Participants: Jason Bradley (Host), Nadine Joseph-Collins PhD
Series Code: TMP
Program Code: TMP000012A
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00:34 Hello and welcome to The Missing Peace.
00:36 My name is Jason Bradley 00:38 and our primary host for this program is 00:39 Dr. Nadine Joseph-Collins. 00:41 She's a Speaker, Author and Teacher. 00:44 Her main focus and passion is prayer. 00:47 She is committed to making your prayer life go "Wow!" 00:51 Before we go into today's topic, let's have a word of prayer. 00:55 "Heavenly Father, 00:56 we thank you for the opportunity and privilege to serve you. 00:59 We ask that you would please fill us with your Holy Spirit 01:03 and guide our conversation in Jesus' name we pray, amen. " 01:06 "Amen. " 01:07 So, what will we be talking about today? 01:10 Today, we're going to be talking about a power-packed topic. 01:15 It's prayer as Spiritual Warfare 01:18 and so, many persons may wonder 01:21 why we will set aside time 01:22 to discuss prayer as spiritual warfare 01:25 because a significant part of our prayer journey... 01:29 a significant part of being able to make our prayer lives go, 01:32 "Wow!" 01:34 is recognizing that we are actually engaged 01:36 in spiritual warfare every single day of our lives. 01:40 So every day we are engaged in these battles... 01:43 we're engaged in wars... 01:44 some of them we can see... 01:46 some of them we cannot see... 01:47 some of us are aware of these battles 01:49 and sometimes... mostly, 01:50 we are unaware of the battles that are around us, 01:53 sometimes, we can feel the sting of these wounds... 01:55 we can taste and touch and feel the blows of the engagement 01:58 that we have... while engaging in our spiritual warfare, 02:02 but, in order for us now to be able to understand 02:06 or really recognize, 02:08 "Hey, this is something I need to take note of, 02:11 we want to set apart this program just to discuss 02:14 prayer as spiritual warfare 02:16 because in the Old Testament 02:18 when the Bible talks about prayer... 02:20 the definitions of prayer 02:22 are things like wrestling... striving... 02:24 it denotes some kind of physical energy and strength 02:29 being exerted in prayer 02:30 and so we may just bow our heads to pray 02:33 and we think, "Okay, where would you send a prayer?" 02:35 Which is true... but the spiritual aspect 02:37 or the spiritual-warfare aspect of prayer 02:40 suggests that we would spend some time battling with God 02:44 as we saw Jacob in his situation battling there for his blessing 02:50 and so, that's the nature of prayer as spiritual warfare 02:55 and it should not be a surprise to us 02:58 because actually God... our Creator, 03:00 actually said that we are living in the war zone 03:03 because if we look at Genesis 3 verse 15, 03:06 He said, "I will make you and the woman 03:09 hostile toward each other. 03:10 I will make your descendants and her descendants 03:13 hostile toward each other. 03:15 He will crush your head, and you will bruise his heel. " 03:18 So, we see there, a lot of the hostility 03:21 there's a lot of contention going on 03:24 so, if we, for a moment, are tempted to believe 03:27 that we only have waited in aspects of our lives 03:30 and we need to think again 03:31 because at every level of our lives... we are engaging in war 03:35 every day of our lives we are engaging in war. 03:37 Jason: Yes, yes... 03:39 Nadine: There's a saying... I can't remember who said it 03:40 but it says that... every day... 03:43 or in any experience or phase in our lives, 03:46 we are either coming out of a storm... 03:48 going into a storm or in a storm. 03:49 Jason: Hmmm... 03:51 Nadine: We suggest something is always happening there 03:53 and what happens every day... sometimes even in our minds... 03:56 because remember Paul said, "The thing I want to do, 04:00 I find myself not doing it... " 04:01 because you're fighting there... there's a silent war raging 04:05 that was one of my favorite songs to sing 04:08 when I was in my teenage years... 04:09 there's a silent war raging deep within me... 04:11 my lower nature fights to dominate 04:13 so there's this battle that is constantly happening 04:16 sometimes in our minds. 04:18 Jason: Yeah, the great controversy is real 04:20 between good and evil. 04:21 Nadine: All the time, exactly 04:22 and sometimes we can see the war happening 04:24 in our relationship with others 04:26 we have different disagreements and arguments with persons... 