Ephesians 6:13 Why take to you the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. I. First, WE ARE TO CONSIDER THE CHRISTIAN RESISTING - "That ye may be able to withstand in the evil day." "In the evil day." This expression may be understood of the whole course of our life militant here upon earth; as if the entire term of our continuance here might be described as one long and cloudy day. Such an estimate of life we find the patriarch Jacob formed, when he says - "Few and evil have the days of my life been." In the present passage, however, it is better, perhaps, to take the apostle's meaning in a more restricted sense. He lived in troublous times. This very letter was dated from a prison; and in the fifth chapter we find him exhorting his Ephesian converts to walk circumspectly, assigning as a reason, that they must redeem the time, "because the days are evil." 1. But let us note more particularly some of those passages of our life which, unless we be well fortified with our Christian armour, will prove an evil day to us. Thus there is the day of sickness. In one sense this is always an evil day. It may not be so ultimately, but it must be so in our first experience of it. 2. Again, the day of adversity is an evil day. This, too, is a day which will try the temper of every part of our spiritual armour. 3. So also the day of temptation is an evil day. Temptation is a sore evil in itself; but it is more so from the evil which it developes and brings to light. There are evils in the hearts of all of us which we know not of until temptation discovers them to us. 4. Once more: among the evil days against which we should provide this spiritual armour, we may well suppose the apostle to mean the day of our death. II. But we come to the second part of our text, which sets before us THE CHRISTIAN CONQUERING - "Having done all, to stand." This shows us, first, that religion is not a thing of speculation, not a mere matter of creeds and doctrines, but a system of principles to be acted upon, a set work to be done. "To stand." This expression may be interpreted in two or three ways. First, it may be taken, that by this armour we shall be enabled to stand fast in our Christian profession to the end of our days; that as soldiers of the Cross we shall stand by our colours to the last, resisting Christians, conquering Christians, even on the last field of temptation, and on the bed of death itself. In this attitude we find Paul representing himself to Timothy, when seeing the hour of his departure was at hand. Again, by the expression, "stand," the apostle no doubt means that the conquering Christian shall be accounted worthy to stand before the Son of Man. In this sense he writes to the Colossians: "That ye stand perfect and complete in the will of God." Now, without having endured the hardness, and done the work, and put on the armour of the Christian soldier, it is certain that in the great judgment we never can stand. Once more: the apostle's expression may be interpreted of our standing as glorified spirits in the presence of God. He who stands fast in the conflict, and stands acquitted in the judgment, shall have, as the recompense of his toils, and as the reward of victory, to stand eternally in glory. "Go thou thy way till the end be: for thou shalt rest and stand in thy lot at the end of the days." (D. Moore, M. A.) Parallel Verses KJV: Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. |
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