Whether you realize it or not, you are in a war. In fact, the Apostle Paul referred to the Christian life as “the good fight of faith” (1 Timothy 6:12).
The source of every spiritual battle you fight is rooted in one of three things: the world, your flesh or the devil. And, a huge part of each battle takes place in your mind.
Your Mind
God places great importance on your mind, and He created you in such a way that you will always move in the direction of your dominant thoughts. The Bible says in Proverbs 23:7, “For as he thinks in his heart, so is he.” What and how you think affects every area of your life.
It’s really quite simple: the way you think is the way you live. Your thoughts literally shape your habits and control your life. God’s intent is that all your thoughts and actions would be influenced by His words. Jesus said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God’” (Luke 4:4). That is what God says should be normal for us.
Most people assume the way they think is “normal,” but that is not necessarily so. Our culture, traditions, how we were raised, and the things we experience fill us with thoughts, ideas and beliefs. Unfortunately, many of these are far from what God says is normal.
Strongholds
The Apostle Paul talks about how God has equipped us to deal with thoughts that do not line up with His Word. He said, “For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ” (2 Corinthians 10:4-5).
We need to take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ. What this means is that there are going to be thoughts that come into our minds that we need to reject. These thoughts – the ones we should reject but do not – can become strongholds.
Strongholds are the result of wrong thinking or beliefs that have taken root in your life. They are contrary to God’s thoughts and are most often inspired by the devil’s lies – lies you believe about yourself, God or others – and they give the devil a strong hold on your actions, behaviors and habits. The more strongly you believe these lies, the stronger the hold.
Example of a Stronghold
Several years ago a man came to me with tears in his eyes. He said, “Pastor, I want you to pray for me. I have been in an adulterous relationship for over a year and a half. I’m torn up inside, but I just can’t seem to stop. I want you to pray that I will stop.” What he described was a stronghold.
I told him, “I’ll pray for you, but it isn’t going to do much good.” He had a look of shock on his face, but I continued on like I didn’t notice. I shared Romans 12:2 which says, “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.”
You see, the way you are transformed, the way you change your behavior is not by prayer alone. You can pray a thousand prayers, but if you do not renew your mind, your behavior will not change. If you do not change how you think, you will not change how you act, because as you think in your heart, so are you.
So, I said to the man, “I will pray for you, but you need to change the way you think.”
I recommended that he renew his mind by reading Proverbs 5 and 7 every day. Those two chapters talk about how you fall into sexual sin, the consequences of it, how to get free and stay free. I told him that, on a weekly basis, he needed to read Samson’s story about how sexual sin messed up his life. And I also told him to read David’s story about his sin with Bathsheba and the consequences it had on his life and family.
Those two men in the Bible had believed lies from the world, the flesh and the devil which led to strongholds of lust and adultery just like the man who asked me to pray.
Change What You Believe
Strongholds don’t just sit in your mind doing nothing. They produce actions, behaviors and habits that, no matter what you try, seem impossible to get rid of. It is like being in a boat that is filling up with water. You can grab a bucket and work really hard at getting the water out of the boat, but the water is not the problem.
The problem is that there is a hole in the bottom of the boat. Until you plug the hole, you are going to keep getting water in the boat. All the hard work in the world will not get the water out.
The hole in the bottom of a boat is like a stronghold. It is something you believe that causes certain behavior or habits. You can try really hard to get rid of the behavior but, like the water, it just keeps coming back. You cannot get rid of the habit until you change what you believe. That is how you plug the hole.
When you change what you believe, you will change what you do. As you think in your heart, so will you be.
God is Always Right
Many, if not all, people have strongholds in their minds that hold them in bondage by the way they think. There are strongholds of addiction, anger, fear, loneliness, rejection…the list goes on and on. No matter what kind of stronghold controls you, it keeps you from God’s best for your life.
The psalmist David said, “All Your precepts concerning all things I consider to be right; I hate every false way” (Psalm 119:128). He is acknowledging that God is always right about everything. He’s right about marriage, money, families, forgiveness, sex…anything you can think of, God is right. He also said “I hate every false way.” Every false way is every idea, every reasoning, anything you think or do that is contrary to God’s Word.
Perhaps as you have read this article, you have already identified some ideas or beliefs, habits or behaviors that are false ways. If so, you need to pull down the stronghold.
You Can Pull Down Strongholds
“But Pastor, how do I do that?” Here are some steps you can take to pull down strongholds:
1) Ask God to show you the lie you have believed.
2) Repent of believing the lie and receive God’s forgiveness.
3) Ask God to show you the truth.
4) Believe the truth and exercise your will to choose His ways over yours.
As God speaks to your heart, here are some things to remember:
• Allow the Holy Spirit to make God’s Word a reality in your heart and mind.
• Meditate on how this Word applies to your life.
• Place yourself in agreement with what God says about you (see yourself as God sees you).
• Dwell on how what God says changes your situation.
• Let what God says be your “new normal.”
Finally…
In Jeremiah 23:29, God says: “‘Is not My Word like a fire…and like a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces?’” As you meditate on God’s Word, it will burn down and break apart the wrong thoughts and lies of the enemy that you have believed.
When you change what you believe, you will change what you do. As you think in your heart, so will you be.
You can pull down strongholds!
How do we tear down strongholds?
Strongholds are build upon deception and lies that we’ve accepted into our minds. So how do you counter a lie? How do you counter deception? With the truth. Where do we find the truth? In the Word of God. As we can see in Ephesians, this weapon is known as the sword of the Spirit:
Ephesians 6:17, “…the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.”
In 2 Corinthians, we are told that our spiritual weaponry is designed to tear down strongholds:
2 Corinthians 10:3-5, “For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds😉 Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ.”
This is a great verse that gives us a good idea of how we are to go about tearing down strongholds in our minds. First, since the sword of the Spirit is the offensive piece of our weaponry, it is a great tool for tearing down strongholds. You need to go on the offensive to tear down a stronghold, and the Word of God is the weapon you cannot afford not to use.
So when the devil tries to tell us, “You really messed up, haven’t you?”
You need to counter it with, “1 John 3:5 tells me that the reason Jesus went to the cross was to take away that sin! Hebrews 8:12 tells me that even God has chosen to forget my sin!”
Boy does Satan hate that! It reminds him of the days when he tried tempting Jesus:
Satan said to Jesus, “If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread.” (Matthew 4:3)
But Jesus replied with, “It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.” (Matthew 4:4)
What did Satan do? After Jesus did that a few times, he had no choice but to hit the road… his efforts were useless against Jesus! Jesus knew the relevant scriptures to quote, and took away Satan’s ability to influence Him!
Let’s go back to 2 Corinthians again and see what else it has to say:
2 Corinthians 10:3-5, “For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds;) Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ.”
As we can see, we are told to cast down imaginations. What are imaginations? They are things that we imagine… the devil usually plants them in our minds when he asks us a question that starts out with “What if…” Don’t waste your time trying to reason things with the devil. Just throw it out and leave him hanging! Get your mind on God’s Word and off of what the devil is trying to tell you.
What else are we told in this verse? We are to cast down every thought that comes into our minds that opposes the knowledge of God. What is the knowledge of God? Since God associates Himself with His Word (John 1:1), if anything comes into our minds that is contrary to God’s Word, throw it out! Do not waste your time thinking about it or trying to reason with it. If Satan is trying to tell you that God is not wanting to forgive you, then don’t listen to it. Why? Because His Word says otherwise:
Isaiah 30:18, “Therefore the LORD longs to be gracious to you, And therefore He waits on high to have compassion on you.” (NASB)
Not only does He want to forgive your sins, so that your relationship with Him can be restored, He longs (which means He deeply desires) to do so! One of the last things Satan wants us to know is God’s forgiving and loving nature towards us even after we have messed up!
As you can see, strongholds are built on lies and deception. How do you counter such things? With truth! Where do you find truth? In the Word of God! Stop thinking about what Satan has been feeding you, and begin to meditate on God’s Word. Take verses in the Bible that run contrary to what the devil’s been feeding you, and repeat them to yourself over and over out loud. Think about them often, and meditate on them. The devil got his stronghold built by causing you to meditate on his lies and deception, so if you want to tear down that stronghold, you need to begin meditating on the exact opposite, which is God’s Word.
Listening to and reasoning with the things the devil puts in your mind is exactly what he wants you to do. It feed his strongholds when you allow your mind to meditate on Satan’s word (opposite of God’s Word). Cut him off at the source and say NO to the garbage he’s been feeding you, and at the same time turn to God’s Word. Begin to feed, meditate upon, think about often and dwell upon on the truth. It will stop Satan dead in his tracks!
It is also possible to have strongholds in place because demonic spirits have attached themselves to you at some point or another, and need to be driven out. If you work hard at tearing down strongholds by applying the truths in God’s Word and this teaching, and yet you seem to hit a wall, it may be because a demonic spirit needs to be driven out. It is very possible (and not uncommon) to experience quite a bit of freedom through applying the principals in this teaching even if there is a demonic spirit present, but you will only go so far and feel like you’re hitting a wall. That is a sign of a demon at work that needs to be driven out. It can be awfully hard to battle when they are working on you from the inside out. Resisting them from the outside is easy, but resisting them when they are on the inside can be extremely hard. If you seem to have reached an immovable mountain, you might want to consider the possibility of needing to have an unclean spirit driven out.
How do we identify strongholds? When we come to Christ, an amazing event happens, The Holy Spirit comes to dwell within our tent or body. Our body becomes the Temple of God, when we become saved as God literally takes residence in our body (Ephesians 1:13-14,
26 Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.
27 Now He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He makes intercession for the saints according to the will of God.
In verse 26, Paul writes how the Spirit pricks our inner-man, with groaning or sighing, the Spirit testifies and intercedes where we are feeble. Now the areas where we are we weak are because stronghold dominate, causing us to be weak. One person’s weakness might not be another’s, which is why it is important to rely on the conviction of God.
1. The Holy Spirit causes groaning
Scripture, the Sword of the Spirit, along with the Holy Spirit will shine the light on the strongholds in our life. The first step is to make our life sensitive to the Holy Spirit, and the Word of God. As we read scripture, where do you feel convicted by the Spirit?
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2____________________________________________________
3____________________________________________________
4____________________________________________________
2. Do you have fruits of the flesh?
In the book of Galatians, Paul identifies two sets of fruit, (fruit) works of the flesh and fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23). In addition to these two sets of fruits, Paul also lists areas of the flesh, which separate those who walk in the Spirit as opposed to the flesh. As you read these lists of fruits, do you identify with any of them?
19 Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness,
20 idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies,
21 envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.
20 For I fear lest, when I come, I shall not find you such as I wish, and that I shall be found by you such as you do not wish; lest there be contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, backbitings, whisperings, conceits, tumults;
21 lest, when I come again, my God will humble me among you, and I shall mourn for many who have sinned before and have not repented of the uncleanness, fornication, and lewdness which they have practiced.
9 Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites,
10 nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God. I Corinthians 6:9-10
5 Therefore put to death your members which are on the earth: fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry.
6 Because of these things the wrath of God is coming upon the sons of disobedience,
7 in which you yourselves once walked when you lived in them.
8 But now you yourselves are to put off all these: anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy language out of your mouth.
Are there areas here listed here in scripture that cause you to stumble? Have you tried and tried to change, but have not been able to gain victory in your life in certain areas? If so, the area is a stronghold, from which Satan is able to wage war on the soul.
List area in scripture you are having problems getting control of in your life.
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2._____________________________________________________
3._____________________________________________________
4._____________________________________________________
3. Do you have generational strongholds in your life?
When we examine lives of people and families, we see there are strongholds of sins, which, can be traced back for generations. Scripture refers to these strongholds of sin, which transfer from generation to generation. In the Ten Commandments, the sins of the fathers are passed to the children, until a generation breaks the cycle. Idol worship was a stronghold in ancient Israel, which eventually caused God to judge the nation (Jeremiah 5:7-19,
8 'You shall not make for yourself a carved image-any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth;
9 you shall not bow down to them nor serve them. For I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me,
We can see in Jeremiah how this sin was transferred from family to family, eventually corrupting nearly the entire nation. The people became hostile to God and His prophets; they were hostile to the Word, as their sin controlled their lives. Even after Jerusalem was destroyed they fled with their sin rather then obeying God’s word, through Jeremiah.
18 "The children gather wood, the fathers kindle the fire, and the women knead dough, to make cakes for the queen of heaven; and they pour out drink offerings to other gods, that they may provoke Me to anger. 19 "Do they provoke Me to anger?" says the Lord. "Do they not provoke themselves, to the shame of their own faces?"
One of the greatest example of generational strongholds was conducted in [1] In 1900, A.E. Winship tracked down fourteen hundred of the descendants of Jonathan Edwards a pastor and university president and Max Jukes, he published his study of the Edwards children in contrast to the Jukes children.
Jonathan Edwards: Born 1703 | Max Jukes: Born 1700 |
300 clergymen - some missionaries and theological professors. |
310 were professional vagrants.
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A man of God and married to a woman of like character. He was 24 and she was 17. On their wedding night they committed their marriage to the Lord. Their descendants included:
A non-believer, who married a woman of like character. She lacked principle, among other indecencies, including the occult. Of their 1200 descendants -Generational strongholds, are ways of thinking and blindness transferred from generation to generation. Only the power of Gospel, has the power to break these generational strongholds, which can dominate families.
Idolatry is a sin transferred from generation to generation, maintaining a stronghold on a family. Many forms of family idolatry pass down the family line. Most are familiar with alcohol; just about, everybody knows families affected by this stronghold. Generational strongholds can include quite a number of variable forms, many of which might not seem so obvious.
In third commandment, idolatry is that which is worshipped above the Lord God. When something is placed above the lord it becomes idol worship. The love of money can be passed down from generations, where a family might put great pride in their business skills, not realizing it really a stronghold, trapping generations. In many ways it is no different then alcohol, its only another form of stronghold.
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Drugs: A drug culture and mindsets can be passed down from generations, as children listen to the glorification of drugs and rock n roll, the stronghold is established in offspring. |
lewdness: Children model what they see, if parents are model lewdness by what they watch, and say. The pattern can easily be accepted by children, who think lewdness is part of being adult. |
Love of money: A successful family member in a family history can set the stage for generations to come. Each modeling their lives after the “Idol” maker, who taught them the power of money. |
Politics: Politics has a lure all its own, because |
violence: Family often transfer violence, from generation to generation. |
adultery/fornication: Children model what they see, what becomes acceptable for kids, is often what kids look for in spouses. Thus the patterns become a stronghold in the generation. |
Cutting off the supply routes
When an army decided to destroy a stronghold, one of the first things needed to do was to isolate the stronghold. This was done by cutting off supply routes to the stronghold, one method used by the Romans was to construct wall around the stronghold. This way they could be sure no one slipped in or out without their knowing. The goal was two fold, one, cause the stronghold to surrender by cutting off supplies of food and weapons. Two, prevent any one from leaving to provide intelligence to allies, who might try to come to rescue the stronghold. The Romans were masters at conquest, they understood the need to subdue enemy strongholds. They spent two years, taking the Jewish stronghold of Masada, 15,000 men working to take down a stronghold of 1000-men, women and children.
We can learn a principle from Roman siege craft if they understood the value in blockading strongholds, we should follow their example. How can we blockade our strongholds? One way is to cutoff the supply line, which feeds our stronghold. For example, if alcohol is the stronghold, if you are serious about taking the stronghold, you need to destroy your supply. You need to cut off those who would reinforce your supply, such as friends who want to take you drinking.
If pornography is a stronghold, the same principles apply, cut off the supply routes, control what gets to the stronghold to supply it. Serious action needs to be taken, to pull down strongholds. Without serious action, strongholds will remain a constant presence in the believer’s life. Get rid of the cable television, the internet, the subscriptions and the friends who would supply the stronghold.
This same principle goes for all strongholds; ask what is supplying the stronghold? You know what feeds it? The goal is to bring every thought captive to the obedience of Christ.
4 For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds,
5 casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ,
Ask yourself these questions, to help you direct your assault against the stronghold.
1. What is the stronghold in my life?______________________________________________________
2. How is this stronghold supplied?________________________________________________________
3. Do people in my life supply this stronghold?____________________________________________
4.What in my environment is feeding and supplying the stronghold?____________________
5. Am I serious about pulling down the stronghold?_______________________________________
6. Am I willing to make myself accountable to Christian friends?________________________
Building your base camp
After cutting off supplies to the stronghold, the Romans will build the assault camp, the place where the soldiers would camp out, so they can keep an eye on the stronghold. In the same way, we need to surround ourselves with people, who can help us assault the stronghold. Again, if we are serious we need to seek out people who can help us tear down the walls, people with experience.
Waging war on the stronghold
The weapons of our warfare, the Sword of the Spirit and Prayer, with this double-edged sword, we have the ability to tear down any stronghold. We need to learn to take God at His Word, the weapon of our warfare is more powerful then anything the world can ever offer.
12 For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.
To apply this double edged sword in combat, after we have identified the target stronghold. Learn what scripture has to say about particular issue.
The stronghold of pride as example
Let us take pride for example, over 40 versus in scripture mention pride. Start out by finding the verses in God’s word, which deal with pride. List them, learn what they are referring to? A Bible Concordance, Strong’s Concordance for example, dictionary or software can help you locate versus.
Under pride, I would list several verses including the ones below. I would mediate on these verses; I would then begin to pray these verses so they apply to me.
19 I will break the pride of your power; I will make your heavens like iron and your earth like bronze.
9 The Lord of hosts has purposed it, To bring to dishonor the pride of all glory, To bring into contempt all the honorable of the earth.
3 The pride of your heart has deceived you, You who dwell in the clefts of the rock, Whose habitation is high; You who say in your heart, 'Who will bring me down to the ground?'
16 For all that is in the world-the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life-is not of the Father but is of the world. I
After praying on these verses, memorizing them, I would begin to wage war on the stronghold. One way is to the exact opposite of your flesh. Volunteer in a homeless shelter, do something humble refrain from exalting yourself, this only feeds the flesh. Daniel’s gave advice to Nebuchadnezzar on how he was to overcome the stronghold of pride; I would use Daniel’s advice to the king.
27 Therefore, O king, let my advice be acceptable to you; break off your sins by being righteous, and your iniquities by showing mercy to the poor. Perhaps there may be a lengthening of your prosperity."
Praying the Word of God
We can take the Word of God and pray what it says into our life. Lets take
19 I will break the pride of your power; I will make your heavens like iron and your earth like bronze.
We can take this verse and personalize a prayer, as the Spirit groans with our pride. We might come before the throne of God and say;
Lord I know you hate Pride, your Word says you will break the pride of power, and you will make the heavens like iron and the earth like bronze, please Lord....Take my pride from me, humble my heart...let me learn to rejoice in your power and not mine own...
When we pray, we literally enter Heaven, we enter the throne room of God. When Jesus died on the cross, the curtain in the Temple was ripped from top to
bottom, signifying the separation between man and God was eliminated because of the blood of Christ.
14 Seeing then that we have a great High Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. 15 For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. 16 Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
Fasting and Prayer
Along with prayer, we have an additional tool called fasting. Fasting adds power to our prayer, it helps us focus and demonstrates to us, how sincere we are about getting rid of our stronghold. Jesus clearly says, some issues require both prayers along with fasting. Referring to the demon possessed boy, who the disciples could not deliver. Jesus said, “However, this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting”(Matthew 17:21).