04:30 sometimes fights... whether physical or just, 04:32 you know, emotional or mental 04:33 or whatever the case may be, 04:35 we're engaging in these types of mental battles as well... 04:38 and so, we have these struggles going on with people every day 04:41 and so, these are the things that we can see... 04:43 or the battles that we can actually see 04:45 but what about those we cannot see? 04:47 So my wider war may manifest itself in our physical life 04:52 there is the "behind the scene" things, 04:54 what's actually happening there 04:56 and I like 2nd Corinthians 10 verse 3 04:59 where it says... where Paul... 05:02 Paul was really in writing about spiritual warfare, 05:06 Paul said, "For though we walk in the flesh, 05:09 we are not waging war according to the flesh. " 05:12 Jason: Hmmm... hmmm... 05:13 Nadine: And when he's talking about the flesh 05:15 of course, in one way he's talking about our body... 05:16 this physical body of ours 05:18 so, we are engaging in war in this body of ours 05:21 but really we're not fighting against this body 05:24 and that takes us to the key text 05:26 that we really want to examine today 05:27 which is Ephesians 6 verse 12. 05:29 Jason: Okay. 05:31 Nadine: So, do you want to read the KJV? 05:33 Jason: Sure... Nadine: Okay. 05:34 Jason: "For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, 05:37 but against principalities, against powers, 05:39 against the rulers of the darkness of this world, 05:41 against spiritual wickedness in high places. " 05:45 Nadine: Yes, now, I looked at a few versions 05:48 to see what variations they would have 05:50 in describing this situation. 05:53 In the NIV it says, 05:54 "For our struggle is not against flesh and blood" 05:57 The New Living translation says, 06:00 "For we are not fighting against flesh and blood. " 06:02 The Holman Christian Standard Bible says, 06:05 "For our battle is not against flesh and blood... " 06:08 God's Word translation said, "This is not a wrestling match 06:12 against a human opponent... " 06:16 and now, I found this other version here, 06:17 The Rainbow Bible, which says, 06:19 and this is amazing... it's so clear... 06:22 it says, "For we are not fighting against people 06:25 made of flesh and blood 06:28 but against persons without bodies. " 06:31 It brings this thing to a whole new imaginative level... 06:35 it says, "The evil rulers of the unseen world... 06:38 those mighty, Satanic beings 06:40 and great evil princes of darkness 06:42 who rule this world and against huge numbers 06:45 of wicked spirits in the spirit world. " 06:47 Jason: Hmmm... 06:48 Nadine: So, there Paul is making it clear 06:50 that while we are having all these arguments 06:52 and these disagreements with our family members... 06:55 with our husbands... our wives... our children... 06:57 people on the job and so on... the bus driver... anybody at all 07:01 we are going through all of that in the flesh... 07:03 that's why in 2nd Corinthians it says, 07:07 "We are waging war in the flesh... " 07:09 but not according to the flesh, right? 07:11 Jason: Hmmm... hmmm... 07:12 Nadine: But now he's saying... the fight that we are having 07:15 he says, "It is not against flesh and blood... " 07:18 it's not against human agents... it's not against human beings 07:21 but instead, it's against evil rulers... 07:24 against authorities... 07:25 against powers of this dark world... 07:27 against mighty powers in the dark world... 07:30 against spiritual forces of evil in heavenly realms 07:33 and all of these, I took from 07:34 of course, these different versions 07:36 right, when they talk about, 07:38 "We're not in warfare against flesh and blood 07:41 but against all of these things... 07:43 against cosmic powers over this present darkness... 07:46 against forces of wickedness or wicked spirits... 07:49 and against powers who govern this world... 07:53 this world... 07:55 and so, now we need to backtrack a little bit... 07:57 but how come, 07:59 we are waging war against spiritual wickedness 08:01 in high places but the Bible is talking about 08:04 the forces that govern this world? 08:06 You see, because when God created Adam and Eve, 08:09 He created them and, of course, us... in His likeness 08:14 and when He did that, 08:16 He gave us dominion over everything... 08:18 I'm saying, "Us" meaning "Us" as man... 08:20 you know, the whole human race. 08:22 So, He gave Adam dominion over everything... 08:25 but when Satan deceived Eve 08:30 and essentially deceived both Adam and Eve, 08:32 what they did was to give the dominion over to him... 08:37 because now they... 08:39 they were in alliance with him for a moment 08:41 because they didn't realize 08:42 that he was going to take over their dominion... 