Ephesians 6:10-13
10 “Finally my brothers be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power.
11 Put on all of God’s armour so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil.
12 For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.
13 Therefore, put on every piece of God’s armour so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then after the battle you will still be standing firm.”
Ephesians 6:10-13
From the book of Genesis to Revelation the Bible shows us we are in a spiritual battle!
This battle is not against people , this battle is against demons of the unseen world, you cannot see them with your physical eyes.
This battle is against mighty powers in this dark world !
It’s against evil spirits in the heavenly places!
Unfortunately many Christians don’t have this understanding about this warfare because they cannot see all these demons.
In my ministry as a christian and also as a pastor I’ve been working in deliverance for many years. I have helped many people who were possessed by demons , setting people free from the influence of evil spirits. Sometimes these evil spirits get into a persons life , but most times they are just around us, watching us and trying to attack and destroy us.
“Control yourselves and be careful! The devil is your enemy, and he goes around like a roaring lion looking for someone to attack and eat.”
1 Peter 5:8
My heart feels heavy when I look to some of you and look to your spiritual life. Many Christians are in churches but they do not realise they are in a spiritual warfare!
Many Christians are blind to the spiritual world and entertained with this life , with their jobs , making money, only enjoying life and entangling themselves with the affairs of this life.
“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.”
II Timothy 2:3-4
As a born again Christian you are a soldier against the power of darkness!
We are in a battle ground not in a play ground !
Church is a place of salvation, praise and worship but also church is the Army Headquarter of the Kingdom of Heaven.
Jesus said : “ I will build My Church, and the gates of Hell shall not prevail against it.”
Matthew 16:18
Church is protection , Jesus said that the power of satan , the gates of Hell shall not prevail or overcome if you are part of the Church ! In this spiritual battle you need to be connected to your church, in alliance , in commitment, walking in holiness and receiving the directions of your leader, then you will have power to overcome this battle!
In the same way that our God is real, we have a real enemy and if you don’t know your enemy, how could you ever expect to defend yourself against him?
“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” John 10:10
Satan wants to steal your joy, peace, happiness, your minds, thoughts, your faith and also your salvation.
He wants to kill your fire and passion for Jesus . He wants to kill your dreams and visions and bring you to sadness, depression and suicide.
He wants to destroy your spiritual life , your marriage , your children’s future and your the ministry that God gave you.
“This great dragon—the ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, the one deceiving the whole world—was thrown down to the earth with all his angels.” Revelation 12:9
Satan is real, a living being and not simply a symbol of evil. From beginning to end, the Bible speaks about Satan as an intelligent, personal, spirit being who opposes all that God is doing.
Let’s see what’s Satan is doing in this world:
“Satan, who is the god of this world, has blinded the minds of those who don’t believe. They are unable to see the glorious light of the Good News. They don’t understand this message about the glory of Christ, who is the exact likeness of God.”
2 Corinthians 4:4
“I’m sending you to open their eyes, in order to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who are sanctified by faith in Me.’”
Acts 26:18
There are 2 kingdoms in this spiritual warfare and they are fighting each other .
Satan is the god of this world, many people are serving him , he has blinded the minds of those who don’t believe !
What God said about you ?
But God said : I’m sending you to open their eyes , in order to turn them from the darkness to light, from the power of Satan to God !
Can you see that we are in a battle ground, not in a play ground!
As God has his children , Satan also has his children !
Jesus said “For you are the children of your father the devil, and you love to do the evil things he does. He was a murderer from the beginning. He has always hated the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, it is consistent with his character; for he is a liar and the father of lies.”
John 8:44
Jesus said that all people who are not saved are children of the devil !
They are blind by his father and our job as the church of Christ is to bring them to the light !
Just think about : If you have a child and someone comes and tries to get your child ! What would you do against this person ?
Would you allow them to simply take your children or would you fight against them ?
