What Is Spiritual Warfare?

Hello para beauties! I hope everyone is well and everyone you love is healthy. I know many are also preparing for the holiday and have family in and out of town and have hardly a moment to sleep. Some of us have no one. Let's pray for anyone that might be suffering with depression and feelings of loneliness. This time of year especially, brings about a lot of human emotions. A lot of us hide this and I ask that you turn to God. Please open your heart to his and ask him to give you peace again and no more torment. It is a spiritual battle to be faced everyday however, we already know who wins. Fear is not of God. Perfect Love casts out fear.

Spiritual warfare is an activity by Christians whereby satan and demons are fought, using a variety of methods and prayers depending on the group, mostly a lot of prayer and fasting. From a biblical point of view, spiritual warfare is the cosmic war of good versus evil: its battles are fought daily between God and Satan; between the Christian Church and the world fueled by our spiritual enemy; and within every child of God, between the Holy Spirit and the lusts of the carnal flesh. The clear meanings of good and evil, as defined by God rather than man, are revealed within the verses of the Holy Bible and the life of Jesus Christ. The Book of Daniel, chapter ten, provides one of the most striking examples of spiritual warfare found in Scripture. Remember when Daniel was held in captivity in a foreign land due to a great spiritual conflict, which led to the conquest of Israel and Judah. He resorts to intense prayer, which includes fasting, to seek guidance from God, verses 2,3. He receives a miraculous vision and word, verses 5–9 (which introduce. 10–12), from one having the appearance of a man (cf. verses 16,18), who may have been an angel, but whose description in verses 5,6, seems to match that of Christ in Revelation 1:13–16. Daniel’s earthly conflict extends to the heavenly realm, as the spiritual messenger was delayed by a demon, until being assisted by an archangel, verses 12–14. Strong resistance was met due to the importance of the answer to Daniels’s prayer, as it is a prophecy on Satanic activity in the end time.

Do we have a say in the matter?

When a person becomes converted and receives God's spirit they immediately enter into a war-like struggle against two large opponents and a lot of it consists in the mind. They will have to fight these two powerful enemies every day of their life until they die. The first major opponent Christians face is themselves. They must battle their own human nature with its self-defeating, sinful and destructive tendencies. The apostle Paul referred to this constant battle of the mind Christians face in his book to the Romans. The second lifelong opponent true believers must face is the devil and the world he has deceived into thinking and acting like he does (Ephesians 2:2, 1 John 5:19, Revelation 12:9, etc.). Jesus, in his prayer to the Father before his crucifixion, reveals the ultimate attitude of those who do not believe God against those who do. I have given them (the disciples and all Christians by extension) Your words, and the world has hated them. . . (John 17)

Paul tells us, in no uncertain terms, that believers do not fight a carnal war that is so familiar to the world but rather one that is on a spiritual plane. Because we are not wrestling against flesh and blood, but against principalities and against powers, against the world rulers of the darkness of this age, against the spiritual power of wickedness in high places. (Ephesians 6)

Now that we know how to create armor to protect ourselves, what other ways can we stop the enemy from influencing us? We have to avoid all evil influences in our life. We can find these influences through music that we listen to, the TV shows and movies that we watch, and activities that are tied to the occult that we can find ourselves silently drawn towards or introduced to via our acquaintances and friends. We don't realize how the little things we do can open up doors and allow legal rights for demonic influence in our life. I'm so guilty of this myself. None of us are perfect nor are we expected to be. Remember Jesus Christ died for our sins.

While the fallen angels have no control over your Free Will, they do have some preternatural abilities to influence your thoughts. They will silently tempt you, often to impure thoughts, or into dissuading you from some good effort. Construct a mental picture of Our Lord Jesus Christ during His Passion. Focus on His pierced hands or feet, or maybe His carrying of the Cross, or concentrate on His crowning with thorns or scourging at the pillar. You will be amazed at how fast the evil thoughts will flee.

The dark forces pull out all the stops to trick us out of our good intentions, and it is only by our soul's determination to succeed and by the grace of God's assistance that we can get back on track.

Without your spiritual armor on tight (the light of God sealed around you), it's easy to fall prey to a spiritual attack.

These so-called attacks don't have to be very in-your-face. In fact they work better when they aren't obvious, because you're less likely to do anything about it. Cunning and subtle methods cause us to accept an intrusion into our world as 'the way things are' or 'just part of our personality'.

It's important to recognize when we need to call to God to take care of that negative energy. Praying for discernment is key, as well as just simply practicing.

Spiritual warfare is really one of the greatest blessings we have. We don't have to wallow in the darkness, we can call for spiritual protection from the forces of light and they will fight back and raise us out of whatever negative state of mind or being we are in.

