spiritual warfare

Whose side are you on?

Spiritual warfare is a constant activity that is rarely detected by the average Christian. It’s signs are subtle. In order to detect its existence, one must pay attention to things like fear, anger, and irrational behavior. One way to know for sure you are under attack is that you want to run, to get away from whatever circumstances are causing the attack.

“And David arose, and fled that day for fear of Saul, and went to Achish the king of Gath” (1 Samuel 21:10). The problem with running when you come under spiritual attack is that you can’t see the real enemy, Satan, and will likely end up in a worst circumstance than the one you started with.

And the servants of Achish said unto him, is not this David the king of the land? did they not sing one to another of him in dances, saying, Saul has slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands? And David laid up these words in his heart, and was sore afraid of Achish the king of Gath. (1 Samuel 21:11-12).

In order to escape Achish, David changed his behavior “and feigned himself mad in their hands” (1 Samuel 21:13). David’s reputation as a valiant warrior was something he should have been proud of and yet when he found himself in a situation where he was alone and at the mercy of his enemy, he decided to trash his reputation and make himself out to be a crazy person. In one sense, it may seem as if David was being shrewd and that his  ability to disguise himself as a madman was a great way to avoid being killed, but when you look at it from a spiritual perspective, David was running away from his responsibility and trying to avoid his calling to be king of Israel.

As a result of David’s action, the enemy, Satan gained ground and launched an all out attack on God’s consecrated servants by inciting king Saul to seek revenge on Ahimelech because he helped David escape. “And the king said to Doeg, Turn then, and fall upon the priests. And Doeg the Edomite turned, and he fell upon the priests, and slew on that day fourscore and five persons that did wear the linen ephod” (1 Samuel 22:18).

David learned the hard way that the consequences of his wrong actions did not always end up harming him, but doing damage to God’s kingdom. When he hears what has happened to the priests, he takes responsibility and acknowledges that he is being guarded by the LORD’s army.

And David said unto Abiathar, I knew it that day, when Doeg the Edomite was there, that he would surely tell Saul: I have occasioned the death of all the persons of thy father’s house. Abide thou with me, fear not: for he that seeketh my life seeketh thy life: but with me thou shalt be in safeguard. (1 Samuel 22:22-23)

A few good men

Most adults understand what it means to be under the influence of alcohol. It affects your judgment, your ability to function, what you say and do. Fear can have the same affect and when you are afraid it could be said that you are under the influence of fear.

Fear is a powerful emotion because it is hard to control and can make you do things you wouldn’t normally do. It can also stop you from doing things that you want to do, no matter how important they are to you.

Fear can be a strategic advantage to an enemy. I believe fear is the number one way the devil takes advantage of Christians and is used frequently to stop us from making progress in our walk with Christ. When we are under the influence of fear, we are like soldiers that are shaking in their boots, we can’t hear the commands of God and are looking for an escape route rather than concentrating on the battle plan.

When Gideon was given the assignment to engage the Midianites in warfare, the first thing God told him to do was weed out all the soldiers that were afraid to fight. Gideon’s troops were reduced from 22,000 to 10,000 after they were told, “Whosoever is fearful and afraid, let him return and depart early from Mount Gilead” (Judges 7:3). But, God didn’t stop there. The affect of fear can sometimes be subtle, we may not even be aware that we are under its influence. So, God used another method to determine who could be relied on in battle and who would most likely run if the going got tough.

So he brought down the people unto the water: and the LORD said unto Gideon, Everyone that lappeth of the water with his tongue, as a dog lappeth, him shalt thou set by himself…And the LORD said unto Gideon, By the three hundred men that lapped will I save you. (Judges 7:5-7)

The Battle Belongs to the Lord

Because we don’t see the spiritual warfare going on around us, we may forget or don’t realize that it is going on. Satan is described in the Bible as the ruler of this world. Everyone is under the power of Satan until and unless they confess Jesus as Lord and Savior. Spiritual warfare is the battle that is constantly being fought over the hearts and minds of those who live on Earth. It is unfortunate that most people are unaware of it and especially tragic that the unsaved have no idea that Satan is in control of their lives.

