lest Satan should take advantage of us; for we are not ignorant of his
devices. -- 2Corinthians 2: 11 (NKJV)
Far too often these days we see
Christians struggling where they ought to be walking in power. Limited where
they ought to be thriving. The reality is that more often than not they are
merely ignorant where they ought to be vigilant. The Bible makes it very clear
that we are in a spiritual war. This war is ongoing and there are no breaks.
The agents we must face do not get vacations or sick leave. When we wake up
every day there are attacks on us from three different sides. Each is unique
yet works together. Each seeks our destruction but we need not fear in this
spiritual war because we serve a greater God than our enemies. But the secret
to winning the spiritual battles is knowing what we face and to be vigilant
against it, instead of ignorant of it.
The first thing working against us
is the world in which we live every single day. The Bible says that the things
of God are foolishness to those in the world. They hear what we have to say and
literally think we are fools for believing. We are complete opposites beloved
yet there we can be, messing around where we do not belong.
You adulterers! Don't you realize that
friendship with the world makes you an enemy of God? I say it again: If you
want to be a friend of the world, you make yourself an enemy of God. -- James 4:
4 (NLT)
Look at the language God is using
here! When we divide our loyalties between this world and God we are actually
adulterers to Him! Remember we are the bride of Christ and He does not want us
defiling ourselves with the world. That being said, the challenge is in that we
live within the very system we are not supposed to partake of and that becomes
very taxing. The problem is in that we are supposed to view ourselves as not
part of the very system we must live in:
Dear friends, I warn you as "temporary
residents and foreigners" to keep away from worldly desires that wage war
against your very souls. Be careful to live properly among your unbelieving
neighbors. Then even if they accuse you of doing wrong, they will see your
honorable behavior, and they will give honor to God when he judges the world.
-- 1Peter 2: 11-12 (NLT)
Note here that God is acknowledging
for us that the worldly desires actually wage war against our very souls. The
world embraces much different ways of thinking than Christ. The world pushes an
independent mentality and rewards self-reliance while God encourages dependence
upon God and rewards humility. The world encourages a win at all costs
mentality that embraces cut-throat competitiveness while God wants us to
consider others before ourselves at all times. The world preaches that he who
dies with the most toys wins while God reminds us that he who dies is still
dead and has to answer for all of his indiscretions before a holy God. In every
single area, the world simply is opposite of God. It values the opposite. It
teaches the opposite. It believes the opposite. Yet we must live in it -- but
only as temporary residents! This struggle is not new! Way back in Genesis we
see this when Abram and
Abram dwelled in the land of Canaan, and Lot
dwelled in the cities of the plain, and pitched his tent toward
