Spiritual Warfare
The History and Future of our Enemies:
In Genesis 1:31, everything is “very good”. Yet, in Genesis 3:1 we read that the serpent has entered the Garden God created and started deceiving Eve. We gather that somewhere between Genesis 1:31 and Genesis 3:1 there must have been a rebellion in the angelic world in which literal war broke out.
*2 Peter 2:4 and Jude 6 seem to both record this event.
The Bible also teaches that the “world” is in agreement with Satan and demons. The world is working against us. This is in 1 John 2:15-17.
Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world-the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life-is not from the Father but is from the world.And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever. - 1 John 2:15-17
There is a picture of Redemptive History beginning in Genesis 3 and ending in the future eternal triumph of Christ (Revelation 12). The Bible shows that war is being declared on and waged against God’s people. Our victory is certain in Christ. Additionally, we are victorious through our own testimony and commitment to testify to The Gospel until death. In Revelation 12, Satan is seen being driven from the battlefield of heaven by Michael and cast down to earth where he makes war against God’s people.
In the Old Testament, there seemed to be territorial demons. Daniel records a 21-day battle fought between a demon called “The Prince of Persia”, which seems to imply that this demon was regional in power over the mighty Persian Empire.
In Jesus’ ministry on earth, he routinely drove out demons that were controlling various people.
We are to be aware of the schemes of the Devil. -2 Corinthians 2:11
In the end of time Satan and demons will be cast into hell and eternal judgment. -Revelation 20:7-10
Here is what we KNOW from Scripture about Satan and demons:
1. Sin originated with Satan. -Genesis 3:1-6
Satan is the father of all lies. -John 8:44
Satan has sinned from the beginning. -1 John 3:8
2. Satan and demons oppose and try to destroy the work of God.
In their case the God of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the Gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. - 2 Corinthians 4:4
In the Bible we see demons use doubt, guilt, fear, confusion, sickness, envy, pride, slander, or any other means possible to hinder the Christian.
3. Satan and demons have limited power and are under God’s authority.
Job 1:12, 2:6
James 4:7 tells us that the Christian can resist them, by the authority given by Christ. They cannot know our thoughts or read our minds. However, they observe, study, and strategize in their war and attack on God’s people.
Another enemy we have is our own flesh:
What does flesh mean in the Bible?
We each live in a body that has impulses and cravings that are not yet redeemed.
“Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?” -Romans 7:24
“This body of death” = “body of flesh”—Paul paints the picture of a dead body being dragged around.
Paul gives several lists of fleshly impulses and desires throughout Scripture.
Look at Galatians 5:16-25, specifically:
The Spirit drives us in the direction of that which is holy. Flesh drives us in the direction of that which is unholy.
The big battle—the greatest enemy— is internal.
II. We need to Know Our King
One of the beautiful and powerful teachings of God’s Word is the doctrine of Union with Christ. This is prevalent in Ephesians. This is broken down into four aspects of our relationship to Christ.
We are in Christ.
In eternity—Ephesians 1:4– even as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before Him. In love...
During Christ’s earthly ministry—Romans 5:19 — For as by the one man's disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man's obedience the many will be made righteous.
In our lives daily
2. Christ is in us. John 15:5—“He who abides in me, and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit.”
3. We are like Christ. We are to imitate Christ. He is our great example.
4. We are with Christ. Matthew 28:2
5. Salvation unites us with Jesus in his death and resurrection.
We identify with Christ, and He has identified with us. He knows our thoughts, our fears, our doubts, and our joys, even before we express them. And He understands. So this is why we STAND in Christ.
Now think of Jesus’ temptation in the wilderness, by Satan. He was tempted physically, in that He was hungry and was tempted to make bread. But more importantly, His humanly impulses and desires were appealed to in a spiritual manner. He was tempted to be prideful and idolatrous. In that battle, He showed us how to win.
EPHESIANS 6:13-18
“Take up the whole armor of God”—This is somewhat of a literary device. We often see this method in the scripture. In Greek mythology, a warrior would often go on an “aristeia”. The most well known of these was in Homer’s Iliad. The warrior-hero, Achilles, went on a wartime killing rampage and was thought to be empowered by the gods. This would be depicted in the putting on of the armor. In this scenario, the warrior was clothed in armor, and sent on a rampage of death and destruction. The picture of Yahweh as a warrior was important to the ancient Jews, and is likewise important to us.
The first act in taking up this armor is to submit to Christ. God had spoken throughout the Old Testament of being the One who fought for His people. And for us, it is no different. We submit to Christ. He fights for us and He fights through us. As He clothes us in His righteousness, so He will clothe us in His armor.
The first step in following Christ, and the first step in going to war, is LETTING GO. WE submit to CHRIST, so that it is Christ fighting in and through us.
Psalm 46:10
Be still, and know that I am God.
I will be exalted among the nations,
I will be exalted in the earth!”
Joshua 1:5
No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life. Just as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not leave you or forsake you.
Be Still = rapah
leave = rapah
The Hebrew Word = rapah
Means: to become slack, to relax, to let drop - often related to the hand.
The Psalm says:
Relax…put your hands down! Let God be God.
God says to Joshua:
I will not relax - I will not put down my hands!
GOD FIGHTS FOR YOU!
The list Paul gives in the next few verses are all rooted in the characteristics of Jesus.
Verse 14:
The armor listed is a literary device.
Let’s look at the actual characteristics and virtues the believer is to be “armed” with daily by “putting on Christ”.
