Helping Christians To Understand Spiritual Warfare

By Stella Gay


Some believers focus so much on fighting the devil that they tend to lose sight of Christ and what he accomplished when He died on the cross. Others do not really understand spiritual warfare and so they tend to avoid the issue. The Bible uses the imagery of war a great deal and Paul states clearly that believers must war against the sin in themselves and against the evil one.

Many do not realize just how different this spiritual battle is from the kind of wars to which we are accustomed. It has different enemies, different weapons and instead of an unknown outcome, believers have the assurance of victory. Christ has already won the battle. Instead of carnal aggression, the means used to overcome evil and manifest this victory are the authority of God, discernment and unwavering faith.

Firstly, this is not a war against enemies of flesh and blood. Believers are not fighting against other people like themselves. They are fighting a completely different kind of fight against powers and principalities. They are fighting what is unseen.

In this battle, weapons like guns, bullets or bombs are not effective. Instead, Christians are instructed to use the weapons of truth, righteousness, peace, faith, salvation, prayer, and the word of God to fight the battle. In facing the battle against deception, temptations and accusations, their primary defense is their salvation and their primary offense is the sword of the Word. Jesus Himself used the Word to counter temptation.

This battle is not motivated by hatred but by love. When a mother sees that her children are under threat of any kind, her deep love motivates her to fight for them. It was the deep love of God for mankind that motivated Him to send His son to His death on the cross. A victory was won on the cross and this has to be claimed by believers and become a reality in their lives.

When Christ died on the cross, this was not a partial victory. The works of evil were completely destroyed. Many people do not understand why evil is still so prevalent on earth when Christ won this victory on the cross. It is for this very reason that they need to fight. The fight is to manifest the victory He won and establish His kingdom.

Sometimes when we look at the world around us, we become very discouraged. The odds do not seem to be in our favor and evil seems to abound. In the face of this, we need to constantly rely on God and believe that the fight is His, not ours. When we rely completely on Him, we do not give up despite discouragement. We receive all the strength we need to continue.

It is only by depending completely upon Christ that this battle can be won. It is only by using spiritual weapons that the enemy is defeated. Persistent faith in the promises of God enables us to stand strong and trust God to bring about His purposes in the earth.




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