Christian Spiritual Warfare

Some time ago a friend invited me to go with her to a one-day seminar that covered areas of bondage in which Christians can find themselves. In fairness, I should say that from the start I did not see eye-to-eye with the presenter, who held some very outdated views about women and their needs. (It never ceases to amaze me how many men think they are experts on “what women want” - but that is a totally other soapbox that I won’t climb up on today.)

At the end of the day he gave handouts with pages of written prayers that people were supposed to use when they were involved in spiritual warfare. Now there was nothing scripturally wrong with what was written in these prayers, but I am absolutely convinced that for most people they would be totally ineffective for spiritual warfare.

I also understand that for many, they would have been exactly what they wanted - a “how-to” manual, cut-and-dried, just add your voice and no thought required. I understand that, because it’s what so many people ask for - “spiritual warfare prayers” that they can simply repeat and have the problem go away. What they want, basically, is a verbal “magic wand” … and that is precisely one of the reasons why it won’t work!

God does not work through “magic wands”. Ritual and legalism serve only to keep us distant from His power, not to release that power through us.

Our victory in spiritual warfare is based on three things: firstly, the finished work of Christ at Calvary, by which He once and for ever defeated satan; secondly, our personal relationship with Him and the authority He has given us; and thirdly, our understanding of those truths. Without those three things, we are at the mercy of the devil. It doesn’t matter how much Scripture we quote, or how many cookie-cutter prayers we read, if we don’t have that personal relationship and are not absolutely sure of Christ’s victory and our authority in Him, then we will be no better off than the sons of Sceva who tried to cast out demons “in the Name of Jesus, whom Paul preaches.”

Now just in case someone thinks I’m saying that we shouldn’t pray as part of spiritual warfare, let me clarify that I am talking here about set prayers that someone else has written and we just parrot off. True prayer - prayer in which we actually express our heart and connect with God - is very much part of spiritual warfare. However, we also need to understand that, as well as prayer, we need proclamation - directly addressing the forces that come against us and declaring Christ’s victory and God’s will in the situation.

“Spiritual warfare prayers” might serve a purpose in giving you some understanding of how to pray, but they will never replace the expression of your own heart and mind.

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This blog is © copyright Lynn Fowler.

There is one God, and one mediator between God and people, the man Christ Jesus (1 Timothy 2:51 Timothy 2:5
English: World English Bible - WEB
5 For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus,

)in Whom all the fullness of the Godhead dwells in bodily form (Colossians 2:9Colossians 2:9
English: World English Bible - WEB
9 For in him all the fullness of the Godhead dwells bodily,

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)and Whom God the Father has exalted to the highest place, giving Him the Name which is above every name, that at the Name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Philippians 2:9-11Philippians 2:9-11
English: World English Bible - WEB
9 Therefore God also highly exalted him, and gave to him the name which is above every name; ¹⁰ that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, those on earth, and those under the earth, ¹¹ and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

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This is sort of a follow-on from my last post about occultic symbols. Sometimes people ask me about alternative medicine and what should be the Christian response. It seems to be one of those areas that polarizes people - some embrace it wholeheartedly, whilst others want nothing to do with it because they see it all as being “New Age.”

Like so much New Age stuff, alternative medicine is very much a mixed bag. Some alternative therapies are totally legitimate, whilst others are demonically backed. So how do you tell the difference? Things like the use of herbs and plants for healing are fine - God placed those things in the world for our benefit - but what about things like aromatherapy, reiki and hypnosis. How can we know what is safe and what is not?

My personal practice is to start by asking the simple question, Is there any kind of scientific backing for this? Some therapies, even though not generally accepted by traditional medicine, do have a scientific basis. One that springs to mind is aromatherapy. Studies have shown that aromas do certainly influence the mental/emotional wellbeing of patients, and may also influence their physical wellbeing.

Others have absolutely no scientific backing at all, but rely on drawing on some unseen power. In Reiki, for instance, the practitioner supposedly “heals” by channeling his/her inner healing power to the patient. The reality, however, is that human beings do not have any innate healing ability, and the power these people are channeling is actually demonic. In fact, it is exactly the same thing as I used to do before I was saved when, as a spiritualist, I operated as a healing medium. Unfortunately, the results are also the same - the patient may get “healed”, but he/she also gets a bunch of demons.

If any therapy does not have some scientific basis, avoid it. Maybe in time it will be proven to be scientific, but it is far better to risk missing out than to take a chance on it being ok only to learn too late that it is demonic.

Just to make life more complicated, some therapies do have an apparently scientific basis, but are still spiritually dangerous. I am thinking particularly of hypnosis. Certainly, hypnosis works, and there are studies which show how and why it works. Hypnotists also argue that nobody will do under hypnosis anything that they would normally consider morally wrong. However, that is very easy to work around. If a woman under hypnosis can be made to believe that the onion she is biting into is a sweet, juicy apple, they why could she not be made to believe that the man kissing her is her husband? She might have moral standards that would never allow her to kiss a man who was not her husband, but if she believes he is, then those standards are over-ridden. Even worse, hypnosis places people in a spiritually vulnerable position where they can be attacked by demons without even recognizing that an attack is taking place. Don’t ever fall into the trap of thinking, “Because it works it must be ok.”

