School of Prayer: Spiritual Warfare 101, Pt3

Our Tools to Fight the Enemy

The weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds, but what is that exactly:

Worship and Praise Worship and praise are mighty weapons. When they resound in the spirit, the enemy cannot function. They bring the Spirit of God in our midst and his glory fills the prayers of his people (Ps 22:3). The brightness of his presence drives back the darkness (Jn 1:5, Jn 12:36, Eph 5:8, 1 Thess 5:5) and the enemy is stopped. In 2 Chronicles 20:22-23 worship and praise threw the enemy into confusion. This is a physical picture of a spiritual reality.

Forgiveness and Repentance When divisions, offenses, and personal sins are rampant the enemy is at work. When unforgiveness abounds, we know the enemy is active. 2 Cor 2:10-11 speaks about forgiveness being necessary so that Satan would not get an advantage or opening to act. In Eph 4:27 Paul states that we should not give place to the devil (Amplified Bible expounds, "do not give him the opportunity to lead you into sin by holding a grudge, or nurturing anger, or harboring resentment or cultivating bitterness"). Sometimes people are so broken they have trouble with their faith and have problems repenting and forgiving. The intercessor can pray for the healing of that person's faith, the godly desire and strength to repent, and courage to forgive. The intercessor can also pray for godly focus to keep the enemy from stealing the word of faith from a person's heart. Sometimes this is the best starting place for a person's recovery.

Resist James 4:7-10 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Resisting is not passive. It is a conscious decision not to play the enemy's game. Every time the enemy tries to attack and the person does not respond but acts in godly way, it is the believer who is empowered. The attack is then turned back on the enemy who perpetrated it. A story is told of a minister who had a vision of a family in his congregation. The family had been in a trial for a long time. The minister saw the enemy standing in the midst of the couple as they struggled in faith but the enemy looked battered and beaten. Every time the family stood against the enemy's attack he suffered damage. Resistance is a weapon.

Sow to the Spirit The Body of Messiah has the capacity to minister the grace of God. When we are humble, meek, and considerate we place God out in front of us continually and the enemy cannot accuse us or trap us in hypocrisy. Gal 6:1 Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted. Bear ye one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ (Yeshua). In Gal 6: 7-9 Paul speaks about another weapon in our spiritual quest and it is simple, sow to the spirit. In Jn 8:32 knowing and acting on truth leads to freedom (also see 2 Cor 6:16). When we deprive the enemy of his reward we disarm him and take away his power. Sowing spiritually enables us to take our focus, attention, and validation away from the enemy and return it to Yeshua. Sometimes the biggest danger to the enemy is to be ignored and devalued. Our biggest return is to be imitators of God (Eph 5:1).

Rav Calev Apostolic Messianic International-Gulf Coast