Hustle for the Muscle

Ephesians 6:10-20

“Finally be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might. Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil” (Eph. 6:10-11, NASB).

I am at the health club for my early morning workout. I see Sandy and we speak to each other. I notice the logo on Sandy’s shirt, but I cannot read it clearly. I ask sandy to allow me to see it. It says, “You Got to Hustle for the Muscle.” I repeat the words out loud. I say to Sandy, “I’m sure that I can find a scripture that I can use.” We continue our workout routines. So, I’m thinking that the apostle Paul has likely said something that will work because Paul often writes about strength, endurance, perseverance, patience, longsuffering, and faith. All of these traits are needed if one is to hustle for the muscle. I browse through Paul’s writing. Does Paul tell us to hustle for the muscle? How does hustling fit in with patience and longsuffering? After much searching, I find our text for this article, Ephesians 6:10-20.

Before I begin to try to explain the relationship between Sandy’s logo and Paul’s words, let us look closely at the words in Sandy’s logo. The first key word is “hustle.” The word hustle means to force someone to move hurriedly. Hustle is busy movement and activity. When it comes to a workout hustle means that one works out with intensity and consistency. One does not spend much time in long conversations. People speak to one another between sets of an exercise and move on. The exercise has priority over the talking. When we hustle, we maximize energy and effort to achieve a goal. Hustle means that one puts it all on the line.

Remember, our last few articles have been about our need to exercise spiritual disciplines. So, this word hustle implies that just as we need to hustle for our physical muscles, we also need to hustle in our efforts to develop our spiritual muscles. So, how does this work? First, we must have a goal. Our spiritual goal is to develop our relationship to God. Jesus teaches us that having our relationship to God is necessary for us to reap the benefits of the various exercises in spiritual disciplines. Jesus teaches us that if our relationship to God is developed, we will gain the things that we desire. Jesus says, “Seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you” (Matt. 6:33, NASB).

After making God our priority, we follow the exercise routines that He gives to us. Again, Jesus says, “‘If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free” (Jn. 8:32, NASB). Again, we must make God our priority. We must believe God and this is demonstrated by our obedience to His words. If we read God’s word, pray, and follow the leading and direction of the Holy Spirit, God will give us our exercise routine in the exercises of spiritual disciplines. How does this work?

In the gym there are personal trainers available for those that desire one. These trainers help the client to set goals. After the goals are established, the trainers develop exercise routines. The client exercises under the direct supervision of the trainer. The trainer helps the client to follow the routine. The trainer monitors the client’s progress. The trainer makes adjustments to the routine as the need arises. The trainer helps the client to maintain pace and consistency. The trainer sees to it that the client is hustling for the muscle.

What about us? Do we allow God through the Holy Spirit to supervise our exercises in spiritual disciplines? Or, do we simply read a book or follow the routine that someone else tells us to follow? Personal trainers know that every client is different, and each client has his or her own personal needs. It is the job of the personal trainer to make sure that each client receives their own exercise routine. All the while the trainer is pushing the client. The trainer is willing to push, even forcefully, to make sure that the client is exercising according to their needs. Just as the client allows the personal trainer to develop their exercise routine and supervise their workout, we too as Christians must allow the Holy Spirit to develop and supervise our exercise routines. The Spirit knows our strengths and weaknesses. Do we need to develop our prayer life? Do we need to improve our bible study? So, how does this relate to our scripture?

Many scholars tell us that Paul writes to the church at Ephesus to bring about unity among the various groups in the membership. Because of the lack of unity the church is not growing spiritually as it could. Throughout this letter Paul gives exercises that the church needs to do to develop unity and strength. In our text Paul uses the armor of a Roman soldier to explain to the church the reasons for the instructions he is giving to them.

First, they can be unified only if they are made “strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might” (Eph. 6:10). In his description of the armor of the soldier Paul is emphasizes how each piece of the armor protects the different parts of the body. Each piece of armor has its own unique function in protecting the body. When it comes to spiritual disciplines, each has its own unique function. To be sure all of us need to be protected from the schemes of the devil. The entire body must be protected at all times. Therefore, we must put on the whole armor in order to stand against the devil.

In this text, Paul is saying that every individual must be protected at all times. He is also saying that all the various groups in the church must be protected at all times. It is not necessary to kill the soldier to make him unable to function. If the arms are injured, the soldier is unable to defend himself. If the legs are injured, the soldier is immobilized. “Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything to stand firm” (v. 14). Stand firm with each part of the armor in its proper place (vv. 15-20).

Now, let us return to the logo, “You Got to Hustle for the Muscle” and compare it with Paul’s instruction to put on the full armor of God. Building muscles require that the client follows the exercise routines given by the personal trainer/God. The different parts of the armor are designed to protect different muscles (parts) of the body. Each soldier fights according to his training and under the supervision of his commanding officer. In like manner Christians and the church fight against the schemes of the devil according to their training, and under the supervision of the Holy Spirit. Having trained and developed the muscles along with having the armor in place give us the courage and confidence. Together, the two give us self belief and self confidence to go out there and work at it until we have passion. We are all in emotionally and in execution. In our training we must hustle to develop or muscle.