There are numerous conflicts and wars in the world today. There are terrorist acts where people with evil agendas seek to kill innocent people. You may not directly be engaged in these conflicts, but all true Christians are still engaged in a war. The war we are engaged in is a spiritual war and not a physical war. Ephesians 6:12 “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 places.” Our main enemy is the devil; another name for him is Satan. The name devil implies an accuser or a slanderer. The name Satan implies the adversary or the enemy of God. There are many on the devil’s side; they are listed in Ephesians 6:12 as principalities, powers, rulers of the darkness of this age, and spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. As we do not see God, we also do not see these spiritual forces of evil. And yet, we see the evidence of their work and their influence on mankind. We may face people with evil intent or with a desire to follow sinful ways or who stand against the truth of God, but we need to remember that our warfare is a spiritual war and not a physical war – “we do not wrestle against flesh and blood.”
Let us look at a few scriptures that describe our interaction with the devil. 1 Peter 5:8-9 “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. Resist him, steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world.” James 4:7 “Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.” 2 Timothy 2:24-26 “And a servant of the Lord must not quarrel but be gentle to all, able to teach, patient, in humility correcting those who are in opposition, if God perhaps will grant them repentance, so that they may know the truth, and that they may come to their senses and escape the snare of the devil, having been taken captive by him to do his will.” Ephesians 4:26-27 “’Be angry, and do not sin’: do not let the sun go down on your wrath, nor give place to the devil.” There are times when we are especially vulnerable to the devil. They include when we are spiritually weak or when we are not wise to beware of his snares. It seems that when we get angry, we are especially vulnerable to the influence of the devil. But as we persevere, God will crush Satan under our feet (Romans 16:20).
Our spiritual armor in our fight is described in Ephesians 6:10-18 “Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 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 places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints.”
The first item of spiritual armor is the belt of truth. We are strong because we know we have the truth from God. The next item is the breastplate of righteousness. We are righteous before God because of the righteousness of Jesus Christ; our sins are forgiven. We also pursue righteousness in our lives (1 Timothy 6:11). Righteousness protects us while unrighteousness would make us vulnerable to the schemes of the devil. The next are shoes of the preparation of the gospel of peace. We are always ready to share the true gospel with those who do not know it. The gospel is the power of God to salvation (Romans 1:16). Next is the shield of faith with which we will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. The wicked one wants to shoot us with fiery darts of doubt and fear, but our shield of faith protects us when we have faith and trust in God. Next is the helmet of salvation on our heads. Our minds need to be protected with assurance in our salvation from God. As soldiers of Christ fighting in spiritual battles, nothing can separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans 8:39). Next is the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God (Hebrews 4:12). This is our offensive weapon where we combat falsehoods with the spiritual truths from God. Finally, we have prayer. We can directly ask our Father in heaven for His power and assistance in our spiritual battles. When God is for us, who can be against us (Romans 8:31)? As true soldiers, we are watchful against any attack by the devil and we persevere and never give up. We pray for each other as fellow soldiers.
We are reminded that our warfare is not carnal but spiritual in 2 Corinthians 10:3-6 “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.” We need to use the word of God to pull down spiritual strongholds, cast down arguments and bring our thoughts into the obedience of Christ. This requires us to be strong in the word. When Jesus was tempted by the devil (Matthew 4:1-11), He used the word of God (scripture) to cast down the arguments that the devil used against Him. You will find it difficult to use the word of God during your spiritual battles unless the word has been implanted in your mind through frequent reading and studying of the Bible.
Spiritual warfare is the ongoing conflict between God’s truth and Satan’s lies. It can be fought in the mind, heart, and daily choices of believers or between believers and those who follow Satan’s lies. God equips His people with truth, righteousness, faith, salvation, Scripture, prayer, and community; the victory is already secured in Christ. Do not be ignorant as to the spiritual warfare that you are engaged in. My encouragement to you is to “be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.”