As per Scripture the devil’s one identity is of a roaring lion who is ever trying to put fear in our hearts and resultant paralysis before destroying our faith and lives. Prophet Daniel saw this happening in the heavenly places and Archangel Michael had to come to help Gabriel to deliver his message. At what level is a believer involved in this fight and in what way can we become victorious over our adversary in the power of the Lord?
The level of oir battle – Apostle Paul cautioned the Ephesians Church about our enemy by telling them, ‘we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places’ (Ephesians 6:12). We are not being invited to join in this battle but every believer is automatically in it. Anyone who is not aware of this battle is definitely not winning it. Our enemy is located in heavenly places and though he may be using an earthly person or element to fight against us, the control of that is with him. Most people focus on the earthly opponent and totally ignore the heavenly. We live in the body or the flesh but our war is not fought according to the flesh.
In heaven God has organized everything in a proper order; there are the Archangels, the Seraphs, the Cherubs and the angels. Even the earthly organizations are established with a set order or hierarchy and Satan uses the same model for his forces of darkness with principalities, powers, rulers and all of these are a part of the spiritual army of the devil controlled by him. Some people interpret the principalities and powers being political, religious, and economic, of history and culture or morals. But Apostle Paul terms these as not of ‘flesh and blood’, thus implying these to be only spiritual and heavenly host.
The important aspects of these forces that a believer must know – First, There is a limit to their power and they cannot keep us from God’s love (Romans 8:38). Second, Lord Jesus is seated far above these powers (Ephesians 1:20-21). Three, He created all these and none can exist without His consent (Colossians 1:16). Four, Lord Jesus is the head over all these powers and is not an equal opponent of the devil or his demonic forces (Colossians 2:10). Five, As per God’s eternal purpose His Church ‘makes known the manifold wisdom of God’ to these powers (Ephesians 3:10-11). Six, the time of operation of these forces is under control of the Lord, for He will put an end to them and they work only as per the purpose of God only (1 Corinthians 15:24). Seven, the first stage of their disarming has already been completed by Lord Jesus on the cross and our victory is in His finished work and not in our own efforts or works (Colossians 2:15).
Our work in this battle is to apply what Lord Jesus has done and we are to ‘be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might’ (Ephesians 6:10). The Amalekites had raided David’s camp at Ziklag and destroyed everything while taking their wives, children and all possessions with them (1 Samuel 30:1-8). His people in their distress ‘even ‘spoke of stoning him’ but ‘David strengthened himself in the LORD his God’. He led his people to a great victory over the enemy, recovered everyone and everything intact and much more, to send gifts to the ‘elders of Judah’. Thus, the two essential parts of this spiritual warfare involve, first, to be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might and secondly, to put on the whole armor of God. One without the other is ineffective, for a weak person with whatever armor, and also a very strong person with no armor will be beaten by the enemy.
Might is the natural strength of God which is unimaginable and vast and power is the exercise and effect of that might when it is used. Power is the use of that might of God and we cannot do it simply by sitting and waiting for something to happen. The electricity is present in the circuit but flows only when the operating switch is put on and can then be used. Apostle Paul used this power well to say, ‘I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me’ (Philippians 4:13). We must rely on that power and then do the work and then we become the channel of that might to flow through us to ensure victory. Faith in Him moves us to step forward and God then fulfils His promise to make us successful
Just before He finally ascended into heaven, Lord Jesus told the disciples three things; first, repentance and remission of sins should be preached; all disciples are witness this and finally, do not move out ‘until you are endued with power from on high’ (Luke 24:47-49). When we step out in obedience to His commands, there is bound to be opposition and we must first be filled with the might and power of the Lord through His Holy Spirit to face and defeat the enemy.
