Category: Real Wars

“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes… Stand firm then…with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace… [Take] the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” (Ephesians 6.10, 15, 17)

“Spiritual warfare is not only defensive; it also takes the offensive. Paul called the soldiers of Christ to advance on enemy territory… [T]he body of Christ plunders Satan’s kingdom by proclaiming the promise of divine rescue to captives in the kingdom of darkness.

“There is one part of the soldier’s gear that is not a weapon, but it is a furnishing that enables the soldier to take an offensive posture—good footwear. A typical soldier would journey for miles as his army advanced… The footgear of the Christian needs to be ‘the readiness to announce the Good News…’

“[T]he only offensive weapon…is the sword (Eph 6.17)… [T]he primary aggressive action the Christian is called to take in the world is to spread the gospel—the good news of salvation… The gospel represents ‘God’s power to rescue people from [the devil’s] tyranny.’ The whole course of Paul’s ministry is a model of this aggressive proclamation. The church should follow Paul’s lead.” (C. Arnold, Powers of Darkness)

How can you get geared up for this “battle”? Don’t just take a defensive posture in the spiritual battle, but ask the Lord to help you take the offensive as well! Let’s sing “Won’t Stop Now” by Elevation Worship (click here)

-JP

WE DON’T FIGHT FOR VICTORY,
WE FIGHT FROM VICTORY.
(C. Ingram)

“You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.” (1 John 4.4)

“For everyone born of God overcomes the world… Who is it that overcomes the world? Only the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God.” (1 John 5.4)

“They triumphed over him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death.” (Revelation 12.11)

“Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” (James 4.7)

Jesus has already won the victory… victory over death, victory over sin, victory over condemnation, victory over powers of darkness, victory over sickness, victory over pain… JESUS HAS ALREADY WON THE VICTORY!

As long as we fight, we will win. We fight from Christ’s victory. Write the above verses in your journals multiple times. Memorize them and let the reality of what Christ has accomplished for us sink into your mind, heart and soul. According to these verses, proclaim who you are and what you have in Christ.

Let’s pray: “Lord, I believe that Jesus is the Son of God! Jesus, you have overcome the world. I stand on your victory! Nothing can overcome me when I stand on your victory! In Jesus’ name, Amen.” Let’s sing “Victory is Yours” by Bethel (click here)

-JP

“We Must Respect Our Foe but Not Fear Him… we must become acutely aware of his methods but not be preoccupied with them… we give him too much credit—or give God too little credit—if we fear him… Our preoccupation should be entirely on God and not on our adversary or ourselves. We do, however, need to be aware of the enemy’s strategies. Like the defense preparing for the Super Bowl, we can prepare for demonic attacks…

“When we read these passages about Satan’s activity, however, it’s clear that the issues are usually things like unwillingness to forgive, bitterness, anger, deceived minds, and any other attitude that can break a marriage, split a church, cause depression, turn people inward, and destroy our bodies with ulcers and anxieties… things we encounter every day. That makes our knowledge of the invisible war a necessary and practical understanding for getting through normal life situations.” (C. Ingram, The Invisible War)

Paul talks about forgiveness with the Corinthian church “in order that Satan might not outwit us. For we are not unaware of his schemes” (2 Corinthians 2.11).

Examine your life like a football coach looking at game film. In what areas of your life can you perceive the enemy’s influence? Unusually disturbing circumstances at work? Constant strife and quarrelling in important relationships? Inexplicable feelings of inadequacy leaving you paralyzed? Disturbing stray thoughts while reading God’s Word?

Don’t be outwitted. Proclaim God’s truth and worship the Lord with the help of His Spirit – let’s sing “Surrounded” by Upper Room (click here).

-JP

“The cross of Christ is the pivotal point of salvation history. This is true, not only in the sense that Christ made satisfaction for sin through his blood, but also in the fact that Christ won a decisive victory over the evil powers… The death and resurrection of Christ marks the beginning of their demise. Christ won a once-and-for-all victory over the powers with eternal repercussions…

“God Disarmed the Powers. Christ’s death and resurrection deprived the evil forces of any effective power against himself or the members of his body, the church…

“How did Christ’s death and resurrection accomplish this disarming? Precisely because the powers could not deter Christ from making a satisfaction for sin. By offering his life and spilling his blood, Christ could extend forgiveness of sin to his people. The powers thus lost their chief mechanism for holding people in bondage…

“The strongest weapon in Satan’s arsenal [death] was not sufficient for conquering Christ. Neither will it prove sufficient for destroying his people.” (C. Arnold, Powers of Darkness: Principalities & Powers in Paul’s Letters)

“When you were dead in your sins… God made you alive with Christ… And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.” (Colossians 2.13, 15)

Let’s pray: “Lord, help us to grasp how great Your victory on the cross truly was and what it means for us today!” Let us worship and be in amazement of our Savior! Let’s sing “The Cross Has the Final Word” by Cody Carnes. (click here)

-JP

Spiritual warfare is a part of the normal Christian life. Christians must appropriately engage in it without being dismissive nor paranoid.

“Whatever you were before you became a Christian… you are now the sworn foe of the legions of hell. Have no delusions about their reality or their hostility. But do not fear them. The God inside you terrifies them. They cannot touch you, let alone hurt you. But they can still seduce and they will try. They will also oppose you as you obey Christ… ‘Resist the devil… and he will flee from you’ (James 4.7). Life with Jesus can be an exhilarating and reassuring experience of constant triumph over evil forces. But the battle never ends…

“[The enemy’s] interest in you has nothing to do with you as an individual so much as with your potential for Christ’s cause… To God you are very important. But to Satan you are nothing more than a potentially useful microbe. But microbe or no he can hurt you. He and his hellions will damage you along one or more of four lines: They will tempt, they will accuse, they will deceive and they will devour.” (J. White, The Fight)

“So let God work his will in you. Yell a loud no to the Devil and watch him scamper.” (James 4.7 MSG)

Let’s pray: “Lord, we belong to You and choose to live in Your victory today!” Yell a loud no to the Devil by singing loudly the praises of our God! Let’s sing “Not Today” by Hillsong. (click here)

-JP