 So the message that I want to share with you today, I pray that it will equip you as a soldier in the army of Christ to stand your ground. That's the title of my message today. Stand your ground, that even in the midst of the chaos that is happening around you, and maybe even within you, that you will be able to stand. And as an army of believers, we are only as strong as our weakest soldier. That's why here at Hungry Gen, we have different ways for the people of God to get plugged in, to get connected, to get built up, to be strengthened in Christ. That's why we have life class, so that people can become members, to become part of the body of Christ, so that they have an opportunity to serve and to share their gifts with the world and with the community. That's why we have life groups, so that you can grow in Christ, so that you can be with like-minded people that will help you to stand your ground in the time of the evil day, that you will have leaders and people that you can look up to, so that you can be strengthened in not just your knowledge of Christ, but in your understanding of His power and the way that He operates within you. It's why we have destiny training, to build leaders, because you were never meant to just be a follower. You were meant to be a leader, so that you can be a shepherd and lead the sheep, amen. We have all of these things here at Hungry Gen, so that when you have to face your evil day, and some of you are in the midst of it now, including myself, that you will remain standing. If you guys could open with me to Ephesians chapter six. Ephesians chapter six, it's after Galatians and right before Philippians. Last book of the Bible. So while I'm opening, my Bible here is the NLT, but I'm gonna be reading to you today from the new English translation. I'm excited because this is the translation that Dr. Michael Heiser uses. I found a new person to look up to. Ephesians chapter six, verse 11 through 13. Clothe yourselves with the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world rulers of this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavens. For this reason, take up the full armor of God so that you may be able to what? Stand your ground on the evil day, having done everything what? To stand. I wanna encourage you as a soldier in the army of Christ to stand your ground. Stand your ground against the attack of the enemy. If you are feeling the tension right now within your life, you're feeling the tension and you can't quite understand what's happening to you, but it's like you can cut the tension with a knife. It's because you're in a spiritual battle. It's because the enemy is fighting against you and it may not look like it directly on the outside, but you may be feeling something on the inside and some of you are fighting battles that you could actually physically see. And when we look at you, we know what's happening with you, but stand your ground by taking up the full armor of God. But I wanna remind you today also that our enemies are not like us. Our enemies are not like us because we are not fighting against humans who are at the same advantage as us. We are not fighting against humans. And I know that right now in the world today, it can be really easy to see our enemy as people. But when the Lord tells us to take up the full armor of God, he doesn't mean that we should use God's mighty power to dehumanize and eliminate the people that the enemy is using to come against us. No, he gives us spiritual armor and weaponry so that we can fight against what we do not see. So that you can fight against an invisible enemy. You cannot fight an invisible enemy with earthly and natural weaponry. You need spiritual weaponry to fight against a spiritual enemy. And that's why God gives us our spiritual armor and our spiritual weaponry that's outlined in Ephesians chapter six. We often need to be reminded not to blame humans and not to point fingers at people. Yes, they may be being used by the enemy. They may be corrupted, whatever you're facing, whatever situation you're in, but that's not the enemy that you're fighting. I wanna share a quick example with you guys. Now it's a little bit worldly, so please bear with me. Have any of you guys seen The Hunger Games? I would venture to say that probably many of us in here have seen it. So to preface this story a little bit for what I wanna share, I'm not gonna go too deep. But essentially there's this dystopian world where there is a tyrannical ruler who has a group of elite people that are living high and mighty luxurious lives while there are other 12 districts who are suffering, who are living in poverty, who are hungry, who are starving, they're a desolate. And what essentially happens is that these, they have their kiddos that get thrown into The Hunger Games where they have to fight each other to the death. It's really brutal. And it's what this tyrannical leader uses to get people to live in fear and to stay submitted to his kingdom, essentially. And so finally in the second movie, there are some allies that begin to come together and they're like, we're together in this. We're of the same breed here. But in the midst of the chaos, in the midst of these Hunger Games, the heroine, Katniss Everdeen, she's so confused. She's confused on who is with me and who is against me, I don't know. And when the battle is happening towards the end, she kind of gets lost. And she starts to draw an arrow at this guy named Finnick O'Dare. And he reminds her, he says, stop, wait. And he shows her his golden bracelet. That's a reminder that they're on the same team. And he said this to her. He said, Katniss, remember who the real enemy is. And I wanna remind you of that