I’ve written two books on spiritual warfare, but I’m not one of those Christians who believe there’s a demon behind every bush. I often tell the story of a woman who blames the flat tire on her car on Satan, but the truth is, she had over 100,000 miles on those tires and they were as bald as bald can be. The truth is, the Bible tells us we fight against three things; Satan, the world, and our flesh (James 4:4; Gal 5:16,17; Eph 2:1-3). On this nineteen day of my forty day fast I can honestly say I’ve gone toe-to-toe all three over the last few weeks!
One aspect of spiritual warfare that isn’t often mentioned is testing and trials in our lives by the hand of God Himself. The Bible clearly tells us that Jesus was escorted into the wilderness by the Spirit of God to be tested. I thought it would be helpful for you to see how you can tell if the assault that’s coming against you is your flesh, the enemy of your soul, the world or God’s testing, and how to combat each one, as it’s something that I’ve incorporated into my life that helps me succeed in warfare. In Luke 10:19, Jesus said, “I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you.”
First of all, Satan’s attacks generally include confusion, accusations, feelings of rejection, condemnation, discouragement and hopelessness. He knows your past like the back of his hand and he is an expert at reminding you of it. The good news is that believers have been given direct authority over Satan and his demons in Jesus’ name so that we can have victory and freedom.
Next, our flesh usually gives us two choices: stand firm or cave into desire. Our flesh is generally obsessive and our sin stems from a desire, craving or yearning. Matter-of-fact, James 1:14 says, “…but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.”
Then there’s the world, whose attack is always external. Assaults tend to include pressure to conform to its likeness and generally feed on our senses. The answer for us in combating the world is to renounce the lies of the world-system and replace them with truth found in God’s Word. James 1:27 encourages us by saying, “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this:…to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.”
Finally, we come up against God’s testing, which never – ever has confusion as a part of it, but clarity. You know a decision needs to be made and you either chose to walk in righteousness or in disobedience. God does not tear down our identity at any time, but affirms it, and there is always a promise of spiritual growth when it comes to God’s trials because He only tests us when He knows we already know the right answer to make. Furthermore, God never tempts us to sin. James 1:13 says, “When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempted anyone…”
No matter what you are coming up against, Satan, your flesh, the world, or God’s testing, there is one verse that rings true for standing tall through them all; it’s 2 Corinthians 10:5: “For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does…we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ…”
The Bible has a lot to say about what we think about, and God tells us under no uncertain terms it’s not the same as Him. Isaiah 55:8, 9 says, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” God never leaves us to sin, but always encourages us to mature in Him and walk in righteousness. The Bible goes on to say, “When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me” (1 Cor 13:11) and “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable – if anything is excellent or praiseworthy – think about such things.”
In closing, know that prayer is essential in standing against spiritual forces, trials we face, battling our flesh and the world. I honestly believe that spiritual warfare is 90% prayer and 10% hand-to-hand combat, and if you aren’t prayed up you’ll fail every time. Spiritual warfare is not a choice, it’s a given. How you respond to it is dependent upon if you are prepared, so put on your armor (Eph 6) and stand, ready to fight the good fight!
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