Some Christians say we should not worry about such things. They quote the Scripture that “greater is He who is in us than he that is in the world” and insist that we are safe to do anything because of the power of God. However, God never promises to protect us from willful stupidity. If you step off the top of a building, God is not going to send an angel to hold you up; and if you deliberately get involved in things that are demonic in their origin, He is not going to shelter you from the consequences. He gave us intelligence and will, and He means us to use them.

Don’t throw out the baby with the bathwater - some alternative therapies are ok, and very helpful. Pray and ask the Lord to give you wisdom, consider whether a particular therapy has any real scientific basis, and also consider what the results could be. If there is any doubt, it is far better to err on the side of caution.

Called to Battle Spiritual Warfare Seminar

Find it at http://christianspiritualwarfaregtk.com

Free e-course: Put on the Armor of God

Find it at http://christianspiritualwarfaregtk.com/armorofgod

This blog is © copyright Lynn Fowler.

There is one God, and one mediator between God and people, the man Christ Jesus (1 Timothy 2:51 Timothy 2:5
English: World English Bible - WEB
5 For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus,

)in Whom all the fullness of the Godhead dwells in bodily form (Colossians 2:9Colossians 2:9
English: World English Bible - WEB
9 For in him all the fullness of the Godhead dwells bodily,

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)and Whom God the Father has exalted to the highest place, giving Him the Name which is above every name, that at the Name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Philippians 2:9-11Philippians 2:9-11
English: World English Bible - WEB
9 Therefore God also highly exalted him, and gave to him the name which is above every name; ¹⁰ that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, those on earth, and those under the earth, ¹¹ and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

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A discussion arose recently on one of the forums where I hang out, about occultic symbols. Some people think that all symbols are harmless, whilst others think that even seemingly innocent things like butterflies can have sinister undertones. I decided this is something I really should address through this blog.

Firstly we need to understand what symbols are. Symbols are not just pictures: they say something. After all, the letters which make up our alphabet and from there our words, sentences and stories, are just symbols. When we see the letter “G”, we know that it stands for a certain sound. When we see the letter “O” we know it stands for a different sound. When we put them together, we know that they stand for a word that tells us to move ourselves from where we are to somewhere else.

This is even more true in pictographic languages like Chinese, where each “letter” represents not a sound but a picture of something. Or consider the many symbols we see in our everyday lives. We do not need to be told what a raised hand sign means, for example – we know that it “says” stop, even though we don’t see any words. In a sense we can think of symbols as words or sentences written in a different language.

The most powerful occultic symbol is the pentagram, the five-pointed star. This is normally drawn upside down, so that it has two points at the top and one each at the sides and bottom. It is a stylized picture of a face with two horns and a pointed beard, and is a symbol of satan. It says that the thing to which it is attached belongs to the devil.

Closely related to the pentagram is the “horned hand” in which the index and small fingers are extended, while the other two fingers are held down in front by the thumb. Again, it is a stylized devil’s head, and it is a declaration that satan is lord – not exactly something that any Christian would want to do.

Next is the hexagram, the six-sided star, normally drawn inside a circle. It says that the thing to which it is attached is cursed (hence the word hex, meaning a curse.) If you wear that symbol, you are declaring yourself to be cursed.

Another is the Ankh, which looks like a cross but has a loop at the top instead of the top part of the main beam. Many Christians wear this, thinking that it is just another type of cross, but in fact it is the Egyptian symbol of death.

The peace symbol is another that many use innocently, not understanding its origins. This is a circle with a vertical bar, and downward sloping bar going from the center bar to the circumference on each side. The story is that the Roman emperor Nero, who despised Christians, took a cross and broke its arms downward, saying that Christ was worthless. No Christian would want to wear a t-shirt emblazoned with the words, “Christ is worthless”, yet many unwittingly wear peace symbols that say exactly that, just in a different language.

Then there’s the yin/yang symbol – a circle with a squiggly line through the middle, half dark and half white. It is the symbol of dualism, the philosophy that says there are two equal but opposite forces in the universe. Ultimately, it is saying that satan is equal to God (but opposite.) Again, that’s not a message that most Christians would really want to wear on a t-shirt, but by wearing a yin/yang symbol, that is what they are declaring.

These are symbols that were specifically designed for occultic use. There are many others, but that is enough to give you the idea. Two very good reasons for avoiding these symbols: firstly, they make statements in another language that you would never want to make in your native tongue. Secondly, because they are linked to the occult, they can actually be an invitation to demonic forces to attack your life.

What about other symbols? Some people have attached occultic meaning to all manner of things, such as butterflies, frogs, elephants and rainbows. Should we avoid using these things, too? My response to that is a very definite “NO!” Such things are not intrinsically occultic. For the most part they are beautiful creations of God, which occultists have “stolen” and adapted to their own purposes. We should refuse to give up such things: the devil does not have a right to them.

This is an illustration I often use: suppose you had a block of land with a caravan on it. Someone comes along and takes up residence in the caravan. You have every right to kick that squatter out and reclaim the caravan for your own use. However, suppose the squatter did not take up residence in your caravan, but brought his own caravan with him and parked it on your block of land. Now, you would have every right to remove both the van and the squatter; but you would not have the right to kick the squatter out of the van and keep the van for yourself.

In the same way, some symbols “belong” to the devil. They were made for him, and he has a right to them. You need to remove both them and him from your life. Other symbols do not belong to the devil, and never have. He has merely taken them over. You have every right to kick him out and keep the symbols for your own use.

