2 Corinthians 10:4 For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God, to the pulling down of strongholds.
Oh Friends, them’s fighting words Bruh Paul’s uttering there! Rhetoric that stirs up the emotions, get’s the blood boiling and the adrenalin flowing. I’m ready! (smile) He’s explaining to the Corinthians his spiritual authority derived from the sacrifice of Christ, his Lord and Saviour. I guess he’s a tad ticked off because some people considered him mere talk, a loudmouth, who walked according to the flesh, and he wanted to set the slate right, wherefore he declared: ‘For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh.’ (vs.3) Yes Friends, that how we too should be; since we’re flesh, we’ve no choice but to walk as flesh, but war is different. The warfare Christians are involved in, on this wicked earth, is of the spirit, not of the flesh. It’s spiritual embattlement people! ‘For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.’ (Eph.6:12) The war’s against forces of darkness and evil; forces you can’t see, but are nonetheless all around us, rearing their ugly heads through the hearts and minds of wicked men. You can beat a man down physically, but unless you’ve changed his mindset, replaced the evil intentions that lurk in his heart, he’ll still be the same evil, wicked man when his body heals, possibly even more so, since he remembers his previous defeat, and that stirs him to greater intensity. That’s why it’s the heart, mind and soul of the wicked, of unbelievers we’ve got to conquer. ‘For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal.’ That’s true! The flesh is only incidental in this war. ‘Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.’ (Eph.6:13) Yes Friends, though it’s a spiritual war, just like a physical battle, we still need protection, spiritual protection, in the likeness of God’s impenetrable armour: the loincloth of truth; the breastplate of righteousness; shoes of peace; the shield of faith; the helmet of salvation; and the sword of the spirit; that’s the Word of God. And Friends, what a most mighty sword is the Word! Also, like the mythical ‘Excalibur’ of King Arthur, you don’t have to be physically strong to draw it from its scabbard, you just need the right touch; that’s simply reading it and putting it into practice. Studying the Word endows us with such awesome strength and power, that we can wield it mightily, like Arthur wielded ‘Excalibur.’ Be careful Friends, the ole fella’s getting dangerous here; I’ve put on my spiritual armour, the adrenalin’s flowing like crazy, and I’m just about ready to do battle! (smile) But seriously though people, we need all the protection we can get if we’re going to fight the evil forces. They don’t play for fun, they play for keeps, and so should we. That’s why Bruh Paul wrote to Timothy; ‘This charge I commit unto thee, son Timothy, according to the prophecies which went before on thee, that thou, by them, mightest war a good warfare. Holding faith, and a good conscience..’ (1 Tim.1:18-19) Yes people, that same charge, that same command is laid on each believer; to spread the word, whilst preventing the teaching of false doctrine, and holding a strong personal faith in God and the truth His church teaches. Here’s a quote by Antoine de St. Exupery that says it all. ‘In these times one must write with one’s life. This is the challenge to all of us.’ That’s so true Friends. We are undergoing rather challenging times, and one way or another, we all need to put our lives on the line. It’s not easy, but remember, we can fight this war without fear or trepidation, in fact with bold confidence and assurance of victory because our weapons are not mickey mouse stuff, ‘but mighty through God.’ Though Moses was born of Hebrew slaves, through God’s mighty machinations, he grew up as Pharaoh’s grandson. ‘And Moses was learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and was mighty in words and deeds.’ (Acts 7:22) The Lord actively prepared him from the beginning, so that he’d be ready to do great exploits; ‘to the pulling down of strongholds.’ Moses’ royal upbringing, plus his time of exile as a shepherd in the wilderness, were all part of God’s plan to strengthen him to face Pharaoh, mano a mano, and lead the Lord’s chosen from bondage in Egypt. With Jeremiah though, God’s call was direct. He put His hand on Jerry’s mouth, then told him; ‘Behold, I have put my words in thy mouth. See, I have this day set thee over the nations and the kingdoms, to root out, to pull down, and to destroy, and to throw down, to build and plant.’ (Jer.1:9-10) Yes Friends, that’s the awesome power our God possesses. He can do it any which way; now for now, or in due time, but He empowers all of us with that power of His Spirit. We though, have to dig deep in our hearts and souls, take hold of it and use it wisely. So although we may be fainthearted in the natural, once we’ve put on the armour of God, we become fearless. Like Popeye and his spinach, the Word and all it entails, brings us supernatural, spiritual strength. Oh Friends, I can’t impress upon us enough, the need, the importance of God’s spiritual armour and His mighty weapons. Like some ad says, very appropriately; the armour and weapons of God…don’t leave home without them. With them protecting us, we’re in safe hands. There are no hands safer than those of the Most High God Jehovah. Much LOVE!…a soldier never goes into battle unprotected…wear your armour of God…always…
