Creflo Dollar
Ladies and gentlemen, if you’re a born-again Believer, you have an adversary, an enemy called the devil. His objective is to kill, steal, and completely destroy you. Ephesians 6:12 (AMP) declares, “For we are not wrestling with flesh and blood [contending only with physical opponents], but against the despotisms, against the powers, against [the master spirits who are] the world rulers of this present darkness, against the spirit forces of wickedness in the heavenly (supernatural) sphere.”
You have an unseen enemy coming against you; an unseen enemy that will oppress others and work through them to try to come against you. That’s what’s fighting against you, not flesh and blood. So, if someone is giving you a hard time, or is downright persecuting you, it’s not that person coming against you per se; it’s an unseen, wicked spirit operating through that person to get to you. You have to realize that this is a spiritual battle, and you have to fight it with spiritual weapons.
Sometimes it may seem like the whole world is against you. You may think, “Dear God, I seem to take 10 steps forward, then 15 steps backward.” But I’m here to tell you there’s more working for you than against you! (Romans 8:31). You may be having battles in your family, battles in your marriage, battles where your finances are concerned. But praise God, you’re not fighting for victory, you’re fighting from victory!
Now, the devil is going to come after you with a strategy, and his objective is to devour you! (1 Peter 5:8). But guess what? He can’t devour every Believer. Those being devoured are those trying to conduct spiritual warfare in their own strength. No! In order to stand up against his strategies, you must put on the whole armor of God, which is the Word of God.
Ephesians 6:10 tells us to “Be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.” Those not being devoured are those who are submitted to God’s grace. In spiritual warfare, you fight by yielding to God’s strength, power, might, and ability—God’s grace.
James 4: 6, 7 promised this: “But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble. Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” The devil flees from the person who’s submitted to, and trusting in, God grace. That word “flee” means to run with fear. You put fear in the devil when you resign from trusting in your own ability and effort, and choose to trust in God. To that person, God will give more grace!
Ladies and gentlemen, refuse to give up, cave in, and quit, when the devil attacks you. When you’re under attack, God’s response is this, “My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me” (2 Corinthians 12:9).
His grace is sufficient for you. It may be hard right now. But one day you’re going to look back at whatever you’re going through and say, “I don’t even know how I got out of that.” I’ll tell you how! It was a fixed fight! The battle was won before it ever got started! When it was all said and done, His empowering grace equipped you to overcome your shortcomings and your weaknesses, and emerge victorious.
“Therefore, I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong” (2 Corinthians 12:10).
In my thought-provoking series Engaging in Spiritual Warfare, I explain why you shouldn’t wait until you’re attacked or going through hard times to trust in and depend on God’s grace and strength. Learn to develop and live a humble, submitted life where you always depend on God instead of trusting in your own strength and ability. You overcome adversity because you’re strong in the Lord and in the power of His might!
The Engaging in Spiritual Warfare seriesis available on CD now!