08:44 he wanted to rule over heaven 08:47 because remember, he wanted to sit on the right hand of God... 08:49 he wanted to be Jesus... instead of being like Jesus... 08:52 he wanted that place... 08:54 and now, he wanted dominion of the earth as well... 08:57 and so, he took that... when he was able to deceive us 09:01 so, after he did that, he became an enemy to God 09:04 and indirectly became an enemy to us 09:07 because he knows that we are God's priced possessions, 09:11 he knows that we are the apple of God's eye... 09:13 that God made us in His image and in his likeness... 09:16 and so, we became enemies of Him 09:18 who is an enemy of God as well. 09:21 Jason: Hmmm... hmmm... 09:22 Nadine: And so, that is how 09:23 he was able to take dominion over the earth. 09:25 So, now, when we read this text and it talks about 09:28 spiritual wickedness in high places and in this earthly realm 09:33 then we can put it in context of how he became owner of this 09:38 or he became the one who governs the earthly realms 09:42 that we are fighting against these... these beings 09:46 so, he blinds the minds of those who don't believe... 09:49 in fact, he would like to blind all of our minds... 09:53 he would like us to not believe 09:55 that we are actually living in a war zone... 09:57 we are living in a zone where there is always war 10:01 between good and evil... 10:03 between God and Satan... 10:05 which we call, of course, the great controversy... 10:07 he doesn't want us to know that 10:08 and I'm thinking 10:10 we are in that war zone... 10:12 that war zone between good and evil... 10:15 between God and Satan... 10:16 but while we are traversing this life... 10:18 we are also engaging in little daily battles every day 10:21 and I thought about the people in Syria... 10:23 Syria is probably being attacked from the outside... 10:26 from outside sources or whatever... 10:29 but right there, in the country itself 10:31 people are engaging in daily battles 10:33 because other groups are fighting against people 10:36 so, you could imagine being in a war zone where... 10:39 you have to be fighting with me and everything 10:41 and then other people are fighting with us 10:42 at the same time... 10:44 Jason: Hmmm... hmmm... constant war... 10:45 Nadine: Constant war... 10:46 this is the reality of what we're living in 10:49 but because we are not seeing the warfare... 10:53 we do not realize 10:54 that we are actually in a danger zone all the time. 10:58 Jason: Yes, an interesting thing is that 11:01 the devil has been doing the same thing 11:04 over and over and over again, 11:06 like, when he was in heaven 11:08 and he deceived one-third of the angels... 11:10 he just instilled doubt... 11:12 you know, he likes to divide and conquer 11:14 and when you look at the garden... 11:15 when he got Eve... when she was away from Adam 11:19 and then he tried to persuade her or instill doubt in her 11:24 to go against what God had told her 11:28 and then he just repeats that all throughout history. 11:31 Nadine: Yes, because he... he really wants to win... 11:34 his position is just about winning... 11:36 and he will do anything to deceive 11:39 and in this case now, 11:40 the greatest deception of all for us 11:43 is if we don't even recognize that we are in a war 11:46 which means we'll be comfortable... 11:48 just imagine being in that war zone I described... 11:51 and you're there trying to file your nails... 11:53 you're brushing your hair... 11:55 you're reading a novel or something... 11:58 he wants us to be so distracted 12:01 not recognizing that we are in this battle 12:04 going on all the time 12:06 and then, of course, the daily battles are there 12:07 and so, he really tries to get us out of that mindset 12:11 for us to just be too comfortable in the war zone... 12:14 that way, he will win and we wouldn't realize what happened 12:17 you see, and so, there are a few points 12:19 that we need to recognize there 12:20 and I remember when God brought this to me 12:22 because I was going through a personal struggle myself 12:24 and I was contending with God in my mind 12:27 and I prayed and I was really pressing Him, 12:30 and I had to speak at the church 12:33 for a prayer service 12:35 and I was thinking, what am I going to speak about? 12:37 I really wanted a fresher message 12:39 because I had a bunch of messages on prayer 12:41 but I felt deeply impressed 12:43 that I needed something new... something fresh... 