Weapons of Our Warfare
“Now I Paul myself beseech you by the meekness and gentleness of Christ, who in presence am base among you, but being absent am bold toward you: But I beseech you, that I may not be bold when I am present with that confidence, wherewith I think to be bold against some, which think of us as if we walked according to the flesh. For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds, casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ…”
2 Corinthians 10: 3-5 KJV
As long as we huddle in the safety of our churches, as long as we stay with the people who think the way we do, we may not be aware of the warfare that the apostle Paul is talking about in the above passage in II Corinthians.
We can talk about healing the sick, casting out demons, the power of God, and all kinds of wonderful things, But our talk is all theory, until it is put to the test.
But when we begin to move out of our fortresses, when we start to preach the gospel, not to each other, but to the world; when we mingle with people who don’t think the way we do, we discover that it’s not as simple as we thought. There is a war going on.
The enemy, who long ago, managed to destroy the simple faith of Adam and Eve, is still at work. And he’s not just at work in the alcoholic who is bound to alcohol, or the addict, or the person whose sexual drive is blown out of proportion. He is very much at work in "nice people," "decent people," "Christians"—people like ourselves.
The place where this warfare goes on with insidious power is in the realm of the mind. The enemy moves in to lure the mind away from reality. He inspires the mind with vain imaginations, puffs it up with false arguments, often called "knowledge"—even "Scriptural knowledge." He twists the mind in upon itself so that thje mind begins to indulge in a subtle idolatry. He says to us just what he said to Adam and Eve, “Go and eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. It will make you wise. It will make you like God.”
The minute we do this, our minds are wrapped in chains.
When somebody’s mind is wrapped in chains by Satan, they don't cry out for deliverance. They don't even know they're in bondage. He considers himself free. She thinks she’s liberated.
The alcoholic, for instance, may admit he has a few problems, but he will never admit that his mind is bound. The religious phony may admit that she has some anxieties, but she never admits that her mind is bound.
Whatever form this mental bondage takes, the one thing mind-slaves have in common is that the mind is taken up with false knowledge, false vanity, to such a degree that the mind is no longer able to reach out and take hold of the reality of God.
But just as surely as Satan moves into the area of the mind, so Our Lord enters the realm of the mind to set us free. He confronts these false arguments with the reality of God. He touches those vanities, those high arguments that exalt themselves against the knowledge of God with his redeeming light, and suddenly the person finds himself face-to-face with God, whether he likes it or not.
For example, the Pharisees and scribes were men of extensive knowledge, knowledge of the Scriptures, knowledge of history, knowledge of Israel’s destiny, And this knowledge became a stronghold of the enemy because it was based on vanity.
Our Lord confronted their "knowledge" with a simple message which cut to the heart. His listeners were compelled to confess that "this man speaks with authority not as one of the scribes."
Jesus didn’t argue, nor did he threaten. He simple spoke in the Spirit of his Father, and the strongholds of the enemy fell before the truth, and every high thing that exalted itself against the knowledge of God came down. People knew that they were face-to-face with the living God.
“When a strong man armed keeps his palace, his goods are in peace. But when a stronger than he comes along and overcomes him, he takes from him the armor wherein he trusted and divides the spoil.”
People, whether they wanted to or not, had to acknowledge that Jesus had authority.
“We know that you are a teacher come from God for no one can do these works that you do except that God be with him.”
In the case of our Lord, and in the case of every disciple who has ever come after him, the lies which bind the human mind are defeated with a power that is not carnal, which is not of this world, but of God. No other power will do the job.
“For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh for the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God for the pulling down of strongholds, casting down imaginations and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ.”
Unless we have that kind of power, we are helpless before the attacks of the enemy, and powerless to deliver anyone from bondage to his lies. We need to honest with ourselves and ask whether, in fact, we have that power; whether the weapons of our warfare are truly mighty through God for the pulling down of strongholds.
That God is pouring out this power upon many of our churches at this hour there is no question. Lives are coming under the power of the Word. People that have been reached out to for years without success are now coming into the kingdom, It's happening in a million places throughout the earth at this critical time in history. Wherever people are content to let their ministries be covered with God’s hand (so that no glory goes to them) heaven makes its presence known.
The redemptive power of God is being poured out upon those who humble themselves before the Crucified One and open themselves to receive.
The power of the living God, for this warfare of the mind, is given, first of all, to men and women who are dead to self.
