SIT. WALK. STAND: Part 3 - Stand Your Ground - Pastor Andrew Damazio

Hey, this is Andrew Demazio, lead pastor of Rose Church here in Portland, Oregon.

Welcome to our podcast.

Our mission here at Rose is building big people, becoming like Jesus in community while growing in our faith.

Whoever you are, wherever you are, I pray today's message challenges you and encourages you on your walk with Jesus.

Thank you so much for listening.

Enjoy today's podcast.

Today we're gonna jump into the word, and we've been on just a little three-week series through the book of Ephesians from like a 30,000-foot view on this idea, the three positions of a Christian to sit, walk, stand.

A couple weeks ago we talked about sit, that we are seated in heavenly realms.

Talked about Ephesians 1 and 2, that we've been seated with Christ in heavenly realms, and that is supposed to affect our vision, our perspective, our view on this world, because we've been seated in heavenly realms.

And because of that, we walk differently.

We talked about walking in wisdom, walking in love, walking in light, walking in a worthy manner.

Because of our seat with God, we now walk differently.

So today we're gonna deal with the last position of a Christian, which is to stand.

To stand.

Go with me to the book of Ephesians, chapter six.

We're gonna deal with standing today, spiritual warfare.

Speaking of spiritual warfare, did you see that photo they posted to me on social media?

I have filed an official official complaint with the HR Department of Rose.

I gained 40 pounds in that in that photo.

If you're to use AI, at least make me like jacked or something.

Like give me a good photo.

Instead, it looks like I've been eating donuts for nine years, but it's real spiritual warfare.

Looking at you, Genesis.

Yeah, I know you chose that photo.

Um, we're gonna deal with Ephesians chapter 6, verses 10 to 5 today.

If you're raised in church, many of you heard these things.

Uh especially if you're a praying mother, praying grandmother, you sure had these things prayed over you.

Uh, but today I want to give some light to it.

Ephesians 6, 10 through 18.

This is the end of the book, last chapter, last section.

So he starts with finally.

After all that I've said, after all the things we've talked about, I'm wrapping up.

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

So put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand, take your stand against the devil's schemes.

For our struggle, look at this, our struggle is not against flesh and blood.

The people you're looking at are not our enemies.

It's not against flesh and blood, but against rulers, against authorities, against powers of this dark world, and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

No wonder we've been seated in heavenly realms if that's where the war is.

We've been seated in heavenly realms because that's where the evil war is going on.

It says, Therefore, because of that, put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground.

And after all you've done to stand, stand firm with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted, with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.

In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.

Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God.

In all occasions, with all kinds of prayers and requests.

Look at this.

With this in mind, be alert.

We need more Christians alert.

Be alert and always keep on praying for all of the Lord's people.

Today I'm gonna borrow that phrase, and the title for our talk today is stand your ground.

I've come today to remind some people you need to stand your ground.

Maybe you walked in exhausted today, it's time to stand your ground.

Maybe you walked in feeling defeated today, it's time to stand your ground.

Maybe you walked in with your head held low today, it's time to stand your ground.

So today we're gonna talk about what does it mean for a Christian to stand their ground?

Let's pray.

Father, thank you for your word.

I thank you for the series that we've been on about the three positions of a Christian.

Learn how to sit in heavenly realms, learn how to walk it out here on earth, and now how to stand.

How to dig our feet in, stand our ground, stand against the enemy, not against the people sitting in front of us, not against ex-pouses and bosses and friends and neighbors and government.

Not literal people in front of us, but there's something behind it.

There is a war that we are in, God, with the spiritual realms and not against flesh and blood.

God, I pray as we learn how to stand our ground today.

Would your spirit be here?

Would you speak to us as we open your word?

Would you illuminate it, transform our mind, transform our heart?

Your word says when scripture is preached.

It's like seed to the soil.

Father, I pray that the word of God would fall on good soil today.

