Arming The Spiritual Warrior - Strength In The Lord

 

Ephesians 6:10

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power.

1 Corinthians 16:13

Be on the alert. Stand firm in the faith. Be men of courage. Be strong.

Nehemiah 8:10

And Nehemiah continued, “Go and celebrate with a feast of rich foods and sweet drinks, and share gifts of food with people who have nothing prepared. This is a sacred day before our Lord. Don’t be dejected and sad, for the Joy of the LORD is your Strength!”

To be strong in the Lord is to be empowered and empowerment comes from the Holy Spirit. In order to do the Lord's work properly we need to be filled with the Spirit of God.

Empowerment Promised

Acts 1:4

While He was with them, He commanded them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait for the Father’s promise. “Which,” He said, “you have heard Me speak about."

Acts 1:8

"But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

Empowerment Received

Acts 2:1-4

When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like a mighty rushing wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw tongues like flames of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.

Does The Spirit Always Arrive In This Same Manner? No.

Acts 9:17, 18, 22

So Ananias went to the house, and when he arrived, he placed his hands on Saul. “Brother Saul,” he said, “the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you were coming here, has sent me so that you may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit.”

At that instant, something like scales fell from Saul’s eyes, and his sight was restored. He got up and was baptized.

But Saul was empowered all the more, and he confounded the Jews living in Damascus by proving that Jesus is the Christ.

When I was baptized in the Spirit, I not only started singing in a heavenly tongue, but it was as if I became a mountain of music which poured from me like lava flows from a volcano. Except it was blue like the sea.  I had already been dabbling in writing some songs, but now the music totally began to flow from me. That was an awesome night.

What is your testimony of when you became filled with the Spirit the first time?