“The ‘Real’ War”
Text: Ephesians 6:10-24
INTRO: Show clip from Matrix movie “What is real?” “Welcome to the desert of the real.”
Tonight I want to talk about the real war we’re in. You hear a lot on the news about the “War on Terror” and the possible “War with Iraq” but there’s another war that’s far more important that’s happening right now. It’s the spiritual warfare for the eternal souls of men and women.
Just like in the movie The Matrix, most people are oblivious that this war exists. They are blinded to it’s reality. We are often blinded to its reality as well. I often wonder what it would be like if our eyes would be opened and we could see what’s really happening in this room right now. Imagine if we could see the spiritual warfare going on.
You don’t have to be a Christian a long time to realize that the Christian life is a battleground, not a playground and that we face a enemy who is much stronger that we are- apart from the Lord that is.
Paul uses the military to illustrate the believer’s conflict with our arch enemy- Satan.
The Christian has three enemies: the world, the flesh, and the devil.
The world refers to the system around us that is opposed to God. A simple definition of the world would be- society apart from God. In 1 Jn. 2:15-17, John says:
15Do not love or cherish the world or the things that are in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in him.
16For all that is in the world--the lust of the flesh [craving for sensual gratification] and the lust of the eyes [greedy longings of the mind] and the pride of life [assurance in one’s own resources or in the stability of earthly things]--these do not come from the Father but are from the world [itself].
17And the world passes away and disappears, and with it the forbidden cravings (the passionate desires, the lust) of it; but he who does the will of God and carries out His purposes in his life abides (remains) forever.
The flesh is the old sinful nature we inherited from Adam. A nature that is opposed to God and can do nothing spiritual to please God. We are born with this sinful nature and we will carry it with us thoughout this life.
By His death on the cross and resurrection, Christ overcame the world (Jn. 16:33; Gal. 6:14) and the flesh (Rom. 6:1-6; Gal. 2:20), and the devil (Eph. 1:19-23.)
Let’s look at THREE ASPECTS of this War We are in:
THE ENEMY (Eph. 6:10-12)
10Finally, 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. 12For 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.
Intelligence plays a vital part in warfare because it enables the officers to know and understand the enemy. Unless we know who the enemy is, where he is, and what he can do, we will have a difficult time defeating him.
THE LEADER – THE DEVIL.
Our chief enemy has different names:
Devil means “accuser.” He accused God’s people day and night before the throne of God (Rev. 12:7-11.)
Satan means “adversary.” He is the enemy of God.
The Bible also calls him tempter (Mt. 4:3); murderer and liar (Jn. 8:44)
He is compared to a lion (1 Pet. 5:8); a serpent (Gen. 3:1); and an angel of light (2 Cor. 11:14-15) as well as the “god of this age” (2 Cor. 4:4)
14And it is no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light;
15So it is not surprising if his servants also masquerade as ministers of righteousness.
4For the god of this world has blinded the unbelievers’ minds [that they should not discern the truth], preventing them from seeing the illuminating light of the Gospel of the glory of Christ (the Messiah), Who is the Image and Likeness of God.
Where did he come from? Scholars believe that in the original creation, he was “Lucifer, son of the morning” (Isa. 14:12-15) and that he was cast down because of his pride and his desire to be God.
Isaiah 14:12 How you have fallen from heaven,
O morning star, son of the dawn!
You have been cast down to the earth,
13 You said in your heart,
"I will ascend to heaven;
I will raise my throne
above the stars of God;
I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly,
on the utmost heights of the sacred mountain. [1]
14 I will ascend above the tops of the clouds;
I will make myself like the Most High."
15 But you are brought down to the grave,
to the depths of the pit.
Here are other important facts about Satan:
He is not eternal (like God), he is limited in his knowledge and activity.
Satan is not all-knowing, all-powerful, or everywhere-present.
Not dualism
So how does he accomplish so much in so many different parts of the world? He has organized helpers.
SATAN’S HELPERS
Paul calls them ‘principalities…powers…rulers…spiritual wickedness in high places.” Eph. 6:12
There is a definite army of demonic creatures that assist Satan in his attacks against believers.
In Rev. 12:4 John hints that 1/3 of the angels fell with Satan. There are 2 angels for every 1 demon.
Revelation 12:4His tail swept [across the sky] and dragged down a third of the stars and flung them to the earth. And the dragon stationed himself in front of the woman who was about to be delivered, so that he might devour her child as soon as she brought it forth.
In Dan. 10:13-20, Daniel wrote that Satan’s angels struggle against God’s angels for control of the affairs of nations. A spiritual battle is going on in this world, and in the sphere of “the heavenlies,” and you and I are a part of this battle.
Daniel 10:13But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me for twenty-one days. Then Michael, one of the chief [of the celestial] princes, came to help me, for I remained there with the kings of Persia.
14Now I have come to make you understand what is to befall your people in the latter days, for the vision is for [many] days yet to come.
15When he had spoken to me according to these words, I turned my face toward the ground and was dumb.
16And behold, one in the likeness of the sons of men touched my lips. Then I opened my mouth and spoke. I said to him who stood before me, O my lord, by reason of the vision sorrows and pains have come upon me, and I retain no strength.
