FOLLOWERS OF JESUS ARE TARGETS OF SPIRITUAL BATTLES
BIBLE PASSAGE:
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.
(2 Corinthians 10:3-5)
MEDITATION:
Spiritual attacks can often infiltrate during the times when we are practicing
our faith or worship. It can happen in church services, devotional times, and
during quiet times spent with the Lord. Pursuing God is spiritually charged,
and the powers of evil will do what’s within their power to keep us from God.
Martin Luther wrote about the spiritual attack he faced, and how it often
came when he was praying, confessing, and worshipping. He writes about
the inner voice that would accuse him and seek to tear him down. How?
By causing him to doubt God’s existence, to have despair instead of hope
and to distrust the promises of God
Satan wants us to have a mind flooded by vile thoughts, with inner
distractions and a heart that internally rebels against the Lord and
His commandments. His attacks are aimed at undermining our faith
by bringing doubt and despair to those who are trying to live faithfully
close to the Lord and serve Him.
We know that in life we can be blindsided with problems and heartaches
of many kinds. It could be a wayward child, a serious health diagnosis, the
loss of a loved one, the heartbreak of seeing a loved one suffering, the loss
of a job, financial difficulties, family conflicts, etc. Satan seizes these types
of situations as opportunities to attack our faith and closeness with the Lord.
When he attacks, we are vulnerable. We will find that our attraction to
certain sins can increase. Our anger can cause us to lash out at God. Our
disappointment and heartache can cause us to ‘walk away’ from serving
the Lord while muttering to ourselves things like,
“It’s not worth it. I’ve been faithfully
serving the Lord, and this happened!”
Our feelings of hopelessness can even cause us to become attracted to new
sins (sins we never expected to be a temptation for us).
Luther wrote “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God” as a response to the attacks
he felt from Satan. He put Psalm 46 to music and used worship as a weapon
against all spiritual foes.
ACTION:
So, how should we respond to the things that have devastated us and
destroyed our hopes and dreams (and possibly our fellowship with the
Lord)? We need to see what Jesus did when He was attacked by Satan.
He didn’t try to rationalize, argue, explain, or retaliate in any way.
He simply quoted the Word of God. If that is what He chose, and since
it worked for Him, then as His followers, we should do the same thing,
right? If we don’t follow His example, then we will be vulnerable to
reacting in all the wrong ways, and our fellowship with the Lord will
be endangered.
Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted
by the devil. After fasting forty days and forty nights, He was hungry.
The tempter came to Him and said,
“If You are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.”
Jesus answered,
“It is written: “Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every
word that comes from the mouth of God.”
Then the devil took Him to the holy city and had Him stand on the
highest point of the temple.
“If You are the Son of God,” he said, “throw Yourself down.
For it is written: “He will command his angels concerning
You, and they will lift You up in their hands, so that You will
not strike Your foot against a stone.”
Jesus answered him,
“It is also written: Do not put the Lord your God to the test.”
Again, the devil took Him to a very high mountain and showed
Him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor.
“All this I will give You,” he said, “if You will bow down and
worship me.”
Jesus said to him,
“Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord
your God, and serve Him only.
Then the devil left Him, and angels came and attended Him.
(Matthew 4:1-11)
Instead of reacting with human emotions, we need to respond with
spiritual wisdom and strength. If we are serving the Lord, we need
to continue with renewed vigor. If we are reading His Word, we need
to allocate time to read even more. If we are faithfully praying, we
need to dedicate even more time to spend in prayer with the Lord.
We need to look for ways to serve the Lord, to encourage and love
others, and to grow in our spiritual maturity which draws us closer
to the Lord. When we do these things, we prove our love, faith and
hope in the Lord. We may be attacked by the evil one, but God can
use it for our good when we respond in the right way.
And we know that in all things God works for the good
of those who love Him, who have been called according
to His purpose.
(Romans 8:28)
Sadly, there are some who are unaware of the spiritual battles and
miss this opportunity to prove their faith and love of the Lord by
responding the right way. They know their life has been shattered,
and they stop worshipping, stop interacting with the Lord, and fail
to fight the good fight.
I have fought the good fight, I have
finished the race, I have kept the faith.
(2 Timothy 4:7)
And what was the result of Timothy fighting the good fight?
Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness,
which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me
on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have
longed for his appearing.
(2 Timothy 4:8)
Isn’t that what we all want when we meet the Lord at the end
of our earthly journey?
A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him,
and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him.
But I tell you that everyone will have to give account on the day of
judgment for every empty word they have spoken. For by your words,
you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.”
(Matthew 12:36-37)
All members of the family of God will face a judgment
before the Lord.
(for those who have faithfully obeyed and served the
Lord it might be considered an Awards Ceremony).
