Warfare

More than one Christian author has noted that the sea of faith is sailed not on a luxury yacht but on a battleship. At least one has stated that from the way many believers react to high waves, an observer would think the battle was against God rather than the devil! The worst grumblers, and the most likely to defect completely when things get nasty, are those who have little personal experience with persecution or struggle; there's a reason why military forces insist their fighters show respect, work hard, and stay in top physical condition even when there's no immediate likelihood of being deployed to battle.

Most of us in the wealthier societies doubt that we'll ever be "deployed" in the sense of having to give up all we own or risk imprisonment or martyrdom. Most of us in the wealthier societies would rather not even seriously consider the possibility. Most of us in the wealthier societies don't list Matthew 24 or 2 Timothy 3:12-13 or the bloodier passages of Revelation among our ten favorite Scripture passages for pondering applications to our own lives.

Whether we realize it or not, though, even the most "privileged" believer is already deployed to intense battle on a different level--and how we react to the thought of "hard times" is one sign of how well armed we really are. The battle is our responsibility to "demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up [in our hearts] against the knowledge of God, and [to] take captive every thought [of ours] to make it obedient to Christ" (2 Cor. 10:5). Our opponents in this fight--the flesh and the devil--find their best ally in our belief that there are earthly things we can't live without and earthly situations we can't live with. If we had true faith in God and His promises, we could say with confidence, "Even if the world suffocates in its own heat, even if the economy collapses and takes civilization with it, even if going to church becomes a capital crime, I know that God will bring me safe into His Kingdom where all earthly sorrows will be forgotten; so I need not be afraid to persevere in His work, for nothing in this world can really hurt me."

Anything else is sitting in the bunker playing cards and hoping that the battle will go away if we ignore it. The battle that may have our side on the defensive due to a shortage of soldiers.

We each of us, as Christians,
Are soldiers of the Lord:
Our shield is faith in Jesus,
The Scriptures are our sword,
Our armor is the Gospel--
Salvation and good news,
And truth and righteous living,
Must be the path we choose.

The foes who stand against us
Are not of mortal flesh;
No human eye can see them,
Their schemes no mind unmesh.
Their weapons are temptation,
Discouragement, and fear;
And when we face disaster,
Their evil hand is near.

We cannot fight the battle
By human strength alone;
God's angels are our allies,
Our power flows from His Throne.
Nor are our marching orders
All focused on defense,
To keep our own souls guarded,
Held safe behind a fence.

No, we are God's offensive
To storm the devil's ground,
To free the souls held captive
Wherever they are found:
The Kingdom forges forward
With Jesus in the lead,
And we are called to conquer
And rush to every need.

The battle is relentless,
But bound for victory;
Though some may fall in fighting,
Their souls are ever free
And blessed with Heaven's honors;
And someday soon the war
Will end in praise and glory
And peace forevermore!

Greater Is He Who Is in You

When asked what he did upon meeting temptation, one man replied--bitterly, not with humor--"I yield!"

Sometimes temptation does seem near impossible to resist. It can range from the more-or-less insignificant--"I know I decided not to waste my time with computer games, but what else is there to do while sitting in front of the monitor waiting for a poky connection to be established?"--to the coward's way out--"I don't want them thinking I'm a fire-and-brimstone type; I'll be a more effective witness, anyway, if they get to know me as a person before seeing me as a Christian stereotype"--to the plunge into outright sin--"I realize sex is wrong outside marriage, but she's so beautiful, and we're alone; surely it can't hurt anyone just this once." Some people even blame God for their own actions: "If He doesn't want me to do this, why did He let me get into a situation where it seems the only logical recourse?"

At such times, the Scriptural truth, "The one who is in you [that is, God the Holy Spirit] is greater than the one who is in the world [that is, the 'god of this world,' the devil]" (1 John 4:4, NIV), can be tough to remember and even tougher to believe. But it's never true that a person "had no choice" but to do the wrong thing. Many affluent Christians, especially, are major wimps when weighed on the "scale of suffering"--from ridicule to ostracism to physical abuse to death. Never seriously considering the possibility of having to go all the way to the end, they are afraid even to see out the first stage. How unlike the early Christians, who were not only willing to suffer for Christ but considered it a privilege (Acts 5:40-41).

