Large Group Talk Outline – SIMPLE [STAND]

Stand Firm
Large Group Talk 1

Objective:
There is a real spiritual war happening, and we are all a part of it. When life gets uncertain, our
faith can become shaky. But God wants us to stand firm in him and his strength, so he has given
us his armor to help us in this battle. When we fully rely on God’s power, fully dressed in his
armor, we are able to stand and fight.

Opening Question to Stand Firm Large Group Talk:

Ask: Share about a time when you were in danger or felt vulnerable. What was the situation,
and what did you do?

Speaker’s Note: This would be a great opportunity for you to share a personal story of a time when
you felt vulnerable.

Read Ephesians 6:10–18:

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of
God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not
wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the
cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the
heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to
withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. Stand therefore, having
fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and, as
shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. In all
circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming
darts of the evil one; and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which
is the word of God, praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To
that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints.

Say Something Like: Satan wants to do everything he can to throw Christ-followers off track
spiritually. Nothing would please him more than for you to give in to sin or to even give up on God.
Just as we guard ourselves from harm physically, we also need to guard ourselves from attack
spiritually. And not only to guard ourselves defensively, but to fight offensively in this spiritual
battle against the “forces of evil,” as Ephesians says.

Teaching:
1. The Need to Fight

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Large Group Talk Outline – SIMPLE 01.Stand Firm

Say Something Like: Christ-followers aim to obey God, grow in our love for him, and grow in our
love for others. Oftentimes, this means we don’t do or say things that the rest of the world does
or says, and there is an inevitable clash that happens between what the world says is ok and
what God says is ok. It’s not easy to follow Jesus in a world that doesn’t value what God says,
and it can be a real struggle to continually fight against the many temptations around us and
build God’s Kingdom. The Devil and his demons certainly try—and would like nothing better
than—to make us lazy, lower our guards, and give up the fight for holiness and spreading the
Good News of Christ. But if we prepare and fight effectively, we’ll come out not only alive, but
also victoriously standing (v. 13)!

Sometimes, actively following Jesus isn’t our natural inclination or clashes with what the world
does. It’s tough and we might raise eyebrows or lose popularity with peers—but it’s possible
with the help of the armor of God. Each time you don’t give in to temptation, you’re fighting the
battle well and not letting Satan have the victory.

2. Fight with the Proper Armor

Say Something Like: As we have seen in this passage, believers are in the midst of a spiritual
war, whether we like it or not. By following Christ, we have enlisted in God’s army, and as a part
of that army, we are commanded to be alert and prepared to fight against evil powers and
forces—specifically, the Devil and his demons (vv. 11–12). God doesn’t want us getting caught
unaware, so he urges his children to stay alert and to put on his armor so we are effectively
protected as we fight. Notice that the whole armor of God—not just a couple pieces—is meant
to be put on. And putting on this armor is an active, not passive, task. Simply knowing the armor
is available won’t help us—we have to actually put it on.

You can’t go paintballing with your friends unless you have the very basics (a paintball gun and
ammo). But there’s a lot of other gear available, like helmets, face shields, padded armor,
gloves, camouflaged clothing, extra ammo, etc. Using more gear probably means less bruises
for you and more hits for your opponents. Christ-followers are also expected to put on the right
gear for fighting off spiritual attacks. The more alert and ready we are to fight and the more
gear we wear, the better chance we have at winning spiritual battles.

3. Rely on God’s Power

Say Something Like: The best part about being on God’s side of this spiritual battle is that we
don’t fight alone. God doesn’t leave us and say, “See you later—hope you survive!” He doesn’t
even expect that we try to fight this spiritual battle on our own strength. He wants to help us
fight well. As Christ-followers, we have the Holy Spirit with us, assisting us in this battle. Verse
10 doesn’t say, “be strong in yourself and in the strength of your might.” No, it says, “be strong
in the Lord and in the strength of his might.” If we were left to ourselves and our own strength,
we would probably barely even get our armor on. But because we have the Lord’s amazing
strength to fight through us, we can rely on him to give us strength, enable us to do what is
right, and fight against temptation when we are attacked.

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Large Group Talk Outline – SIMPLE 01.Stand Firm

Caffeine jumpstarts our bodies and gives us new energy, making us alert and ready for the day.
In a small way, this is how God’s strength works through us spiritually. Without his strength to
assist us in fighting off the spiritual forces of evil, we are weak, tired, and slow. We’ll give in to
temptation and disobedience much easier. But with his strength working through us, like a
spiritual caffeine, we can be alert and ready to fight.

Putting It All Together:

Say Something Like: As a Christ-follower, we are enlisted in God’s army to fight against the
spiritual forces of evil in this world. This task is difficult—our natural tendencies and pressures
from the world clash with what God says is right. But we need to fight in order to obey God, to
love him, and to love others well. We fight to do what is right, to grow in holiness, and to resist
temptation. In order to do this, God commands us to stay alert and to put on his armor—
spiritual pieces that protect us and attack the enemy—so that we can effectively fight. This
would be impossible to do in our own strength, since we are flawed human beings. Thankfully,
the Lord gives us his own strength so that we can fight with his enormous power instead of our
insufficient human strength.

*Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway,
a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. May not copy or download more
than 500 consecutive verses of the ESV Bible or more than one half of any book of the ESV Bible.

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