today, that it's easy to get lost in confusion with what you see happening around you. It's hard to tell who is a friend and who is a foe. But I want you to remember that your foe is never people. Remember who the real enemy is, amen. The real enemy cannot be seen with human eyes. Although we do see here on our prayer lines, the enemy is being exposed. We see the enemy coming out. We see the effects of the enemy and operating in people's lives. But your enemy is not people. Your enemy is, how does the scripture say? Rulers, powers, world rulers of this present darkness and evil spirits in the heavenly places. We have to keep our mind focused on that. That we are fighting a spiritual battle. That every single day you wake up, you remember who your enemy is. And on top of that, you remember who your God is, hallelujah. Your enemy is fighting you in ways that maybe you haven't even begun to understand. But that's why we are here as a body of Christ to help you come into understanding that the battles that you're facing are spiritual battles so that you can begin to understand what is happening to you. So that you can be well equipped to fight against the enemy in your evil day. Because what we see today is just a reflection of the age-old battle that has been going on since the Genesis. There is absolutely nothing new under the sun. The enemy is doing the same thing that he was doing thousands of years ago. He's just found a different way to do it. He's just using different people to execute his plan. But the enemy hasn't changed his tactic. He's here to do one thing and that is kill, steal, and destroy. But I have great news for you today. Jesus Christ came so that you may have life and have it more abundantly. Jesus has given you all that you need to succeed. And while the enemy was scrambling to bring you down, God Almighty was fighting for you. Because Jesus Christ already took the keys of death and Hades so that you could experience resurrection power and life in your life, amen. I wanna pause right here on this moment. Jesus Christ said in John chapter 11, he told Mary and Martha, I am the resurrection and the life. I don't wanna stop right here for just a second before I continue because I wanna explain something to you. It's important what Jesus said that I am the resurrection and the life. Because today we think of resurrection as raising from the dead, right? So we think of it as Jesus raises from the dead and he gives life. But I wanna explain something to you because it goes way deeper than that. Life is the power to exist. Jesus gives the power to exist. He is the creator. God is the creator of the universe. He's the one who breathed life into you. And the reason that your lungs have breath today is because of the breath of God. He gives power to exist. Resurrection is the power to conquer all. Life is the power to exist. Resurrection is the power to conquer all, even death. So when we say that Jesus has resurrection power, it's not just to raise from the dead, but that resurrection power is to conquer all, to conquer your enemy, to conquer the rulers, to conquer the powers, to conquer the world rulers of this present darkness and evil spirits in the heavenly places. It is the power to conquer all. And that resurrection power is living in you. And it's living in me. And God has given us that authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all of the powers of the enemy. That is resurrection power. That is what Jesus meant when he said, I am the resurrection and I am the life. I am here to conquer all so that you can live in freedom. So when we are reminded to put on the full armor of God, it's not a metaphor. It has real meaning. We're reminded to stand our ground so that in the evil day that we will remain standing. So you may be asking yourself, how do I stand my ground? That's what I'm here to tell you today. Number one, how you stand your ground is stand for truth. The scripture continues in verse 14. It says stand your ground by putting on the belt of truth. Today I hear so many people saying, speak your truth, speak your truth. Own your truth. I cannot stand that saying. Speak your truth. You know what's the difference between your truth and the truth? Is that your truth changes with pop culture, with what's popular in the world today. But the truth never, ever, ever changes. Hallelujah. Amen. Thank you Jesus, hallelujah. Because we learn in Hebrews chapter 13 verse eight and nine that Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever. It is impossible for him to change. Your truth will change with the passing of the wind. Your truth will change tomorrow. Let me tell you, facts are meaningless. Why? Because facts change. Something that is true today, it may be true of you today. It is true today that I am 31 years old. But it's gonna be true in a month from now that I'm gonna be 32 years old. So my truth keeps changing. Your truth will keep on changing. But the truth of God never changes. So you cannot base your life on what you see around you. You have to base your life on what remains within you. And that's Jesus Christ. Hallelujah. John chapter 14 verse six, Jesus says, I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the father except through me. If you have known me, you will know my father too. And from now on, you do know him and have seen him. In order for Jesus' statement to be true, I am the way, the truth and the life, every part of that statement has to also be truth. So if he is the truth, he also has to be the way. That means he's the only way. What we see in the world today, and many Christians are beginning to believe this, and I'm scared and I'm sad for them, and we gotta get this truth out