Who Are We Fighting?
We just
concluded a series on “The Heart of the Fighter” in PPCOC. When I was first
informed of the series, the thought that came to my mind was the bible’s
analogy of Christians as soldiers for Christ, and this thought stayed with me
throughout the series. Incidentally, the series turned out to be a very
practical series on Christian living and none of the dry theoretical stuff on
the duties of a Christian fighter (err, much to my relief…!)
But over
the months as I pondered on this topic I felt compelled to put down my thoughts
on paper for sharing with my fellow Christians. Both in my personal struggles
as a Christian, and the books that I was reading, the concept of “warfare” was
somehow presented to me constantly, in a manner that I’ve come to consider as
no mere coincidence.
Paul compared
our journey here on earth to that of a soldier.
2
Tim 2:3: “Endure hardship with us like a good soldier
of Christ Jesus. No one serving as a soldier gets involved in civilian affairs
- he wants to please his commanding officer.”
If we are engaged in a warfare, who is our enemy?
Eph 6: 12 says that, “For 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.”
The bible
taught us that to guard (or fight against) the love of the world, the lust of
the flesh (1 John 2:15-16), and against Satan. I felt that much had been said
about the love of the world and the lust and desires of the flesh, but little
about the attacks of Satan. In this article, I would like to share my thoughts
on the latter.
Is the idea
of Satan and his angels only an airy fairy concept to you, or is he a very real
encounter in your life? Are you aware of his attacks on you? Are you aware of
his tactics?
Eph 2:1-2: “As for you,
you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when
you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in
those who are disobedient.”
The bible
refers to Satan as the “rulers and powers of this dark world”. Apparently, he
is not a power to be trifled with or be ignorant of. I’ve known Christians who
do not believe in the reality of “evil spirits” or evil forces. For them, the
concept of Satan or Demon is just a theological or mythical concept. But the
bible says otherwise.
A careful
reading of New Testament (NT) shows that in Jesus days, Satan’s presence is real
in many instances, and the visible forms often referred to as demonic
possession.
Matt 8: 28-31 “When he
arrived at the other side in the region of the Gadarenes,
two demon-possessed men coming from the tombs met him. They were so violent
that no one could pass that way. "What do you want with us, Son of
God?" they shouted. "Have you come here to torture us before the
appointed time?" Some distance from them a large herd of pigs was feeding.
The demons begged Jesus, "If you drive us out, send
us into the herd of pigs." He said to them, "Go!" So they came out and went into the pigs,
and the whole herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and died in the
water.”
Some of my
Christian friends had perceived “demon possession” mentioned in the NT as nothing
more than a psychotic derangement of the mind (mental illness), or severe
clinical depression that are treatable and nothing to do with the spiritual
realms. A careful reading of the account above however showed that “something”
came out of the “deranged” men. What is this “thing”?
Another
account of demon possession is told in the story of Mary Magdeline.
Luke 8:1-2 “After this,
Jesus traveled about from one town and village to another, proclaiming the good
news of the kingdom
of God. The Twelve were
with him, and also some women who had been cured of evil spirits and diseases:
Mary (called Magdalene) from whom seven demons had come out.”
We read
that later, Mary Magdalene became one of the most faithful followers of Christ.
From her, 7 different demons were cast out.
King Saul
was another example. Most description of King Saul in his latter days seemed to
suggest that he became insane or mad. In at least one of the passage however,
the role of the evil spirit was mentioned.
1 Sam 16:23 “And it came
to pass, when the evil spirit from God was upon Saul, that David took an harp, and played with his hand: so Saul was refreshed,
and was well, and the evil spirit
departed from him.”
There is no
doubt that Satan is a Being – not merely an “influence” or power. Today, Satan
attacks believers in various ways, through temptations, lies and deceptions, in
various ingenious and disguised methods.
1 John 5:19 “We know that
we are children of God, and that the whole world is under the control of the
evil one.”
The most
classic case of the role of Satan in attacking God’s chosen is in the
well-known story of Job. As if in a play, we the readers of Job got a peep of
the back-stage at the dialogue that took place between God and Satan (Job1:6-12).
Poor man Job of course did not knew what hit him, and why. Even till the
end…God chose not to explain to him what had happened, except to ask him to
take his eyes off himself, and go take a tour of the majestic nature. We are
privileged however to be given the behind-the-scene preview of story of Job
even before it unfolded, and insight into the working of the spiritual forces
in the cosmic realms. We were told that there is a parallel spiritual world
beside our physical world, where our actions in this physical world may have an
impact on the spiritual world far greater than we may realize or imagine! Like
Brother Adrian once shared in an analogy, perhaps the world we now see is but a
cave (in its physical limitations) where we see only our reflections (in the
limitations of our minds) and the reality (the impact of our actions on the
spiritual world) is far greater than we can even begin to comprehend.