“I am crucified with Christ, it is no longer I who live…”
“Don’t you know that as many have been baptized
into Jesus Christ have been baptized into his death.”
You are dead. Your life is hid with Christ in God.
So that we are no longer trying to prove that we are right.
We are no longer trying to vindicate ourselves.
We are no longer trying to defend our position.
We are no longer trying to establish our own personal kingdom.
We’re dead.
And if we’re dead, we can’t be doing the ego thing any more.
The only hands that are safe to contain this kind of power from God are those hands which are truly dead. So it happens that when the power of God begins to move in our ministries, and we allow ourselves to become puffed up by it, the mysteriously withdraws.
Whatever power remains with me when I become puffed up, trying to establish myself as "something great," that power is not of God. It's a counterfeit power which will mislead others and destroy me.
So we have to ask ourselves, “Am I dead? Am I willing to stay dead? Am I willing to let the power of my Lord’s death work in me—constantly—through my circumstances, through the Word, that his life may flow out of my mortal flesh?
Secondly, the power of God, for the warfare of the mind, is given to those men and women who are meek.
Paul begins 2 Corinthians: 10 by saying, “I, Paul, myself beseech you by the meekness and tenderness of Christ.”
And Jesus says to us, “Take my yoke upon you and learn from me for I am meek and lowly of heart…”
It is only in that meekness that the power of God is safe.
There are lots of people who openly or subtly claim to be vessels of the power of God.
But if they are not meek,
- if they are still trying to establish themselves as "God’s man of the hour" ("God’s woman of the hour")…
- if they are still trying to prove how "right" they are,
- if they are not daily divesting themselves of everything of flesh,
everything of self,
of vanity,
daily going down in submission before God,
then whatever power they have cannot be the power of God—it is carnal, it is satanic—it cannot be of God.
We have to ask ourselves whether we are willing to learn holy meekness---
- aggressive in God, yes;
- bold before men, yes;
- strong, yes—
yet constantly meek before the influences and directions of the Spirit of God, so that we no longer allow ourselves to rise up and defend self, exert self, make things go "my way."
The power of God for the warfare of the mind is given to men and women of prayer.
This should go without saying. We shouldn’t have to talk about it. And yet, how many of us, still seem to have the idea, “Yes, prayer would do me some good, but I’ll muddle through anyhow. It doesn’t matter.”
That's not true.
Our Lord taught us to pray, not merely that prayer would "round out our spiritual life." Our Lord taught us to pray because without prayer we can’t survive—there is no other way.
He taught them this parable that men aught always to pray and not to faint…
“In everything with prayer and supplication with thanksgiving
let your requests be made known unto God”
We are useless to the kingdom until we learn that prayer is essential, that we cannot live the life of faith without it any more than we can live physically without air. Only when we learn that lesson, and are disciplined in our prayer life, can the power of God begin to move freely in us.
And finally, the power of God, for the warfare of the mind, is given to those who hear and obey.
“He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit
says to the churches.”
The Spirit is saying things to the churches that are being missed, because we are not listening. Most of us are afflicted with the "preachers' disease" --- so busy trying to make people hear our truth that we are not listening to God’s truth.
“They are the good ground that with a good and honest heart,
having heard the word, keep it.”
Many of us are inclined to listen at certain times and in certain places. Then, after we’ve gotten another grain of truth, we turn off our ears, open our mouths and we talk.
God is calling us to be listening constantly. If we are truly listening, we will quickly know when to stop talking.
Constantly listening…day in and day out…listening and doing what the Lord tells me. Then we will receive, every day afresh, the power that we need to do battle with the enemy as he afflicts and assaults us, and as he harasses those around us.
There are only two kinds of ministries: men and women who claim high things for themselves, and who, either openly or in implied ways, are acting as if they are custodians of final truth. Through these ministries, underneath all the ballyhoo and false humility, very, very, very little is happening.
The other is the ministry is made up of men and women who make no claims, because they are dead, they are meek, they are praying, they are listening, and they are obeying.
Everywhere they go, the strongholds of the enemy are falling.
God grant that the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds, casting down imaginations and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ.
Lord God, make us to see how deadly, and how final is the war now being waged within us and around us. Where we are asleep, wake us up, whatever the cost.
Deliver us from every form of self-righteousness. Make us strong in Your strength, Lord Jesus, wise with the wisdom that comes, not from earth, but from Heaven, patient, compassionate, merciful, that we may be effective in the battle which will soon be over.
When it's over, Lord Jesus, may we still at Your side.