Matt, when you got up, I was
hoping you'd sing that song. I had Martin Luther on my mind
from this message. I thought of that time when he
was made to stand before a religious court and he was commanded to
recant what he believed and for all he knew. And he believed
that he would be put to death if he didn't. And he stood before that tribunal
and said, my conscience is bound by the word of God. Here I stand. I can do no other. would to God that that is me
and you. I'm going to be preaching on
standing firm. Standing firm. The last phrase of 2 Corinthians
1, verse 24, Paul says to the Corinthians, for by faith You
stand. This means by faith you stand,
not by your works, but by believing the gospel. By faith you stand. By faith you stand firm and refuse
to be moved. By faith you've taken your stand. That word means all those things.
By faith you stand. That's why you stand. Not by
your works, but by faith. By faith you stand firm. And
by faith you have taken your personal stand. And that's what
Martin Luther did at that time. He said, My conscience is bound
by the Word of God. Here I stand. He didn't say this
in brash arrogance. He said this in brokenness. Perhaps
some fear as to what was going to take place with him. Here
I stand. I can do no other. Now, what led Paul to say this
to the Corinthians? By faith, you stand. Paul had intended to visit the
church at Corinth, but didn't. And they had accused him of fickleness,
saying that he said one thing and did another. Look in verses
15 and 16 of chapter 1. And in this confidence, I was
minded in coming to you before that you might have a second
benefit and pass by you into Macedonia and to come again out
of Macedonia into you and of you to be brought on my way toward
Judea. And when I was therefore thus minded, When that was my
purpose, did I use likeness, or the things that I purposed,
do I purpose according to the flesh, that with me there should
be yea, yea and nay, nay? That's what they were accusing
you of. He says in verse 23, Moreover,
I called for God for a record upon my soul. God is my witness
in this thing of not coming to you. God is my witness. that to spare you, I came not
as yet unto Corinth. Now what he's saying is, is I
did not come because if I did, It would have been to deal with
problems and to correct and to rebuke. And I just didn't want
to do that at this time. Look in chapter 2, verse 1. He
said, but I determined this with myself that I would not come
again to you in heaviness. Now, you remember that 1 Corinthians?
I mean, he deals with so many problems, one after another,
one after another. And I think he thought, I just
don't want to come like that. I don't want to come in conflict
and rebuke. And I understand that. He said, I didn't. That's
why I didn't come this way. Verse 24, he says, it's not for
that we have dominion over your faith. That doesn't mean I have
dominion over your faith. That does not mean that I have
some control over you or you believe something because I said
it, but because God said it, I'm not the Lord of your faith. I'm not the standard. I simply
want to be a helper of your joy, Paul says, for by faith, You
stand, not by me, not by my influence, but by your own personal God-given
faith, you stand. By faith, you stand firm. By faith, you've taken your stand. Not by works, but by the gospel. By believing the gospel, you
stand before God accepted. Turn with me for a moment to
Romans chapter 14. This passage of scripture was
a blessing to me. Romans chapter 14. Him that is weak in the faith. And by weak in the faith, he's
talking about somebody who had a bunch of scruples that were
not necessarily scriptural. He believed there's certain foods
he should refrain from, there's certain things he shouldn't do.
He was weak in the faith. There's strong faith, there's
weak faith, there's little faith. You think of all the adjectives
before faith. As a matter of fact, I keep thinking about when
the Lord said, when the Son of Man comes, shall he even find
faith on the earth? That hit me like a ton of bricks.
