Chapter 7: The War:

Satan's ultimate goal is to populate hell. His greatest ally for accomplishing this goal is death. His most effective means for bringing about death is war. Instigating war in any form, between anyone that he can get to fight, is one of his most basic strategies against mankind. He views every war as a victory, and the most destructive ones as some of his greatest achievements. Just as Jesus is the Prince of Peace, Satan is the Prince of War. There are "righteous wars" which are fought for righteous causes. Even so, every war should be viewed by the church as a significant defeat, even if the cause of righteousness prevails. They are defeats because the Lord has invested in the church an authority for waging spiritual warfare which, if exercised properly, can accomplish the goals of righteous causes without the destruction of war. It is Satan's strategy to bring every human conflict to a violent confrontation, which results in as much death and destruction as possible. Just as Jesus was sent to destroy the works of the devil, we have been sent into the world with this same commission. As one of Satan's ultimate goals is to spread death by war, believers are sent forth as peacemakers to thwart this strategy. The church must go to war against the enemy's basic strategy of war. This ultimate conflict between life and death is about to enter its last and greatest battle. It will rage from one end of the earth to the other, in every city and town, on every social, philosophical, and political front. A time is coming when every debate, every political campaign, every social movement, will be seen as a battle line between these ultimate spiritual forces. There will be no neutral ground, no truces, no peace in this war. This will be both the most dangerous and the most opportune time for Christianity since the beginning.

Fight For Life:

The ultimate goal of the church is to populate heaven. Our ultimate weapon is the gospel of salvation —the words of everlasting life. The church is about to be given the words of life with greatly increased power. These words will be spiritual bombs and hand grenades with the power to destroy even the most effective strongholds of the enemy. Individual statements spoken by Christians will be able to unravel the intricate webs of deception that the enemy has taken years to weave. Single public statements by Christians will invalidate the enemy's propaganda built upon multiplied thousands of books, articles and public statements over many years of time. This power in words will not be gained cheaply. Those who are given this authority will be those who have faithfully waged their own war against their own tongues, bringing them into submission to the Holy Spirit. They will have spent years waging war against their own wayward thoughts, bringing them all under subjection to Christ. Pure waters must come from pure wells. The purity of our own lives will dictate whether or not the waters of life can flow through us, as is written: "Watch over your heart with all diligence, for from it flow the springs of life" (Proverbs 4:23).

The Weapons Of This War:

Solomon declared: "Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit" (Proverbs 18:21).

Every word that we speak can have the power to impart faith or fear, peace or strife, joy or gloom, love or hatred; and we ourselves will eat the fruit of our words. We must heed the apostle's warning, "Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap" (Galatians 6:7).

Are our words spreading the light of the kingdom of God, or the darkness of this present evil age? Because "out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks" (Matthew 12:34 NKJV), our words reveal either the light or the corruption that is in our hearts. The apostle Paul exhorts us in II Corinthians 13:5: "Test yourselves to see if you are in the faith; examine yourselves! Or do you not recognize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you, unless indeed you fail the test." How can we test ourselves to see if Jesus is in us? By testing our conversation. Is Jesus in our words? Our words and our conversation reflect what is in our hearts. If Jesus truly lives in us He should be the primary subject of our conversation. If we spend more time talking about movies, sports, even the news and current events, than we do about Jesus, it should be a sign to us that we are failing the most important test that we can ever take. Whatever in our lives eclipses Jesus as the focus of our conversation, has eclipsed Him as the focus of our hearts, and has become an idol taking His place. Not only does our conversation reflect what is in our heart, but if Jesus truly rules in our hearts He should be the One who controls our tongues. The ultimate goal of every Christian should be not only to love Him above all else, but to be controlled by Him. Our ultimate goal should be to only speak words that are prompted by the Spirit, that reflect the heart of God, and reveal the light of the Savior in this dark world. This should not just be the goal of prophets, but every Christian. We are all called to abide in Him and manifest the sweet aroma of the knowledge of Him in every place. Regardless of our vocation, whether we are the president or a plumber, our highest calling in this life is to be an ambassador for the King of Kings—to speak what is on His mind, to do what He would do in every situation. This is the reason why we are on this earth. There is nothing higher or more important that we can do than this. It is just as important that we reveal Him regardless of whether we are speaking to the president or to a plumber—the Lord shows no partiality. The most important man who ever lived was a carpenter, and to that Carpenter some of the most important men alive are still in the lowest professions. A common laborer who is noble of spirit, who abides in Christ, can have more power to impact this world than a president. "God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things that are strong" (I Corinthians 1:27).

Regardless of what we do or our position in this world, we can be one of the greatest generals in the most important war ever fought—the war between life and death!

