Transcript Know Your Enemy

Know Your Enemy
Spiritual Warfare
Sue Bohlin
Know Your Enemy
“It is never the will of God for spiritual
warfare to become our focus. The
fastest way to to lose our balance is to
rebuke the devil more than we relate to
God. The primary strength we have in
warfare is godliness, which is achieved
only through intimacy with God.”
--Beth Moore, Living Free
Know Your Enemy
God’s goal and purpose
for us:
• Christlikeness
• To bring glory to Him
• To walk in intimacy with
Jesus
• To prepare a Bride for the
Lamb
Know Your Enemy
• 3 Enemies to Christlikeness
and Intimacy with Him
–The World
–The Flesh
–The Devil
The World
• The culture in which we live, hostile to God
• Operates only by the senses (but empowered
by spirits beyond the senses)
• The wisdom of the world is foolishness to
God (1 Cor. 1:20)
• We are commanded not to love it (1 John
2:15-17)
• We are not to be conformed to it (Rom.
12:1,2)
The World
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Materialism and “Keeping Up with the Joneses”
Entertainment industry
Internet: chat rooms, IMs, porn sites
Pornography
Sexual immorality
Ambition
Spirit of rebellion in feminism
Philosophy: no absolute truth, right and wrong
are what you choose them to be
The World
What God Says About The
World
• Rom 12:2 "And do not be conformed to this world, but
be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that
you may prove what the will of God is, that which is
good and acceptable and perfect."
• The Message: "Don’t become so well-adjusted to
your culture that you fit into it without even thinking.
Instead, fix your attention on God. You'll be changed
from the inside out. Readily recognize what He wants
from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture
around you, always dragging you down to its level of
immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops
well-formed maturity in you."
What God Says About The
World
• 1 John 2:16 “For all that is in the world, the lust of the
flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of
life, is not from the Father, but is from the world.”
• The Message: “Don't love the world's ways. Don't love
the world's goods. Love of the world squeezes out love
for the Father. Practically everything that goes on in the
world—wanting your own way, wanting everything for
yourself, wanting to appear important—has nothing to do
with the Father. It just isolates you from him. The world
and all its wanting, wanting, wanting is on the way out—
but whoever does what God wants is set for eternity.”
The Flesh
• Our ways of making life work
independent of God
• Everything we do apart from God
– Getting our own way ("I want what I want!")
– Self-centeredness
– Controlling nature
– Kingdom building
– Ignoring God
The Flesh
– Idolatry and lust: people, power, things,
experiences, relationships
– Greed
– A right to be comfortable, a refusal to suffer
– Pride
– Self-worship
– People-pleasing
The Flesh
– Addictions: food, drink, drugs, gambling,
shopping, sex
– Refusing to submit to God: unforgiveness,
sexual immorality, sinful relationships
– Temper tantrums
– Worry
– Suicidal thoughts
What God Says About The
Flesh
“Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are:
immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery,
enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes,
dissensions, factions, envying, drunkenness,
carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn
you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who
practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of
God.
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience,
kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, selfcontrol; against such things there is no law.
“Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified
the flesh with its passions and desires.” Gal 5:19-24
What God Says About the
Flesh
The Message: “It is obvious what kind of life develops
out of trying to get your own way all the time:
repetitive, loveless, cheap sex; a stinking
accumulation of mental and emotional garbage;
frenzied and joyless grabs for happiness; trinket
gods; magic-show religion; paranoid loneliness;
cutthroat competition; all-consuming-yet-neversatisfied wants; a brutal temper; an impotence to love
or be loved; divided homes and divided lives; smallminded and lopsided pursuits; the vicious habit of
depersonalizing everyone into a rival; uncontrolled
and uncontrollable addictions; ugly parodies of
community. I could go on.
What God Says About the
Flesh
“This isn't the first time I have warned you, you know. If you
use your freedom this way, you will not inherit God's
kingdom.
“But what happens when we live God's way? He brings gifts
into our lives, much the same way that fruit appears in an
orchard—things like affection for others, exuberance
about life, serenity. We develop a willingness to stick with
things, a sense of compassion in the heart, and a
conviction that a basic holiness permeates things and
people. We find ourselves involved in loyal commitments,
not needing to force our way in life, able to marshal and
direct our energies wisely.
What God Says About the
Flesh
“Legalism is helpless in bringing this about; it only gets in
the way. Among those who belong to Christ, everything
connected with getting our own way and mindlessly
responding to what everyone else calls necessities is
killed off for good—crucified.”
(Gal. 5:19-24)
The Devil
Where did Satan come from?
Is. 14:12-14 "How you have fallen from heaven, O
star of the morning, son of the dawn! You have
been cut down to the earth, You who have
weakened the nations!
