Spiritual Warfare part 1
Spiritual Warfare
2 Corinthians 10:1-5
Introduction:
Paul goes back in this chapter to defending himself against those who have accused him falsely.
þ Evidently they had accused him of being one thing in front of the Corinthians and another thing when he was absent from them v. 1b
þ He was accused of being a very “fleshly” man who was only looking out for himself v. 2
þ He admits in verse 3 that he did live in the flesh, he had no choice (he was human) but went on to share that the battle that he faced was a spiritual one and not a fleshly one.
þ That is how Paul looked at those falsely accusing him, as part of a spiritual battle to be won only by spiritual weapons.
This morning I want to look at two things about the battle that we all face as Christians:
1. The battle we face
2. The weapons in the battle
I. The battle that we face as Christians
1. The fact that there is a battle today in the lives of Christians is clearly stated in Scripture
Many preachers today seem to preach that once a person becomes a Christian that their lives are great and there are no problems.
God never hid from His people that there would be battles
In the Old Testament:
Exodus 3:16-20 Moses (esp. vv. 19-20)
Joshua 1:1-7 Joshua
Judges 6:15-16 Gideon
In the New Testament:
John 15:18-20
Ephesians 6:10-17
1 Timothy 1:18 Told Timothy to “wage a good warefare”
2 Timothy 2:3-5
1 Peter 5:8 Satan is as a roaring lion
1) There is an enemy who would defeat all that God desires in our lives
Satan is his name
2) We face a battle in all that we would desire to do spiritually
*When we try to change something in our lives for the good
*When we try to think on the right things
*When we try to spend time in prayer
*Paul shared in Romans that there was a continual battle going on in his life to do the right things
*There is a battle going on even now as we try to hear the Word of God, Satan tries to pluck the Word from our hearts
2. The nature of this battle
V. 3 “we do not war according to the flesh.”
This battle is not against flesh and blood that we can see
Ephesians 6:12
For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.
Our battle is not with flesh and blood: It is not a battle with mankind
Against principalities, powers, rulers of darkness: all this points to the fact that we fight with spiritual forces, and spiritual powers: which we cannot see.
This is often hard for us to grab a hold of and comprehend, but there is a spiritual battle going on around us and in us from an enemy that we cannot see with our eyes or hear with our ears. Yet without a doubt there is no-one here who has not felt the reality of this battle.
II. The weapons of this battle v. 4
The weapons we need in this battle are not physical weapons devised by men, they are spiritual weapons given by God Himself.
His weapons are mighty for pulling down strongholds
Casting down anything that exalts it self against God
Bringing our thoughts into captivity to obey Christ
What are our weapons? Paul does not talk about them here but does in Eph. 6
In verse 12 he tells us about the spiritual battle, then in verse 13says “therefore…”
I.E. because it is a spiritual battle this is what you need to do: Put on the armor God has provided: Then he says that we can stand (be victorious)
1) Put on truth:
Put on the truth of God’s Word: accept it as truth, rely on it as truth, and apply it as truth
Put on truth and honesty in our day to day lives: Telling even a little white lie opens up a window of opportunity for Satan to work
Belt of truth: belt of armor holds it all together.
2) Put on breastplate of righteousness:
We have been made right (righteous) in God’s sight
He has made Him sin for us that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him
We need to live in that righteousness: do what is right always. Romans 6 tells us to “count ourselves dead to sin and alive to God.”
3) Feet shod with preparation of the Gospel of peace
Having the message of Jesus Christ on our lips everywhere that our feet take us.
It is that message that is able to deliver from the enemy and give us victory in this spiritual battle.
4) Shield of faith:
Faith is trusting in what God has told us
Anytime we begin to doubt the Word of God there is a wide open door for Satan to work.
We need the shield of faith to protect ourselves from the fiery darts of the wicked on
5) Helmet of salvation:
We need to be saved, we need to know Jesus as our personal Lord and Savior
We also need to claim the day by day salvation from sin that He provides: saying no to sin and yes to righteousness.
6) Sword of the Spirit = Word of God
This is our offensive weapon
Jesus when facing temptation in wilderness is great example of this
We need to know the Word, have it hidden in our hearts, and ready on our lips.
Satan is powerless before the Word of God
7) Prayer: A vital weapon
We pray in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ
It is in His name and power that we can overcome victoriously
Praise God our victory has been won through the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.