“Wage the good warfare, holding faith and a good conscience.” 1 Timothy 1:18b–19a
I dreamed of war last night. Sudden and unexpected.
It began very small. One lone invader dropped from the sky, looking more peculiar and out of place than ominous.
Then a second small plane gave birth to another parachuting warrior, then a third and a fourth appeared.
Suddenly, the sky filled with hundreds, maybe thousands of small warcrafts, each one dropping at least one soldier from its doorway in the sky. I had a bird’s-eye view because I was riding in a large, elevated train made specifically for the viewing enjoyment of its passengers. The soldiers’ camouflage uniforms and the fierce weapons strapped to their shoulders made it clear—we were under attack.
A few soldiers landed directly on the train. They immediately released their parachutes, grabbed their weapons, and began attacking the enormous glass windows. Large cracks began to spread through the clear panes.
My fellow passengers were panicking, pushing one another to get as far away from the windows as possible, which was foolish because the train car in which we were captive was surrounded by glass windows. We were in a moving house of glass.
I stood still, looking into the hate-filled eyes of a soldier pounding with all his might on the glass with the butt of his gun. The look on his face was vicious, a mad dog look. His eyes were filled with hate.
Then I woke up. The night, still dark. The room, still quiet. The only sound the gentle breathing of my sweet man. Safe. No war.
Still more than half asleep, I thought about the dream, attributing it to the warring chaos filling our information highways. Many areas in our world are at war, and many others are on the verge of war. No wonder the strange dream.
Then the thought occurred to me that this is the spiritual battle that is always in motion. It is a seemingly unending war, of which most people live their entire lives blind to its existence, totally unaware that this raging war has tragically defined their existence.
It’s the continuation of a war when the archangel Lucifer declared independence from God and was cast out of heaven, thus beginning a war that eventually tainted all of God’s beautifully perfect creation.
Thankfully, it is NOT an unending war. There is a definite conclusion. There is a decisive ending—an eternal declaration of peace. ALREADY proclaimed and promised by God Almighty. It is a proclamation and promise that will come to pass.
Today, we live in the “Not Yet.”
But friend, we must not live as “The Unaware.”
We must live with our spiritual eyes open to the battle that is in full engagement. Our spiritual ears open to the commands and instructions of our Commander. We cannot allow ourselves to be blind and deaf to the war that rages around us.
We must engage in the battle, or we, the individual, will live defeated lives here on earth. Know that the battle excuses no one. It will not skirt the one who foolishly believes they can choose not to participate; that is not an option.
The Apostle Paul knew full well the spiritual battle that was underway. For that reason, informed by the Holy Spirit, Paul wrote in Ephesians that we must be diligent in living in a state of preparedness for the battle that continues to this day.
Yes, we must be obedient, intentional, and diligent to live battle-ready.
Here’s the great news: God equips us for the battle. He provides. We accept His provision, and we obediently submit to His leadership. He is our Commander-in-Chief; we are to obey His orders faithfully. We fight in His strength and might, not in our own. (Ephesians 6:10-20)
The best news is this: the outcome of this battle is predetermined. God wins. We who are in God win. Satan and his forces are defeated for all eternity. The battle and the victory belong to God.
Have you joined forces with God Almighty, Commander of the Angel Armies?
Please know there is no neutral ground. If you have not chosen a side…you are, in fact, on a side, the losing side. As long as you’re breathing, there is still time to join the eternal winners by simply saying, “God, I surrender. I confess my desperate need for a Savior. I believe Jesus died for me. He paid in full the sin debt I could never pay. Save me, Father, I want to be Yours forever. Amen.”
Believer, don’t think you can stay on the sidelines and sit out the battles in which you don’t want to participate. It doesn’t work that way.
One day, each of us will all stand before God to explain our choice to run from the battlefield or to be rewarded for our willingness to fight the good fight of faith.
Stand firm.
Fight the good fight of Faith.
Victory is in our LORD.
Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Therefore, take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. Ephesians 6:10-13 ESV