For we must all appear before the judgment seat
of Christ, so that each of us may receive what is
due us for the things done while in the body,
whether good or bad.
(2 Corinthians 5:10)
Some bounce from church to church in search of an emotional
experience; they associate a ‘feeling’ with God’s Spirit, and this
erroneous thinking can cause them to miss out on engaging in
spiritual battles through active worship and serving the Lord.
Questions to consider:
– Do I ever find myself wrestling with inner
thoughts that distract me when I worship?
– Am I flooded with distractions;
thoughts whose origin seems a mystery?
– Do I feel an overwhelming doubt, guilt or shame that prevents
me from listening and meditating on the message from the
Lord through the one He has chosen to deliver it?
– Do I have a sense of unworthiness that tempts me to walk away?
– Do I allow difficulties in my life to cause a martyr attitude in
me? (in other words, I feel that I am alone and no one else
cares about me and my problems)
– Do I have impatience and frustration over long-winded sermons,
poor audio or visual issues, bad music, uncomfortable heat or cold,
fidgety kids, stammering readers, or the speaker’s delivery style?
– Am I welcoming the Holy Spirit into my life, or do I have a
self-sufficient, and arrogant attitude that causes me to resist
relinquishing the control of my mind and life to the Lord?
Note:
When I know someone has a need, how do I respond?
Where did that thought come from – the Lord, or Satan.
Do I allow the Lord to have control and motivate me to
do ‘something’. Or, do I decide for myself that I will
ignore the thought and do nothing? If I was the person
with a need, how would I want to be treated? Satan might
convince me that I wouldn’t need encouragement or
prayer from someone, so there’s no need for me to sacrifice
a few moments to send a card or text to lift the spirits of
someone else. When he plants those uncaring and unloving
thoughts into our minds, we need to focus on the One we are
following. Jesus didn’t have to have the love, concern and
encouragement from others, but it didn’t prevent Him from
reaching out to those who were hurting. Should we be any
different from the One to whom we have committed our lives?
When we have thoughts about someone who may be hurting
physically, emotionally, financially or any other way, we should
think of it as our opportunity to prove our desire to become more
like the One to whom we have we have surrendered our lives.
If some of these things are a description of us, then we need to realize
we are probably in a spiritual battle that’s being fought for the control
of our mind and life. God has His plans for us and Satan has his desires
for us; when these two forces clash, we will experience a spiritual battle.
If we want to measure our level of commitment and surrender to the Lord,
we can look at our obedience to His command to Tithe. It is a command and
not a suggestion. Failing to obey God’s command isn’t something to be taken
lightly. The scriptures tell us, if we choose to keep our tithe for ourselves, we
are robbing from God.
In the Ten Commandments, the eighth one tells us, “Thou shall not steal”,
and yet, some are not only stealing, but they are stealing from God! That
should be a wake-up call to anyone who is arrogant enough to consider
themselves as self-sufficient with no need to trust the Lord to provide
for their needs.
“I the Lord do not change. So you, the descendants of Jacob,
are not destroyed. Ever since the time of your ancestors you
have turned away from My decrees and have not kept them.
Return to Me, and I will return to you,” says the Lord Almighty.
“But you ask, ‘How are we to return?’
“Will a mere mortal rob God? Yet you rob Me.
“But you ask, ‘How are we robbing you?’
“In tithes and offerings. You are under a curse—your whole
nation—because you are robbing Me.
(Malachi 3:6-9)
Not only is failing to Tithe a very serious matter, but we also miss
out on blessings from God when we are actively stealing from Him.
“Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there
may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the
Lord Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the
floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing
that there will not be room enough to store it.”
(Malachi 3:10)
Some may think, “If I tithe then God will reward me financially!”.
But that’s not what He said. Blessings could be an abundance of
peace, joy, contentment, or anything else the Lord knows will be
a blessing to us.
Pray,
“Heavenly Father, make me aware when spiritual battles
are taking place in my life. Teach me to realize when they
are happening and help me to respond in the right way.
Give me the strength and wisdom to let You provide what
I need to cope with the things that could overwhelm and
devastate me. I need Your help in overcoming emotional
trauma so I can focus on my relationship with You. I know
that when I grow closer to You, I will not be a victim of the
evil one, because You will fight my battles for me. Remind
me that You will take what is meant for evil and use it for
my good, because I have been called to fulfill Your purpose
for my life. Comfort me with the promise that You will bring
something good from these attacks, so I can have reasons to
rejoice and tell others about the hurt and emotional pain I felt,
and how You were there with me in the middle of my storm.
Infuse me with hope even when everything seems hopeless,
and help me to look for the impact of Your involvement in my
life. Help me to understand that Your support, protection and
encouragement show me the magnitude of Your love and
concern for me. Help me to love You and love others in the
same way that Jesus does!”
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