Life is a Battle, but the war has already been won!!
“Ye shall not need to fight in this battle: set yourselves, stand ye still, and see the salvation of the LORD with you, O Judah and Jerusalem: fear not, nor be dismayed; tomorrow go out against them: for the LORD will be with you.” ~ 2 Chronicles 20:17 KJV
There have been times throughout history that even though the war was over, not every soldier got the message. They were still out there acting like the war was still going on. They either did not hear that the war ended, or they just refused to accept it, especially if their country lost.
The devil is just like that. Even though the greatest war of all time has been won by Jesus, the devil still refuses to accept it, and still is out there attacking every chance he gets.
We, as Christians have to stay alert. We have to stay on point. Every single day that we are alive on this earth, we are in a spiritual battle - but you know we already have the victory! That doesn't stop the enemy though - he is going to keep trying - but he is DEFEATED. We still have to stay prayed up & daily in the Word. Don’t believe me - grab your Bible.
Turn to 1 Peter 5:8-9
“Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. Stand firm against him, and be strong in your faith. Remember that your Christian brothers and sisters all over the world are going through the same kind of suffering you are.”
Sometimes it seems that you are alone. It feels like you are the only one in the world that is having rough times.
Nope. You are not the only one. It says it right there in verse 9, Christians all over the world are going through the same thing.
Notice it says “Christians”. The devil doesn’t have any reason to attack the non-Christians. They already belong to him. When you accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior, you became a child of God. And because you are a child of God now, you get the promises of God. Let’s look at 1 Peter 5 again, but go on to verse 10 and 11
“In his kindness God called you to share in his eternal glory by means of Christ Jesus. So after you have suffered a little while, he will restore, support, and strengthen you, and he will place you on a firm foundation. 11 All power to him forever! Amen.”
Because of His loving kindness, His mercy and His grace He has called us to share in eternity with Him. Because of the sacrifice Jesus Christ made. When you think of the magnitude suffering Jesus did, His suffering was for everyone that ever existed. You only have to go through your own. There is no comparison, and the promise is still the same. HE will restore, support, and strengthen you. HE will put you on a FIRM foundation. God alone has the power to do just that, and He loves you so much, He will do it for you!!
We are Christians, we are one in the Body of Christ. While we are still on this earth, we are still human, we still have that fleshly body (Thank God that is only temporary). However, even though we are here on this earth, our war is still spiritual, and we need God’s weapons. We don’t wage war as humans do. Turn to 2 Corinthians 10:3-5
“We use God’s mighty weapons, not worldly weapons, to knock down the strongholds of human reasoning and to destroy false arguments. We destroy every proud obstacle that keeps people from knowing God. We capture their rebellious thoughts and teach them to obey Christ.”
The devil is the master of deception. He gets in the mind of the unsaved and corrupts their thinking with his false doctrines and warped reasoning. But with God’s weapons we have the power to breakdown those strongholds and destroy every obstacle that the enemy uses to turn people away from God. We can retrain them – teach them to obey God – it is our responsibility as Christians to give them every opportunity to join the victorious Army. Everyone wants to be a winner. And we can show them the way!!
And that is what makes the devil even angrier. Because he already knows that it is almost over, and because we are attacking him and taking back for Jesus the souls that he thought were his, he is not going to just give up without fighting back. So we need to be prepared.
Every day you need to put on the whole armor of God. As soon as you get up in the morning. That’s right. When a soldier at war gets up in the morning the first thing he does is put on his gear and grabs his weapon. He carries it at all times. So when we, Christians, who are now in the Army of the Lord, get up in the morning, we need to do the same thing. The war doesn’t stop because we aren’t in the mood today. It is every day. And the devil isn’t going to let up until we give up. You don’t have to give up. You already have God’s armor. You already have the weapons to fight the enemy. It’s up to you to use it. Let me show you. Go to Ephesians 6:11-18
11 Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil. 12 For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.
We are not fighting against another human, but against the devil and his demons. This is real. And because they are spirits that are unseen, we have to deal with them spiritually, not carnally (in the flesh). So you need to arm yourself with GOD’s armor. . . verse 13
13 Therefore, put on every piece of God’s armor so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then after the battle you will still be standing firm.
This is the only way you will withstand and still stand in the end. Every piece of armor is necessary. If you leave out just one, you are leaving yourself vulnerable to attack in that area. Think about this, cops wear bullet proof vests for that reason. Without the vest, when they get shot, they will die.
And just like the police and the soldiers, every piece of equipment comes with instruction: let’s read verses 14-17
14 Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth and the body armor of God’s righteousness. 15 For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News so that you will be fully prepared. 16 In addition to all of these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil. 17 Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
Ok, so now you have your armor on, and your weapon in hand. Now you need to march forward. And this is how you do it, spiritually. . .verse 18
18 Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere.
STAY ALERT. STAY PRAYED UP! The devil isn’t going to retreat. You can’t get lazy. If you do, you will fall.
There is no excuse. It is all right there. It doesn’t cost you a thing, Jesus already paid the price when He suffered and died for us. You already gave your oath when you gave your life to Him. And if you didn’t give your life to Him, do not wait another moment; you don’t have to go through this on your own. Jesus died for you; don’t let His death be in vain.
Life is a battle. You say “why me?” “What did I ever do to deserve this?” I am sick and tired of going through this. You want to give up. Take the easy way out. We were never promised that it would be easy. Jesus came to this earth and faced persecution, ridicule, disrespect, abuse, hard times, trials, temptations, grief, and He definitely did not deserve it. He was falsely accused and brutally murdered. Crucified on the cross. And His accusers said it was justice. Well, the joke is on them. Because of Jesus’ death and resurrection we are JUSTIFIED. Justified by our faith in Him because of His sacrifice for us.
Yes, Life is a battle, but the war has already been won. The devil wants you to admit defeat.
57 But thank God! He gives us victory over sin and death through our Lord Jesus Christ. 58 So, my dear brothers and sisters, be strong and immovable. Always work enthusiastically for the Lord, for you know that nothing you do for the Lord is ever useless.
We have the victory, in JESUS. Time is short, He has already given us everything that we need to go through this life. This life is a battle, but the war has already been won! THANK YOU JESUS!!!
I will leave you with this final word, one of my most favorite scriptures of the Bible. It is a verse I am learning to live by. Each time I say it, I reassure myself that which I already know, because of Jesus, I am strong, and there is no power greater than the power of God.
Ephesians 6:10 – “Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.” - KJV
~ All Glory and honor to God!!
~ Elena Leno, 23 March 2011
(all scriptures are New Living Translation unless otherwise stated.)
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