Spiritual Warfare 101: Reaping What We Sow, Part 2

Unveiling Strongholds

 Unveiling the enemy’s strongholds in our lives can be difficult at times because we often attribute our negative pathology (leading to giving into temptation) to generational thought patterns, dysfunctional family life, our parents sins, and not to our spiritual enemy who seeks to sidetrack the sons and daughters of God.

Jesus says in John 10:10, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.”

Why is the enemy after us? We are a BIG threat to his dark kingdom when we take charge of our destiny and do God’s will for God’s glory. God has called his sons and daughters to rise up and pray without ceasing, worship, heal the sick, release prisoners from darkness and take authority of our spheres of influence so his Kingdom will advance on earth.

The enemy knows his time is coming to an end.

Satan knows that a burning pit is his future. As John says in Revelation 20:10, “And the devil, who deceived them, was thrown into the lake of burning sulfur, where the beast and the false prophet had been thrown. They will be tormented day and night forever and ever.”

Satan also knows that we have been chosen and anointed to bring the Kingdom of God to earth as we do God’s will. That’s why our enemy endeavors to distract us from our destiny by baiting us, seducing us, confusing us, and sending dark spirits of worry, lust, greed, and other temptations to distract us from doing God’s will and honoring God consistently.

Ed Silvoso of Harvest Evangelism Ministries, says “The Church in the West today presents too easy a target for Satan. We do not believe we are at war. We do not know where the battleground is located, and, in spite of our weapons, they are neither loaded nor aimed at the right target. We are unaware of how vulnerable we are. We are better fitted for a parade that for an amphibious landing.”

We are are always at war! Repeat, always!!! Until we go to heaven we will always be targets, we will always be tempted and tried; but we have mighty God-given spiritual weapons at our control. We are called to resist the enemy’s often subtle suggestions to sin. He often speaks in a very sincere voice to slowly pull us away from the Lord. He will use other people (even well meaning Christians under the control of a religious or other spirits) to try and pull us off course. But we can mount an offensive of our own rather than waiting for another assault. We have the sword of the Spirit and the spiritual disciplines.

 The enemy is like an old toothless lion that only has a loud roar but no real strength to overcome an over-comer! 

 

How can you stay on guard and recognize temptation before you fall into it?