Strength for the Battle Ahead

“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might.” – Ephesians 6:10

There is a reason why we have not rushed into the armor. It is not because the armor is unimportant, it is because it is powerless without strength. And not just any strength. The strength of His might. Before we reach for the belt of truth or take up the shield of faith, we must be gripped by this reality: the battle ahead is real, it is personal, it is spiritual, and it cannot be faced in human strength.

Ephesians 6:10 is the doorway to the battlefield. It is the holy threshold between doctrine and warfare, between knowledge and application, between rest and resistance. For chapters we have learned who we are in Christ. We have been seated with Him in heavenly places (Eph. 2:6). We have been called to walk in love, walk in wisdom, walk in newness of life (Eph. 4–5). But now we are told to stand. Not merely to endure, but to resist. Not to withdraw, but to hold our ground.

This shift in tone is not arbitrary. It is deliberate. It is as if Paul is saying: “You have heard the truth. You have embraced your identity. You have begun to walk in obedience. But now you must stand firm, because every inch of that ground will be contested.” This is spiritual maturity, not measured by our knowledge, but by our resilience. By whether we can stand in the evil day.

And the evil day will come. Not “if,” but “when.” Paul does not speak hypothetically. He knows the terrain. He has walked through prisons, been shipwrecked, beaten, betrayed, misunderstood, slandered. He knows what it means to stand against a real enemy with real strategies, and he knows that doctrine alone is not enough, unless it has become our strength, our shield, our song.

So often, the Christian life is presented as a peaceful meadow. And in many ways, it is. There is real rest in Christ. There is joy unspeakable and full of glory. There is a peace that passes understanding. But there is also a war. And for many believers, the peace becomes puzzling precisely because they were never told to expect the battle. But Paul tells us. God, in His mercy, tells us. “Be strong,” He says, “because you will need strength.”

What are we to be strong for? To stand against the schemes of the devil (v.11). To wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against rulers and authorities and cosmic powers (v.12). To withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to remain standing (v.13). This is not figurative language. This is reality. It is the unseen realm that shapes the seen. It is the spiritual conflict that plays out in every temptation, every trial, every discouragement, every distraction, every lie whispered to the soul.

But thanks be to God, we do not stand alone.

We are not summoned to this battlefield without equipment. We are not left to invent strategies or manufacture power. We are not even called to defeat the enemy, Christ has already done that. We are called to stand. To hold the line. To resist the lies with truth, to extinguish the arrows with faith, to guard our minds with salvation, to speak the Word with boldness, to pray without ceasing, and to persevere with eyes fixed on Jesus. But we cannot even do this much in our own strength.

That is why Paul begins here: “Be strong in the Lord.”

If we forget this, the armor will become heavy. It will chafe. We will try to carry it in the flesh, and it will wear us down. We will confuse activity with victory, emotion with faith, noise with effectiveness. But if we remember that every piece of armor is a gift of grace, flowing from our union with Christ, then we will put it on in the power of the Spirit, not in the power of self. We will not drag ourselves to battle, we will stand in Him.

Spiritual strength is not strength to make life easier. It is strength to stand when life becomes harder. It is not strength that removes us from the fight, it is strength that equips us to remain faithful in it. And this strength is not something we generate by trying harder, it is something we receive by trusting deeper. It is not about mustering courage; it is about magnifying Christ.

This is why Scripture is filled with exhortations to take courage, not because we are capable, but because God is with us. The Lord said to Joshua as he stood at the edge of the Promised Land:

“Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.” – Josh. 1:9

This has always been God’s way. His strength is not a distant resource but a present reality. “Fear not,” He says, “for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” (Isa. 41:10)

This is not poetic sentiment. It is battle-tested truth. And every believer who has learned to stand has learned to lean upon it.

So as we prepare to step deeper into Ephesians 6 in the coming weeks, piece by piece, line by line, let us not forget the foundation. We must be strong in the Lord. We must learn what it means to draw from His strength through prayer, through His Word, through His Spirit, and through our continual communion with Him.

This strength will not always feel like strength. Sometimes it will feel like falling to our knees. Sometimes it will feel like tears and groanings too deep for words. Sometimes it will feel like waiting. But it is strength nonetheless, because it is not ours, it is His. And because it is His, it is sufficient.

We do not stand alone. We do not fight alone. We do not endure alone. The battle is real, but so is the power of our God. And so, we lift our eyes. We tighten our grip. We quiet our hearts. And we stand because Christ is with us and because Christ is our strength. We have no excuse for not being able to stand since it is all Him.