The Reality of Spiritual Warfare - Protestant Caucus/Devotional

"Be strong in the Lord, and in the strength of His might. Put on the full armor of God, that you may be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places" (Eph. 6:10-12). Victory in battle comes when you identify the enemy, resist his attacks, and then take the initiative against him.

Our nation has known many wars, but Vietnam was an especially frustrating campaign. Thick jungle terrain made the enemy hard to find and guerrilla warfare made him hard to fight. Many Vietnamese who peacefully worked the rice paddies by day donned the black garb of the Viet Cong soldier by night and invaded unsuspecting U.S. forces camped nearby. American public opinion was strongly anti-war and morale among our troops was often low.

Spiritual warfare has similar parallels. Subtly and deceitfully, Satan disguises himself as an angel of light and "prowls about like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour" (1 Pet. 5:8). His emissaries disguise themselves as apostles of Christ and servants of righteousness (2 Cor. 11:13-15). It takes wisdom and discernment to identify them and defend yourself against their attacks.

Most people are defenseless, however, because they scoff at the supernatural and deny the reality of spiritual warfare. They think Satan may be fine for movie plots and book sales, but assume only the superstitious and credulous take him seriously. Unfortunately, many Christians have succumbed to their ridicule and forsaken the battle.

Ephesians 6:10-24 reminds us that spiritual warfare is real and that God has given us all the resources we need— not only to defend ourselves, but also to take the initiative and win the victory over the forces of darkness.

I pray that our studies this month will encourage you in the battle and challenge you to always have on "the full armor of God, that you may be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil" (Eph. 6:11).

Seek discernment and grace to identify the enemy and stand against him courageously.

Read Ephesians 6:10-24. What armor has God supplied to protect you in spiritual warfare?

2 posted on 09/01/2023 9:18:05 AM PDT by metmom (He who testifies to these things says, “Surely I am coming soon.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.)

I see us as surrounded, but insulated and sustained (a la Psalm 23 and 91).

I see the principalities and powers as being surrounded by the good guys, the heavenly host, and doomed.

I like our chances better than theirs. Greater is He that is in me than he that is in the world.

We win, they lose. And, like the author says, all of this is eminently real — forces to be reckoned with. Martin Luther pointed this out in verse 1 of “A Mighty Fortress”.

We're living in a very disgraceful time in this country where it's being taken over by a "Stalinist" regime that wants to end our rights and liberties to turn us to a socialist Marxist NWO of slavery! imho ......

Where are we going? Bottom line

- The world needs to make the choice between following the love and promises of God OR follow the hate and conclussions of SATAN! ........It’s that simple..... imho American citizens need to wake up and fight it!!

A beloved family member comes to mind. He believes Hell is only a state of mind and the devil isn’t real.

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