I pray these things in the mighty name of Jesus.

Everyone said?

Today I want to talk about three things that Paul brings up in Ephesians 6, 10 to 18.

Just three things on three postures that we have, or three things we've decided to stand in.

Number one, you'd write this down, is we are called to stand prepared.

We're called to stand prepared.

In the New Testament, the word stand in Greek is used 300 times.

300 times this word stand is used.

But the majority of the time it's a positional thing.

Like they stood by the wall, they were standing by the gate, they were standing by the temple, he stood by the water.

Like that word stand is typically a positional word.

But out of the 300, 82 times it is not a positional word, it's a posture word.

And 80 times Paul uses this Greek term, this to stand with a posture.

In other words, to stand ready.

Like Paul's not telling us just stand.

He's like, you need to stand.

Like you need to prepare yourself.

You need to like be on your toes, like as an athlete or like somebody in war.

And when you when you read a lot of polling literature, there's a lot of war language, there's a lot of battle language, there's a lot of pick up your sword and put your clothes on and get your feet ready, and there's a lot of protect your mind and be on guard, and there's a lot of like you need to be ready.

You need to stand on your toes, like you need to be prepared.

Why?

Because we are called to take a stand, stand firm, firmly stand, stand against.

Like there's this term that we use 80 times that you need to stand, you need to be prepared.

Why?

Because we're at war.

No, we're not at war with your mother-in-law.

I know that's what you might think.

You might think it's your boss, like that's the you know, the arch nemesis of your soul.

But but to the gospel writers and to Paul, there is a war behind the war.

It is not just the person sitting in front of you, it's not just the government official, it's not just the mayor, it's not just your boss, it's not just your ex-spouse, it's not just the neighbor you don't get along with.

There is a war behind the war.

He says that we are not at war with flesh and blood, but with principalities, heirs, powers, thrones, dominions.

Like there is something behind the thing that you are staring at, and that we need to be prepared, acting like we are at war.

Colossians 1 says that when we get saved, we are transferred from the kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of light.

See, there's wars going on right now as we speak around this world.

But there's a real war with two kingdoms, the kingdom of darkness and the kingdom of light.

There's not 37 kingdoms at war.

It's the kingdom of darkness and the kingdom of light.

And when you get saved, you are transferred kingdoms.

Which means there's no Switzerland, there's no middle ground.

There is no like, well, I'm not serving God, but I'm not in darkness.

No, you are either serving God or you are not.

The gospel writer is very binary how they talk about this.

It is either you are in the kingdom of darkness or you are in the kingdom of light.

To Jesus, Paul, Peter, James, John, to all the gospel writers, the devil who is our real enemy, the enemy of our soul, it is not some superstitious, ethereal character of our life that we are like kind of at war with.

To Jesus, the devil is a very real person, really at war, that hates you and wants to destroy your life.

See, now, unfortunately for you and I now 2026, because we have the iPhone in your pocket and you took science in high school or college, we now look back on the world that C.

S.

Lewis calls with chronological snobbery.

And we look back in these texts and go, they they didn't know.

They just didn't know what we know now.

They're just not they're not scientifically enlightened, they're not like they don't know how the mental space of human humanity works, like how humans like inner world works.

Like we just know so much more about the human body.

So we we often disregard what the Bible says about the spiritual realm because we think we know more now.

Friends, to ignore the spiritual realm is to ignore the Bible.

Furthermore, to not take the spiritual realm seriously is to not take the Bible seriously.

From Genesis to Revelation, it is a serious war that you and I are in.

And it is not flesh and blood.

Your neighbor is not your enemy.

Though they need to get off your lawn, and I get it.

They might, their dog might be your lawn's enemy, but they are not your enemy.

There is a flesh and blood battle that we think is going on, but it is not.

There is something beyond that.

We need to stand prepared, stand ready and acting like we are at war.

Clinton Arnold, amazing scholar, says this.

