Faith Is A Fight
Stand Firm – Week 1
April 18-19, 2020
Dr. Jeffrey Allen Love
David And Goliath
Series Key Verse:
“A final word: Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil.” Ephesians 6:10-11 (p.898)
- My Faith Is Worth Fighting For.
To be prepared:
- Recognize the fight.
“The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life.” John 10:10 (p.819)
“David asked the soldiers standing nearby…’Who is this pagan Philistine anyway, that he is allowed to defy the armies of the living God?’” 1 Samuel 17:26 (p.224)
- Be combat ready.
“Physical training is good, but training for godliness is much better, promising benefits in this life and in the life to come.” 1 Timothy 4:8 (p.911)
“’Don’t worry about this Philistine,’ David told Saul. ‘I’ll go fight him!’” 1 Samuel 17:32 (p.224)
- Be strong in the Lord.
“Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power.” Ephesians 6:10 (p.898)
(David) “’You come to me with sword, spear, and javelin, but I come to you in the name of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies—the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied.” 1 Samuel 17:45 (p.224)
“’(Jesus)…I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.’” John 16:33 (p.825)
Next Step: I will commit to the fight by memorizing Ephesians 6:11.
BONUS CHALLENGE: Read Ephesians 6:10-18 every day this week. (Estimated reading time is 1 minute.)
Discussion Guide from the Weekend Talk
From the Weekend Talk of April 18-19, 2020
Stand Firm – Part 1: Faith is a Fight
Use this Discussion Guide to dig deeper into the principles from Weekend Talk. Our Life Groups will use them, but we encourage you to discuss them with your family, or over the phone or online with friends.
Yes, our Life Groups continue to meet, ONLINE! Life Groups use these questions to go deeper into what we talked about this weekend. Dig into them so you will be ready for the discussion at your Life Group. Please let us know if you would like to join a group. We are also looking for opportunities to begin NEW ONLINE Groups.
Conversation Starters
- Have you ever seen a real suit of armor? When and where?
- Would you like having to wear a suit of armor every day?
- Is it necessary for you to wear a face mask (N95 or something else) in your daily routine or your work?
- How has the coronavirus pandemic affected your life? Your kids? Your work?
Quick Review
- Looking back at your Talk Notes, was there anything you heard in the service that stood out or maybe even confused you?
Discussion Starters from the Weekend Talk
Refer to the Talk Notes and related Bible verses from this Weekend’s Talk Notes.
- This week Pastors Jeff Love and Steve Tanner highlighted One Thing to remember from this Talk:
“My Faith Is Worth Fighting For”- Read Ephesians 6:10-11 (p.898*). Also be ready to look at portions of 1 Samuel 17:12-51 (p.224*)
- Talk about the imagery that the author, Paul, uses in Ephesians 6. Why do you think he uses it?
- People in the military, law enforcement, construction, and health care (with PPE: Personal Protective Equipment), need the right protection. Why is proper protection important?
- Jeff and Steve discussed three ways to be prepared to fight for your faith:
- Read Ephesians 6:10-11 (p.898*). Also be ready to look at portions of 1 Samuel 17:12-51 (p.224*)
- Recognize the Fight. (John 10:10 (p.819*) 1 Samuel 17:21-26 (p.224*)
- Why is it important to do this?
- Have you ever found yourself in a fight for which you were unprepared? What happened?
- In 1 Samuel 17, what was causing the Israelite army to not advance?
- How was David’s response to seeing Goliath different from the rest of the army’s response?
- Be Combat Ready. (1 Timothy 4:8 (p.911*) and 1 Samuel 17:32-37 (p.224*))
- What is “training in godliness?” How do you do that? What has helped you train this way?
- What are these “benefits” Paul speaks of in his letter to his protégé, Timothy?
- He had not specifically trained for warfare, so how was David “combat ready?”
- What did David cite as his ultimate source of readiness? What do you need to be ready for?
(3) Be Strong in the Lord. (Ephesians 6:10 (p.898*) and 1 Samuel 17:45-47 (p.224*))
- What does it mean to be strong “in the Lord?”
- Do you feel strong today? When have you felt the strongest? The weakest? What made these two extremes different for you?
- With what did David come at Goliath? What offense did David say Goliath had committed?
- Who did David say would be the conqueror? Who’s battle did David say this was? Why?
Digging Deeper
- We find the idea of “standing firm” prominent throughout the Bible. Here are a few examples:
- 2 Chronicles 20:18-24 (p.346*)
- Psalm 33:6-11 (p.427*)
- 1 Corinthians 15:1-2 (p.879*)
- 1 Corinthians 16:13-14 (p.881*)
- 2 Corinthians 1:20-22 (p.883*)
- What is common to all of these passages?
- What benefit is there to standing firm? What is accomplished?
- From where does the ability to stand firm come? How much of standing firm is up to you?
Taking It Home: Next Step
- My Next Step: I will commit to the fight by memorizing Ephesians 6:11.
- BONUS CHALLENGE: Read Ephesians 6:10-18 every day this week. (Estimated reading time is one minute.)
Pray
- Pray now for those in leadership in our country, state, community and church. Pray for unity and community in these unusual times. Pray that the people experiencing church online would also engage in deeper ways with Jesus and His Church.
This Weekend:
This weekend we continue our Talk Series: Stand Firm. It’s time to Stand Firm for the challenges ahead as we learn what it means to live in God’s Power by putting on God’s Armor. We’re in a battle, so we need to Stand Firm against the enemy’s lies and tricks. This series discusses each individual piece of armor and how it can relate to our everyday lives as followers of Jesus. Being properly equipped for spiritual battle has never been more important than it is now.
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* The Life Transformation Bible is the New Living Translation of the Bible, including many useful tools to help you better understand God’s Word, including our own Alive Church Life Transformation Discipleship Plan. They are available FREE. Let us know if you’d like to have one.