Those first disciples were strong because they kept constantly aware of Christ's nearness and because pleasing Him meant more to them than did anything else. If we appreciate Christ's power in us, we needn't yield to the temptations of the world around us.

Though temptations from all sides assail us,
Though the world mocks our faith and heaps scorn,
Though all things that we trusted may fail us,
Though we be left distraught and forlorn,
Let us not cower in fear from the hater,
Let us not turn away, lost to doubt:
For the God Who is in us is greater
Than all powers of the world round about.

Though our flesh may be prone to temptation,
Though our selfishness pull us away,
Though our courage have strong reservation,
Though our hearts tend to lead us astray,
Let us not leave the battle for "later,"
Let us not doubt our power to withstand:
For the God Who is in us is greater
Than all strength of the flesh and its brand.

Though the demons of hell rise against us,
Though all evil seem bent on our doom,
Though the devil himself work amidst us,
And assault with dissension and gloom,
Let him find us unwilling to cater
In the least to deceptions and lies:
For the God Who is in us is greater
Than all powers that from hell can arise!

Like a Roaring Lion

Since its origins as a pagan religious festival in ancient Britain, Halloween has undergone more than one shift in its general reputation. The name itself comes from "All Hallow's Evening," a term which originated in the ninth century when--as happened with many ancient pagan celebrations--the old customs were Christianized. October 31 then changed from a night when the spirits of the dead were believed to walk the earth, into a holiday to honor the saints, or "hallowed ones."

By the mid-twentieth century, Halloween had lost most of its religious trimmings and--ghosts and witches being generally classified with fairies as things no one took seriously but which were fun to pretend to believe in--was considered mostly a night of harmless fun for children. In recent decades, as the real dangers implicit in occult activities have become more widely known, many Christians have opted to avoid the holiday altogether or to celebrate "All Saints' Evening" or "Harvest Festival" in non-spooky ways.

Whatever one's personal feelings about Halloween, no one who takes the Bible seriously can deny that evil spirits are real. 1 Peter 5:8 (NIV) says, "Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour." The chapter from which this verse comes warns us also to beware of greed, pride, anxiety, and discouragement--all of which the devil will encourage in us to tempt us away from God's path. Whether our external circumstances are good or bad, Satan is constantly looking for any hint of wrong attitude within us--and if we fail to remain "self-controlled and alert," he may establish beachheads in our hearts before we know it.

No solidier in a war--especially a spiritual war--can afford to let his guard down.

When all life is a crush of frustration,
When success seems to give you the boot,
Beware of the tempter who lies in wait
To water each bitter root!

When all life is a string of successes,
When it seems everything's going well,
Beware of the tempter who lies in wait
To urge lazy heads to swell!

When all life is continual struggle,
When the challenge is getting you down,
Beware of the tempter who lies in wait
To lure you to Give-Up Ground!

When you sit down to rest from the battle,
As we all must at times now and then,
Beware of the tempter who lies in wait
And urges, "Don't go back in!"

All your life, through the sad times and happy,
He will stalk you to make you his prey;
But fear not: just trust in your mighty Lord
Who drives the tempter away!

Deliver Us from Evil

"Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith" (1 Peter 5:8-9, NIV).

In Bible days, a ferocious lion was among the most feared dangers, as a quick search of any concordance will verify. A modern equivalent might be the terrorist awaiting an opportunity to strike, or a Category 5 hurricane turning toward land. Whatever the analogy, the devil bides his time until he sees a chance to do as much damage as possible.

And like most hunters, he knows that the best time to catch prey with its guard down is while it's concentrating on satisfying its appetites. The "self-controlled and alert" are less vulnerable to Satan's schemes because they are less likely to be lulled into a false sense of security, or to insist on walking into obvious trouble in the name of reaching something that looks luscious.

Ultimately, though, we are all too weak to remain self-controlled and alert on our own. We can only stay safe from sin by keeping in close touch with God and fighting battles in His strength.

From the roaring lion who would devour,
From our own weak hearts, from enticement's power,
From the world and all who would see us sin,
Lord, protect our souls that You died to win.

