life is nothing less than warfare against a hideous enemy – the prince of darkness. As a Christian, you have been drafted into God’s army, and daily you are engaged in a battle with unseen spiritual enemies that seek to steal, kill and destroy (Jh.10:10a). If you’ll be victorious in life’s battles, you must stand strong on the Word to counter and conquer everything the devil throws your way. God’s Word in any matter is His Will for you; stand on it!

To stand strong on the Word is to stand strong in faith, believing the Word: that God says what He means and means what He says! If God’s people do not stand strong, who will? When God’s people found themselves in a strait between Pharaoh’s pursuit hosts and the deep Red Sea, Moses’ command was for them to “Stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD” (Exo.14:13b). There are life’s situations that leave us no option but to stand still; to stop all irrational, emotion-driven behaviour; to quit talking ourselves into defeat; in order to receive fresh impetus to march forward. Be strong in the Lord, by being strong in His Word (Eph.6:10). You cannot be strong in yourself; your strength comes from the Lord!

To stand firm on the Word is to stand in absolute reverence for and obedience to God’s Word; to stand on the Integrity of the Word. A Christian who is standing firm on the Word will not accommodate worldliness – a devotion to temporal interests and pleasures to the neglect of spiritual things. If Naboth, at the cost of his life, could stand by his inheritance and refuse to sell out for money, God’s children have no excuse but to stand squarely on God’s Word and refuse to budge against all Satanic onslaughts (1Kg.21:1-3). Always stand by what you believe in, particularly when such belief is firmly rooted in God’s infallible Word. Remember who’s in control of your circumstances. Stand in His Presence; believe His promises!

To stand fully on God’s Word means that you cannot ignore parts of His Word because they are controversial, unpopular with the world or tend to make sinners uncomfortable. Christians must stand for all Christ stands for. That’s what the presence of the Church in the world is all about – to be witnesses of Christ and the whole Gospel to the whole world. The Psalmist declared: “The entirety of Your Word is truth, and every one of Your righteous judgements endures forever. Princes persecute me without a cause, but my heart stands in awe of Your Word” (Psa.119:160-161). What a blessing it is to “stand perfect and complete in all the Will of God” (Col.4:12b). It is to the extent that you submit yourself to God, by standing on His Word that you can “resist the devil and he will flee from you” (Jam.4:7). You can punish all disobedience only “when your obedience is fulfilled” (2Cor.10:6b). When you are properly aligned with the Lord Jesus, His power and authority are behind you and at your disposal.

Give God your thoughts. Be still and know that He is God (Psa.46:10). Those who stand on the Word will ultimately stand victorious before the Son: “Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man” (Lk.21:36). God is faithful, and in a world of uncertainty, you can sing, ‘On Christ the solid Rock I stand, all other ground is sinking sand’! Your career, relationships, investments, possessions, and popularity are all ‘sinking sand’. But God’s faithfulness is as solid as a rock. I make bold to declare: “Forever O Lord, Your Word is settled in heaven” (Psa.119:89)!