Before Their Stand, They Stood

Ephesians 6:13 “Wherefore take unto you the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all to stand.”

Most people are familiar with the name General George Armstrong Custer.  Yet most people could not tell you very much about him or his military career.  The one thing that is remembered about George Custer is the Battle of Little Bighorn in 1876.  At that battle, Custer and his entire regiment were killed by Indians in what is known as Custer’s last stand.  That is really all that most people know about Custer.  The final stand defined his life.

This is also true of those that we read about in the pages of God’s Word.  We associate most Bible heroes with a wonderful stand they took for God.  For example, David and Goliath, Daniel and the lion’s den, Elijah on Mount Carmel and Stephen being stoned.

We think of these men in association with a great stand they took for God and well we should.  Yet we need to realize that before their stand, they stood.  In other words, before the great stand we remember them for, they were already standing for what was right day by day.

These were not men who were living complacent Christian lives who just decided one day to take a bold stand for God.  Rather, they had been standing for right in the little things which led them to stand for right in the big things.

Before Noah built an ark by faith, he had been the only one to live for God in the midst of a wicked generation.

Before Joshua declared, “…as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord”, he stood as Moses’ servant.

Before David stood against Goliath, he stood against a lion and a bear trusting God to help him do his job.

Before Elijah stood on Mount Carmel and saw fire fall, he stood against the sin of King Ahab.

Before Daniel stood for God and was thrown in a lion’s den, he refused to defile himself with the king’s meat and wine.

Before Stephen stood in the book of Acts and preached the Gospel as stones were hurled, he had stood as a deacon in the local church.

The reason that these men were able to stand for God when it could have cost them their life is because they had already been standing for God all along.  My friend, the same is true of us.  Don’t talk of how you are going to stand for God tomorrow if you are not standing for Him today.  Ephesians 6:13 exhorts us to stand in the evil day, but we will not stand in the evil day if we are not standing today.

Some apathetic Christian may say, “If it ever really becomes difficult to live for God, if we ever face persecution, then I will stand for God”.  No you won’t.  Not if you are not willing to stand right now.  Take a stand by witnessing for Christ.  Take a stand as a prayer warrior.  Take a stand on the authority of God’s Word.  Take a stand that your home will be a Godly home.  Take a stand to faithfully labor through your local church.

Then, if a moment ever comes when you have to take a difficult stand for Christ- a stand for which you might pay a high price- it can be said of you, “before their stand, they stood”.

written by Pastor Denny Patterson