Fearless warriors do not hide under the bed
LIVING ON PURPOSE
By Dr. Billy Holland
It’s not really a secret about there being such a thing as good and evil. Yes, I know for every statement there is a counter argument, as even a few people deny the earth is round. But, generally speaking, the masses are to some degree aware of the good God, bad devil concept. Within the Christian faith, it’s believed that God is infinite, perfect, represents the light and everything good, and is in total control of all things. On the dark side, Satan is a destructive spiritual entity who works around the clock trying to disrupt God’s plans. This includes unleashing a relentless barrage of damaging attacks and evil influences against the human race. What do you think about this summary? Do you accept this view of what is happening in the spiritual realm?
We see in the Bible how this battle was happening in the Garden of Eden, and it has never stopped. Again, one needs to settle within their conscience whether or not the Bible instructions and accounts are true or not. For those who embrace the Bible as the truth of God’s promises and warnings, there is good news in knowing that Jesus went to the cross and rose from the dead in order to save us from sin and prove that God is the ultimate authority over everything. This gives us Christians peace and security to know that even though the war is intense, we can be victorious over the darkness because light overcomes darkness and greater is the Lord who lives in us than he that is in the world.
For those who are more experienced, knowledgeable, and involved with spiritual warfare, they have learned the closer the Christian walks with God, the more intense the battle. We can see this in the life of Christ as the devil knew who Jesus was and the purpose of His mission. However, when Satan thought he had defeated Jesus and prevented Him from establishing His kingdom, he was deceived. The devil realized he had lost when Christ rose from the dead, and that dying on the cross was actually the intention of God from the beginning. No one took Jesus’ life, He gave it willingly to open the way of redemption through His blood sacrifice. Satan laughed at Jesus on the cross, but trembled in fear when he realized God’s plan of salvation had worked perfectly.
This is why the Christian can boldly declare that trusting God is choosing the winning side. In Matthew chapter 4 we read where Satan and Jesus actually had a conversation. The devil was trying to offer Jesus a deal so that he could keep spreading his negative influences. Jesus stood against Him which allows us to see the importance of understanding the responsibilities of spiritual authority. You see, with God we are a majority no matter how many demons fight against us. I think it’s odd that with so many who claim to be God’s soldier, yet when spiritual warfare is mentioned they become afraid and want to change the subject. The same is true when asked about demonstrating spiritual gifts or casting our demons. Very few have ever personally engaged combat against the enemy. Why is this?
If the average Christian truly believes the dark side is real, but avoids praying against it, something is wrong. Most realize they have not developed their faith or discernment and thus are not confident in this area. Others think that what happens will happen and that God will fight for them. Whatever the excuses people hide behind, the reality of John 10:10 rarely crosses their mind. It seems the enemy of our soul reminds them of a hornets nest to which as long as they do not poke at him, he will leave them alone. Hosea 4:6 mentions that people suffer from the lack of understanding spiritual knowledge and sadly our clever human nature has figured out that pretending to be ignorant is much easier than being accountable. Ephesians 6:12 reminds every Christian why we are commanded to use the armor of God. The helmet, sword, and shield is for fighting on the front lines of intercession, but most followers have stored these in the closet, seeing that it’s more comfortable to read war stories than to enlist. So, when will God’s warriors awaken and confess they have fallen asleep on their watch? When will the followers of Christ turn away from meaningless distractions and respond to the trumpets of war?
Dr. Holland is an ordained minister, chaplain, and author. Read more about the Christian life at billyhollandministries.com
