BE STRONG

By Jemima Rayan

The Bible talks about a warfare in which every Christian plays a key role. That is the reason why God wants us to be strong in the Lord. We can win this battle only by the power of the Lord’s might. It is not by our might nor by any other power but by the Spirit of the Lord we can win this battle. The army of the Lord has to fight this battle that is more than global. It not only affects the world but it affects the whole Universe.

The army of the Lord is committed to fight a war that is universal in its nature, which affects almost every portion of this entire Universe. The Scripture which most clearly talks about this conflict and explains its nature is Ephesians 6:10-12.

“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” (Ephesians 6:10-12)

The great apostle Paul says that we, Christians are involved in a war for which we need the appropriate armor and that our enemy is the devil. He says that our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. As Christians, we are already engaged in a great conflict that is so much more than our human minds could comprehend.

In effect, Paul says that this war is not against any human being. The problem is not your boss or your neighbor or your family member. The struggle is not against persons with bodies, but it is against rulers with various areas and different orders of authority. The struggle is against the dominators of this world. The struggle is against spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenlies.

The conflict involves all Christians and not a special group of people like missionaries and evangelists though the Christian world has not seen it that way. The word battle in the original tongue is translated “wrestling”. Wrestling is the most intense form of conflict between two persons. Every part of the body, every skill, and every trick must be used for success. It is a total conflict.

Two Kingdoms:

We need to understand that there are two kingdoms involved in this battle. Let us talk about these two kingdoms and what the Bible says about them.

One is the kingdom of the devil. Satan has a highly organized kingdom. In his kingdom, there are various areas and levels of authority. The headquarters of this kingdom are in the heavenly regions. Matthew 12:22-28 talks about this incident in the ministry of Jesus. Jesus healed and delivered a demon-possessed man who was blind and mute by driving out the evil spirit.

Jesus uses the word “Beelzebub” in the above passage of the scripture. Beelzebub means literally, the “lord of flies”. Vs. 25 says, “But Jesus knew their thought and said to them: “Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against itself cannot stand”.

From the words of Jesus, we can clearly infer that the enemy, namely the devil has a kingdom. We notice three things in this scripture.

First, Satan has a kingdom.
Second, it is not divided but highly organized.
Third it stands and has not yet been overthrown.

Jesus continued to talk about the other kingdom, ‘The Kingdom of God’. Jesus says when I drive out demons by the Spirit of God, then you know the spirit of God has come .

The implication is that the ministry of driving out demons brings the forces of Satan’s kingdom out into the open and also demonstrates the superiority of the kingdom of God because the demons are driven out under the authority of the kingdom of God. In the final analysis, there are two kingdoms in direct opposition.

Paul says in Colossians 1:12-14, “giving thanks to the Father who has qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in the light. He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love”.

From the words of Paul, we notice that there are two domains or kingdoms. There is the kingdom of light in which our inheritance lies, but there is also the dominion of darkness. The word translated “domain” is the Greek word “Exusia” which means “authority”.

Like in a match, as the time passes, both the parties do their best to win the game. In the same way, as the Lord’s coming draws near, the enemy tries to throw his best shot at the children of God. These two kingdoms are engaged in mortal warfare and the war is coming to its climax in our day as this age comes to a close.

Whether we realize it or not, all Bible believing Christians are involved in a battle against the forces of the evil one all the time. The devil doesn’t take a break. We need to learn and fight the battle and win the victory for the Lord’s army of conquerors.

May the Lord help us become over comers in Jesus’ name. Amen.

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