Join us now for the chapel hour coming to you from the campus of Bob Jones University in Greenville, South Carolina. On today's program, we present a message recorded by the founder of Bob Jones University, Dr. Bob Jones Sr., on December 17, 1954. The title of the message is, Be Strong in the Lord. The text is from Ephesians chapter 6, verses 10 through 20. My first introduction to Bob Jones University came about a little over 35 years ago. I lived in a little town called Lilburn, Georgia, just thirty miles north of Atlanta, and worked on the south side of Atlanta. That meant about an hour's drive to work every morning and an hour's drive home every evening. I would carry sermon tapes in the car and listen to various preachers as they preached until one day I stumbled across a radio station, WAVO. It was a radio station that belonged to Bob Jones University. And every morning as I would leave my house for the office, I would hear a message by Dr. Bob Jones, Sr. I never had the privilege of meeting him in person, but I felt as if I knew him. And those messages were very challenging. It really burdened my heart for the Lord and the work of the Lord. Told me a lot about this school and the heart of this school. Many of you have never had the opportunity or privilege to hear Dr. Bob Senior preach. We're going to hear him this morning by the miracle of tape. Just a few moments, we're going to play a message for you entitled Be Strong in the Lord. This is a message that was preached on December 17th, 1954, 46 years ago. Give him your ultimate attention now as he preaches to us. Now, I want to leave with you a special Bible message this morning. Now, what I'm reading this morning is addressed to you. It's in Ephesians. Notice now, Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God. Now, he was what he was by the will of God. That's all anybody can be. Nobody can be bigger than that. You can be what God wills you to be, and that's all you ought to want to be. Now he said, to the saints, which are Ephesus, and to the faithful in Christ Jesus. Now that's, I hope, inclusive. I hope that takes you in. If you are faithful, this is written to you. Now we come over here to the last chapter in this book of Ephesians. Finally. He's finishing now, writing to you, if you're faithful. Now wait. Finally, my brethren, go home at Christmas time and have a good time. It's holiday season. You're going back to see the crowds, you know. Stay up late at night and run around. Celebrate. No. Finally, my brethren, be strong. No, he didn't say that either. Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord. Now, don't forget it, and in the power of his might. Now, that's where you'll be strong. Listen, listen. You will be weak in yourself and run around with weak people, but you are supposed to be inside this power, this source of power. You don't have to be defeated. You don't have to go up to the devil. You don't have to stumble and fall. You don't have to go soil your testimony. Now, he said, I'll tell you how to do now. Put on the whole arm of God. Don't leave anything off now. You need everything He's got for you to wear. If you go out without the kind of coat you ought to wear, you'll take the devil's cold, and may get his pneumonia. I've been going to chapel, hearing those folks dig at me and talk to me. I had to stay and listen, whether I wanted to or not, and I took it. A little of it soaked in. Sure I'm going to relax and go home. All right, you try this relaxing. There's no such thing as relaxation spiritually. There's no such thing. Listen. What shall you do in way to deed? You do all for the glory of God. If you take a nap, you're to sleep for Jesus. If you cook a meal, you're to cook it for Him. If you sing a song, you're to sing it for Him. Whatever you do, there's no such thing as spiritual relaxation. No such thing in the Bible. All the time, always, on the job and everything. put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil." You've got somebody against you. Let me tell you something. When I read one time, for the first time I read it before and saw it, where the Apostle Paul said, I'd have come to you, but Satan hindered me. I said, if he could hinder Paul, keep him out of town, you know, he's an awful fellow. You never have begun to conceive of the power of the devil. You have no conception. You have no conception of what he can do. I used to hear a song when I was a boy, and I used to enjoy it so much it sounded so good, because the devil was picking on me all the time. The devil trembles when he sees the weakest saint upon his knees. And I'd run and get on my knees to the little fellow and pray and say, he won't bother me. But I didn't realize whom I was up against. And I'd be there praying, and he'd be