If you keep your spiritual eyes open during certain seasons, you’ll see the Lord directing his messengers to remind his Bride of certain spiritual truths. I believe we’re in one of those seasons, and the message the Lord wants to remind us of is that we have spiritual authority through him.
In Part 1, we discussed Jesus’ authority. In Part 2, we discussed the authority of spiritual powers in the Kingdom of Darkness. Part three will be several parts.
– How spiritual forces fight against us and our authority over them (Ephesians 6:16, James 4:7)
– How spiritual forces can inhabit those under the dominion of the Kingdom of Darkness (Luke 8:26, Acts 16:18)
– How spiritual forces can have dominion over a country, state, city, town, or household (Daniel 10:13-21, Rev. 2:13, 3:9)
Today’s primary verse is Ephesians 6:16
“In all circumstances, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one;”
I’ve often talked with friends who would say, “I’m just a sinner who sins every day.” These friends often have good intentions. On occasion, I’ve asked them what sins they’re committing daily and offered to pray with them.
After all, James 5:16 says, “Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.”
And, Gal. 6:1 Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted.
When I ask people about sins they commit daily, they often describe the thoughts that come to their mind. Before we address those thoughts, we need to point a few things out.
1 Tim. 6:12 Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called and about which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.
1 Cor. 16:13 Be on guard. Stand firm in the faith. Be courageous. Be strong.
1 Peter 5:9 Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world.
What do any of these passages have to do with sinful thoughts? Nothing directly, but the point is that we are in a battle, a fight, a war against the devil and for our faith.
What type of fight we are facing is the question we need to answer, and it brings us back to sinful thoughts.
The fiery darts of Eph. 6:16 are thoughts. We can think of them as temptations. They happen to you regardless of whether you are under the Kingdom of Light or the Kingdom of Darkness. The difference is that those who have been delivered from the Kingdom of Darkness (Col. 1:13) are no longer slaves to their fallen nature.
Romans 6:1 What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? v2 By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it?
Consider these passages:
Hebrews 12:4 In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood.
1 John 2:16 For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world.
1 Peter 5:9 Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. v10 Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world.
Here are a few examples of spiritual darts:
– temptation to lust by looking at a person in an inappropriate manner or coveting a married person
– an outburst of anger because you’ve been wronged (i.e… road rage and the like)
– vulgar jokes and speech which do not glorify God
– coveting someone else’s lifestyle, property, cars, family, etc…
– depression and suicidal thoughts
– anxiety, which is fear of the unknown or the “What if?” questions.
These are only a few examples, but the solution for every one of them and any others is found in Matthew 4. Before we look there, let’s look at Genesis 3.
Gen. 3:1 Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden?”
v6 So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate…
Notice that Satan’s strategy was to question God’s command. By the way, there’s more to this passage in Hebrew, which is worth extra study. It concerns the words “you shall not surely die.” The way the tempter asked the question and Eve responded differs from God’s command.
Notice the three things that Eve saw?
– good for food
– delight to the eyes
– desired to make one wise
Could that be what the Apostle John had in mind in 1 John 2:16?
For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world.
Now let’s look at Matthew 4:1-11
v3 “If you are the Son of God…” then make a rock bread
v6 “If you are the Son of God…” then jump off this cliff and prove the scriptures
v9 “If you will fall down and worship me…”
These are the only three temptations recorded in this instance. Again, could that relate to 1 John 2:16? I’ll leave that up to you to decide.
Notice that the tempter came to Eve, posed a question, and presented a temptation. The same tempter came to Jesus, presented some “if” scenarios, and twisted scriptures.
It is essential to point out that Satan presents a scenario as if it’s the right way to think about something. For instance, in Eve’s case, he pointed out something she lacked: the knowledge of good and evil.
In the case of Christ, he tempted the Lord to prove his sonship by accomplishing an act.
Notice that neither temptation seems harmful to another person or even the person Satan is tempting. Don’t forget that he comes as an angel of light. He’s cunning and has been since the beginning. He starts small with something seemingly innocent but never stops there. Once, he has an in by your thoughts or emotions, it’s easier for him to gain access to your life.
We must not partner with Satan. You may think you’d never do that, but let me point something out. Anytime we believe a lie about ourselves, that lie did not come from GOD. So, who is the father of lies? Satan.
Anytime we welcome depression, anxiety, lust, greed, division, etc, we’re partnering with Satan because those things define his kingdom.
So, how does the tempter and those associated with him attack us? The answer is partly fiery darts.
Fiery darts are those tempting thoughts that attack our minds, but why are they effective, and what can we do to fight back?
The darts are effective because of something found in the book of James.
James 4:1 What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you?
James 1:14 But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire.
You see, temptations have power because of the desires within our flesh. Remember Galatians 5:17 For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do.
So if there are wrong desires in our flesh how can I resist the temptations? To answer that, we need to look at three passages, starting with Matthew 4.
Matthew 4
v4 “It is written…”
v7 “It is written…”
v10 “It is written…”
In the three temptations, Jesus did not:
– Argue the technical details of Satan’s argument.
– Try to convince the devil why his premise was incorrect.
– Didn’t yell, “I rebuke you.”
– Didn’t rail on him with insults.”
None of that was necessary because Jesus understood that faith in the Word of God is the key to resisting the devil.
“It is written” has power because of faith.
So, let’s circle back to our passage in Ephesians 6:16
“In all circumstances, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one;”
Jesus successfully extinguished the devil’s fiery darts or temptations by holding up his faith in God’s word like a shield.
When the lies of the devil come against the faith in God’s word, the fiery part of the dart, used to inflame the passions residing within our flesh, is quenched.
We’re told not to quench the Spirit, who is like a fire within us. In other words, when the Spirit impresses upon you to do something, we surrender, not resist.
However, anytime fiery thoughts are thrown at our minds, we resist and do not surrender.
Lastly, are we supposed to always be on the defensive, or is there a way to fight back?
Consider: Eph. 6:17
“and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God,”
When Jesus said, “It is written,” he raised his shield and unsheathed his sword. He then attacked Satan’s lies by quoting the Word of God.
The shield and sword have an interesting relationship. We take up the shield by having faith in God’s word and speaking. Likewise, we can go on the offensive by speaking God’s word; when we do, it acts like a sword to fight against the devil’s lies.
Consider these passages:
James 4:7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
1 Peter 5:9 Resist him [the devil], firm in your faith,
Having thoughts thrown at your mind does mean you’re sinning or a sinner. The sin, or lack thereof, depends on how we respond to the devil’s attack. Do we welcome those thoughts? Do we entertain them or perhaps allow them to entertain us? Are we welcoming the devil’s influence by not resisting his darts?
When tempted, we follow Christ’s example, as recorded in Matthew. We quench those thoughts by standing on God’s word.
What if I don’t know a passage of scripture to act as my shield and sword?
John 14:26 But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.
This would be a good time to stop and ask the Holy Spirit to help you resist the devil. If you’ve welcomed Satan’s influence by accepting his temptations, this would be a good time to repent and ask God to forgive you. Close the door to your mind and ask the Spirit to help you stand firm and resist the devil’s temptations.