When we read newspapers and watch the news, we get fearful thoughts: What a cruel world we live in! How on earth will this end?
But the battle zones are not only where bombs explode, people are killed and injured, and buildings are destroyed. There is another battlefield that is even worse: Paul writes about another war: The war inside us:
"For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh."
2 Cor 10:3
We are thinking here about a battle of thoughts and ideas that is fought in our inner battlefield. The devil tempts us and wants to make us deny the truths of the Bible. He wants to deceive and mislead us so that we lose courage and make wrong choices.
Satan is behind war and unrest, but preceding all wars are thoughts and conclusions made on false grounds. Wars begin in mental strongholds that the devil has built up and that people follow. To overcome such mental strongholds, we must first expose them as false by allowing the word of Christ to determine the truthfulness of these thoughts and ideas. Paul gives us the solution to the core of the conflict:
"For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ."
2 Cor 10:4–5
We must capture and arrest the thoughts before the thoughts capture us. And the model is the word of Christ. Expose lies, injustice, and falsehood by asking: What would Jesus do? What solution does Christ have for this conflict? What does the word of God say?
The world's main problem is the problem of sin: pride, wickedness, ambition, self-indulgence, and the lust for power. The war on the outside begins first on the inside. Therefore, we need to pray that God's Spirit will drive away the devil's wickedness in the hearts of world leaders, thoughts that the evil one instills in warmongers – both at the local level as well as in the global community. Persistent and continual prayer solves world problems much better than threats of nuclear war! We call it spiritual warfare: God's Spirit against the devil's spiritual army.
When we read newspapers and watch the news, we get fearful thoughts: What a cruel world we live in! How on earth will this end?
But the battle zones are not only where bombs explode, people are killed and injured, and buildings are destroyed. There is another battlefield that is even worse: Paul writes about another war: The war inside us:
"For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh."
2 Cor 10:3
We are thinking here about a battle of thoughts and ideas that is fought in our inner battlefield. The devil tempts us and wants to make us deny the truths of the Bible. He wants to deceive and mislead us so that we lose courage and make wrong choices.
Satan is behind war and unrest, but preceding all wars are thoughts and conclusions made on false grounds. Wars begin in mental strongholds that the devil has built up and that people follow. To overcome such mental strongholds, we must first expose them as false by allowing the word of Christ to determine the truthfulness of these thoughts and ideas. Paul gives us the solution to the core of the conflict:
"For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ."
2 Cor 10:4–5
We must capture and arrest the thoughts before the thoughts capture us. And the model is the word of Christ. Expose lies, injustice, and falsehood by asking: What would Jesus do? What solution does Christ have for this conflict? What does the word of God say?
The world's main problem is the problem of sin: pride, wickedness, ambition, self-indulgence, and the lust for power. The war on the outside begins first on the inside. Therefore, we need to pray that God's Spirit will drive away the devil's wickedness in the hearts of world leaders, thoughts that the evil one instills in warmongers – both at the local level as well as in the global community. Persistent and continual prayer solves world problems much better than threats of nuclear war! We call it spiritual warfare: God's Spirit against the devil's spiritual army.