Do we have
any recourse from this evil one? In the next part of the article we will take a
closer look at our enemy the evil one. There is a Chinese saying, “Know
yourself, know your enemy. Hundred battles, hundred
victories.”
The Christian Fighter
Know Your Enemy
The bible
is full of analogies to the Christian life as a warfare
against our arch enemy Satan. However, because our enemy is such a master of
disguise and overt operator in stealth, many Christian failed in their
Christian life without even knowing who or what has hit them. Instead, we
attribute our failures solely to our own weaknesses, our inability to be
faithful, our corrupt nature, our upbringing, our family, our spouses, our church,
our circumstances, etc., and we wonder why we are failing again and again.
We fail to
win because we fail to realize who our real enemy is, and we are poorly
equipped to take on this enemy.
The bible
says that Satan is a Tempter (Matt 4, 1 Thess 3:5),
he recognizes who the Christians are (Acts 16:16), and is all out to attack and
bring down Christians.
One of
Satan’s favorite and most successful forms of attack is often through our mind.
Indeed, most of the battles are fought, won or lose, in our minds. The attacks
are often subtle, often insidious, through manipulation of our minds and our
thoughts, by sowing a seed or 2 of doubts. Of unbelief.
Of bitterness. Of anger, or a
question of our self worth. A natural carnal mind is usually already
fertile ground for such seeds, and if we do not resist such thoughts, it will
not be long before Satan has over taken the whole ground of our mind, creates
first a foot-hold, then a stronghold over us, with a pattern of thinking that
either exalt itself against God, or reject God’s words as truth.
When he has
succeeded in doing this our mind has become a playground for Satan.
2 Cor 11:3 “But
I am afraid that just as Eve was deceived by the serpent's cunning, your minds
may somehow be led astray from your
sincere and pure devotion to Christ.”
For this reason the bible
taught that we must renew our minds (Rom 12:2), be spiritually minded (Rom
8:6), and to watch and pray.
Matthew 26:41 “Watch
and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but
the flesh is weak.”
For many
years, I was trapped in a pattern of negative and depressive, sometimes
suicidal thoughts. I tried hard to change. But each time I failed, I would end
up feeling more guilty and discouraged then before, which would lead to
depression and the vicious cycle repeats. When I was convinced finally that
such thoughts originated mostly from lies from Satan, my main enemy was not
myself anymore but Satan. I was quickly motivated to stop falling into Satan’s
trap again.
Each time a
negative or depressive thought came into my mind, I would test it against Phil
4:8. And if the thought does not pass the test, I would say firmly to Satan,
get thee behind me, and reject the thought straight away. It took quite a lot
of discipline initially as I was so used to my depressive thinking pattern.
However in a matter of weeks as I persevered, the change in my thinking was
amazing. I felt liberated from the stronghold of my mind. Now, even though
sometimes these negative, suspicious, critical, depressive thoughts would creep
in again, they no longer had the stronghold over me as they once did.
Phil
4:8 “Finally,
brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever
things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely,
whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be
any praise, think on these things.”
Fortunately,
the bible says that Satan cannot force us against our will or possess us.
1
Cor 10:13 “No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And
God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But
when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up
under it.”
Father of Lies
The bible
describes Satan as a father of lies and deception. If we allow him to, he could
weave such an elaborate web of lies and deceits that one becomes so blind as to be unable to differentiates the reality from
fantasy or illusion anymore.
John
8:43-45 “Why is
my language not clear to you? Because you are unable to hear
what I say. You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry
out your father's desire. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to
the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native
language, for he is a liar and the
father of lies. Yet because I tell the truth, you do not believe me!”
Jesus knew
Satan’s tactics of lies well enough. And because he could see through Satan’s
lies, he was able to rebuke Satan and expose his lies (Matt 4:9-11).
I once had the
experience of working with a schizophrenic lady with a history of long term
clinical depression. She would imagine things, hear voices, conjure up the
wildest accusations on her colleagues, be paranoid and suspicious of everyone
around her, and generally think that everyone is spying on her. Such symptoms of
fear and paranoia are common to most schizophrenic sufferers. Except for this
condition, she was otherwise a very bright and diligent worker. However, her
condition deteriorated and she began to act in an extremely paranoid and
strange manner, and a series of events eventually led to her immediate
dismissal from the company. It was very sad, as I worked quite closely with her
and had tried to retain and help her. Knowing that she also dabbled in the
occult and consulted the medium regularly on her illness, I could not help but
feel that her mind had been oppressed by some evil spirits. She had listened so
often and so much to lies, denial of truths, half truths, imagined truths, that she could no longer differentiate between
reality and illusions. She lived in an imaginary world of her own.
