Spiritual Warfare WK-2
Notes
Transcript
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. 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. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.
Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints—and for me, that utterance may be given to me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains; that in it I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.
Last Week: We discussed Lucifer who he is and who he is not. You have to always first understand your enemy and the battle you’re facing. (John 10:10)
lest Satan should take advantage of us; for we are not ignorant of his devices.
“Whether you know it or not, you are in a war. The war against God’s people is raging. Many are reporting increased spiritual warfare. That’s because the enemy know his time is short. An Ephesians 6:12 cohort is pulling our all the stops to keep you from advancing the kingdom with your gifts and talents.
If you ignore the devil, the warfare doesn’t stop. If you focus solely on Jesus, it does not make you immune from warfare. Yes, we should absolutely be more God-focused than demon-focused. However, if Paul the apostle, a man with with deep intimacy with God, who recieved half the books of the New Testament through direct revelation and prayed in tongues more than anyone, wrestled principalities and powers, who are we to think ignoring this reality will stop demonic attacks?
Indeed, I believe one of the devil’s greatest deceptions is to convince you to lay your weapons down. Make no mistake, there is no cease-fire in the spirit. You cannon lay your weapons down and think for a moment the devil will not see it as an opportune time to go in for the kill. On the contrary, you need a battle plan. You a need a strategy. You need specific tactics for specific skirmishes.”
---Jennifer LeClaire, 101 Tactics for Spiritual Warfare
Discernment
And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in knowledge and all discernment,
1. In other translations of Philippians 1:9, as sited above, the word discernment is used interchangeably with the words judgment, profound insight, perception and understanding. It also means “to see into,” “have knowledge,” or “detect.”
2. Discernment is a “knowing” that can sometimes feel similar to a gut instinct—but it does not originate with us. It can often be a warning from God. If we sense pride, perversion, occultism or any other form of evil, our spirits will grow uncomfortable. We may not know exactly what is wrong with the person or his message, but we will sense danger and warn others to stay away from it.
3. The ability to judge between right and wrong, truth and error—not just in the big and obvious issues that are against the Word of God, but in small, seemingly insignificant areas. It is a process of making careful distinctions between righteousness and unrighteousness.
4. To think biblically without being tainted by worldly influences.
5. The ability to judge between the Spirit of God and false spirits. First Thessalonians 5:21-22 (NASB) says, "But examine everything carefully; hold fast to that which is good; abstain from every form of evil.”
Discerning of Spirits
Every believer is to operate and function with discernment in their everyday lives, but some have the gift of the discerning of spirits
1.(1 Corinthians 12:8-10). Discerning of spirits is the God-given ability to detect (and distinguish between) the presence and identity of both good and evil spirits.
2. When you have the gift of discerning of spirits, God may reveal to you the presence of principalities, powers, rulers of the darkness of this world, and wicked spirits in heavenly places (Ephesians 6:12). But it’s not always evil. You may also discern angels, those ministering spirits sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation (Hebrews 1:14).
3. Everyone should seek and desire this gift (all I know) but this one is vital.
How do you use discernment in your life?
1.) In a world that calls evil good and good evil, we need to be able to discern (judge, have a knowledge of, detect) what is right and wrong—what is of God and what is of the devil. And the devil’s sneaky. He wants to blur the lines for believers as much as possible, so they’ll have trouble knowing which way to go. He knows he can’t always be too obvious, so he slips in subtle deceptions to see if he can get us to take hold of the lies. That’s why the Bible tells us in end times, he will be able to deceive “even the elect” (Matthew 24:24, NIV).
So, if you let human reasoning and your flesh dominate you, you’ll reach a crossroad and won’t know which way to go. But God is not the author of confusion.
2.) To keep keen spiritual discernment, you’ve got to keep your mind stayed on the Word of God. You have to give it first place in your life—it has to be the FINAL word in your life, not just one of the options you can choose from. You can’t be afraid to choose life, choose righteousness, choose the unpopular route. You’ve got to stand for what is right and against what is wrong. That’s the life of a mature believer and a spirit that discerns.
“Armed with the knowledge of what discernment is (and isn’t) and a true sense of how to use it in your life, you can go forth boldly and make decisions confidently. You can use your discernment to make choices for your family, your church, in the voting booth and in any other situation you face. You have everything you need in Christ Jesus!”
Prayer:
“Lord come to you now and ask you to open my spiritual senses so that I am able to discern your good and perfect will for my life. I ask you to help me become spiritually aware of good and evil, demonic and angelic, not only for myself but for those around me. I realize that drawing closer to you, requires me to be aware of the heavenly places, so I can allow heaven to come to earth in my life. So open my eyes to see, ears to hear, and mouth to release what the Holy Spirit is saying, showing, and teaching. Amen”