Whether or not you are aware of it, or choose to believe it does not change the fact that we are in the middle of a spiritual war. You can cross your arms over your chest and stubbornly refuse to acknowledge it, but the truth of the matter is the war is STILL going on around you, ignoring or walking in disbelief does NOT change the fact that it IS occurring even as I write these words and the enemy is fierce because as the days go on, he knows he is running out of time and his plan is to take you down with him.
I don’t say this to fill you with fear – fear is NOT of God. I say this because ignorance is NOT bliss, ignorance is where the enemy wants to have you remain in an “unknowing” state with your spiritual blinders on your eyes to keep you walking unaware that YOU are a prisoner of war. Luke 4:18 says:
“The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me (the Messiah), Because He has anointed Me to preach the good news to the poor. He has sent Me to announce release (pardon, forgiveness) to the captives, And recovery of sight to the blind, To set free those who are oppressed (downtrodden, bruised, crushed by tragedy).”
Jesus came to set the captives free – He came to set YOU free, but you have to recognize that you NEED to be free and if you don’t recognize that, you are still walking blind. 1 Peter 5:8 tells us:
“Be sober, be vigilant, because your adversary the devil walketh about as a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.”
The devil HATES you! Are you hearing me? HE HATES YOU. HE DESPISES YOU. Why? Because GOD ADORES YOU. HE LOVES YOU. And the devil hates God. Ephesians 6:12 tells us:
“For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.”
Listen, whether you choose to believe this or not does not negate the fact that YOU are in the MIDDLE of a spiritual battle whether you choose to acknowledge it or not. You ARE a participant, and the only way to gird yourself up and be on the winning side of the battle is to recognize that you MUST make a decision for Christ. If you want to be protected, if you want to be strengthened there is only one way – and that way is JESUS. And if you have declared Jesus as your Savior, made Him Lord over your life – you are now in the army of the Lord and you are under His jurisdiction and His protection. Psalm 37:17 says:
“For the arms of the wicked shall be broken, but the Lord upholds the righteous.”
Psalm 37:39 says:
“The salvation of the righteous is from the Lord, He is their stronghold in times of trouble.”
You see, when you are part of Christ’s army you are not responsible for your life any more because your life is hidden in Him. Galatians 2:20 indicates:
“I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”
The enemy’s biggest tactic (and unfortunately this is where his biggest win has been in this spiritual war) has been to keep people blinded and ignorant that there IS a spiritual war going on. Most people are living their lives oblivious to the fact that they are prisoners of war. Like living zombies they just go through life only living in the natural, unaware that the devil is keeping them blinded to the truth of God. They don’t believe in God, they believe in “many” Gods, they only believe in the natural. These are ALL tricks of the enemy to keep them unaware of the fact that they are spiritually blinded. Thank God for the Third member of the Trinity, Holy Spirit whose job is to bring people into the knowledge of Christ. What God has done for you (and for me), that as in John 3:16:
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”
The only way that you can successfully fight in this war, is to get under God’s protection. You really have to choose a side once you have been made aware of the fact that you are in this spiritual battle. Get over the fact that you are in it so that you can accept it, acknowledge it, believe it and then make a confession for Christ. The ONLY way you can be protected from the enemy is to get under the covering that God has provided for you in Christ. It is the blood of Jesus, it is the victory that Jesus purchased for you on the Cross that protects you. It is in the knowing that Christ has defeated satan and that satan’s days are numbered. This may sound matter of fact – but it is just that – a matter OF fact – in order to be freed and be under God’s protection, you MUST by your own free-will make a decision for Christ. That is the ONLY way. In John 14:6 Jesus tells us:
“Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”
Anything else you hear, or anyone tells you otherwise IS A LIE. Remember, you ARE in the middle of a war and the enemy does NOT fight fair. How do you make a decision for Christ? You can pray something like this:
“Father God, I thank You so much for opening up my spiritual eyes to the fact that I am in the middle of a war I was not aware existed. I thank You, Holy Spirit for removing the blinders off my eyes. Father, I choose to accept Jesus as my Savior, I choose to make Him Lord over my life. Please forgive me for my sins, wash me in His precious blood. Holy Spirit you are welcome to reside in my heart. Father – I choose You. Thank You for hearing my prayer, in Jesus’ precious name I pray – AMEN.”
Once you have made a confession of faith – YOU BELONG TO GOD. YOU ARE HIS. NOTHING CAN TAKE YOU OUT OF THE FATHER’S HANDS. YOUR STEPS ARE ORDERED BY HIM.
Psalm 100:3 says:
“Know that the Lord Himself is God; It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves; We are His people and the sheep of His pasture.”
Once you have become part of God’s Called Remnant – made Jesus your Savior and Lord over your life, you are His for ALL eternity! However – you still reside here on earth and are STILL in the middle of the spiritual war, you are on the winning side but you are STILL in the middle of a war and your decision for Christ has made the enemy FURIOUS. This is where you need to gird yourself up in your spiritual armor as in Ephesians 6:10-18 because our strength is NOT in and of ourselves, it is in GOD. It is in His promises, it is in HIS Word. It is in knowing and learning HIS will! It is in prayer which is our biggest weapon.
“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. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.”
