Monday, July 27, 2020
For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places. Ephesians 6:12
Spiritual Warfare 2020So many things have been uncertain this year and remain uncertain still. But one thing that is certainly clear is that we are in a battle, on many fronts. We have literally been fighting our way through 2020 and now that we are over halfway through, most of us just want out as fast as possible. We are fighting social battles, spiritual battles, and physical battles, and some of us have many more battles on top of these. We are battling an unseen virus, social issues, murder hornets, giant spiders, and the latest is reports of spaceships that could not have been created on earth. It actually seems logical that we throw some aliens into the mix. This is year has been one crazy battle on top of another.
But seriously, Satan is on the move. He is
breeding despair and hopelessness. He is breeding fear and defeat. We are
destroying one another with words and fighting in the streets. He is running
rampant and having a heyday. We need to gear up and get ready to fight – to fight
for our families, our homes, our churches, our schools, and most of all, our
hearts. This is spiritual warfare!
Billy Graham explained the reality of
spiritual warfare in his book Angels:
We live in a perpetual battlefield
…The wars among the nations on earth are mere popgun affairs compared to the
fierceness of battle in the spiritual unseen world. This invisible spiritual
conflict is waged around us incessantly and unremittingly. Where the Lord
works, Satan’s forces hinder; where angel beings carry out divine directives,
the devils rage. All this comes about because the powers of darkness press
their counterattack to recapture the ground held for the glory of God…
Spiritual
warfare, simply put, is a struggle between light and darkness, between good and
evil.
From a Christian perspective, spiritual warfare is a war of good versus evil: its battles are fought daily between God and Satan;
between the Christian Church and the world system ruled by our spiritual enemy;
and between the Holy Spirit and the lusts of the flesh within every
human heart.
Spiritual warfare is not a new
concept, as the Bible tells of countless battles. From Genesis to Revelation, its pages reveal
there are both physical and spiritual wars raging. However, the primary focus of Scripture is the
ongoing conflict between Christ and Satan, and like it or not, every single one
of us is involved. In deciding to follow
Christ, we accept the rule of Christ in our life (Jesus is Lord – his
authority and rule). This NEW us yields “all of ourselves” to Jesus, but the
OLD us doesn’t like it one bit. Then with his temptations Satan jumps all over
the resistance of the old self, the old habits, the old lifestyle, and the old
hunger for pleasures. The battle rages inside us and the devil causes us to
wonder if we really are sold out to Jesus Christ.
The battleground for this intense
spiritual struggle is not some piece of earthly real estate; it is the human
heart. Both Jesus and the
devil are supremely interested in winning possession of our minds and hearts. For this reason, Christians are called to be
more than peaceful spectators or mediators in this cataclysmic conflict. We must be committed front-line commandos. Satan
wants us to fail and he wants us back because it will cut God's heart.
God is in control, but there is a real enemy that is in full-scale revolt, and that enemy has powerful influence all
around. Many of his victims do not even
know there is a war going on so they make easy prey. It is an invisible war in
that we fight against unseen forces. It is therefore a war which must be waged
by faith, and not by sight. It is a war that we cannot fight in our own
strength, but only in the strength which God Himself supplies. Be aware and stay alert. Suit up daily and be ready.
Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. 1 Peter 5:8