13 But as for me, when they were sick, My clothing was sackcloth; I humbled myself with fasting; And my prayer would return to my own heart. Psalm 35:13
3 Then I set my face toward the Lord God to make request by prayer and supplications, with fasting, sackcloth, and ashes.
37 and this woman was a widow of about eighty-four years, who did not depart from the temple, but served God with fastings and prayers night and day.
In Summary the process of pulling down strongholds is
1. Identify the stronghold
2. Gather intelligence about the stronghold
3. Sever and blockade the supply lines to the stronghold
4. Establish a base camp of friends (warriors)
5. Wage war against the stronghold
a. Scripture
b. Scripture memory
c. Pray God’s word
d Pray and fast
All believers are in a war - a war with their adversary, the Devil (1 Pet. 5:8), and his evil spiritual forces which he dispatches and assigns to perpetrate his wickedness throughout the world. The scripture says that we "wrestle... against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places" (Eph. 6:12).
We are well aware of the evil characteristics of Satan, that he "kills, steals, and destroys" (John 10:10). But beyond his routine harassments, temptations or hit-and-run attacks, the Devil's forces seek territory to establish long-term strongholds in which they may dominate and hold captive. Satanic forces search for people, cities, and nations in which they are not resisted and where they may flourish.
"Strongholds" don't necessarily refer to something as extreme as "demon possession," but can merely be a "strong" influence or grip, persistent oppression, obsessions, hindrances or harassment. I do not believe that a child of God, in whom Christ's Spirit dwells, can simultaneously be demon possessed... but without a doubt many Christians are frequent victims of Satan's strongholds.
Getting to the Root of the Problem
The devil's primary strategy is to disguise his activities so that it appears that someone or something else is to blame. He wants us to get our attention on his surrogates, his instruments, his hindrances and "wrestle" with them, so that our battle will be directed against the "symptoms" instead of the "real source."
We all know that a decongestant will help relieve a stuffy nose, but it will not cure a cold. Likewise, you can fight with the symptoms of the Devil, but you will not end the problems until you deal with the source and bind the "strong man."
Remember when Peter resisted Jesus' decision to return to Jerusalem, knowing that He would be crucified there? Jesus did not rebuke Peter, but turned to Peter and rebuked Satan. "Get behind me Satan" (Matt. 16:23). Peter wasn't demon possessed, and probably didn't intend to be an offense. However, the Devil inspired Peter's statement, and Jesus went after the real source.
Paul said that our battle is not with "flesh and blood" but with spiritual adversaries (Eph. 6:12). How important it is that we understand what the real root of the problem is -- "who" our real enemy is. It is Satan, not flesh and blood, not our brethren, not our family, not our children, not husbands and wives, not employers, nor our government! The Devil is the enemy!
Binding the Strong Man
One time, after Jesus had cast out a devil and healed a deaf and mute boy, Jesus explained that in order to overturn the works and activity of the Devil, we must bind him first. "Or else how can one enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man? And then he will plunder his house" (Matt. 12:29). In order to neutralize the Devil's works, we must go and deal directly with the source and bind up the devil so that his hands are tied. Then we'll be able to take back what he's stolen and bring a halt to his actions.
I've preached in many cities that have been strongholds for the Devil. The symptoms of this are many. Often the local churches suffer senseless conflicts or unexplained problems. The congregations experience little growth, and the preaching of the Word is not easily proclaimed or well received by the community. These are the symptoms, but behind the scene Satan is the culprit. In such cases, those spiritual strongholds must be dealt with and bound for the ministry to be effective.
All Believers have Authority over the Devil
All Christians must be aware that God has equipped them to overcome Satan's power. The Apostle Paul said that "the weapons of our warfare are not carnal (of a fleshly or earthly nature), but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds" (2 Cor. 10:4).
You may recall the time when the seventy disciples returned to the Lord rejoicing about the results of their ministry. They remarked, "Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name" (Luke 10:17). But then Jesus pointed out that the great marvel of this was that the devils were subject to them because their names were "written in heaven." In other words, because they were saved -- because of their relationship with Christ, they had authority over the Devil in the name of Jesus.
Jesus has given all His followers -- all those who know Jesus personally as their Lord and Savior -- the authority to use His name to expel the forces of evil. To all believers, Jesus said, "In My name they will cast out demons..." (Mark 16:17).
How to Break Strongholds and keep them Broken!
1. AUTHORITY -- Every believer has the right to use the authority of Jesus' name to bind and take authority over Satan's activities. "No one can enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man, and then he will plunder his house" (Mark 3:27). Issue a spoken command to the devil that he is bound and he must leave the stronghold! Exercising authority in the name of Jesus will expel the Devil's influence. "And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues..." (Mark 16:17).
2. INTERCESSION -- Come together with other believers to pray and intercede against strongholds until you get results. There is intensified power in the gathering of more believers. Prayer with fasting intensifies faith, and faith will break strongholds. "Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, "Why could we not cast him out? ...However, this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting" (Matthew 17:19,21).
3. DISPLACEMENT -- Establish the presence of God. Where Satan has been commanded to leave, fill it up with God's presence. Where the presence of the Lord is, the Devil isn't! Satan doesn't want to hang around where people are lifting up Jesus in worship, in singing and prayer. The presence of the Lord displaces the Devil. "For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness?" (2 Corinthians 6:14).
4. RESISTANCE -- Submit yourselves and draw close to God. The Bible says this is how we resist Satan and he will flee. The Devil runs from submitted, yielded Christians who pray, fast, worship and humble themselves to follow and obey God's Word. "Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you" (James 4:7).
5. OCCUPATION -- Give no place or vacancy to the Devil. With Satan departed, fill the void with God. Let righteousness be the standard rule and behavior. Provide no pocket of rebellion, corruption or immorality in which Satan can find refuge to rebuild his influence or strength. The scripture says to not "give place to the devil" (Eph. 4:27).
6. FORTIFICATION -- Clothe yourself with God's armor. Take upon you daily, the full array of God's spiritual equipment that you may maintain battle-ready status. With the shield of faith, the sword of the Spirit (God's Word) and the other links of armor (Eph. 6:13-17), you will be ready to resist any satanic assault, and will be ready to engage the strongholds in others. "Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil" (Ephesians 6:11).
The word stronghold used above is from the Greek word “ochyroma” which means a strongly fortified defensive or military structure. The reason thought patterns that are against God’s will in your life are called figuratively called strongholds is because they are strongly fortified, defended, and protected. We are often ready to defend our opinions to our last strengths. It is hard to break through or overcome them. Those who have such strongholds guard and protect them with all their might. What a miserable place to find ourselves in, strongly protecting a thought pattern that ruins our lives and we do not know it!
Furthermore, strongholds are not only strongly protected but they are often concealed. The enemy in the stronghold hides behind the strong and fortified walls. As I mentioned before, a complicating factor of strongholds is that those who have them often might not even know it. If you knew that a doctrine or something you believed was strong, you will sincerely no longer believe it. The reason you believe it is because you are convinced it is correct. This is why strongholds that is thoughts or beliefs that are contrary to God’s Truth are heavily protected because we are SURE we are correct.
Finally, this is why you should fight with all your might to pull down strongholds. They are responsible for unwanted results, often with suffering, failures, and sorrows. Do you know that some of us reading this are feeling spiritually empty, frustrated, and dry maybe because of the way we THINK of the Holy Spirit. What if what you hold so dear in your heart about the Holy Spirit and His power is a stronghold responsible for you not having that rich relationship with God you so long for? Or what if the way you think about money is the stronghold responsible for poverty never leaving your life? Or what if your stronghold is the way you think of relationships, which is the reason you are still not married, lost that good man or woman God brought into your life or continue to have so many marital problems?
The examples are endless, but they teach us why it is so important we pay attention to spiritual strongholds in our lives.
MEDITATE
What are you planning to do with the strongholds in your life?
APPLY THE WORD
The battle against strongholds is NOT primarily against demons or Satan. You are going to wage war with yourself! How odd? It is your responsibility to correct your thinking, align it with the TRUTH of the Written Word and free yourself from yourself. The only way to do this is to surrender to the Word and allow the Spirit to take over your life.
Strongholds are not demons; they are places from which demons rule. Satan has a place of strength within unbelievers from which he can imprison or hold on to them strongly. They are prisoners. Luke 4:18 tells us that Yeshua came to “proclaim release to the captives.” We participate in the destruction of the “prisons” through prayer.
Knock down – καθαίρεσις kathaíresis, kath-ah’-ee-res-is; from G2507; demolition; figuratively, extinction:—destruction, pulling down….a pulling down, destruction, demolition
2 Cor. 10:3-5 (KJV) For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds;) Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;
God’s plan is for us to become demolition agents, tearing down satan’s strongholds through a systematic, ongoing, ‘one blow at a time’ war against the enemy’s strongholds in people’s lives. Our intercession may be strategically placing the dynamite of the Spirit for days, weeks or months. But every time we take up our spiritual weapons and use them against the strongholds of the enemy, we are placing our explosive charges in strategic places. Like demolishing buildings, eventually the strongholds will crumble to the ground and people will fall to their knees.
2 Cor. 10:3-5 (NASB) For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh, 4 for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses. 5 We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ,
There are three major components of the fortress, or prison. These are the things we will begin to call out in prayer and demolish as we pray over individuals.
The first aspect of the stronghold is “imaginations/speculations – logismos.
This word speaks of human reasonings, wisdom or logic. It’s the sum total of the accumulated wisdom and information learned over time. Our prayers focus the attention of God’s powerful weapons on the logismos fortresses of satan in the minds of unbelievers. Speculations become what one really believes – the person’s mind-set. Other translations refer to them as “theories.” The word logismos includes philosophies (conscious or unconscious), religions, humanism, atheism, Judaism, materialism, roots of rejection, perversions, alcoholism, other addictions and anything that causes a person to think a certain way.
Logismos blind individuals and veil truth because when people hear the gospel, before they even have time to think or reason about what they’re hearing, it’s filtered through the subconscious or memory where all other information is stored. This means that unbelievers don’t hear only what we’re saying. They hear what we are saying plus what they already believe. What they hear is filtered through a belief system – a veil that causes them to hear something totally different than what we may be communicating to them. They simply do not see the same image of Messiah that we do. To clearly see Him is to love and want him.
We need to pray for people and ask the Holy Spirit to remove the veils and tear down the logismos, allowing them to see clearly. Perhaps you already know what these logismoi are in the people you are praying for. If not, ask the Holy Spirit to reveal them to you. When He does, call them by name, quoting 2 Cor. 10:3-5 saying, “In the name of the Lord, Messiah, Yeshua I am destroying you, stronghold of….” Do this regularly until those people come to Messiah.
The second part of the stronghold we must demolish is “every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God.”
High or lofty thing is the Greek word ὕψωμα hýpsōma, hoop’-so-mah; from G5312; an elevated place or thing, i.e. (abstractly) altitude, or (by implication) a barrier (figuratively):—height, high thing.
By disobeying God, humankind, like satan, exalted themselves to a place of equality with the Most High. We became however, not the Most High but our own most high, filled with pride. This word encompasses all mind-sets that exalt themselves against the knowledge of God and involve a desire to rule our own lives, decide for ourselves right and wrong and basically be our own god.
The good news is that we can also tear down this stronghold in people through prayer so they can humble themselves and bow their knees to Messiah.
A strategy is to begin praising the Lord that people are going to become a brother or sister in the Lord to us. Stop begging God but continue to thank Him for the work He will do the people’s lives we are praying for.
Pride is a desire to rebel against authority and rule our own lives. We need to tear this down and demolish this through intercession.
2 Cor. 10:3-5 (TLB) It is true that I am an ordinary, weak human being, but I don’t use human plans and methods to win my battles. 4 I use God’s mighty weapons, not those made by men, to knock down the devil’s strongholds. 5 These weapons can break down every proud argument against God and every wall that can be built to keep men from finding him. With these weapons I can capture rebels and bring them back to God and change them into men whose hearts’ desire is obedience to Christ.
The third aspect of strongholds involves taking “every thought captive to the obedience of Messiah.”
The word “thought” is noema, which also means plans, schemes, devices or plots. It refers to the spontaneous thoughts and temptations satan uses to assault the unbelievers, as well as the schemes and plans he uses to keep them in darkness. In prayer we must declare boldly that no weapon of satan’s will prosper. We must bind his plans and stand against them through prayer. We can and should pray that the unbeliever be shielded from satan’s thoughts and temptations.
We can turn unbelievers “from darkness to light and from the dominion of satan to God.” (Acts 26:18) We are called to enforce and make effectual the freedom Messiah procured. The unbeliever cannot war for himself. He cannot and will not overcome the strongholds of darkness, or understand the gospel until the veil lifts. Remember it is the Lord who is great and awesome and who fights for those we pray for.
Stand firm therefore, having girded your loins with truth…
Introduction
I have always wondered why Jesus silenced the demons in the Gospels. Consider this text, for example:
And just then there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit; and he cried out, saying, “What do we have to do with You, Jesus of Nazareth? Have You come to destroy us? I know who You are—the Holy One of God!” And Jesus rebuked him, saying, “Be quiet, and come out of him!” And throwing him into convulsions, the unclean spirit cried out with a loud voice, and came out of him (Mark 1:23-26).
Why wouldn’t Jesus allow the demons to speak here. It would be one thing if what they said was not true, but He was the Holy One of God who had come to destroy them. Why, then, would He not allow them to bear witness to His identity? There may be more than one answer, but I think that one reason was this: Jesus did not want the testimony of a liar. Jesus had sufficient witnesses to His identity, including the Father, the Old Testament Scriptures, John the Baptist, His own works, and eventually His followers. But who would want the witness of those who character was that of a liar. Jesus said this of Satan, their leader:
“You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature; for he is a liar, and the father of lies” (John 8:44).
When we come to the specific elements of the Christian’s spiritual armor, it is not surprising that truth is the first of the defenses identified by Paul. Satan is a liar, and his attack on Christians is by means of his deceptive and devious “schemes” (Ephesians 6:11). The truth is God’s protective armor so that his lies can be recognized and resisted, so that we might stand firm in our faith. Let us give careful heed to Paul’s words about truth, for this is vitally important to our spiritual well-being.
I have always wondered why Jesus silenced the demons in the Gospels. Consider this text, for example:
And just then there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit; and he cried out, saying, “What do we have to do with You, Jesus of Nazareth? Have You come to destroy us? I know who You are—the Holy One of God!” And Jesus rebuked him, saying, “Be quiet, and come out of him!” And throwing him into convulsions, the unclean spirit cried out with a loud voice, and came out of him (Mark 1:23-26).
Why wouldn’t Jesus allow the demons to speak here. It would be one thing if what they said was not true, but He was the Holy One of God who had come to destroy them. Why, then, would He not allow them to bear witness to His identity? There may be more than one answer, but I think that one reason was this: Jesus did not want the testimony of a liar. Jesus had sufficient witnesses to His identity, including the Father, the Old Testament Scriptures, John the Baptist, His own works, and eventually His followers. But who would want the witness of those who character was that of a liar. Jesus said this of Satan, their leader:
“You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature; for he is a liar, and the father of lies” (John 8:44).
When we come to the specific elements of the Christian’s spiritual armor, it is not surprising that truth is the first of the defenses identified by Paul. Satan is a liar, and his attack on Christians is by means of his deceptive and devious “schemes” (Ephesians 6:11). The truth is God’s protective armor so that his lies can be recognized and resisted, so that we might stand firm in our faith. Let us give careful heed to Paul’s words about truth, for this is vitally important to our spiritual well-being.
Girding Up Our Loins
We all dress in a certain order. We put on our “foundation garments” first, because we put other clothing over them. I put my shoes on last, because I hate to try to put my pants on with my shoes already on. The armor is also put on in a certain sequence. The girding of the loins is the first step in the Christian’s preparation for spiritual warfare. In the Bible, the girding of the loins is a preparatory step, it prepares us for further action.
As you know, the clothing of the Israelites of old was not like our own. The men did not wear pants, sport coats, or suits. They wore garments which were much less form-fitting. Their garments not only were draped over their bodies, they went almost to the ground. If a man were going to run, he would first have to gather up his garment and tuck it into his belt or sash, so that he would not stumble and fall. Girding the loins were therefore the first step in preparing for vigorous activity, which involved the feet.
As the Israelites were about to partake of the Passover Meal, it was in preparation for their exodus from Egyptian bondage and their entrance into the promised land. Thus, God instructed the people of Israel to eat the meal with their loins girded, ready for what was to follow:
“‘Now you shall eat it in this manner: with your loins girded, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand; and you shall eat it in haste—it is the Lord’s Passover” (Exodus 12:11).
So also, Peter spoke of the girding of the loins to the saints of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia:
Therefore, gird your minds [lit. the loins of your mind] for action, keep sober in spirit, fix your hope completely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. As obedient children, do not be conformed to the former lusts which were your in your ignorance, but like the Holy One who called you, be holy yourselves also in all your behavior; because it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy” (1 Peter 1:13-16).147
I believe that when Paul speaks of the girding of our loins in Ephesians chapter 6, he, like Peter, was speaking of the girding of the loins of our minds. The truth is that which gathers up the loose ends of information and by which it may be judged regarding its conformity to truth and goodness. Truth is the grid through which all information can be filtered.
We all dress in a certain order. We put on our “foundation garments” first, because we put other clothing over them. I put my shoes on last, because I hate to try to put my pants on with my shoes already on. The armor is also put on in a certain sequence. The girding of the loins is the first step in the Christian’s preparation for spiritual warfare. In the Bible, the girding of the loins is a preparatory step, it prepares us for further action.
As you know, the clothing of the Israelites of old was not like our own. The men did not wear pants, sport coats, or suits. They wore garments which were much less form-fitting. Their garments not only were draped over their bodies, they went almost to the ground. If a man were going to run, he would first have to gather up his garment and tuck it into his belt or sash, so that he would not stumble and fall. Girding the loins were therefore the first step in preparing for vigorous activity, which involved the feet.
As the Israelites were about to partake of the Passover Meal, it was in preparation for their exodus from Egyptian bondage and their entrance into the promised land. Thus, God instructed the people of Israel to eat the meal with their loins girded, ready for what was to follow:
“‘Now you shall eat it in this manner: with your loins girded, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand; and you shall eat it in haste—it is the Lord’s Passover” (Exodus 12:11).
So also, Peter spoke of the girding of the loins to the saints of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia:
Therefore, gird your minds [lit. the loins of your mind] for action, keep sober in spirit, fix your hope completely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. As obedient children, do not be conformed to the former lusts which were your in your ignorance, but like the Holy One who called you, be holy yourselves also in all your behavior; because it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy” (1 Peter 1:13-16).147
I believe that when Paul speaks of the girding of our loins in Ephesians chapter 6, he, like Peter, was speaking of the girding of the loins of our minds. The truth is that which gathers up the loose ends of information and by which it may be judged regarding its conformity to truth and goodness. Truth is the grid through which all information can be filtered.
