Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses ~ 1Timothy 6:12.
Introduction:
There is an ongoing battle in the world today. It is real, fierce and total in the realm of the spirit. It is a battle between the forces of good, personified and championed by our Lord Jesus Christ, versus the forces of evil, personified by Satan and his minions. Indeed, anyone who is mature and sensitive in the spiritual universe will be quite familiar with this reality.
Of a truth, every child of God that is poised to do the will of God is automatically involved in this battle (2 Timothy 3:12). Quite unfortunately, in the theater of this battle, many people have shipwrecked, punctured and aborted their glorious destinies because of a lack of prayerful watchfulness.
We see the battle on display everywhere around us. In fact, most of the things that people easily dabble into in this world and take pleasure in are just fronts of this raging battle. It behoves us to know that these evil forces are pretty well structured to do maximum damage to God's Kingdom and, in particular, to God’s people (Ephesians 6:12). At any rate, when the devil does evil, he is simply answering his name.
Meanwhile, Satan wouldn’t want us to understand, believe and accept the true position of God’s Word with respect to our victory in spiritual conflicts. He would rather wish that we don’t ever challenge the status quo, but that wouldn’t line up with the wisdom of God.
What then should be our attitude towards these evil forces, thrones and spiritual wickedness in high places? Basically, we must never fear them because they are disarmed entities (1 Peter 5:8). Jesus triumphed over them on the Cross, and bestowed on us the victory (Colossians 2:15; Romans 8:37).
No one can enjoy a revolution unless he first obtains a revelation. Thus, a true revelation of our position in Christ will go a long way towards shaping our orientations as to what God has made available to us on earth.
All the fighting implements we need are already at our disposal in the spirit realm, and there is nothing that God is supposed to do that He has not done (Romans 8:32)! Jesus came and died for us, shedding His precious blood to buy us back from the bondages of sin and Satan, and to reposition us in His righteousness.
Flowing from these above, the devil and his minions are now factually under our feet by reason of our supernatural relationship with Jesus Christ (Ephesians 1:20-23). We are majestically seated in the heavenly places with Christ, and as long as we abide in this relationship, our gracious privileges will also remain constant.
By divine averment, Jesus Christ is the Head and we are His Body. Just like the head and the body are inseparable parts of any living entity, and the legs and the feet are parts that make the body whole, so is Christ the Head and we His body, the Church.
It follows also that if Satan is under Jesus' feet, then he is automatically under our feet too, as members of Christ’s Body! Please keep in mind that whatever is under your feet lives only at your mercy.
By the reality of whom we are in Christ, everything, including the powers of darkness, are subject to us. Not only the ones that have been named, but even the ones that are yet unnamed, untapped and undiscovered, they have all been put under our feet. Simply put, this fact is mind-boggling! Alleluia!!
Unfortunately though, even after all that God has done and freely given us to make us formidable entities in the spirit realm through Christ Jesus, many people still continue to wallow in abject ignorance (Ephesians 2:6-7). In this regard, it is always good and refreshing for us to examine some principles that will enable us access the power of the Holy Spirit, and to walk in our dominion in Christ Jesus.
First of all, we must certainly know who we are in Christ. You must know who you are in Christ Jesus, and become fully convinced of the authority you carry through Him, or else you continue to wriggle under the burden of identity crisis.
Many believers today are underachieving simply because they are very ignorant of who they are in Christ Jesus. They live like the proverbial child of a cloth-seller that is wearing rags, or like the child of a renowned butcher that has access to only bones!
We must totally agree with the Word of God in order to engage the power of His intervention in our fight of faith (Amos 3:3). Until a man readily agrees with the Word of God, he isn’t set to enjoy the wonders it can procure.
We must hold God's Word tight to our chests, allowing our lives to be shaped and ruled by it. Whenever the Word of God is actively engaged in any spiritual conflict, victory is the foregone conclusion (Hebrews 4:12). The Word of God is settled in heaven, and it must be settled in our hearts (Psalm 119:89).
Furthermore, to receive the assistance of Holy Ghost power, you must see possibilities of victory in all your spiritual conflicts. Don't stay on a spot, throwing a pity party with only yourself as the guest (Exodus 14:15).
Crying and bemoaning your fate will only glorify the devil, making him feel good and prompting him to assault you the more. You may have had a humble background, but that shouldn’t keep your back on the ground. Don't ever accept defeat, Jesus already gave you His victory.
Most importantly, you must agree with and readily rely on the Holy Spirit if you dream of engaging an unfailing power in your necessary fight of faith. Stubbornness, recalcitrancy and disobedience are major disqualifications in the course of engaging the power of the Holy Spirit.
Be sensitive to Him, tango with His instructions in all ways, and you will soon find yourself easily defeating the enemy, putting his hosts in disarray. But, on the flip-side, if you are still dilly-dallying, wavering between two opinions, you are treading dangerous paths.
Friends, men and brethren, as saints and heirs of God through Jesus Christ, we are actually loaded, strengthened and fully protected by God’s holy angels that excel in strength (Psalm 103:20; Hebrews 1:13-14). And, from this advantageous position, necessity is laid on us to regularly set the devil's ploy in disarray and frustrate his plans.
Like one wise man suggested, “it is comic treason for the Church to possess the keys of the kingdom and not utilize them to set the captives free”. Today, the kingdom keys are in your hands; I pray, therefore, that you will not disappoint God who has endowed you with so much, in Jesus Name. Amen. Happy Sunday!
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Bishop Taiwo Akinola,
Rhema Christian Church,
Otta, Ogun State, Nigeria.
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