Somehow, I saw
some parallel in this lady and the account of King Saul whom we learnt became
quite “insane” towards his last days, always imagining that David was out to
harm him, and thus plotting to kill David all the time. Saul also resorted to
consulting a witch to bring up the spirit of the dead prophet Samuel to
foretell the future (1 Sam 28). The bible mentioned the presence of the evil
spirit on King Saul in several accounts. (1 Sam 16,18,19).
It makes me wonder, perhaps sometimes what we may consider in today’s world as
a mere medical condition, may have a spiritual dimension to it as well.
Accuser of Brethen
The bible says
also that our enemy the Satan is a professional “accuser” who does his work
diligently day and night.
Rev 12:10
“Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say:
"Now have come the salvation and the power and the
kingdom of our God,
and the authority of his Christ.
For the accuser of our brothers,
who
accuses them before our God day and night,
has been hurled down.”
Zech 3:1
“Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the
LORD, and Satan standing at his right side to accuse him.”
There is
nothing that cheers Satan more than sisters and brothers in Christ who fell for
Satan’s accusations and begin to harbor resentment against each other.
Similarly, although self reflection and soul searching is good, we must be
careful not to also become a target of Satan’s accusation that lead to self
condemnation and a crippled self esteem.
We need to bear
in mind that Satan our
enemy does not play fair. He does not need to. He has no code of ethics. He can
and will hit us from behind. He can and will hit us from under the belt. He is
around when we are strong, and definitely when we are weak and down and most
susceptible to his lies.
Some years ago,
I went through an extremely painful period in my life when several close
friendships became very difficult, complicated, and confusing. One of these
friends in the circle was going through a divorce proceeding. Another was going
through a relationship breakup. At least one other was having severe marital
problems. All of us were also under a lot of work stress, working long hours
every day, weekends included. We were all under extreme stress, ripe and
vulnerable to attacks. Needless to say, Satan did not let such a good chance
slip by.
Within months,
people in the group began to act up strangely. People began to behave in a way
that was totally out of line with their usual characters and their beliefs.
Hurtful, spiteful and selfish acts were done that were unexplainable.
Relationships soon became strained while suspicion, hurt and resentment grew. It
was a very trying time. Daily I had to wrestle with a judgmental and critical spirit,
self doubt and a barrage of confusing thoughts, and suspicion and mistrust soon
developed between once good friendships. On hindsight now, I realized that
something strange was definitely happening to all of us then. We were
definitely acting out of character. It seemed small coincidence that all these people
were also believers in Christ. Fortunately, we are still friends today. It was
a sobering thought of how easily Satan could have turned us against each other
and in the process destroyed our faith and our Christian witness.
Note that even
well meaning words could be words of disguise by Satan:
Matt
16:21-23: “From that time on Jesus began to explain to his
disciples that he must go to Jerusalem
and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, chief priests and
teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and on the third day be raised
to life. Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. "Never, Lord!"
he said. "This shall never happen to you!" Jesus turned and said to
Peter, "Get behind me, Satan!
You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the things of God, but
the things of men."”
John 13:26
“Jesus answered, "It is the one to whom I will give this piece of bread
when I have dipped it in the dish." Then, dipping the piece of bread, he
gave it to Judas Iscariot, son of Simon. As soon as Judas took the bread, Satan entered into him.”
In
both cases above we see that how Satan could use us for his own evil purpose if
we allow him to. Both Peter and Judas were Jesus’s
close disciples, but were not spared from Satan’s attacks. Referring to my own
experience above, on hindsight, I believe Satan had fiercely attacked us with
much lies, deceptions, and temptations in various forms. When we succumb to
these lies and temptations, then we became “tools” in Satan’s hand, in saying
or doing things contrary to our redeemed nature, in behaving in manners that could
have caused each other to stumble and sin. It was a most disturbing and
humbling thought.
But
we are not powerless. The bible says that we are to resist the devil and he
will flee from us. It is important however to know who we are resisting and not
to under-estimate the power of the evil one.
James 4:7
“Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil,
and he will flee from you.”
Roaring Lion
There are
many references to Satan in the bible but one last analogy I would like to
share is that of a roaring lion, who roams the earth back and forth…looking for
his preys.
1 Pet 5:8
“Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to
devour.”