right by the side there making me think about playing ball. Put some in mind. You can't intimidate the devil but neither now. He goes to prayer meeting. You don't find many people there in the average church, but he's there because some saints are there. And wherever there's a saint, the devil's either there in person or sends somebody to check on him. He's got plenty of help too. The devil's never been short of workers. If he can't get anybody else, he'll get a deacon or a steward or a monistic preacher. Or a cocktail-drinking Sunday school teacher. And he has called a few times on some Bob Jones University alumni to help. Yeah, I know him to do that. Some of our folks have sold out. Yeah, they have. They've sold out. Just see, there's some of them. Judas Iscariot stayed with the Son of God three years. I can imagine somebody saying, look at that fellow out there on the hangman's neck. He's one of the Jesus boys. Yeah, he went to Jesus. He turned against the Lord. Yeah, he sold him out. I've said it many a time. I'd like to say it now. I've always had a little respect for Judas Iscariot. When he got this lawyer, he was decent enough to break his rotten neck. I've known people in my day that sell them for less than Judas got, and they won't run every episode. They're the big people of the church in the town. Brilliant preachers, sometimes a pulpit. And every one of these preachers and all these pulpits, even if you're a pastor at home, that tells you it doesn't matter whether Jesus Christ was born of a virgin, and preached like to the blood of Jesus Christ, is a servant of the devil. I don't care who he is. He gets preachers. Deacons, stewards, elders, vestments, Sunday school teachers. Oh, it breaks my heart to guess one of our boys, one of our girls. He's got a few of them. I know one of them that was here one time, went away and lined up with a Unitarian to destroy this school. I've seen it. Yeah, but you know, I'm sympathetic because they're sure up against a big boy. Go up against the devil. Put on the whole armor of God that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil, the trickery. You get home first night you're there. I hope you go to a good Orthodox church. If you don't, you ought to go to that kind. If you're in a modernistic church, you ought to get out of it. If you do stay there, God knows you're not supported. But maybe prayer meeting night. I hope Bob Jones University crowd will all be at prayer meeting. You know, if you wanted to kill Christians in this country, or church people, you wouldn't go to prayer meeting to shoot them. You'd stand in the theater. On prayer meeting nights, you can kill more church members, come out of picture shows and theaters. On prayer meeting nights, you can kill at prayer meeting. The devil knows where to find them. He got them out of prayer meeting ceremonies. Now, remember, don't underestimate your enemy. The man that underestimates the opposition gets in trouble. Now you up against someone. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood. Now wait. That's all there was to it. I get along. But that's not my battle. Man against man, that's not it. Personality against personality. Human is, that's not it. He puts on notice, we wrestle not with flesh and blood. That's not our battle. But with principalities. Empires are against us. Principalities, powers in high places, the heavens, all the way home. You'll be riding on a bus, in a car, on a train, with an unseen army all about you. And remember now, wait a minute, you're on His territory, too. You know our citizenships in heaven. Now, this isn't the devil's world. The earth is the Lord's. the world now, as far as mankind, the devil's the god of the world. But wait a minute. The devil is limited by the authority of God, and he can't get you unless you want him to get you. Now remember this. You have somebody with you. Great as he that's in you, he's in the world. As a Christian, the Holy Ghost is in me, and the devil's in the world. God's bigger than the devil, so I can walk through his territory. I can march across the battlefield on enemy territory and be victorious for the grace of God. The devil is limited. There's no limitation of the power of God, but the devil can go so far and no further. There are certain realms he can't get in yet. We wrestle a lot against flesh and blood, against powers in heaven, against the rulers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world. Did you know there are demons, outstanding demons, princes, rulers, hanging around the capitals of the world? Yes, there are unseen evil personalities hovering over the capital of Washington, halls of Congress. Some of them are God's people and He can't manage them, but He's there transacting His business. He hangs around