“Put on the whole armour of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.”
Ephesians 6:11

Spiritual warfare is a vital part of our walk with God. There is a war going on around us that is invisible. You can’t see it in the physical. But it is real. Once you are born, you automatically have an arch-enemy dedicated to your destruction. His name is Satan. He is the enemy of every man, woman and child. Whether you are a Christian or not, he hates you because when God made you, He made you in His own image.

The good news today is that the Bible doesn’t teach us how to cope with our problems, it teaches us how to always walk in victory! The world teaches us how to cope. There are seminars that teach us how to cope with depression, sickness and relationship breakdowns. But God wants us to overcome. His Word shows us how to experience victory over these things. That is the difference between what God wants for us and what the devil wants to do to us.

Ah. Where has aunty been since a while

Once you believe in Christ, you have everything in Christ. Everything! The Bible says in Ephesians 1:3, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ.”

Notice how the tense used indicates a past action — He has blessed us — with everything! The world thinks it has everything. People who don’t believe in God can sometimes boast that they have a lot. They say, “I am very wealthy. I have a lot. Look at my house. Look at my car. Look at my bank accounts.”

RedDesQ:
Ah. Where has aunty been since a while

Been around

In Genesis 33:9-11 (NIV), Esau told his twin brother Jacob that he had plenty:

9But Esau said, “I already have plenty, my brother. Keep what you have for yourself.”
10“No, please!” said Jacob. “If I have found favour in your eyes, accept this gift from me. For to see your face is like seeing the face of God, now that you have received me favourably.
11Please accept the present that was brought to you, for God has been gracious to me and I have all I need.”

And because Jacob insisted, Esau accepted it. While Esau had plenty, Jacob had all that he needed! The world can boast that it has a lot. You know, it is possible to live in a big house with many bedrooms and not be able to get a good night’s sleep in any of those rooms. It is possible to have all the money you want, and yet be so full of depression, restlessness and anxiety. But you, child of God, have everything. In Christ, you have everything. You have eternal life. You have all the promises of God written in the Bible. You have the Holy Spirit and you can have all the fruits of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness and self-control.

But here is another important distinction between you the believer and non-believers: Not only do you have everything, the devil pays extra attention to you because you are made in God’s image. My friend, welcome to spiritual warfare!

So how do we stand against the devil? What instructions has God given us to help us stand in the victory we already have in Christ? The answer lies in the armour of God! But what is the armour of God?

Let’s look at Ephesians 6:10–18:

10Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.
11Put on the whole armour of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.
12For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.
13Therefore take up the whole armour of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.
14Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness,
15and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace;
16above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one.
17And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God;
18praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints.

Look at verse 13: “Therefore take up the whole armour of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.” The Bible tells us to take up the armour of God. God tells us to put on His armour. God has an armour. It is what Jesus wore when He walked on earth. He left the armour behind for us when He returned to heaven.

So we have the armour of God today. And when we put on His armour, the devil does not know who is inside the armour. All he knows is that that was the armour that defeated him 2,000 years ago! You and I look exactly like Jesus when we are wearing His armour. You might feel like you are a weakling, but when you are inside the armour, the devil sees you strong.

Do you know that there are seven pieces in God’s armour? It is been said that there are only six pieces. But six is the number of man. God made man on the sixth day. Goliath stood six cubits and a span tall, his iron spearhead weighed six hundred shekels and he had a six-piece armour.

Seven, on the other hand, is the number of perfection or completeness. God made the world in six days and on the seventh, He rested.

Now, to be accurate, the armour has five plus two pieces. The first five are defensive. The belt is defensive — it holds the other pieces in place. The helmet is defensive — it protects your head. The breastplate protects your heart. The shoes protect your feet and the shield protects your whole being. But the last two — the sword of the Spirit and praying in the Holy Spirit — are offensive. Before we look at each piece of the armour in detail, let’s first find out more about spiritual warfare myths and truths.

Thattallgirl:
Been around

Ah. Don't be leaving us like this, tallie. It's not good o

First and foremost, know that there is a devil. There are some Christians who don’t believe that the devil is real! They don’t believe that he exists. Some people try to tell us that the devil isn’t real by saying, “Oh, that’s just poetic imagery in the Bible.”

At the other extreme, there are Christians who believe that the devil can do anything and everything! They believe in the devil so much that they think that he is active in their lives all the time.

Let me tell you the truth. The devil does not have the same attributes as God. God is omniscient or all-knowing. The devil is not. He did not even know that Jesus would gain victory through the cross. In fact, he schemed to put Jesus on the cross. Had he known that the cross would spell his defeat, he would not have crucified the Lord of glory! (1 Corinthians 2:8 )

RedDesQ:



Ah. Don't be leaving us like this, tallie. It's not good o

Lol yes sir!

So the devil does not know everything. And he cannot read your mind. He does not know what you are thinking until you open your mouth. If you are fearful, he doesn’t know it until you open your mouth and confess it. He can only tell what is on your mind and in your heart by what comes out of your mouth. So watch your mouth! Watch your confession!

If the devil is all-powerful as some Christians make him out to be, then he would also stop you from going to church. In fact, he would have stopped you from receiving Christ. But the fact that you got saved shows that he is not all-powerful. Now, if he is really all-powerful, wouldn’t he have killed you long ago?

Thattallgirl:
Lol yes sir!

. Dunno worry. We will transfer you to Lake wood Church, so you can go and handle our youths there. Very soon

RedDesQ:



. Dunno worry. We will transfer you to Lake wood Church, so you can go and handle our youths there. Very soon

I don't mind. You can add New Creation Church in Singapore too

Thattallgirl:
I don't mind. You can add New Creation Church in Singapore too

You and Joseph Prince. Oya, I'll add Hillsong too, so from Singapore, you can take a cab to Oz

We are 98% spirit, the-evil Satan too is spirit and God Too is Spirit!

