This week we continue Spiritual Warfare

This week we are continuing with the subject of Spiritual Warfare and we are going to look at a collection warfare truths. * We must deal with and come to grips with the fact that we going to be attacked, so there are things we can do beforehand. War is the attempt of one side to impose its will on the other side. So these thoughts will help you when thinking about spiritual warfare and what you need to do. They are written to encourage you and help you prepare for the battles that will come into your life. There is no way to completely develop every one of these concepts, but you can study these out for yourself and ask the Lord to give you the insight needed.

· Strategy is the art of war and tactics is how you wage a battle. The strategy of the enemy spiritually is to take the true meaning of the Scriptures away so that you don’t know God. The tactic is to get the Jews to look at what was done to them in the past and not see the hand of God in it, nor to see the Messiah in the Torah. To the Gentiles, it is to confuse who the Messiah is and not study the Old Testament at all. The third goal is to keep both groups apart.

· Just because we may lose a battle doesn’t mean we lost the war.

· To be forewarned is to be forearmed-the enemy will attack with no exceptions.

· Spiritual Warfare is a process of difficulty. The first enemies are simple as is the weaponry. Succeeding battles will get more difficult and the weapons more sophisticated.

· Never interrupt your opponent when they are making a mistake.

· “Battering ram” theory: as weapons against you develop, so should your defenses.

· Roman attacks: require intervention from God. The “Roman” attacker comes at you with the attitude that you will be defeated, no matter what the cost. They like to intimidate and divide you, keep you off balance and infiltrate your life in as many ways as they can.

· Hittite attacks: they are people who like to “undermine” you, they try and “dig tunnels” under your walls. The best way to defeat a Hittite attacker is to cave in his walls by confrontation and exposing them for what they are trying to do.

· Philistine attacks: they try to draw you in close. They like confrontation because they think they have better weapons than you.

· Assyrian attacks: already discussed in the previous article.

· Vanity is one’s greatest weakness, so try to avoid it (2 Sam chapters 16 and 17- the story of Achitophel, Absalom, David and Hushai).

· Spiritual and physical battles often go hand in hand so be prepared, casualties will occur. Jer. 12.5 says “If you have run with the infantry and they have worn you out, how can you contend (keep up with) the cavalry.”

· As always, the best defense is a strong offense.

· No matter how strong your defenses are today, if you stay as you are (static) an adversary will come along who can knock down your fortress.

· Don’t get stuck in the stone age (with stone age weapons) and fight a nuclear age enemy.

· Don’t rely on past victories and tactics to win future battles. The enemy will have learned and developed superior tactics.

· Know your enemy and his weaponry and tactics. You must assess and evaluate all incoming data.

· Never underestimate your enemy (Casemate walls at Masada).

· The success of a battle is determined by the abilities of the enemy.

· The attitude of the commander and the spirit of the troops will change the outcome of a battle.

· Rank does not necessarily indicate talent. Inferior talent as a leader will result in severe losses.

· Managers do things right, but a leader does the right thing. There is a difference.

These are just a few warfare truths to keep in mind. In the next article we will talk about the Commander and how we should relate to Him before, during and after a battle.

Spiritual Warfare Continued.....

This week we are going to continue with the subject of Spiritual Warfare and this will continue over the next few weeks. I am going to discuss what it is rather than what it isn’t because once you see the concepts you will be able to distinguish the false for yourself. This week, we are going to start with some definitions and basic concepts and build upon them. Jer. 9.23-24 says that our goal as a believer is to know the Lord. Our goal is not to fight battles, but we are in a war and that will never stop. The Lord is a warrior (Ex 15.3) and our battle begins by making the decision to be a warrior as well and entering into warfare. In the book of Haggai, the Jewish people were so concerned about their own lives and houses that they forgot about rebuilding the Temple. In v 7 the Lord asks them to “consider your ways.” In like manner, we are to consider our ways. Are we wasting our time in life or are we building the house of God (Ezek 13.1-5)? We are to “repair the walls” like Nehemiah did and every truth we learn is like another brick in the wall. Song of Solomon 8.9 states “ if she is a wall” which means strong, then they can build, but if she is a “door” it means she is weak. Some may say, “I don’t see the application or understand all this.” But, this is not something you just sit down and understand quickly or all at once. It takes time to learn spiritual warfare, and it takes just as much time to do it wrong so we might as well get it right, don’t you think? If I told you you could double your knowledge of the Lord, how far would you go to attain it? Ecclesiastes 9.14-16 says you will deliver your city by wisdom, and a believer is seen as a city (Jer. 1.18). Matt. 13.45-46 says that a merchant went to great lengths to attain a certain pearl, and a pearl is likened to wisdom in the Scriptures (Job 28.18). To interpret Ezekiel 16.1-63, the Song of Songs, Daniel chapters 11-12 you need to know history and eschatology (Isa 41.22). So, to begin with, there is a concept called “moreshet karav” which means “heritage of war” (Judges 3.1-2, Isa 2.4, 2sam 22.35, Isa 58.14). It teaches Israeli history and is taught to Israeli children today. It recounts all the battles Israel has fought and how the enemy was defeated. They take the children to actual battlefields and they show them where Goliath fell, where Joshua made the sun stand still, where the Maccabees defeated the Greeks. They experience the feelings, the terrain and the history and that is called the moreshet karav, the heritage of war, and that is our heritage as a believer also.

So, with that said, let’s start with some basic definitions that you will need to know. I’m going to just list them with a brief explanation next to it so we can have a the same understanding of the things that will follow later in the teaching.