London and capitals of the world. He's there. Boy and girls, you listen to me. You don't know what you're up against. Don't you treat this thing lightly. There was no joke. You quit making him forked-hoofed and crooked-tailed with a pitchfork in his hand. If you saw him walking here today, clothed in his majesty and power, with the crowns of empires upon his head, looking like an angel of light, you'd tremble in his presence. Oh, God help us. I never see a fellow fall, go down all these years. It doesn't scare me. I'm an old man. I read in the paper where some preacher's gone to the devil, and I tremble all over. I've been scared all my life. Oh, what folks will do, how they'll fall, how they'll go down. You keep your eyes open, keep your head clear, understand this thing. Rule the dark of the world against spiritual wickedness in high places. Wherefore, in view of all you're up against, wherefore, since that's so, what are you going to do? Take unto you the whole armor of God, don't leave off any of it now, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all to stand, If you can't conquer the territory, be sure the enemy doesn't conquer you. Let's fight to win the field of battle. But if you can't win the field of battle, be standing on your feet when the battle's over. Having done all the things. If you go down at Christmas time under some temptation, Your blood be on your own skirts, not on ours. It's our responsibility to run a kind of school here, and the Board of Trustees know it, and the executives know it. To run the kind of school, if a fellow goes to hell, there's nobody to blame but him. That's our business. A preacher hasn't done his duty in a pulpit. until he takes the blood of his congregation off his hands and throws it back on their own souls. A school that calls itself Christian, that permits the devil to set a trap for the feet of the folks that go there. Oh, what those executives will have to answer for at the judgment bar of God or the judgment seat of Christ. Take the whole armor of God, to be able to withstand the evil day, and having done all, be sure you stand, man. Your business is to conquer every enemy you can and win him for Jesus Christ. But if you can't win a fellow, when you get through, the smoke of battle's cleared, be sure you're on your feet. Don't you go there. You'll be a hero in God's sight. You know, no preacher ever won every way he goes. No Christian ever won every soul he talked to. You can't get all of them. Paul stood before Felix and Drusilla and preached to them until Felix trembled. But he went back to jail and left Felix trembling in sin. We didn't win him. Stand therefore, having your loins girded about with truth. Now, I want to make this practical. I could go into this theologically, but I'm not going into it. Don't be a foreclusher. Don't be a hypocrite. Don't be a sham. Don't be a liar. Don't talk more pious than you're living. Don't strut some stuff you haven't got, and if you've got it, you won't strut it. You have your loins girded with truth. Be sincere. Be honest. Be straight. And have you on the breastplate of righteousness, His righteousness. Be sure you're a Christian. Hardest job you ever has to be religious without religion. Be a Christian without Christ. Hardest job you ever has to deliver goods when you don't have goods to deliver. Your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace." Now, notice, he didn't tell you to have peace when you go out. He said, as far as possible, live in peace with all men, as far as possible. Don't have any unnecessary trouble. It is a fuss, don't you be to blame for it. But he said, in the world you have tribulation. But you are charred with the most peaceable message the world ever heard. The only peace you are supposed to have is a peace of God which passes all understanding in your heart. On the battlefield, when the bombs are exploding, the atomic bombs are dropping and the hydrogen bombs are dropping, the earth is shaken for the explosions. You are to stand there with a peace of God and offer the enemies of God the peace, the gospel. That's your message. That's a foot message. That's a traveling message. That's a message with which you're shown. That's what you take to them. He didn't say, go ring the bell and call them to church. He didn't tell sinners to go to church. Now, I wish they would go with the gospel preaching, but he didn't tell them. He said we should neglect our assembling ourselves together. He's talking about saints. He told you to go to centers. You are travelers. You've got a sword in your hand fighting, but your message is one of peace. God loved you. Jesus died for you. You can make friends with God if you want to. He'll let his child, you can call him father, that's your message. You