Thus, the Real Battle takes place in the spirit, which is why it is Written "We wrestle not against flesh and blood (physical)..."

RedDesQ:



You and Joseph Prince. Oya, I'll add Hillsong too, so from Singapore, you can take a cab to Oz

Correct guy!

Dtruthspeaker:
We are 98% spirit, the-evil Satan too is spirit and God Too is Spirit!

Thus, the Real Battle takes place in the spirit, which is why it is Written "We wrestle not against flesh and blood (physical)..."

98% Spirit? Bible verse pls? Lol

No, the devil is not omnipotent. 1 Peter 5:8 says, “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.” Notice it says, “seeking whom he may devour”. This tells us that he can’t just devour anyone he likes — he is not all-powerful.

The Bible calls him a liar too. (John 8:44) Think about this: Why would the devil need to lie if he has all the power to do what he likes to us? People lie when they don’t have the power to make things happen. People who don’t have the power have to lie or give an impression that they have the power. My friend, Christ has defeated the devil and disarmed him. (Colossians 2:15) The only “power” or weapon that he has against you are his lies.

Third, the devil is not omnipresent or everywhere all the time. Only God is omnipresent. You might say, “Well, Pastor Prince, last night I had a terrible attack from Satan in my home.”

Friend, it was probably not Satan. Don’t flatter yourself. Satan was probably out last night picking on someone like Billy Graham. When Jesus was on the earth, it was Satan himself who personally attended to Jesus. Why? Because you and I know that we can’t completely trust our subordinates with the most important tasks. That is why I am telling you that it was probably not Satan who attacked you last night, but one of his junior evil spirits. He can’t be everywhere all the time, attacking anyone he wants.

It is important to realise that God has given us resources to enforce the devil’s defeat. The devil once had a measure of power, but all the power he had was stripped from him at the cross. Colossians 2:15 says, “Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it.”

Who destroyed the devil’s power? Jesus did! Who de-fanged the devil? Jesus did! 1 Peter 5:8 says that “the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour”. But don’t forget that he has no more teeth! That is why he roars — to frighten you. Some Christians are so full of fear that they allow the devil to gum them to death!

The way in which you approach spiritual warfare is very important. If you enter it trying to win a battle that has already been won by Christ, then it is a form of self-righteousness. So your approach must be one of standing in the victory that Christ has already won for you.

There are some Christians who are trying to defeat the devil. They think to themselves, “Well, you know, God has given it to me to defeat the devil.” My friend, that is a form of pride. God does not need you to defeat the devil because he has already been defeated. Who defeated him? Jesus did! And He gave you the victory. Your part is simply to believe and stand in the victory.

Following...

Thattallgirl:
98% Spirit? Bible verse pls? Lol

John 3:6 "That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit."

And Who "born", us? Is it not God Who is Spirit?

Dtruthspeaker:


John 3:6 "That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit."

And Who "born", us? Is it not God Who is Spirit?

Lol but where does the 98% come in, in the scripture...that's what I don't understand

That is why you find the word “stand” repeated four times in the passage in Ephesians 6. Verse 11 says, “… stand against the wiles of the devil.” Verse 13 says, “… with stand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.” And verse 14 says, “Stand therefore…” Four times in this passage, the Holy Spirit tells us to “stand”. We are to stand, stand, stand and... stand!

So when you take part in spiritual warfare God’s way, you will be left standing. God wants you to be the one left standing. He mentioned the word “stand” four times in Ephesians 6:11–14. Now, to stand means that you don’t have to fight. So you don’t fight, you stand. To stand means that you have already won. The victory is already yours. Who gave you the victory? Jesus did!

The Bible says in Ephesians 1:3 that we already have everything in Christ — “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ”. So the devil’s number one tactic is to make you think that you don’t have what you already have.

Let’s say you are believing God for financial blessings in your life. You need to pay off your house and car loans. You look at the available balance in your bank account and you say, “It’s pathetic.” The devil comes and attacks you by saying, “Yes, it’s pathetic. You don’t have much financial supply at all. In fact, you also don’t have this and you don’t have that…”

What should your response be? You must call his bluff. So you say, “I am not trying to be rich. I am rich. In Christ, I am rich! In Christ, I have everything!” Remind yourself of God’s promise in Philippians 4:19 — “And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.”

It doesn’t matter if you have been retrenched. Why? Because God is the one who supplies. And He does it according to His riches in glory, not according to the state of the economy. So He will supply you with a better job and better pay. No man on earth is your source of supply. Man will only make you poorer. No, God is your source of supply and He supplies you according to His riches in glory.

It makes a world of difference when you enter spiritual warfare with the knowledge that you have been given victory. That is the way God wants you to “fight”. You are not fighting for victory, you are fighting from victory.

If you think that you are not healed and you say, “I must persuade God to heal me. Oh, God, please heal me!” then you have actually fallen from your high ground. You have played right into the hands of the devil. He wants you to think that you don’t have what God has given you. So you must call his bluff. Say to him, “No, devil! I have the victory!”

Now, he might respond by saying, “If you have it, then how come you have this pain and that pain?” Well then, you declare, “In Christ I have it, devil. These are just temporal. Your words are lies. I am not trying to be healed. I am the healed!” Do that and you will find those symptoms you are experiencing going away in Jesus’ mighty name.

But if you fall for his trap and say, “Well, I guess I’m not healed. I do feel that pain and I do feel that weakness. Oh, God, please heal me!” then you just gave up your high ground. Why? Because now you are fighting for victory, instead of fighting from victory. There is a big difference between the two.