If we are born again, then we must not forget we have a vital job as part of the Army Of God. We are continually in a spiritual battle!
“Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.”
(Ephesians 6:10-13)
“Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.”
(1 Peter 5:8)
Because it is so easy to get tangled up in the problems of the physical world, I often ask God to keep me tuned into the spiritual battle. He gave me a visual to bring the spiritual battle to life for me. It’s along the lines of “Lord of The Rings”—just much shorter. 😁
Imagine this scene of two nations from 1000 years ago: The Kingdom of the Dark Lord and The Kingdom of The Lord of Light are engaged in close, bloody combat on a wide plain. The fighting is fierce, and the field is littered by the dead and wounded. The warriors who fight for the Dark Lord, fight with vengeance because they are slaves who have no choice. Their penalty for losing is eternal torture. Thus out of fear, they live, breathe, and eat—to fight fiercely to try to win the battle! They fight like they believe they’re going to win.
The warriors who fight for the King of Light are free men; however, only a few love their King enough to fight with all their might. Many of them don’t fight at all. Others fight only part time, when they feel like it, when it’s convenient, when they have nothing else to do, when they think their own life is at risk, or when they feel guilty for not doing their share. The King of Light doesn’t force them to fight. Even though the King of Light eventually wins the war, many, many lives perish unnecessarily.
After the war, the lazy, complacent warriors are shown photos of the millions who perished because they failed to be fully engaged in the war. They lament over their failure to be passionately engaged in such a critical war.
I don’t know about you—but I don’t want to see even one person in hell—do you? I don’t even want my enemies there and I certainly don’t want to see my family or friends there!! This motivates me to ask myself:
If I believe what the Bible says—that we are in a spiritual WAR for the souls of mankind—WHAT am I doing to WIN? Am I sight-seeing? Am I working hard just to make my life more comfortable? OR, am I perhaps even trying to blend-in with the enemy???
My friend, whether we like it or not—we ARE engaged in a spiritual war. (2 Corinthians 10:3-5) We have three enemies—the devil, our flesh, and this sin-corrupted world system. We can ONLY be on one side or the other. Jesus said:
“Whoever is NOT with me IS against me.”
(Matthew 12:30a)
What is your battle plan for today? Better yet—what is GOD’s battle plan?
The closer we get to God, the more He reveals the reality about the battle we are in. We see evil for what it is and we don’t want to play with it. We see the emptiness and hopelessness of souls enslaved by the enemy and we want them to be free. We love our KING and we want to give our whole heart, soul, mind, and every fiber of our being to fight alongside Him. We strap on our armor every day because we KNOW we are in a life and death battle for the souls of people.
“Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. 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, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints.”
(Ephesians 6:14-18)
How familiar are you with these POWERFUL weapons God has given you to fight the war against the enemy? Don’t you want to know how to use the weapons He has given us to fight the enemy so you can be an asset in the war? If you need to know more about these wonderful tools, then dig in and study the Word. You can begin by reading our armor of God series of devotionals—we explain each weapon in a separate devotional. Ask yourself this one critical question:
“Can you share the Gospel, which is God’s gift of salvation and the only rescue plan to save the world from sin?”
My friend, Jesus lived and died by a code of love and honor we can scarcely comprehend. His immense sacrifice won our eternal freedom. He commanded us to love like He does. His timeless command is the code of honor that WILL guarantee us a victorious life!
“This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends.”
(John 15:12-13)
At the end of time, I want to look back and know I fought the good fight and finished the course God laid out for me—don’t you?
We would love to hear your thoughts about this devotional. Did God speak to you or challenge your daily walk with him? Or is there a topic that you would like Kimberly to cover or expound on? Please share with us in the comments below.
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