The Importance of the Truth
The Scriptures tell us why the truth is so vitally important to the Christian. Let us briefly review the role of the truth in the life of the Christian.
(1) It is by the truth that we are saved:
In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation—having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is given as a pledge of our inheritance, with a view to the redemption of God’s own possession, to the praise of His glory (Ephesians 1:13-14).
In the exercise of His will He brought us forth by the word of truth, so that we might be, as it were, the first fruits among His creatures (James 1:18).
For you have been born again not of seed which is perishable but imperishable, that is, through the living and abiding word of God (1 Peter 1:23).
(2) It is by the truth that we are sanctified, and brought to Christian maturity:
“Sanctify them in the truth; Thy word is truth” (John 17:17).
11 And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, 12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ; 13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fulness of Christ. 14 As a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves, and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming; 15 but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him, who is the head, even Christ, 16 from whom the whole body, being fitted and held together by that which every joint supplies, according to the proper working of each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love (Ephesians 4:11-16).
(3) The truth is the means by which our minds are renewed and transformed, from the ignorance and deception of our unsaved condition, to the renewed mind which thinks in accordance with God’s Word and His ways:
17 This I say therefore, and affirm together with the Lord, that you walk no longer just as the Gentiles also walk, in the futility of their mind, 18 being darkened in their understanding, excluded from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the hardness of their heart; 19 and they, having become callous, have given themselves over to sensuality, for the practice of every kind of impurity with greediness. 20 But you did not learn Christ in this way, 21 if indeed you have heard Him and have been taught in Him, just as truth is in Jesus, 22 that, in reference to your former manner of life, you lay aside the old self, which is being corrupted in accordance with the lusts of deceit, 23 and that you be renewed in the spirit of your mind, 24 and put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth (Ephesians 4:17-24).
1 I urge you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. 2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect (Romans 12:1-2).
(4) The truth is the basis for Christian unity (see Ephesians 4:5, 13).
(5) It is the truth which edifies and builds up the church (Ephesians 4:15, 25, 29).
(6) The truth is essential for true worship:
“God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth” (John 4:24).
(7) The church is God’s divinely ordained means of declaring and displaying the truth:
I am writing these things to you, hoping to come to you before long; but in case I am delayed, I write so that you may know how one ought to conduct himself in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and support of the truth (1 Timothy 3:14-15).
8 To me, the very least of all saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unfathomable riches of Christ, 9 and to bring to light what is the administration of the mystery which for ages has been hidden in God, who created all things; 10 in order that the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known through the church to the rulers and the authorities in the heavenly places (Ephesians 3:8-10).
(8) The truth is that knowledge which is essential to us, and yet that which we would never have known on our own, apart from divine initiative and enablement. Given all eternity, men would never come to the knowledge of the truth unless God revealed it to them supernaturally. The truth of Ephesians includes the eternal plan of God, which includes our election to salvation and spiritual blessings (Ephesians 1:3-14). It includes the final destruction of Satan and his forces (6:10-20), and the summing up of all things in Christ (1:10). It includes the mystery of the church, in which God reconciles both Jews and Gentiles to Himself through the blood of Christ (chapters 2 and 3), and through which He displays His manifold wisdom to the celestial beings (3:1-10). The truth gives Christians a whole new way of thinking and behaving, which is dramatically different from the way we were as unbelievers (4:1–6:9).
The truth is something which we would never have imagined, because it is the manifestation of divine, not human, wisdom, a wisdom vastly superior to our own, which we would not have expected, and which we cannot even believe apart from divine revelation and the enablement of the Holy Spirit:
33 Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and unfathomable His ways! 34 For who has known the mind of the Lord, or who became His counselor? 35 Or who has first given to Him that it might be paid back to him again? 36 For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be the glory forever. Amen (Romans 11:33-36).
6 Yet we do speak wisdom among those who are mature; a wisdom, however, not of this age, nor of the rulers of this age, who are passing away; 7 but we speak God’s wisdom in a mystery, the hidden wisdom, which God predestined before the ages to our glory; 8 the wisdom which none of the rulers of this age has understood; for if they had understood it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory; 9 but just as it is written, “Things which eye has not seen and ear has not heard, And which have not entered the heart of man, All that God has prepared for those who love Him.” 10 For to us God revealed them through the Spirit; for the Spirit searches all things, even the depths of God. 11 For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the spirit of the man, which is in him? Even so the thoughts of God no one knows except the Spirit of God. 12 Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things freely given to us by God, 13 which things we also speak, not in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit, combining spiritual thoughts with spiritual words. 14 But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God; for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised. 15 But he who is spiritual appraises all things, yet he himself is appraised by no man. 16 For who has known the mind of the Lord, that he should instruct Him? But we have the mind of Christ (1 Corinthians 2:6-16).
(9) Jesus Christ is the truth, and thus turning from the truth is to turn away from Him:
31 Jesus therefore was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, “If you abide in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; 32 and you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free” (John 8:31-32).
6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but through Me (John 14:6).
1 For I want you to know how great a struggle I have on your behalf, and for those who are at Laodicea, and for all those who have not personally seen my face, 2 that their hearts may be encouraged, having been knit together in love, and attaining to all the wealth that comes from the full assurance of understanding, resulting in a true knowledge of God’s mystery, that is, Christ Himself, 3 in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. 4 I say this in order that no one may delude you with persuasive argument. 5 For even though I am absent in body, nevertheless I am with you in spirit, rejoicing to see your good discipline and the stability of your faith in Christ.
6 As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, 7 having been firmly rooted and now being built up in Him and established in your faith, just as you were instructed, and overflowing with gratitude. 8 See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ.…
16 Therefore let no one act as your judge in regard to food or drink or in respect to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath day—17 things which are a mere shadow of what is to come; but the substance belongs to Christ. 18 Let no one keep defrauding you of your prize by delighting in self-abasement and the worship of the angels, taking his stand on visions he has seen, inflated without cause by his fleshly mind, 19 and not holding fast to the head, from whom the entire body, being supplied and held together by the joints and ligaments, grows with a growth which is from God (Colossians 2:1-8, 16-19).148
(10) The truth informs us of Satan’s schemes and deception and exposes error and deception.
11 in order that no advantage be taken of us by Satan; for we are not ignorant of his schemes (2 Corinthians 2:11).149
The Scriptures tell us why the truth is so vitally important to the Christian. Let us briefly review the role of the truth in the life of the Christian.
(1) It is by the truth that we are saved:
In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation—having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is given as a pledge of our inheritance, with a view to the redemption of God’s own possession, to the praise of His glory (Ephesians 1:13-14).
In the exercise of His will He brought us forth by the word of truth, so that we might be, as it were, the first fruits among His creatures (James 1:18).
For you have been born again not of seed which is perishable but imperishable, that is, through the living and abiding word of God (1 Peter 1:23).
(2) It is by the truth that we are sanctified, and brought to Christian maturity:
“Sanctify them in the truth; Thy word is truth” (John 17:17).
11 And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, 12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ; 13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fulness of Christ. 14 As a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves, and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming; 15 but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him, who is the head, even Christ, 16 from whom the whole body, being fitted and held together by that which every joint supplies, according to the proper working of each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love (Ephesians 4:11-16).
(3) The truth is the means by which our minds are renewed and transformed, from the ignorance and deception of our unsaved condition, to the renewed mind which thinks in accordance with God’s Word and His ways:
17 This I say therefore, and affirm together with the Lord, that you walk no longer just as the Gentiles also walk, in the futility of their mind, 18 being darkened in their understanding, excluded from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the hardness of their heart; 19 and they, having become callous, have given themselves over to sensuality, for the practice of every kind of impurity with greediness. 20 But you did not learn Christ in this way, 21 if indeed you have heard Him and have been taught in Him, just as truth is in Jesus, 22 that, in reference to your former manner of life, you lay aside the old self, which is being corrupted in accordance with the lusts of deceit, 23 and that you be renewed in the spirit of your mind, 24 and put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth (Ephesians 4:17-24).
1 I urge you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. 2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect (Romans 12:1-2).
(4) The truth is the basis for Christian unity (see Ephesians 4:5, 13).
(5) It is the truth which edifies and builds up the church (Ephesians 4:15, 25, 29).
(6) The truth is essential for true worship:
“God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth” (John 4:24).
(7) The church is God’s divinely ordained means of declaring and displaying the truth:
I am writing these things to you, hoping to come to you before long; but in case I am delayed, I write so that you may know how one ought to conduct himself in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and support of the truth (1 Timothy 3:14-15).
8 To me, the very least of all saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unfathomable riches of Christ, 9 and to bring to light what is the administration of the mystery which for ages has been hidden in God, who created all things; 10 in order that the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known through the church to the rulers and the authorities in the heavenly places (Ephesians 3:8-10).
(8) The truth is that knowledge which is essential to us, and yet that which we would never have known on our own, apart from divine initiative and enablement. Given all eternity, men would never come to the knowledge of the truth unless God revealed it to them supernaturally. The truth of Ephesians includes the eternal plan of God, which includes our election to salvation and spiritual blessings (Ephesians 1:3-14). It includes the final destruction of Satan and his forces (6:10-20), and the summing up of all things in Christ (1:10). It includes the mystery of the church, in which God reconciles both Jews and Gentiles to Himself through the blood of Christ (chapters 2 and 3), and through which He displays His manifold wisdom to the celestial beings (3:1-10). The truth gives Christians a whole new way of thinking and behaving, which is dramatically different from the way we were as unbelievers (4:1–6:9).
The truth is something which we would never have imagined, because it is the manifestation of divine, not human, wisdom, a wisdom vastly superior to our own, which we would not have expected, and which we cannot even believe apart from divine revelation and the enablement of the Holy Spirit:
33 Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and unfathomable His ways! 34 For who has known the mind of the Lord, or who became His counselor? 35 Or who has first given to Him that it might be paid back to him again? 36 For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be the glory forever. Amen (Romans 11:33-36).
6 Yet we do speak wisdom among those who are mature; a wisdom, however, not of this age, nor of the rulers of this age, who are passing away; 7 but we speak God’s wisdom in a mystery, the hidden wisdom, which God predestined before the ages to our glory; 8 the wisdom which none of the rulers of this age has understood; for if they had understood it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory; 9 but just as it is written, “Things which eye has not seen and ear has not heard, And which have not entered the heart of man, All that God has prepared for those who love Him.” 10 For to us God revealed them through the Spirit; for the Spirit searches all things, even the depths of God. 11 For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the spirit of the man, which is in him? Even so the thoughts of God no one knows except the Spirit of God. 12 Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things freely given to us by God, 13 which things we also speak, not in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit, combining spiritual thoughts with spiritual words. 14 But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God; for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised. 15 But he who is spiritual appraises all things, yet he himself is appraised by no man. 16 For who has known the mind of the Lord, that he should instruct Him? But we have the mind of Christ (1 Corinthians 2:6-16).
(9) Jesus Christ is the truth, and thus turning from the truth is to turn away from Him:
31 Jesus therefore was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, “If you abide in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; 32 and you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free” (John 8:31-32).
6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but through Me (John 14:6).
1 For I want you to know how great a struggle I have on your behalf, and for those who are at Laodicea, and for all those who have not personally seen my face, 2 that their hearts may be encouraged, having been knit together in love, and attaining to all the wealth that comes from the full assurance of understanding, resulting in a true knowledge of God’s mystery, that is, Christ Himself, 3 in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. 4 I say this in order that no one may delude you with persuasive argument. 5 For even though I am absent in body, nevertheless I am with you in spirit, rejoicing to see your good discipline and the stability of your faith in Christ.
6 As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, 7 having been firmly rooted and now being built up in Him and established in your faith, just as you were instructed, and overflowing with gratitude. 8 See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ.…
16 Therefore let no one act as your judge in regard to food or drink or in respect to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath day—17 things which are a mere shadow of what is to come; but the substance belongs to Christ. 18 Let no one keep defrauding you of your prize by delighting in self-abasement and the worship of the angels, taking his stand on visions he has seen, inflated without cause by his fleshly mind, 19 and not holding fast to the head, from whom the entire body, being supplied and held together by the joints and ligaments, grows with a growth which is from God (Colossians 2:1-8, 16-19).148
(10) The truth informs us of Satan’s schemes and deception and exposes error and deception.
11 in order that no advantage be taken of us by Satan; for we are not ignorant of his schemes (2 Corinthians 2:11).149
Satan’s Opposition to the Truth
Satan is a liar by nature. We can safely say that Satan is a pathological liar (John 8:44). He would lie even when he didn’t have to. He is both self-deceived and a deceiver (Revelation 12:9). From the beginning of time, Satan has sought to oppose God and His people by opposing the truth. Consider some of Satan’s tactics throughout history, as exposed in the Scriptures.
(1) Satan works to keep men from the truth, or to keep the truth from men.
“And these are the ones who are beside the road where the word is sown; and when they hear, immediately Satan comes and takes away the word which has been sown in them (Mark 4:15 15).
3 And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, 4 in whose case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving, that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God (2 Corinthians 4:3-4).150
(2) Satan denies the truth, usually declaring a “new truth” in its place.
1 Now the serpent was more crafty than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said to the woman, “Indeed, has God said, ‘You shall not eat from any tree of the garden’?” 2 And the woman said to the serpent, “From the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat; 3 but from the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat from it or touch it, lest you die.’ “ 4 And the serpent said to the woman, “You surely shall not die! 5 “For God knows that in the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” 6 When the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable to make one wise, she took from its fruit and ate; and she gave also to her husband with her, and he ate. 7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loin coverings (Genesis 3:1-7).
In the temptation and fall of Adam and Eve, Satan flatly denied the truth of God. God said that Adam and Eve would surely die if they ate of the forbidden fruit. Satan boldly denied this and assured them that they would most certainly not die. Imagine it, Satan called God a liar! Denying the truth which God had revealed to them, Satan convinced this couple that eating the forbidden fruit would be a most beneficial act.
(3) Satan seeks to deceive men about the truth by disseminating his false teaching and doctrines as the truth.
1 But the Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons, 2 by means of the hypocrisy of liars seared in their own conscience as with a branding iron, 3 men who forbid marriage and advocate abstaining from foods, which God has created to be gratefully shared in by those who believe and know the truth. 4 For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected, if it is received with gratitude; 5 for it is sanctified by means of the word of God and prayer (1 Timothy 4:1-5).
This passage is most interesting, for it tells us something which we might not expect. Satan’s schemes often lead to sin indirectly. Satan’s schemes are so subtle, they look good, they even look righteous. Satan does promote sin, but he does in a way that causes us to be blindsided by sin. Through false teachers, Satan advocates abstinence from marriage (and likely from sex, for those who are married) and from eating certain foods. God gave these for our pleasure and enrichment, and so Satan seeks to keep us from their benefit. But, even more, by convincing us to avoid them, he sets a net beneath our feet. The following texts tell us how this works:
3 Let the husband fulfill his duty to his wife, and likewise also the wife to her husband. 4 The wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband does; and likewise also the husband does not have authority over his own body, but the wife does. 5 Stop depriving one another, except by agreement for a time that you may devote yourselves to prayer, and come together again lest Satan tempt you because of your lack of self-control (1 Corinthians 7:3-5).
14 Therefore, I want younger widows to get married, bear children, keep house, and give the enemy no occasion for reproach; 15 for some have already turned aside to follow Satan (1 Timothy 5:14-15).
A man and his wife decide to abstain from sex, so that they can be more spiritual. They do not do this for a short time, as Paul instructs, but for a long period of time. Satan knows that sooner or later this will lead to immorality, due to man’s lack of self-control. Paul advocates sex, not only because it is something good, to be enjoyed (which it is within the context of marriage—see Hebrews 13:4), but because it helps to prevent immorality (1 Corinthians 7:2-5).
In the case of young widows, some might think that it is more spiritual for them to remain single. Singleness can provide the occasion for undistracted service to God (1 Corinthians 7:25-35), but for those widows who lack the commitment and self-control to remain single, failing to re-marry sets them up for a fall; it causes some to turn aside to follow Satan by falling into idleness, gossip, and even immorality.151
(4) Satan distorts the truth. He adds to it or takes from it, or applies it in a way that misses the whole point. In the temptation of our Lord (Matthew 4:1-11; Luke 4:1-13), Satan quoted Scripture, but he employed Scripture in a way that suited his purposes, rather than to produce godly conduct. Satan sought to twist the Scriptures by “proof-texting,” but Jesus corrected him by pointing out the broader principles of the Scriptures. Satan sought to “strain gnats,” but Jesus pointed out the “camels” (see Matthew 23:23-24). Satan seeks to distort the doctrines of Scripture, so as to produce sinful conduct. And so we see the grace of God perverted into an excuse or even a mandate for sin.
For certain persons have crept in unnoticed, those who were long beforehand marked out for condemnation, ungodly persons who turn the grace of our God into licentiousness and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ (Jude 1:4).152
(5) Satan works to produce disobedience to the truth. Satan knows that to keep men from obedience to the truth is as good as keeping them from the truth.
24 “Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine, and acts upon them, may be compared to a wise man, who built his house upon the rock. 25 “And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and burst against that house; and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded upon the rock. 26 “And everyone who hears these words of Mine, and does not act upon them, will be like a foolish man, who built his house upon the sand. 27 “And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and burst against that house; and it fell, and great was its fall” (Matt. 7:24-27).
4 The one who says, “I have come to know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him; 5 but whoever keeps His word, in him the love of God has truly been perfected. By this we know that we are in Him: 6 the one who says he abides in Him ought himself to walk in the same manner as He walked (1 John 2:4-6).153
(6) Satan seeks to fan the flames of man’s curiosity and of his ego, so that he will forsake God’s truth in the pursuit of “higher” truth. In the center of the Garden of Eden, God placed the “tree of the knowledge of good and evil.” The fruit of this one tree was forbidden to Adam and Eve. Of the fruit of all the other trees they could eat freely. Satan not only focused Adam and Eve’s attention on this forbidden tree, but on the “knowledge” which he promised it held for them. We know that this “knowledge” was not the good thing Satan represented it to be. We can now see why God forbade it. But Adam and Eve would have had to obey God on the basis of faith in Him, rather than on the basis of the knowledge Satan promised. It was their pursuit of this forbidden knowledge that got all of mankind into trouble.
The same kind of activity goes on today, with Satan fanning the flames of man’s ego and curiosity. God has given us the truth in Christ. Satan seeks to turn our attention away from the truth and away from Christ, by enticing us to seek a knowledge which is not only beyond Christ, but which is beyond the revelation of Scripture. Over and over again in Scripture Christians are warned against the pursuit of this forbidden knowledge:
6 Now these things, brethren, I have figuratively applied to myself and Apollos for your sakes, that in us you might learn not to exceed what is written, in order that no one of you might become arrogant in behalf of one against the other (1 Corinthians 4:6).
20 O Timothy, guard what has been entrusted to you, avoiding worldly and empty chatter and the opposing arguments of what is falsely called “knowledge”—21 which some have professed and thus gone astray from the faith. Grace be with you (1 Timothy 6:20-21).154
(7) Satan even works among believers, to turn them from the truth and to incite them to be untruthful (see Matthew 24:24; Acts 20: 29-30; 5:1-11).
