How to Fight the Spiritual Battle | Using God-given Weaponry

You are listening to a new beginning with Greg Laurie, a podcast made possible by harvest partners, helping people everywhere know God.

Visit our website and learn more about harvest partners harvest data work. Anyone who chooses to follow Jesus rise will be severe opposition from today. The Gregorian pressure we so often feel as we walk with Christ comes from our adversary.

The moment you think you into a spiritual conflict with double delete clerk. More on you. It's been said conversion is made.

Our hearts learn out of why temptation is the devil looking through the keyhole you is opening the door and inviting him in.

Many of us have our fingerprints on the doorknob and why we filled the today on a new beginning after Greg Laurie brings a spiritual environment were living the spiritual battle being waged all around not how we are all combatants in the fight over just been walking with the Lord doing all the things you think Christian ought to do when all of a sudden you're just laws with spiritual attack you're getting hit would doubt you're getting hit with temptations. You're getting hit with all kinds of other problems and you're wondering what horrible said how I committed to bring this upon myself right. What have I done to deserve such a fate. Wondering what's wrong here. Why is God letting this happen to me how many of you have ever had that happen right here and right pretty much everybody hears something to consider, and may not be happening because you're doing something wrong and maybe happily because you're doing something right and you are a threat to the devil. So this is something we need to be aware of.

Listen, like it or not.

The moment you became a Christian, you entered into a spiritual conflict, the devil effectively declared war on you. It's been said conversion is made. Our hearts a battlefield. Anyone who chooses to follow Jesus Christ will face severe opposition from the enemy and you have a choice in the spiritual battle you can win, you can lose. You can gain ground. You can lose ground to get dizzy due to him like a spiritual pass of this book he called to go down buddy. You're going down so you gotta learn how to fight. You have to learn how to use the weaponry to God is given to you by the way the Bible frequently uses the images of war and conflict to depict the Christian life. Paul exhorted Timothy in second Timothy three to be a good soldier of Jesus Christ. He also wrote life ought to good by the Christian life is not a playground it's a battleground. But here's the good news we can win this war. And here's some more good news. We are going to win in the end.

So if you feel like you're being a little overwhelmed right now just understand that God is with you and he is told you how to win in this spiritual battle. You know Jesus said the gates of hell would not prevail against the church and heard that statement before one is that mean we settle the will get the hell will not prevail against the church. What you think that means I'm annoyed that what I like with soundtrack. What is it mean when it says the gates of hell will not prevail against the church. We have to go back to ancient times and the way they conducted warfare and we know that a common military tactic used by armies and that they was to break down the gate of the enemy's fortress with a battering ram right.

You've seen a lot of movies so the battering ram. Sometimes it's on fire. It hits the wooden gate and the gate catches on fire.

The soldiers rushed in and defeat the occupants of the fortress.

So the idea is the gates will not prevail against the battering ram. So the idea here is, as we are moving forward is Christian as we are gaining ground, not just holding ground and hopefully not losing ground as were advancing into enemy territory.

If you will with the message of the gospel.

We are going to ultimately win the battle begins, a bell will not prevail against us or be able to stop so here we are now looking at what this battle is going to look like for us. It's important we understand it, because to be forewarned is to be for arms when they say that again to be forewarned is to be forearm.

So let's find out about this war and let's all look at Ephesians 6, verse 10. Finally, my brother, some reading from the new King James version, be strong in the Lord and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles that's an old tiny word that means strategies indices set against the strategies, indices or wiles of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places are just the supernatural world talking about the rankings of demon powers that are out there just like in the military. We have rankings we have generals and corporals and lieutenants and sergeants and Buck privates and all that will in the supernatural world there rankings of fallen Angels as well as rankings of holy angels anyway so were fighting against these posts in the supernatural realm. Therefore, remember whenever you see the word therefore find out what it's therefore so in light of this, or therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may build it was Stan in the evil day, having done all, to stand. So if you're taking notes hears point number one recognize this is a spiritual battle and I must be fought with spiritual. Let me say that again recognizes is a spiritual battle and I must be fought with spiritual weapons.