He says, Spiritual warfare is an integral part of the entire Christian experience.

It is a fact of life.

I love this.

To think that a Christian could avoid spiritual warfare is like imagining that a gardener could avoid dealing with weeds.

No gardener shows up to the garden going, I never thought I'd have to deal with this.

You assume when you go to your garden, you have to pull something out.

Same with our spiritual realm.

It is a farce for us to believe that we're not going to deal with spiritual things being a Christian.

Look what C.

S.

Lewis says.

He says, There are two equal and opposite errors into which our human race can fall into about the devil.

One is to disbelieve his existence, but the other is to believe and have an excessive and unhealthy interest in him.

The devil is equally pleased with both heirs.

Either just completely ignore him and believe he's not real, he's okay with that.

Or be weirdly obsessed with him, like he's the figure you're supposed to imagine about most often.

He's okay with that too.

We need to have a healthy mindset of the war that we are in.

This is what we need to be reminded of today.

Just because you deny it doesn't excuse you from it.

So some of you today are like, no, I'm just not gonna engage.

I'm not really involved in the spiritual stuff.

I'm not in spiritual warfare.

This is too much for me.

Like, I'm just I'm not that type of Christian.

I'm just gonna not really engage.

I'm Switzerland, I'm gonna be in the middle, I'm not in either camp.

Oh no, just because you deny it doesn't mean you're excused from it.

The devil won't show up to your life and go, well, I could ruin this person's life, but they don't believe in me, so I guess I can't.

I could really get involved in this marriage and really cause division, but they don't believe in me, so they kind of have locked my hands.

You think your denial of him controls his act in your life?

We need to be more aware that, friends, we are at war.

We are with our kingdoms are at war today.

The kingdom of darkness and the kingdom of light are at war with each other.

We need to, first and foremost, stand ready.

Stand prepared.

And I don't mean that you show up to work going, oh, I'm ready.

Like I'm ready for my boss today.

I don't mean that.

But it is a spiritual demeanor, it is a spiritual posture that you and I should have going, I'm ready, I'm prepared.

Anything could happen today through an email, a text, a neighbor, a phone call, some boss, anything could happen today, and I'm ready for it.

I am prepared for it.

Well, what does it mean to stand prepared?

What does it mean to stand ready?

Well, number two, you need to stand dressed.

If we're going to stand ready, we need to stand dressed.

Just how you got dressed today to leave your house to prepare for the day.

We should be, we should be getting dressed spiritually every morning, putting our clothes on to get ready for the day.

Look what he says.

He says, put on God's armor.

But notice the word in front of that.

He says, put on all of the armor.

You don't get to choose the piece that fits your personality and leave the other ones out.

Most of the New Testament commands don't take your integrated number into consideration.

Well, eights can do this, but fours probably won't.

Well, extroverts would like this, but introverts will probably lean away from it.

Your personality trait and your upbringing are not considered when God gives us spiritual commands.

This is for every single one of us at all times, in all spaces, no matter what end of the spectrum you lean on, introvert, extrovert, doesn't matter where you lean.

We are called to put on all of God's armor.

That we are called to put it on.

Now, no, this is so important.

The Bible says that Paul's telling us, put on the armor of God.

Which means what?

It's not gonna fall on you.

You're not gonna wake up with it on.

You make a conscious choice, I'm putting the armor on today.

But this is what's so profound.

It doesn't say put on your armor, it says put on God's armor.

I'm not putting on Andrew's armor every day.

My armor won't win in this battle.

I'm putting on God's armor today.

But look at the dichotomy.

Though it's God's armor, it's your choice.

God doesn't throw it on you.

God doesn't place it on you.

You don't wake up with it on.

You wake up with a conscious awareness, I need to get dressed today.

Maybe some of the battles you've lost throughout this week is because you simply didn't show up dressed.

You weren't prepared.

You didn't show up ready for that battle because you did not put on the armor of God, all of the armor of God.