Satan is a liar by nature. We can safely say that Satan is a pathological liar (John 8:44). He would lie even when he didn’t have to. He is both self-deceived and a deceiver (Revelation 12:9). From the beginning of time, Satan has sought to oppose God and His people by opposing the truth. Consider some of Satan’s tactics throughout history, as exposed in the Scriptures.
(1) Satan works to keep men from the truth, or to keep the truth from men.
“And these are the ones who are beside the road where the word is sown; and when they hear, immediately Satan comes and takes away the word which has been sown in them (Mark 4:15 15).
3 And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, 4 in whose case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving, that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God (2 Corinthians 4:3-4).150
(2) Satan denies the truth, usually declaring a “new truth” in its place.
1 Now the serpent was more crafty than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said to the woman, “Indeed, has God said, ‘You shall not eat from any tree of the garden’?” 2 And the woman said to the serpent, “From the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat; 3 but from the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat from it or touch it, lest you die.’ “ 4 And the serpent said to the woman, “You surely shall not die! 5 “For God knows that in the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” 6 When the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable to make one wise, she took from its fruit and ate; and she gave also to her husband with her, and he ate. 7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loin coverings (Genesis 3:1-7).
In the temptation and fall of Adam and Eve, Satan flatly denied the truth of God. God said that Adam and Eve would surely die if they ate of the forbidden fruit. Satan boldly denied this and assured them that they would most certainly not die. Imagine it, Satan called God a liar! Denying the truth which God had revealed to them, Satan convinced this couple that eating the forbidden fruit would be a most beneficial act.
(3) Satan seeks to deceive men about the truth by disseminating his false teaching and doctrines as the truth.
1 But the Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons, 2 by means of the hypocrisy of liars seared in their own conscience as with a branding iron, 3 men who forbid marriage and advocate abstaining from foods, which God has created to be gratefully shared in by those who believe and know the truth. 4 For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected, if it is received with gratitude; 5 for it is sanctified by means of the word of God and prayer (1 Timothy 4:1-5).
This passage is most interesting, for it tells us something which we might not expect. Satan’s schemes often lead to sin indirectly. Satan’s schemes are so subtle, they look good, they even look righteous. Satan does promote sin, but he does in a way that causes us to be blindsided by sin. Through false teachers, Satan advocates abstinence from marriage (and likely from sex, for those who are married) and from eating certain foods. God gave these for our pleasure and enrichment, and so Satan seeks to keep us from their benefit. But, even more, by convincing us to avoid them, he sets a net beneath our feet. The following texts tell us how this works:
3 Let the husband fulfill his duty to his wife, and likewise also the wife to her husband. 4 The wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband does; and likewise also the husband does not have authority over his own body, but the wife does. 5 Stop depriving one another, except by agreement for a time that you may devote yourselves to prayer, and come together again lest Satan tempt you because of your lack of self-control (1 Corinthians 7:3-5).
14 Therefore, I want younger widows to get married, bear children, keep house, and give the enemy no occasion for reproach; 15 for some have already turned aside to follow Satan (1 Timothy 5:14-15).
A man and his wife decide to abstain from sex, so that they can be more spiritual. They do not do this for a short time, as Paul instructs, but for a long period of time. Satan knows that sooner or later this will lead to immorality, due to man’s lack of self-control. Paul advocates sex, not only because it is something good, to be enjoyed (which it is within the context of marriage—see Hebrews 13:4), but because it helps to prevent immorality (1 Corinthians 7:2-5).
In the case of young widows, some might think that it is more spiritual for them to remain single. Singleness can provide the occasion for undistracted service to God (1 Corinthians 7:25-35), but for those widows who lack the commitment and self-control to remain single, failing to re-marry sets them up for a fall; it causes some to turn aside to follow Satan by falling into idleness, gossip, and even immorality.151
(4) Satan distorts the truth. He adds to it or takes from it, or applies it in a way that misses the whole point. In the temptation of our Lord (Matthew 4:1-11; Luke 4:1-13), Satan quoted Scripture, but he employed Scripture in a way that suited his purposes, rather than to produce godly conduct. Satan sought to twist the Scriptures by “proof-texting,” but Jesus corrected him by pointing out the broader principles of the Scriptures. Satan sought to “strain gnats,” but Jesus pointed out the “camels” (see Matthew 23:23-24). Satan seeks to distort the doctrines of Scripture, so as to produce sinful conduct. And so we see the grace of God perverted into an excuse or even a mandate for sin.
For certain persons have crept in unnoticed, those who were long beforehand marked out for condemnation, ungodly persons who turn the grace of our God into licentiousness and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ (Jude 1:4).152
(5) Satan works to produce disobedience to the truth. Satan knows that to keep men from obedience to the truth is as good as keeping them from the truth.
24 “Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine, and acts upon them, may be compared to a wise man, who built his house upon the rock. 25 “And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and burst against that house; and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded upon the rock. 26 “And everyone who hears these words of Mine, and does not act upon them, will be like a foolish man, who built his house upon the sand. 27 “And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and burst against that house; and it fell, and great was its fall” (Matt. 7:24-27).
4 The one who says, “I have come to know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him; 5 but whoever keeps His word, in him the love of God has truly been perfected. By this we know that we are in Him: 6 the one who says he abides in Him ought himself to walk in the same manner as He walked (1 John 2:4-6).153
(6) Satan seeks to fan the flames of man’s curiosity and of his ego, so that he will forsake God’s truth in the pursuit of “higher” truth. In the center of the Garden of Eden, God placed the “tree of the knowledge of good and evil.” The fruit of this one tree was forbidden to Adam and Eve. Of the fruit of all the other trees they could eat freely. Satan not only focused Adam and Eve’s attention on this forbidden tree, but on the “knowledge” which he promised it held for them. We know that this “knowledge” was not the good thing Satan represented it to be. We can now see why God forbade it. But Adam and Eve would have had to obey God on the basis of faith in Him, rather than on the basis of the knowledge Satan promised. It was their pursuit of this forbidden knowledge that got all of mankind into trouble.
The same kind of activity goes on today, with Satan fanning the flames of man’s ego and curiosity. God has given us the truth in Christ. Satan seeks to turn our attention away from the truth and away from Christ, by enticing us to seek a knowledge which is not only beyond Christ, but which is beyond the revelation of Scripture. Over and over again in Scripture Christians are warned against the pursuit of this forbidden knowledge:
6 Now these things, brethren, I have figuratively applied to myself and Apollos for your sakes, that in us you might learn not to exceed what is written, in order that no one of you might become arrogant in behalf of one against the other (1 Corinthians 4:6).
20 O Timothy, guard what has been entrusted to you, avoiding worldly and empty chatter and the opposing arguments of what is falsely called “knowledge”—21 which some have professed and thus gone astray from the faith. Grace be with you (1 Timothy 6:20-21).154
(7) Satan even works among believers, to turn them from the truth and to incite them to be untruthful (see Matthew 24:24; Acts 20: 29-30; 5:1-11).
Keys to Satan’s Success
Just how does Satan get away with his opposition to the truth? As I read through the account of the fall of man in Genesis chapter 3, my mind is boggled by the fact that Satan was able to convince Adam and Eve that God was a liar, and that he was telling the truth. How could a snake convince his keepers that the One who created all of them was not telling the truth, nor was He worthy of being obeyed? Let me suggest how Satan is able to be so effective in his opposition to the truth.
(1) Throughout the Scriptures, Satan’s deception is closely related to the arrogance and dogmatism with which he proposes his errors. It has taken me a long time to recognize this relationship, but now that I am alert to it, I see it frequently. Why, I have asked myself, would Adam and Eve believe a snake, rather than God? In the account of Satan’s temptation and their fall in Genesis chapter 3, we can see the arrogant boldness with which he tempts this couple. He dared to contradict God and to tell Eve that God’s words were false. He dared to imply that God was the liar, and not he.
The same arrogance is evident in the way in which Satan responded to God in the first two chapters of Job. In both the New Testament accounts of the temptation of our Lord Satan dares to urge our Lord to act independently of God, and to claim that he not only possesses all the kingdoms of the earth and to give them to whomever he chooses. He dares to quote Scripture to the Son of God and to tell Him how it should apply to His life and ministry. He further dares to ask Jesus to bow down to him in worship! He is so arrogant, so confident, that even today we are inclined to believe that he is speaking the truth, to grant that the kingdoms of the world are his to bestow.
These false teachers may even appear to be opposed to Satan, speaking arrogantly of angelic beings: “And especially those who indulge the flesh in its corrupt desires and despise authority. Daring, self-willed, they do not tremble when they revile angelic majesties” (2 Peter 2:10). It is this same dogmatism which causes many to heed the teachings of those false teachers who disseminate falsehood, sometimes identified as the “doctrine of demons:”
17 For we are not like many, peddling the word of God, but as from sincerity, but as from God, we speak in Christ in the sight of God (2 Corinthians 2:17).
6 For some men, straying from these things, have turned aside to fruitless discussion, 7 wanting to be teachers of the Law, even though they do not understand either what they are saying or the matters about which they make confident assertions (1 Timothy 1:6-7).
1 But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will also be false teachers among you, who will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing swift destruction upon themselves. 2 And many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of the truth will be maligned; …10 and especially those who indulge the flesh in its corrupt desires and despise authority. Daring, self-willed, they do not tremble when they revile angelic majesties, 11 whereas angels who are greater in might and power do not bring a reviling judgment against them before the Lord. 12 But these, like unreasoning animals, born as creatures of instinct to be captured and killed, reviling where they have no knowledge, will in the destruction of those creatures also be destroyed, (2 Peter 2:1-2, 10-12).155
Sometimes Satan even presents himself as “Christ”:
23 “Then if anyone says to you, ‘Behold, here is the Christ,’ or ‘There He is,’ do not believe him. 24 “For false Christs and false prophets will arise and will show great signs and wonders, so as to mislead, if possible, even the elect (Matthew 24:23-24).
(2) Satan appeals to our sinful and rebellious nature, offering us the lies we would rather believe than the truth. In Romans chapter 1, Paul speaks of the sin of men who choose to “exchange the truth of God for a lie” (see Romans 1:18-25, especially verse 25). False teachers may offer an even better excuse for ungodliness, and even more convincing “lie” to believe, in place of the truth:
19 And while he was sitting on the judgment seat, his wife sent to him, saying, “Have nothing to do with that righteous Man; for last night I suffered greatly in a dream because of Him” (Matthew 27:19).
False teachers do not force their falsehood on others, they skillfully adapt their teaching to supply men with the falsehood they prefer to believe. Satan is successful because fallen men want what he has to offer.
(3) Satan preys on the weak and on their weaknesses. Satan targets those who are guilt-laden with sin as some of his prime targets:
For among them are those who enter into households and captivate weak women weighed down with sins, led on by various impulses, always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth (2 Timothy 3:6-7).
(4) Satan enhances his effectiveness by offering a message which appeals to the flesh. It is not the intellectual prowess of the diabolical disseminators of falsehood which compels the hearer to accept their teachings, it is the fact that their teaching provides a rationale for ungodly conduct and self-indulgence:
For speaking out arrogant words of vanity they entice by fleshly desires, by sensuality, those who barely escape from the ones who live in error, promising them freedom while they themselves are slaves of corruption; for by what a man is overcome, by this he is enslaved (2 Peter 2:18-19).
(5) Satan enhances his effectiveness by employing methods which appeal to the flesh. Not only does Satan’s message appeal to fallen and fleshly lusts of men, but his methods are also those which rest on the power of persuasion, rather than on the power of the truth. Note the contrast between Paul’s methods of teaching the truth and the “Madison Avenue” slick sales talk of the false teachers:
17 For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, not in cleverness of speech, that the cross of Christ should not be made void (1 Corinthians 1:17).
1 And when I came to you, brethren, I did not come with superiority of speech or of wisdom, proclaiming to you the testimony of God. 2 For I determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified. 3 And I was with you in weakness and in fear and in much trembling. 4 And my message and my preaching were not in persuasive words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, 5 that your faith should not rest on the wisdom of men, but on the power of God (1 Corinthians 2:1-5).
14 If any man’s work which he has built upon it remains, he shall receive a reward. 15 If any man’s work is burned up, he shall suffer loss; but he himself shall be saved, yet so as through fire. 16 Do you not know that you are a temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? 17 If any man destroys the temple of God, God will destroy him, for the temple of God is holy, and that is what you are (1 Corinthians 3:14-17).
1 Let a man regard us in this manner, as servants of Christ, and stewards of the mysteries of God. 2 In this case, moreover, it is required of stewards that one be found trustworthy (1 Corinthians 4:1-2).
Just how does Satan get away with his opposition to the truth? As I read through the account of the fall of man in Genesis chapter 3, my mind is boggled by the fact that Satan was able to convince Adam and Eve that God was a liar, and that he was telling the truth. How could a snake convince his keepers that the One who created all of them was not telling the truth, nor was He worthy of being obeyed? Let me suggest how Satan is able to be so effective in his opposition to the truth.
(1) Throughout the Scriptures, Satan’s deception is closely related to the arrogance and dogmatism with which he proposes his errors. It has taken me a long time to recognize this relationship, but now that I am alert to it, I see it frequently. Why, I have asked myself, would Adam and Eve believe a snake, rather than God? In the account of Satan’s temptation and their fall in Genesis chapter 3, we can see the arrogant boldness with which he tempts this couple. He dared to contradict God and to tell Eve that God’s words were false. He dared to imply that God was the liar, and not he.
The same arrogance is evident in the way in which Satan responded to God in the first two chapters of Job. In both the New Testament accounts of the temptation of our Lord Satan dares to urge our Lord to act independently of God, and to claim that he not only possesses all the kingdoms of the earth and to give them to whomever he chooses. He dares to quote Scripture to the Son of God and to tell Him how it should apply to His life and ministry. He further dares to ask Jesus to bow down to him in worship! He is so arrogant, so confident, that even today we are inclined to believe that he is speaking the truth, to grant that the kingdoms of the world are his to bestow.
These false teachers may even appear to be opposed to Satan, speaking arrogantly of angelic beings: “And especially those who indulge the flesh in its corrupt desires and despise authority. Daring, self-willed, they do not tremble when they revile angelic majesties” (2 Peter 2:10). It is this same dogmatism which causes many to heed the teachings of those false teachers who disseminate falsehood, sometimes identified as the “doctrine of demons:”
17 For we are not like many, peddling the word of God, but as from sincerity, but as from God, we speak in Christ in the sight of God (2 Corinthians 2:17).
6 For some men, straying from these things, have turned aside to fruitless discussion, 7 wanting to be teachers of the Law, even though they do not understand either what they are saying or the matters about which they make confident assertions (1 Timothy 1:6-7).
1 But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will also be false teachers among you, who will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing swift destruction upon themselves. 2 And many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of the truth will be maligned; …10 and especially those who indulge the flesh in its corrupt desires and despise authority. Daring, self-willed, they do not tremble when they revile angelic majesties, 11 whereas angels who are greater in might and power do not bring a reviling judgment against them before the Lord. 12 But these, like unreasoning animals, born as creatures of instinct to be captured and killed, reviling where they have no knowledge, will in the destruction of those creatures also be destroyed, (2 Peter 2:1-2, 10-12).155
Sometimes Satan even presents himself as “Christ”:
23 “Then if anyone says to you, ‘Behold, here is the Christ,’ or ‘There He is,’ do not believe him. 24 “For false Christs and false prophets will arise and will show great signs and wonders, so as to mislead, if possible, even the elect (Matthew 24:23-24).
(2) Satan appeals to our sinful and rebellious nature, offering us the lies we would rather believe than the truth. In Romans chapter 1, Paul speaks of the sin of men who choose to “exchange the truth of God for a lie” (see Romans 1:18-25, especially verse 25). False teachers may offer an even better excuse for ungodliness, and even more convincing “lie” to believe, in place of the truth:
19 And while he was sitting on the judgment seat, his wife sent to him, saying, “Have nothing to do with that righteous Man; for last night I suffered greatly in a dream because of Him” (Matthew 27:19).
False teachers do not force their falsehood on others, they skillfully adapt their teaching to supply men with the falsehood they prefer to believe. Satan is successful because fallen men want what he has to offer.
(3) Satan preys on the weak and on their weaknesses. Satan targets those who are guilt-laden with sin as some of his prime targets:
For among them are those who enter into households and captivate weak women weighed down with sins, led on by various impulses, always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth (2 Timothy 3:6-7).
(4) Satan enhances his effectiveness by offering a message which appeals to the flesh. It is not the intellectual prowess of the diabolical disseminators of falsehood which compels the hearer to accept their teachings, it is the fact that their teaching provides a rationale for ungodly conduct and self-indulgence:
For speaking out arrogant words of vanity they entice by fleshly desires, by sensuality, those who barely escape from the ones who live in error, promising them freedom while they themselves are slaves of corruption; for by what a man is overcome, by this he is enslaved (2 Peter 2:18-19).
(5) Satan enhances his effectiveness by employing methods which appeal to the flesh. Not only does Satan’s message appeal to fallen and fleshly lusts of men, but his methods are also those which rest on the power of persuasion, rather than on the power of the truth. Note the contrast between Paul’s methods of teaching the truth and the “Madison Avenue” slick sales talk of the false teachers:
17 For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, not in cleverness of speech, that the cross of Christ should not be made void (1 Corinthians 1:17).
1 And when I came to you, brethren, I did not come with superiority of speech or of wisdom, proclaiming to you the testimony of God. 2 For I determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified. 3 And I was with you in weakness and in fear and in much trembling. 4 And my message and my preaching were not in persuasive words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, 5 that your faith should not rest on the wisdom of men, but on the power of God (1 Corinthians 2:1-5).
14 If any man’s work which he has built upon it remains, he shall receive a reward. 15 If any man’s work is burned up, he shall suffer loss; but he himself shall be saved, yet so as through fire. 16 Do you not know that you are a temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? 17 If any man destroys the temple of God, God will destroy him, for the temple of God is holy, and that is what you are (1 Corinthians 3:14-17).
1 Let a man regard us in this manner, as servants of Christ, and stewards of the mysteries of God. 2 In this case, moreover, it is required of stewards that one be found trustworthy (1 Corinthians 4:1-2).
Putting On the Truth
It becomes quite apparent why truth is a valuable piece of our spiritual armor. Satan deals in deception and lies, and the truth is a part of our defense. If we are to “put on the full armor of God” then we must not only know what the truth is, we must also know how we put it on. That is the principle focus of this portion of our study—to define what truth is, and to explore the ways in which we put it on.
Pilate said it long ago: “What is truth?” (John 18:38). His words are certainly reflect a kind of cynicism about ever knowing what the truth is. In our own times, some despair of the truth ever being known. In this election year, political candidates exchange charges against one another daily, and we wonder if we can ever learn the truth. The Bible assures us that we can know the truth, and that the truth will set us free (John 8:32).
