Fight the Good Fight

Our primary task is not to engage directly with the enemy but to connect with the Lord who has already won the victory.

Source: Cherry Blossom Kitchen

Throughout the history of mankind there have been many wars, but none so fierce, so long lasting, so devastating as the havoc caused by the war in the heavenly realms. As Christians, ready or not, willing or not, we are embroiled in the cosmic conflict between good and evil, between God and the devil, who opposes everything good. So therefore, how do we fight the good fight?  Here are a few pointers:

Our primary task is not to engage directly with the enemy but to connect with the Lord who has already won the victory.  James 4:7 tells us; ‘Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you’. The word ‘submit’ is a military term, to get in rank under His command. In 1 Timothy 6:12 Paul tells Timothy to ‘fight the good fight of the faith’. So, there is a right and wrong way to struggle, and the right way is to believe and trust in Jesus.

Armed with this faith we are now ready to understand the strategy of the enemy of our souls, and there are two stages in his schemes:

1 - The Foothold - Paul reminds us in 2 Corinthians 2:11 that we need not be ignorant of Satan’s schemes; ‘in order that Satan might not outwit us. For we are not unaware of his schemes’ and in Ephesians 4:26-27 we are instructed not to let our anger give the devil a foothold ‘In your anger do not sin; Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry and do not give the devil a foothold’ – the original word is ‘topos’, simply meaning place or space, just like a beachhead gained by an attacking army from which they can begin to invade.

Source: PInterest

2 – The Stronghold – In 2 Corinthians 10:3-5 Paul uses the word ‘stronghold’ (‘ochuromi’), for though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. ‘The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ’. Having given just a small space for a foothold in our lives the enemy quickly builds a fortress around it. This can be any area where human confidence has been placed, and whereas the foothold simply requires a ‘no’, the stronghold requires divine help to be removed.

But, Praise God, He has given us the weapons that have the power to pull down these fortresses. Given this Divine Power we are able to demolish every human reasoning, however logical it may seem, and to bring down the ‘puffed up’ pride that the enemy breathes into godless humanity. Now we can take captive all of our thoughts, motives, and feelings, bringing them into obedience to Christ who won for us that costly victory on the cross.

Be blessed.

Author: John Plumb

May God bless and enrich your life   

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