Stand Up for Jesus

Dudley Tyng was on fire for God. When he was just twenty-nine, his messages helped spark a revival in Philadelphia. Crowds flocked to his noonday services. Of the 5,000 people who attended one event (in March 1858), more than 1,000 committed their lives to Jesus.

Just a few days later, visiting the country, his arm was caught in farm machinery and had to be amputated. As he lay dying as a result of this accident, friends rushed to his side. With his last words, he urged them, “Tell the people to stand up for Jesus.”

One of those visitors, George Duffield, was so moved that he preached a sermon the next Sunday based on Ephesians 6:14, concluding with a poem inspired by Tyng’s dying words. Soon, the poem was transformed into the hymn “Stand Up for Jesus.”

Duffield called believers to be “soldiers of the cross.” Not to back down but “lift high His royal banner,” confident in victory, that “every foe” will be vanquished and Christ will be “Lord indeed.” We must not run away but enter the “mighty conflict.” We cannot fight on our own, for “the arm of flesh will fail.” We must stay alert, equipped with “the gospel armor” as people of prayer.

Remember: You are in a spiritual war. Be ready for battle. Put on the whole armor of God. Be committed to prayer. And stand for Jesus! You are a soldier of the cross.