The Battlefield:

Now is the time to choose which side we are going to be on in this war. Then we must choose each day to fight with all of our hearts. Every warrior in this battle is given positions to defend and positions to take from the enemy. We must defend our families, our congregations, our offices or places of work, against the words of death, while working each day to extend the domain of the kingdom. Our battle maps are our prayer lists. We must have specific targets. We must "box in such a way, as not beating the air" (I Corinthians 9:26), but know what we are hitting. As we gain dominion over the smaller assignments we will be given more authority to go after major strongholds. Those who take spiritual dominion over their families will then be given their neighbors and their families. Those who take their neighborhoods will then be given their cities to fight for. In this we must be careful to fight in the areas that we have been assigned and not to go beyond them. Many are trying to take their cities while they have forgotten their families, or churches. In this way we leave the enemy in our rear, where he will ambush us sooner or later. This does not mean that we should not pray for neighbors or cities until our families have been completely won to Christ, but we must be careful to stay within the realm of our appointed authority. This way we will not be assuming assignments that God has given to others, which will always work to dilute our authority in the area where He has given us a commission.

Joel described well the "last day" army of the Lord:

They run like might men; they climb the wall like soldiers; and they each march in line, nor do they deviate from their paths. They do not crowd each other; they march everyone in his path. When they burst through the defenses, they do not break ranks (Joel 2:7-8).

It is imperative that Christians begin to see every encounter with others as an opportunity to sow life. This does not mean that we must declare the plan of salvation to every checkout clerk or waitress, but we must continually take a stand for the kingdom of God by resolutely maintaining our position in Christ. This position is always demonstrated by the fruit of the Spirit. When we are able to endure the often trying and unfair encounters of life without compromising our position in the love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control, we are extending the limits of the kingdom of God. If we are going to abide in the Holy Spirit we must see every encounter and every situation from the perspective of heaven's interests. The interests of the kingdom of God will often be contrary to our own human interests. We must abide in the continual understanding that walking as soldiers of the cross demands that we take up our own crosses everyday. Heaven's interest are sometimes best served when our rights are violated and we endure it patiently, even as the Lord Jesus gave us an example on the His cross. The world is not fair, and no one can expect to be treated fairly all of the time. What we can expect is that when we are treated unfairly, if we maintain our position in the Holy Spirit, He will use the situation for the good of the kingdom. Just as the greatest injustice ever suffered, the crucifixion of Jesus, resulted in the greatest impartation of life, every time we take up our crosses and endure injustice, life is released.

The apostle Paul explained this in II Corinthians 4:7-11, 17-18: But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the surpassing greatness of the power may be of God and not from ourselves; we are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not despairing; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying about in the body the dying of Jesus, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body. For we who live are constantly being delivered over to death for Jesus' sake, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh. For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison, while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal. Troubles are opportunities. The greater the troubles the greater the opportunities. There are no troubles that are too difficult for God. Regardless of what comes against us, we can say with Paul, "...thanks be to God, who always leads us in His triumph in Christ, and manifests through us the sweet aroma of the knowledge of Him in every place" (II Corinthians 2:14).

Victory is assured! All that we must do to see the victory is to abide in Christ who has already won it, and marvel at the wisdom of how He works it out. When we begin to view trials as important confrontations with the enemy in which ground can be won from him, we will begin to count our trials as joy. The more victories that we see the more joy that they will bring to us. However, we must never settle for anything less than victory and witnessing the sweet knowledge of Jesus prevailing through it.

Be Gentle As Doves Yet Wise As Serpents:

Victory is assured if we do not abandon our position in the Holy Spirit. This does not mean that we must always abandon our rights in such matters as business transactions in which we are being defrauded, or in other situations in which we are being taken wrongful advantage of. It may be right for us to maintain our position and demand compliance with agreements, even through lawsuits. Paul's admonition was not to go to court with a brother, but that Christians should be able to decide cases through the authorities in the church. It is true that we will not be fit to judge the world if we cannot decide disputes among ourselves. However, in our dealings with the world there will be times when we should maintain our position and defend our rights through the entire process of the law. However, to do this we must also maintain our position of love, joy, peace, patience, etc., always knowing that even saving one soul for the kingdom is worth the price of being defrauded for any amount. We must not let anything ever cause us to compromise our position in the kingdom. Even if we win the largest lawsuit by abandoning our position in the fruit of the Spirit, which is to abandon our position in Christ, we will suffer the greater loss. We must view every situation or trial as an opportunity to extend the kingdom, being always ready to testify of the hope that we have. Being the light of the world, or being the light in a situation, may not involve declaring the gospel. Sometimes we are called to be the light just by doing what is right, and demonstrating a Spirit that is contrary to the spirit of the world. Such are true demonstrations of the kingdom. Such demonstrate the rules of another realm where the fruit of the Spirit prevails.

