~
Spiritual War: Know Your Own Troops ~
Introduction ~
Warfare is a joint effort with others in our army. Scripture does not teach a Lone Ranger type
of spiritual warfare. We are fellow
soldiers together fighting in one warfare against one enemy.
Our Comrades ~
The battle has been raging for
centuries. Other believers are fighting
alongside us. The Apostle Paul mentioned
this, “Yet I considered it necessary to send to you Epaphroditus, my brother, fellow worker, and fellow soldier” (Philippians 2:25a).
Our
Uniqueness ~ The Christian Army differs from other armies
in that there is no discharge (cf. Ecclesiastes 8:8). It is an on-going spiritual war without end. The end will only come when Christ returns to
earth in His second coming. Sadly, while
there are no honorable discharges from spiritual warfare on earth, we can
choose to go AWOL! What a tragedy that
is for any believer. How such a traitor
must grieve the hearts of all three members of the Trinity.
Our
Enemy ~ We are always fighting invisible, and
sometimes visible, forces of evil. “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” (Ephesians 6:12-13).
Our
Objective ~ The Word of God, prayer, and the Spirit of
God all work together with and in us.
Jesus gave us an example of how we should pray by beginning with the
overall objective of this war: “Thy will
be done on earth” (Matthew 6:10; Luke 11:2).
Our
Reality ~ The battle may soon be over—but it is still
intensely raging today. We can only be effective by using the armor
which He provides (Ephesians 6:10-20).
Our Result
~ While each piece of armor is
for the individual, we are not alone.
There’s power in the blood of Christ—He has already won the war at the
Cross, but we are engaged in important battles.
The war is won—but we are responsible for winning the skirmishes which
we encounter.
Our Home ~ As
Christians we have become citizens of heaven and are pilgrims—not
tourists—passing through life on earth. We should long for our true homeland!
Our
Bottom Line ~ Our lives should first be devoted first to
our Savior and then to our fellow pilgrims.
The Apostle Paul experienced this, “I bear witness that according to
their ability, yes, and beyond their ability, they were freely willing, imploring
us with much urgency that we would receive the gift and the fellowship of the
ministering to the saints. And not only
as we had hoped, but they first gave
themselves to the Lord, and then to us by the will of God” (2 Corinthians
8:3-6). The sequence is critical—first a commitment to God, then to our fellow
believers.
Closing
Comment ~ It should also be noted that our basis of
fellowship with one another is based on our relationship and fellowship with
all three members of the Trinity! (1 John 1:3; Philippians 3:10, 2:1; 2 Corinthians
13:14.)
~
Robert Lloyd Russell, ABUNDANT
LIFE NOW
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