The Unseen War is Very Real

The Unseen War is Very Real
by David Brenneman

"He took his stick in his hand and chose for himself five smooth stones from the brook, and put them in the shepherd’s bag which he had, even in his pouch, and his sling was in his hand; and he approached the Philistine.  Then the Philistine came on and approached David, with the shield-bearer in front of him.  When the Philistine looked and saw David, he disdained him; for he was but a youth, and ruddy, with a handsome appearance.  The Philistine said to David, “Am I a dog, that you come to me with sticks?” And the Philistine cursed David by his gods.  The Philistine also said to David, “Come to me, and I will give your flesh to the birds of the sky and the beasts of the field.”  Then David said to the Philistine, “You come to me with a sword, a spear, and a javelin, but I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have taunted.  This day the Lord will deliver you up into my hands, and I will strike you down and remove your head from you. And I will give the dead bodies of the army of the Philistines this day to the birds of the sky and the wild beasts of the earth, that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel, and that all this assembly may know that the Lord does not deliver by sword or by spear; for the battle is the Lord’s and He will give you into our hands.”  Then it happened when the Philistine rose and came and drew near to meet David, that David ran quickly toward the battle line to meet the Philistine.  And David put his hand into his bag and took from it a stone and slung it, and struck the Philistine on his forehead. And the stone sank into his forehead, so that he fell on his face to the ground.  Thus David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone, and he struck the Philistine and killed him; but there was no sword in David’s hand.  Then David ran and stood over the Philistine and took his sword and drew it out of its sheath and killed him, and cut off his head with it. When the Philistines saw that their champion was dead, they fled." 1 Samuel 17:40-51.

"These four were born to the giant in Gath, and they fell by the hand of David and by the hand of his servants." 2 Samuel 21:22.

"For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh, for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses.  We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ, and we are ready to punish all disobedience, whenever your obedience is complete" 2 Corinthians 10:3-6.

"Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might.  Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil.  For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.  Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm.  Stand firm therefore, having girded your loins with truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; in addition to all, taking up the shield of faith with which you will be able to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.  And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.  With all prayer and petition pray at all times in the Spirit, and with this in view, be on the alert with all perseverance and petition for all the saints," Ephesians 6:10-18.

When someone does come to Christ they only then come to the beginning of the realization that there's much more going on in the universe than what their life before Christ revealed.

A long time ago, believe it or not heard on a 33 1/3rd vinyl record, I heard a speaker make mention of knowing your enemy, David knew his and you'll be wise if you know yours.

The opening Scriptures we read what might be a footnote or some doubt in the future King of Israel.  Having tried out King Saul's armor and that not working, he picks up 5 stones.  Many easily point to the fact that there's only one giant out there.  David knew his enemy.  We read at the other end of 2nd Samuel the rest of the story. 

We must realize that if the Bible says there's a spiritual war going on that there is a spiritual war going on.  There's no contentious objectors.  There's no pacifist types who won't engage the enemy of God.  There's no neutral parties whom are staying out of the fight.
Add to this, all who live and breathe, regardless of being saved in Christ Jesus or not...are in the thick of the battle every single day. 

There's nobody who will be able to stand on a premise that they're not going to fight that they don't believe in fighting.  The Bible says the war is real therefore the war is real.

There's training in righteousness for our survival let alone for our growth in Christ Jesus.  Paul had compared Believers with soldiers in training.  The section we read in Ephesians is very defined as to the armament a soldier of God wears or is to be wearing.  Unlike the future King of Israel's failed attempt at wearing King Saul's, this Spiritual armor fits.  Some preach that it's defensive in its arrangement.

The point is missed that the sword of the Spirit, the Word of God, is an offensive weapon. 

"divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses.  We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ, and we are ready to punish all disobedience, whenever your obedience is complete" is what we read.  The literal take on the truth of God's word is that it IS offensive to those not yet saved.  The real translation of another passage in the Bible says that Peter was told that upon that Rock Jesus would build His Church and that the gates of Hell would not be able to withstand the onslaught of the Church. 

The thing that brings the most grief to the majority of people in our world today about weapons in the hands of a civilization population is there's no formal training required.  Soldiers in active duty practice practice practice. 

The Sword of the Spirit, the Word of God, must be used daily.  Must be read daily, must be thought about, considered, ruminated, digested, to become so familiar that it becomes an extension of the body as much as a hand or an arm.

Knowing your enemy is part of your training in righteousness.  Knowing Satan's schemes and his limitations.  Knowing your sin nature.  Knowing the effect of the Word of God vs the enemy of God. 

Acknowledging the battle and Acknowledging your need to be accepting of the training in righteousness through the Spirit of God will bring about the victory. 

Had David decided that he should listen to King Saul about the use of his armor we wouldn't be reading about the defeat of Goliath. 

King David was known as a man after God's own heart.  King David wrote a huge part of the book of Psalms.  King David's family line is where Jesus came from.

This all being said...people are not your enemy.  The sin within them is.  The demons in this world are your enemy if you're indeed saved in Christ.  Jesus came to seek and save the lost in the world.  Salvation is offered to everyone.  Including even the Antichrist who will reject everything to do with Jesus.  The schemes of Satan involve deceptions.  Getting Believers to believe things contrary to the Word of God.  Getting Believers to believe that the things that Scripture says are optional.  Jesus said that Satan's a liar and the father of lies.  He's the destroyer. 

You and I are in training in righteousness for the war that we are in.  We are being transformed by the renewing of our minds by the Word of God through His Spirit.  Our transformation is to make us more like Christ.  Jesus was at war when He stepped into His ministry here on Earth.  He often fought the Pharisees and Sadducees.  John said that he didn't write everything he could have written about those three and a half years. 

Dr. Charles Stanley said that we ought to fight our battles on our knees in prayer.  Prayer is our direct communication with Jesus.  It's both prayer and the wielding of the Sword of the Spirit that's part of the lifeblood of the Christian life.  The shield of faith blocks the attacks and the Sword of the Spirit counters the attack.

Be sure, Dear Reader, you're in this battle of the mind until God calls you home.  Be in the Word of God daily.  Be in prayer constantly and consistently.  You're in training by the Spirit of God. 

All NASB Scripture Excerpts used by permission.
New American Standard Bible
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