know it, don't you? Take it to him. Above all things, take the shield of faith. Now, wait a minute, that's preparation against the enemy. The shield of faith, wherewith you'll be able to quench the fire of the dark for the wicked when they shoot at you. You know, most of this armor is for protection. Take the helmet of salvation. That's over my head to protect me from bombs that are going to be dropped for the devil's crowd. He'd been dropping them out of the air a long time. And the sword of the Spirit. You know, this Bible is the sword of the Spirit. Maybe I'm not getting the figure very good this sort of feeling way along. I don't know exactly how to say it. But I want to make clear. But you know, you fight with the Bible. You slay them with it. You know, reprove them, rebuke them, exhort them. Warn them to fear wrath to come. Go out and tell them the day of His wrath is coming. Resist the devil with a sword. Resist the wickedness of men. Stand firm. And then what? taught peace. Poor sinner said, I surrender. Oh, how I've seen them surrender. Preached to them maybe a week. Some old fellow come down and say, how can I get it? I stick the sword in his scalp and say, God loves you. He wants to save you. You can have peace. We have nothing against you. We've used God's sword not to kill you, but to save you. Not that we hate you. We went after you. We were after your enemy of your soul. We were after your soul, and we were fighting the enemy of your soul. Peace. Helmet of salvation, sword of the Spirit, which is the right of God. Now, wait a minute. Something you want to remember, too, now. Praying always with prayer and supplication in the Spirit. Oh, God, help me. Help me, God. Help me. One time I sat down on the platform of Billy Sunday. There was no leg in there. And he's just talking to Jesus like he's right there. Jesus, help me. Please help me. Jesus, I love you, I want to talk to you, help me." No wonder he went up and down this country and preached without fear of man. Multiplied thousands came to Jesus, and they made history in the towns where he preached, praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit. And not just praying, watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints. Pray, yes, but watch!" And he said, I'd like to have you pray for me too, Paul said. That utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel. Why, Paul, I didn't know you had any trouble. You didn't. Yes, any man who has trouble preaches the gospel. I may be bold. Now, wait a minute. For which I am an ambassador in bonds." What? You're in jail for that? You're in prison for preaching the gospel. Yeah. Yeah. That's what I'm in jail for. I wear these chains in here for preaching the gospel. Pray for me, and I'll be bold to keep on preaching. Yeah, you'll be discouraged. Some fellas will assault you. Somebody will laugh at you. Somebody will say, you went to Bob Jones University? Yeah, you can't neck them, and you can't dance, and you can't smoke. Yeah, old-time fanatics down there. Yeah, they'll rebuff you. But I don't think they'll put you in jail. Suppose you knew you went home today. you'd go to jail for trying to win somebody to Christ. What did you do about it? Some of you haven't been trying much, have you? In English it is, which I'm the ambassador of bonds. Now, wait a minute. That therein, even in bonds, even in bonds, that therein, I may speak boldly as I ought to speak. Yes. I pray that you will speak for Jesus as you ought to speak, all during the holidays, at home, sisters and brothers, mothers and fathers. Somebody told me the other day about a certain girl who used to go here to school, married one of our boys. They were in a certain church where there was a good evening, I understand, against Bob Jones University on the part of the pastor or somebody. And she told about her father being saved on the campus of the school she attended, and went on and talked about the revivals in the school. And she didn't have enough grace and courage to say it was Bob Jones University. She was a coward. She didn't have the courage. An evangelist in this country has fallen down on his knees, and he's asked the machine, and he's went to an independent school, to the Moody Bible Institute. He told some of our boys that, go to Bob Jones University and get what they've got, for they certainly got it. When you go away, now don't tell anybody where you got it. Don't name the school, it'll hurt your standing. Coward. Coward? I have no respect for him. I have no respect for any man on earth that's a coward. And the worst type of coward on earth is a religious coward. If you are a coward, God Almighty will check you off. You may have a job, but God checks you off. Holy bulls. I got a letter yesterday from one of our girls. I