The Lord said that. When I return, will I even find
a drop of faith on the earth? Now, look what he says. He says,
him that is weak in the faith, what? Receive ye. Receive him. Embrace him. But not to doubtful
disputations, not to judging his doubtful thoughts. For one
believeth that he may eat all things, another who is weak eateth
herbs. Let not him that eateth despise
him that eateth not. Don't let that person who feels
the freedom to eat, look down his nose on that weaker brother
who doesn't, and let not him which eateth not judge him that
eateth. For God hath received him, who
art thou that judgest another man's servant? To his own master
he standeth, or falleth. Yea, he shall be holden up, for
God is able to make him Isn't that wonderful? Let's go on reading. One man esteemeth one day above
another, another esteemeth every day alike. Let every man be fully
persuaded in his own mind. He that regardeth the day, regardeth
it unto the Lord. And he that regardeth not the
day, to the Lord he doth not regard it. He that eateth, eateth
to the Lord, for he giveth God thanks. And he that eateth not,
to the Lord he eateth not, and giveth God thanks. For none of
us live to himself, and no man dies to himself. For whether
we live, we live unto the Lord. And whether we die, we die unto
the Lord. Whether we live, therefore, or
die, we are the Lord's, for to this end Christ both died, and
rose, and revived. He might be Lord, both of the
dead and living. But why dost thou judge thy brother? Or why dost thou set it not thy
brother? Look down your nose at your weaker
brother, for we, that weak one, that strong one, we shall all
stand before the judgment seat of Christ. Now, he's not saying
you better watch out, because if you condemn him, you might
be condemned. That's not what he's saying at all. He's saying every
one of us are going to stand accepted, perfect, and complete
before the judgment seat of Christ. Now, why would you judge that
person when God accepts him and makes him to stand perfect, complete,
and accepted? We're all going to stand. Every
believer. The weak believer, the strong
believer. You know, weak faith saves just
as surely as strong faith does, doesn't it? Because it's not
the weakness or the strength of the faith, it's the object
of the faith that saves the Lord Jesus Christ, not the faith itself.
It's Christ. And we're all going to stand
before the judgment seat of Christ. By faith, you stand firm. And it is the faith for which
you've taken your stand. Now, the Bible has a whole lot
to say about this thing of standing, being made to stand. That's passive. That's passive. If I'm made to
stand, it's because God caused me to stand. It's because by
His grace, He enabled me to stand. It's His work. If I stand firm,
it's because He, by His grace, enabled me to stand. And I stand
firm. I'm not going to be moved. By
the grace of God, I'm not going to be moved. And I'm actually
going to take my stand. The Bible has a whole lot to
say about this thing of standing, being made to stand, standing
firm, and taking our stand. Now first turn to Philippians
chapter 4. I want to look at several scriptures. Philippians chapter 4. Verse 1. Therefore, my brethren, Dearly
beloved and long for my joy and crown. So stand fast in the Lord. My dearly beloved. Stand fast
in the Lord. Now, anytime you read this phrase
in the Lord or in Christ or something, we ought to think about it's
referring to union with the Lord Jesus Christ. That's what that's
referring to when we talk about being in Christ. It's talking
it's talking about being united. to Christ. We're accepted in
the Beloved. As I'm united to Him, I'm accepted. I'm chosen in Christ. As I'm
united to Him, I'm elect in Him. I'm redeemed by Christ. As I'm
united to Him, I'm redeemed by Him. That's what that always
stands for. This thing of being in Christ
has to do with being united to the Lord Jesus Christ. Now, he
says, stand fast In the Lord. Now, this standing back that
he's talking about is a determination. It's a desire. It's a resolve
to not be found anywhere else. Now, how would you like to be
if the Lord Jesus Christ? Came back tonight. He may do
it in a glorious. He may do it. I hope he does,
as a matter of fact. Even so, come Lord Jesus. Now
if the Lord Jesus Christ came back tonight, how would you want
to be found? Would you like to be found? I'd
like to be found preaching. Here I am standing in a pulpit
preaching the gospel. Wouldn't that be great? Maybe you'd like
to be found in prayer or witnessing or reading the scriptures or
something like that. You know all that stuff is is a bunch
of bunk, what I've said. It's a bunch of self-righteous
bunk, and that's all it is. There's one place I want to be
found. In the Lord Jesus Christ. So that when God comes and sees
me, all He sees is His Son. That's my only goal. That's my
only aspiration. I'm not looking for anything
else. I really don't want to be seen any other way. I don't
want to be seen as a preacher. I assure you I don't. I don't
want to be seen in any way but in the Lord Jesus Christ, where
when God looks at me, all He sees is Jesus Christ, His Son. That's it. Now you stand fast
right there. And Paul said that. He said,
Oh, that I may win Christ and be found in Him. not having my own righteousness,
which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of
Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith." Now, you
stand fast right there. I don't want to be found any
other way. That's where I'm taking my stand.