A Demonstration Of The Kingdom:

One of the greatest demonstrations of the Spirit that I have ever witnessed was not a miracle—it was the demonstration of a profound peace and thoughtfulness in an airline ticket line. Because of problems with incoming flights and other delays, the line to one connection had grown to many more people than could be processed in the short time before the flight was to depart. Strife and impatience were rising to the point where I seriously thought that it was going to get out of control. At the worst possible moment, just after more bad news had been announced, two large, boisterous women, each carrying two large suitcases, started pushing their way through the line demanding to go to the front. I do not recall ever witnessing more obnoxious attitudes in anyone, much less in a situation like this. I was watching, fully expecting someone to deck them both. Then, to my dismay they headed right toward my friend who was in line for the flight. As the clamor behind him grew, he turned to see what was happening. As others were actually beginning to jostle the two women, my friend instinctively raced to their assistance, asking if he could help them with their bags, and offering them his own position near the front of the line. This action was so contrary to the prevailing spirit in that place that it stunned everyone. A great quiet came over the entire scene. I looked around and almost everyone was staring at my friend with obvious amazement. As he picked up his own bags and moved to the back of the line it seemed that every eye was on him. The two women seemed undone by the unexpected, and unquestionably undeserved, kindness. A powerful peace came over the entire line. The agents, who had also witnessed the scene, suddenly became agreeable and somehow the flight was delayed enough to get everyone on it. I have witnessed many miracles, but that airport scene still stands out to me as one of the greatest demonstrations of the kingdom I have ever witnessed. As hell was fast gaining control of a volatile situation, and moving it towards potentially serious strife, it seemed that Satan brought in two of his biggest guns in the form of a couple of very ill mannered women, aimed them right at the Christian, who quickly and easily disarmed the enemy and his entire host with one genuine act of kindness. We have been given this same power, in every situation. When strife arises in our family or at the office, we can join the side of the enemy or the side of the Lord. Who gains the victory in that situation will almost certainly be determined by our choice. If we join the Lord it does not matter if anyone else joins Him with us. One person and the Lord always makes a majority. If we allow the fruit of the Spirit to prevail in us, He will ultimately prevail in any situation we find ourselves.

Summary:

Paul said that "...the God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet" (Romans 16:20).

It is significant that he said that it was the "God of peace" and not "the Lord of hosts" (Lord of armies) that crushes Satan. One person who abides in the peace of God has more power than armies. Solomon stated it well: "He who is slow to anger is better than the mighty, and he who rules his spirit, than he who captures a city" (Proverbs 16:32).

We are in a war. This war will not stop just because we decide we do not want to fight anymore. Everyone of us is in a fight to the death. Until death is defeated the fight is not over, for any of us. If we try to back out we will only open ourselves up to a greater onslaught. However, the more we fight the more peace we will know. The peace that we can have by fighting is greater than any peace that the world can know. We must start to realize every day when we wake up that by the time we lay down again we will have either taken ground from the enemy, or he will have taken ground from us. Why not make the best of it and go after all of the spoil that we can? The Lord is about to impart a divine militancy to His people so that they are going to wake up every day looking for a fight, but for all of the right reasons. We are about to discover the power of the weapons that we have been given. There is no army in the world that has an arsenal more powerful than that which the Lord has put at the disposal of even His youngest believer. As we discover the power of these weapons the whole world is going to wake up to the nature of the true battle. The whole world will soon be brought to the Valley of Decision. The ultimate battle at the end of the age will not be fought over abortion, or homosexuality, or any other single moral issue. The battle is much greater than any of these. The battle is between life and death itself. This does not mean that we should not take stands against these issues, but we must see beyond them or we will continue to flail at the branches instead of putting the ax to the root of the tree. We must understand both the true nature of the battle and the nature of our weapons if we are going to prevail in war. We may have the power to demonstrate, but what we really need are demonstrations of power. 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 (II Corinthians 10:3-6).

It is a primary strategy of the enemy to get us to fight with carnal weapons. He knows that when we do we have crossed over to the dark side, and regardless of what we are fighting for, we are aiding him in the battle. Many of his agents, who come as "angels of light," are zealots and fanatics. Most of them are sincere, but they are zealots and fanatics whose tactics are to use carnal weapons, intimidation and political pressures to try to accomplish their agendas which are indeed righteous. Those who succumb to their pressures and intimidations, and join their strategies, will pay a most terrible price, and it will not be for the sake of righteousness or the advancement of the kingdom. Satan will never cast out Satan. Murder will not cast out abortion, anger will not cast out rebellion, hatred will never cast out immorality. The Lord Jesus affirmed this saying, "But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you" (Matthew 12:28).

Paul also instructed:

Never pay back evil for evil to anyone. Respect what is right in the sight of all men. If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men. Never take your own revenge, beloved, but leave room for the wrath of God, for it is written, "Vengeance is Mine, I will repay," says the Lord. But if your enemy is hungry, feed him, and if he is thirsty, give him a drink; for in so doing you will heap burning coals upon his head. DO NOT BE OVERCOME BY EVIL, BUT OVERCOME EVIL WITH GOOD (Romans 12:17-21).