November 11, 2007
Morning Worship
Text: Deuteronomy 32:30-31
Subject: Spiritual warfare
Title: Veterans of Spiritual Warfare
Today we celebrate Veteran’s day – the day set aside to honor all who have served their country in the military. I would like all of military people to stand as we thank you for your service. Thank you for this life I am able to live. You are truly heroes in my eyes. You have served to keep us free and to keep the enemy from invading our territory. You have protected even those who ridicule you and abuse you and you did it because it was your duty.
I want to celebrate this day also as a day we can set aside for those who are not VFW -veterans of foreign wars - but are VSW – Veterans of Spiritual Warfare. They have stood against an unseen enemy for many years and even by your own admission have protected you from the hand of that enemy. They have stood watch over the boundaries of this church and have been vigilant, always ready to go to battle. They are our prayer warriors, our intercessors, and I hope you are one of them.
We are in a constant state of battle. The apostle Paul encouraged us to “Pray without ceasing”. Because the enemy is relentless in his attack on God’s people we have to be willing to join the fight for ourselves and for the lives of others.
I want to look with you today at three areas of the battle.
1) Who is able to fight against the enemy?
2) Who is willing to fight against the enemy?
3) Who is faithful to prevail against the enemy?
Deuteronomy 32:30-31, 30 How could one man chase a thousand, or two put ten thousand to flight, unless their Rock had sold them, unless the LORD had given them up? 31 For their rock is not like our Rock…
Let’s enter into the battle!
I. WHO IS ABLE TO FIGHT AGAINST THE ENEMY? Revelation 13:1b And I saw a beast coming out of the sea. He had ten horns and seven heads, with ten crowns on his horns, and on each head a blasphemous name. 2The beast I saw resembled a leopard, but had feet like those of a bear and a mouth like that of a lion. The dragon gave the beast his power and his throne and great authority. One of the heads of the beast seemed to have had a fatal wound, but the fatal wound had been healed. The whole world was astonished and followed the beast. 4Men worshiped the dragon because he had given authority to the beast, and they also worshiped the beast and asked, “Who is like the beast? Who can make war against him?” The Bible is pretty clear about the nature of the battle you are in. And you need to understand this, If you are called by the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, you are in the battle. You do not have a choice. Ephesians 6:12, For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. It is a spiritual battle that always spills over into the natural realm. satan fights against you with temptation to sin. But you don’t have to give in to it. Even at the very beginning of humanity God spoke of our ability to defeat the enemy. Genesis 4:6-7, 6Then the LORD said to Cain, “Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? 7If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must master it.” Who is able to war against the enemy? You are! And it is always done through intercessory prayer – for yourself and for others. Revelation 5:8, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints. Revelation 8, 3Another angel, who had a golden censer, came and stood at the altar. He was given much incense to offer, with the prayers of all the saints, on the golden altar before the throne. 4The smoke of the incense, together with the prayers of the saints, went up before God from the angel’s hand… When the saints of God begin to pray, the angels of God are put to action to bring about an answer to those prayers. Daniel 10, “Do not be afraid, Daniel. Since the first day that you set your mind to gain understanding and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard, and I have come in response to them… And to get a sense for the intensity of the struggle look at verse 13, But the prince of the Persian kingdom resisted me twenty-one days. Then Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, because I was detained there with the king of Persia. Wow! Have you ever been in that kind of battle? I think you have and haven’t even realized it. How long have you been praying for unsaved loved ones? How long have you been fighting sickness? How long have you been struggling to make ends meet? Those battles have already been fought and won by King Jesus. Mark 11 Jesus said, ‘My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations’ and then, 23“I tell you the truth, if anyone says to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done for him. 24Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours… Who can enter into the fight? You can!
II. WHO IS ABLE TO STAND AGAINST THE ENEMY? Good Question! James 5:13-18, Is any one of you in trouble? He should pray. Is anyone happy? Let him sing songs of praise. 14Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord. 15And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven. 16Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.
17Elijah was a man just like us. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years. 18Again he prayed, and the heavens gave rain, and the earth produced its crops. Notice some things here. 1) It is your responsibility to ask others to intercede for you. call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord. 2) Prayer must be offered in faith, that’s the key. If you pray but don’t have the faith to believe that God hears and answers when you pray according to His will for your life, you will never receive anything. 3) Make sure you are right before God. confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed… 4) Pray fervently (earnestly). The word translated fervent carries with it the idea of urgency – pray like you don’t have much time left. 5) Expect things to happen when you pray – you are no different than Elijah was. God is asking people in the church to stand in prayer against the god of this world. Ezekiel 22:30, “I looked for a man among them who would build up the wall and stand before me in the gap on behalf of the land so I would not have to destroy it, but I found none. You know those saints that I spoke of in the beginning, you all know who they are, and I want to tell you something, these beginnings of revival in this church are an answer to the prayers of those saints who have been faithfully gathering and praying together for years, and you are moving into revival riding on the coat tails of their prayer. But when they are gone, who is going to stand in the gap? Go back to Ephesians 6, 13Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14Stand firm then… 18And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints. Keep on praying and expect results. Exodus 14, 13Moses answered the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the LORD will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. 14The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still.” Isn’t that a great promise? After you have prayed, 1) Do not be afraid. 2) Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the LORD will bring you today 3) 14The LORD will fight for you. 4) you need only to be still – don’t do anything else but watch God work.
III. WHO IS ABLE TO PREVAIL AGAINST THE ENEMY? After Peter made His confession of who Jesus is, Jesus said this, Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven. 18And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it. 19I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” Who will prevail against the enemy? Those who confess Jesus as Lord! You have authority to bind the enemy and loose the power of the Holy Spirit into the lives of people here on earth. I just don’t think we understand the authority that has been given to us. Psalm 18:29, With your help I can advance against a troop; with my God I can scale a wall. There is nothing the enemy can do to keep me from pulling down his strongholds. 2 Corinthians 10:4-5, The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. 5We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. Who will prevail against the enemy? Those who take every doubt into captivity and move in the power of the Spirit in faith, knowing that God’s word is true and what He said He would do, He is able to perform. James 4 tells us exactly what we need to do to prevail. First, 7Submit yourselves, then, to God. That means placing yourself under total submission to His will and His word. Taking every one of your own thoughts into captivity and having the mind of Christ, listening to the Holy Spirit as He speaks to you not His own words but what he hears from heaven. Then, Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Who shall prevail against the enemy? You will!!!!!!
National Geographic ran an article about the Alaskan bull moose. The males of the species battle for dominance during the fall breeding season, literally going head-to-head with antlers crunching together as they collide. Often the antlers, their only weapon are broken. That ensures defeat. The heftiest moose, with the largest and strongest antlers, triumphs. Therefore, the battle fought in the fall is really won during the summer, when the moose eat continually. The one that consumes the best diet for growing antlers and gaining weight will be the heavyweight in the fight. Those that eat inadequately sport weaker antlers and less bulk. There is a lesson here for us. Spiritual battles await. Satan will choose a season to attack. Will we be victorious, or will we fall? Much depends on what we do now--before the wars begin. The bull-moose principle: Enduring faith, strength, and wisdom for trials are best developed before they’re needed.
If you aren’t sure that you have the kind of faith to enter into the fight through prevailing prayer then work to build yourself up. Get in touch with God. Study His word. Pray in the spirit.
If you aren’t sure you can stand in the battle be filled or refilled with the Holy Spirit. He’s your power source that Jesus said you should have.
If you are not sure you can prevail against the enemy then find someone to pray and agree with you. Ecclesiastes 4:12, Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.
Do you have needs today? Let’s go to battle!