want to read to you one last thing I want to do. Girl, you're in school. I'm not going to give you a name. I just want to read you what you read. It touched me. I cried when I read this letter in my office. I said, as long as God does this for us, we can stand anything the devil wants to put on us. Sometimes we get a little discouraged and a little depressed and tired. We all do. I get a letter from somebody. Sometimes the evangelists were under somebody that led to Christ out in the world. And I remember what a battle I fought in the town when I held a revival when he was converted. Out in Wichita, a fellow rushed up the other day, said, Thirty-seven years ago I found Jesus Christ in your meeting. That's what keeps you going. That's the best pay that beats clipping coupons from million-dollar bonds. That beast is sending out a machine for a big job somewhere. Dear Dr. Bob, your messages in chapel these last few mornings have been ones I'll never forget. Last Christmas at this time, I was sitting in dance halls, theaters. We all sat around all hours. smoking and talking. But Dr. Bob, by the grace of God, I'm going home to tell these same girls that I drank with and smoked with, how do they say? Dr. Bob, I know you have many things to pray for. Well, will you pray that I may win many souls to Christ this Christmas? We didn't know a girl ever smoked, I recommend it. She got right with God down here. Going back home, meet the old gang. She'll win some of them too. All she's got to do is have the courage to stand. There isn't a student in this school, not a one of them, that knows the Lord, if you have the character and the courage and the faith and the boldness, you can lead somebody to Christ during the holiday. Now, these boys and girls could lead anywhere from 10,000 to 25,000 people to Jesus Christ on the holidays if you'd go out right. And oh, what joy it'd bring you. You know what they'd do in heaven? Join the presence of the angels. You may not make the headlines at home. You may not get in the paper when you see a girl or boy somewhere and lead him or her to Jesus. But the angels will tiptoe and look over the battlements and say, let's give that girl a hand. Look at her. She's got a soul. Look at that boy. He wouldn't turn back. He had everything to stop him, but he wouldn't stop. Now let's get out and do some business for God. Now, Heavenly Father, if we know our hearts, we've done the best we could for you for the last four months. We believe all of us have. President, all these executives. Now we're about to go home. If our ways part for a little while, maybe our ways part, some of us may never get back here. We don't know what's ahead of us. They may come back here and find some of us are going to be with the Lord. We don't know. But we thank Thee for the peace of God, the rest we have in Christ. And we thank Thee for this gospel of peace. Help us to be sure we're assured with the gospel of the peace of God. Help us go out in the anointing with the Holy Ghost. Help us not to forget this. Help us to be happy. We want them to be happy, everybody ought to be. Only people have any right to be happy and have joy as Christians. Joy of the Lord, peace of God. But help us to remember who we are. And help us remember the one that died for us. And help us to remember our duty and obligation and responsibility. We're going to run into people with a hungry heart. Some of them may be laughing and playing with the world. They're going to be hungry-hearted people. Somebody sad, somebody defeated. We've got an opportunity to help them. Oh, Spirit of God, lead us, give us souls. We pray for the loved ones of our boys and girls, the homes, the lost. Lord, help them to come to Jesus. Help the faculty members here to win people to Christ. Help all of us, not just students. Help all of us here. Help us all to go out in these days to bring the lost to Christ as never before. Give us many precious souls. Now we commit everything to Thee. Let thy peace, which passes all understanding, garrison the doors of our hearts even on the battlefields when we are facing the foe. May that peace of God, the kind of peace Jesus had when He died on the cross, lay down His life and then took it again. Let His peace be in our hearts. We pray in His name. Amen. You've been listening to the Chapel Hour, coming to you from the campus of Bob Jones University. On today's program, we heard a message by the founder of Bob Jones University, Dr. Bob Jones Sr., preached on December 17, 1954. If you'd like a cassette copy of today's message, send a check for $6.50 to Campus Store, Bob Jones University, Greenville, South Carolina 29614. Be sure to mention the name of the speaker and today's date. The Jappel Hour has been sponsored by Bob Jones University.