OUR SPIRITUAL WARFARE

“For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ, and being ready to punish all disobedience when your obedience is fulfilled.” (II Corinthians 10:3-6)

There are two main battle fronts that the church faces. There are the self-inflicted or self perpetuated problems. These problems are brought on by our own negligence or indifference, which is, not paying our bill; not taking care of our health; not doing proper maintenance on our auto or home, etc.

Then there are the Satanic-inflicted or Satanic-perpetuated problems. The devil will use anything or anyone he can to oppose and hinder us. He will use people, such as family, friends, neighbors, co-workers, even strangers. He will use things, such as a job, car, mechanical devices, even the weather. Though Satan uses people and things, our real enemy is not a specific person or the things being used. The enemy is the devil.

One thing that every child of God should know is that the devil is already a defeated foe! Jesus took care of him for us. But what we need to do is appropriate the works of Christ of Calvary in our daily lives. If we can ever master the flesh and its desires, the conquest of the Devil is a snap! He is, and knows that he is, no match for the child of God who has conquered his self-life and server the Lord with all his heart. Jesus said in Luke 10:19: “Behold, I give you power (authority) to tread on serpents and scorpions and over ALL power (miraculous abilities) of the enemy”

Ephesians 6:11-12 tells us to; “Put on the whole armour of God that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil, “For we wrestle not against flesh and blood.” In this verse the word wiles means, the various means, plans and schemes used by the devil. Here the word, wrestle means to strike, thrust or throw with violence and intensity. It refers to the warfare in general between the children of God and the evil spirits that are out to destroy us. So, you see our battle is not against flesh and blood (persons or things) but a spiritual battle with the enemy our soul, Satan.

Ephesians 6:12 states:  “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly place.” In this verse the Apostle Paul uses four descriptive words to make us understand exactly what and who we are fighting against. As you can see from this Scripture, there are four levels of spiritual warfare.

Number one are the Principalities, these are the chief rulers or beings of the highest rank and order in the satanic kingdom. Every single nation and city in the world has a principality over it.

 Second there are the Powers, these are those who derive their power from and who execute the will of the chief rulers (principalities), supernatural influences in government.

Thirdly there are the Rulers of the Darkness. These are the spirit-world rulers, or lords of the age. Such as lust, depression, fear, perversion, etc. that plague people personally.

And fourthly, we have Spiritual Wickedness. These are the wicked spirits sent by Satan to do his work. The devil is, according to Ephesians 2:2: “The prince and power of the air.” Satan cannot set up a kingdom over an area unless man permits him. Revelation 2:12-13 reveals to us that satanic influence and control only resides where men have given him their will and authority to exercise.

Satan did not do away with the angelic order of authority, but kept it and uses it where men give him control. In this manner he has gained some measure of control of many world systems and governments. Remember this; the enemy’s domain is only territorial. He is not the ruler and controller of the world! The Bible says in Psalms 24:1: “The earth is the Lord’s, and the fullness thereof.”

Satan has many limitations. He is not as powerful as many proclaim him to be. He is not who many think he is. He is not equal with God. Satan was cast out of heaven for declaring himself equal with God. It was the original sin in heaven. Lucifer dared to exalt himself to be like God when he clearly was not. He is a fallen angel. He is subject to the limitations of an angle. He is equivalent to an angel.

He is not all powerful. Only God is all powerful. Satan’s power is limited by what God allows him to do in the earth. He can do no more or no less. I John 4:4 says: “Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.”

Though Satan does not have the “all knowing” power of God, he does have more knowledge than mere humanity. He has been studying humanity’s habits for over 6,000. He is more aware of the end of time than we are. He knows that his time is short.

He cannot be in all places at once. God fills the universe. Because Satan is a fallen angel he is limited to one place at a time. He can go from place to place as swiftly as an angel, but he cannot be in two places at once. This is where satanic command comes into play. He orders spirits to go to and fro doing his will.

The devil does not have the ability to know your thoughts or read your mind. You can pray in your mind or in the spirit, that is in tongues, and he cannot know what you are asking God or rebuking in your mind. He doesn’t even know if the temptations he drops in your mind are working unless you manifest them outwardly or dwell on them. When you are tempted, start thinking good thoughts or pray. The evil thoughts will flee and Satan’s strategy is defeated.

As children of God, we are not ignorant of his devices. Satan is a liar and the father of all liars. All lies come from him. His biggest lie is that he has power over you, your life, your family, your job, etc. This is not true! As we understand his lies, we become more powerful in our fight against evil. He cannot get an advantage over us if we know his tricks. How do we learn his tricks? By reading in the scriptures where he tried to trip up other men and women of God. He still uses the same old tactics today.

What weapons of warfare does the child of God have at his disposal to combat the devil? We have the Name of Jesus. At the sound of that name the devil and his demons tremble. We have power of attorney. God has given us the right to use His name because we are his children and have been baptized in His name for the forgiveness of our sins.

We have the power and the authority of His spirit in us. Luke 10:19 tells us: “Behold I give you power over all power of the enemy.” The word power as used in this verse comes from the Greek word Dunamis. It is from this Greek word that we get the word “dynamite”. Matthew 10:1 says: “And when he had called unto him his twelve disciples, he gave them power against unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all manner of sickness and all manner of disease.”

We also have the power of prayer and fasting. Where there is much prayer and fasting, there is much power; where there is little prayer and fasting, there is little power; where there is no prayer or fasting, there is no power at all. The devil can’t handle a child of God who prays and fasts.

We have many other weapons of warfare at our disposal such as the Word of God, the Precious Blood of Jesus, our testimony, etc.

As the children of God we stand against the philosophies of the day which are competing for a stronghold in society. This includes such things as humanism, evolution, abortion, New Age, immoral value systems, etc. We stand against the dogma and tradition of manmade religion.

We stand against the thinking and attitudes of Godless people who intend to change the laws of our nation to anti-God laws and standards. We defy and intend to destroy, through prayer, all theory, reasoning, religion, mythology, metaphysics, sublime doctrines or philosophy set forth to divide or defy the knowledge of the living God. This includes all thinking which is contrary to virtue, purity and righteousness. The church stand at all times ready to fight against anything opposing the Word of God.