And we'll go through it just a little bit, each one of them.

We can do a whole series on this.

But here's how you are supposed to be dressed every day.

How do we stand ready?

How do we stand prepared?

We get dressed.

Well, dressed with what?

And actually believe that these are supposed to go in order.

That Paul gives them in order.

Number one, the belt of truth.

The first thing that we put on is truth.

Notice of all the other things we can put on, not prayer, not prophecy, the belt of truth.

Even in a Roman garb, what is the belt doing?

It's holding everything together.

It's making your pants not fall, it's making sure your sword is there, it's making sure your your garbs are prepared where they're supposed to be.

It is truth that holds everything together.

And what happens when your truth falls apart?

You're trying to catch your pants, you're trying to pull stuff up, you're trying to tuck stuff in, you're trying to hold your sword.

Your life falls apart when your truth is not in its place.

Can you imagine being in battle, trying to like hold your pants and get your sword there and trying to like that's what the belt is there for.

To make sure that you have the ability to run, to jump, to move, to be agile, to grab your sword, to jump over something, to dodge something.

You are prepared because your truth is where it should be.

The first aspect of our war is knowing the truth of God.

Why do we need to know the truth?

It's because your enemy is a liar.

The number one reason why you need to know what you believe is because your adversary is a liar.

Look what Jesus says in John 8, 44.

I mean, talk about, I mean, I think sometimes we read John Matthew 5, and the kind, sweet Jesus with his satchel and birkin socks, and he's up on a hill and teaching everyone.

And like, read the rest of the New Testament, friends.

He says some pretty bizarre stuff.

Look what he says to the Pharisees.

You belong to your father.

The devil.

Can you imagine like telling your neighbor, like, hey, say hi to your father, the devil for me?

He says, You belong to your father, the devil.

And look at this, and you want to carry out your father's desires.

So we are carrying out our father's, and you're carrying out yours.

Look at this.

He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth.

For there is no truth in him.

Look at this.

This is pro, I mean, talk about a bar.

When he lies, he speaks his native language.

When he lies, he speaks his native language.

For he is a liar and the father of lies.

So if you don't know what you believe about the word of God, the enemy comes by and starts derailing your life with lies about God.

Do you know why I know that?

It's because that's how he got Adam and Eve.

And the devil's not smart enough to find a new trick.

He's been doing the same thing since Adam and Eve.

Just get you a bad thought about God.

You guys think about that.

Humanity was ruined not by a tank, a sword, or a nuclear bomb, but by a lie.

A lie about God and the trustworthiness of who he is to us.

Derailed.

Unspiral, Adam and Eve.

Because they believed a lie about God.

The first thing that you need to put on is truth.

What do you believe and why?

That's what the Bible says.

And if a man knows the truth, the truth will set him free.

But notice the language.

The truth that you know.

Truth does not set you free.

The truth that you know sets you free.

The truth that you believe sets you free.

The first thing that we have to put on is a belt of truth.

Next, we have to put on the breastplate of righteousness.

Which is what the huge front piece of the Roman military's garb, their thing that would protect their what?

Their organs.

If they got shot in the arm by an arrow, they're probably gonna be okay.

If they got a part of a sword to their arm, they're probably gonna be okay.

But it was their inner organs.

Their heart, their liver, their inner organs, that if an arrow of sword contacted those, they're dying.

What is the breastplate supposed to do?

Protect the most important part of you.

And what does Paul call it?

The breastplate of righteousness.

In other words, Paul is saying, if you want to survive in this war, let righteousness protect your inner world.

Righteousness protects your heart, righteousness protects your motives, righteousness protects your integrity, righteousness protects your character.

All of the important inner workings of your life, it is righteousness that protects it.

So I wonder for some of you that the anxiousness that you feel is because you have hidden sin, and if it ever came out, it would ruin relationships.