Job 2:1-2 “On another day the angels came to present themselves before
the LORD, and Satan also came with them to present himself before him. And the LORD said to Satan,
"Where have you come from?" Satan answered the LORD, "From roaming through the earth and going back
and forth in it."”
The bible
warns us to be alert at all times. Our enemy is not to be trifled with. We
should not ignore his presence, under-estimate his power, or be kind to him. He
is a master of disguise and may even masquerade as angels of light; he would be
very glad if Christian thinks that he does not really exists or matters, or to
dismiss him lightly, for then he would indeed be like the stealth aircraft,
dropping bombs and wrecking havoc, without ever being found out!
2 Corin 11:13-14 “For such men are false apostles, deceitful
workmen, masquerading as apostles of Christ. And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of
light.”
How do we fight
against such an insidious, cunning and unscrupulous enemy? In my next article I
would share some personal experiences and bible teaching on this.
The Christian Fighter
The Armor of God
As a
soldier of Christ, Paul gave us a very lucid description of the armor that we
need to put on, as we engage in this fierce warfare with our enemy.
Eph
6:10 “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty
power. 11Put on the full armor of God so that you can take
your stand against the devil's schemes. For 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. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day
of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done
everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place,
and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all
this, take up the shield of faith,
with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on
all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.”
It’s
interesting to note that the first item or armor mentioned is the belt of
truth. How logical that is, since our enemy’s forte is lies and deceptions! Sin
itself is deception. How often we have been deceived to sin because we think
that it will bring us fulfillment? Pleasure? Success? Happiness? We were tricked
by Satan.
The bible
abounds with warning to test what we hear if it is the truth…so that we may not
be deceived.
Matt 24:23-24 “At that time if anyone says to you,
'Look, here is the Christ!' or, 'There he is!' do not believe it. For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform great
signs and miracles to deceive even the
elect—if that were possible.”
To put on
the belt of truth we need to also examine ourselves…are we walking in the
truth? Are we walking in the light? Are we honest? In words,
and in actions? I recall that sometimes back Brother Cher Yam gave a very
good sermon on the “Most ugly Member of the Body - Our Tongue” (James 3:5-6). Indeed,
our tongue are the most deceitful and untamed member of our body. But it’s more than just what we say. How
about how we live our lives? Do you sometimes feel
that you are living a double life? That you are living a lie? Are you a Sunday Christian?
I know I do sometimes. There are things I do I’d be ashamed to discuss. There
are times when I am hypocritical. There are times I know I’m wearing a mask.
There are times I think I’m better than the other person. But the bible says:
Gal 6:3 “If anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself.”
James
1:22 “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.”
James 1:26 “If anyone
considers himself religious and yet does not keep a tight rein on his tongue, he deceives himself and his religion is
worthless.”
Do you deceive
yourself?
Let
us aim to be free of deceptions. Lies and deceptions are Satan’s core
competency. We should want no share in it.
There
are many other items listed in our armor, such as breastplate of righteousness,
gospel of peace, shield of faith, helmet of salvation. All these are necessary
for us to resist the devil and his many forms of attacks. But to top it off –
we need the only “offensive armor” mentioned; the “Sword of the Spirit - Word
of God”. We were told that Satan trembles and flees at the word of God. This
two edged sword is the only weapon that will allow us to “kill” Satan’s lies
and expose his deception.
2 Cor 10:3-5 “For though
we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we
fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds.
We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the
knowledge of God, and we take captive
every thought to make it obedient to Christ.”
I mentioned how
our mind is in fact the battlefield on which our battles with Satan are being
fought out. Here Paul instructed us on how we may win this battle against the
evil one – by taking captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. In
other words…watch your thoughts! That’s
how we stop Satan from influencing and controlling our minds and building his foothold
or strongholds.
Lighten Your Loads
Heb 12:1 “Therefore,
since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders
and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the
race marked out for us.”
2 Tim 2:3 “You therefore must endure hardship as a good
soldier of Jesus Christ. No one engaged in warfare entangles himself with the affairs of this
life, that he may please him who enlisted him as a soldier. And also if
anyone competes in athletics, he is not crowned unless he competes according to
the rules.”
Entanglement
here gives the connotation of bondage. Are we in bondage to sins? To worldly things in this life? Is there baggage that we
should drop off in order to lighten our load on this journey? As a soldier,
Paul told us not to get entangled with the world, that we may fight a good
battle.
In order to
take up our cross daily, we have to lay down our baggage daily.
