BATTLEGROUNDS – BRAVEHEARTS 2023

INTRODUCTION

We were born for battle. We just have to know which battlegrounds are ours to fight on, and which are off limits. If we aren’t fighting the battles we were born for, we will fall into things we were never designed for. God designed us for battle therefore He has equipped us to fight the battles he has purposed for us to wage war in. The failure to fight the battles God has equipped us for will always lead us into battles we were never equipped to fight, which is why we lose so many fights.

The classic example is King David. It was in the time when kings go off to war that David chose to stay home (see 2 Samuel 11). He was supposed to be engaged in the battle with his men, and his choice to stay home brought in the temptation of Bathsheba. This was a battle David was never meant to face and it led him into a series of losses that he would have never experienced had he been in the battle he was supposed to be in. Adultery and murder came because of David not fighting the right fight. He was on the wrong battleground. Of course, God still worked it all for good like He promises us. But David and his people faced unnecessary pain and trouble. How often do we find ourselves facing pain and trouble simply because we aren’t engaged on the right battleground?

Then there’s longing we have for friendship with other men. The deepest friendships men have are those which are solidified on the battlegrounds of life. God designed us as men to fight and battle, and to do so together. In the natural, men who go to war together have a bond like no other. Even those who fight battles together in arenas like sports, and on teams together, forge a bond much closer than those who don’t face and conquer challenges together. We were made to fight and to overcome and conquer on the battlegrounds of life together.

But the war we face is not against flesh and blood, and the battles we were born to fight are in many ways against things we can’t see. Many times we fight against people, when we are born to fight for and with them.

Men find themselves fighting against their wives, instead of for their marriages and alongside their wives to overcome evil that is waging war against their marriage. We find ourselves being angry at our kids instead of fighting for them and teaching them to fight against the evils of this world. The battlegrounds of life are against the spiritual realities. They are against the principalities, powers, rulers, and authorities of darkness. And God has greatly equipped us to fight these battles. The enemy is waging war in these battlegrounds against us through his schemes, and we must learn to recognize how to fight the good fight of faith.

As we learn together how to fight, we will move from simply crossing over to the promise land into possessing the land. And as we conquer these battlegrounds together as the men of this generation, the battle lines we have now, will become boundary lines for the next generation. The battlegrounds we conquer become the place of peace that the next generation lives in, not having to face those battles like we did. We can learn to fight and win in these areas of life and teach the next generation how to live in victory in the areas we had to fight for. They can then advance the boundary lines for the coming generations as they conquer the battlegrounds we never arrive on. It’s a multigenerational journey we are embarking on, and it will advance the Kingdom of God in ways we cannot currently imagine.

TRUTH

Numbers 33:50–55 (NLT)

While they were camped near the Jordan River on the plains of Moab opposite Jericho, the Lord said to Moses, “Give the following instructions to the people of Israel: When you cross the Jordan River into the land of Canaan, you must drive out all the people living there. You must destroy all their carved and molten images and demolish all their pagan shrines. Take possession of the land and settle in it, because I have given it to you to occupy. You must distribute the land among the clans by sacred lot and in proportion to their size. A larger portion of land will be allotted to each of the larger clans, and a smaller portion will be allotted to each of the smaller clans. The decision of the sacred lot is final. In this way, the portions of land will be divided among your ancestral tribes. But if you fail to drive out the people who live in the land, those who remain will be like splinters in your eyes and thorns in your sides. They will harass you in the land where you live.

2 Samuel 5:6–10 (NLT)

David then led his men to Jerusalem to fight against the Jebusites, the original inhabitants of the land who were living there. The Jebusites taunted David, saying, “You’ll never get in here! Even the blind and lame could keep you out!” For the Jebusites thought they were safe. But David captured the fortress of Zion, which is now called the City of David.

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So David made the fortress his home, and he called it the City of David. He extended the city, starting at the supporting terraces and working inward. And David became more and more powerful, because the Lord God of Heaven’s Armies was with him.