Written By Jennifer L Auld

After Your Deliverance

By Stephen Piersall
God’s Preservation Ministry http://sfprs.org/   

Staying free after a Deliverance session is not the end but in fact, the beginning. This is when you get your life on the straight and narrow path with God and do your daily reading of the Bible, praying, tithing, and attending your local church regularly and be baptized. However, sometimes people cannot seem to get out of their past behaviors, and they slip back into their old ways. Ever notice on all these TV shows/movies, etc. that when people think they have a haunting they immediately call “Ghost (demon) Investigators" instead of going to a church for help where they live?

 

Unfortunately, in our ministry people who have become free from evil, stay focused on the past and will look at everything and anything and try to make things into the wicked doings. Sort of like leading a horse to water, just cannot get them to drink when you want them too. As parent’s it is no different. We only want the best for them and will do most anything to keep them safe and secure, even after they become adults. Once you get your life right with God you still will go through trials, tests, temptations, and attacks. Satan tempted Jesus three times and the evil one left in defeat. God has a plan for us too, and we must stay in vigilante against temptation. When we are under attack just remember stick to your belief in God, use the Bible as your sword, and pray like you have never prayed before, as this too shall pass, as everything here is worldly. Make sure you clean out ungodly books, videos, pictures, photos, knickknacks, etc. Pray that the Holy Spirit will lead and guide them—when in doubt get rid of it.

 

When you become a Christian, it is like getting a new citizenship. We are no longer of this world. Our citizenship is in heaven, and we are just travelers passing through our time here on earth. This alone should help us to stay focused on the goal of a life as a Christian. Matthew 12:43-45, “When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places, seeking rest, and findeth none. Then he saith, I will return into my house from whence I came out; and when he is come, he findeth it empty, swept, and garnished. Then goeth he, and taketh with himself seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter in and dwell there: and the last state of that man is worse than the first. Even so shall it be also unto this wicked generation.” We want to make sure, if the evil spirit returns, it will find your house full of the Holy Spirit and the power of Almighty God.

 

John 5:1-15, “After this there was a feast of the Jews; and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. Now there is at Jerusalem by the sheep market a pool, which is called in the Hebrew tongue Bethesda, having five porches. In these lay a great multitude of impotent folk, of blind, halt, withered, waiting for the moving of the water. For an angel went down at a certain season into the pool, and troubled the water: whosoever then first after the troubling of the water stepped in was made whole of whatsoever disease he had. And a certain man was there, which had an infirmity thirty and eight years. When Jesus saw him lie, and knew that he had been now a long time in that case, he saith unto him, Wilt thou be made whole? The impotent man answered him, Sir; I have no man, when the water is troubled, to put me into the pool: but while I am coming, another steppeth down before me. Jesus saith unto him, Rise, take up thy bed, and walk. And immediately the man was made whole, and took up his bed, and walked: and on the same day was the Sabbath. The Jews therefore said unto him that was cured, It is the sabbath day: it is not lawful for thee to carry thy bed. He answered them, He that made me whole, the same said unto me, Take up thy bed, and walk. Then asked they him, What man is that which said unto thee, Take up thy bed, and walk? And he that was healed wist not who it was: for Jesus had conveyed himself away, a multitude being in that place. Afterward Jesus findeth him in the temple, and said unto him, Behold, thou art made whole: sin no more, lest a worse thing come unto thee. The man departed, and told the Jews that it was Jesus, which had made him whole.” Most coercion comes in through sin as Legal Rights, and most demonic strongholds are nurtured by sin. To walk out through Deliverance and to stay free we too should go and sin no more! We need to change bad habits that turn to sin and ask God to show us through the Holy Spirit what we must still correct in our daily lives. Praying first thing in the morning and before bedtime is the best way to staying in tuned with God. Do not walk your life with feelings that go up and down but choose to walk the truth from the word of God.

 

Make sure to get water submersion baptizing. Statistically, most new Christians who back slide were not baptized. Baptism is a command and not an option. Get involved with your local church; it is okay to “shop” around to find one that makes you feel most at home. Then get involved, join in, volunteer, be accountable for your Pastor. Do not wait until evil attacks; the best defense is a good offense. Open your Bible and read it, pray, and put on the full armor of God (see Ephesians chapter six). Advance the kingdom of God, witness, testify, walk the talk/walk of Jesus and above all guard your thoughts. You are what you think. Know that the combat zone is your mind and take authority over it, walk in freedom, and stay free!

 

May God Bless you, and it’s well overdue for America to Bless God!