Centuries ago, the prophet Isaiah described the miserable state into which Israel had fallen. Among its many maladies, Israel had become a nation where truth was not only scarce, it seemed not to exist. There was no man who could save this nation from its sin, and so the Lord Himself came to bring both truth and justice to those who would trust and obey:
1 Behold, the LORD’s hand is not so short That it cannot save; Neither is His ear so dull That it cannot hear. 2 But your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, And your sins have hidden His face from you, so that He does not hear. 3 For your hands are defiled with blood, And your fingers with iniquity; Your lips have spoken falsehood, Your tongue mutters wickedness. 4 No one sues righteously and no one pleads honestly. They trust in confusion, and speak lies; They conceive mischief, and bring forth iniquity. 5 They hatch adders’ eggs and weave the spider’s web; He who eats of their eggs dies, And from that which is crushed a snake breaks forth. 6 Their webs will not become clothing, Nor will they cover themselves with their works; Their works are works of iniquity, And an act of violence is in their hands. 7 Their feet run to evil, And they hasten to shed innocent blood; Their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity; Devastation and destruction are in their highways. 8 They do not know the way of peace, And there is no justice in their tracks; They have made their paths crooked; Whoever treads on them does not know peace.
9 Therefore, justice is far from us, And righteousness does not overtake us; We hope for light, but behold, darkness; For brightness, but we walk in gloom. 10 We grope along the wall like blind men, We grope like those who have no eyes; We stumble at midday as in the twilight, Among those who are vigorous we are like dead men. 11 All of us growl like bears, And moan sadly like doves; We hope for justice, but there is none, For salvation, but it is far from us. 12 For our transgressions are multiplied before Thee, And our sins testify against us; For our transgressions are with us, And we know our iniquities: 13 Transgressing and denying the LORD, And turning away from our God, Speaking oppression and revolt, Conceiving in and uttering from the heart lying words. 14 And justice is turned back, And righteousness stands far away; For truth has stumbled in the street, And uprightness cannot enter. 15 Yes, truth is lacking; And he who turns aside from evil makes himself a prey. Now the LORD saw, And it was displeasing in His sight that there was no justice. 16 And He saw that there was no man, And was astonished that there was no one to intercede; Then His own arm brought salvation to Him; And His righteousness upheld Him. 17 And He put on righteousness like a breastplate, And a helmet of salvation on His head; And He put on garments of vengeance for clothing, And wrapped Himself with zeal as a mantle. 18 According to their deeds, so He will repay, Wrath to His adversaries, recompense to His enemies; To the coastlands He will make recompense. 19 So they will fear the name of the LORD from the west And His glory from the rising of the sun, For He will come like a rushing stream, Which the wind of the LORD drives. 20 “And a Redeemer will come to Zion, And to those who turn from transgression in Jacob,” declares the LORD. 21 “And as for Me, this is My covenant with them,” says the LORD: “My Spirit which is upon you, and My words which I have put in your mouth, shall not depart from your mouth, nor from the mouth of your offspring, nor from the mouth of your offspring’s offspring,” says the LORD, “from now and forever” (Isaiah 59:1-21).
One can hardly doubt that Paul’s imagery of the Christian’s armor comes from Isaiah (see also Isaiah 11:5). The Christian’s armor is the armor which Christ Himself put on when He set out to save fallen men from their sins. From Romans chapter 13 we learn that “putting on our armor” is simply “putting on Christ:”
11 And this do, knowing the time, that it is already the hour for you to awaken from sleep; for now salvation is nearer to us than when we believed. 12 The night is almost gone, and the day is at hand. Let us therefore lay aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. 13 Let us behave properly as in the day, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual promiscuity and sensuality, not in strife and jealousy. 14 But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh in regard to its lusts (Romans 13:11-14).
God is the “God of truth” who cannot lie (Psalm 31:5; Isaiah 65:16; Titus 1:2). He sent His Son to the earth to communicate, once and for all, His truth to men (see Hebrews 1:1-2; 2:1-4). The Lord Jesus not only came to communicate God’s truth (John 8:40), He was the Truth, the Truth that would set men free:
And the Word become flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth. John bore witness of Him, and creed out, saying, “This was He of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me has a higher rank than I, for He existed before me.’” For of His fulness we have all received, and grace and truth were realized through Jesus Christ. No man has seen God at any time; the only begotten God, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has explained Him (John 1:14-18).
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but through Me” (John 14:6).
“ … and you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free” (John 8:32).
The truth was that Jesus was God’s promised Messiah. He was the Lamb of God who was sent to take away the sins of the world (John 1:29). He died on the cross of Calvary, bearing our sins and its punishment. He was buried and rose from the dead, proving that God was satisfied with His saving work. It is by faith in Jesus Christ that men come not only to salvation, but to the truth. As Paul puts it, “But you did not learn Christ in this way, if indeed you have heard Him and have been taught in Him, just as truth is in Jesus” (Ephesians 4:20-21).
He who is the truth has sent the Holy Spirit, the “Spirit of Truth” (John 15:26; 16:13) and has given us the Bible, the “word of truth” (2 Corinthians 6:7; 2 Timothy 2:15; James 1:18), so that we may know all truth that is necessary for life and godliness (2 Peter 1:3-4; see also 2 Timothy 3:14-17).
Putting on the truth begins with trusting in Him who is the truth, the Lord Jesus Christ. From this point, we enter into the life-long process of being sanctified in the truth (John 17:17, 19). This happens as we put off our former way of thinking and are transformed and renewed in our minds through the Word of God (Romans 12:1-2; Ephesians 4:17-24). It happens as Christians put off falsehood and speak the truth to one another in love, to their edification (Ephesians 4:15, 25, 29). This also involves guarding our minds from anything which is not true (Philippians 4:8), and avoiding all forms of “knowledge” which turn us from Christ (Colossians 2). It means turning from gossip, rumor, speculation, myths, and the traditions of men, and turning to Christ and His Word. It means learning to look at the world as it really is (Proverbs). It means putting the truth into practice, and not just making it a profession (Hebrews 5:11-14; 1 John 2:4; 2 John 1:1-4). It means clinging only to those truths which the Bible clearly and emphatically reveal as such, and holding much more tentatively those “truths” which are regarded as such by mere men. It means learning the truth for ourselves, and not depending on others to tell us what is true (Acts 17:10ff.; 1 John 2:26-27).
Centuries ago, the prophet Amos spoke of a famine: “Behold, days are coming,” declares the Lord God, “When I will send a famine on the land, Not a famine for bread or a thirst for water, But rather for hearing the words of the LORD” (Amos 8:11).
I fear that we live in a time of great famine. It is not because the Bible is inaccessible to us, or that we are forbidden to study it. It is not for lack of many good books and study helps. It is for lack of a love of the truth, and ultimately for our Lord Himself. Let us put on the truth as our armor. Let us, like David, yearn for a deeper knowledge of God through His word (Psalm 119). Let us meditate upon His truth day and night. Let us pray in accordance with His truth. And let us walk in the truth, to His glory and our good.
147 See also 1 Kings 18:46; 2 Kings 4:29; 9:7; Job 40:7; Jeremiah 1:17; Isaiah 45:1.
148 See also 2 Corinthians 10:5-6; 11:3; Galatians 1:6-9.
149 See also Matthew 4:1-11; Luke 4:1-13; Ephesians 6:14.
150 See Acts 13:6-12; compare 2 Thessalonians 2:7-12.
151 A friend of mine pointed out to me that Satan is indeed subtle in disseminating his doctrine of “no marriage” and “forbidden foods.” For those who are not pre-disposed to the “spiritual” side of life, Satan seeks to deceive them by taking a different tack. Our ungodly culture is now more and more inclined to look upon marriage as undesirable. And so the practice of living together is the “better way.” Certain foods are prohibited, not because God has called them unclean, but because of environmental or animal rights issues. Satan is more than willing to let us “have it our way” so long as we end up thinking and acting his way.
It becomes quite apparent why truth is a valuable piece of our spiritual armor. Satan deals in deception and lies, and the truth is a part of our defense. If we are to “put on the full armor of God” then we must not only know what the truth is, we must also know how we put it on. That is the principle focus of this portion of our study—to define what truth is, and to explore the ways in which we put it on.
Pilate said it long ago: “What is truth?” (John 18:38). His words are certainly reflect a kind of cynicism about ever knowing what the truth is. In our own times, some despair of the truth ever being known. In this election year, political candidates exchange charges against one another daily, and we wonder if we can ever learn the truth. The Bible assures us that we can know the truth, and that the truth will set us free (John 8:32).
Centuries ago, the prophet Isaiah described the miserable state into which Israel had fallen. Among its many maladies, Israel had become a nation where truth was not only scarce, it seemed not to exist. There was no man who could save this nation from its sin, and so the Lord Himself came to bring both truth and justice to those who would trust and obey:
1 Behold, the LORD’s hand is not so short That it cannot save; Neither is His ear so dull That it cannot hear. 2 But your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, And your sins have hidden His face from you, so that He does not hear. 3 For your hands are defiled with blood, And your fingers with iniquity; Your lips have spoken falsehood, Your tongue mutters wickedness. 4 No one sues righteously and no one pleads honestly. They trust in confusion, and speak lies; They conceive mischief, and bring forth iniquity. 5 They hatch adders’ eggs and weave the spider’s web; He who eats of their eggs dies, And from that which is crushed a snake breaks forth. 6 Their webs will not become clothing, Nor will they cover themselves with their works; Their works are works of iniquity, And an act of violence is in their hands. 7 Their feet run to evil, And they hasten to shed innocent blood; Their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity; Devastation and destruction are in their highways. 8 They do not know the way of peace, And there is no justice in their tracks; They have made their paths crooked; Whoever treads on them does not know peace.
9 Therefore, justice is far from us, And righteousness does not overtake us; We hope for light, but behold, darkness; For brightness, but we walk in gloom. 10 We grope along the wall like blind men, We grope like those who have no eyes; We stumble at midday as in the twilight, Among those who are vigorous we are like dead men. 11 All of us growl like bears, And moan sadly like doves; We hope for justice, but there is none, For salvation, but it is far from us. 12 For our transgressions are multiplied before Thee, And our sins testify against us; For our transgressions are with us, And we know our iniquities: 13 Transgressing and denying the LORD, And turning away from our God, Speaking oppression and revolt, Conceiving in and uttering from the heart lying words. 14 And justice is turned back, And righteousness stands far away; For truth has stumbled in the street, And uprightness cannot enter. 15 Yes, truth is lacking; And he who turns aside from evil makes himself a prey. Now the LORD saw, And it was displeasing in His sight that there was no justice. 16 And He saw that there was no man, And was astonished that there was no one to intercede; Then His own arm brought salvation to Him; And His righteousness upheld Him. 17 And He put on righteousness like a breastplate, And a helmet of salvation on His head; And He put on garments of vengeance for clothing, And wrapped Himself with zeal as a mantle. 18 According to their deeds, so He will repay, Wrath to His adversaries, recompense to His enemies; To the coastlands He will make recompense. 19 So they will fear the name of the LORD from the west And His glory from the rising of the sun, For He will come like a rushing stream, Which the wind of the LORD drives. 20 “And a Redeemer will come to Zion, And to those who turn from transgression in Jacob,” declares the LORD. 21 “And as for Me, this is My covenant with them,” says the LORD: “My Spirit which is upon you, and My words which I have put in your mouth, shall not depart from your mouth, nor from the mouth of your offspring, nor from the mouth of your offspring’s offspring,” says the LORD, “from now and forever” (Isaiah 59:1-21).
One can hardly doubt that Paul’s imagery of the Christian’s armor comes from Isaiah (see also Isaiah 11:5). The Christian’s armor is the armor which Christ Himself put on when He set out to save fallen men from their sins. From Romans chapter 13 we learn that “putting on our armor” is simply “putting on Christ:”
11 And this do, knowing the time, that it is already the hour for you to awaken from sleep; for now salvation is nearer to us than when we believed. 12 The night is almost gone, and the day is at hand. Let us therefore lay aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. 13 Let us behave properly as in the day, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual promiscuity and sensuality, not in strife and jealousy. 14 But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh in regard to its lusts (Romans 13:11-14).
God is the “God of truth” who cannot lie (Psalm 31:5; Isaiah 65:16; Titus 1:2). He sent His Son to the earth to communicate, once and for all, His truth to men (see Hebrews 1:1-2; 2:1-4). The Lord Jesus not only came to communicate God’s truth (John 8:40), He was the Truth, the Truth that would set men free:
And the Word become flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth. John bore witness of Him, and creed out, saying, “This was He of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me has a higher rank than I, for He existed before me.’” For of His fulness we have all received, and grace and truth were realized through Jesus Christ. No man has seen God at any time; the only begotten God, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has explained Him (John 1:14-18).
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but through Me” (John 14:6).
“ … and you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free” (John 8:32).
The truth was that Jesus was God’s promised Messiah. He was the Lamb of God who was sent to take away the sins of the world (John 1:29). He died on the cross of Calvary, bearing our sins and its punishment. He was buried and rose from the dead, proving that God was satisfied with His saving work. It is by faith in Jesus Christ that men come not only to salvation, but to the truth. As Paul puts it, “But you did not learn Christ in this way, if indeed you have heard Him and have been taught in Him, just as truth is in Jesus” (Ephesians 4:20-21).
He who is the truth has sent the Holy Spirit, the “Spirit of Truth” (John 15:26; 16:13) and has given us the Bible, the “word of truth” (2 Corinthians 6:7; 2 Timothy 2:15; James 1:18), so that we may know all truth that is necessary for life and godliness (2 Peter 1:3-4; see also 2 Timothy 3:14-17).
Putting on the truth begins with trusting in Him who is the truth, the Lord Jesus Christ. From this point, we enter into the life-long process of being sanctified in the truth (John 17:17, 19). This happens as we put off our former way of thinking and are transformed and renewed in our minds through the Word of God (Romans 12:1-2; Ephesians 4:17-24). It happens as Christians put off falsehood and speak the truth to one another in love, to their edification (Ephesians 4:15, 25, 29). This also involves guarding our minds from anything which is not true (Philippians 4:8), and avoiding all forms of “knowledge” which turn us from Christ (Colossians 2). It means turning from gossip, rumor, speculation, myths, and the traditions of men, and turning to Christ and His Word. It means learning to look at the world as it really is (Proverbs). It means putting the truth into practice, and not just making it a profession (Hebrews 5:11-14; 1 John 2:4; 2 John 1:1-4). It means clinging only to those truths which the Bible clearly and emphatically reveal as such, and holding much more tentatively those “truths” which are regarded as such by mere men. It means learning the truth for ourselves, and not depending on others to tell us what is true (Acts 17:10ff.; 1 John 2:26-27).
Centuries ago, the prophet Amos spoke of a famine: “Behold, days are coming,” declares the Lord God, “When I will send a famine on the land, Not a famine for bread or a thirst for water, But rather for hearing the words of the LORD” (Amos 8:11).
I fear that we live in a time of great famine. It is not because the Bible is inaccessible to us, or that we are forbidden to study it. It is not for lack of many good books and study helps. It is for lack of a love of the truth, and ultimately for our Lord Himself. Let us put on the truth as our armor. Let us, like David, yearn for a deeper knowledge of God through His word (Psalm 119). Let us meditate upon His truth day and night. Let us pray in accordance with His truth. And let us walk in the truth, to His glory and our good.
147 See also 1 Kings 18:46; 2 Kings 4:29; 9:7; Job 40:7; Jeremiah 1:17; Isaiah 45:1.
148 See also 2 Corinthians 10:5-6; 11:3; Galatians 1:6-9.
149 See also Matthew 4:1-11; Luke 4:1-13; Ephesians 6:14.
150 See Acts 13:6-12; compare 2 Thessalonians 2:7-12.
151 A friend of mine pointed out to me that Satan is indeed subtle in disseminating his doctrine of “no marriage” and “forbidden foods.” For those who are not pre-disposed to the “spiritual” side of life, Satan seeks to deceive them by taking a different tack. Our ungodly culture is now more and more inclined to look upon marriage as undesirable. And so the practice of living together is the “better way.” Certain foods are prohibited, not because God has called them unclean, but because of environmental or animal rights issues. Satan is more than willing to let us “have it our way” so long as we end up thinking and acting his way.
Anointing
We can’t fight spiritual battles on our own. “The yoke will be destroyed because of the anointing” (Isaiah 10:27). Jesus said, “Apart from Me you can do nothing” (John 15:5). If we are to break the yoke of the strong man in people’s lives we will need God’s anointing and power to do so. It’s the power of God that pulls down spiritual strongholds in people’s lives and this world in which we live (2 Corinthians 10:4-5).
This type of anointing does not come by accident. It takes time seated at the feet of Jesus (Luke 10:38-42). When Peter was threatened by the religious leaders we read, “Peter, filled with the Holy Ghost, said unto them… (and) when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant men, they marvelled; and they took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus” (Acts 4:8 and 13).
There are times when the foothold of the enemy in a person’s life or a certain situation may be so strong that it will take seeking the Lord in a time of fasting and prayer to see it broken.
We can’t fight spiritual battles on our own. “The yoke will be destroyed because of the anointing” (Isaiah 10:27). Jesus said, “Apart from Me you can do nothing” (John 15:5). If we are to break the yoke of the strong man in people’s lives we will need God’s anointing and power to do so. It’s the power of God that pulls down spiritual strongholds in people’s lives and this world in which we live (2 Corinthians 10:4-5).
This type of anointing does not come by accident. It takes time seated at the feet of Jesus (Luke 10:38-42). When Peter was threatened by the religious leaders we read, “Peter, filled with the Holy Ghost, said unto them… (and) when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant men, they marvelled; and they took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus” (Acts 4:8 and 13).
There are times when the foothold of the enemy in a person’s life or a certain situation may be so strong that it will take seeking the Lord in a time of fasting and prayer to see it broken.
Avalanche
Mountainous strongholds come tumbling down when God’s people bind the strong man (Mark 3:27) and come against the gates of hell under the anointing of the Holy Ghost (Matthew 16:18-19). Praise the Lord!
“The weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God” (2 Corinthians 10:4-5).
rior to Jesus’ statement about the abundant life in John 10:10, he says that Satan is a “thief [who] comes only to steal and kill and destroy.” Jesus is pointing out that Satan will do everything he can to keep you as a believer from experiencing a life of shalom. How? By tempting you to believe his lies.
Mountainous strongholds come tumbling down when God’s people bind the strong man (Mark 3:27) and come against the gates of hell under the anointing of the Holy Ghost (Matthew 16:18-19). Praise the Lord!
“The weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God” (2 Corinthians 10:4-5).
rior to Jesus’ statement about the abundant life in John 10:10, he says that Satan is a “thief [who] comes only to steal and kill and destroy.” Jesus is pointing out that Satan will do everything he can to keep you as a believer from experiencing a life of shalom. How? By tempting you to believe his lies.
The Lies
Satan is the great deceiver, and deception is his primary weapon. He tempted Eve in the Garden with lies (Genesis 3:1-4); he unsuccessfully tempted Jesus in the wilderness with lies (Matthew 4:1-11); and today, Satan is attempting to deceive the whole world with lies (Revelation 12:9). The battle for shalom is spiritual warfare—it is fought and won on the battlefield of your mind, in your thoughts.
Read Genesis 3:1-4, Matthew 4:1-11, Revelation 12:9 and highlight the lies of Satan.
