Let God Fight Your Battles (part 1)

As some may know from history, at one time the Romans were the dominating empire on the world scene (30BC to 476AD). There was one occasion when the Romans invaded the country of Wales and were on the brink of conquering the Welsh people. It was a foggy day when a legion of Romans were encamped on a certain hill and were surprised to hear the yell of a Welshman from the valley below, “One good Welshman is better than ten Romans!” Out of spite, the Roman commander sent ten of his best men down the hill to deal with this antagonistic Welshman. From the top of the hill they could hear banging and clanking. After a few silent minutes, the Romans were taken aback when they heard another yell, “One good Welshman is better than fifty Romans!” At this point, the Roman commander was very distraught and out of anger sent fifty of his soldiers marching down the hill. They heard banging, clanking and yelling for fifteen or twenty minutes. After a few silent moments they were perplexed to hear another yell from the Welshman, “One good Welshman is better than 100 Romans!” Now the Roman commander was enraged and he ordered 100 of his men to storm down the hill. He heard lots of banging, clanking, yelling and screaming. After what seemed like an eternity, one of his men managed to crawl to the top. He was beaten, banged up and bruised. In amazement the commander asked, “What happened?” The solder, in weak voice, replied, “The Welshman lied; there are two of them.” Isn’t that just the way it is? The moral of the story is that as Christian soldiers, we are not alone. We as true disciples of God are in the greatest spiritual war of all time. The war is for our mind! Notice how the Apostle Paul admonished Timothy, “You therefore endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ” (2 Timothy 2:3). How did Paul refer to Epaphroditus in Philippians 2:25? “ Fellow soldier.” Like Timothy and Epaphroditus, Christians are enlisted soldiers called for a special purpose—called to fight in a three-front spiritual war. We are constantly fighting the bombarding attacks of Satan. In 1 Peter 5:8 we are told, “Be sober; be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.” In this passage, Satan is compared to a lion. Have you ever stopped to wonder why Peter used this analogy? As most know a lion is best known as the “king of the jungle” because he is at the top of the food chain. Perhaps, Satan is no different in that he is always lurking around every corner and ready to pounce on our every weakness and downfall—just as the instinctive lion attacks the sick and weak, as it makes for easy prey. However, we must remember that we are not alone! We also fight the powerful lure of the society, which today is probably the most foul and immoral way of life in Israelite history—a time of true despising of God’s word (Leviticus 26:15). Everything that is pure, just and good is steadily being destroyed from underneath our feet. The family, which is the foundation of any society, is being attacked and dismantled by the homosexual movement and replaced by social engineers. The children are being ignored by the constant pursuit and the focus of mere materialism. Many sources put the average American credit card debt at $8,000 per family—we are living well beyond our means. The world is a very distracting place and if allowed it can truly weigh Christians down to their absolute detriment—once again, our minds can become very much clustered. This is the reason why Paul made mention of it in 2 Timothy 2:4, “No one engaged in warfare entangles himself with the affairs of this life, that he may please him who enlisted him as a soldier.” This society with all of its allure is just one more front that Satan uses against God’s chosen few. The Bible screams out, “Come out of her my people” (Revelation 18:4)! Perhaps, the greatest front that we battle is self—this will be the last remaining front in the millennium. James was inspired to write, “Let no one say when he is tempted, ‘I am tempted by God’; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone [to sin]. But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed” (James 1:13-14). Human nature can be an awful enemy, but we must fight against it as it is naturally in objection to God (Romans 8:7). This is a process that takes time and effort as our nature is replaced with God’s nature—perfect righteous character. James continues in verse 15, “Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death.” Once again, the battle is for our very mind. Think about it! How does sin usually begin—with a thought or an idea? If Satan can simply influence our thinking or plant a thought in our mind, then there is a good chance that we could carry it out—if it’s not stopped! The Apostle Paul gives us all sound advice, “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God” (Romans 12:2). It is vitally important to note that to be transformed is to have an inside change of our very nature. The process of developing God’s character starts from the inside and works its way out—being manifested in our obedience to Him. What is God’s part in this war of self, Satan and society? One of God’s promises relates the fact that He will never allow us to be tried more than we can handle (1 Corinthians 10:13). God will always watch over and protect His true disciples, which accounts for taking care of our spiritual and physical needs—even when we are unaware of it. God wants to fight our battles, “For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him” (2 Chronicles 16:9). In the heat of any battle it can prove quite difficult, but we must have absolute assurance (faith) in God’s abilities to help us win. If we are sincere and heartfelt in seeking God’s divine help then He will show Himself to be a faithful Protector. God will help us as Christian soldiers, to fight the fronts against Satan and the society that he so greatly influences. However, God will not help those who are not willing to help themselves. We must have God’s help to fight our battles and God needs our faith and dedication in order to help us. We can’t fight the battles without each other. What is our part (self)? It is God’s will that all mankind be saved (1 Timothy 2:4), but He will not force it on us. All humans have free moral agency, which means the right to choose: God’s way or Satan’s way. The patriarch Moses wrote in Deuteronomy 30:19, “I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live.” We must fight the self! As true Christians, it is set on our shoulders to make the right decision within ourselves—no matter what area of life it may be and no matter how small. This right decision activates God’s Spirit, which is the helper that was promised by Jesus Christ. It’s important for us to recognize that the Holy Spirit is a helper and not a doer (Romans 8:14). This battlefront of the self is one that we must make the conscious choice to fight: only then will God help us. Our part is to make the right decisions. This is a growing process that takes time, but the more right choices we make then the more help we will receive from the Holy Spirit—this is a promise that is made by God—claim it! Why would anyone in his or her right mind want to fight such a tough, grueling and difficult war? Let’s read the inspiring words in Hebrews about the past heroes of faith, “Women received their dead raised to life again. And others were tortured, not accepting deliverance, that they might obtain a better resurrection” (Hebrews 11:35). We can truly believe as Paul wrote that the present sufferings are not even worthy to be compared to the coming glory that will be declared in us in the coming near future (Romans 8:18). The first resurrection is undoubtedly the “better resurrection” of the three that are recorded in the pages of our Bible. It is the resurrection of better promises, better rewards and better fulfillment—better everything! The first resurrection is what we are now striving for as we, “Fight the good fight” (1 Timothy 6:12). This resurrection is reserved for the few, the humble, true Christian soldiers.