Read: Ephesians 6:10-18
Memory Verse: Ephesians 6:14
Stand therefore, having your loins girded about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness,
When I was considering learning Koine Greek (the language the New Testament was written in), I asked a professor what the advantages were. “Reading in English is like watching black and white TV, reading in the original Greek is like watching the same programs but in color”. What a great description! That is exactly what I found and so I always remember this.
Our English translation is very good, but like anything translated from one language to another, some of the small nuances can’t get picked up. This happens with the commands given in scripture. We can easily see that Paul gives us the command to “stand” in the English, but what we miss is the emphasis he puts on that command. In Greek, case endings are added to words to bring about different expressions. When Paul writes to “stand” he adds case endings to make it in the strongest form of a command that he can do. This means that if Paul was to speak this command to us, to get the same emphasis, he would look at us, raise his voice, and loudly command “STAND!”. All good Baptist preachers know the advantage of a good yell or shout. It stops us from what we are currently thinking about and pulls all our attention to what he is about to say. That is what Paul is doing to us here. “Stand!” he shouts, and as we are shocked out of daydreaming, our response suddenly becomes “how?”. How do we stand, and to this Paul moves on with the putting on of the armor of God.
In the previous verse 12, Paul said we are in a battle. We need to be called to attention then, for the taking on of orders, so that we can be victorious in that battle.
Meditation for the Day: Scripture is full of commands, but have you ever noticed that you have in yourself a desire to follow those commands? When I was an unbeliever, I thought Christians were the most boring group of people and that following God’s commands was very restrictive. Once God got a hold of me and placed the Holy Spirit in me my view changed. Have you had a similar experience? How have you changed so that God’s commands now align with the desires of your heart?
Assignment: “Rejoice in the Lord always: and again I say, Rejoice.” Philippians 4:4. Rejoicing is a command that surprised me. I wouldn’t think we would need a command to rejoice but God knows our hearts. Look up places where there is a command to rejoice and see what God is calling us to rejoice over.
For Fun: Put a reoccurring alarm on your phone and simply title it “Stand!”. Have it sound off sometime in your day when you are usually busy so that you get the friendly reminder that there is a battle on out there. Good reminders are needed!