Called to Battle Spiritual Warfare Seminar
Find it at http://christianspiritualwarfaregtk.com

Free e-course: Put on the Armor of God
Find it at http://christianspiritualwarfaregtk.com/armorofgod

This blog is © copyright Lynn Fowler.

There is one God, and one mediator between God and people, the man Christ Jesus (1 Timothy 2:51 Timothy 2:5
English: World English Bible - WEB
5 For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus,

)in Whom all the fullness of the Godhead dwells in bodily form (Colossians 2:9Colossians 2:9
English: World English Bible - WEB
9 For in him all the fullness of the Godhead dwells bodily,

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)and Whom God the Father has exalted to the highest place, giving Him the Name which is above every name, that at the Name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Philippians 2:9-11Philippians 2:9-11
English: World English Bible - WEB
9 Therefore God also highly exalted him, and gave to him the name which is above every name; ¹⁰ that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, those on earth, and those under the earth, ¹¹ and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

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Quite a few years ago there was a television advertisement for a particular brand of motor oil (I can’t remember which one, which just goes to show that whilst an ad might be memorable it doesn’t always mean that people will remember the product being advertised – but that’s another story.) Anyway, in this ad the small time gangster, Louie, was changing the car oil for the Big Boss. Asked whether he had used the brand being advertised, he replied that he had used a cheaper brand because “oils is oils.” The Big Boss’s response was that “oils ain’t oils” - in other words, there was one “real thing”and the rest were pretenders.

I thought of Louie recently, following a discussion with an acquaintance (who thinks of herself as a Christian) about the legitimacy of other religions. This lady has been caught up in the idea that there is only one God (true!) and that everyone worships the same god, just under different names (most definitely not true!)

Now I don’t want to offend anyone here, but unless God suffers from multiple personality disorder, there is simply no way that this can be so. Think about it for a moment. Some religions worship hundreds – or even thousands – of gods, some worship only one. Which is true? God cannot be both. Either He is one, or they are many.

Islam teaches that God is an absolute mathematical unity, and that He has no Son. Christianity teaches that the one God consists of three persons, Father, Son and Holy Spirit (which is something quite different from the concept of multiple gods), and that God the Son became man in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ. Both cannot be true. Either God has a Son, or He doesn’t.

Now if you were to come up to me and say, “I know you. You’re that lady who doesn’t have any children,” I would quickly tell you, “I’m sorry, I don’t know who it is you know, but it isn’t me. I have two children and five grandchildren.” Do you think maybe God might have a similar response when people suggest that He doesn’t have a Son?

You cannot strip Christ out of Christianity. The God of the Bible is the God Who manifested Himself in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ. Any god that did not do that is not the God of the Bible, no matter what claims people may make.

So what about the idea that Christianity should be, as my friend insisted, an “inclusive religion”? We don’t have to read very far in the Bible to see that God had very different ideas. The first of the Ten Commandments states categorically, “You shall have no other gods before Me.” Now, just in case anyone thinks that means that it’s ok to have other gods as long as we don’t put them ahead of YHWH (the God of the Bible), let me make something clear. The word “before” doesn’t mean “ahead of” but “in my presence” - much the same as we use the word “beside” today. Since God’s presence fills the universe, that boils down to very simply “no other gods!” Hmm … doesn’t seem very inclusive to me.

The Old Testament is filled with warnings about not worshiping other gods. YHWH would not tolerate the worship of the Baals, and much of the prophecy recorded in the Old Testament was directed at God’s people as a rebuke for their breaking of those prohibitions. Eventually, Israel was dispersed by the Assyrians and Judah was taken into captivity by the Babylonians, primarily because of their refusal to repent of the worship of false gods. Doesn’t sound very tolerant!

In the New Testament, Paul used the “altar to an unknown God” (Acts 17) to point people to the truth in Christ; but he did not for one moment suggest that the worship of that unknown god – or of any other god – was equal to the worship of YHWH. In fact, he ended his message with a call to repent and turn away from these false things. Earlier, Peter and John had declared boldly before the Sanhedrin that salvation was available only in the name of Jesus (Acts 4:12Acts 4:12
English: World English Bible - WEB
12 There is salvation in none other, for neither is there any other name under heaven, that is given among men, by which we must be saved!”

), echoing Jesus’ own words that “No-one comes to the Father but by Me.” (John 14:6John 14:6
English: World English Bible - WEB
6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father, except through me.

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) All of that sounds pretty exclusive, not inclusive.

The truth is, the whole “tolerance and inclusion” philosophy is a trick of the devil, designed to make people think that they don’t need to come to Christ. After all, if there are “many paths up the mountain”, then it would make sense to choose the one that is either least demanding or best suited to one’s personal tastes. If all gods are the same, then it really doesn’t matter.

On the other hand, if the Bible is true, and the God of the Bible is the true God Who will not tolerate the worship of any other god, then it is a matter of (eternal) life and death.

No, Louie. Oils ain’t oils. And gods ain’t gods.

Called to Battle Spiritual Warfare Seminar
Find it at http://christianspiritualwarfaregtk.com

Free e-course: Put on the Armor of God
Find it at http://christianspiritualwarfaregtk.com/armorofgod

This blog is © copyright Lynn Fowler.

