The Fall Issue of the SMS Magazine is entitled, “Taking It All Back.” In it we explore the spiritual requirements to enter the battlefield and take back what has been stolen from us. We know that the enemy is a dastardly evil thief, and we are often surprised by the degree to which he steals from us. After some of the shock has worn off, many of us will take to the battlefield in an attempt to reclaim what has been stolen. The abandoned wife will try to win back her wayward husband. The person that has lost the house, car, finances, or job will try to get back what they’ve lost, or replace it with something better. What many of us deny, neglect, or fail to understand is the extent to which we must be prepared to engage this type of warfare. We must be even more skilled in the use of weaponry from God’s vast, well-stocked dispensary of spiritual armor. An awful lot of sisters are miserable because they haven’t understood what is required to suit up and enter the battlefield.
This is a huge subject to cover, and we hope that you will read the Fall Issue of the SMS Magazine for a more comprehensive teaching. We believe, and it is our prayer, that the Word of God taught in this featured teaching will literally change your life. Again, one part of taking back what the enemy has stolen is that of being prepared to do so. Words cannot describe the importance of spiritual preparation. So many of us claim to be airtight in this area, but if indeed we find ourselves in a position where the enemy has found a foot hole into our lives, it’s a sure bet that some area of our spiritual walk is not as fortified as it should be. So, we’ll focus a bit in this teaching on the importance of spiritually preparing to reclaim what the enemy has stolen.
Historically, it has been common place for a battlefield to be filled with mines, and it is no different in the spiritual realm. This is one of the reasons we must be incredibly strategic and masterful when it comes to entering the field. The enemy has collected things that we treasure as his trophies; he gloats when this is done, because he has gotten away with stealing from another saint. Ephesians 6:12 tells us that our war isn’t with flesh and blood, it is against evil powers, darkness, and spiritual wickedness. Yet, when we are attacked, we look to assess blame on a person in many cases. We seek to use flesh armor for a spiritual battle. This will almost always fail.
Once it becomes evident that we are not advancing on the winning side, many of us become disillusioned in the faith. We allow the enemy’s attack to shake our confidence in God, and in case you didn’t know it, that is his objective. It is to sow seeds of such discontent that we begin to distrust the Word of God; the enemy does this to undermine our relationship with Heavenly Father through Jesus Christ.
It is impossible to please God without faith; therefore, we must know that our faith is an enemy target. Every time the enemy steals from us, and we allow it to be done without standing in the victory that Jesus Christ has obtained for us, we permit a lie to hide our Christ-authority. We allow the lie to stand in the place where our truth in Christ should be front and center. This is the answer to why we should be interested in the battlefield—why we should be incredibly skilled when it comes to spiritual warfare. God did not give us substandard weaponry. The testament to our confidence in Him and what He has provided is that we use it and use it well.
If you think that you can be the same soldier, with the same accoutrement you used when God delivered you three years ago, you are mistaken. The enemy has studied you. Tactics were changed to compensate for the spiritual growth and strength you have newly acquired. It’s a different kind of attack, a different trick, and dare I say, more is at stake.
Our born-again status solidifies our commitment to God’s Word. We are defenders of His truth. It is in this spirit that we honor the truth, and must refuse to allow a lie any room in our lives. We are victorious! We have been blessed with all spiritual blessings in Christ Jesus, and we can do all things through him. Yes, there is much chaos, confusion, mayhem, disappointment, … and it may seem as if the pace of it is at an unprecedented level in the world and in own lives, but there is a reason for this.
The outpouring of God’s Spirit has increased in the earth. Technology and intelligence is increasing as well. This means that humanity, itself, is increasing its pace of human development, and as Christians, we cannot be left behind. In truth, we should be ahead of it.
We have greatly underestimated God’s commitment to make sure we are spiritually prepared for what comes next. Trust, this is an understatement. God did not instantaneously make us all that we could and should be. We were not born with an entire catalog of biblical knowledge locked inside our brains. We were not born with a heart filled with the love of God and a mind stayed on Jesus. God created us in such a way that we put on the mind and heart of Christ AS and IF we WILL to do so.
God has designed the mind for spiritual-and-self-advancement, however our preoccupation with everything but this has caused a dumbing down on all fronts. This causes us to be so distracted that we are unaware we are being robbed, and we are unaware of the condition within our own beings that allow us to be stolen from. To wake up is to recognize both the distraction and the condition. Understand that we are either being used by the enemy to further his agenda, or we are standing in the authority of Christ and infecting the earth with God’s Kingdom. There is no in between. We make the choice.
This gives us a clearer lens from which to comprehend the heft of our responsibility to God in Christ, and the commitment we must have to let the Spirit be at work as He prepares us to maneuver on the battlefield. We couldn’t possibly know all the intricacies of what is required, but God knows; and He will not keep it from us.
In Old Testament times, God promised to restore His chosen people. He delivered them from slavery under the Egyptians and promised to give them a land that was lush, fertile, and abundant. He did not bring the Promise Land to the Children of Israel and place it in their laps. He did not supernaturally lift them up out of the wilderness and physically position them in Israel. He told them, “I’ve given it to you, now go get it!” They had to do battle in order to take possession, and often times so do we. When they received God’s marching orders, most of them cowered in fear and refused to suit up. They refused to prepare, and because of it thousands of them lost the promise. Don’t let this happen to you.
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“Reclaim What Has Been Stolen!” written by Reverend Fran Mack, edited by Kim Times for Sundie Morning Sistas ©2017. All rights reserved. All done to the glory of God through Jesus Christ, our Lord! SMS is dedicated to inspiring and encouraging Christian Women through the Word of God.