*War=is the attempt of one side to impose its will on another side.

*Strategy=is how you win the war.

*tactic=is how you win battles.

*Roman attack= attacker keeps coming with the attitude you will be destroyed through intimidation, psychological warfare, division, keeping us off balance and infiltration. This requires intervention from God.

*Hittite attack=like to undermine us, non-confrontational, “dig tunnels” to get inside our walls.

*Philistine attack=try to draw us into a confrontation, close combat. They like it.

*Assyrian attack=overwhelm us, costly, nasty, dirty, able to wage war on numerous fronts, high in casualties, can’t win, domino effect problems, organized, even our friends are under attack, cut off, spiritual walk can deteriorate, won’t win on our own strength, we are outnumbered, outmaneuvered and outgunned but don’t panic and run because you will get “killed” anyway so you might as well fight and not make it easy on the enemy and buying time knowing that the only thing that can save us is God’s intervention.

*Laws of warfare =read Deut 20.1-20, Num 4.3 ( the word for service in v 3 is the word for warfare in Hebrew), Eph 6/10-17.

*Gospel=is “basar” in Hebrew and it means good news from the battlefield (1Sam 31.9, 2Kings 7.9).

*Casualties =our minds, hearts, lives and souls..

*Fort/city=is an individual, family, congregation or nation (Eccl 9.14-16, Jer. 1.18, Mt 13.45-46).

*Mobility=how far and how fast can we move our infantry, cavalry and chariots and translates into how we move, our walk with God, how we study. Do we read a few chapters a day=may be too slow, 100 chapters a day=may be too fast.

*Firepower=weapons with a purpose to hit the enemy at various ranges through prayer, scripture, books, media and speech.

*Wall foundation=the Scriptures

*Walls=that which separates and keeps the enemy away, our protection (Isa 30.13-14).

*Security=is provided by our walls and personal defenses against enemy effectiveness by obtaining and utilizing knowledge, wisdom and understanding (Isa 33.6).

*Shield=is faith/confidence and there are 2 types of shields. A “magen” is a small shield and a “zinah” is a larger, full body shield. Too little confidence or too much confidence can hurt us. We needs the right shield (confidence) for the right battle. It also deflects the missiles/arrows (untruths) of the enemy.

*Towers= the units of study we master. Towers keep the enemy away from our walls. There are 2 types. A square tower represents basic truth and a round tower is symbolic of knowing something well and takes more time and expertise to build.

*Balconies= the application of what you know in defense.

*Glacis/moat=is our attitude, a “stiff-arm” if you will. It keeps the enemy from our walls, it is what you put out front to discourage people from attacking our walls because enemy will try and break down your walls (wear you down from every direction) in order to defeat you.

*Water source= water is symbolic of teaching (Hebrew= “mayim chaim” or living water). Wells are dug which means digging for wisdom, life, truth. Water is below the ground and buried, hidden and it can only be brought forth with hard work. A water source (teaching) is essential to a city. It must be protected in a siege/battle.

*Gates=the weak point in a wall (our life and our defenses). They need attention and relate to our senses (what you see, hear, feel, taste/say and touch).

*Sword=a sharp mind in the Word, sharp words (Ps 59.7). There several types. A double edged sword is used to pierce deep and long with one blow.

*Arrows, stones=words (Psa. 120.3-4).

*Helmet=covers our head against psychological warfare, guards the mind.

*Bows/slings=that which fires the arrows, information.

*Quiver=stores the information, like memory.

*Composite bow=blends many areas of study together.

*Spear/javelin=medium range weapon, anything that keeps the enemy at a distance, not too close.

*Axe=anything that pierces or cuts or hacks, like a “cutting remark.”

*Mace=inflicts a heavy blow, can beat you down (like a death, divorce, job loss, etc).

*Battering ram=repeated, frontal pounding “right in the gut” and has to be stopped.

*Conservatism=not changing with new tactics or weapons can lead to destruction (apathy, decadence, etc). The Philistines did not continue to develop the bow, and Egypt did, resulting in a Philistine defeat.

*Firebrands, coals=thoughts, words (Psa. 120.4) trouble or troublesome people (Isa 7.4).

*Auxiliary forces=those close to us who turn against us and fight with the enemy (family, friends, etc).

*Siege=long, drawn out trial or battle (Julius Caesar at Alessia).

*Posterns=schemes, undermining, “tunnels” coming against us from another while you are on the attack from the outside (they come out of the city against you).

*Allies=those close to us who fight with us (family, friends, or other believers, etc).

*Surprise=to move your force, to engage the enemy at a time and under conditions he does not expect or has prepared for. He cannot react with his own weapons and forces effectively.

Along with these definitions, there several other concepts to include here. There 3 types of battles. A duel is one on one, a small group battle is one group against another and armies are one large movement against another (elections, etc). The basis for strategy and tactics involves surprise, maintenance of aim, economy, concentration of force, coordination of arms and security.

In other words, spiritual warfare means engaging in battle (getting involved). Even if you don’t want to do it, it is a necessity for a believer to prepare for battles because they are coming. Many wait until they are under attack to begin learning something about it, but by then it may be too late. In the next segment, we will discuss warfare truths and give some overall, practical advice which will help in future battles. After that we will discuss God as the Commander, what He will do and not do. The next thing we will talk about will be what preparations can we make for future battles. Then we will look at psychological warfare and how to recognize it and what to do about it. Then we will look at what to do when attacking followed by what to do when under attack. Lastly, we will look at what to do after a victory.