That's something worth standing for, isn't it? Stand fast in
the Lord. Turn to 1 Corinthians 15. Verse one. Moreover, brethren. I declare
unto you. The. Gospel. Now, if you want to know what
the gospel is. I would challenge you to read 1 Corinthians chapter
15 very carefully. And all the way until verse 25,
each verse begins with a conjunction. That means the thought is not
over until verse 25. So when he says, I declare unto
you the gospel, he's not finished declaring the actual definition
of the gospel until verse 25, where he ends up with, he must
reign. Certainly a part of what Paul
calls the gospel. Now, notice what he says. He
says, Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached
unto you, same message I preached in first. I haven't changed,
which also you've received and wherein you stand. And here's where you stand now,
first of all, I stand before God accepted. because of the
gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. That's the only reason. That's
how I stand. I stand by the grace of God firm
in the gospel. I'm not going to be moved by
His grace. And this is something I take my stand for. The gospel. This is something I stand for. Now, here's the non-negotiables
of the gospel. He mentions these non-negotiables
in this passage of Scripture. Now, look in verse 3. He says,
for I delivered unto you, first of all, that which I also received,
how the Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures.
And this is so important. He didn't say Christ died for
our sins. He said how that Christ died for our sins according to
the Old Testament Scriptures is what he's talking about. The
Passover, the Day of Atonement. Now, I stand that Christ died
for our sins, according to the scriptures. And according to
the scriptures, his death is successful. His death is an accomplishment. He didn't die for all men, without
exception. He died for God's elect, and
he accomplished their salvation. That's a non-negotiable. We stand
there. Look what he said in verse 4.
And he was buried, and that he rose again the third day, according
to the scriptures. He accomplished in his resurrection
what the Scripture said he would. By his knowledge shall my righteous
servant justify many, for he shall bear their iniquities.
When he was raised from the dead, he was raised for our justification.
That's non-negotiable. We stand for that. That's how
we stand before God. Because of his life, death and
resurrection. When he stood before God, I did. When he went into
heaven, I did because I was united to him. Then he says in verse
5, And he was seen of Cephas, then of the twelve, and after
that the five hundred brethren, and so on. He was seen and showed
himself alive by many infallible proofs. And then verse 10, But
by the grace of God I am what I am. I stand there. I'm not
what I was, by the grace of God. I'm not what I would be, for
sure, but by the grace of God. We stand for grace. And then
you go on reading verses 12 through 19. He talks about the results
of the resurrection. And then he said in verse 20,
that now is Christ risen from the dead and became the first
fruit of them that slept, for since by man came death, by man
came also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all
die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. Now, would
you God that you and I would understand exactly what that
verse of scripture says. Here's the gospel. that we stand
for. In Adam, all died. That's what
happened in the garden of Eden. In Adam, all became dead in sins. That's what happened in the garden.
What happened on the cross? In Christ shall all be made. When Christ hung on the cross
and died and was raised from the dead, every one of his people
were made perfect before God. What happens in a sinner's heart
when God saves him? In Christ shall all be made alive. Life from the dead. Now Paul says we stand for the
gospel. But every man, verse 23, in his
own order, Christ, the firstfruits, afterwards they that are Christ's
for his coming, then come at the end, when he shall have delivered
up the kingdom to God, even the Father, when he shall have put
down all rule and authority and power, for he must reign." We
stand for that. Romans, chapter 5. Turn back
a few pages to Romans, chapter 5. Therefore, being justified by
faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,
by whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein
we stand and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. Now, I have my standing in grace. God's grace. is not his offer
of favor to me, but it's his favor toward me where he saves
me, where he won't take no for an answer. Now that's saving
grace, electing grace, justifying grace, redeeming grace, regenerating
grace, preserving grace. That's God's grace. And by his
grace, his unmerited favor that I can't mess up. That I can't
lose because it's all completely free. It's in Christ. That grace
is where I stand. And for that grace, I'm standing
firm. By His grace, I'm not even tempted
to believe this because it's the only hope I have. That salvation
is all of grace. This is a gospel worth dying
for. We'll die for this. Grace. Turn to Galatians chapter 5. Galatians chapter 5, verse 1. Stand fast, therefore, in the
liberty, the freedom wherewith Christ hath made us
free, and thee not entangled again with the yoke of bondage,
speaking of God's law. You stand fast in the liberty. There's two things that come
to my mind when I think of liberty. The first thing I think of is
actually not owing anything. And the second thing that comes
to my mind when I think of liberty is getting to do what I want
to do. In Christ, I don't owe anything
in this sense. I owe Him gratitude. I owe Him thankfulness. I owe
Him my whole being. I owe Him complete commitment. No doubt about that. But when
He bowed His head and said, It is finished. Todd Nybert. was saved. And I do not owe anything. I have perfect righteousness
before God. All my debts have been paid. I do not owe anything. Debt free. You stand fast in
that liberty. Don't be moved from that. You
are complete in Christ, and you stand fast in freedom. Bill Clark used to make this
statement, and some people, I've heard people complain with this
statement, say it's a bad statement. I don't think it is. Trust the Lord Jesus Christ and
do whatever you want to do. I know this. I know what you
want to do. If you trust the Lord Jesus Christ,
you want to serve him. That's what you want to do. Anything
contrary that you really don't want to do, you hate it. You
want to be just like the Lord Jesus Christ. As a matter of
fact, the only time I'm truly going to be free is when I put
down this sinful flesh and I'm perfectly conformed to his image.
