Ephesians 6:12
“For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.”
We…wrestle. These two short words spell out the intensity of every believer’s struggle. Wrestling is face-to-face, hand-to-hand combat – one man exerting his full force and strength against another. Like it or not, the spiritual battles you and I face are up close and personal. Believer, we need to face this fight with a strategy because our opponent has one, and it’s formulated to take us down.
The apostle Paul said he was not ignorant of Satan’s devices and we shouldn’t be either. We have got to educate ourselves on his overall tactics, and more importantly, the specific ones he uses in our lives. Please don’t fall into the deceptive thinking that he’s not interested in you just because he doesn’t show his hand or let you feel his influence. Satan rarely attacks openly. He’s subtle. He’d like you to believe your real opponent is someone other than himself – your husband or wife, your family or the boss you work under. But think again. Behind those conflicts are spiritual forces fueling the fire.
Ancient wrestlers oiled their bodies to prevent their opponent from gaining any kind of hold. I like this strategy. Ephesians 4:27 commands us to not “give place to the devil.” This applies to any sin, and certainly those rising up in the heat of an argument. These handholds should be dealt with when they surface. Don’t nurse them, don’t coddle them – confront them. Resolve to anoint your mind and coat your heart with specific Scriptures pertinent to the situation. In doing so, you’ll become agile, and dare I say, slippery. Then your adversary can maneuver all he wants, but you’ll have given him no place to grab and pin you down. And that is a victory!
– Pastor Jack