there, that Jesus is the only way. All roads do not lead to Rome. There is only one way. Jesus said, I am the way, I am the door, that the path to heaven is narrow and straight and few enter it. But the highway to hell is really big, and a lot of people are going in that direction because they've misunderstood. They think that, well, you can kind of believe this thing over here, and you can have some little new age practices over there, and you can kind of do these little things, take your little crystals, and eventually, you know, you're gonna find yourself with God. You're wrong. There is only one way, and that is Jesus Christ. So he is the way, the truth, and the life. John chapter eight, verse 31 and 32, Jesus says, if you continue to follow my teaching, you are really my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free. He says, if you follow my teachings, not if you think my teachings are good, not if you think that my teachings are sound great, or you can recite them. He says, if you follow them, you are my true disciples, and when you follow my teachings, you will know the truth, and it's that truth that will set you free. So how do you stand your ground? You stand for truth. You stand for Jesus Christ. You stand up on the evil day, and you say there is only one truth in his name is Jesus, and that is who I follow, amen? Number two, to stand your ground is stand for righteousness. That's why the next part of the verse says, and put on the body armor, or the breastplate of righteousness. Why? Why is this important? Because God says, be holy for I am holy. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be saved. God has given you the breastplate of righteousness so that you can protect your heart. And why do you need to protect your heart? Why is that so important? Because it says in Jeremiah 17 verse eight and nine, the heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked. Who can even know it? I the Lord search the heart, I test the mind, even to give every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his doings. God gives you the breastplate of righteousness to protect your heart, because your heart is naturally positioned towards wickedness. And God wants to protect you from that. God wants to protect you even from your own self. Can you believe that? He wants to protect you from yourself. Be holy for I am holy. James chapter one verse 27 says, pure and genuine religion in the sight of God the Father means caring for orphans and widows in their distress and refusing to let the world corrupt you. You need the breastplate of righteousness so that the world cannot corrupt you. You see many Christians running around today, they're not protected. They don't care about any of this. They walk around saying, Lord, Lord, Lord, but Jesus is saying I never knew you because he said if you follow my teachings, then you're really my disciples. And they're letting the world corrupt them, corrupt their heart. You need the breastplate of righteousness. That's how you stand for righteousness. Number three, stand for peace. The Bible continues to say in that scripture, for shoes put on peace that comes from the good news so that you will be fully prepared. Put on the shoes of peace, which comes from the good news. What's the good news? That's the word of God. The good news that Jesus Christ came, he bled and died for us, for the forgiveness of our sins. Why is that important so that you can walk in peace? Because as I was mentioning earlier, all of us are going through our own and individual journeys, being attacked every single which way. But God doesn't want you to get stuck in what you're going through. God wants you to put on the shoes of peace so that you can have peace that surpasses all understanding and keep moving forward, keep on walking forward so that you don't stop, you don't get slowed down, you don't turn around, but you keep moving forward because the peace of God is with you, hallelujah. Jesus Christ never, yeah, come on, let's give him a round of applause. Jesus never promised that our lives would be fantastic and perfect once we give our lives to Jesus. He said, in this life, you will have trouble. But take heart because I have overcome the world and that's the peace of God that you can put on so that you can keep on moving forward. The prince of peace is living in you. Number four, stand for faith. This is the shield of faith. The word of God continues to say, in addition to all of these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil. The shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil. So what are the fiery arrows that the enemy is shooting at you today? Are you having financial problems? Are you having problems within your marriage? Maybe you have children who are not serving the Lord and the enemy keeps reminding you of that, shooting those fiery arrows your way. Or maybe you're like me and still not receiving answer to the battle you've been fighting for two years and maybe the enemy is throwing those fiery arrows at you. What is coming at you today? This is the time that you need to stand for faith, blocking every fiery arrow of the enemy. How do you do that? Well, Hebrews chapter 11, verse one, says faith is the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of the things not seen. That means to stand your ground against the enemy. Hear me when I say this. To stand your ground against the enemy and hold up your shield of faith is to continue believing anyways. Even when chaos is going on all around you, even when it feels like you're constantly having to shield yourself, believe anyways. Why? Because the promises of God are yes and amen. Because God will do what He said He will