Spiritual warfare means holding tirelessly to the power of Christ’s finished work and remaining steadfast against any attack from the position of strong confidence until victory is won. In time, we will begin to recognize the plans of our enemy as he tries to threaten us. The Holy Spirit within us will spring up with a sharp resistance against the unseen spiritual forces.
The natural man is no match for Satan and demon powers. We will not successfully stand against his attacks with natural human effort and willpower. As long as we remain in natural thinking, we take a place below the power of darkness.
Mastery over the kingdom of darkness depends upon our seeing from God’s viewpoint, thinking His thoughts, and knowing His ways and plans. Notice James 1:22-25:
“But prove yourself doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks at his natural face in a mirror; for once he has looked at himself and gone away, he has immediately forgotten what kind of person he was. But one who looks intently at the perfect law, the law of liberty, and abides by it, not having become a forgetful hearer but an effectual doer, this man shall be blessed in what he does” (NAS).
When we look into the mirror of God’s Word we will find a picture of who we are in Christ. We see ourselves dominating over every aspect of Satan’s domain. We find the weapons that enable us to stand strong. Those who retain a firm grasp of the image they see of themselves in Christ establish the law of God’s liberty in their own lives.
Paul directs us in Hebrews 12:2-3, “…looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith…lest you become weary and discouraged in your souls” (NKJV). Verse 2 from The Amplified Bible reads, “Looking away [from all that will distract] to Jesus.” To continue in God’s Word, which creates liberty, we must remain focused on Jesus and look away from the cares and distractions of this world.
Those who hear but do not embrace God’s Word will forget the power and presence of God that is available. They resort to human effort to fight their battles.
We cannot be confident in something we have forgotten. Psalms 78:9-11 says, “The sons of Ephraim were archers equipped with bows, yet they turned back in the day of battle. They did not keep the covenant of God, and refused to walk in His law; and they forgot his deeds, and His miracles that He had shown them” (NAS).
When they faced the battle, though they had the weapons, they turned back. They forgot the greatness of God. They saw only the greatness of their enemy. And they refused to keep the covenant of God.
We cannot be like the sons of Ephraim who turned back and forgot God’s greatness. We must not be hearers only who forget who we are in Christ. He will be mighty in our battles when we look to Him. Allow the Holy Spirit to spring up within, then He will empower us to resist the unseen spiritual forces that attack us.