Effectively using weapons of spiritual warfare – Prophet Daniel had started praying for twenty-one days for fulfillment of the prophecy of Prophet Jeremiah regarding the end of the period of exile of the people of Israel for seventy years in Babylon (Jeremiah 25:12). In answer to that, the Archangel Gabriel came with the message from heaven that his prayers were heard on the very first day itself (Daniel 10:12-13). Gabriel then explained the reason for the delay, for ‘the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me twenty-one days; and behold, Michael, one of the chief princes came to help me’. The prince of Persia is the demonic authority appointed by the devil to control the kingdom of Persia as per his plans and oppose execution of God’s plan. He opposed Gabriel from bringing the answer from God to Prophet Daniel’s prayer. The three Archangels created by God in heaven as per their assigned roles are, Lucifer as a worship leader, Gabriel as a custodian and deliverer of Word of God and Michael to be the prayer warrior and leader. However, in a human being all three aspects have been joined together and as a believer each one is a worshipper, a priest or preacher and a prayer warrior.
Since these forces fight their battles in the spiritual realm, what weapons do they use? The only weapon of attack in the whole armor of God is the ‘sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God’ (Ephesians 6:17). To effectively use the sword, we must accept and believe the Word, the Scripture, as of God and live as such in faith and not treat them as a magic charm or a mantra. Since the Word was given by the Holy Spirit but written by various writers over the ages, we must surrender to Him to make them alive in us and make us also alive to them. Then He will train, equip and guide us to use the Word in the right way at the right time for best results. A soldier is trained to understand everything and learn to use his weapon and then practices its use repeatedly to be able to effectively use it for every situation.
Successful use of the sword takes a lot of practice and the Son of God, the Mighty Warrior, ‘became strong in Spirit, filled with wisdom; and the grace of God was upon Him’ (Luke 2:40 & 46-47). At age twelve He was in the Temple ‘in the midst of teachers, both listening to them and asking them questions. And all who heard Him were astonished at His understanding and answers’. He wielded this sword well by fighting the devil with the Word of God from the Book of Deuteronomy and ‘then the devil left Him, and behold, angels came and ministered to Him’, their victorious Commander (Matthew 4:3-11). The angels fighting in the heavenly realm cannot be with any other weapon except the sword of the Word received by them in heaven while the devil and his demons use lies or distort the Word of God.
When the Assyrian army came to capture Jerusalem, an angel of the LORD went into their camp at night and killed 1, 85,000 trained soldiers and in the morning others found the dead bodies (2 Kings 19:35). Killing each one physically would take time and it is only by the Word can one do this in such a short time. Lord Jesus, as seen by Apostle John, in His exalted state has a ‘sharp two edged sword’ out of His mouth (Revelation 1:16). When He comes on a white horse to establish His reign on earth, in the same way, ‘out of His mouth goes a sharp sword, that with it He should strike the nations’, that have assembled to make war against His people (Revelation 19:15).
Apostle Paul, the great warrior, first helped us by listing out the weapons of war given by God to us and then taught the effective use of the same. He has taught, ‘praying always with all prayer (prayer upon prayer) and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end’ (Ephesians 6:18). It is prayer in every way possible and everywhere, walking, lying down, sitting down, kneeling or sitting. Gabriel needed the help of Michael to face the enemy and without prayer spiritual strength and weapons of God will not work. Prayer is like seeking and finding the password from God, for proper use of His weapons. Since the weapons are from God, how can we use them effectively without His guidance? God permitted the temptation of Lord Jesus by the devil only during and after forty days of fasting prayer by Him. Since prayer is also about quoting and claiming the fulfillment of the promises of God in the Scripture, the use of the sword of the Spirit automatically gets connected to prayer.
How does God help us in this battle? King David praised God for training him in the ways of war, to give the shield of protection and for enlarging his sphere of operation in battle (Psalm 18:34-36). Joshua was so sure of God’s help for him that he could challenge the Angel of the LORD (Lord Jesus) standing with a drawn sword in His hand to ask, ‘are You for us or for our adversaries?’ (Joshua 5:13-14). He could extend the period of battle by stopping the sun and moon in their places and God honored his word (Joshua 10:14).
