“Spiritual warfare often takes on the most mundane of appearances. Some of the most destructive things a Christian can do to Satan’s dark kingdom occur through a life of purity, acts of kindness, Christlike forgiveness, humility, and self-sacrifice… Consider for example the ultimate spiritual weapon: the blood of Jesus is the thermonuclear bomb of spiritual warfare that has forever changed the game and has already rendered Satan a defeated foe…
The cross of Christ was the ultimate act of spiritual warfare. Yet it hardly looked like a dramatic display of eternal military might. On the contrary, it looked like utter weakness, total loss, and complete failure. What seems powerful and effective in the flesh is often completely impotent in the spiritual realm. Likewise, what seems weak and small to the human eye can make the realms of darkness tremble. The most effective spiritual warfare occurs below the surface, in the depths of our character, godliness, and sacrifice...
In fact, to emphasize how practical spiritual warfare is, consider the armor listed for us in Ephesians: truth, salvation, righteousness, the gospel of peace, faith, and God’s Word. These are all invisible attributes made visible only by a Christian lifestyle. Further, every item mentioned here directly contradicts the spirit of the age—the demonic Antichrist spirit. This should reinforce the truth that our internal alignment with God and the behavior that proceeds from that alignment are vitally important to spiritual warfare…
| Paul uses strong military language out of a deep concern for the personal holiness of his audience (which includes us). He does not want to see the churches—the precious people for whom he has poured out his life—taken down by a flippant attitude toward evil in all its forms. He encourages them to prepare for battle against temptation. And once they have done everything possible to get ready, he encourages them to rise up and actually fight the battle. Today, ask God to reveal areas of temptation and sin that that you may have been ignoring. Allow Him to renew your mind so that you are aligned with His Word and His character.” — Daniel Kolenda |
“For though we walk in the flesh, we are not waging war according to the flesh. For 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 10:3-5)