…”and he who has no sword, let him sell his garment and buy one. Luke 22 ver 36

“For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world and loses his own soul”  Matthew 16 ver 26

“Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth.  I did not come to bring peace but a sword………And he who does not take up his cross today and follow Me is not worthy of Me.  He who finds his life will lose it and he who loses his life for My sake will find it.  Matthew 10 ver 34, 38, 39

The language and titles of war and battles are used constantly today.  We have the war on: Terror, Drugs, Poverty, Starvation, Hatred, just as some examples.  We battle: weight, addictions, wasting time, depression, sleep disorders, many diseases.  Please don’t get me wrong.  Those are very necessary battles to wage and wars to be won.

Yet I fear for Christians there is a and I think the most fundamentally basic battle that we have to wage, that we find ourselves very passive about.  The battle for our very lives and soul.  Again please don’t misunderstand me, the war for our salvation has already been waged and won completely by Him who made the ultimate sacrifice for us.  Yet the enemy has not, at this point, conceded defeat.  Even if Satan knows of his ultimate loss, he desires today to take as many casualties with him as possible. Lest there be any doubt that the battle is ongoing, Paul writes to the Ephesians: For we do not wrestle against the flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against rulers of the darkness of this age…..  So you see the struggle is on going.  The enemy has very very powerful weapons:  Pride, Lust, Envy, Hatred, Vanity, Substance Abuse, Wealth and a host of others to win the battle for our soul.  Alone we have no chance of defeating him.  In fact, most of the other earthly battles, have at their heart, the very weapons the devil uses against us personally.

So if the war is won, how do we ensure that we win the battles as well?  We need a plan.  fortunately we don’t have to come up with it, the plan is already there and it is perfect.  We find it in the Bible.

We need a leader we can be confident in.  We find that leader in the Creator of all things.  He is not just some high and mighty general who see’s us as pawns that are expendable.  Our Heavenly Father knows each of us by our names.  He is not only willing to lead us into battle and be at our side, He has given more, sacrifieced more, in this battle than we can imagine.  For He gave us His Son.  And He asked of Jesus something He did not want for us.  He asked Jesus to die for us and our sin, so that the wages of war would never fell us.

Finally, we as good soldiers need to buy into this plan and our Generals (Father, Son and Holy Spirit).  That we do with our faith.  Knowing that we can not win and should not try to fight the battle for our souls alone.  Also knowing with confidence that we do have to actively fight, but with the help and guidance of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, the victory was, is and will always be won.

Make sure you’re picking the right battle and you will see victory upon victory in this life and the eternal one to come.