There is one God, and one mediator between God and people, the man Christ Jesus (1 Timothy 2:51 Timothy 2:5
English: World English Bible - WEB
5 For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus,

)in Whom all the fullness of the Godhead dwells in bodily form (Colossians 2:9Colossians 2:9
English: World English Bible - WEB
9 For in him all the fullness of the Godhead dwells bodily,

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)and Whom God the Father has exalted to the highest place, giving Him the Name which is above every name, that at the Name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Philippians 2:9-11Philippians 2:9-11
English: World English Bible - WEB
9 Therefore God also highly exalted him, and gave to him the name which is above every name; ¹⁰ that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, those on earth, and those under the earth, ¹¹ and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

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The devil is probably one of the most mocked characters in the modern western world. From cartoons of a little red fellow with horns and a pitchfork, to Halloween costumes, to representations in films, he is treated as a joke. Many people - even people who believe in God - simply don’t believe that there is such a thing as a real, personal devil. He is, they say, just a mythical personification of the evil in the world.

In reality, that concept is one of the two most dangerous lies spread around by the devil himself (the other is the one that says he is all powerful - so big and powerful that you’d just better do what he says and not argue.) The Bible makes it clear that there is a real, personal being, known as the devil or satan (I refuse to give him a capital letter), who is the ultimate source of evil.

Isaiah 14:12-20Isaiah 14:12-20
English: World English Bible - WEB
12 How you have fallen from Heaven, morning star, son of the dawn! How you are cut down to the ground, who laid the nations low! ¹³ You said in your heart, “I will ascend into heaven! I will exalt my throne above the stars of God! I will sit on the mountain of assembly, in the far north! ¹⁴ I will ascend above the heights of the clouds! I will make myself like the Most High!” ¹⁵ Yet you shall be brought down to Sheol, to the depths of the pit. ¹⁶ Those who see you will stare at you. They will ponder you, saying, “Is this the man who made the earth to tremble, who shook kingdoms; ¹⁷ who made the world like a wilderness, and overthrew its cities; who didn’t release his prisoners to their home?” ¹⁸ All the kings of the nations, sleep in glory, everyone in his own house. ¹⁹ But you are cast away from your tomb like an abominable branch, clothed with the slain, who are thrust through with the sword, who go down to the stones of the pit; like a dead body trodden under foot. ²⁰ You will not join them in burial, because you have destroyed your land. You have killed your people. The seed of evil-doers will not be named forever.

and Ezekiel 28:11-19Ezekiel 28:11-19
English: World English Bible - WEB
11 Moreover the word of Yahweh came to me, saying, ¹² Son of man, take up a lamentation over the king of Tyre, and tell him, Thus says the Lord Yahweh: You seal up the sum, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty. ¹³ You were in Eden, the garden of God; every precious stone adorned you: ruby, topaz, emerald, chrysolite, onx, jasper, sapphire or, lapis lazuli, turquoise, and beryl. Gold work of tambourines and of pipes was in you. In the day that you were created they were prepared. ¹⁴ You were the anointed cherub who covers: and I set you, so that you were on the holy mountain of God; you have walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire. ¹⁵ You were perfect in your ways from the day that you were created, until unrighteousness was found in you. ¹⁶ By the abundance of your traffic they filled the midst of you with violence, and you have sinned: therefore I have cast you as profane out of the mountain of God; and I have destroyed you, covering cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire. ¹⁷ Your heart was lifted up because of your beauty; you have corrupted your wisdom by reason of your brightness: I have cast you to the ground; I have laid you before kings, that they may see you. ¹⁸ By the multitude of your iniquities, in the unrighteousness of your traffic, you have profaned your sanctuaries; therefore have I brought forth a fire from the midst of you; it has devoured you, and I have turned you to ashes on the earth in the sight of all those who see you. ¹⁹ All those who know you among the peoples shall be astonished at you: you are become a terror, and you shall nevermore have any being.

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are two passages that seem, on the surface, to be addressed to earthly kings. However, we don’t have to go far beneath the surface to realize that the things said in these passages could never be applied to a human being. The Ezekiel passage speaks about one who was created perfect, full of beauty ans wisdom, and was appointed as the “guardian cherub”. Satan, as he was originally created by God, was not an evil being, but the head angel.

However, both Isaiah and Ezekiel show that he became proud, and then tried to rise up and make himself even greater than God. Because of this he was thrown out of heaven and cast to earth, where he took the form of a serpent. In that form he tempted our first parents to do the same as he had done, promising them that if they disobeyed God they would themselves become “as gods”. Sadly, they fell for it. God had given them dominion over the world, but by obeying the devil rather than God they handed that rule over to satan.

Satan could not return to rule from heaven, the place of God’s throne, so instead he set up his throne in the physical heavens, becoming known as the “prince of the power of the air” (Ephesians 2:2Ephesians 2:2
English: World English Bible - WEB
2 in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the powers of the air, the spirit who now works in the children of disobedience;

). From there he was able to influence everything that happened on the earth.

When Jesus came, the devil tried to destroy Him almost as soon as he was born, by influencing Herod to have all the male children killed. When it came time for Jesus to enter into His ministry, the devil tried to stop Him with the wilderness temptations (Matthew 4). Notice that Jesus was not battling against some kind of evil force, or a principle, but against a real, personal being who spoke to Him and took Him to various places in the effort to tempt Him away from His goal.

Jesus’ death on the Cross was a defeat for satan. By His perfect obedience to the Father, Jesus reversed the disobedience of our first parents and claimed back the earth as part of God’s Kingdom. The devil’s fate was sealed. However, for the present time he continues to “hold his fort” in the physical heavens - much as, in the Second World War, some Japanese soldiers continued to hold their positions long after the war was over. He still influences, and even controls, those people on earth who make themselves available to his influence.

