SPIRITUAL WARFARE
Are you involved in spiritual warfare? The written Word of God reveals that whoever is born of the Spirit of God becomes a member of his spiritual kingdom, which is involved in spiritual warfare (John 3:3-16; Ephesians 6:12). But the Lord has assured his followers of victory over their spiritual enemies (Colossians 2:15; Revelation 10:20).
HELP FROM THE SPIRIT OF CHRIST
The biblical Word of God says only those born of the Spirit of God are able to rightly discern spiritual things revealed by the Spirit (1 Corinthians 2:14). For whoever accepts Jesus Christ as their Savior and Lord is born again of the Holy Spirit (John 3:1-16). And the Holy Spirit lives in those who accept the Lord, enlightening and enabling them to deal with spiritual and all things concerning this life (John 14:15-17).
REVELATIONS CONCERNING SPIRITUAL WARFARE
In Ephesians 6:10-18, the Spirit of the Lord reveals several things through his apostle Paul concerning the spiritual enemies of God and how his followers should fight them. Paul uses an illustration of the armor used by Roman soldiers to instruction believers on utilizing the spiritual armor of God to fight their spiritual enemies.
Paul tell believers: “be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12 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. 13 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.
14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
18 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.
REVELATIONS CONCERNING SPIRITUAL WARFARE
THE LORD warns believers of the deception of evil spirit and their followers: “For false christs and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect.” But he lets his people know his Word is sharper than a two-edged sword and is able to discern and defeat evil spirits and their false prophets (Hebrew 4:12).
THE APOSTLE PAUL, being anointed by the Spirit of Christ, informs believers that in the last days, perilous time will exist (2 Timothy 3:1-5). And “the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons” (1 Timothy 4:1). “They will act religious, but they will reject the power that could make them godly. Stay away from people like that!” (2 Timothy 3:5). For two cannot fellowship together except they agree (2 Corinthians 6:14; Amos 3:3). But true believers in Christ are urged to “pray for all people,” that they may come to know Jesus Christ, who died as a ransom for all people who believe and obey him (1 Timothy 2:1-6; John 14:15).
Speaking more about spiritual warfare, Paul said: “though we [believers] live in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. For our weapons of warfare are not weapons of the world. But we have the power of the Spirit of God to demolish every stronghold on our minds. And the ability to defeat all false reasoning against the gospel of Jesus Christ and the Word of God” (2 Corinthians 10:3-5).
Finally, the Bible tells believers our Savior and Lord will end all warfare when he returns to take them to heaven to live with God forever (1 Thessalonians 4:17; John 14:2).