Belt of Truth— We need to combat the lies of this world, this flesh, and the devil, with the truth of God’s Word.
We live in a world where lies abound. Satan will lie and accuse and manipulate. Lying is so destructive. This is why parents must teach children at the earliest age, to tell the truth. Many of you have believed lies your whole life. Such as:
I am not good enough
I am unwanted
I can’t expect God to give me a faithful spouse. I already blew it and messed up so what is the use in trying?
Money will buy joy. Sex will bring love. Security is had in a man or woman. Pornography is harmless.
Lies destroy homes, marriages, joy, and clear security and understanding of who we are in Christ. Lies are destructive. And guess where lies come from? Satan. Jesus says Satan is the “father of lies”. Lying originated with him and has continued throughout history.
Lies may be completely made up, but it can create instability and mistrust. Satan doesn’t need anything to be true, he just needs people to buy into it. We must know WHO we are in Christ, and know what his plans and purposes are for us.
Lies lead people to do horrible things. Unfaithful spouses believe they will be satisfied with an affair. People go into massive amounts of debt because they believe they will be satisfied with more stuff.
We must live our lives in the light of truth. We must live in the truth of the Gospel.
Breastplate of Righteousness— We need our hearts guarded.
Don’t be confused. Jesus gives us His righteousness when He saves us. He takes our sin and we receive His righteousness. This is called the imputation of righteousness. But as believers, we are called to live holy and righteous lives. Back in chapter 1, we were told that God’s purpose for us is holiness and blamelessness. We are made righteous in Christ, but we must daily pursue righteousness and faithfulness. Paul tells Timothy, pursue righteousness and faithfulness.
We are not saved because of our works. We are not righteous because of our works. Christ makes us righteous. But we are to live in obedience to God’s Word. Think about it; God’s Word is full of commands and imperatives for the believer. He doesn’t say, “live righteous lives, and you will be righteous.” The point is, because you have been made righteous, live like it.
John Stott, in his commentary on Ephesians, says this:
“It is inconceivable that we should enjoy a relationship with God as his children without accepting the obligation to imitate our Father and cultivate the family likeness”
This means that what we watch matters. What we say matters. Where we go matters. What we look at matters. Who we have sex with matters. What we put into our bodies matters.
We do because of who we are.
One of Satan’s tactics is to convince us that we can’t change. People buy into the lie and make excuses.
Jesus changes us when He saves us! Jesus is bigger than therapy! Jesus is bigger than addiction! Jesus is bigger than counseling! Jesus is bigger than an abusive past, or our past as abusers! Jesus is bigger than pornography! Jesus is bigger than job loss! Jesus is bigger than divorce, failures, frustrations, and misery! He has made us righteous, so we need to listen to him, and reject the lies of the world and of Satan.
Verse 15:
Shoes of the Gospel of Peace
Footwear is important, and is specific. Dancers, football players, business executives, golfers, race car drivers, nurses, loggers, all use a specific type of shoe to do their jobs.
But when it comes to footwear, I will buy the best I can afford, for the task at hand. Imagine going into war, wearing Crocs, Chacos, or worse yet, flip-flops. Imagine a biker dude on one of those biker gang TV shows rolling up on his chopper wearing all leather-chaps, vest, gloves- but imagine he was wearing flip flops or chacos. No one is scared of that guy. Footwear in battle is a pretty big deal. You need boots.
The Gospel is what we walk in. It is what we STAND in. -1 Corinthians 15:1
It is important to preach or proclaim the Gospel to yourself daily. What this does is empower us, excite us, encourage us, and it burdens us for those who don’t know.
Verse 16:
Shield of Faith
Faith is crucial. Faith will be tested, attacked by doubt, and will be war-battered. A warrior’s shield would have been dinged, nicked, and battered from blocking arrows, swords, and spears. These shields were huge. They were tall enough for a man to crouch behind. And how do we grow faith? Through the Word of God.
So faith comes through hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ- Romans 10:17
You wanna grow strong and defend against Satan's attacks? Read your Bible. Know your Bible.
This is what Jesus did in Luke 4 and Matthew 5.
And having your feet planted firmly in the Gospel will combat the attacks of Satan, and the lies of the flesh.
Verses 17-19:
Helmet of Salvation
Our salvation is what protects our mind. The constant barrage of the Gospel against the lies of the flesh and the devil will subdue the enemy and protect the sacred ground of our thoughts and mind.
Sword of The Spirit — WORD OF GOD
Jesus used the scriptures, and so should we. The Word of God is what will guard our hearts and minds, and drive back the attacks of the enemy. - 2 Corinthians 10:4-5
So Paul calls the Word of God a “Sword”. It is critical to handle it rightly. When handling Scripture we must think of the following:
Intent
Application
Accuracy
Continuity
Superiority
The passage ends with talk about prayer. Prayer is a powerful weapon. It is not a soft and passive activity in the war we wage.
Paul makes two points here about the warfare of prayer:
We should pray comprehensively. He uses the word “all” four times. Go through each of these. (All the time, all supplication, all perseverance, for all the saints.)
Pray for His boldness. We must remember to pray for our missionaries, and for those who share the gospel. Pray for one another.
Conclusion:
Read verses 21-24 again.
This war will end. Jesus promises us a final battle, and a final deliverance from sin. He also promises us a Wedding Day. We read about it in Revelation 21-22.
Our Lord will be victorious and we get to take part in His victory.