Now you stand fast, don't be moved in the liberty that's in
Christ Jesus and do not be entangled in that yoke of bondage. Turn to Philippians 1, verse 27. Only let your conversation, your
conduct, be as it becometh, adorns, makes beautiful, is consistent
with the gospel of Christ, that whether I come and see you or
else be absent, I may hear of your affairs, that you stand
fast in one spirit. With one mind, striving together
for the faith of the gospel. Now here's something to stand
fast in. With one mind, where me and you
have the same mind, the mind of Christ. This is true unity,
isn't it? And this is not something you
got to work to achieve. It's something we have. We have
the mind of Christ. And you endeavor to keep the
unity of the spirit striving together for the faith of the
gospel. The Lord said a house divided
against itself shall not stand. Now you stand fast in unity,
endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of
peace. And what I thought about when I thought about what Paul
was saying to the church, you stand fast in unity, striving
together with one mind, striving together for the faith of the
gospel. I thought what he said about the Corinthians. You remember
what he said to them in chapter three? He said, I have to speak
unto you as carnal and not as a spiritual, even as babes, because
there's envying. Strife and divisions among you. Envying is the opposite of love. That's all you can call it. You
become blessed, and I'm jealous and wish your blessing was mine
instead of rejoicing, and you have it. Strife. That's ambition. One upsmanship. One trying to appear better than
the other. Divisions. Separations. You know, I hope we never forget
this. We're all one in Christ. He's
everything, and we're all nobodies. One of these days, I'd like to
see a sign. You know, the church where everybody's
somebody, I'd love to see a sign put up the church where everybody's
nobody. Wouldn't that be good? Everybody's nobody, and Christ
is We have the same purpose and
objective, the glory of Christ. You stand firm there and don't
be moved. 2 Thessalonians 2. Verse 13. Paul says, but we're bound. To
give thanks always to God for you, brethren, beloved of the
Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation
through sanctification of the spirit and belief of the truth. It chose you to salvation. That's
divine election. And it's through sanctification
of the spirit and belief of the truth, two things that cannot
be separated where you have one, you have the other. whereunto
he called you by the gospel to the obtaining of
the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. What a calling! Therefore, brethren, Stand fast,
stand firm, and hold the traditions, the words which have been taught
by us, whether by word or our epistle. Colossians chapter 4, verse 12. Epaphras, who is one of you,
a servant of Christ, salutes you, always laboring fervently for
you in prayers that you might stand perfect and complete in
all the will of God. Now that, as much as anything
else, means obedience to His revealed will. What do I mean
by that? A whole lot of things. You know, it's God's will for
you to be content. You know, what page was that
hymn we sang? What was the first one verse
just hit me? 266 to 60. What? No, not that one, the one before
that. Oh, here it is, verse 295. Lord,
I would class thy hand in mine, nor ever murmur,
nor repine, content whatever lot I see, since it is my God
that leadeth me." Content, complete satisfaction with his providence
because he sent it. If it seems bad, it's good. If
it seems good, it's good. Whatever. It's a complete. That's
what contentment is. It's a satisfaction with whatever
he sins because he sins. And yet, when the Lord gives
me grace to realize that I am content, I'm plumb, satisfied,
whatever, whether I know how to be a base and I know how to
bound. I'm instructed both in all things
to abound and suffer need. I'm content. I've learned that
whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content. It's God's will
for me to be forgiving. Forgiving. It's God's will for
me to be merciful. It's God's will for me to be
courageous. A bold witness of the Lord Jesus
Christ. It's God's will for me to be
obedient. It's God's will for me to love
His people. It's God's will for me to do what He says to do.
