Outline 3
Delivered from the Lion (Part 3)
Weapons of Our Warfare
The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds.
—2 Corinthians 10:4 NIV
We use God’s mighty weapons, not mere worldly weapons, to knock down the Devil’s strongholds.
—2 Corinthians 10:4 NLT
Satan is a defeated, yet tenacious, foe. He holds on to his present power by hiding behind lies and stubbornly resisting removal. He was removed by the power of the resurrection, but he is removed by the authority of the believer.
You must know the authority (weapons) you have to remove the enemy from every area of your life.
Your First Weapon: The Blood of Jesus (Protection)
1. “And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb” (Rev. 12:11 NKJV).
Jesus’ blood is the blood of the Lamb. In the Old Testament, a lamb was killed and its blood sprinkled over the door of every home (Exodus 12). The angel of death could not enter that home because of the blood.
We must keep our lives “under the blood,” meaning that we do not venture outside of God’s protection. Known sin, willful disobedience, or agreeing with the devil in any way leaves us vulnerable to his attacks.
2. Here is its application to your life.
Keep your conscience clean. Every day put all known and unknown sin under the blood, and immediately, whenever you sin, put it under the blood. Stay “hidden” behind the blood of Jesus.
Claim and speak out loud the benefits of Jesus’ blood. This speaks “to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel” (Heb. 12:24 NIV).
Your Second Weapon: The Holy Spirit (Power)
1. “But if I drive out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you” (Matt. 12:28 NIV).
Jesus used the power of the Holy Spirit to drive out demon power. Demons are inferior spirits, and He is the mighty Spirit.
The Holy Spirit’s power at work in us will show us the “strong man” we are dealing with. This is necessary, for “how can one enter the strong man’s house . . . unless he first binds the strong man?” (Matt. 12:29 NKJV).
2. Here is its application to your life.
One of the gifts of the Spirit is the discerning of spirits. Ask the Holy Spirit to show you the point where the “strong man” gained access (abuse, hidden sin, unscriptural behavior). When you call him out, he and his subordinates must leave.
Be sure to lead anyone who is set free into the infilling of the Holy Spirit. It is not enough to remove the demonic spirit. Scripture warns, “Now when the unclean spirit goes out of a man, it passes through waterless places seeking rest, and does not find it. Then it says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came’; and when it comes, it finds it unoccupied, swept, and put in order. Then it goes and takes along with it seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and they go in and live there; and the last state of that man becomes worse than the first” (Matt. 12:43–45 NASB).
Your Third Weapon: The Name of Jesus (Position)
1. Satan knows and fears the power of the name of Jesus: “One day the evil spirit answered them, ‘Jesus I know, and I know about Paul, but who are you?” (Acts 19:15 NIV).
Our power to use Jesus’ name comes from our identification with Him in salvation, baptism, and testimony. It is like marriage, when a woman’s name changes to the name of the man she marries. All his properties, assets, and benefits now belong to her as well as to him.
The demons inside the man knew Jesus and knew about Paul. Satan recognizes that we are ambassadors of Jesus. Just like an ambassador of America carries the president’s authority, we carry Jesus’ authority!
2. Here is the application to your life.
The name of Jesus is not magical. Its power comes from your faith and trust in its authority: “By faith in the name of Jesus, this man whom you see and know was made strong” (Acts 3:16 NIV).
The name of Jesus is like a key. Jesus said we have the keys of the kingdom to bind and loose (Matt. 16:19). Just like your car key means you have authority over your car and can use it, the name of Jesus is your authority to bind or loose.
