Ephesians 6:11,13-14 (NKKJV) Put on the whole armour of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil…. Therefore take up the whole armour of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness,
We need to remember that the devil is a master of deception. Even though he is defeated, he can still speak through people and circumstances. During an economic downturn, the devil will lie to you that your future is bleak, especially if you are in your 40’s or 50’s and working in a sunset industry. Unless we walk by faith and not by sight, it can be pretty depressive and oppressive. Therefore, we must stand on the theological conviction of who we are in Christ and use it to counter these thoughts.
We need to get used to the disruptions to our jobs and career advancement as we are uncertain how Artificial Intelligence will bring about more changes in the future. We might even need to continue reskilling and upgrading our knowledge to stay relevant to the market as we age. Nevertheless, while we should be open to constant education and learning, we mustn’t lose hope and be obsessed with the rapid changes. One can slip into depression if we do not meditate on the Word of God and focus on Jesus because the devil will put thoughts into your mind that God has abandoned you. If we fail to guard our minds, oppression and depression will slowly creep into our lives. One of the schemes of the devil to destroy our lives is by putting hopelessness in us. The way to fight against these thoughts is to stand in faith in God’s Word and maintain peace in our hearts and minds by meditating on God’s Word. We should also stand in the gap to pray for and pray with our spouses or children if they are uncertain about their future.
To stand in faith, we must take God’s Word seriously and step out to trust Him without being moved by the circumstances. Therefore, the belt of truth and the sword of the Spirit are crucial during these times. Our identity in Christ also forms the breastplate of righteousness so that the devil cannot attack us through condemnation and hopelessness.
The biggest battle is in the mind and the temptation that comes through the work of the flesh through our five senses. The best way to counter the works and temptation of the evil one is by practising what Jesus did when He dealt with the devil by quoting, “It is written” (Luke 4:4-13). We need to know what is written in the Bible about us so that we can stand on our convictions of the truth and withstand the devil in the evil day. Finally, we should watch and pray, especially in the Spirit, who will help us discern the devil’s scheme.
Sermon Series: STAND!
持守真道
以弗所书 6:11,13-14 要穿戴神所赐的全副军装，就能抵挡魔鬼的诡计……所以要拿起神所赐的全副军装，好在磨难的日子能抵挡仇敌，并且成就了一切，还能站立得住。所以要站稳，用真理当作带子束腰，用公义当作护心镜遮胸。
我们要记住，魔鬼是诡计大师。尽管牠被打败了，牠仍然可以通过人和环境说话。在经济低迷期间，魔鬼会对你撒谎，说你的未来是暗淡的，尤其是你已经四五十岁，而且在夕阳产业工作。除非我们行事为人是凭着信心，不是凭着眼见，否则这是很抑郁和有压迫感的。因此，我们必须持守在基督里关于我们是谁的神学确信上，并用它来抵制这些想法。
我们需要习惯于工作和职业发展上的中断，因为我们不确定人工智能将如何在未来带来更多变化。随着年龄的增长，我们甚至可能需要重新培训和提升我们的知识，以确保在市场上能与时俱进。然而，虽然我们应该对持续性的教育和学习持开放态度，但我们不应失去希望，也不应被快速的变化所困扰。如果我们不默想神的话语，并没有注目看耶稣，我们可能就会陷入抑郁，因为魔鬼会在你的心里植入神已经丢弃你的想法。如果我们不保守我们的心，压迫和抑郁将慢慢地潜入我们的生活。魔鬼拆毁我们生命的诡计之一就是让我们感到绝望。抵制这些想法的方法就是凭信心持守神的话语，并藉着默想神的话语来保持我们内心的平安。如果我们的配偶或孩子对未来感到不确定，我们还应该站在破口中为他们祷告。
要在信心中站立得住，我们就必须认真对待神的话语，并在不被环境动摇的情况下迈开步伐去信靠祂。因此，真理的腰带和圣灵的宝剑在这些时期是至关重要的。我们在基督里的身份也形成了公义的护心镜，使魔鬼无法通过定罪和绝望来攻击我们。
最大的争战是在心里，以及肉体在我们的五个感官上制造的的试探。抵制恶者的作为和试探的最佳方法是效仿耶稣如何抵挡魔鬼，祂引用“经上记着说”（路加福音 4:4-13）。我们需要知道圣经中关乎我们的记载，这样我们才能持守我们对真理的确信，好在磨难的日子能抵挡魔鬼。最后，我们应该警醒祷告，尤其是在圣灵中，祂会帮助我们辨别魔鬼的诡计。
讲章系列: 立定心志，站稳脚跟
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