Not long ago, God reminded me that we are in a war. There is a battle raging within our society, culture and in the Church. But, our battle is NOT against COVID-19, masks, politics or people…it’s against the devil and his army. As members of God’s Church, we need to prepare for this war and walk in God’s victory.
Three keys to preparing for war:
PERSPECTIVE: Understand you are in a war.
Hiroo Onoda was a Japanese soldier who continued fighting the war for 29 years after WWII ended! Why? He was given an order to stay on Lubang Island in the Philippines until he was relieved of duty. Three decades later, on March 10, 1975, he finally marched out of the jungle in full dress uniform and surrendered to the Philippine authorities. Crazy, right?!
But, what is even more foolish, are Christians who do not realize they are in a real war — a spiritual combat. The Apostle Paul could not be more clear when he wrote, “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.” (Ephesians 6:12). Our battle is real.
PREPARATION: Know your enemy (and who is NOT your enemy).
You may not realize that when you became a Christian, you got an enemy. The devil. He hates God and God’s people. 1Peter 5:8 tells us to, “Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.”
At the same time, please understand that your Christian brothers and sisters are not your enemy. We need to be vigilant and not let Satan turn us against each other. Galatians 5:15 warns us, “If you keep on biting and devouring each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other.” Let’s not let this happen.
PROVISION: Use what God provides.
The Scriptures reveal that God has provided us with everything we need to fight this spiritual battle. In 2 Corinthians 10:4 we are told, “The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds.”
May God give us all grace to recognize the true battle and fight the good fight this week.
United with you for victory,
Posted in A Word from the Pastor