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July 27, 2024

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The Call to Battle

"Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil." Ephesians 6:10-11

When we become Christians, we enter into a spiritual warfare with Satan himself. We must equip ourselves with the armor God has provided, and always be prepared to stand steadfastly against the enemy of our soul. There are two reasons why we must so equip ourselves. First, there is a traitor in the camp, which is our old nature, the flesh. Paul said, "For the flesh lusts against the Spirit and the Spirit against the flesh, and these are contrary the one to the other, so that you cannot do the things that you would." The flesh always seeks to bring us into the bondage of its desires, and focus our attention on satisfying the pride of life. Second, because we are members of the body of Christ, Satan seeks to destroy, disrupt, and defeat us. As Christians, we are called to a struggle, to a battle, to warfare.

When I was trained in the Armed Forces to fight for our country, several basic factors were inscribed into my mind: First, never underestimate the power of your enemy. Do not be lulled to sleep by the propaganda or misinformation that may influence you, i.e., that the enemy is anything but strong, powerful, destructive, and determined to defeat everything you represent. Second, be alert, watchful, and on guard to every tactic, every device, every means he may use to infiltrate your position and destroy you. Question every motive, and doubt everything he contrives to deceive you. Remember, his one objective is to annihilate you. Third, find out your enemy's strengths, weaknesses, resources, objectives, and allies, so that you may be prepared in every way to fight him and to counter every attack against you. Fourth, remember that he is out to destroy you any way he can, so you must be prepared to engage the enemy whenever he attacks. You must be ready to fight him on his terms, and against all the ways and means he will throw at you. This is war, and you better be prepared...or YOU WILL NOT SURVIVE!

Christ on Calvary has already won our victory, but we must engage the enemy. God does not take the battle away from us. David had to fight Goliath, Daniel had to face the lions in the coliseum, Gideon had to fight the Midianites, and Joshua had to fight the Canaanites. But God interceded for David, for Daniel, for Gideon, for Joshua, and for a host of others through the ages, just as He will for us! He is our strength and sufficiency IN THE BATTLE! Paul says, "Put on the full armor of God with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all of this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions." Be prepared, put on your armor, and go in HIS MIGHT!

© 2007 by Ed Powell. Used by permission.


This page was reprinted by permission from: http://litmin.org/dare.php?date=2024-07-27


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