This is what we are doing as the army of God and the Church of Christ ! When we invite someone to church we are entering in battle!
We as a church are in a spiritual warfare and you need to engage in this battle!
Put on all of God’s armour so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil !
You have to prepare yourself for this battle, you need to use the weapons that are available for us !
“For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds,”
II Corinthians 10:4
Strongholds are fortifications that Satan built in our lives , our mind , our relatives , our parents and our weapons are mighty for pulling down and destroying these spiritual fortifications !
Our main weapon is prayer !
Jesus is the Commander of two armies. One is an army of angels in heaven and one is the army of prayer warriors on earth.
As Commander of these armies, He shows us how to take back from the enemy all he has stolen that is rightfully ours. We do that in prayer as prayer warriors!
There is an powerful story that show us about the power of prayer :
“8 At the Amalekites came and fought against the Israelites. 9 So Moses said to Joshua, “Choose some men and go and fight the Amalekites tomorrow. I will stand on the top of the hill and watch you. I will be holding the walking stick God gave me.”10 Joshua obeyed Moses and went to fight the Amalekites the next day. At the same time Moses, Aaron, and Hur went to the top of the hill. 11 Any time Moses held his hands in the air, the men of Israel would start winning the fight. But when Moses put his hands down, the men of Israel began to lose the fight.12 After some time, Moses’ arms became tired. So they put a large rock under Moses for him to sit on. Then Aaron and Hur held Moses’ hands in the air.
13 Aaron was on one side of Moses and Hur was on the other side. They held his hands up like this until the sun went down. So Joshua and his men defeated the Amalekites in this battle.”
Exodus 17:8-13
What can you see in this passage ?
1- Many moments of defeat in our lives could be avoided if we only had a prayer life !!
When Moses got tired and stoped praying the enemy started winning the battle.
2- We see a miracle , Angels helping them in the battle as result of their prayer !
3- Here we see a body working together! The leaders and people connected. Alone you are going to be defeated! We need to be together as the Army of God
Moses giving directions, Joshua and the men do Israel obeying
We see that they won that battle because of prayer and because they were united as one body !
Good soldiers know that if they don’t recognise who their enemy is, they are destined to lose the war. That is also true for those of us who battle in God’s army. Even though Jesus put the enemy under His feet and won the victory for us, we still must move into that victory. There are still battles to be fought in prayer.”
― Stormie Omartian
Praying always means praying through situations and not giving up. It means being ever-watchful and persevering in prayer in order to see breakthroughs.
God wants us to be persistent in our praying !
“Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up.”
Luke 18:1
Jesus said prayer is a duty , a responsibility of a Christian : He said we should always pray and never give up !
“God does nothing but by prayer, and everything with it.” –
John Wesley
Everything that God wants to do in this earth He will do through our prayers !
Prayer makes a godly man, and puts within him the mind of Christ, the mind of humility, of self-surrender, of service, of pity, and of prayer. If we really pray, we will become more like God, or else we will quit praying.” – E.M. Bounds
If you keep praying your spiritual live is going to be transformed!
We are in a battle ground, not in a play ground.
Through our prayer we can change the history of Monaghan ! (Your city and Nation)
Through your prayer you can protect your family !
Through your prayer you can destroy the power of Satan over your family!
Your prayer can bring salvation to your family, relatives and friends
My dream as church in Monaghan is to have 24/7 Prayer ! (For that we need prayer warriors)
“Pray continually,” 1 Thessalonians 5:17
I urge and challenge you to have a life of prayer ! To come to our prayer meetings on mornings, to be in our prayer meetings on Saturday, to come to our period of intercession before the service , and also to have your time of prayer at home !
We are in a spiritual battle and you need to use the weapons that are mighty enough to destroy all power of darkness !
“I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you.”
Luke 10:19
“ You do not have because you do not ask God.”
James 4:2
“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.”
Matthew 7:7-8
May Lord raise up Warriors who will fight on their knees!