Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 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. Therefore 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. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
And 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 Lord’s people.
Ephesians 6:10-18
I find this scripture very helpful especially when I am going through trials or tribulations that are often elicited by the actions or doings of others. The Word says, we fight not against flesh and blood but spiritual wickedness in high and low places. It's easy to consider a person as our problem or persecutor, but that is not always true. It's often a person that is (knowingly or unknowingly) allowing the enemy to use them to get to you. This is demonstrated in the New Testament when Judas Iscariot betrayed Jesus:
Now the Festival of Unleavened Bread, called the Passover, was approaching, and the chief priests and the teachers of the law were looking for some way to get rid of Jesus, for they were afraid of the people. Then Satan entered Judas, called Iscariot, one of the Twelve. And Judas went to the chief priests and the officers of the temple guard and discussed with them how he might betray Jesus.They were delighted and agreed to give him money. He consented, and watched for an opportunity to hand Jesus over to them when no crowd was present.
Luke 22: 1-6
There are many scriptures that teach us this truth--we fight not against flesh and blood. This is why we need God's wisdom and discernment to see and respond to life's circumstances from His point of view. When we belong to God we become a threat to Satan's kingdom. He will do everything he can to get us off track, discourage us, or get us all in a bunch. The Good News is that through Jesus we are more than conquerers and we already have the victory!
I love the way Pastor Troy puts it. He says there will always be a "Spirit of Judas" or Judas Iscariot type of person that tries to bud their head in your life, but the good news is---The "Spirit of Judas" always hangs himself:
When Judas, who had betrayed him, saw that Jesus was condemned, he was seized with remorse and returned the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and the elders. “I have sinned,” he said, “for I have betrayed innocent blood.”
“What is that to us?” they replied. “That’s your responsibility.”
So Judas threw the money into the temple and left. Then he went away and hanged himself.
Matthew 27:3-5
As Christians we partake in the joy, sorrow, and persecution that Jesus did. But:
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
Agape :)