That we grow in You and in Your strength,
That we be adorned with Your crown at length,
That we honor Your great and holy Name,
Lord, keep us from all that would bring You shame.

Let us seek Your will through all our days;
Let us live for Truth and delight in praise;
Let us find our strength through the Life You bring--
Lord, may we forever proclaim You King.

Lead Us Not into Temptation

Many Christians are puzzled to see "lead us not into temptation" (Mt. 6:13, NIV) in the Lord's Prayer. Doesn't the Bible itself say, "When tempted, no one should say, 'God is tempting me.' For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed" (James 1:13-14)? So if God would never deliberately lure us into evil, why should we have to ask Him not to?

The second half of Matthew 6:13, "but deliver us from the evil one," provides one clue. Only God can protect us from the influence of the real tempter, from an assault that continues until we are no longer capable of resisting (cf. 1 Cor. 10:13). God can actually use temptation to strengthen our faith and character--but only as long as we do resist. Every time we give in, we take a step in the opposite direction.

When we do fall, often we immediately face additional temptation--temptation to blame God instead of ourselves. Saying "I asked God to keep me from temptation, and He didn't," is as bad as accusing God of being personally responsible for the temptation. And praying "keep me from the enticements of evil" isn't going to do much good if we're simultaneously thinking "but don't ask me to give this up" or "but I won't be held responsible if even the remotest hint of temptation crosses my path." Just happening to pass a bar on your way home neither means God has broken His promise to keep you from enticements, nor absolves you from blame if you go in to get drunk--especially if you knew perfectly well what was on that street and that there were alternate routes home.

Determining to cooperate with God in resisting temptation, however difficult we find the test, is the only way to pray the prayer sincerely. Demanding that He do all the work--that He make temptation literally impossible for us to find--is both unreasonable and lazy.

All along the path of each mortal life
The temptations wait to pounce,
And across the roads that we take each day
Gaudy lures to evil bounce.
If we wish to keep in the steps of Christ,
We must let Him hold our hand,
For the Lord alone plans the path of life
And has scouted out the land.

Let us pray, "Dear God, watch the ways we walk,
And protect our lives from sin";
Let us also choose to observe our Guide,
Our eyes fixed alone on Him.
Through each day of life, on each way we go,
The temptations lie in wait;
But our Lord, our Way, leads us to the end,
Ever up toward Heaven's gate!

Temptation Is a Subtle Thing

Have you ever known someone who was once on fire for God, then fell hard or walked away? Without getting into complicated theological debates about “eternal security” or “loss of salvation,” it's impossible to deny that some people have gone, in a decade or less, from "I would willingly die for Christ" to "I don't even think there is a God."

Sometimes it's a crushing disappointment or tragedy that does in their faith. But often they fall away bit by bit: first a Christian willfully if reluctantly decides to do some "little thing" he knows is against God's will; then he rationalizes, "One more time won't hurt"; then the "one more times" mount until he is doing it so regularly that his conscience has shut up and he has plenty of excuses ("God wants me to be happy" is a favorite) if challenged on his actions. It's a short step from there to explaining away those passages in the Bible that contradict his behavior, and from there to discounting the relevance of God Himself.

The best way to keep from starting on this slippery slope is to first get rid of the pride that says, "I'm so spiritually mature I'll probably never sin again," and then to commit ourselves to regular self-examination, preferably with the aid of a strong Christian friend or mentor. Sin is like cancer: its roots get into us through some seemingly innocuous piece of everyday life; it can grow big enough to kill before we even suspect its presence; and the best way to root it out is to catch it early.

An even better approach is to recognize and head off temptation before it has a chance to become sin.

Temptation is a subtle thing:
It comes before we know;
It infiltrates in tiny seeds
That like the kudzu grow.

Temptation is a subtle thing:
It comes before we see,
And weaves its threads to iron chains
And thus enslaves the free.

Temptation is a subtle thing:
It strikes in times of need;
It strikes in our prosperity;
It taints each thought and deed.

Temptation is a subtle thing:
It paints as good our sin,
And makes us prisoners in a war
That only God can win.

Temptation is a subtle thing
We are too weak to fight,
So let us find our strength in God,
And conquer through His might.