8 September 2014 by Rev Dr Jai Kumar –
For though we live in the world we are not carrying on a worldly war, for the weapons of our warfare are not worldly but have divine power to destroy strongholds. (2 Corinthians 10:3-4 RSV)
Mark 3:27
“But no one can enter the strong man’s house and plunder his property unless he first binds the strong man, and then he will plunder his house.
So it is in the spiritual realm where a war is constantly fought that will manifest in the physical.
EPH 6:12.
For we do not war against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places,
SPIRITUAL WARFARE
Behind every conflict, unrest and war in the real world there is yet an unseen spiritual war that is taking place behind the scene. Waging war in the spiritual realms illustrates events in the physical which unfortunately many of us are ignorant of.
Israel entering the “Promised Land” is an illustration of the faithful entering the land of promise and rest. We see from Israel’s example, a nation, who because of unbelief was not able to receive the promises of God. Only those who believed entered the promise but the faithless generation was kept out.
In the same way today, many “born-again Christians” fail to receive the blessings promised because of unbelief. We do not believe God is strong enough, to overcome the strongholds in our lives!! There are many who suffer from strongholds of fear and uncertainty and this has obviously prevented them from appropriating the blessings of God in their lives. They walk around in a thinking mind which is not in line with what God says in His word.
Numbers 13:19
Before Israel was to enter the Promised Land, Moses send out 12 spies, into the land to see what the cities were like, including if there were any stronghold in the land.
The twelve spies returned and reported what they saw (physical) we get two different perspectives from the spies. Ten spies reported the land was too strong and impossible to conquer. (Physical)
Numbers 13: 27-29
Then they told him, and said: “We went to the land where you sent us. It truly flows with milk and honey, and this is its fruit. 28 Nevertheless the people who dwell in the land are strong; the cities are fortified and very large; moreover we saw the descendants of Anak there. 29 “The Amalekites dwell in the land of the South; the Hittites, the Jebusites, and the Amorites dwell in the mountains; and the Canaanites dwell by the sea and along the banks of the Jordan.”
THEY BELIEVED IN WHO GOD IS
However, Caleb and Joshua rejected the view of the 10-spies; they saw God as a sovereign God high and lifted up who is capable of giving them victory over the giants and strongholds of the land. (Spiritual)
Therefore we as the Lord’s army need to know how to wage war against the enemy and to remove strongholds. Like in the olden days where walls were built to fortify cities; the enemy would always pull down these strongholds first before they take over the cities. We need to target the spiritual strongholds of our enemy, satan.
Num.13:30-31
Then Caleb quieten the people before Moses, and said, “Let us go up at once and take possession, for we are well able to overcome it.” 31 But the men who had gone up with him said, “We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we.”
THE STRUGGLE BETWEEN THE FAITHFUL AND THE FAITHLESS
(Heb.11:1) Do you agree..”Faith is to believe what you do not see; the reward of this faith is to see what you believe”?
You could almost see the struggle, the faithful minority versus the faithless majority. The people were so defeated and faithless in God’s ability they would have stoned Moses, Joshua and Caleb if the Lord did not intervene (Numbers 14). They were planning to go back to Egypt after they selected a leader.
Listen! The Lord would have destroyed the faithless generation, but Moses interceded. Because of Moses, God instead allowed the generation of the faithless Israel to wander around the deserts of Sinai and die there.
A PRICE TO BE PAID FOR UNBELIEF
Israel’s plight illustrates a point, when we reject God’s promises because of unbelief; we end up wandering in a wilderness. An 11-day journey kept them wondering for 40 years in the wilderness because they refused to take God at His word. Instead we easily buy into what the world is selling us.
You know what? Obeying the Lord is not always easy, but nevertheless it’s always the best option. Sometimes it may be tough, and we have to stand alone for what we believe. Know however, that when we are following the Lord, we’re never really alone because He’s always with us. Each time we choose to obey Him, He strengthens us to stand firm and promises to bless us.
In the case of Joshua and Caleb they were able to see victory through the eyes of God despite the strongholds in the Promised Land. Joshua and Caleb were wearing God’s armour, as opposed to the 10-spies.
They were willing to wage war on the Canaanite cities, because they knew it was not them, but the Lord who would give them victory. It is The Lord who will fight the battle for them.
David fought Goliath by wearing the armour of God. He did not fight Goliath by his own strength and his own might.
Before the battle took place in the field, it was already conceived in the mind. The minds of the 10-spies were controlled by fear. They had a grasshopper mentality of defeat and failure. The army of Israel before the Philistine Goliath, a giant, was defeated in the mind, before an arrow flew. The battle began in the mind, and then it manifested in the physical.
The armour of God gives us the ability to be victorious in the battle of the mind. Putting on the full armour of God, allows us to stand against the schemes of Satan, whose goal is to defeat and paralyse the faithful children of God.
WHAT IS A STRONGHOLD?
A stronghold is a faulty thinking pattern based on lies and deception out of line in God’s word. Deception is one of the primary weapons of the devil, because it is the building blocks for a stronghold. What strongholds can do is cause us to think in ways which block us from God’s best. It will block you from walking in the blessings of God. You need to be reminded that satan’s battle ground is your mind. If he can manipulate and control your mind he can conquer your life.
HOW TO COUNTERACT A STRONGHOLD?
It is important to grow in God’s Word, because it is your primary weapon for tearing down the strongholds of deception that the enemy has been sowing into your mind.
The apostle Paul defines strongholds as speculations or lofty things raised up against the knowledge of God. It is any type of thinking that exalts itself above the knowledge of God, thereby giving the devil a secure place of influence in an individual’s thought-life. When you carry any thought that is not in line with God’s word the enemy will find you.
In John 8:31-36, Jesus tells us that we can be held in bondage due to strongholds in our lives. And His solution was to, “continue in my word… and ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” (v. 32-32).
Strongholds are torn down as we meditate on God’s Word, which is the truth!
Note: Rev Dr Jai Kumar is an ordained & licensed minister of Covenant Ministries International N.J. USA. He is also the representative of Faith International Bible School for Malaysia & Singapore. He is the founder and senior pastor of Full Gospel Outreach Ministry KL, a member of ECCM, Spiritual Adviser & overseer of Capstone Ministries/Capstone Community Church -C3 (Bangalore); Co-founder and adviser of Kingdom Christian Fellowship, Subang Jaya, he is also the author of a book entitled, ‘God’s Time Clock.’
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