When you have DMs that can't be found and text that should not be seen and emails that should never be found, when you know you have some stuff out here that that gives you a steady realm of anxiousness throughout the day.

But when you know that my righteousness is protecting me, I feel peace.

I feel calm.

I feel at ease because I'm not hiding anything in my righteousness, my breastplate is protecting the most important part of me.

He says, make sure that you put on the breastplate of righteousness.

Next, he says, put on the shoes of peace for the gospel's sake.

So make sure your feet are fitted.

Not because of the new Jordans or the new shoe that dropped, like make sure your feet are what?

Prepared with the gospel of peace.

This language of the shoes, the image of the shoes, is literally like I'm ready.

To what?

Share the gospel.

He's saying, in this war, as you get dressed, put on your shoes so that whenever an opportunity arises, you're ready to go.

Neighbor brings something up on the bus or on the max or at a restaurant or a breezer or a bartender on an airplane.

Wherever I'm at, if somebody brings up a chance to share the gospel, I'm ready.

I'm prepared.

My shoes are on.

Send me where you want, tell me where to go.

I'm ready.

I don't have to get dressed.

I'm I'm ready right now.

Have you ever like been in a conversation with someone and you you thought about sharing the gospel or faith or praying for them, and the conversation didn't go there?

You get in the car and you go, Man, I missed it.

Anybody?

Okay, the rest of you are liars.

Okay.

That's a tough moment.

We get in the car and go, I missed it.

Man, I could have prayed right there.

Man, she said that one comment.

I should have stopped her in the midst, and go, Can I pray about I missed the opportunity?

What my shoes weren't on.

I just wasn't ready.

I was standing, I wasn't standing.

I wasn't ready.

This is you and I every day, every day going to work and life and friends and drinks and coffees and going to the park and wherever you're at.

I'm ready.

Any opportunity I get to share the gospel, I'm prepared.

Any door that opens, I'm ready.

My shoes are on.

I'm ready.

Next.

The shield of faith.

Not the shield of righteousness, we have the breastplate of righteousness on.

The shield of faith.

Now, what is so profound about Paul's language here is he doesn't use the normal Greek word for like bow and arrow.

Notice what he says.

He says, our shield of faith will protect us from what?

The fiery arrows.

When you study Roman history and how their military genius and prowess, we're still studying how they won wars.

Like we are still looking at how they dominated the Mediterranean, the entire known world, how the Roman Empire and their army just decimated the world.

One of the major things that they did is again, a fiery arrow.

Catch this a fiery arrow is not meant to kill someone.

They'd have the front archers with the long bows and the long arrows, and they're aiming at people.

They're doing the long distance.

Then there'd be people behind them with a shorter bow and a shorter arrow, and they would they what?

Take their take their arrow, dip it.

Light it on fire and they would shoot.

Notice people with fiery arrows are never aiming at someone, they're aiming in an area to cause division.

Because you can't fight the fire and the enemy at the same time.

So if fire gets near you and your battalion or your guards have to separate, now we're trying to put the fire out.

And now with us putting the fire out, our attention is taken away from the actual enemy.

This is how the enemy works in our life.

He throws fire of division, isolation, separation into our life.

So that if the devil can get us all divided, now we're all trying to put the fire out, and the real enemy has time to come in.

So look at my shield of faith is putting out all the opportunities for division.

My faith will cancel that.

My faith will absorb that.

My faith won't allow that word and that thought and that arrow.

I will not be separated from my mates, from my soldiers.

I will keep in unison.

Could you imagine that one of the major things the shield of faith does is fights for unity among the brethren?

My shield of faith is putting out the fires that could cause us to separate.

Because if we separate and get focused on a secondary issue, we will lose our focus on the real enemy.

Be distracted and be separated.

Well, you know that when you watch war movies, when they scatter, you lost.

When an army is scattered and they're not in use, then it's over.

That is the work of the enemy in our life is to throw fiery darts, get you separated, and now you are so easy as a target by yourself.

