Dynamics of spiritual warfare
Eternal victory and defeat
God is on the throne and the King of the kingdom of light is eternally victorious.
Satan’s kingdom of darkness, though prevalent currently, has already been defeated by our Lord Jesus and is destined for eternal doom. Hell has been prepared by God for the devil and his demons as an eternal destination of punishment. Since Satan himself has no escape, he uses all he has, to take as many human beings as possible with him to hell. That is all he can do. He gets people to follow him through deception and lies, oppression and fear. Man has the freewill to choose to follow God or follow Satan.
All authority
And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. The enemy’s plans are threefold.
1) Keep the lost, lost.
2) Make the saved to stumble and fall.
3) Keep the saved from finding the lost.
Free will and choice of sides
Every person has been granted a free will to choose to follow the Lord Jesus or the devil. God is the Author of every thing that is good. The devil ( d-evil ) or the evil one is the author of all evil. JESUS connects us with God. The devil separates us from God. The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.
The war - The war is therefore for people living on this earth.
I do not fight for God or for myself. God fights for me and I fight for others. I do not fight the devil but stand against him.
The victory stand I take is, with God, against the devil, for people.
I cannot fight for myself. It would be foolishness for me to try to fight the enemy. It is the Lord Jesus Who has fought for all of mankind and gained victory for us. The devil has power but God is all-powerful!
Then some of the itinerant Jewish exorcists took it upon themselves to call the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits, saying, “We exorcise you by the Jesus whom Paul preaches.” 14 Also there were seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, who did so. 15 And the evil spirit answered and said, “Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are you?” 16 Then the man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them, overpowered them, and prevailed against them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded.
Lay your hand on him; Remember the battle— Never do it again! 9 Indeed, any hope of overcoming him is false; Shall one not be overwhelmed at the sight of him? 10 No one is so fierce that he would dare stir him up. Who then is able to stand against Me? 11 Who has preceded Me, that I should pay him? Everything under heaven is Mine.
You will not need to fight in this battle. Position yourselves, stand still and see the salvation of the Lord, who is with you, O Judah and
Over comers
Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
Jesus teaches us how to win over evil without fighting and this means overcoming.
In each letter written to the 7 churches in the book of Revelations, rewards are promised to ‘Him who overcomes’. Having a clear motive to glorify God and coming through every situation with a humble, loving attitude towards God and man, marks spiritual victory. We should not resist even an evil person but resist the devil that uses the person as his tool.
“You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ 39 But I tell you not to resist an evil person. But whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also. 40 If anyone wants to sue you and take away your tunic, let him have your cloak also. 41 And whoever compels you to go one mile, go with him two. 42 Give to him who asks you, and from him who wants to borrow from you do not turn away. 43 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ 44 But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, 45 that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. 46 For if you love those who love you, what reward have you? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? 47 And if you greet your brethren only, what do you do more than others? Do not even the tax collectors do so? 48 Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect.
Jesus, the Son of God, not only taught, but lived out such a life of victory while on this earth, setting the example for us.
Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, 6 who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, 7 but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. 9 Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, 11 and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
For what credit is it if, when you are beaten for your faults, you take it patiently? But when you do good and suffer, if you take it patiently, this is commendable before God. 21 For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow His steps: 22 “Who committed no sin, Nor was deceit found in His mouth”; 23 who, when He was reviled, did not revile in return; when He suffered, He did not threaten, but committed Himself to Him who judges righteously;
In the
Therefore victory, in the spiritual sense, is quite contrary to victory in the natural sense.
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