You fight fire with fire. And there are some key ways to overcome the devil and his demons because God is not left us in the dark here and he tells us first 11 put on the full armor of God in their praise put on carries the idea of once and for all. Do it once and for all, or do it permanently. The full armor of God is not to be put on and taken off. You need to keep it on because were going to be in the battle for the final day the spiritual battle and will we get to heaven, not before.

So we keep the armor of God on and why number two. Because Satan is a super being and he's more than I can ever handle Satan as a super being is a powerful fallen angel. I'm no match for him.

Nor are you verse 11 that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. Teapot objective is to see if far away from the devil as I possibly can. Not to ski this close to what he's offering as I possibly can. The Bible tells a story in the book of acts about some guys called the sons of Skiba who were identified as exorcists and there were trying to cast the demon out, by the way, the Bible never validates exorcists invalidates casting demons out of people but there's no will biblical office of being in exorcists and so someone says I'm in exorcists. My gift is casting demons outside an apartment in the Bible.

I do find demons recast up another person with a specific gifting of exorcists. These guys were called in exorcists or exorcists rather and does so they try to cast the demon out, they said to this demon possessed guy, out of this person in the name of Jesus whom Paul preaches because it seemed Paul doing so, they thought they could do it like it's a magic formula and the demon in the guy says listen I know Jesus and I know Paul but I don't know you, and then the man with the evil spirit leaped on them, overpowered them and attacked them with such violence. They fled from the house naked and bladder. That's what happens when you try to take the devil on in your own strength so don't go that why community the name of Jesus and Paul know you better just then, in the Lord only and not go where you shouldn't be this is a picture of us trying to overcome Satan in our own strength. You know when there's situation. An officer is called officer arrives. A call for backup. Call for backup and we need to do the same wanted spiritual battle.

We need to call for backup backup is the Lord himself, Esther, Greg Laurie will have the second half of his message in just a moment. So many listeners have commented on the help they received from these daily messages God's word ministers to them and often gets them through some of their darkest hours. Pastor Greg prior to last year my physical body was immense. After many different medical procedures. They transferred me to an assisted living facility there.

I shared a room with a very crabby woman who would yell at me for having my radio to Mount or my light on. She claimed that she was a Christian but was a very bitter person because of a tragic event that happened to her son. Well Greg, I was determined that I was going to hear your radio program new beginning.

Even if I had to lay on top of my radio and surprisingly, one morning my roommate asked me to actually turn my radio up.

She said to me, I like administer and what he's saying.

I not only was able to show her that Jesus did exist, but I gave her one of your new believers Bibles.

Yes, God still works miracles. As for me I'm home now an independent. My health is improving and I'm much stronger God is my hope and it's a joy to be alive.

Thank you so much Pastor Greg for letting me share my story were so grateful to hear of the change lives through harvest ministries and a few of the story to tell of how these studies have touched your life or that of a family member.

Hope you'll contact us today drop Esther Greg an email greg@harvest.org again, that's great@harvest.org will currently here on a new beginning. Pastor Greg is presenting a series called the afterlife and the eternal and today he's giving us some powerful principles for spiritual battle. Let's continue. Number three to win in the spiritual battle, I'm a standing God strength, not my own to win in the spiritual battle I missed in God's strength, not my own. Verse 10.

Finally, my brothers, be strong in the Lord and in the power of his might, or literally strengthen yourself in the Lord.

See what the devil wants to do is get you was far from God as he possibly can serve like our phones you know they keep coming out with new versions of every phone out there. Every new iPhone.

Every new android phone and they do have all these features they had all I really want is a phone that has enough battery life to get me through the day. Really that's what I want about you. I don't care about all this other stuff I don't care what color it is that I don't care about these extra feet just get me through the day because you watch that battery drain to get lower and lower. So you constantly plugging and recharging plugging and recharging okay the ideas you want to state permanently plugged in to Christ and the devil doesn't want you to be plugged in the Christ you want to disconnected. So here's what you need to do.

Start the day with the Lord.

When you get up in the morning.

Don't start the day with social media don't start the day checking your emails start the day with the word of God and with prayer that will equip you to deal with all that stuff is going to come here way in your emails and in your tax and from other places so you need to get your day started in the right way the devil doesn't want you to do that.