And what takes those darts out?

My shield of faith that absorbs the fiery darts.

Then he says, put on the helmet of salvation.

The helmet of salvation, which is what the main area the devil attacks.

Am I really saved?

Is this real?

Do I really believe this?

Is church even worth it?

Do I believe this book?

Do I believe what that pastor is saying?

Do I believe what that girl told me?

Do I believe my connect leader?

I'm not saved.

I know what I've done.

I know my what is that?

That's the mind of the enemy coming against your mind.

And how we battle the enemy is put on the helmet of salvation.

Helmet protects our mind.

How we think.

See, when was the last time that you had a non-godly thought?

And thought to yourself, I'm at war.

When was the last time that you just let that thought ruminate the entire work day?

That thought about leaving your spouse, that thought about saying that to that person, that thought about it sending that email, that thought about taking your own life, that thought about saying church isn't worth it, that thought about saying like those thoughts that are going in and out of your mind that you are not capturing, that have been running its course in your mind all day.

When was the last time you go home and says, Man, I've been in war all day.

And I lost the war today.

Well, I didn't put on the helmet of salvation.

Look what 2 Corinthians 10 5 says.

So powerful.

We demolish arguments.

We don't play with them, we demolish them.

Stop playing with that thought like it's your pet.

Demolish it.

We demolish arguments and every pretension that what look that sets itself up against the Lord.

Any thought in my mind that is building a case to defend me against God, I must demolish.

Look what it says.

And take every thought captive.

Why are you letting those thoughts run all day without checking them one time?

That thought is not real.

I will submit it, make it captive to Christ.

I don't believe that thought.

You are not in control of that thought when it comes in, but you are in control how long it stays.

You ever had that thought?

Drive back.

Where did that come from?

Capture that thought.

Captivate it.

Demolish it.

What?

Put on the helmet of salvation.

Sword of the spirit.

Notice that's our only weapon.

We don't get a crossbow and a spear and a dagger and a sword.

Like we get the sword of the spirit.

So no wonder you keep losing the battery and you're not even showing up armed.

If we are not reading our Bible and aiding ourselves with the sword of the spirit.

No wonder we are being defeated week in and week out.

We're showing up, not armed.

With the one weapon we have, which is the sword of the spirit.

Knowing what we believe in having the word of God in our life.

So look at this.

This is so important.

I'm seated in the heavenly realms.

I'm walking it out down here.

And when the enemy shows up, I'm prepared.

I'm on my toes.

I'm ready.

I'm dressed.

This is the last thing that's important.

And I stand victorious.

Notice, notice, this is this is so profound.

He does not say, now that you're dressed, take ground.

Stand your ground.

We are not marching, we're standing.

Why?

Because we have no land to take.

It's all ours.

We are standing victorious in the past work of Christ.

He just could you imagine?

Join my army.

Okay, Lord.

What do we do?

I'm ready.

Get dressed.

Where are we going?

Stand your ground.

I'm ready to go.

Already went.

But I'm ready to go to war.

Already went to war.

But I'm ready to do work.

Oh, I already said it is finished.

It's already done.

The war is over.

So you don't want me to take ground?

It's all yours.

Charismatic wasn't I'm taking ground from the devil.

He doesn't have any.

The only ground you have to take from him is the ground you gave to him.

We are not in the business of taking ground from the devil.

He doesn't own any.

He has no land.

He has no ground.

It is all ours.

Through the work of Christ on the cross, it is finished.

It's all ours.

So the job of a Christian is not to take ground.

It's to stand firm in the one and a half.

Do not give up.

Do not go backward.

Do not give the enemy any ground.

So I don't know who I'm preaching to today, but I start up to tell some people stand your ground.

If you feel like the enemy is seeping into your marriage, stand your ground.

If you think the enemy is circling your kids, stand your ground.

If you think the enemy is sowing seeds of discord in your mind, stand your ground.