The day is coming, however, when his time will be up. The victory that Jesus won at Calvary will be fully enforced, and the devil’s influence will be removed from the world. Till that time, we have to choose whether we will follow the devil and share his eternal destiny in hell, or follow Christ and share His eternal reign in heaven.

Called to Battle Spiritual Warfare Seminar
Find it at http://christianspiritualwarfaregtk.com

Free e-course: Put on the Armor of God
Find it at http://christianspiritualwarfaregtk.com/armorofgod

This blog is © copyright Lynn Fowler.

There is one God, and one mediator between God and people, the man Christ Jesus (1 Timothy 2:51 Timothy 2:5
English: World English Bible - WEB
5 For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus,

)in Whom all the fullness of the Godhead dwells in bodily form (Colossians 2:9Colossians 2:9
English: World English Bible - WEB
9 For in him all the fullness of the Godhead dwells bodily,

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)and Whom God the Father has exalted to the highest place, giving Him the Name which is above every name, that at the Name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Philippians 2:9-11Philippians 2:9-11
English: World English Bible - WEB
9 Therefore God also highly exalted him, and gave to him the name which is above every name; ¹⁰ that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, those on earth, and those under the earth, ¹¹ and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

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)

I think it was Snoopy, in the Peanuts comic strip, who said, “We have seen the enemy, and they is us.” (If it wasn’t Snoopy, I apologize - but whoever did say it, got it right.) Often, we spend a great deal of time and energy looking for an enemy “out there” somewhere: our family, friends or workmates; our boss or pastor or the government; the weather, global warming or the financial crisis. And when all else fails we can always blame the devil and his demons.

Now I am not for a moment suggesting that people never do anything to harm us; or that political systems, the environment and economics don’t, on occasion, cause us problems. And most certainly the devil and his cohorts are always seeking for an opportunity to attack us.

What I am saying is that all too often we give these things far more credit than they are due. Sure, they may play some role in the problems we face, but often the root of the problem lies not in front of our eyes, but immediately behind them. It all starts with our thinking.

I was reminded again this week of a saying I first heard very early in my Christian life:

Sow a thought - reap a feeling;

Sow a feeling - reap an attitude;

Sow an attitude - reap an action;

Sow an action - reap a habit.

Let’s look at it a little more closely. Many people believe that emotions are simply things that come upon us, that we have no control over them and can do nothing to either cause or prevent them. This is absolutely not true.

Feelings are the result of thoughts. They are brought on by the things we tell ourselves about our circumstances or what is happening in our lives at the moment. Take an example: You are walking down the street and your friend, Mary, walks by without even acknowledging you. If you think to yourself, “What a snob! Just who does she think she is to just ignore me like that!” then you will start feeling angry. If you think, “Mary mustn’t like me any more,” then you will begin to feel sad or abandoned. If you think, “Mary must have some kind of serious worry that she didn’t notice me,” feelings of compassion will begin to come over you. If you think, “TeHe, Mary’s off in her own little world again. I’m going to give her heaps when I see her next!” then you will stir up feelings of affection toward your friend.

Did any of those feelings “just happen”? No, they were all directly prompted by your thoughts. A feeling is the consequence of a thought. We can change the feelings by changing the thoughts. What we cannot do is separate the thought and its consequence, the feeling.

Feelings, in turn, produce attitudes. Attitudes are the spectacles through which we view life. If we regularly allow ourselves to indulge thoughts of being rejected, producing feelings of rejection, these will eventually build into an attitude of rejection. Instead of just seeing rejection in one person or situation, we will begin to see rejection everywhere, and from everybody.

Once attitudes are entrenched in our lives, we begin to act out from those attitudes. If we see ourselves as being rejected, we begin to act like a rejected person. We put up walls. We take things personally. We respond as if we had been rejected, even if the person speaking was not directing his words to us in any way. The really sad thing is, when we act like this we actually bring rejection upon ourselves. It’s as if we had stuck a big sign on our backs saying “Reject Me!” The same applies to every attitude we act out.

Finally, those actions become a habit. Psychologists tell us that it only takes three weeks to establish a habit - and most people have been acting out their attitudes much longer than that! These things become our normal way of doing things, and the further we go the harder the pattern becomes to break.

Then, somewhere down the track, we realize that we have a problem going on in our lives. To stick with our illustration of rejection, we realize that we are being rejected right, left and center. That’s when we start throwing out the blame. It’s the fault of the people around us, who reject us. It’s our parents’ fault, because they rejected us. Maybe there is a demon of rejection operating in our lives? We seek deliverance, and get no results.

The uncomfortable truth is, even if there is a demonic force involved, it is there because we gave it a comfortable place to lodge. We are the problem: not our parents, not our friends, not our boss, not demons. What we have to do is go back to the beginning and change the equation. This whole downward spiral started with our thoughts. By changing our thoughts, we can reverse the spiral.

Now, it will not be easy, nor will it be instant. In the beginning we will have to consciously grab our thoughts and tell ourselves, “No. That isn’t the truth. This is.” To do that, we need the Word of God, so that we can replace the lies we have been telling ourselves with the truth of Scripture; and we need the Spirit of God, Who will help and empower us in our new way of thinking.

