War. Whooha! What is it good for? Absolutely EVERYTHING when it comes to defeating our spiritual enemies.
Spiritual warfare is the act of resisting, refuting, and denouncing the tactics, mindsets, strongholds, and demonic attacks of satan and carnal nature. When a person accepts Jesus Christ as Savior and King of their life, satan is not pleased (to say the least). When in an unsaved position, a person is not a threat to the kingdom of darkness. But as soon as they “jump camp” so to speak, the hordes of hell are bent on keeping a believer from understanding and walking in the authority of sonship with the Father. Spiritual attacks from without and from within are mounted against the mind, soul, and body of the believer. And it never stops. Growing wiser and more established in faith only brings out the big guns from the darkness. I’ve heard it put this way: greater levels, bigger devils.
But here is the thing about spiritual warfare: we might have to fight our individual battles but the war has already been won! Jesus Christ, when He died on the cross then rose on the third day, triumphed over death, the grave, and hell itself. In Colossians 2:15 it says that Jesus “Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it.” Satan has hated Him for it ever since AND he hates those of us who align ourselves with Jesus too. While the victory is already ours, every day there is some type of warfare being waged against us via spiritual means that is meant to discourage, disrupt, and derail our destiny in God Almighty. In other words, God has big plans for our lives and the devil doesn’t want us to fulfill them. (Yes I know that is not proper English but sometimes you gotta get gritty with it.)
Here’s the thing. As human beings, we are so used to hearing or experiencing war as something that is intensely barbaric and highly physical. The way the world fights is to use weapons, like guns, knives, guns with knives attached, bombs, killing machines like tanks, missiles, and other ammunition designed to kill with extreme prejudice. Even if it is not a declared war zone, in our cities and towns we see people using military-style guns to make war upon their own neighbors and fellow citizens. War is not pretty and over the centuries, the human casualty list has been incalculable. But as 2 Corinthians 10:4 says, “The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds.” Our weapons are ones not made with gunpowder, steel, and atomic waste. Rather our weapon is the Word of God.
The Word of God is more powerful than a two-edged sword. It breaks the back of the enemy and lays to waste the plans of hell. Coupled with the power of prayer, our warfare makes satan and his kingdom cower and flee from the battlefield. Every. Single. Time. I have found in spiritual warfare that when I trust in the Lord and His Word, 100% of the time, I win. It is only when I worry, fret, fuss, stress out, spazz out, or let my focus fall on the attack and attackers that I lose. The Word of God is MIGHTY for the pulling down of every demonic and fleshly fortress set up against us. Whether the fight is in the mind or from outside forces, only the Word of God makes us victorious.
This month’s S. O. A. K. calendar is designed to help you realize that your quiver (soul, mind, spirit) is already equipped with an unlimited supply of arrows (the Word of God) that will rebuke and thwart the attacks of satan. As you go through each scripture, don’t just read them, but apply them practically to your life. If you were a Roman soldier, you would have purposefully put your armor on everyday. To not do so could mean death in battle. Likewise, realize the Word of God is your armor that will repel the fiery darts and attacks the devil uses every day to come against you. Failing to put on the helmet of salvation may lead to an attack of the mind. Not putting on the shoes of peace, can make your day completely stressful because some imp somewhere put spiritual tacks in your path. By using the Word of God EVERYDAY as a weapon, you will see the battle is not your but the Lord’s AND He has already won.
Personal note: Every October, people all across the United States, and increasingly in other parts of the world celebrate a holiday called Halloween. Personally, I hate it. It is a pagan ritual that is steeped in the occult and satanic origins. I know that it is a sensitive topic in Christianity and many believers just don’t see anything wrong with it. I’m not here to argue my point or push my agenda regarding it, however I do strongly caution you. Spiritual attacks and warfare are unusually high during this time of the year. I believe God purposely put “WARFARE” as the theme for October 2020 as this entire year has been one of great turmoil and spiritual attacks. God is preparing His people to war, not as the world does, but as Heaven does, with the Word of God as our battle axe and our rear guard. When the attacks come, do not fall on habits of worry or fear, but gird yourself up in the scriptures so that you will win the battles that come your way. Trust in the Lord and do not fear. Put your complete faith in God and believe that as “They cried to You, and were delivered; They trusted in You, and were not ashamed.” No matter what, God won. Past tense. Victory is already His. That means it is yours too. Walk in that and know the war banner has already been raised over you and that banner reads “VICTORY”!
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