Do not give the enemy an inch of land.

It is not his.

You don't have to take anything from him.

You just have to stand your ground.

See, but no wonder walking is so important.

Because if you if you felt like you walked poorly, you won't stand.

If you've been making bad decisions and living in sin and living in darkness, if you feel like you have not walked well, no wonder we're so cowardice to stand.

Because we don't think people like us stand.

I'm not allowed to stand.

Do you see what I've done this week?

Do you see what I've thought about this week?

Do you see the websites I've gone to?

Do you see who I've slept with?

Lord, I I've not walked well, so I can't stand.

And that's where the enemy lies to you that believes you have to walk well to stand well.

Even when you don't walk well, it's again not your performance, it's the position in Christ you've been given.

I've been seated in the heavenly realms.

And so now I have the ability to stand my ground.

Friends, the only place darkness gets to win is when light decides to not show up.

That's it.

I always find it funny whenever I travel to different states, especially the southern the southern ones that we now call the Bible Belt.

And how they just how they just describe Portland is so funny to me.

I'm like, do you live there?

Like, no, I've never been.

I'm like, then keep your opinion to yourself.

But it's always funny how dark Portland is, and how sexually perverse Portland is, and how how anti-Christian Portland is, and how dark and evil, and how demonically spiritual.

It's interesting when you travel outside Portland, how how they view how how dark Portland is.

And then I meet all these Christians that were born and raised in Portland that ran away to Arizona and ran away to Phoenix and ran away to Idaho and ran away to Texas and ran away to Florida and they ran away to go live in the red states where God already is.

It's almost like we gave the city over to darkness and then blaming the darkness for being dark.

It's almost like if the light would have just stayed, the city would have never gotten this dark in the first place.

Friends, we're not called to take our light and go get our seven friends and go hide in the corner and talk about our lights and good thing it's light over here.

No, we're called to invade, we are called to move, we are called to take over, we're called to bring light into the darkness because I am not asking the devil for ground.

It is my ground.

This city is ours, my family is mine, my friends are mine, my resources are mine, my neighbors are mine.

This is not your land.

I'm not competing with the enemy for land.

It's ours, all of it.

The Bible says the same spirit that raised Christ from the dead lives in me.

I'm not standing on my authority, I'm standing strong in the Lord.

If you ever have to get in a fist fight, you know who you want to punch?

Not that you ever should, I'm not condoning.

But if you ever do you know who you want to get in a fight with?

Somebody who's never been punched before.

That's who you want to hit.

Because I get hit in the face for the first time is like a lot.

And you're like, oh, ow, like, you know who you don't want to fight?

Someone who's been in a lot of fights.

That's what you don't want to fight.

Some of you you're so new to faith that your first battle with the enemy was a lot.

You're so new to Christianity, you're so new to taking ground, you're so new to doing this thing, young man.

I've gotten I've gotten sucker punched by the enemy, and it hurts.

It does.

The first fight hurts.

The first punch hurts a lot.

But 10, 20, 30 years in, you should start reminding the devil I'm not the one that you want.

I've done this before, I've been through wars before.

This is not my first belt.

I'm not the one.

I'm not the one that you want to go back and forth with because I have the belt of truth already on.

I have my shield already prepared.

I have the sword of the spirit ready whenever you like it.

I know who I am and where I am.

You will not take ground from me.

I will stand my ground.

In 2026, God is looking for more Christians with a backbone and a firm country.

I'm not giving up ground.

I'm tired of running, I'm tired of hiding, I'm tired of cowering.

You can't have my family, I will stand my ground.

You will not touch my children, I will stand my ground.

You can't have my friends, I will stand my ground.

You won't have my body, I will stand my ground.

I'm not begging for ground from the enemy.

It's mine.

I'm standing my feet down.

I'm not moving.

I am victorious.

I'm not fighting.

I know this is so cheesy, but it's good preaching.

I'm not fighting for victory, and I'm fighting from victory.