Satan is the great deceiver, and deception is his primary weapon. He tempted Eve in the Garden with lies (Genesis 3:1-4); he unsuccessfully tempted Jesus in the wilderness with lies (Matthew 4:1-11); and today, Satan is attempting to deceive the whole world with lies (Revelation 12:9). The battle for shalom is spiritual warfare—it is fought and won on the battlefield of your mind, in your thoughts.
Read Genesis 3:1-4, Matthew 4:1-11, Revelation 12:9 and highlight the lies of Satan.
The Battle
The apostle Paul writes that every believer is engaged in a spiritual battle:
“Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.” (Ephesians 6:11-12)
Read Ephesians 6:10-20 and consider your preparation and prayers for the battle.
The apostle Paul writes that every believer is engaged in a spiritual battle:
“Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.” (Ephesians 6:11-12)
Read Ephesians 6:10-20 and consider your preparation and prayers for the battle.
The Ongoing Struggle
It is important to remember that Jesus has conquered the devil and his army of fallen angels (Colossians 2:15), but it is also true that Satan is still active in this world.
Peter writes: “Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8). Satan attempts to devour believers through deception infused with shame and fear.
Jesus summed up Satan’s character by saying: “He has always hated the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, it is consistent with his character; for he is a liar and the father of lies” (John 8:44).
Therefore, the spiritual battle believers are fighting is on the battlefield of the mind, combating Satan’s lies with God’s truth.
It is important to remember that Jesus has conquered the devil and his army of fallen angels (Colossians 2:15), but it is also true that Satan is still active in this world.
Peter writes: “Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8). Satan attempts to devour believers through deception infused with shame and fear.
Jesus summed up Satan’s character by saying: “He has always hated the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, it is consistent with his character; for he is a liar and the father of lies” (John 8:44).
Therefore, the spiritual battle believers are fighting is on the battlefield of the mind, combating Satan’s lies with God’s truth.
The Truth
The most effective way to fight against these lies is to compare them to God’s truth as revealed in the Bible. Paul refers to this tactic as taking your thoughts captive to Christ:
“The weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds. We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ.” (2 Corinthians 10:4-5)
Comparing Satan’s lies to God’s truth in the Bible will prevent them from taking root and becoming a stronghold in your mind.
PRAY: God, give me Your power and strength as I prepare my mind and spirit for the battle against the deception of Satan. Thank you that Jesus has conquered the evil one and that your Holy Spirit is with me.
- Put in truth to defeat doubt. John 17:17. Reading the Bible transforms our thinking and fortifies our faith.
- Put your praises on paper to counter discontentment. Phil.4:8. When we take the time to write down what we are thankful for, what we have seen God do, instead of focusing on our grievances, we have peace and a grateful heart.
- Put on your spiritual armor listed in Ephesians 6:10-18 to shake off discouragement. The devil wants to steal our courage, confidence, and hope. But we are emboldened and operating by faith when we get battle-ready.
- Put your eyes on Jesus when you are distracted. Hebrews 12:2. When we fix our eyes on Jesus, then all the things that are vying for our attention and causing us anxiety melt away.
- Put on charity to guard against division. Col. 3:12-17. Choosing to obey the word of God and forgive each other, forbear with one another, and forget the wrongs, brings unity in our relationships, homes, and churches. And we are far more effective together, than apart.
- Put prayers up when depression threatens to drown you. 1Thessalonians 5:17, Luke 18:1-8. I’ve been in that pit, and what helps me out of it most is prayer. I pray even when I don’t feel like it, even when I don’t see immediate results, and even when it seems like I’m just talking to myself. I also reach out to my trusted prayer partners and ask them to intercede for me. Prayer is powerful!!
- Put your hope in Jesus when disabilities drag you down. 2 Cor. 12:9-10. The definition of disability is a physical or mental condition that limits a person’s movements, senses, or activities. When we’re a threat to the Adversary’s agenda, he uses infirmities to isolate us. But by placing our hope in Jesus, we can see past our current circumstances and look forward to what God is going to do in us and through us, despite our weaknesses.
The most effective way to fight against these lies is to compare them to God’s truth as revealed in the Bible. Paul refers to this tactic as taking your thoughts captive to Christ:
“The weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds. We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ.” (2 Corinthians 10:4-5)
Comparing Satan’s lies to God’s truth in the Bible will prevent them from taking root and becoming a stronghold in your mind.
PRAY: God, give me Your power and strength as I prepare my mind and spirit for the battle against the deception of Satan. Thank you that Jesus has conquered the evil one and that your Holy Spirit is with me.
- Put in truth to defeat doubt. John 17:17. Reading the Bible transforms our thinking and fortifies our faith.
- Put your praises on paper to counter discontentment. Phil.4:8. When we take the time to write down what we are thankful for, what we have seen God do, instead of focusing on our grievances, we have peace and a grateful heart.
- Put on your spiritual armor listed in Ephesians 6:10-18 to shake off discouragement. The devil wants to steal our courage, confidence, and hope. But we are emboldened and operating by faith when we get battle-ready.
- Put your eyes on Jesus when you are distracted. Hebrews 12:2. When we fix our eyes on Jesus, then all the things that are vying for our attention and causing us anxiety melt away.
- Put on charity to guard against division. Col. 3:12-17. Choosing to obey the word of God and forgive each other, forbear with one another, and forget the wrongs, brings unity in our relationships, homes, and churches. And we are far more effective together, than apart.
- Put prayers up when depression threatens to drown you. 1Thessalonians 5:17, Luke 18:1-8. I’ve been in that pit, and what helps me out of it most is prayer. I pray even when I don’t feel like it, even when I don’t see immediate results, and even when it seems like I’m just talking to myself. I also reach out to my trusted prayer partners and ask them to intercede for me. Prayer is powerful!!
- Put your hope in Jesus when disabilities drag you down. 2 Cor. 12:9-10. The definition of disability is a physical or mental condition that limits a person’s movements, senses, or activities. When we’re a threat to the Adversary’s agenda, he uses infirmities to isolate us. But by placing our hope in Jesus, we can see past our current circumstances and look forward to what God is going to do in us and through us, despite our weaknesses.
1. Acknowledge that Jesus is Lord
As born-again Christians, we believe that Jesus Christ is our Lord and Savior. He died for our sins on the cross, and through Him we can receive eternal life in Heaven. Jesus has come and conquered, and now has authority through power given to Him in Heaven and earth (Matthew 28:18). Jesus casted out demons, healed the sick, restored sight in the blind, and performed many other wonderful miracles during His time on earth. With our faith in Jesus, His name is above all names (Philippians 2:9-11), and can be used to cast out demons, and pray for protection. How do we know this for certain? When Jesus restored the sight of the blind man (Mark 8:22-38), it was through his faith in Jesus that helped make him see. If we do not have complete faith in Jesus and all that He has done and continues to do for us, then how can we fight this spiritual battle? Have faith and believe in the power in the name of Jesus Christ. His blood cleansed us of all of our sins (Matthew 26:28), and is a powerful weapon against fighting sin in the flesh, and evil in the spirit.
As born-again Christians, we believe that Jesus Christ is our Lord and Savior. He died for our sins on the cross, and through Him we can receive eternal life in Heaven. Jesus has come and conquered, and now has authority through power given to Him in Heaven and earth (Matthew 28:18). Jesus casted out demons, healed the sick, restored sight in the blind, and performed many other wonderful miracles during His time on earth. With our faith in Jesus, His name is above all names (Philippians 2:9-11), and can be used to cast out demons, and pray for protection. How do we know this for certain? When Jesus restored the sight of the blind man (Mark 8:22-38), it was through his faith in Jesus that helped make him see. If we do not have complete faith in Jesus and all that He has done and continues to do for us, then how can we fight this spiritual battle? Have faith and believe in the power in the name of Jesus Christ. His blood cleansed us of all of our sins (Matthew 26:28), and is a powerful weapon against fighting sin in the flesh, and evil in the spirit.
2. Fear No Evil
“What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?” This verse in Romans 8:31 depicts God’s unconditional love and protection for His children. If God is for us, then who can be against us? As long as we have faith in God, He will help us get through it all.
God is love, He is not fear. Fear comes from the devil. Our faith must be strong and shine through the darkness. We must not be afraid. If we are afraid of something that we can easily be protected from, then how can we truly believe in God’s ability to be there for us? Remember when I mentioned earlier about the parable of the blind man? Although he did not see, he had faith, and through his faith, he was healed, and his sight was restored. We must walk by faith, and not by sight. This battle is of the spirit, which means that it cannot be seen, but rather, it tests our faith.
Even when we do see, we must believe. In Matthew 14:22-31, Peter and the other disciples were on a ship, tossed about in the sea. They saw something from afar, and it was Jesus coming to save them. “But straightway Jesus spake unto them, saying, Be of good cheer; it is I; be not afraid” (Matthew 14:27). Peter called out to Jesus and said, “Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water” (Matthew 14:28). So Jesus allowed Peter to walk on the water towards Him, but when Peter felt the strong winds, he was afraid, and he began to sink calling out Jesus for help. Jesus came over to him, stretched forth his hand to rescue Peter and said, “O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?” (Matthew 14:31). Peter asked Jesus for help, and began walking on water towards Him, but his fear overcame his faith, and that’s why Jesus said to Peter where did you doubt?
“What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?” This verse in Romans 8:31 depicts God’s unconditional love and protection for His children. If God is for us, then who can be against us? As long as we have faith in God, He will help us get through it all.
God is love, He is not fear. Fear comes from the devil. Our faith must be strong and shine through the darkness. We must not be afraid. If we are afraid of something that we can easily be protected from, then how can we truly believe in God’s ability to be there for us? Remember when I mentioned earlier about the parable of the blind man? Although he did not see, he had faith, and through his faith, he was healed, and his sight was restored. We must walk by faith, and not by sight. This battle is of the spirit, which means that it cannot be seen, but rather, it tests our faith.
Even when we do see, we must believe. In Matthew 14:22-31, Peter and the other disciples were on a ship, tossed about in the sea. They saw something from afar, and it was Jesus coming to save them. “But straightway Jesus spake unto them, saying, Be of good cheer; it is I; be not afraid” (Matthew 14:27). Peter called out to Jesus and said, “Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water” (Matthew 14:28). So Jesus allowed Peter to walk on the water towards Him, but when Peter felt the strong winds, he was afraid, and he began to sink calling out Jesus for help. Jesus came over to him, stretched forth his hand to rescue Peter and said, “O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?” (Matthew 14:31). Peter asked Jesus for help, and began walking on water towards Him, but his fear overcame his faith, and that’s why Jesus said to Peter where did you doubt?
3. Study and Use the Word
The Word of God is our most powerful tool to combat the spiritual warfare. “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart” (Hebrews 4:12).
Demons tremble at the name of Jesus and when we study and speak the Word of God. “Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble” (James 2:19).
Study up and be on guard! “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth” (2 Timothy 2:15).
The Word of God is our most powerful tool to combat the spiritual warfare. “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart” (Hebrews 4:12).
Demons tremble at the name of Jesus and when we study and speak the Word of God. “Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble” (James 2:19).
Study up and be on guard! “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth” (2 Timothy 2:15).
4. Stay In Constant Prayer
Holy Warrior Cross Pendant in 14K Gold
Prayer/praying is absolutely important because it strengthens our relationship and our faith in God, allows us to cast all of our worries and stresses to Him to help us, and allows us to be guided to do His Will and not our own. Aside from The Bible, praying is our direct communication with God. It is of paramount importance, especially when dealing with spiritual battles, to pray to God and allow Him to do the rest. “Pray without ceasing” (1 Thessalonians 5:17).
Another reason why staying in prayer is so beneficial is that our focus is on things above, and not of things in the world. It helps us to be drawn closer to God, and further away from the world/the devil. “Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth” (Colossians 3:2). When our mindset is filled with Godly aspects, rather than worldly aspects, then our mindset when battling against the darkness will be filled with the light of Christ.
Holy Warrior Cross Pendant in 14K Gold
Prayer/praying is absolutely important because it strengthens our relationship and our faith in God, allows us to cast all of our worries and stresses to Him to help us, and allows us to be guided to do His Will and not our own. Aside from The Bible, praying is our direct communication with God. It is of paramount importance, especially when dealing with spiritual battles, to pray to God and allow Him to do the rest. “Pray without ceasing” (1 Thessalonians 5:17).
Another reason why staying in prayer is so beneficial is that our focus is on things above, and not of things in the world. It helps us to be drawn closer to God, and further away from the world/the devil. “Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth” (Colossians 3:2). When our mindset is filled with Godly aspects, rather than worldly aspects, then our mindset when battling against the darkness will be filled with the light of Christ.
5. Put On The Whole Armor of God
Lastly, put on the armor of God. Allow God to protect you and guide you through conquering these battles. Ask Him for help and He shall answer your prayers. You cannot do this alone. You need the shield of faith, the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the spirit of God to defeat all evil. Evdry single part of this armor reflects upon the perfect and holy righteousness of God and His ability to defeat the rulers of the darkness of this world. As long as yoj follow each and every one of these steps, and strengthen your faith in The Lord, you will succeed!
Ephesians 6:10-18 – “Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 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 armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. 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: Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;”.
In summary, have faith in Jesus, become saved and born-again, put all of your trust and faith in Him, have no fear, study The Word, stay constant in prayer and put on the armor of God. I hope that this encourages you all. Soldier on, warriors of Christ!
Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. (Ephesians 6:10-13)
How can we stand firm in spiritual warfare?
In this text, Paul talks about the spiritual war every Christian is engaged in. When a person accepts Christ as Savior, he crosses over from the realm of darkness to the realm of light. He enters a spiritual war that includes demons and angels battling over the souls of men.
Sadly, many Christians live without any real awareness of this battle, and are therefore losing it. There are two wrong views of this battle: some see Satan and his demons in every cough, problem at work, or difficulty with their car. He gets far too much credit in many Christian circles. However, in other circles, Christians act as if Satan doesn’t really exist. They know he is there, but they live without any true awareness of his activity in their lives.
We must recognize that Satan is real. He is an enemy of God and an enemy of the church. He tempts, traps, deceives, and kills, and nobody is exempt from his wrath. In light of this, Paul exhorts us to live the Spirit-filled life. In Ephesians 5:18, he calls believers to be filled with the Spirit, and then in the following verses, he looks at the results of the filling, including the Spirit-filled marriage, home, and workplace (v. 19-33, 6:1-9). A believer who is living a life of power—one that affects and changes people—will receive special attention from the evil one. He doesn’t waste his best resources on those far away from God, but the closer a person gets to God and the more faithful he or she is, the more the enemy attacks.
It is not uncommon for me to talk to men and women who experience more problems the closer they get to God. The more they read their Bible, the more involved they get in church or ministry, the more problems they encounter. In fact, I remember one young man sharing the constant problems he experienced when faithfully reading his Bible, and it made him not want to read it at all. This is exactly how our enemy works.
As seen with Satan’s temptation of Adam and Eve in the Garden, he wants people to doubt God and to turn away from following him. There is no greater joy for the enemy than when a believer is angry at God or cursing him. That was his objective when attacking Job—he wanted Job to curse God (Job 1:11), and he wants us to do so as well.
In Ephesians 6, Paul talks about standing firm in spiritual warfare. The phrase “stand firm” (from histēmi), when used in a military sense, had the idea of holding a critical position while under attack.”1 He mentions our need to stand four times (v.11,13-14). Essentially, he says the wobbly Christian—the one not serious about God and trapped in sin—cannot stand in this war. He will be destroyed. Sadly, many fail to stand in this battle. MacArthur’s comments are helpful in considering this reality:
Countless men and women have faithfully taught Sunday school for years, led many people to Jesus Christ, pastored a church, led Bible studies, ministered to the sick, and done every sort of service in the Lord’s name—only to one day give up, turn their backs on His work, and disappear into the world. The circumstances differ, but the underlying reason is always the same: they took God’s armor off and thereby lost the courage, the power, and the desire to stand firm.2
How can we stand in this treacherous war and not miss our calling, be taken captive, or be destroyed? We’ll consider three ways to stand firm in this spiritual war.
Big Question: How can believers stand firm in spiritual warfare according to Ephesians 6:10-13?
Lastly, put on the armor of God. Allow God to protect you and guide you through conquering these battles. Ask Him for help and He shall answer your prayers. You cannot do this alone. You need the shield of faith, the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the spirit of God to defeat all evil. Evdry single part of this armor reflects upon the perfect and holy righteousness of God and His ability to defeat the rulers of the darkness of this world. As long as yoj follow each and every one of these steps, and strengthen your faith in The Lord, you will succeed!
Ephesians 6:10-18 – “Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 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 armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. 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: Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;”.
In summary, have faith in Jesus, become saved and born-again, put all of your trust and faith in Him, have no fear, study The Word, stay constant in prayer and put on the armor of God. I hope that this encourages you all. Soldier on, warriors of Christ!
Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. (Ephesians 6:10-13)
How can we stand firm in spiritual warfare?
In this text, Paul talks about the spiritual war every Christian is engaged in. When a person accepts Christ as Savior, he crosses over from the realm of darkness to the realm of light. He enters a spiritual war that includes demons and angels battling over the souls of men.
Sadly, many Christians live without any real awareness of this battle, and are therefore losing it. There are two wrong views of this battle: some see Satan and his demons in every cough, problem at work, or difficulty with their car. He gets far too much credit in many Christian circles. However, in other circles, Christians act as if Satan doesn’t really exist. They know he is there, but they live without any true awareness of his activity in their lives.
We must recognize that Satan is real. He is an enemy of God and an enemy of the church. He tempts, traps, deceives, and kills, and nobody is exempt from his wrath. In light of this, Paul exhorts us to live the Spirit-filled life. In Ephesians 5:18, he calls believers to be filled with the Spirit, and then in the following verses, he looks at the results of the filling, including the Spirit-filled marriage, home, and workplace (v. 19-33, 6:1-9). A believer who is living a life of power—one that affects and changes people—will receive special attention from the evil one. He doesn’t waste his best resources on those far away from God, but the closer a person gets to God and the more faithful he or she is, the more the enemy attacks.
It is not uncommon for me to talk to men and women who experience more problems the closer they get to God. The more they read their Bible, the more involved they get in church or ministry, the more problems they encounter. In fact, I remember one young man sharing the constant problems he experienced when faithfully reading his Bible, and it made him not want to read it at all. This is exactly how our enemy works.
As seen with Satan’s temptation of Adam and Eve in the Garden, he wants people to doubt God and to turn away from following him. There is no greater joy for the enemy than when a believer is angry at God or cursing him. That was his objective when attacking Job—he wanted Job to curse God (Job 1:11), and he wants us to do so as well.
In Ephesians 6, Paul talks about standing firm in spiritual warfare. The phrase “stand firm” (from histēmi), when used in a military sense, had the idea of holding a critical position while under attack.”1 He mentions our need to stand four times (v.11,13-14). Essentially, he says the wobbly Christian—the one not serious about God and trapped in sin—cannot stand in this war. He will be destroyed. Sadly, many fail to stand in this battle. MacArthur’s comments are helpful in considering this reality:
Countless men and women have faithfully taught Sunday school for years, led many people to Jesus Christ, pastored a church, led Bible studies, ministered to the sick, and done every sort of service in the Lord’s name—only to one day give up, turn their backs on His work, and disappear into the world. The circumstances differ, but the underlying reason is always the same: they took God’s armor off and thereby lost the courage, the power, and the desire to stand firm.2
How can we stand in this treacherous war and not miss our calling, be taken captive, or be destroyed? We’ll consider three ways to stand firm in this spiritual war.