17For how can my lord’s servant [who is so feeble] talk with this my lord? For now no strength remains in me, nor is there any breath left in me.
18Then there touched me again one whose appearance was like that of a man, and he strengthened me.
19And he said, O man greatly beloved, fear not! Peace be to you! Be strong, yes, be strong. And when he had spoken to me, I was strengthened and said, Let my lord speak, for you have strengthened me.
20Then he said, Do you know why I have come to you? And now I will return to fight with the [hostile] prince of Persia; and when I have gone, behold, the [hostile] prince of Greece will come.
This battle is not against human beings…it’s against spiritual powers. We often waste our time fighting people when we ought to be fighting the devil who seeks to control people and make them oppose the work of God.
SATAN’S ABILITIES
Satan is a strong ememy and we need the power of God to be able to stand against him. Never underestimate the power of the devil. The book of Job tells what his power can do to a man’s body, home, wealth, and friends.
Jesus calls Satan a thief who comes to “steal, and to kill, and to destroy.” (Jn. 10:10)
Satan is also wise. The “wiles” of the devil. Wiles means “cunning, crafty, strategies”
He will masquerade as an angel of light (2 Cor.11:14) and seeks to blind men’s minds to the truth of God’s Word. He’s the author of legalism…false teaching…cults.
The fact that Paul uses the word “wrestle” indicates that we are involved in a hand-to-hand battle and not mere spectators at a game. Satan wants to use our external enemy- the world; and our internal enemy- the flesh, to defeat us.
THE EQUIPMENT (Eph. 6:13-17)
13Therefore 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. 14Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
Since we are fighting in a spiritual war, we need special equipment both for offense and defense. God has given us the “whole armor” for us, and we dare not omit any part. Paul commanded his readers to put on the armor, take the weapons, and withstand Satan, all of which we do by faith.
Parts of the armor are:
1. BELT OF TRUTH (v. 14a) = John 8:44 declares that Satan is a liar, but the believer whose life is controlled by the truth will defeat him. The belt holds the other parts of the armor together. Truth is the integrating force in the life of the victorious Christian. A man of integrity, with a clear conscience, can face the enemy without fear. The belt also held the sword. Unless we practice the truth, we cannot use the Word of truth.
2. BREASTPLATE OF RIGHTEOUSNESS (v. 14b) = This piece of armor, made of metal plates or chains, covered the body from the neck to the waist, both front and back. It symbolizes the believer’s righteousness in Christ (2 Cor. 5:21) as well as his righteous life in Christ (Eph. 4:24.) Satan is the accuser, but he cannot accuse the believer who is living a godly life in the power of the Spirit. When satan accuses the Christian, it is the righteousness of Christ that assures the believer of his salvation. But our positional righteousness in Christ, without practical righteousness in the daily life, only gives Satan opportunity to attack us.
3. THE SHOES OF THE GOSPEL (v. 15) = We must be prepared each day to share the gospel with a lost world. The most victorious Christian is a witnessing Christian. Isa. 52:7 If we wear the shoes of the gospel, we have the “beautiful feet” mentioned in Isa. 52:7 Satan has declared war, but you and I are ambassadors of peace, and as such, we take the gospel of peace wherever we go.
4. SHIELD OF FAITH (v. 16) = large 4ft. by 2ft. like in movie Gladiator. As the soldier held it in front of him, it protected him from spears, arrows and “fiery darts.” “Faith” mentioned here is not saving faith but living faith, a trust in the promises and power of God. Faith is a defensive weapon that protects us from Satan’s fiery darts. Satan’s darts are: lies, blasphemous thoughts, hateful thoughts about others, doubts and burning desires for sin.
5. HELMET OF SALVATION (v.17) = Satan wants to attack the mind, that’s how he defeated Eve (Gen. 3:2; 2 Cor. 11:1-3.) The helmet refers to the mind controlled by God. We must renew our minds with the Word of God. That’s why we have Bible Studies…that’s why we memorize scripture. 2 Pet. 3:18 “grow in the grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.”
6. SWORD OF THE SPIRIT (17b) = Sword is an offensive weapon. Heb. 4:12 A material sword pierces the body, but the Word of God pierces the heart. The more you use a physical sword, the duller it becomes; but using God’s Word only makes it sharper in our lives.
In one sense, the “whole armor of God” is a picture of Jesus Christ. Christ is the truth, He is our righteousness and our peace. His faithfulness makes possible our faith. He is our salvation and He is the Word of God. This means that when we trusted Christ, we received the armor.
THE ENERGY (Eph. 6:18-20)
18And 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.
19Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, 20for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should.
Prayer is the energy that enables the Christian soldier to wear the armor and use the sword. We cannot fight the battle in our own power, no matter how strong or talented we may think we are.
Application: How does this apply to you and I?
1. If we want to see God do great things at KSU, we must get in the battle!
2. Prayer must be a priority!
3. Satan doesn’t want Navs on campus. He’s going to fight against us. (fundraising needs - $6604) You can help by writing 1-3 sentences on how Navs has blessed you.
