Continuing with the modern rephrasing of “The Christian in Complete Armor” by William Gurnell, with some additions from me.
Paul encourages the Ephesians in holy resolution and courage in their spiritual warfare. However, he tempers this encouragement with a sober warning against relying on their own strength for the fight. He reminds us all to look to the Lord for that- “be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might” (emphasis added). Our strength lies in the Lord, not in ourselves. This is quite opposite to the way that the world works. The strength of the general lies in his troops. Once the soldiers are lost, there is no way for the general to win the battle. But in the army of the saints, the strength of every single saint lies in the Lord of hosts- Jesus Christ, Emmanuel. God does not need our efforts to overcome His enemies. God does not need us to give Him strength. One of God’s names is “the strength of Israel”, after all. He taught David’s fingers to fight. He strengthened David’s heart as he stood up to Goliath. In the same way, our Lord is the strength of all of his saints in this war against sin and Satan.
Some propose a question: Is there any sin committed in this world in which Satan has no part? Likewise, one could also ask, is there any righteous action performed without God having a part? And at least that second question is clearly answered in the Bible, “without Me, you can do nothing” (John 15:5). “It is God that works in you to will and to do his good pleasure” (Phil 2:13). “Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think anything of ourselves but our sufficiency comes from God” (2 Cor 3:5). Without God’s help, even our best efforts are useless. God’s grace upon grace to us is given on a daily basis, but not activated by our own will or desire; His grace in our lives is activated by God’s own Holy Spirit. “But God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so much, that even though we were dead because of our sins, he gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead. (It is only by God’s grace that you have been saved!) For he raised us from the dead along with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ Jesus. So God can point to us in all future ages as examples of the incredible wealth of his grace and kindness toward us, as shown in all he has done for us who are united with Christ Jesus. God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago” (Ephesians 2:4-10). We have not created our own strength to do good works for God. We have only ever received that strength from the Lord. Consistent, small steps of faith over a lifetime of walking with the Lord requires our dependence on His renewing strength every moment from heaven.
Even when we are most filled with God’s grace, we can’t sustain it on our own. We need His continuous help to keep going. That’s why Jesus, before leaving for heaven, asked God to watch over His followers. He knew they were like weak children who needed His constant help to stay on track and avoid falling into temptation.
When a Christian sets out to do something for God, like pray, their strength still comes from God. If they want to pray, we may not even know what to pray for as we ought to. If left to our own devices, we could end up praying for things that aren’t good for us. Our hearts are deceptive and desperately wicked, and our vision is limited. We never see the full picture. That’s why God gives us the words to say, like in Hosea 14:2. But even with the right words, if our hearts aren’t in it, those words will feel empty. The fire to make those prayers meaningful doesn’t come from within—that zeal comes from God. The Holy Spirit stirs up our hearts and helps us pray from a deeper place, interceding for us with wordless groans when we don’t know what to say. Without that help, we can’t pray in the way that really connects with God.
We cannot “pray” ourselves better and stronger. Instead, God gives us strength through our prayers. David recounts this happening for him, “As soon as I pray, you answer me; you encourage me by giving me strength”. God’s power is what makes our prayers effective. When it comes to hearing God’s word, our ability to understand it and let it sanctify us also comes from God. He opens our hearts and minds to truly receive what He’s saying. It’s like Samson’s riddle—one that we can’t figure out without the right help. God opens up the heart, just like He opens the mind, so that the soul, once barren, can become full and fruitful. David spent months listening to teachings without truly understanding them, but then Nathan came with God’s message, and suddenly David’s heart was ready. He immediately felt deep sorrow for his sins, and it all poured out in Psalm 51. What made this moment different from all the others? It was God’s Spirit working in him through the word.
God is the one who teaches us to truly understand, as it says in Isaiah 48:17. He’s the teacher, and when the Holy Spirit speaks directly to our hearts, everything clicks. Our understanding opens up, and we feel a fire inside as the truth comes alive. This is how the Christian’s strength comes from the Lord—it’s His power working in us, not just our own effort. Let’s take a closer look at this with some examples.
Fox Family Counseling 