Yes, we can be our own greatest enemy. But we can also be our own best friend. It all depends on how we think.

Called to Battle Spiritual Warfare Seminar
Find it at http://christianspiritualwarfaregtk.com

Free e-course: Put on the Armor of God
Find it at http://christianspiritualwarfaregtk.com/armorofgod

This blog is © copyright Lynn Fowler.

There is one God, and one mediator between God and people, the man Christ Jesus (1 Timothy 2:51 Timothy 2:5
English: World English Bible - WEB
5 For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus,

)in Whom all the fullness of the Godhead dwells in bodily form (Colossians 2:9Colossians 2:9
English: World English Bible - WEB
9 For in him all the fullness of the Godhead dwells bodily,

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)and Whom God the Father has exalted to the highest place, giving Him the Name which is above every name, that at the Name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Philippians 2:9-11Philippians 2:9-11
English: World English Bible - WEB
9 Therefore God also highly exalted him, and gave to him the name which is above every name; ¹⁰ that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, those on earth, and those under the earth, ¹¹ and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

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)

“and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.”

(Ephesians 6:15Ephesians 6:15
English: World English Bible - WEB
15 and having fitted your feet with the preparation of the Gospel of peace;

, NIV)

Often when people read this verse, they think it is talking about the preaching of the Gospel. Preaching and witnessing are important, and are most certainly a part of our spiritual warfare. However, these are offensive measures - tactics which we use to take territory from the enemy. The armor, however, is defensive - it is our protection against the enemy’s attacks. Paul is not talking about our taking the Gospel to others, but rather about the effect that the Gospel has on us personally.

As with the whole of this passage about the armor of God, he is using the picture of the armor worn by a Roman soldier. On his feet the soldier wore heavy leather sandals, which were studded underneath with metal, so that no matter what kind of terrain the soldier had to cover, he would never slip or lose his grip. Paul is saying that is what the Gospel does for us.

How does the Gospel achieve this? It is the Gospel of Peace - and that means, firstly, that it is the Gospel that brought us peace with God. Before we heard the Gospel, we were God’s enemies. We may have been consciously and deliberately opposed to God, perhaps denying His existence or at least living as though He did not exist. Or we might have been “good” people, perhaps even churchgoers, but had never truly surrendered our lives to Christ. Either way, we were God’s enemies. There are only two possibilities in life - either we are in the Kingdom of God or the kingdom of darkness. Those in the kingdom of darkness are God’s enemies, and if they remain in that kingdom they will suffer the same judgment as the prince of that kingdom.

Being at war with God creates all kinds of problems in our lives, and leaves us open to the attack of the enemy on every side. However, when we heard and responded to the Gospel we changed sides - we switched our allegiance from the kingdom of darkness to the Kingdom of God. Now we are no longer His enemies, but His friends and bound to Him in a covenant that guarantees He will fight on our behalf.

Since we are now God’s friends, we also have another benefit - the peace of God. This means that, because of our relationship with Him, we can walk through any situations that life might throw at us in perfect peace, knowing that He will work them all together for our good and His glory. That does not mean that we will never have problems, but that we can rest in the knowledge that God is bigger than all our problems.

Most important of all, we now know the God who is Peace. Jehovah Shalom, the Lord is my peace, was one of the names of God in the Old Testament. When we know Jehovah Shalom, we not only have the peace of God in our hearts in any situation, but we carry His peace with us wherever we go, and are able to release that peace into the situation. That’s why, in the middle of a storm that had the disciples - all of whom were experienced fishermen - absolutely terrified, Jesus was able to stand up and simply say, “Peace. Be still.” and the storm stopped.

The Gospel of peace does indeed allow us to walk through all of life’s troubled roads and never lose our footing.

Called to Battle Spiritual Warfare Seminar
Find it at http://christianspiritualwarfaregtk.com

Free e-course: Put on the Armor of God
Find it at http://christianspiritualwarfaregtk.com/armorofgod

This blog is © copyright Lynn Fowler.

There is one God, and one mediator between God and people, the man Christ Jesus (1 Timothy 2:51 Timothy 2:5
English: World English Bible - WEB
5 For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus,

)in Whom all the fullness of the Godhead dwells in bodily form (Colossians 2:9Colossians 2:9
English: World English Bible - WEB
9 For in him all the fullness of the Godhead dwells bodily,

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)and Whom God the Father has exalted to the highest place, giving Him the Name which is above every name, that at the Name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Philippians 2:9-11Philippians 2:9-11
English: World English Bible - WEB
9 Therefore God also highly exalted him, and gave to him the name which is above every name; ¹⁰ that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, those on earth, and those under the earth, ¹¹ and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

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)

Paul tells us that part of the defensive armor that God has given us is the shield of faith - but what, exactly, is faith, and how can it be a shield for us? Is it, as so many have taught over the years, I kind of button that we push to get what we want out of God, whenever we want it? Is it simply the adherence to a correct set of doctrinal precepts? Is it something we can get only by summoning every ounce of our will power and focusing it on believing?

 

One thing that we really need to understand is that faith is spiritual. No amount of intellectual understanding will produce it, nor will any amount of will power. Those things come from the soul, and the soul cannot produce spiritual results. Likewise, a hyped-up meeting that produces a wonderful emotional high cannot produce faith - emotions are also part of the soul realm. Sometimes those things may clear the way for us to move into faith; but at other times they may actually block the way and prevent us from finding true faith. Just as in an inoculation a “mini dose” of the disease, or something that is somewhat like the disease, can keep us from contracting the real disease, so trying to find faith through the soul realm can inoculate us against finding true faith.