But you said in your heart, 'I will ascend to heaven; I
will raise my throne above the stars of God, And I
will sit on the mount of assembly In the recesses of
the north.
'I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will
make myself like the Most High.’”
The Devil
Where did Satan come from?
Ezek 28:17 "Your heart was lifted up because of your
beauty; you corrupted your wisdom by reason of your
splendor. I cast you to the ground; I put you before
kings, that they may see you.
By the multitude of your iniquities, In the unrighteousness
of your trade You profaned your sanctuaries. Therefore
I have brought fire from the midst of you; it has
consumed you, and I have turned you to ashes on the
earth In the eyes of all who see you.
All who know you among the peoples are appalled at you;
You have become terrified and you will cease to be
forever.”
The Devil
Where did the demons come from?
Is 14:12-14 "How you have fallen from heaven, O star of
the morning, son of the dawn! You have been cut down
to the earth, You who have weakened the nations! But
you said in your heart, 'I will ascend to heaven; I will
raise my throne above the stars of God. . .”
Job 38:4 "Where were you when I laid the foundation of
the earth? Tell Me, if you have understanding, who set
its measurements? Since you know. Or who stretched
the line on it? On what were its bases sunk? Or who
laid its cornerstone, when the morning stars sang
together And all the sons of God shouted for joy?”
The Devil
Where did the demons come from?
Rev 12:3 “Then another sign appeared in heaven: and behold,
a great red dragon having seven heads and ten horns, and
on his heads were seven diadems. And his tail swept away
a third of the stars of heaven and threw them to the earth.
And there was war in heaven, Michael and his angels
waging war with the dragon. The dragon and his angels
waged war, and they were not strong enough, and there
was no longer a place found for them in heaven. And the
great dragon was thrown down, the serpent of old who is
called the devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world;
he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were
thrown down with him.”
The Devil
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Satan means "adversary"
Devil means "accuser or slanderer"
He is crafty (Gen 3:1)
He is the tempter (Mt 4:3; 1 Thes 3:5)
Jesus called him "the evil one" (Mt 6:13; Jn 17:15)
His intent is to steal, kill and destroy (John 10:10)
He blinds the minds of the unbelieving so they
can't see the light of the gospel (2 Cor. 4:4)
• He is ruler of this world and prince of the power of
the air (Eph 2:2)
The Devil
• He has legions of wicked angelic beings under him who
serve him in various administrative capacities: rulers,
authorities, powers, dominions, world forces of darkness.
• He disguises himself as an angel of light (2 Cor. 11:14)
• His servants (demons) disguise themselves as servants
of righteousness. (2 Cor. 11:15)
• He is the accuser of the brethren. (Rev. 12:10)
• He deceives the whole world. (Rev. 12:9)
• His sin was pride (Is. 14)
• He prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking to devour
people (1 Pet. 5:8)
The Devil
• He can be resisted (1 Pet. 5:9)
• He can't get past God's hedge of protection around
us (Job 1:10)
• He is on a leash. He can't do anything without God's
permission (Job, Jude 6)
• Jesus disarmed Satan and the demons at the Cross
and made a public spectacle of them (Col. 2:15)
• All he has to work with is schemes, wiles, lies and
deceptions.
• He dwells in darkness and will spend eternity in
everlasting torment in hell.
The Devil
What Jesus said about Satan:
"You are of your father the devil, and you want to
do the desires of your father. He was a
murderer from the beginning, and does not
stand in the truth because there is no truth in
him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from
his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of
lies.” -- John 8:44
The Devil
What Jesus said about Satan:
"Behold, I have given you authority to tread on
serpents and scorpions, and over all the
power of the enemy, and nothing will injure
you.” -- Luke 10:19
The Devil
The Devil
The Devil
The World, the Flesh and the
Devil
• Primary temptation of the world:
– Fit in and be accepted
• Ways to protect yourself:
– Immerse yourself in God's acceptance of you.
– Know what it means to be "in Christ.” (Eph.)
• Key:
– Total dependence on Jesus
The World, the Flesh and the
Devil
• Primary temptation of the flesh:
– To have our own way
– To feel good
• Ways to protect yourself:
– Recognize the flesh as a spoiled brat, and
resolve to crucify it through self-denial.
– Check yourself throughout the day: am I in the
spirit or in the flesh?
• Key:
– Total dependence on Jesus
The World, the Flesh and the
Devil
• Primary temptation of the devil:
– To take or keep our eyes off Jesus
– To separate us from intimacy with Him
• Ways to protect yourself:
– Keep focusing on Jesus.
– Praise music.
– Memorize Scripture and meditate on it.
– Know the truth so you can recognize his lies.
• Key:
– Total dependence on Jesus
Any area of our heart or mind
that is not surrendered to
Jesus Christ is an area
vulnerable to satanic attack.