The world is at war. I’m not talking some silly euphemistic pseudo war. Nor do I refer to the myriad of skirmishes taking place at different hot spots around the globe. Nope. I’m not talking about none of that. I mean WAR, a
real, down and dirty, no-holds-barred war. The problem with this war is, you won’t see it unless you open your eyes. The war I’m referring to is a spiritual war.
Unbelievers will scoff at this, of course. Not only do unbelievers deny the very existence of God, some even deny that evil exists. Yet in the next breath they will call somebody “Hitler” or some other embodiment of the very evil they deny. This post is not written for them. I’ll not attempt to bring anyone to Christ here.
As for my brethren in Christ, this should not be news to you.
Ephesians 6:10 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.
11 Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.
12 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.
13 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.
14 Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness;
15 And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;
16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.
17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:
18 Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;
And again…
2 Timothy 2:2 And the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also.
3 Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.
4 No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier.
And again…
2 Corinthians 10:3 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh:
4 (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;)
5 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;
6 And having in a readiness to revenge all disobedience, when your obedience is fulfilled.
Consider how we are bombarded nearly minute by minute by the troubles of the world. We are either taking a pounding from the latest crisis or the enemy begins encroaching on some new front. Anyone who watches any “news” program for ten minutes or more can see what I mean. Take a step back from all those things swirling around our heads on a daily basis. Consider a longer view.
It doesn’t matter what the topic of the moment is: Ukraine, congress, Team Biden, crime, inflation, or the crisis of day, every instance boils down to good versus evil. We all know who lands on the side of evil… every time. All of this tends to narrow our focus so we forget about the big picture. Good versus evil is really God vs the devil – the god of this world.
While we don’t know exactly what goes on at the spiritual level (check out Frank Peretti’s novel “This Present Darkness” for an excellent perspective here.), what we do know is both God and the devil operate in the material world via humans. In fact the entire spiritual battle on this planet is all about humans. Imagine that. Little ol’ us are the center of attention of powerful spiritual beings. So… how does this all pan out?
In recent times, the major battle line has been drawn between the globalists and the nationalists. The god of this world desires total control of everyone and everything via a one-world government. Really, there’s no disputing this. One needs only to glance about to realize the devil is a total control freak. Accepting this, it becomes blatantly easy to see his army. These are the globalists, the politicians, the activists, and the deep state minions. Add to that those in key fields such as media, entertainment, science and business and it may be hard to fight the creepy feeling we are surrounded. Now include those individuals in your personal world who you can identify as sympathetic to the devil’s causes. Wow, huh?
“Men, we are surrounded by the enemy. We have the greatest opportunity ever presented an army. We can attack in any direction.”
― Anthony McAuliffe (Chesty Puller is attributed with a similar quote)
General McAuliffe is also famous for his one-word reply to the German Commander who proposed McAuliffe surrender as his army was surrounded by the Germans at Bastogne.
His reply? “Nuts!”
As Christians, we need to take a similar attitude towards the devil and his minions. Yes, we are surrounded. Yes, his forces can be overwhelming. That said, we have God Almighty on our side. Add to that, in fact, this war has already been decided. We win. If the devil refuses to surrender, why should any one of us?
1 John 4:4 Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.
5 They are of the world: therefore speak they of the world, and the world heareth them.
6 We are of God: he that knoweth God heareth us; he that is not of God heareth not us. Hereby know we the spirit of truth, and the spirit of error.
2 Corinthians 2:11 Lest Satan should get an advantage of us: for we are not ignorant of his devices.
Once we recognize the devil is a total control freak, it is easy to see how he operates in the material world. He seizes and exerts control whenever and wherever possible. No wonder he hates liberty! As a rule he tries to control men via our weaknesses. His standard areas of attack are not hidden: sex, drugs, money, and power all top the list. He uses our emotions against us – hate, greed, envy, jealousy and so on. Worse, he’ll even distract us with “good things” such as food, “love”, and entertainment. I put “love” in quotes because he has confused this topic to such a degree that most of us don’t really know what real love really is.
Contrary to how the devil operates, everything God does resides in the parameters of free will. Even many Christians will be shocked to realize God is the exact opposite of a control freak! Consider Adam in the Garden of Eden. He was given only ONE rule: do not eat of the fruit of the knowledge of good and evil.
Galatians 5:13 For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another.
Summing things: we are at war, we are surrounded, we are being attacked on every side, from every angle with everything the devil has. Despite all of this we can be confident God has already won this war. The question remains… what is our part in this war?
As Christians, we are not merely observers, but soldiers. Part two will lay out the battle map as well as explore our part in this epic battle.