 

Faith has three aspects: truth, relationship and action.

 

The truth aspect of faith is not something we can find by natural means, even by reading the Word of God. It has to come by revelation. Think about it: how often, before you came to the Lord, did you read the Bible and it made no sense to you at all? Then one day the Lord opened your eyes, and it became real and meaningful.

 

Truth has to be a revelation, because our minds are so minute compared to the mind of God. Our minds cannot begin to understand Him, just as the mind of an ant couldn’t begin to understand us. The only way we can know Him is by a revelation from His Spirit to our spirit.

 

That knowing then leads to the second part of the faith equation: relationship. It is not enough to know about God, we need to know Him personally in an intimate relationship. The more we know Him, the more we know that we can trust Him to do the things He has promised. Whilst Paul tells us to take up the shield of faith, Psalms tells us that “His faithfulness will be your shield” (Ps 91:4Ps 91:4
English: World English Bible - WEB
4 He will cover you with his feathers. Under his wings you will take refuge. His faithfulness is your shield and rampart.

b). Our shield is not some kind of artificial belief summoned by the force of our will, but our rest in the faithfulness of Him with whom we are related.

 

This in turn leads to action. We automatically act out of the things we truly believe. We do not have to grit our teeth and say, “I believe thus, therefore I will act so.” It happens naturally. If our actions do not match our beliefs, then we either have serious mental problems or we do not really believe the things we think we believe. Particularly in relation to using faith as our shield, our actions include our words. If on one hand we say that we believe God is able to deal with whatever situations we face, but on the other hand we talk as if those situations are going to destroy us, then maybe we should look again at what we really believe. If our words are not a true expression both of the truth that has been revealed to us, and the relationship that we have with the Lord, then that faith will never be a sufficient shield to protect us against the attack of the enemy.

 

Called to Battle Spiritual Warfare Seminar
Find it at http://christianspiritualwarfaregtk.com

Free e-course: Put on the Armor of God
Find it at http://christianspiritualwarfaregtk.com/armorofgod

This blog is © copyright Lynn Fowler.

There is one God, and one mediator between God and people, the man Christ Jesus (1 Timothy 2:51 Timothy 2:5
English: World English Bible - WEB
5 For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus,

)in Whom all the fullness of the Godhead dwells in bodily form (Colossians 2:9Colossians 2:9
English: World English Bible - WEB
9 For in him all the fullness of the Godhead dwells bodily,

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)and Whom God the Father has exalted to the highest place, giving Him the Name which is above every name, that at the Name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Philippians 2:9-11Philippians 2:9-11
English: World English Bible - WEB
9 Therefore God also highly exalted him, and gave to him the name which is above every name; ¹⁰ that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, those on earth, and those under the earth, ¹¹ and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

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)

 If you have been a Christian for more than five minutes, you have probably experienced times when hearing from God has been difficult. We know it shouldn’t be that way - after all, Jesus said, “My sheep hear My voice” - but that doesn’t help very much when our prayers just seem to bounce off the ceiling and God seems a million miles away.

 There’s also the old guilt-producing line that “if God seems far away, He didn’t move, you did.” Of course, that is sometimes true. We have allowed busyness, problems or pleasures to get between us and the face of God, and we need to repent and get back to the intimacy of our relationship with Him. Other times, though, it is simply not true. We desire Him as much as ever, but try as we may we are simply not receiving the answers to our questions.

 Daniel faced this problem, recorded in chapter 10 of his book. When an angel finally arrived with the answer to Daniel’s prayer, he explained that Daniel had been heard as soon as he prayed. However, there was a ruling principality over the area who had a vested interest in keeping Daniel from hearing what God had to say. That spiritual prince had wrestled with the angelic messenger, delaying him in bringing the answer to Daniel.

 We may find this hard to understand. How can demonic forces hinder the message that God wants to give to His people? Sometimes we need to suspend our desire to understand: not that God wants us to be mindless Christians, but some things are simply beyond our human understanding. God’s Word clearly tells us that this is what happened, therefore we need to be able to simply accept it.

 Unfortunately, many Christians live in blissful ignorance of the spiritual forces that surround us, and the constant battle that is being waged over this world. Just as those forces did not want Daniel to receive his answer from God, they also want to prevent us from receiving ours.

 However, there are two things that are very different for us than they were for Daniel. The first is that, if we have been born again, we have the Holy Spirit, who is God, living within us. He has restored our human spirit as the part of our being through which He can communicate with us. As we learn to develop our spirit, we have a means of hearing directly from Him - something with which external forces cannot directly interfere.

 There are times, though, when answers have to be dispatched not from the Spirit within us, but from the Throne Room. That’s where our second difference kicks in. Daniel had no authority over the battles in the spirit realm, but we have been given authority over all the power of the enemy. (Luke 10:19Luke 10:19
English: World English Bible - WEB
19 Behold, I give you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy. Nothing will in any way hurt you.

) Jesus said that what we bind on earth will be bound in heaven. In other words, we have the power to enter the battle and fight on the side of God’s angels.