For some, the baggage, or burdens, maybe dreams and ambitions that
we have to let go. For some, it’s the past with all its shattered dreams and
disappointments and failures. For some, it’s the worries and problems of the
present, the pursuit of money, or worldly success. For some, it’s a sinful
habit or inclination, or a physical constraint. For some, it’s an obsession
with something, or even someone. I know what is my baggage.
How about you? What is your baggage?
It is difficult
to wage war with Satan when we are also carrying a heavy load of baggage with
us. Worse, Satan may capitalize on our baggage and uses these to divert our
attention away.
Stay Focused
Perhaps nothing
differentiate a soldier from a civilian more than the focus of his calling. A
soldier cannot win a battle if his mind is not set on his goal and objective.
Paul admonished us likewise:
Phil3:13 “Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this
one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth
unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of
the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.”
The passage
above reiterates the importance of setting our sight on the calling wherein we
were called, running the race set up for us with focus and endurance.
As I reflected
on the verses I recall the incident of Peter walking on water. Peter walked on
water when he kept his eyes on Jesus. But as soon as he took his eyes off Jesus
and started looking at the billowing waves all around him, he was gripped by
fear, his faith left him, and he began to sink. (Matthew 14:28-30).
The same is
true of us if we look and focus on our troubles, our problems, our losses, they
will overwhelm us, and we will sink. Let’s turn our eyes to look at Jesus
instead, and keep our focus there.
Turn your eyes
upon Jesus,
Look full in His wonderful face,
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim,
In the light of His glory and grace.
Through death into life everlasting
He passed, and we follow Him there;
Over us sin no more hath dominion
For more than conquerors we are!
Our Assurances of Victory
1 Thess2:18 “For we wanted to come to
you—certainly I, Paul, did, again and again—but Satan stopped us.”
We see that
sometimes Satan hindered us in our services and succeeded, as he did in the
case of Paul above. However, if we, like Paul, are aware of his tactics, we
would be able to trust and commit our ways to the Lord. Paul said he is not unaware
of Satan’s wiles:
2 Co 2:10-11 “If you
forgive anyone, I also forgive him. And what I have forgiven—if there was
anything to forgive—I have forgiven in the sight of Christ for your sake, in
order that Satan might not outwit us. For we are not unaware of his schemes.”
Being fully
aware of Satan’s schemes certainly helps us to be alert to his attacks. An
interesting side-point to note is Paul’s reference to forgiveness, in a defense
against Satan outwitting us. Could it be, that un-forgiveness,
is often the handle for Satan to build a mental and spiritual stronghold over
us?
The bible
abounds with promises that no temptation is greater than what we can bear (1 Cor 10:13), and that Christ has already won the victory for
us. Below are just a few that I will quote here:
John 16:33 “These things I
have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall
have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.”
1 John 4:4 “You, dear children, are from God and
have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who
is in the world.”
I John 5:4 “For whatsoever
is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the
victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.”
Luke 22:31-32 "Simon,
Simon, Satan has asked to sift you as
wheat. But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your
faith may not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your
brothers."
How comforting
are the above passages! Jesus prayed for Peter even as Satan asked to “sift him
as wheat”. To sift is to shake, break, and refine. Imagine Peter broken to such
fine granular pieces as he is sifted and purified! I could imagine all the
sands, dust, and impurities separated from the wheat, filtered through the sift, and all that remained was the pure essence of
goodness. Surely it cannot be a pleasant experience. On the contrary, it would
be extremely painful as Peter was shaken. May the Lord encourage our hearts
even as we face our tests, trials and temptations today, for we may be, like
Peter, shaken and sifted as wheat. Remember that Christ
our mediator is praying for our victory.
Conclusion
Knowing the
reality of Satan and his activities in our lives is critically important,
especially in this time and age, when the end of time is near. We knew that our
victory is already won and Satan’s obituary is already written, but we can be
sure that he will not give up easily without a fight especially in the last
days, to first wreck havoc in believer’s lives, destroy our witness to the
world, deceive the elect, and create as much damages as he can.
It is little wonder that Christ last prayer for the disciples was
precisely that:
John 17:15
“My prayer is not that you take
them out of the world but that you protect
them from the evil one.”
Let us always encourage
each other, be alert, and uphold each other in prayer in these difficult times.
Onward, Christian soldiers, marching as to war,
With the cross of Jesus going on before.
Christ, the royal Master, leads against the foe;
Forward into battle see His banners go!
Onward,
Christian soldiers, marching as to war,
With the cross of Jesus going on before.
At the sign of triumph Satan’s host doth flee;
On then, Christian soldiers, on to victory!
Hell’s foundations quiver at the shout of praise;
Brothers lift your voices, loud your anthems raise.