You see, when you were ignorant to the truth of God and the fact that you were IN a spiritual battle, you didn’t do anything to hinder the enemy’s plans, you were exactly where he wanted you to be – oblivious to what was occurring all around you. NOW you have woken up and have made a choice for Christ. If you have declared Jesus as your Savior and made a confession of faith by making Him Lord over your life – you have become saved. THIS IS WHAT THE ENEMY DID NOT WANT TO HAVE HAPPEN! He did NOT want you to walk in the truth. YOU ARE SAVED! You are one less soul who is going down with the devil! And he is pissed about it! 1 Peter 5:8 tells us:
“Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.”
The devil has lost his hold you and he is angry about it. I say this not to fill you with fear, because fear is NOT of God. 2 Timothy 1:7 tells us:
“For God did not give us a spirit of fear, but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.”
God has given you the weapons of your warfare but they are ONLY effective if you use them! The war is not going to go away until Jesus returns (and no man knows the hour, only God the Father knows when that will occur) – but He has not left us unprotected, Holy Spirit has been given to us! God IS with us and He is an ever present help in time of trouble! 2 Corinthians 10:4-5 tells us:
“The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.”
We are in a war but we ALREADY stand victorious because our victory is IN Christ. God has got us and therefore when we feel hard pressed we know who to turn to, God SEES all. God KNOWS all. Things come as a surprise to us, but NOT to Him. We can trust God, nothing can happen to us that He is not aware of – if you are under spiritual attack – PRAY. There is POWER in prayer! There is POWER in worship and praise! You can read examples of this throughout the new testament, everything we go through saints have gone through in the past – it is NOT new! No matter what you encounter, remember that GOD IS GREATER. YOU BELONG TO HIM. Fight through the battles using your faith! Our faith is not in and of ourselves, but it is in GOD! It is in the victory that Jesus bought for us by His precious blood! By His defeating satan on the cross! You see, although we are in a war, the battle has ALREADY been won! The victory is ours through Christ! Determine to draw closer to Him, pray that God will give you eyes to see, ears to hear and a heart to receive ALL that God has for you! Don’t let your guard down, walk in wisdom, walk in discernment! Walk in faith and most of all know that God loves you, that He has you! That He IS greater and that you belong to Him. There is nothing sweeter than the peace that passes ALL understanding, and it is something that God gives those that bide with Him. The battle belongs to Him – so we fight IN HIM with the weapons and tools of warfare that He Himself provides us with – determine to learn Him more by reading your Word (the Bible) and applying the Bible to ALL areas of your life. Remember The life we now live in the body, we live by faith in the Son of God, who loved us and gave himself for us (see Galatians 2:20 listed above).
YOU BELONG TO HIM.
So next time you encounter an area of your life that is under attack by the enemy – recognize what it is, an attack and bring it before the Father in prayer. Also, know that the only ones that ol’ slewfoot attacks are those who are hindering him from accomplishing what it is he wants to accomplish – are you ministering to others? Are you spreading the Word of God? Reaching lost souls? Determined to walk in your calling? If you are under attack it is because YOU are waring for Christ! Praise God! Keep doing it! Nothing can happen to you that God is not aware of! GOD SEES YOU. GOD KNOWS. YOU belong to Him! Greater IS He that is in you than he that is within the world! You are under God’s jurisdiction now and the enemy knows it! Don’t lose heart! PRESS IN TO THE FATHER! You have spiritual weapons – use them! When I am hard pressed my prayers become more frequent (because I know that my faith is in God and not of myself) and I pray a prayer like this:
“Father God, I come before You and I thank You that I know I am Your child. Your Word tells me in Deuteronomy 28:13:
“And the Lord shall make thee the head, and not the tail; and thou shalt be above only, and thou shalt not be beneath, if thou hearken unto the commandments of the Lord thy God which I command thee this day, to observe and to do them.”
“Father you have told me that as in Isaiah 49:16:
“You have engraved me on the palms of your hands.”
“Hence I belong to you. You see my life – the life I have turned over to you. You see the attacks of the enemy on it. You tell me in 1 John 4:4:
“Greater is He that is in me than he that is within the world.”
“You tell me in Matthew 11:28-30:
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
“I need You Father. I am crying out to you, Help me! I pray that you would dispatch my warring angels that You would bind the hands of the devourer off of my life. I thank You that You are El Roi – the God who sees me, so You see this battle that is encompassed all around me. Deliver me Father! Be glorified! My trust and my faith is in YOU! Make me victorious that You will receive ALL the glory ALL the honor and ALL the praise! I know that You hear my prayer and that You will answer. Rescue me Lord! In Jesus precious name I pray! AMEN.”
And God WILL. THIS is where trust comes in. THIS is where faith comes in! And once God brings you through the battle becomes part of your testimony as to what He can (and will do!). You see, our faith is NOT in ourselves, it is in God. Our trust is not in the world or in ourselves – it is IN God. In Christ the solid rock I stand ALL other ground IS sinking sand – ALL other ground IS sinking sand. We fight with our faith. We fight in confidence in the Word of God. We fight knowing that the battle is not ours – but God’s. We fight by allowing ourselves to be used as vessels of the Holy Spirit to accomplish God’s good and perfect will on earth. We allow ourselves to be used by God for His purposes and we trust that up to our VERY last breath, He is in control of our lives (even over moments that feel out of control). You belong to Him. And God has got you – not only in the present moment, but for ALL eternity. You’re His. Your victory is in Him. Continue fighting the good fight of faith because in Christ, WE HAVE WON!
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