Strong in the Lord    The epistle, or letter, to the Ephesians is regarded by many as the epistle to the typical Christian church.    From a Bible: About 60 A.D. while in prison in Rome, Paul wrote to the church at Ephesus and its neighbouring churches to give them a manual for Christian living, showing how the church could be unified with each member reaching the potential that God intended.    From Easton's Bible Dictionary:  The object of the apostle is "to set forth the ground, the cause, and the aim and end of the church of the faithful in Christ. He speaks to the Ephesians as a type or sample of the church universal." The church's foundations, its course, and its end are his theme. "Everywhere the foundation of the church is the will of the Father; the course of the church is by the satisfaction of the Son; the end of the church is the life in the Holy Spirit."    The church at Ephesus was also the first church mentioned in the Revelation:  Unto the angel of the church of Ephesus write; These things saith he that holdeth the seven stars in his right hand, who walketh in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks; I know thy works, and thy labour, and thy patience, and how thou canst not bear them which are evil: and thou hast tried them which say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them liars: And hast borne, and hast patience, and for my name's sake hast laboured, and hast not fainted. Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love. Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent. But this thou hast, that thou hatest the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God.  (Revelation 2:1-7)   Paul pastored the church for approximately two years:  And it came to pass, that, while Apollos was at Corinth, Paul having passed through the upper coasts came to Ephesus: and finding certain disciples, He said unto them, Have ye received the Holy Ghost since ye believed? And they said unto him, We have not so much as heard whether there be any Holy Ghost. And he said unto them, Unto what then were ye baptized? And they said, Unto John's baptism. Then said Paul, John verily baptized with the baptism of repentance, saying unto the people, that they should believe on him which should come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus. When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. And when Paul had laid his hands upon them, the Holy Ghost came on them; and they spake with tongues, and prophesied. And all the men were about twelve. And he went into the synagogue, and spake boldly for the space of three months, disputing and persuading the things concerning the kingdom of God. But when divers were hardened, and believed not, but spake evil of that way before the multitude, he departed from them, and separated the disciples, disputing daily in the school of one Tyrannus. And this continued by the space of two years; so that all they which dwelt in Asia heard the word of the Lord Jesus, both Jews and Greeks. And God wrought special miracles by the hands of Paul:  (Acts 19:1-11)   Also, on his way back to Jerusalem he stopped especially to commune with them:  For Paul had determined to sail by Ephesus, because he would not spend the time in Asia: for he hasted, if it were possible for him, to be at Jerusalem the day of Pentecost. And from Miletus he sent to Ephesus, and called the elders of the church. And when they were come to him, he said unto them, Ye know, from the first day that I came into Asia, after what manner I have been with you at all seasons, Serving the Lord with all humility of mind, and with many tears, and temptations, which befell me by the lying in wait of the Jews: And how I kept back nothing that was profitable unto you, but have shewed you, and have taught you publickly, and from house to house, Testifying both to the Jews, and also to the Greeks, repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ. And now, behold, I go bound in the spirit unto Jerusalem, not knowing the things that shall befall me there: Save that the Holy Ghost witnesseth in every city, saying that bonds and afflictions abide me. But none of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with joy, and the ministry, which I have received of the Lord Jesus, to testify the gospel of the grace of God. And now, behold, I know that ye all, among whom I have gone preaching the kingdom of God, shall see my face no more. Wherefore I take you to record this day, that I am pure from the blood of all men. For I have not shunned to declare unto you all the counsel of God. Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood. For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock. Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them. Therefore watch, and remember, that by the space of three years I ceased not to warn every one night and day with tears.  (Acts 20:16-31)   This means that he knew them well and was loved by them and he could say things to them that he could not to other churches, which people he did not know at all except by reputation.    The epistle was instruction for the church and how it should operate as a whole, and also how each individual should walk in the Lord.    So, the following part of his letter was encouragement and directive to the reborn Christian to live according to Christian principles. Please note that it is a directive for today also, so that God's blessings will flow therefrom:  Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. 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. Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints; And for me, that utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the gospel, For which I am an ambassador in bonds: that therein I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.  (Ephesians 6:10-20)   Let us go through each pertinent point so that we may also learn how we are affected today and to adapt our lifestyles to suit our King's directives. Each of us already has a passport to the kingdom of heaven, let's ensure that it's up to date before we arrive, knowing that the King is eager for us to come, to the extent that He has already sent an emissary and helper to answer any question that may arise.  Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:  (Philippians 1:6) And this I pray, that your love may abound yet more and more in knowledge and in all judgment; That ye may approve things that are excellent; that ye may be sincere and without offence till the day of Christ; Being filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are by Jesus Christ, unto the glory and praise of God.  (Philippians 1:9-11)   Here we go then: This is where most Christians fail in their walk along the narrow path, they sit down to rest and have difficulty in getting up again.  10 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.    We have to do the doing and the wrestling, we cannot ask God to do it for us. We have to walk the path, not be carried.  11 Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.  12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.    This is how we go about it: 13 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.  14 Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness;  15 And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;  16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.  17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:    You will see that all the above are defensive weapons, except for the last; and this is the only power that will defeat Satan and his demons. If we cannot wield the word of God we cannot overcome. How good are you at wielding the word with power, the power that comes from the Holy Spirit?    We must pray in the power of the Holy Spirit for each other.  18 Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;    We must pray for our Pastor and those that the Holy Spirit of God has placed in authority over us that we may learn from them as necessary.  19 And for me, that utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the gospel,  20 For which I am an ambassador in bonds: that therein I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.  Ephesians 6:)   This is confirmed, and shows that this is the way to avoid the condemnation of Adam's children:  But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation. For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ, Who died for us, that, whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with him.  (1 Thessalonians 5:8-10)   For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.  (Galatians 5:14) Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. (Colossians 3:2) And he that overcometh, and keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations:  (Revelation 2:26)