Victory is difficult to celebrate in spiritual warfare because you can’t always tell the extent to which the enemy has been defeated. It says in Luke 15:10 about salvation that “there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth.” And in1 Peter 3:23 speaking of Jesus it says, “Who is gone into heaven, and is on the right hand of God; angels and authorities and powers being made subject unto him.” Before Jesus came into the world, there was no victory over sin and Satan reigned over the whole Earth, except in the Promised Land. Israel was God’s country and his dominion over the land was exempt from Satan’s sovereignty. So why was there and is there still constant warfare in the land of Israel?

When the Israelites settled in Canaan, they disobeyed God by not driving out al the inhabitants of the land. If they had, the Promised Land would have become a no man’s land to Satan because he was not allowed to touch God’s people. It was the influence of the Canaanites and the worship of their gods that caused the Israelites to betray God and act like they had when they lived in Egypt.

The battle with the Canaanites by the waters of Megiddo when God subdued Jabin the king of Canaan (Judges 4:23) was a sort of preview of coming attractions. In Revelation 16:16 it refers to a place called Armegeddon (mount Megiddo) where the final battle between God and Satan will be fought. Judges 6:20-24 give us insight into the way the battle lines will be drawn. All the heavenly host will be drawn together to take their final stand and on Earth there will be a call to fight, but not everyone will answer.

Curse ye Meroz, said the angel of the LORD, curse ye bitterly the inhabitants thereof; because they came not to the help of the LORD against the mighty. Blessed above women shall Jael the wife of Heber the Kenite be, blessed shall she be above women in the tent. (Judges 5:23-24)

Be not afraid

And the LORD said unto Joshua, be not afraid because of them: for to morrow about this time will I deliver them up all slain before Israel: thou shalt hough their horses, and burn their chariots with fire. (Joshua 11:6)

The word translated hough in this passage, âqar (aw – kar´) means to pluck up by the roots. Aqar also means to hamstring or figuratively, to exterminate, so the idea here is to render something useless. When I was a child, my dad taught me that in order to ensure that a weed would not grow back, you had to pull up the root along with the rest of the plant or you would be continually weeding your garden. Even though it took a little extra time, it would be better to get all of it the first time, then to have to month after month come back and weed the garden.

One of the reasons the inhabitants of the Promised Land had to be destroyed utterly or exterminated “was to be a security against idolatry and demoralization on the part of Israel” (2763). The Canaanites were a corrupt people, beyond redemption in regards to their immoral behavior Their decision to come against Israel in battle was really their undoing, it led them to judgment and punishment for their sins.

I don’t necessarily like being the instrument God uses to root out sin in other people’s lives, but I understand that God’s divine protection and assurance of victory makes the battle worthwhile. Like Joshua, I do not have to be afraid because the outcome has already been determined and will be in my favor.

The longest day of my life

Turning points are sometimes marked by unique or unusual events that cause them to stand out in our minds many years after the transition is complete. The turning point in the development of the nation of Israel may have come when they defeated five of their most formidable enemies in a single day.

The day the Israelites killed the five kings of the Amorites was not just a day like any other day. On that day “the sun stood still in the midst of heaven, and hasted not to go down about a whole day” (Joshua 10:13). You could say the day the Israelites avenged themselves was the longest day ever. It says in Joshua 10:14 “there was no day like that day before it or after it.”

The longest day of my life was the day I overdosed on sleeping pills. After being rushed to the hospital and having my stomach pumped, I was told that I would not be allowed to fall asleep that night. I was placed in a bed that had bright lights shining directly into my face. The nursing staff checked on me frequently and made sure I understood that I was not to close my eyes.

What I didn’t know until later was that I was in a Cardiac Intensive Care Unit because my heart was beating erratically and all of my bodily functions had shut down. In a way, you could say I was already as good as dead and for sure my life was hanging in the balance. There was a good chance I would not make it through the night.

I can’t say I was fighting for my life because the desire to live was still not in me, but I do believe the Lord was fighting for me. In the unseen spiritual realm, there are battles going on all the time. That night, I know there was a struggle between the Lord and Satan and Satan was defeated once and for all, he would no longer have control of my life.