The Fight of Faith

"I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith."

2 Timothy 4:7

I have observed Christians who really latch onto military language to describe their daily life with Christ.  They see themselves as "under spiritual attack" when troubles arise.  They nod in agreement when someone says something like, "Our Christian values and freedoms are under attack like never before"--when it is very difficult to make such a claim considering we are alive to make it.  Even if this general statement could be supported, it conveniently overlooks all the opposition and troubles the Body of Christ has endured and overcome for thousands of years.  When someone feels "under attack," they may become defensive or even fearful.  They also can be aggressive and brash.  Some celebrate troubles as proof they are doing something right and their every move is on Satan's radar.  "We're in a spiritual battle," they say.  It seems warfare is the only lens through which they see the world, and their focus seems to be a lot more on Satan's flaming arrows than the Holy Spirit who protects us by faith in Jesus Christ.

While there are references to Christians and spiritual warfare in the New Testament, for the amount of publicity they garner they are surprisingly few.  Indeed, some of the passages like the one referenced written by Paul shows the good fight is to keep the faith in Jesus Christ who loves us, a fight that is won by Christ inside us by our surrender to Him.  Even the well-known passage in 1 Peter 5 that refers to Satan as a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour, is sandwiched by exhortations to submit to one another, to be clothed with humility, to be casting our cares upon God who cares for us, to be sober and watchful, and to resist the devil while remaining steadfast in faith.  This battle is fought in our minds and hearts, for doubts can enter and work to undermine the truth of God's word and His promises.  Our fight is to bring our thoughts into obedience to Christ, to be strong in the LORD and the power of His might, and to stand by faith in the power of the Holy Spirit.

Jesus revealed Satan's desire was to "sift him as wheat," but Jesus prayed for him that his faith should not fail, and when Peter returned to God broken and humbled he was to strengthen his brethren in the LORD (Luke 22:32).  Rather than the conflict being viewed as us fighting off attacks of Satan, this internal fight is really to keep trusting Jesus and obeying Him no matter what.  The devil seeks whom he may devour, which implies he cannot sink his teeth into anyone without explicit permission from God.  He sought to destroy Job, yet God had a hedge of protection around Job the whole time.  The "battle" was not fought or won by Job rebuking Satan, for God graciously delivered Job who trusted in Him despite his physical suffering and personal loss.  In Paul's life, God allowed a messenger of Satan to buffet him because God's strength is made perfect in man's weakness:  when we are weak, God is strong.

God forbid we would imagine ourselves as strong and mighty spiritual warriors because of our knowledge or authority when God is the One who fights our battles and has already won!  I would not be surprised if Satan is permitted by God to take advantage of the proud Christian who imagines himself able to contend with the devil by his own strength or willpower.  Our fight is not fought by steeling ourselves against satanic attacks but by humbling ourselves before Jesus Christ in faith.  Every Christian is a member of Christ's own Body, the church.  Jesus will not allow one of His feet or hands to be severed because He is unable to protect Himself from the devil's vicious attacks, and no one can snatch us out of Christ's hand.  We are the sheep of His pasture, and He knows each one of us by name.  Satan cannot even effectively bring a charge against us (Romans 8:33), and there is no arrow that can penetrate the shield of faith God has provided us by the Holy Spirit.  It is by faith in Jesus we enter into His rest and the victory He has won, for we are more than conquerors through Jesus who loves us.