Spiritual Warfare

What is it? Who do you fight? How do you fight? Why do you fight? Are we told to fight? These are just some of the questions that very quickly come to mind.

The Apostle Paul, who knew a lot more than I ever will, wrote these words about "Spiritual Warfare" in Ephesians 6:10-17 …

"Be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might."

The only way we can be strong in the Lord is through His might, not ours. May I give an example? It's just like any goodness found in us … it's really not ours … its Jesus in us; there is nothing in and of ourselves that is good in any of us. Sorry.

Paul continues with … "Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil."

The wiles … what are they, what does this mean? The word properly means … "methods, schemes and strategies."

The idea here is that Satan does not carry on an open warfare. He does not meet us face to face. He doesn't use mere force; rather he practices war only covertly in darkness; our enemy is usually invisible to us. Almost the entire Christian struggle or warfare is against "schemes and strategies."

Paul writes that we are to put on not one or two pieces of God's protection; but the whole armor made available to protect us from the various methods that Satan employs against us; thereby allowing us to still be standing after each attack. By this warning, I assume if one does not put on the whole armor of God, there is a good chance one will not be able to stand against some of Satan's attacks.

"For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Wherefore take unto you the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand."

We are told by Paul to dress in God's battle armor that He has made available to each one of us. Some have said this armor is what God wears when He goes to battle. I don't think so. He doesn't need it … but we do.

Without a doubt, our battleground is not flesh; (unless it is our own flesh). We are in a "spiritual warfare" against Satan; therefore we need non-fleshly weapons. We're not looking for men to do battle against, even though we see in men and the world the results of evil being done on the earth.

I wonder if maybe the only way to withstand the evil in each day is to take the whole armor that God has for you. What does the word, withstand mean? The Greek rendering is … "to stand against, oppose and resist," meaning Satan and his power, to oppose his schemes and resist his attacks.

The word … withstand … gives the impression that Satan brings the battle to us; he attacks us, not the other way around. Look close and you will see that the armor is all defensive except for the one offensive weapon we have … "the word of God."

"Withstand in the evil day" … This war is perpetual; the battle may consist of one day or many days … one day at a time. That is why we must never take off our God given armor; keep it on and stand your guard. Satan never gives up. If one weapon won't bring you down, he will come back with another.

"Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God."

This is just a thought … but could our armor be "the Blood of Jesus" and our "Robe of Righteousness" that covers and protects us?

Jesus is "truth" itself; He gave us His "righteousness" that covers our heart; He is "peace" and His "salvation" has renewed our minds. The whole thing to me sounds just like … Jesus, who is the "Word of God."

Remember … this armor is only symbolic in nature; it's not material armor you can actually put on and wear. It's only spiritual. You put it on spiritually. Just like you put on Jesus … spiritually. Putting Him on makes you a new man.

Ephesians 4:24 … "put on the new man …"

Adam was the 1st man; Jesus being called the 2nd Adam, meaning man … could we not say then that Jesus is the new man that we should put on?

Romans 13:12 … "The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light."

Romans 13:14 … "But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfill the lusts thereof."

Galatians 3:27 … "For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ."

To put on … to be clothed with a person is a Greek phrase, signifying to assume the person and character of that one; to enter into his views, to imitate him and act his part. To put on Christ, which seems to be the true sense of the phrase, is not only to exercise faith, but to imitate him in the exercise of our duty; to walk as he walked.

Considering all these things, is it too far of a stretch to believe that Jesus Himself could be the armor we need when we go to battle on a daily basis? Besides, if we really tell the truth, not one of us ever win the battle ourselves … it's always Jesus, and Him only; He wins the battle for us, it has nothing to do with us. The only battle we ever enter into is in … prayer … and then God takes over.

The devil stands back and throws darts at us. What do we use to knock them down before they can do any damage to us? The shield we use is … our faith.

What if I drop my shield? What if I lose my shield of faith? If Jesus is my armor, then I'm still protected.

The only offensive weapon we have is … "the sword of the Spirit" … which is "the word of God." This is where I have a small problem with the Word. I guess not with the Word, but how it's used. Many times we only wield our sword against our brothers and sisters in the Lord, forgetting we don't fight against flesh and blood.

I really don't know how to use the Word effectively against our enemy Satan. Yes I know Jesus resisted the devil by quoting the Word; but honestly … that doesn't seem to work for me. There … I said it. Honestly, openly, with questions that so far, even after 46 years of walking with Jesus haven't been fully answered by the counsel of man or the Word of God. And it probably never will in this lifetime.

So, there you have my opinion and thoughts about … "Spiritual Warfare." Except for Paul's words where he says … "having done all, stand."

In reality, the only thing I know about having "done all" concerning fighting the enemy of my soul, doing Spiritual Warfare is to …

"Pray, Trust God and Go On."

I don't know anything else to do, since I trust in His Providential Care, knowing that … all … His created subjects are under the control of His Sovereignty, and that includes Satan.


Comments welcome.