STAND FIRM FOR VICTORY (Armor of God 2)

Before listing the pieces of equipment available to us Paul wants to emphasize the importance of Christian soldiers standing firm against any attack the enemy launches at them.  Three times he commands them to “stand” (Ephesians 13-14a).

LESSON FOR TODAY: We are to be alert and ready, not sitting or lying down sleeping.  We shouldn’t be caught off guard but must be alert.  Nor should we retreat in fear or defeat.  Yet the truth is that the stronger we stand the hotter the battle will get for the harder the demons will attack.  The battle will never end until our Commander comes and takes us home.  Our fight here will be over when we are promoted to heaven at death, or when Jesus returns, but not before. 

LESSON FOR TODAY:  When a person is demonized there is a ruler (lieutenant or sergeant) who has a group of other demons (privates) under him.  They set up their stronghold and each demon present is chosen for the particular focus of the work he does. Under the guidance of the ruler, they work together to accomplish the mission of the group which is always the destruction of the person they are attacking.  The ultimate goal is the death of the person, but since they can’t take a life they seek to make life so miserable that only death seems to hold hope of escape. Their goal is to cause the person to take their own life. Until they can get a person to that point they seek to make his witness for Jesus ineffective and his life as painful and empty as possible.

LESSON FOR TODAY:  Not all problems and struggles are from Satan.  While we want to know what he does so we can defeat him, we don’t want to give him and his demons more credit than is due them.  When he is bound man’s sin nature will still lead him into sin without Satan’s help (Revelation 20:1-3).  That can assist u in knowing what is from demons and what is from our sin nature.  If the source is our sin nature without demonic influence, than confession, submission to God, prayer, Bible reading and memory and good Christian fellowship will bring immediate or progressive victory.  If that does not happen then it is good to consider there might be something demonic involved as well.

 

(If I can answer questions or offer personal counsel, or if you would like a free copy of my Spiritual Warfare Handbook, email me at Jerry@ChristianTrainingOrganization.org or download it from http://sw.christiantrainingonline.org/.  My next book, Spiritual Warfare in the Bible, which is a more advanced treatment of spiritual warfare, is also available there for free.)