Ephesians 2:1-3 (NKJV)
And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins, in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience, among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the others.
Here are the 4 main enemies we battle.
1. The world
It’s not this world the one you can see, it’s the evil system that exists within this world. It’s the world that tries to seduce us and pull us away from the Lord.
2. Satan
Who happens to be the Prince of the power of the air. The Bible describes Satan not just as a fallen angel it describes him as the Prince of the air. What do I mean by the air?
There are 3 levels of heaven:
1. The atmospheric heaven, the one you see. – the 1st heaven
2. The celestial heaven – The 2nd heaven (the spiritual realm)
3. Shamayim, Hebrew: for "heavens" the dwelling place of God – the 3rd heaven
So, the enemy occupies that spiritual realm (The Air). The enemy’s and his demonic forces strategy is to block your connection to God and God’s connection to you. Satan’s place of operation is not in hell it’s in the air the spiritual realm.
Daniel 10:13 New International Version (NIV)
But the prince of the Persian kingdom resisted me twenty-one days. Then Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, because I was detained there with the king of Persia.
The Bible refers to Angels as princes, so Michael the Arc Angel is one of the Chief princes.
The prince of Persia is a reference to an evil spiritual entity that had authority over the ancient kingdom of Persia.
The enemy wants to block your prayers, sometimes we ask ourselves why aren’t my prayers being answered. They are not being answered because the enemy is doing everything within his power to block your prayers from reaching God.
But Jesus has given us the power and authority to knock down the enemy from the air and put him under our feet.
3. The Sons of Disobedience
These aren’t people who are periodically disobedient, these are people that have perfected disobedience, they have perfected disobedience to a point that it has become their identity, these are people that lived their lives in disobedience.
If disobedience has become a habit, a lifestyle, your identity, there is a spirit that is working in that disobedience. They’re not just doing it on their own, it’s a spirit that’s orchestrating their actions. After an act became a habit, a lifestyle that’s the spirit that works in those who are the sons of disobedience.
You can be surrounded by sons and daughters of disobedience, but it’s the spirit that works behind the scenes that is attacking you it’s not that person. We have to start looking behind that person and see the spirit that is working through that person to get us.
4. Our flesh
Galatians 5:17 (NKJV)
For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish.
Do you know that a war is waging inside you? We live here on earth in our fleshly bodies, but we will continue to be tempted and fall into sin.
Galatians 5:16 (NKJV)
I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.
That’s our key to overcoming it. But what does that mean? Christ set us free - so that we would be free, yet sometimes, we act as if we are not free.
One of the most tragic elements of warfare is collateral damage. Often in military operations, civilians are caught in the crossfire. Civilians often get hurt between two fighting forces. It is truly tragic when someone is in the midst of a battle and does not realize that they could have collateral damage.
Every one of us are dead smack dab in the middle of a battlefield. The weaker force our flesh wages war against the Spirit. Although satan is a defeated foe, he’ll try to use our flesh to do his will and attempt to do as much damage to us as possible.
The solution to the problem is to be ruled by the Holy Spirit. You can’t have a spiritual life unless God has first put the Holy Spirit inside of you. This is spiritual warfare, one of the strategies that the enemy has is to steal and as a thief, he remains anonymous and his goal is to steal and get out quickly. Then the enemy sits back and watches you; he’s looking for an opportunity, an open door, to get into your life.
That’s why sometimes you feel like something is missing in your life. You don’t know what’s missing, it’s whatever satan has taken from you, he has taken your piece, he has taken your joy, he has taken your patience, he took the love for others. How did he do it, an open door.
Stay tuned for part 2 of Spiritual warfare - When Serpents Bite
God bless, Israel
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