It's God's will for me to believe. To stand perfect and complete
in all the will of God. All of His revealed will. That's God's will for you. To
do whatever He says to do. Our Lord said, if you know these
things, happy are you if you do them. Turn to Ephesians chapter
6. Just a couple more. Finally, verse 10, Ephesians
chapter 6, verse 10. Finally, my brethren, be strong
in the Lord and in the power of his might. Put on the whole
armor of God that you may be able to stand against the wiles
of the devil. He's a deceitful, crafty devil. That's a whole lot smarter than
me and you. And he can tie us up into knots
so easily. And none of us are a match for
him. And that's why we pray, keep us from the evil one. Keep us from this evil one. Keep
us from that evil one. Keep us from the evil one. You
know, Paul said in 2 Corinthians chapter 2, regarding Satan, we're
not ignorant of his devices. He talked about him getting an
advantage. over us. Now, I don't have a
whole lot to say about the devil. I really don't. But I know this. I'm scared of him. And I also
know this. He's God's devil. And he's on
God's chain. And he can't make a move without
God's permission. And what he ends up doing is
the will of God in everything he does. Because he's God's devil.
God's using him for his glory, for his purpose. He may intend
evil, and he does intend evil. Don't you reckon that he rejoiced
when he saw the Lord Jesus Christ die? He thought, I've won! And he didn't know he'd sealed
his own death warrant when he did that. It's true regarding
everything he does. He's God's devil. I know I'm
no match for him, but I know he's no match for the Lord Jesus
Christ. Satan, he said to Peter, has
desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat. And indeed
he did. But I have prayed for you. Anything else need to be said?
I have prayed for you, that your faith fail not. Now, let's go
on reading. He says, for we wrestle, verse
12, Not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against
powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against
spiritual wickedness in high places. Wherefore, take you on
the whole armor of God that you may be able to withstand in that
evil day and having done all to stand. Now you stand, therefore,
How? Having your loins girt about
with truth. Now, here's what comes first.
Truth. The truth of God's word. The truth of the gospel. There's no standing without that.
That's what's got to come first. Truth. Give me the truth. Enable me to believe the truth.
Whatever the truth is, that's what I want. Stand, therefore,
having your loins girt about with truth. and having on the
breastplate of righteousness, the righteousness of Jesus Christ.
And your feet shod with the preparation of the foundation of the gospel
of peace. We walk in the gospel, above all, taking the shield
of faith, wherewith you shall be able to quench all the fiery
darts of the wicked, and take the helmet of salvation, that's
protection for the head, salvation, and the sword of the Spirit,
which is the word of God, the scriptures, praying always with
all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching there
and do with all perseverance and supplication for all saints. put on the whole armor of God. And one last, Acts chapter 5. Peter and John are brought out
of prison, and here's what the angel tells them to do. Verse 19, with the angel of the
Lord, by night opened the prison doors and brought them forth
and said, go stand. He's not just talking about an
upright erect position. He's talking about, take your
stand right here. Stand and speak in the temple
to the people, all the words of this life. all the words of this life. Don't
leave one of them out. And actually, all of these things
that I've spoken of are realized in our text. By faith, you stand. Standing in faith, I'll stand
in Christ. I'll stand for His gospel. I'll
stand in grace. I'll stand fast in liberty. I'll stand in true unity. I'll
stand for the words of the gospel. I'll stand complete, perfect
and complete in all the will of God. I'll stand against the
wiles of the devil, and I'll stand and speak all the words
of this life. And one of these days, standing
in faith, one of these days, it's not going to be a day anymore.
Time's going to be over, and I will stand perfect before my
God through the Lord Jesus Christ. May God give us grace to stand
fast in the faith. Let's pray.