He wants you to do anything about that, but that's all we need to start stand in the Lord and the power of his might.

Again, I want to keep as much distance between the devil and myself as possible for comes out of this flee temptation and don't leave a forwarding address run from it and assume some of your thing will list the sounds scary Greg you're scaring me tonight. I don't want to hear this. Don't you have a message about puppies and flowers that's coming later I'll get to that now. I really I know it's scary but let's just remember one simple statement greater is he that is in you than he that is in the world. God is more powerful than the devil and all the ice down the Lord and in the power of his might and I don't dating Greg and the power of my mind because I can collapse quickly. Just like you know Paul breaks down the various pieces of armor would give verse 14 Stan therefore, there is therefore against the light of this stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace and above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one and take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit which is the word of God. So six pieces of armor are mentioned six pieces.

The first three.

The belt, the breastplate in the shoes were attached to the body, never to be removed. The second three.

This shield, the helmet and the sword were for specific purposes and methods of attack so it starts placing girded your waist with truth when he just use a more modern translation to put on the utility belt of truth.

You know about and has his utility belt right all the cool little things will battling you through the people out of the notes that Matt right that little thing he throws but think about a police officer. They put on that belt on the outside of their uniform.

The call of the Sam Brown and on the Sam Brown. They have a holster for the gun, a place for their costs. A place for by and asked, possibly, which is a little baton thing. They pull out and use they might have other little items have little thing to hold a donut.

They have nothing but time. So the other utility belt. They put it on and all their stuff there/fly all the things they carried is on that belt so we put on the utility belt of truth, the Roman soldier had a belt and on his belt.

He had a sheath which was for the sword. Obviously, and also the breastplate was attached to the belt and John and the belt also pulled his mother pulled his little skirt okay because he wrote we were a toga told is basically just like a skirt and so would be down over his knees. So what is going in the battle he pulls it up above his knees and he singes in the belt so it stays above the knees giving them freedom of movement. Now he pulls a sword out because I have the belt on because of someone pulls her belt off off comes your breastplate.

There goes your sword and your dressers fell to the ground you're looking stupid right so what is this evening. Put on the belt of truth. Basically it's the same bottom line. If you're not walking truthfully before God.

None of the rest of this really matters. You know if you're living a hypocritical life.

If you're saying one thing and doing another than this is docking to work for you so you start with a truthful right relationship with God, then you of the breastplate of righteousness. What is that mean the breastplate of righteousness will it certainly not the breastplate of self righteousness, as I will do anything for you. It's a breastplate of God's righteousness is not even the breastplate of your personal righteous living what it is is a representation of your stand before God.

We talked about how we are justified, which means when you become a Christian, God forgive you of all of your sin and then he puts the righteousness of Christ into your spiritual bank account, so to speak. You stand positionally right before God I am a righteous man, you might still Greg I saw you driving here. I don't know about that. I didn't say always the right to say but positionally before God I am a righteous man. You're a righteous man. You're a righteous woman.

So I stand in this special relationship with the Lord and I bring this up because one of the doubles primary tactics is accusation.

You know he comes up to you key terms you to think and impure thought and you sort of ticket for a test drive in the attached you. What a hypocrite you are. You're not even a Christian you don't believe in Jesus but Romeo blows against the breastplate, but this is righteousness where I'm not standing in my good works. What I've done for God I'm standing in what God is done for me. Very important number three we are to have our feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace. This is the footwear of the soldier it gave him, firm footed this and mobility on the field of battle. If a Roman soldier wanted to be effective than battle. He had the day care of his feet. One of the common tactics of the enemy of that date would be to take sticks that were sharpened and embed them in the soil so the Roman soldiers are dancing in the battle. They step on one of those sharpened sticks, the ghost of their foot neurotic commission they're knocking to march one step further. So you want shoes that support you properly.

I was having some sort of the thing work.

My shins were like kind of thinking then and I had these Nike errors and I kept thinking that was a solution.

So I went to some store that sells athletic shoes. They got me on the treadmill. They said you know we know what your problem is your prone 80 that offended me.