Big Question: How can believers stand firm in spiritual warfare according to Ephesians 6:10-13?
Believers Stand Firm by Being Prepared
Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God…(Ephesians 6:10-11)
In order to stand firm, believers must prepare for battle. This is true for any warfare—a soldier cannot be successful without preparation. Governments invest billions of dollars into training their soldiers both mentally and physically, and such commitment should be similar for Christians—no corners should be cut in becoming spiritually prepared. Many lose this battle simply because of failure to prepare.
Paul says to “be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God.” Essentially, Paul wants believers to understand that this battle cannot be won through human strength, but in God’s strength alone. He talks about God’s power throughout Ephesians. In Ephesians 1:18-21, he prays for the believers to know this power.
I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty strength, which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come.
This power raised Christ from the dead and put Satan and his demons under his feet (and therefore also under ours according to Ephesians 2:6). We must know that this power is in us. But also in Ephesians 3:16, Paul prays for the believers to be strengthened by it. He says, “I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being.” Finally, in Ephesians 5:18, he calls for us to be filled with the Spirit—meaning to be controlled and empowered by him.
A powerless Christianity is a vulnerable Christianity—in danger of being enslaved and destroyed by the enemy. This is what we see in most churches and in most Christians’ lives—a powerless Christianity. We must constantly pray to know the power that is in us, to be strengthened by it, and to be continually filled with it. That is what Paul again calls for in Ephesians 6:10. “Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power”—the same power that raised Christ from the dead and seated him in heavenly places over the enemy. We must put on the full armor of God so we can take our stand.
Since the verb “strong” is passive present, the verse could also be rendered, ‘‘Strengthen yourselves in the Lord” or (neb) “Find your strength in the Lord.” It is the same construction as in 2 Timothy 2:1 where Paul exhorts Timothy to “take strength from the grace of God which is ours in Christ Jesus” (neb).3
In considering the armor of God, we must realize that throughout Scripture clothing often refers to attitudes and actions (cf. Col 3:12-14, Eph 4:24-25). The armor is God’s clothing, as it essentially represents his character. Isaiah 59:17 says, “He put on righteousness as his breastplate, and the helmet of salvation on his head; he put on the garments of vengeance and wrapped himself in zeal as in a cloak.” Therefore, we prepare for battle by putting on God’s power and God’s character.
Interpretation Question: How can we be strong in the Lord (God’s power) and put on his armor (God’s character)?
Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God…(Ephesians 6:10-11)
In order to stand firm, believers must prepare for battle. This is true for any warfare—a soldier cannot be successful without preparation. Governments invest billions of dollars into training their soldiers both mentally and physically, and such commitment should be similar for Christians—no corners should be cut in becoming spiritually prepared. Many lose this battle simply because of failure to prepare.
Paul says to “be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God.” Essentially, Paul wants believers to understand that this battle cannot be won through human strength, but in God’s strength alone. He talks about God’s power throughout Ephesians. In Ephesians 1:18-21, he prays for the believers to know this power.
I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty strength, which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come.
This power raised Christ from the dead and put Satan and his demons under his feet (and therefore also under ours according to Ephesians 2:6). We must know that this power is in us. But also in Ephesians 3:16, Paul prays for the believers to be strengthened by it. He says, “I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being.” Finally, in Ephesians 5:18, he calls for us to be filled with the Spirit—meaning to be controlled and empowered by him.
A powerless Christianity is a vulnerable Christianity—in danger of being enslaved and destroyed by the enemy. This is what we see in most churches and in most Christians’ lives—a powerless Christianity. We must constantly pray to know the power that is in us, to be strengthened by it, and to be continually filled with it. That is what Paul again calls for in Ephesians 6:10. “Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power”—the same power that raised Christ from the dead and seated him in heavenly places over the enemy. We must put on the full armor of God so we can take our stand.
Since the verb “strong” is passive present, the verse could also be rendered, ‘‘Strengthen yourselves in the Lord” or (neb) “Find your strength in the Lord.” It is the same construction as in 2 Timothy 2:1 where Paul exhorts Timothy to “take strength from the grace of God which is ours in Christ Jesus” (neb).3
In considering the armor of God, we must realize that throughout Scripture clothing often refers to attitudes and actions (cf. Col 3:12-14, Eph 4:24-25). The armor is God’s clothing, as it essentially represents his character. Isaiah 59:17 says, “He put on righteousness as his breastplate, and the helmet of salvation on his head; he put on the garments of vengeance and wrapped himself in zeal as in a cloak.” Therefore, we prepare for battle by putting on God’s power and God’s character.
Interpretation Question: How can we be strong in the Lord (God’s power) and put on his armor (God’s character)?
1. We must recognize our weakness.
If we don’t recognize our insufficiency for this battle, we won’t put on God’s strength and character. Therefore, to prepare us for a lifetime of battle, God often allows us to go through pain, trials, and failure first to show us our weakness. Paul said this in 2 Corinthians 12:9-10 about God’s response to his request to take away the thorn in the flesh:
But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
Often trials are meant to reveal our weakness so we can see our need for more of God’s power and character.
If we don’t recognize our insufficiency for this battle, we won’t put on God’s strength and character. Therefore, to prepare us for a lifetime of battle, God often allows us to go through pain, trials, and failure first to show us our weakness. Paul said this in 2 Corinthians 12:9-10 about God’s response to his request to take away the thorn in the flesh:
But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
Often trials are meant to reveal our weakness so we can see our need for more of God’s power and character.
2. We must be dependent.
Again, Ephesians 6:10 can be translated, “Find your strength in the Lord.” We need to depend on God to stand in this battle. Sadly, too many Christians are independent. You can see this in their lack of desire to read the Bible, pray, or fellowship with other believers. Why is this so common? It is because they are too independent. They believe that they can make it on their own.
However, the very opposite is true. We can do nothing without Christ. We are like sheep without a shepherd. We are like branches apart from the vine. John 15:5 says, “‘I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.”
Are you abiding in Christ? Are you drawing near him daily? Or are you independent, and therefore losing this spiritual battle?
Again, Ephesians 6:10 can be translated, “Find your strength in the Lord.” We need to depend on God to stand in this battle. Sadly, too many Christians are independent. You can see this in their lack of desire to read the Bible, pray, or fellowship with other believers. Why is this so common? It is because they are too independent. They believe that they can make it on their own.
However, the very opposite is true. We can do nothing without Christ. We are like sheep without a shepherd. We are like branches apart from the vine. John 15:5 says, “‘I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.”
Are you abiding in Christ? Are you drawing near him daily? Or are you independent, and therefore losing this spiritual battle?
3. We must be disciplined.
The present tense of the verb “be strong” means that it is not a once and for all event—be strong—but a constant strengthening through God.4 The implication of this is that we need discipline. If it were a one-time event we could stop working, but it is not. We need to continue to strengthen ourselves in the Lord.
Discipline is not only necessary to be empowered by God, but also to put on his character—his armor. 1 Timothy 4:7 says, “discipline yourself unto godliness” or, as it can also be translated, “exercise yourself unto godliness.” We need to practice spiritual disciplines—prayer, Bible reading, fellowship, serving, solitude, and giving—daily in order to become holy.
The Christian with poor spiritual discipline is like the soldier without discipline—unprepared and therefore vulnerable to attack.
The present tense of the verb “be strong” means that it is not a once and for all event—be strong—but a constant strengthening through God.4 The implication of this is that we need discipline. If it were a one-time event we could stop working, but it is not. We need to continue to strengthen ourselves in the Lord.
Discipline is not only necessary to be empowered by God, but also to put on his character—his armor. 1 Timothy 4:7 says, “discipline yourself unto godliness” or, as it can also be translated, “exercise yourself unto godliness.” We need to practice spiritual disciplines—prayer, Bible reading, fellowship, serving, solitude, and giving—daily in order to become holy.
The Christian with poor spiritual discipline is like the soldier without discipline—unprepared and therefore vulnerable to attack.
4. We must be thorough.
Paul says to put on the “full” armor of God (Eph 6:11). Partial preparation will not do. If there are any chinks in our armor—which symbolizes our character—that is exactly where the enemy will attack. If we commonly struggle with unforgiveness, lust, anger, or lack of self-control, the enemy will attack in those areas. We must be thorough in this battle. In physical warfare, little compromises can get someone captured or killed, and it is the same in spiritual warfare. We must constantly repent of our sins and seek to get right with God. We must be thorough—putting on the full armor of God.
If we are going to stand in this battle, we must be prepared by knowing our weakness, depending on God, being disciplined, and being thorough.
Application Question: How is God calling you to seek his power and character in your life? What are your spiritual disciplines like? How can you strengthen them?
Paul says to put on the “full” armor of God (Eph 6:11). Partial preparation will not do. If there are any chinks in our armor—which symbolizes our character—that is exactly where the enemy will attack. If we commonly struggle with unforgiveness, lust, anger, or lack of self-control, the enemy will attack in those areas. We must be thorough in this battle. In physical warfare, little compromises can get someone captured or killed, and it is the same in spiritual warfare. We must constantly repent of our sins and seek to get right with God. We must be thorough—putting on the full armor of God.
If we are going to stand in this battle, we must be prepared by knowing our weakness, depending on God, being disciplined, and being thorough.
Application Question: How is God calling you to seek his power and character in your life? What are your spiritual disciplines like? How can you strengthen them?
Believers Stand Firm by Knowing the Enemy
Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. (Ephesians 6:11-12)
A crucial part of every army is the intelligence branch. Those who work in intel gather information about the enemy so the army can be equipped and prepared. In Ephesians 6:11-12, Paul gives intel about our enemy so we can be equipped to stand firm in this war.
Paul mentions the devil’s schemes (v.11). The word “schemes” in the Greek is methodia, from which we get the English word “method.” It carries the idea of craftiness, cunning, and deception. It was used of a “wild animal who cunningly stalked and then unexpectedly pounced on its prey. Satan’s evil schemes are built around stealth and deception.”5
Paul refers to awareness of the devil’s schemes in 2 Corinthians 2:11: “in order that Satan might not outwit us. For we are not unaware of his schemes.” In order for believers to not be outwitted and to stand firm, they must know their enemy and his schemes.
Interpretation Question: What are some of the devil’s schemes—his methods?
Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. (Ephesians 6:11-12)
A crucial part of every army is the intelligence branch. Those who work in intel gather information about the enemy so the army can be equipped and prepared. In Ephesians 6:11-12, Paul gives intel about our enemy so we can be equipped to stand firm in this war.
Paul mentions the devil’s schemes (v.11). The word “schemes” in the Greek is methodia, from which we get the English word “method.” It carries the idea of craftiness, cunning, and deception. It was used of a “wild animal who cunningly stalked and then unexpectedly pounced on its prey. Satan’s evil schemes are built around stealth and deception.”5
Paul refers to awareness of the devil’s schemes in 2 Corinthians 2:11: “in order that Satan might not outwit us. For we are not unaware of his schemes.” In order for believers to not be outwitted and to stand firm, they must know their enemy and his schemes.
Interpretation Question: What are some of the devil’s schemes—his methods?
1. The devil uses accusation.
The name “devil” actually means “accuser.” One of the devil’s primary tactics against believers is to accuse and condemn. He accuses God to our ears—slandering his goodness and his faithfulness. Many people struggle with worship because they have accepted the enemy’s accusations of God. As in Satan’s attack on Eve, the enemy tempts us to doubt God’s goodness so we will fall into sin.
But Satan also accuses us. He does this primarily through condemnation. After he successfully tempts us to sin, he then says, “Feel bad—feel really bad!” in order to further pull us away from God. Because of their stumbles, many Christians don’t feel worthy to read the Bible, go to church, or serve. In contrast, the Holy Spirit convicts us of sin so we will draw near to God; he doesn’t condemn us and push us away from God.
Finally, Satan accuses other people. He continually brings up the failures of others and seeks to draw us into anger, discord and unforgiveness. Many Christians have left the church because they listened to the devil’s accusations.
One of his methods is accusation. He accuses God, us, and others.
The name “devil” actually means “accuser.” One of the devil’s primary tactics against believers is to accuse and condemn. He accuses God to our ears—slandering his goodness and his faithfulness. Many people struggle with worship because they have accepted the enemy’s accusations of God. As in Satan’s attack on Eve, the enemy tempts us to doubt God’s goodness so we will fall into sin.
But Satan also accuses us. He does this primarily through condemnation. After he successfully tempts us to sin, he then says, “Feel bad—feel really bad!” in order to further pull us away from God. Because of their stumbles, many Christians don’t feel worthy to read the Bible, go to church, or serve. In contrast, the Holy Spirit convicts us of sin so we will draw near to God; he doesn’t condemn us and push us away from God.
Finally, Satan accuses other people. He continually brings up the failures of others and seeks to draw us into anger, discord and unforgiveness. Many Christians have left the church because they listened to the devil’s accusations.
One of his methods is accusation. He accuses God, us, and others.
2. The devil uses deception.
Very similar to accusation is the devil’s tactic of deception. Jesus says the devil is a liar and the father of lies (John 8:44). He lied to Eve about God’s Word and God’s intentions. Since the devil oversees the world system, it is a system built on lies. He lies about what humanity is, what success is, what beauty is, and many other things. Satan lies in order to lead people away from God and his best for their lives.
He wants people to think they are an accident of evolution instead of the purposeful creation of God. He wants people to think that something is wrong with them—they are not pretty enough, smart enough, tall enough, tan enough, light enough, etc. We live in a world full of discouragement and depression because it is based on Satan’s lies.
He also deceives people about the Word of God. The church is full of false teachings and cults because of the lies of the devil. 1 Timothy 4:1 calls these lies “doctrines of demons.” Second Corinthians 11:14-15 says, “And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. It is not surprising, then, if his servants masquerade as servants of righteousness. Their end will be what their actions deserve.” He and his servants twist God’s Word—creating false teachings or leading people to doubt the accuracy and inerrancy of the Word. He ultimately does this to lead people away from believing in Christ and God all together.
Very similar to accusation is the devil’s tactic of deception. Jesus says the devil is a liar and the father of lies (John 8:44). He lied to Eve about God’s Word and God’s intentions. Since the devil oversees the world system, it is a system built on lies. He lies about what humanity is, what success is, what beauty is, and many other things. Satan lies in order to lead people away from God and his best for their lives.
He wants people to think they are an accident of evolution instead of the purposeful creation of God. He wants people to think that something is wrong with them—they are not pretty enough, smart enough, tall enough, tan enough, light enough, etc. We live in a world full of discouragement and depression because it is based on Satan’s lies.
He also deceives people about the Word of God. The church is full of false teachings and cults because of the lies of the devil. 1 Timothy 4:1 calls these lies “doctrines of demons.” Second Corinthians 11:14-15 says, “And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. It is not surprising, then, if his servants masquerade as servants of righteousness. Their end will be what their actions deserve.” He and his servants twist God’s Word—creating false teachings or leading people to doubt the accuracy and inerrancy of the Word. He ultimately does this to lead people away from believing in Christ and God all together.
3. The devil uses persecution and fear of persecution.
Though the devil’s favorite tactic is to use deception like a serpent, he often shows up as a lion to incite fear and to destroy. First Peter 5:8 says, “Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.”
In many nations around the world, he works to quiet believers or turn them away from God through fear and persecution. He roars so believers will be quiet about their faith instead of being the bold witnesses they are called to be. Christ describes the end times as a time of persecution, and a time when many will fall away from the faith because of it. In Matthew 24:9-10, he says:
“Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other,”
Though the devil’s favorite tactic is to use deception like a serpent, he often shows up as a lion to incite fear and to destroy. First Peter 5:8 says, “Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.”
In many nations around the world, he works to quiet believers or turn them away from God through fear and persecution. He roars so believers will be quiet about their faith instead of being the bold witnesses they are called to be. Christ describes the end times as a time of persecution, and a time when many will fall away from the faith because of it. In Matthew 24:9-10, he says:
“Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other,”
4. The devil uses the world.
Since the devil is not omnipresent, he uses the world system to draw believers away from God. It is essentially a system without God—meant to lead and corrupt people. Satan uses this system to deceive and to conform people to his image. First John 5:19 says, “We know that we are children of God, and that the whole world is under the control of the evil one.”
We must be aware that Satan is over the fashion industry, the entertainment industry, education, government, and religion. When he offered Jesus the kingdoms of this world, it was a literal offer (Matt 4:8-9).
When Christians are aware of this reality, they keep themselves from befriending the world (James 4:4), loving the world (1 John 2:15), being spotted or polluted by it (James 1:27), and ultimately being conformed to it (Rom 12:2)—where they look just like the world (1 Cor 3:3).
Since the devil is not omnipresent, he uses the world system to draw believers away from God. It is essentially a system without God—meant to lead and corrupt people. Satan uses this system to deceive and to conform people to his image. First John 5:19 says, “We know that we are children of God, and that the whole world is under the control of the evil one.”
We must be aware that Satan is over the fashion industry, the entertainment industry, education, government, and religion. When he offered Jesus the kingdoms of this world, it was a literal offer (Matt 4:8-9).
When Christians are aware of this reality, they keep themselves from befriending the world (James 4:4), loving the world (1 John 2:15), being spotted or polluted by it (James 1:27), and ultimately being conformed to it (Rom 12:2)—where they look just like the world (1 Cor 3:3).
5. The devil works through our flesh.
Our flesh is the unredeemed part of our bodies—it desires to sin and rebel against God. Though saved, we still carry this part of our nature, which came from Adam. When we give in to the flesh, we open the door for the enemy to work in our lives. Ephesians 4:26-27 talks about how anger gives the devil a foothold. But this is also true of lying, stealing, lust, unforgiveness, corrupt talk, and worldly thoughts. The devil works through our flesh.
We get a good picture of this in the account of Christ rebuking Satan while talking to Peter. Matthew 16:21-23 says:
From that time on Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life. Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. “Never, Lord!” he said. “This shall never happen to you!” Jesus turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men.”
What gave Satan the door into Peter’s life? It was his secular, worldly thinking. He was mindful of the things of men and not the things of God. Man doesn’t want to sacrifice—he wants prosperity, wealth, and health. Acceptance of death and sacrifice are not part of his old nature. Therefore, many people open doors to the enemy simply because their minds are still secular—their thinking has not been transformed through the Word of God (Rom 12:2).
Our flesh is the unredeemed part of our bodies—it desires to sin and rebel against God. Though saved, we still carry this part of our nature, which came from Adam. When we give in to the flesh, we open the door for the enemy to work in our lives. Ephesians 4:26-27 talks about how anger gives the devil a foothold. But this is also true of lying, stealing, lust, unforgiveness, corrupt talk, and worldly thoughts. The devil works through our flesh.
We get a good picture of this in the account of Christ rebuking Satan while talking to Peter. Matthew 16:21-23 says:
From that time on Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life. Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. “Never, Lord!” he said. “This shall never happen to you!” Jesus turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men.”
