Ephesians 6:12 “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly place.”
We treat this verse with such a nonchalant attitude, with no urgency to address now but rather something to deal with later. In Matthew 10:28 and 2 Corinthians 10:3-6, God warns us that there is a war going on. A war that could be devastating to the eternal soul with eternal consequences. So why are we not more concerned about this war?
I am sure you can appreciate that when you choose to follow Christ and are baptized that Satan is not too happy about that. It’s like we paint a target on our backs because when we are loved by God, we become important to Satan. We know that Satan is the father of lies (John 8:44) and he seeks to destroy. He has waged war against God and all those God loves and especially those who love God. At some point, we know that Jesus returns to the world to put an end to the war for good. This implies that Satan is constantly corrupting, coercing and destroying as we live and breathe until the day of the Lord. In other words, the war is happening right now!
I understand when the secular world fights among themselves because they do not know any better. But we, as Christians, should know better, because God has revealed to us the Truth. It seems that the latest war strategy that is ongoing is disguised as, “Love, tolerance and a feeling.”
If my father tells me to take the trash out and I decide not to because I don’t feel like it and that it is not very loving of him to make me do that, well simply, I am disobeying my father based on a self-serving feeling. Sadly, the same is happening among Christians today. It seems foolish that we argue away God’s Instructions based on a fuzzy feeling. If we are truly honest, the frightening conclusion to this attitude is that we feel we know better than God Himself. Are we wanting to become God? Do we think we are better than Him? We know that’s exactly what Satan wants, to become the god!
It leads me to the question, where is that “fuzzy feeling” coming from? I would argue that if it contradicts God’s Word then it must come from Satan’s attacks.
It’s clear that we are at war. Not just in sinful temptation but in pride and arrogance. We are caught in a sin of constantly trying to elevate ourselves to some intellectual godhood while seeking the praise of others for our “remarkable” understanding and success in the world (2 Timothy 3:1-5). The truth is God commands the opposite. We are called to humble ourselves to Him but Satan wants us to think we are smarter than God, which is literally IMPOSSIBLE. Satan’s greatest weapon is to deceive, and he’s very good at it.
The war is real. It is happening among us and many are fast asleep. For something so potentially eternally devastating, there seems very little urgency.
When do we wake up?
When do we put on the Armor of God (Ephesians 6:13-19)?
How do we put on the Armor of God and how do we use it?
This is not a fairytale story. This is really happening. Remain firm in Him and fight for Him, as though your life depends on it… because it does!
Think about it.
