The Spiritual Battle You're In

by Skip Heitzig | February 16, 2024

Every now and then, somebody will get on Christian television with a new book, claiming they've seen God. And they almost sound prideful. I think if you ever saw God, you'd either be dead or you'd be so humble about it. Because those in the Bible who had divine encounters had that kind of a reaction.

Job said to the Lord, "I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees You. Therefore, I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes" (Job 42:5-6). After he had a vision of God, Isaiah said, "Woe is me, for I am undone! Because I am a man of unclean lips" (Isaiah 6:5). When Peter discovered who Jesus really was, he said, "Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord!" (Luke 5:8).

In Revelation 1, John saw a vision of the resurrected Christ in His glory. He wrote about the encounter, "His head and hair were white like wool, as white as snow, and His eyes like a flame of fire…. When I saw Him, I fell at His feet as dead" (Revelation 1:14, 17).

In the Old Testament, there's this personage called fifty times "Angel of the Lord," who is oftentimes addressed as "Lord" and is even worshiped as the Lord. It's the preincarnate Christ. In Joshua 5, before the battle of Jericho, Joshua saw a Man standing with His sword drawn. And Joshua said, "Are You for us or for our adversaries?" The answer: "No, but as Commander of the army of the Lord I have now come." And it says Joshua fell down and worshiped (vv. 13-14).

Here's where I'm going with this: in the spiritual battle we face, we must keep our eyes on our commanding officer. The Bible says we should be "looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith" (Hebrews 12:2).

But you know what our problem is? When we go through hard times, especially spiritual battles, we have a tendency to gaze at our problems—"This is tough. This is horrible. I have to talk to people about it!"—and to glance at the Lord—shooting up a prayer, "Help me, Lord!" We need to reverse that by glancing at our problems and gazing at the Lord.

If you are gazing at your problems and glancing at the Lord, your focus is wrong. But if you're gazing at the Lord and only glancing at your problems, you're on good footing for spiritual warfare.

The Bible has a lot to say about spiritual warfare. Paul said, "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" (Ephesians 6:12).

Satan's demonic forces are a well-organized network designed to thwart God's plan (even though they can't) and to hinder God's people. You're part of a conflict, yes, but you're on the winning side. The Bible says, "He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world" (1 John 4:4).

Now, to survive well and to engage in the fight, there are two things to remember: First, the importance of Scripture. The Devil is called the one who deceives the world (see Revelation 12:9), but the Bible will keep you from deception. Second, prayer, which keeps you from destruction. The deceiver wants to keep you from engaging in prayer at all costs, because that's his defeat. When you pray, you're pulling out the big guns.

So, the battle is real, and the Enemy is powerful, but you're on the winning side. Engage in the fight. Keep your eyes on Jesus, our commander who has the winning battle plan.

Copyright © 2024 by Connection Communications. All rights reserved.

For more from Skip Heitzig, visit ConnectwithSkip.com, and listen to today's broadcast of Connect with Skip Heitzig at OnePlace.com.