I know that's that's super cheesy, but like it's really important.

I'm not out here trying to find something.

I have to wake up to go, oh, this is all mine.

And the only thing I have to do is stand.

Imagine that.

God's like, get dressed.

Where are we going?

Nowhere.

Stand there.

Just stand your ground.

That's all I need you to do.

I've already won.

Just stand your ground.

Just don't give an itch up to the enemy.

Just stand there.

Stand prepared.

Stand dressed.

Stand aware.

Stand alert.

Stand your ground.

So, search, I don't know where you've given up ground today.

If you have, take it back.

If you've given up ground in your mind, take it back.

Don't give up, don't give the devil one more night of your sleep.

Don't give him one more hour of your anxious heart.

Take your mind back.

Put on the helmet of truth.

If you succeeded, land to the enemy in your marriage.

Take your marriage back.

If the enemy is having a field with your children, stand your ground.

Pick up the shield of faith.

Take out the sword of the spirit.

Stand your ground.

You want to know the three positions?

You always come and take everything.

What are the three positions of a believer?

I'm seated in heaven realms.

I am walking this thing out.

And whenever I need to, I will stand my ground.

If more Christians can learn where to sit, how to walk, and to stand, I'll tell you what.

But how can you engage in a war that you constantly think is not real?

Again, I'm is it?

Do we actually believe this?

That Paul says our war is not against flesh and blood.

But against Christoph, he's heirs, power is thrown in us behind.

So maybe some of you are fighting some people you should not be fighting.

They are not your enemy.

There's a spiritual power behind that.

You look at dictators and wars and all the things going on, right?

They're not that's not the enemy.

There's something behind this.

There's an evil force behind that.

I think people like Hitler and Stalin all the time are just evil because they're evil.

There is something behind driving that evil.

And we need to become more alert and more aware, going, You're not my enemy, there's something there's something else, you're not it.

I'm not giving you my you're not my enemy.

But I will go to war.

Prince bodies, heirs, and powers in heavenly realms.

As I said, no wonder we are seated there because that's where the war is.

I didn't I didn't read this throughout the series, but in Ephesians chapter 3, it's in Colossians chapter 3, he says it in both books.

Ephesians 3 · chapter mention Colossians 3 · chapter mention

This is profound.

He says that by the gathering of the saints, that when the church meets, it is the reminder of every principality, heir, and ruler in spiritual realms that the victory has been done on the cross, and he dismantled every principality and heir.

Do you understand?

Every time that we gather, we're telling every other demon that's lost.

We won.

The gathering of the saints is not just a good room, it's a prophetic room.

Reminding in the spiritual realm every principality, heir, and power going, You lost.

We are the face of God.

We are the movement of God, showing every other principality, air, and power that they have lost.

So, church, I don't know.

I don't know who this is for, but it's time to stand your ground.

I don't know where you have given up land, I don't know where you've given up space, take it back.

Have you dropped your shield of faith and the fiery darts have caused division?

Pick up your shield of faith.

Have you let thoughts dominate your mind?

Put on the helmet of salvation.

Have you missed opportunities to further the kingdom?

Put your shoes on and get ready to share the gospel at any moment, any time.

Have you been losing in war?

Get out of the sword of the spirit.

Start quoting the word of God over your circumstances.

Where have you given up the ground that today I'm taking my ground back?

For I will stand by ground.

Somebody tell you you need to put a spiritual stake in the ground, God.

I'm not I'm done.

I'm done giving up.

I'm done giving him land.

I'm drawing a line.

I'm done with this.

I'm drawing a line on the stand.

This is taking enough for me.

I'm done.

At some point, you have to get angry with him taking all that stuff from you.

At some point you've got, I'm done.

I'm done doing this.

I put my foot down.

Take her out.

Stand your feet down.

As the kids say, ten toes down, I'm standing.

I know what the kids are saying these days.

My son tells me.

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