Spiritual Warfare Workshop
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Spiritual Warfare for every Christian I. Spiritual warfare - Spiritual warfare is not just a prayer prayed or a demon rebuked - it is a life lived. We commit ourselves to actively sit in our rightful place in the heavenly realms with Christ Jesus, walk daily in the power of the Holy Spirit and stand strong in the Lord’s mighty power, with His armor fully in place, resisting the enemy in the time of evil. We actively resist, overcome and defeat the enemy's lies (in the form of deception, temptations, accusations, bondage) that he sends our way. As the Spirit directs, we go on the offensive attack and posses the land that the devil has stolen in order for the captives (unbelievers) to be set free. A. God’s purpose for us - to bring Him glory. B. God’s priorities for us (our business) 1. Reconcile the lost to Himself - through fulfilling the Great Commission - Mark 16:15-19, Matthew 28:18-20, (evangelism) 2. Bringing His body to unity, maturity and wholeness - (Living a life of Christlikeness) Ephesians 4:1, Hebrews 12:1-2, Luke 6:43-45 (discipleship) C. Understanding Who God is, What Jesus did on the Cross and the Role of the Spirit in our lives GOD - We need a firm revelation of who God is, what Jesus did on the cross and the role of Holy Spirit in our lives in order to effectively engage in any level of spiritual warfare. Without a clear experiential knowledge of God’s love and character we will not be able to walk in faith and power. We are asked to walk into unknown territory and fight a battle that is not visible to the human eye. Practically exercising trust in God is the only way we can do this. God is our “Abba - Daddy” Father, He is our Forgiver, our Healer, our Deliverer, our Sustainer, our Sanctifier, our Victory, our Defender, our Provider, our Protector... Deuteronomy 20:4, Psalm 18, Isaiah 54:17, James 4:7, 1 John 3:8, Revelation 12:11. As we engage in spiritual warfare we need to continually give God control and create space for Him to be who He wants to be to us. We praise God our Father in all things! JESUS - Jesus defeated Satan, his power and principalities on the cross. Jesus in us is greater than any evil spirit that is oppressing us (1 John 4:4). Satan needs our permission in order to operate in our lives. We can allow him entrance either willfully or subconsciously. Jesus also needs our permission to set us free. We must first choose to be free and then humbly allow Him to lead us out of bondage and into freedom. Because of Jesus’ death, there was a divine exchange at the cross. This is absolute truth! ! Jesus was punished that we might be forgiven. ! Jesus was wounded that we might be healed. ! Jesus was made sin with our sinfulness so that we might be righteous with His righteousness. ! Jesus died our death so we might receive the blessing. ! Jesus endured our poverty that we might share His abundance. ! Jesus endured our rejection that we might share His acceptance. ! Jesus endured our shame that we might share His glory. ! Our old man (sinful nature) died in Jesus that the new man (life in the Holy Spirit) might live in us. Jesus’ blood redeemed us, forgave us, cleansed us, justified us and is sanctifying us. We praise Jesus because He did it all and now we simply need to appropriate all He of His finished work! 1 HOLY SPIRIT - Holy Spirit’s job is to lead us into all truth (John 14-16) and empower us to live godly lives that are free from the effects of sin (Philippians 2:13, Ephesians 1:19-23, Galatians 5:16-25). As we learn to yield to His desires minute by minute He will show us exactly what we need when we need it to wage effectively against the devil. If there are open doors in our lives which allow the enemy access, if there are lies that need to be exposed that we are embracing, if there is hidden sin that we need to be convicted of, Holy Spirit will let us know if we ask Him. He releases God’s strategies for warfare to us as we submit to Him. We praise Holy Spirit! II. Positioning ourselves for spiritual warfare A. Sitting: (Ephesians 2:4-10) Sitting is a position of rest, resting in what Christ has finished through the cross and who we are based on what Christ has done (Colossians 2:10). Christ completed the work of atonement, having defeated Satan and all powers and principalities and established Himself as Ruler and King. He has absolute authority and power over all! We need to be secure in our