We need to be pro-active. Simply putting our petitions out there and waiting for the answers to come is not enough, particularly when our prayers relate to issues which will bring damage to the kingdom of darkness. We need to be actively standing against any force which would hinder the answers coming to us; we need to be binding (forbidding) the enemy from hindering or delaying those answers; we need to be declaring an open heaven; and we need to be actively expecting to hear.

 

Called to Battle Spiritual Warfare Seminar
Find it at http://christianspiritualwarfaregtk.com

Free e-course: Put on the Armor of God
Find it at http://christianspiritualwarfaregtk.com/armorofgod

This blog is © copyright Lynn Fowler.

There is one God, and one mediator between God and people, the man Christ Jesus (1 Timothy 2:51 Timothy 2:5
English: World English Bible - WEB
5 For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus,

)in Whom all the fullness of the Godhead dwells in bodily form (Colossians 2:9Colossians 2:9
English: World English Bible - WEB
9 For in him all the fullness of the Godhead dwells bodily,

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)and Whom God the Father has exalted to the highest place, giving Him the Name which is above every name, that at the Name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Philippians 2:9-11Philippians 2:9-11
English: World English Bible - WEB
9 Therefore God also highly exalted him, and gave to him the name which is above every name; ¹⁰ that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, those on earth, and those under the earth, ¹¹ and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

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)

 It’s something we all face from time to time. The things that we’ve planned and worked for just aren’t happening; the people we thought loved or at least accepted us turn against us; the prayers we have been praying so long and so hard don’t seem to even reach the ceiling, much less getting answers.

 

Discouragement sets in. We wonder whether we got it right in the first place: were we, perhaps, following our own desires rather than the will of God? Was the word from the Lord that we thought we heard so clearly really only the echo of our own hopes and dreams?

 

Alternatively, we wonder whether we have done something to block the flow of God’s answers to us. Have we sinned? Have we failed to fulfill our part of the contract, to do the things that we can do so that God is free to do the things that only He can do?

 

As a result we lose heart. We find it harder and harder to keep putting in the effort, to keep putting one foot in front of the other, when all we seem to be achieving is to walk in ever-decreasing circles.

 

It’s an interesting word, discouragement. Dis-courage-ment. The removal of courage. That’s exactly what it does to us: saps our courage, our boldness, our strength. The more we come under discouragement, the weaker we feel; and the less we are able to deal with the situations which caused the discouragement in the first place. So the process becomes a self-defeating, downward spiral.

 

Discouragement is one of the greatest weapons in the devil’s arsenal. He has used it to destroy countless individuals and ministries. If we are not going to join the list, then we need to know how to fight it.

 

Firstly, we need to take a really good look at how we see God. Is He just like a “bigger person” to us? The “Bloke upstairs”? Just a friend? A warm-and-fuzzy grandfather? None of those images is nearly big enough to counter the attack of discouragement. We need to see God as He is: the creator, sustainer and King of the universe. The all-powerful One. Take time in the Word to find God as He really is, not as He has been re-fashioned into the image of man.

 

Secondly, we need to take time to review the things that God has done in our own lives and the lives of those around us. Whilst it is great to read of His miracles in distant countries and long-past times, those things do not have nearly the power to lift us that our personal experience has. Knowing that God has made it possible for us personally to pay a $50 account when we didn’t have the money will do more to help us overcome discouragement than knowing that He raised someone from the dead on the other side of the world. Keep a “blessing book” and record all the things that God does for you. Then, when things are tough and it is hard to remember, you can go back through it and be reminded of His goodness.

 

Thirdly, we need to keep the focus on the Lord, not on the problem. Now I know only too well that is easy to say and difficult to do, particularly when the problems insist on attacking you all at the same time, rather than making an orderly queue. At first, especially, you will probably need to keep pulling your focus back to the Lord. That’s ok. If necessary, use some kind of “interrupt” mechanism to help you. For instance, an elastic band around your wrist (not to tight, we don’t want any hands turning blue and dropping off). Every time you find yourself getting focused on the problem, snap the band to remind you to turn your attention to the Lord.

 

Finally, remember that God has a different agenda to us. Yes, He wants success for His people. But His first interest is character. He can see the big picture, where we see only through the microscopic window of our human mind. It may be that the very things that are frustrating and discouraging you today are the things that, if you will allow Him to use them in your life, will produce the character that will make it possible for Him to open greater doors and give you greater success than you are presently able to even imagine.

 

Ultimately, discouragement is a choice. We can allow the circumstances of life to rob us of courage and boldness, or we can allow God to use those same circumstances to lift us to a new level in Him.

 

Called to Battle Spiritual Warfare Seminar
Find it at http://christianspiritualwarfaregtk.com

Free e-course: Put on the Armor of God
Find it at http://christianspiritualwarfaregtk.com/armorofgod

This blog is © copyright Lynn Fowler.

There is one God, and one mediator between God and people, the man Christ Jesus (1 Timothy 2:51 Timothy 2:5
English: World English Bible - WEB
5 For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus,

)in Whom all the fullness of the Godhead dwells in bodily form (Colossians 2:9Colossians 2:9
English: World English Bible - WEB
9 For in him all the fullness of the Godhead dwells bodily,

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)and Whom God the Father has exalted to the highest place, giving Him the Name which is above every name, that at the Name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Philippians 2:9-11Philippians 2:9-11
English: World English Bible - WEB
9 Therefore God also highly exalted him, and gave to him the name which is above every name; ¹⁰ that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, those on earth, and those under the earth, ¹¹ and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

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)