Spiritual Warfare – Strong in the Lord
VBC Albuquerque · Apr 21, 2024
This sermon educates believers about the nature of spiritual warfare against three enemies: the world, the flesh, and demons. The message emphasizes that Satan is the most fearsome enemy due to his ability to disguise himself and deceive. Believers must become strong in the Lord by recognizing themselves as soldiers equipped with all the armor of God to stand firm against attacks.
The sermon begins by identifying three common misconceptions about spiritual warfare in the contemporary believer community. The first misconception is the belief that after becoming a Christian, believers will escape spiritual warfare because Christ has completely overcome the world through the Holy Spirit, leading to expectations that life will always be smooth without difficulties. The second misconception is thinking that believers only need to surrender completely to the Holy Spirit without doing anything themselves, a dangerous misunderstanding of the believer's role in this warfare.
The sermon then analyzes three main enemies in spiritual warfare according to Ephesians 2:1-3: the world, the flesh, and demons. However, the pastor emphasizes that demons are the most fearful enemy, not because of a vicious outward appearance as depicted in cultural works, but because of Satan's ability to disguise himself as an angel of light (2 Corinthians 11:14-15). Satan employs a subtle deception strategy to tempt both non-believers and those who have believed. Through historical examples such as Hitler, Pol Pot, and problems within families and churches, the pastor demonstrates that an invisible power is necessary to explain these atrocious sins.
The sermon continues by explaining Satan's purpose: to destroy the unity and love that Christ has established, even though God has broken down the wall of separation between Jews and Gentiles (Ephesians 2:14-16). Satan attempts to rebuild walls of hostility through discord, quarrels, and division within families and churches. The book of Daniel 10:12-14 illustrates Satan's power when an angel is hindered by a demon prince for 21 days until the archangel Michael comes to help.
The pastor explains that Ephesians 6:12 describes the hierarchy of Satan's demons: the authorities (needing specific territories and lands), the powers (influencing thought systems like philosophies and ideologies), and the rulers of the darkness (controlling people). Believers cannot use fleshly weapons against these forces (2 Corinthians 10:4) but must become strong in the Lord by equipping themselves with all the armor of God (Ephesians 6:10-11).
The conclusion emphasizes that believers must recognize themselves as soldiers in Christ's army and must allow themselves to be trained and equipped to become increasingly stronger. Being strong in the Lord does not mean achieving complete victory immediately but rather winning small victories step by step, mile by mile, beginning with small actions. Now believers must choose to become trained, equipped soldiers or remain weak, unprepared soldiers for the battles ahead.