Oh Friends, them’s fighting words Bruh Paul’s uttering there! Rhetoric that stirs up the emotions, get’s the blood boiling and the adrenalin flowing. I’m ready! (smile) He’s explaining to the Corinthians his spiritual authority derived from the sacrifice of Christ, his Lord and Saviour. I guess he’s a tad ticked off because some people considered him mere talk, a loudmouth, who walked according to the flesh, and he wanted to set the slate right, wherefore he declared: ‘For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh.’ (vs.3) Yes Friends, that how we too should be; since we’re flesh, we’ve no choice but to walk as flesh, but war is different. The warfare Christians are involved in, on this wicked earth, is of the spirit, not of the flesh. It’s spiritual embattlement people! ‘For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.’ (Eph.6:12) The war’s against forces of darkness and evil; forces you can’t see, but are nonetheless all around us, rearing their ugly heads through the hearts and minds of wicked men. You can beat a man down physically, but unless you’ve changed his mindset, replaced the evil intentions that lurk in his heart, he’ll still be the same evil, wicked man when his body heals, possibly even more so, since he remembers his previous defeat, and that stirs him to greater intensity. That’s why it’s the heart, mind and soul of the wicked, of unbelievers we’ve got to conquer. ‘For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal.’ That’s true! The flesh is only incidental in this war. ‘Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.’ (Eph.6:13) Yes Friends, though it’s a spiritual war, just like a physical battle, we still need protection, spiritual protection, in the likeness of God’s impenetrable armour: the loincloth of truth; the breastplate of righteousness; shoes of peace; the shield of faith; the helmet of salvation; and the sword of the spirit; that’s the Word of God. And Friends, what a most mighty sword is the Word! Also, like the mythical ‘Excalibur’ of King Arthur, you don’t have to be physically strong to draw it from its scabbard, you just need the right touch; that’s simply reading it and putting it into practice. Studying the Word endows us with such awesome strength and power, that we can wield it mightily, like Arthur wielded ‘Excalibur.’ Be careful Friends, the ole fella’s getting dangerous here; I’ve put on my spiritual armour, the adrenalin’s flowing like crazy, and I’m just about ready to do battle! (smile) But seriously though people, we need all the protection we can get if we’re going to fight the evil forces. They don’t play for fun, they play for keeps, and so should we. That’s why Bruh Paul wrote to Timothy; ‘This charge I commit unto thee, son Timothy, according to the prophecies which went before on thee, that thou, by them, mightest war a good warfare. Holding faith, and a good conscience..’ (1 Tim.1:18-19) Yes people, that same charge, that same command is laid on each believer; to spread the word, whilst preventing the teaching of false doctrine, and holding a strong personal faith in God and the truth His church teaches. Here’s a quote by Antoine de St. Exupery that says it all. ‘In these times one must write with one’s life. This is the challenge to all of us.’ That’s so true Friends. We are undergoing rather challenging times, and one way or another, we all need to put our lives on the line. It’s not easy, but remember, we can fight this war without fear or trepidation, in fact with bold confidence and assurance of victory because our weapons are not mickey mouse stuff, ‘but mighty through God.’ Though Moses was born of Hebrew slaves, through God’s mighty machinations, he grew up as Pharaoh’s grandson. ‘And Moses was learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and was mighty in words and deeds.’ (Acts 7:22) The Lord actively prepared him from the beginning, so that he’d be ready to do great exploits; ‘to the pulling down of strongholds.’ Moses’ royal upbringing, plus his time of exile as a shepherd in the wilderness, were all part of God’s plan to strengthen him to face Pharaoh, mano a mano, and lead the Lord’s chosen from bondage in Egypt. With Jeremiah though, God’s call was direct. He put His hand on Jerry’s mouth, then told him; ‘Behold, I have put my words in thy mouth. See, I have this day set thee over the nations and the kingdoms, to root out, to pull down, and to destroy, and to throw down, to build and plant.’ (Jer.1:9-10) Yes Friends, that’s the awesome power our God possesses. He can do it any which way; now for now, or in due time, but He empowers all of us with that power of His Spirit. We though, have to dig deep in our hearts and souls, take hold of it and use it wisely. So although we may be fainthearted in the natural, once we’ve put on the armour of God, we become fearless. Like Popeye and his spinach, the Word and all it entails, brings us supernatural, spiritual strength. Oh Friends, I can’t impress upon us enough, the need, the importance of God’s spiritual armour and His mighty weapons. Like some ad says, very appropriately; the armour and weapons of God…don’t leave home without them. With them protecting us, we’re in safe hands. There are no hands safer than those of the Most High God Jehovah. Much LOVE!…a soldier never goes into battle unprotected…wear your armour of God…always…
SCRIP-BITS 