identity in Christ. Why is this so important in Spiritual Warfare? Because no person can consistently behave in a way that is inconsistent with how they perceive themselves. It is not what you do that determines who you are; it is who you are that determines what you do. Daily Application - Praise God from the verses listed on the bookmark, “Who you are in Christ.” Mediate on these truths. Believe what Christ says about you. Practice the truth. B. Walking: (Ephesians 4:6) Walking in the power of the Holy Spirit requires daily dependence on Him, with our eyes fixed on Jesus. The Holy Spirit is our teacher and our guide and will lead us into truth, clarity, light and deliverance. We walk according to how the Word instructs us, not walking in the flesh (Galatians 5:8), walking in the light (Ephesians 5:8), walking by faith not by sight (2 Corinthians 5:7), walking free from sin (Galatians 5:15), walking in the fruits of the Holy Spirit when our flesh has been crucified (Galatians 5:22-24), walking in love (Ephesians 5:2), walking by following the Word (Psalm 119:105), walking intentionally with Gods’ wisdom - paying close attention with purpose because the days are short Ephesians 5:15-16), walking in a manner worthy of our calling - in humility, gentleness, patience, love, forgiveness, unity peace (Ephesians 4:1-32).” Daily Application - Praying daily for the empowerment of the Holy Spirit. Praise, submission, repentance, asking and yielding to the Holy Spirit is our pattern of living if we desire to be effective in spiritual warfare. C. Standing: (Ephesians 6:10-18) We are strong in God’s mighty power (not our own). We stand fully protected with the armor of God in place. We stand so that we can do the work of the Lord at all times. However, we can only stand if we are seated and relaxed in what Christ has accomplished on the cross, are confident in our salvation and as a result are walking in the power of the Spirit with a clear conscience. “For we (Believers) are not fighting (Wrestling - a sport that demands continual concentration 24/7) against flesh- and-blood enemies (humans), but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.” Ephesians 6:12 This wrestling doesn’t mean that we are to struggle to maintain what God has done, we stand because what Christ has already done but we are called to cultivate a continual awareness of what God is calling us to and what the devil might be wanting to distract or deceive us with. We can never take a vacation from Christianity! Every thought 2 we think on, every feeling we nurture, ever choice we make, every thing we do matters in the physical realm and the spiritual realm. Nothing is neutral. Daily Application - Put on defensive weapons and then get to work with our offensive weapons as the Spirit directs. The following prayer should become very natural for us as we apply it daily. We stand so we can PRAY! III. Defensive and Offensive warfare A. Defensive warfare is guarding ourselves against the tactics or schemes of the devil. We defend ourselves from the enemy deception, temptations, accusations and bondages. (Ephesians 4:27, 1 Timothy 5:14 James 4:6) We defend ourselves by putting on continually “the armor of God”. (Ephesians 6) B. Offensive warfare is when we launch an offensive attack against the enemy. We break down strongholds which have formed in our minds through deception and accusations, we renounce curses that have been spoken, we break bondages that generational sin and unholy covenants inflict us with and we take back things that the enemy has killed, stolen or destroyed. This world is the territory of Satan (Luke 4:6, 2 Corinthians 4:4). Jesus launched a huge offensive attack on Satan, by setting foot on his territory when He came to earth. We are called to do the same. Any part of our lives that the enemy has stolen or destroyed through pre or post conversion sin needs to be taken back in order for the Lord to begin to redeem it. We have been set free from evil and set apart unto God. Preparing ourselves for Spiritual Warfare - Putting on the Armor of God – Eph. 6:10-19 When dressing for spiritual warfare (or for dressing everyday for life), there are six basic items that God provides for us. With these, we can develop a victorious attitude and face whatever challenges or temptations the devil may throw at us. We put them on so that we can stand firm for the purpose of praying in the power of the Holy Spirit at all times and on every occasion.