do. If God has said it, then that settles it. Nothing can change that. If God is for you, who can stand against you? Hallelujah. Don't get discouraged if the arrows of the enemy are coming at you. It's because you're a threat, but you have the shield of faith to believe anyways. You can't see faith. You can't see hope, but you can feel it. You can feel what He's doing in your life, amen. Hebrews 11, 6 says, and without faith, it is impossible to please God. Anyone who wants to come to Him must believe that God exists and that He was a rewarder of those who sincerely seek Him. Do you believe that God exists? Do you believe that God will reward your faith? Because you can't please God without faith. And faith must be followed by action because faith without works is dead. So stand in faith. Stand for faith by taking that leap. Do what God says. He will protect you, He will carry you. Maybe the Lord is telling you to do something that feels a little bit scary, that feels a little bit outside the box or a little bit not normal Maybe it's gonna require you to share your faith. Maybe it's gonna require you to stand up against the bully who has been attacking you. But stand for faith because God will be with you. Hebrews chapter 11 continues on in verse 32 through 34. It outlines all of the heroes of faith who have stood in faith and stood the test of time. And the writer says, how much more do I need to say? It would take too long to recount the stories of the faith of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel, and all of the prophets who by faith these people overthrew kingdoms, ruled with justice and received what God had promised them. They shut the mouths of lions, quench the flames of fire, and escaped death by the edge of the sword. Their weakness was turned to strength and they became strong in battle and put whole entire armies to flight. My friend, that is what faith can do. God is raising up an army of believers and we are among them. But you need to stand in faith so that in the evil day, you can continue to stand. Number five, stand for salvation. Stand for salvation. The Bible says put on salvation as your helmet. Put on salvation as your helmet. Psalm 27 verse one through three says, the Lord is my light and my salvation. Whom shall I fear? Why should I be afraid? The Lord is my fortress protecting me from danger. So why should I tremble? When evil people come to devour me, when my enemies and foes attack me, they will stumble and fall. Though a mighty army surrounds me, my heart will not be afraid. Even if I am attacked, I will remain confident. This is what it means to put on your helmet of salvation because your salvation is your assurance in Christ. Thoughts of fear, they gotta go. You need to put on the helmet of salvation because the enemy will attack you in your mind. Because if the enemy can't bring you down by your circumstances, he'll get inside your head and he will plant seeds of fear that will cripple you from being able to move forward. That will cripple you from being able to fulfill the plan of God on your life. Salvation is your assurance. If the enemy can't weaken your body, he will weaken your mind. But remember, greater is he that is in me than the one who is in this world. Amen. Number six, stand for the word of God. And it says, and take up the sword of the Spirit which is the word of God. Second Corinthians chapter 10 verse three through five says, for though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal in nature, but they are mighty in God for the pulling down of strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ. The weapons of our warfare are not carnal. They're spiritual and it's mighty, mighty in God to pull down every single stronghold. So stand for the word of God. Stand for the truth because this word has power. That's why it says in Hebrews chapter four verse 13, for the word of God is alive and powerful. It is sharper than any two-edged sword, cutting between the soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires. This word of God has the power to cut through even the toughest of walls. When it says that the word of God can cut through joint and marrow, it's not talking about physical bone and marrow. Let me explain this to you. The joint is the tough outer shell of the bone. It's where things are connected. The marrow is the soft material on the inside of the bone where the blood cells are. This is what helps you to fight. When the marrow is healthy, the body is healthy. The Bible says that it cuts through even the toughest of bone to get straight to the marrow because if your marrow is sick, you need healing. And if your soul is sick, you need healing and you need the word of God to break through even the toughest outer shell. So when you see deliverance happening here, what you're seeing is the sword of the spirit breaking through every single joint, getting straight into the marrow so that God can heal what is on the inside. That's why you need this word of God to stand for the word of God. God will expose the darkness so that the name of Jesus can deliver you. At the name of Jesus, every single knee will bow. Demons tremble at the name of Jesus. God will expose your pain so that the blood of Jesus can heal you. That's why he needs to cut through the toughest places and expose your innermost thoughts and desires. Not so that you can be embarrassed when you're up here in the prayer line. No, it's so that God can get to the marrow so we can get to the part that is living that needs healing. Amen. By his stripes we are healed. And finally, stand your ground. You guys may know that him that says on Christ, the solid rock I stand. All other ground is sinking sand. Christ is our cornerstone. He is our foundation. The Bible makes us to understand that a wise man builds his house upon the rock. And who is that? The rock of ages. Who is higher than I? So stand your ground. Stand firmly upon the word of God. Stand firmly upon Jesus Christ who will not change, who you can rest assured who is on your side. That if you're being attacked and you're facing your evil day, that you know that you can trust the foundation that you're standing on because that foundation is strong. It is powerful and he will not fail because God never fails, hallelujah. And when we, yeah, oh yeah, let's give him a round of applause. When we collectively stand our ground, we hold the line because the enemy is waging war against the church and it doesn't take a rocket scientist to see it. You just open your eyes and you see what's happening around the world. So we as the people of God, it is essential that we stand our ground in our individual battles so that when we stand collectively, we can hold the line against the enemy. Amen. I wanna end on this. Something that has encouraged my heart so greatly and I believe that it will encourage yours. Two weeks ago on September 7th, it was Rosh Hashanah. For those of you don't know what that is, it's the Jewish New Year. Not that we follow the Jewish calendar or anything like that, but I believe that there's some significance here. Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. It also happened to be the first day of the year of Jubilee. To explain that reference, the year of Jubilee is seven cycles of seven years. It's the year that captives get set free. It's the year that all debts will be paid. It's the year that those who have been in bondage get set free. So I want you to understand that this is the year of Jubilee and you can rest assured that God Almighty will do exactly what He said that He will do. That we're gonna see the great awakening. We're gonna see souls being saved. We're gonna see people being delivered. We're going to see healings happen like crazy because this is the promise of God. So right now, while I have you guys standing to your feet, we're gonna take some time and we're going to contend with God. We're gonna come against the enemy and we're gonna stand our ground against the attack of the enemy. Stand your ground against what the enemy is trying to do in your life. If you're experiencing attack, praise the Lord because you are a threat. That means God has something for you. That means the spirit of God is still doing something in your life. If they wouldn't even bother. Stand to your feet. I want us to begin to open up our lips and invite the presence of God. He's already here. God is already moving. Begin to open up your lips. Right now, I want you to get to stir a passion inside of your soul. Begin to stir up the spirit of God in you. Begin to stir it up. I want you to anchor your feet. Really good in the ground. Take your souls in because we're gonna fight right now. We're gonna wage war against the enemy right now in Jesus' mighty name. We're gonna want you to begin to open up your lips. Right? It's trying to come against the church with fear. We're gonna fear. Every spirit of fear. Open up your lips and command that spirit of fear to be broken in your life in Jesus' mighty name. Father, we command the spirit of... That are blocking you from receiving our jubilee. We're gonna begin to tear down those walls. We're gonna begin to shout for victory the way that they is because this is our day of salvation. This is our day. You're gonna see my victory. Begin to open up your lips and begin to tear those walls down right now in Jesus' mighty name. In Jesus' mighty name, every wall standing in our way, standing in front of our destiny, standing in front of our breakthrough, freedom, standing in our national peace. Come down in Jesus' mighty name. We call in Jesus' mighty name. Today is the day of phonic stronghold to be brought in Jesus' mighty name. And right now some of you guys, you might be experiencing strongholds in your life. Maybe you're standing here and you're saying I'm trying to fight, but it feels like my hands are tied behind my back. I'm trying really hard to stand my ground, but it seems like I just can't. I wanna tell you right now that God is gonna begin to lose the grip of the enemy over your life. I want you to begin to open up your lips and command every single chain that Satan has used against you to lose this grip in the name of Jesus so we can open up your lips right now. Chain. Every chain. That Satan may have used. That Satan may have used. To connect himself to me. To connect himself to me. Loose your grip right now. Loose your grip. Loose your grip right now. Loose your grip. Loose your grip over my mind. Luke, you'll grip over my mind. Over my marriage. Over my marriage. Over my family. Over my family. Over my finances. Over my finances. Over my children. Over my children. Loose your grip right now. Loose your grip right now. Chains be broken right now. Chains be broken. I want you to begin to open up your lips right now and I want you to come again that the enemy is chaining you to. God is un-chaining the church right now to lose the grip of the enemy over your life in Jesus' name. In the name of Jesus, I come against every chain of addiction. I come against every single generational curse. I come against every chain that leads to cycles and cycles of sin. You cycle of sin. You chain. You tie to the enemy to be Jesus. Every tie to the enemy. Every stronghold up in Jesus' mighty. Today, the current. Every single chain is shattered in the name of Jesus. Every top to the enemy be severed in Jesus' mighty name. In Jesus' mighty name we pray.