What gave Satan the door into Peter’s life? It was his secular, worldly thinking. He was mindful of the things of men and not the things of God. Man doesn’t want to sacrifice—he wants prosperity, wealth, and health. Acceptance of death and sacrifice are not part of his old nature. Therefore, many people open doors to the enemy simply because their minds are still secular—their thinking has not been transformed through the Word of God (Rom 12:2).
6. The devil works through an army of demons.
Paul says this in Ephesians 6:12: “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.”
Scripture teaches that demons are fallen angels. Revelation 12:4 says that at Satan’s fall a third of the angels fell with him.
How many demons are there? We don’t know. But we do know that Satan could spare up to 6,000 of them to focus on one person. In the story of the demoniac in Mark 5:9, the demons said their name was Legion. As a Roman legion consisted of up to 6,000 men,6 the fallen angels appear to be innumerable. Satan has no shortage of allies, and all of them are seeking to destroy the people of God and the plans of God.
Paul doesn’t teach us everything about demons, but there are many things that can be discerned from this passage.
Observation Question: What characteristics of demons can be discerned from Paul’s teaching in Ephesians 6:12?
- Demons are supernatural.
Paul says we don’t battle against flesh and blood. This means that demons are supernatural, and that our primary opponents are not evil people, but the power that works behind them. Wiersbe’s comments are helpful here:
The important point is that our battle is not against human beings. It is against spiritual powers. We are wasting our time fighting people when we ought to be fighting the devil who seeks to control people and make them oppose the work of God… The advice of the King of Syria to his soldiers can be applied to our spiritual battle: “Fight neither with small nor great, save only with the king” (1 Kings 22:31).7
- Demons are wicked.
Again, Paul says our struggle is against “the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” Darkness symbolizes evil in the Bible. That is the demons’ character—there is nothing good in them. They are the spiritual forces of evil. John Stott says this about demons:
If we hope to overcome them, we shall need to bear in mind that they have no moral principles, no code of honour, no higher feelings. They recognize no Geneva Convention to restrict or partially civilize the weapons of their warfare. They are utterly unscrupulous, and ruthless in the pursuit of their malicious designs.8
- Demons are organized.
The demonic categories that Paul uses are not explained, but they seem to represent “differing degrees of authority, such as presidents, governors, mayors, and aldermen, on the human scale.”9
“Rulers” in the Greek is the word kosmokratoras or, with an anglicized rendering, “cosmocrats.”10 It can be translated literally as “world rulers.” This probably refers to demons that are set over nations or regions. In Daniel, we see powerful demons called “princes” over Persia and Greece (Daniel 10:20). The angel who spoke with Daniel was involved in a battle with two of these demons. In the same way, there are demons that rule like princes and generals over nations and cities—seeking to turn the people and the culture away from God. It is very interesting to consider that when Christ cast the demons out of the demoniac (Mark 5), they begged him not to send them out of the country. It seems that even the minions are territorial—focused on whatever territory or person they are assigned to.
“Authorities, powers of this dark world, and spiritual forces of evil” also seem to reflect varying ranks. MacArthur says this about the “spiritual forces of evil”:
The spiritual forces of wickedness are possibly those demons who are involved in the most wretched and vile immoralities—such as extremely perverse sexual practices, the occult, Satan worship, and the like.11
What else can we discern about our enemy?
Paul says this in Ephesians 6:12: “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.”
Scripture teaches that demons are fallen angels. Revelation 12:4 says that at Satan’s fall a third of the angels fell with him.
How many demons are there? We don’t know. But we do know that Satan could spare up to 6,000 of them to focus on one person. In the story of the demoniac in Mark 5:9, the demons said their name was Legion. As a Roman legion consisted of up to 6,000 men,6 the fallen angels appear to be innumerable. Satan has no shortage of allies, and all of them are seeking to destroy the people of God and the plans of God.
Paul doesn’t teach us everything about demons, but there are many things that can be discerned from this passage.
Observation Question: What characteristics of demons can be discerned from Paul’s teaching in Ephesians 6:12?
- Demons are supernatural.
Paul says we don’t battle against flesh and blood. This means that demons are supernatural, and that our primary opponents are not evil people, but the power that works behind them. Wiersbe’s comments are helpful here:
The important point is that our battle is not against human beings. It is against spiritual powers. We are wasting our time fighting people when we ought to be fighting the devil who seeks to control people and make them oppose the work of God… The advice of the King of Syria to his soldiers can be applied to our spiritual battle: “Fight neither with small nor great, save only with the king” (1 Kings 22:31).7
- Demons are wicked.
Again, Paul says our struggle is against “the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” Darkness symbolizes evil in the Bible. That is the demons’ character—there is nothing good in them. They are the spiritual forces of evil. John Stott says this about demons:
If we hope to overcome them, we shall need to bear in mind that they have no moral principles, no code of honour, no higher feelings. They recognize no Geneva Convention to restrict or partially civilize the weapons of their warfare. They are utterly unscrupulous, and ruthless in the pursuit of their malicious designs.8
- Demons are organized.
The demonic categories that Paul uses are not explained, but they seem to represent “differing degrees of authority, such as presidents, governors, mayors, and aldermen, on the human scale.”9
“Rulers” in the Greek is the word kosmokratoras or, with an anglicized rendering, “cosmocrats.”10 It can be translated literally as “world rulers.” This probably refers to demons that are set over nations or regions. In Daniel, we see powerful demons called “princes” over Persia and Greece (Daniel 10:20). The angel who spoke with Daniel was involved in a battle with two of these demons. In the same way, there are demons that rule like princes and generals over nations and cities—seeking to turn the people and the culture away from God. It is very interesting to consider that when Christ cast the demons out of the demoniac (Mark 5), they begged him not to send them out of the country. It seems that even the minions are territorial—focused on whatever territory or person they are assigned to.
“Authorities, powers of this dark world, and spiritual forces of evil” also seem to reflect varying ranks. MacArthur says this about the “spiritual forces of evil”:
The spiritual forces of wickedness are possibly those demons who are involved in the most wretched and vile immoralities—such as extremely perverse sexual practices, the occult, Satan worship, and the like.11
What else can we discern about our enemy?
7. The devil wants to kill us.
Paul says our “struggle is not against flesh and blood.” The word “struggle” was used of hand to hand combat—especially wrestling. However, wrestling in the ancient world was often a fight to the death.12 This wrestling wasn’t just for sport; it was deadly combat. The devil and his demons don’t want to just tempt us and lead us into sin; they ultimately want to kill and destroy us. Jesus says this about Satan in John 10:10: “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.”
When Satan leads people into ungodly language, secular thinking, selfishness, or compromise, though they may seem harmless at the time, he ultimately wants to lead them to their destruction. The devil is nobody to play with—he is a destroyer.
The only reason he has not killed us is that God is the ultimate sovereign. As in the story of Job, God sets boundaries on how far the enemy can go. If Satan cannot kill us, he is content to attack our bodies, our sleep, our joy, our peace, our testimonies, our callings, and our relationships—with the hope of destroying them. Our enemy is a murderer, and our only hope is our Shepherd—Jesus.
Paul says our “struggle is not against flesh and blood.” The word “struggle” was used of hand to hand combat—especially wrestling. However, wrestling in the ancient world was often a fight to the death.12 This wrestling wasn’t just for sport; it was deadly combat. The devil and his demons don’t want to just tempt us and lead us into sin; they ultimately want to kill and destroy us. Jesus says this about Satan in John 10:10: “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.”
When Satan leads people into ungodly language, secular thinking, selfishness, or compromise, though they may seem harmless at the time, he ultimately wants to lead them to their destruction. The devil is nobody to play with—he is a destroyer.
The only reason he has not killed us is that God is the ultimate sovereign. As in the story of Job, God sets boundaries on how far the enemy can go. If Satan cannot kill us, he is content to attack our bodies, our sleep, our joy, our peace, our testimonies, our callings, and our relationships—with the hope of destroying them. Our enemy is a murderer, and our only hope is our Shepherd—Jesus.
8. The devil often attacks in an overwhelming manner.
Paul says for us to put on the full armor of God so that we may stand in the “day of evil,” or the “evil day,” as it’s called in the ESV (Eph 6:13). MacDonald says this about the evil day:
The evil day probably refers to any time when the enemy comes against us like a flood. Satanic opposition seems to occur in waves, advancing and receding. Even after our Lord’s temptation in the wilderness, the devil left Him for a season (Luke 4:13).13
Job experienced the “evil day” when the devil attacked his body, his family, his finances, and his friends for a season. This happens with many believers. Satan desires to make people give up, get angry at God, and turn away from him. A believer that is not being filled with the Spirit, who is not strong in the Lord, will fall prey to our enemy on this day.
Application Questions: What are some other characteristics of our enemy? What is a healthy perspective for Christians to have regarding the devil and spiritual warfare? What is an unhealthy one?
Paul says for us to put on the full armor of God so that we may stand in the “day of evil,” or the “evil day,” as it’s called in the ESV (Eph 6:13). MacDonald says this about the evil day:
The evil day probably refers to any time when the enemy comes against us like a flood. Satanic opposition seems to occur in waves, advancing and receding. Even after our Lord’s temptation in the wilderness, the devil left Him for a season (Luke 4:13).13
Job experienced the “evil day” when the devil attacked his body, his family, his finances, and his friends for a season. This happens with many believers. Satan desires to make people give up, get angry at God, and turn away from him. A believer that is not being filled with the Spirit, who is not strong in the Lord, will fall prey to our enemy on this day.
Application Questions: What are some other characteristics of our enemy? What is a healthy perspective for Christians to have regarding the devil and spiritual warfare? What is an unhealthy one?
Believers Stand Firm by Fighting
Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. (Ephesians 6:13)
Paul writes of the need to stand firm four times in Ephesians 6; however, it must be remembered that this standing is not a passive, defensive stance. It is, in fact, active and offensive. Ephesians 6:17 and 19 tell us so.
Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God…Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel,
The sword was not primarily a defensive weapon, but an offensive one. As we share the Word of God with others, we are on the offensive. In fact, Paul prays for grace in sharing the gospel with others (v. 19).
It has been said that the best defense is a great offense. When the enemy is constantly being attacked, it is hard for him to mount an effective offense. Similarly, when Paul was going throughout the Gentile world spreading the gospel, he was fighting against the darkness. He was setting captives of Satan free by leading them to Christ. He was exposing the Roman world to light so that the darkness began to flee, and it must be the same for us.
We also see this in Christ’s words about building his church in Matthew 16:18. He says, “And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.” The gates of Hades not prevailing is a picture of the church on the offensive. Believers are taking the battering ram of the gospel and breaking down the gates of Hades in communities, cities, and nations. This is a proper picture of God’s battle plan for the church in this war.
Application Question: How can believers fight this spiritual battle?
Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. (Ephesians 6:13)
Paul writes of the need to stand firm four times in Ephesians 6; however, it must be remembered that this standing is not a passive, defensive stance. It is, in fact, active and offensive. Ephesians 6:17 and 19 tell us so.
Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God…Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel,
The sword was not primarily a defensive weapon, but an offensive one. As we share the Word of God with others, we are on the offensive. In fact, Paul prays for grace in sharing the gospel with others (v. 19).
It has been said that the best defense is a great offense. When the enemy is constantly being attacked, it is hard for him to mount an effective offense. Similarly, when Paul was going throughout the Gentile world spreading the gospel, he was fighting against the darkness. He was setting captives of Satan free by leading them to Christ. He was exposing the Roman world to light so that the darkness began to flee, and it must be the same for us.
We also see this in Christ’s words about building his church in Matthew 16:18. He says, “And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.” The gates of Hades not prevailing is a picture of the church on the offensive. Believers are taking the battering ram of the gospel and breaking down the gates of Hades in communities, cities, and nations. This is a proper picture of God’s battle plan for the church in this war.
Application Question: How can believers fight this spiritual battle?
1. We must know what we are fighting for.
In a war, a soldier fights to protect his home, his family, his country, and his freedom. These things motivate him, and it must be the same for believers. If we don’t know what we’re fighting for, our spiritual lives often become dreary and lifeless.
What do believers fight for?
- Believers fight for the souls of the lost.
Jesus says this to Paul about his calling as an apostle in Acts 26:17-18:
“I will rescue you from your own people and from the Gentiles. I am sending you to them to open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.”
Similarly, Christians must recognize that they are on a rescue mission to save the lost from eternal darkness.
- Believers fight to please God and be rewarded by him.
Consider these verses:
Watch out that you do not lose what you have worked for, but that you may be rewarded fully. (2 John 1:8)
No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize. (1 Corinthians 9:27)
John calls Christians to be careful to not lose their reward, but rather to seek a full reward from God. Similarly, Paul was not afraid of losing his salvation, but he feared losing his reward and ultimately his usefulness. We fight to please God and to be rewarded by him. Believers with no desire to please God will not fight—they will remain spiritually lethargic.
- Believers fight to glorify God with their lives.
First Corinthians 10:31 says, “So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.” Even our fighting in this war is for the glory of God. When Christ went into the temple and turned over tables, he was consumed with zeal for God’s house (John 2:17), and with the glory of God. Similarly, we fight because we are consumed with the glory of God. A person not consumed with God’s glory—God being exalted throughout the world—will not fight.
How else can believers fight this battle?
In a war, a soldier fights to protect his home, his family, his country, and his freedom. These things motivate him, and it must be the same for believers. If we don’t know what we’re fighting for, our spiritual lives often become dreary and lifeless.
What do believers fight for?
- Believers fight for the souls of the lost.
Jesus says this to Paul about his calling as an apostle in Acts 26:17-18:
“I will rescue you from your own people and from the Gentiles. I am sending you to them to open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.”
Similarly, Christians must recognize that they are on a rescue mission to save the lost from eternal darkness.
- Believers fight to please God and be rewarded by him.
Consider these verses:
Watch out that you do not lose what you have worked for, but that you may be rewarded fully. (2 John 1:8)
No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize. (1 Corinthians 9:27)
John calls Christians to be careful to not lose their reward, but rather to seek a full reward from God. Similarly, Paul was not afraid of losing his salvation, but he feared losing his reward and ultimately his usefulness. We fight to please God and to be rewarded by him. Believers with no desire to please God will not fight—they will remain spiritually lethargic.
- Believers fight to glorify God with their lives.
First Corinthians 10:31 says, “So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.” Even our fighting in this war is for the glory of God. When Christ went into the temple and turned over tables, he was consumed with zeal for God’s house (John 2:17), and with the glory of God. Similarly, we fight because we are consumed with the glory of God. A person not consumed with God’s glory—God being exalted throughout the world—will not fight.
How else can believers fight this battle?
2. We must know that the war has already been won, and we must fight with Christ’s authority.
Another important reality that every believer must understand when fighting this battle is that the war is already won. Therefore, we are not fighting to win, but because we’ve won. We see this taught in many texts, including the following:
I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty strength, which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, (Ephesians 1:18-22)
And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross. (Colossians 2:15)
This is important to understand so that we don’t become discouraged and quit. Christ has already won this battle on the cross. Satan—the serpent—bit his heel, but Jesus crushed the serpent’s head by his own death and resurrection (cf. Gen 3:15). He disarmed the evil powers and authorities, and was raised up in authority over them. Christians must remember this.
This is why when Paul encountered those possessed with demons, he cast them out in the “name of Jesus” (Acts 16:18). He declared Christ’s authority over them. We must walk in this reality as well. Christ is seated in authority over the demonic powers; he disarmed them and has placed us in authority over them as well—because we are in Christ (Eph 2:6).
As Paul did, there may be times where you need to rebuke the devil in “the name of Jesus”—declaring Christ’s authority. You may have to pray in authority over people stuck in spiritual depression (cf. 1 Sam 16:15), habitual sin (cf. Eph 4:26-27), or some type of demonic illness (cf. Lk 13:11). You may need to speak and stand on this reality in your own life, as you feel assaulted by the enemy emotionally, physically, and socially. Yes, the flesh and the world tempt and attack us, but we also must recognize this very real evil force—the devil and his demons—and the authority Christ has given us in his name (cf. Matt 28:18-19).
Those who will get to heaven must fight their way toward it. There must be a conflict with corruption and temptations, and the opposition of the powers of darkness. Observe, It is a good fight, it is a good cause, and it will have a good issue. It is the fight of faith; we do not war after the flesh, for the weapons of our warfare are not carnal (2 Corinthians 10:3; 2 Corinthians 10:4). He exhorts him to lay hold on eternal life. Observe,
1. Eternal life is the crown proposed to us, for our encouragement to war, and to fight the good fight of faith, the good warfare.
2. This we must lay hold on, as those that are afraid of coming short of it and losing it. Lay hold, and take heed of losing your hold. Hold fast that which thou hast, that no man take thy crown (Revelation 3:11).
3. We are called to the fight, and to lay hold on eternal life.
4. The profession Timothy and all faithful ministers make before many witnesses is a good profession; for they profess and engage to fight the good fight of faith, and to lay hold on eternal life; their calling and their own profession oblige them to this (Matthew Henry Commentary).
Another important reality that every believer must understand when fighting this battle is that the war is already won. Therefore, we are not fighting to win, but because we’ve won. We see this taught in many texts, including the following:
I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty strength, which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, (Ephesians 1:18-22)
And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross. (Colossians 2:15)
This is important to understand so that we don’t become discouraged and quit. Christ has already won this battle on the cross. Satan—the serpent—bit his heel, but Jesus crushed the serpent’s head by his own death and resurrection (cf. Gen 3:15). He disarmed the evil powers and authorities, and was raised up in authority over them. Christians must remember this.
This is why when Paul encountered those possessed with demons, he cast them out in the “name of Jesus” (Acts 16:18). He declared Christ’s authority over them. We must walk in this reality as well. Christ is seated in authority over the demonic powers; he disarmed them and has placed us in authority over them as well—because we are in Christ (Eph 2:6).
As Paul did, there may be times where you need to rebuke the devil in “the name of Jesus”—declaring Christ’s authority. You may have to pray in authority over people stuck in spiritual depression (cf. 1 Sam 16:15), habitual sin (cf. Eph 4:26-27), or some type of demonic illness (cf. Lk 13:11). You may need to speak and stand on this reality in your own life, as you feel assaulted by the enemy emotionally, physically, and socially. Yes, the flesh and the world tempt and attack us, but we also must recognize this very real evil force—the devil and his demons—and the authority Christ has given us in his name (cf. Matt 28:18-19).
Those who will get to heaven must fight their way toward it. There must be a conflict with corruption and temptations, and the opposition of the powers of darkness. Observe, It is a good fight, it is a good cause, and it will have a good issue. It is the fight of faith; we do not war after the flesh, for the weapons of our warfare are not carnal (2 Corinthians 10:3; 2 Corinthians 10:4). He exhorts him to lay hold on eternal life. Observe,
1. Eternal life is the crown proposed to us, for our encouragement to war, and to fight the good fight of faith, the good warfare.
2. This we must lay hold on, as those that are afraid of coming short of it and losing it. Lay hold, and take heed of losing your hold. Hold fast that which thou hast, that no man take thy crown (Revelation 3:11).
3. We are called to the fight, and to lay hold on eternal life.
4. The profession Timothy and all faithful ministers make before many witnesses is a good profession; for they profess and engage to fight the good fight of faith, and to lay hold on eternal life; their calling and their own profession oblige them to this (Matthew Henry Commentary).
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