I slap the guy that he explain what a Mennonite apologize quickly guidance Latin, but donating which basically means that that my foot sort of rules and so he said you need more support you need errors like Nike errors. You need a firmer soul so I got sold shoes with firmer souls for when I run which is never. But still I have them now so what is it mean to have your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace. It speaks of standing firm in gaining ground. So when the enemy attacks. I don't back down or just hold my ground. I try to it dance. So let's put it all together.

The belted to speaks of purity, the breastplate of righteousness, speaks of integrity putting on your gospel shoes or you're having your beach out of the preparation of the gospel of peace, speaks of mobility and how do I gain ground.

Very simple answer by proclaiming the gospel.

That's all we advance in the spiritual battle. Romans 1014 says, how can they call in Unless they believe in him, how can they believe in him unless they've heard about him and how can they hear about it unless someone tells them and how will anyone go until the molester said. That is why the Scripture said how beautiful are the feet of messengers or bring good news to look at your feet for a moment speak can be beautiful, be right if you let those feet carry you forward with the message of the gospel Greg Laurie important insight today on spiritual warfare, explaining God hasn't left us unequipped and unprepared for that battle. And there's more to come here on a new beginning as his message how to fight the spiritual battle continues as regular car guy right I am. I've always liked cars ever since a been a little kid for sure. I read about the new Dodge charger Daytona SRT concept car. It's a Dodge charger electrified, it's battery-powered. It's a battery-powered muscle car was nearly 900 hp while but you know, one of the things people like about muscle cars is there deep throaty sound yeah no but electric car doesn't go for room it goes. Jean shifts it's like this car has a way to artificially replicate that of a room all that's fine and I don't know how they're doing it that is going to sound like a classic muscle car artificially and that while while funny at something. A big toy really doesn't fit with a big price tag yes yeah but sometimes I wonder about the sounds we make as believers, you know, there's the verse that says out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks what can we do to make sure our hearts are causing us to speak like a believer.

Well I think that's how you know when you first become a Christian. There's sort of a cryptic language that believers sometimes use that I describe his Christian knees. I remember when I was a brand-new believer. I didn't know what the Christians meant when they said this is worldly like what worldly what you mean or or you know they would use words like redeemed and justified and sanctified, and I didn't know what those words meant, so I went to the crash course on learning what these words meant learning what the Christian life is all about. I wish I had someone to explain it to me because of that it's been part of my mission as a pastor and as an evangelist to make the things of God is understandable as I can two people almost like we're just sitting down and having a cup of coffee and talking about these things together so my objective is not to be complex it is to be simple, not simplistic but simple and understandable. You know the Bible says of Jesus, the common people heard him gladly.

Jesus was understandable.

He was assessable and he still is today and I hope you understand what the Bible says about life would Scripture says about what your focus and priorities are to be as a Christian I written this book called the new believers guide to effective Christian living. This is the huge book but it's action-packed. There's a lot of great material in it. I deal with all kinds of topics that believers face each and every day, like how to know the will of God. How to resist temptation, how to share your faith with others why the word of God is important where study of it is necessary what the role of the church is why he should be involved in the church how to pray more effectively a lot more.

So my hope is to make these Jews were assessable to you.

I heard one preacher say that the goal of a pastor is to get the cookies on the bottom shelf so the kids can get to them right. So here's some cookies on the bottom shelf if you will. Here's a simple book that you could read in one sitting that I think will enrich you and help you and perhaps clarify some things for you as well is called the new believers guide to effective Christian living.

Would like to send it to you for your gift of any size yet is right and we have a copy waiting for you right now.

Get in touch and ask for and by the way, we depend on the generous support of our listeners. It's the only way we can bring you these studies there are no churches or large organizations paying all her expenses so please show your support today and be sure to ask for the new believers guide to effective Christian living.

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Again, the number 1-800-821-3300 or write a new beginning. Box 4000, Riverside, CA 92514 or go online to harvest.or Pastor Greg offers more insight on the spiritual warfare and the equipment God is provided to help us fight victoriously join us here on a new beginning. Pastor and Bible teacher, pray for, and everybody thinks her list. Beginning this is a podcast made possible by harvest partners.

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