After leaving Egypt, the Israelites faced the Red Sea in the front, the Egyptian army behind and mountains on the sides. Moses then told them, ‘Do not be afraid. Stand still….The LORD will fight for you’ (Exodus 14:13-14). As commanded by the LORD God, Moses spoke the words before the Israelites before His death, ‘the LORD’S portion is His people’ (Deuteronomy 32:9). The love of God as revealed in the Saviour confirms this, for He never desires anyone to be condemned but be saved through faith in the sacrifice of His son (John 3:16-17).
God works out all things for ‘the good of those who love God, to those who are called according to His good purpose’ (Romans 8:28). Thus, there are some who are called but ‘not according to His good purpose. Apostle Paul preached the Gospel to both Jews and Gentiles and all heard, but to some it became a ‘stumbling block’ and to some ‘foolishness’ (1 Corinthians 1:23-24). However, ‘to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God’. Many people hear our message but some reject it and God cannot do anything good for them in their lives. The effect on those who listen to the call is, ‘LORD your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your offspring’ (Deuteronomy 30:6).
God’s people when they step forward to obey His call receive the help, protection and support of His angels. King David was to face the Philistines in the Valley of Rephaim and God, in answer to his prayer, ensured his victory in battle by commanding him, ‘when you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the mulberry trees, then you shall advance quickly. For then the LORD will go out before you to strike the camp of the Philistines’ (2 Samuel 5:23-24). The Syrian army surrounded the city where Prophet Elisha dwelt and to remove the fear of his servant, Elisha prayed and the eyes of his servant Gihazi were opened and he could then see ‘the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha’ (2 Kings 6:16-18). Not only that, God ‘struck them (the Syrians) with blindness according to the word of Elisha’. The sword of the Spirit and working together effectively turned the situation around.
In Philippi, Apostle Paul and Silas were scourged, their feet put in stocks deep inside the prison (Acts 16:25-26). But ‘at midnight they were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them’. God intervened with an earthquake and the keeper of the prison and his household was saved. King David in his old age declared, ‘Bless the LORD, you His angels, who excel in strength, who do His word, heeding the voice of His Word’ (Psalm 103:20). The angels are available to help a believer like David, Elisha and others but they only heed the voice of God as expressed in His word. We may keep on saying anything else and that will be of no effect.
As a child of God, we have direct access to God the Father in heaven and our loving Father eagerly desires to listen to His children. He is ready and willing but invariably we falter, for we have no close relationship with Him but an occasional hello while moving around busy in our own works in our own strength. Heavenly help is very precious not due to lack of it but due to the source being so exclusive. If someone does not value that and is casual about asking and then discarding or being careless in use, God will not help in future. Apostle Paul without going into long elaborate explanations has taught, ‘Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks’ (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18).
Facing the Red Sea in front and the Egyptian Army behind them, the Israelites quickly forgot all that the LORD God had done for them, complaining, ‘because there were no graves in Egypt, have you taken us away to die in the wilderness?’ (Exodus 14:11-12). They even went to the extent of preferring slavery in Egypt to freedom by saying, ‘is this not the word that we told you in Egypt, saying, ‘let us alone that we may serve the Egyptians?’ Despite all the efforts of Moses, under God’s command, they could never get out of the habit of complaining and finally went into bondage again.
When we start counting daily all the good things that God has given us in our life, we have much to thank Him for. An attitude of gratitude not only brings the help of God in every situation of our life but also of His people. Otherwise we will be like a bucket with many holes with all the blessings leaking out like water. These holes are wrong company, love of honour and respect from others, fooling and argumentative behavior, laziness, wrong modes of entertainment, doubting Word of God and fearfulness. We must keep evaluating periodically to assess whether your strength is increasing or decreasing and seek His help to increase and proper use for others benefit.
Apostle Paul has taught us to put on the whole armour of God for the devil comes like a thief to steal and destroy and we must always be prepared to face him. Then our loving God is ever ready to move heaven and earth to help His children in any and every situation to help them. The lion in the forest is never trained by anyone to live and behave as king but it is inherent in his nature. As a child of God we are and must live as victorious in the Lord Jesus always, everywhere and in every situation!