APPLICATION

Our war and our primary battleground is to establish the Kingship of Christ in our souls (mind, will, and emotions).

To the degree we allow the Spirit of God to possess and occupy the land of our souls…we will live in peace. But if we allow foreign beliefs, thoughts, and attitudes to remain in the land of our souls they will consistently be thorns in our side…they will be the things that harass and attack us and keep us from fulfilling the things God has for us.

2 Corinthians 10:3–6 (NASB95)

For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh,

for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses.

We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ,

and we are ready to punish all disobedience, whenever your obedience is complete.

2 Corinthians 10:3-6 MSG

The world is unprincipled. It’s dog-eat-dog out there! The world doesn’t fight fair. But we don’t live or fight our battles that way—never have and never will. The tools of our trade aren’t for marketing or manipulation, but they are for demolishing that entire massively corrupt culture. We use our powerful God-tools for smashing warped philosophies, tearing down barriers erected against the truth of God, fitting every loose thought and emotion and impulse into the structure of life shaped by Christ. Our tools are ready at hand for clearing the ground of every obstruction and building lives of obedience into maturity.

Every battle we face and will face in this life comes down to what beliefs we hold in our hearts and what we allow our minds to focus and meditate on.

2 Corinthians 10:3-6 outlines our warfare:

1) We are empowered by God’s GRACE (His supernatural ability) – and His GOSPEL (the truth of His Word) – to dismantle and disarm strongholds.

2) The strongholds are speculations, arguments, opinions, theories, philosophies, imaginations, etc. that oppose God’s truth.

3) We take every thought (stronghold) captive and demand that it become obedient to the Mind of Christ.

Thoughts taken captive can be viewed as a prisoner of war. Our prisoners of war are faulty patterns of thought that oppose and defy the Authority of Christ

4) We must stand ready and willing to wage war and defeat the enemy in this way at all times.

Ephesians 6:10–18 (NLT)

A final word: Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil. 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.

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. Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth and the body armor of God’s righteousness. For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News so that you will be fully prepared. In addition to all of these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil. Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere.

Ephesians 6:10-18 MSG

God is strong, and he wants you strong. So take everything the Master has set out for you, well-made weapons of the best materials. And put them to use so you will be able to stand up to everything the Devil throws your way. This is no weekend war that we’ll walk away from and forget about in a couple of hours. This is for keeps, a life-or-death fight to the finish against the Devil and all his angels. Be prepared. You’re up against far more than you can handle on your own. Take all the help you can get, every weapon God has issued, so that when it’s all over but the shouting you’ll still be on your feet. Truth, righteousness, peace, faith, and salvation are more than words. Learn how to apply them. You’ll need them throughout your life. God’s Word is an indispensable weapon. In the same way, prayer is essential in this ongoing warfare. Pray hard and long. Pray for your brothers and sisters. Keep your eyes open. Keep each other’s spirits up so that no one falls behind or drops out.

Our primary battleground is to establish the Kingship of Christ in our souls.

Examples:

Arrogance, Insecurity, Addictions, Greed, Rage, Perfectionism, Fear, Lust, etc

LANDING

Colossians 2:6–15 (NLT)

And now, just as you accepted Christ Jesus as your Lord, you must continue to follow him. Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness.

Don’t let anyone capture you with empty philosophies and high-sounding nonsense that come from human thinking and from the spiritual powers of this world, rather than from Christ. For in Christ lives all the fullness of God in a human body. So you also are complete through your union with Christ, who is the head over every ruler and authority.

When you came to Christ, you were “circumcised,” but not by a physical procedure. Christ performed a spiritual circumcision—the cutting away of your sinful nature. For you were buried with Christ when you were baptized. And with him you were raised to new life because you trusted the mighty power of God, who raised Christ from the dead.

You were dead because of your sins and because your sinful nature was not yet cut away. Then God made you alive with Christ, for he forgave all our sins. He canceled the record of the charges against us and took it away by nailing it to the cross. In this way, he disarmed the spiritual rulers and authorities. He shamed them publicly by his victory over them on the cross.