12:45 and as I woke up that morning, 12:47 God continued to give me this verse, 12:50 Ephesians 6 verse 12, it kept repeating in my mind 12:54 and within half an hour, 12:56 I sat there and I was able to write a sermon 12:58 to deliver that evening 13:00 and I was amazed at the impact that it had 13:02 and I thought to myself, 13:03 "Lord, I have not even processed that food... 13:05 how come that "food" was so palatable to the church?" 13:07 Jason: Hmmm... hmmm... 13:09 Nadine: But it was only a week and a half later 13:11 when again I was struggling with Him... 13:13 he said to me, "I gave you that Word for you" 13:15 so, yes, that Word was able to bless people at the church 13:18 but that Word was also a Word for you... 13:20 and the points that He gave me was: 13:22 1. We actually fight the wrong battles! 13:25 So, here we are seeing in Ephesians 6 verse 12, 13:28 we are seeing... we are engaging in war... 13:29 but what kind of war 13:32 or what kind of battles are we engaging in? 13:34 Because there He says, 13:35 "Okay, we are engaging in the wrong battles... " 13:37 so, can you imagine going to war... 13:39 fighting for a cause... any cause at all... 13:41 but you don't even know, 13:43 for example, why you're fighting... 13:44 you do not have any evidence 13:46 or possible reasons of why you are actually engaging in war. 13:49 Jason: No, not at all... and you know there's that saying, 13:52 "Choose your battles wisely... " 13:54 Nadine: Yes, people say that all the time 13:56 but... but look at this... when we go into history... 13:58 in American history, for example, 14:00 when we examine the Vietnam War, 14:02 every time I go and read the history... 14:04 because while I was working on the book, 14:05 the "WOW Prayer Battle Plan for Spiritual Warfare" 14:10 I had to do some research about war 14:13 and then came across the Vietnam War history 14:16 where, up to day... like today, 14:18 people are still struggling 14:19 as to why it is they actually went to war 14:21 over 1.3 million people died in that war 14:25 collectively... 14:26 and to date... we still do not have an exact reason 14:29 so, could you imagine going to war... 14:31 and not having the reason behind it, 14:32 so God says... we are fighting the wrong battles 14:35 and why are we fighting the wrong battles? 14:36 Because, we don't know why we fight, 14:39 and so, like you said, we do not choose the battles, 14:42 we're not able to do that, 14:43 we need to know why we fight 14:45 because we'll get weary when we fight, 14:47 so, if we don't know why you fight, 14:48 then you're just getting blows... you're getting tired... 14:52 you're getting wounded... frustrated... 14:53 you could even die in a war. 14:55 Jason: That just made me think about something 14:57 when you look at people in church, right, 15:00 talking about fighting battles or fighting a war 15:04 that you don't even know why... 15:05 some people go to church 15:07 without reading the Bible 15:09 and studying the Word of God for themselves... 15:11 they just take... word of mouth from the pastor 15:13 or their family members or whatever 15:15 and they don't even know why they believe what they believe, 15:18 they're fighting battles and wars and doing things 15:23 that they have no idea what the reason or purpose is behind it. 15:26 Nadine: And that's really sad you see 15:28 because the reason why we need to know why we fight 15:30 is because, first of all we need to know 15:32 the war that we're engaged in, 15:34 then we need to know why we fight 15:35 because it will help us strategize better, 15:37 it will help us or assist us in planning effectively 15:42 so that we can win... 15:43 it will help us use the weapons that are available to us, 15:46 the weapons that are available in the Word of God 15:49 because these are the weapons that we have 15:51 and so, that... 15:52 well, these are some of the reasons 15:54 why we need to know why we fight, 15:55 so, when he says, we fight the wrong battles, 15:58 if you don't know why you fight, 15:59 then we'll fight any battle at all 16:01 and so, that's why we need to know what's going on 16:03 so, many of us are fighting, for example, physical ailments, 16:06 we are fighting mental sicknesses and so on 16:09 and we do not know why we have these things 16:12 so we address them on a physical level 16:14 so we may take the different pills that the doctors give us 16:17 but the thing is, what we do not recognize 16:20 is that, according to the Word of God... 16:22 there is a spirit behind all of these things 16:25 and so, we ask for physical healing 16:27 but we do not spend time seeing what's behind the scenes, 16:31 what circumstances are affecting us, 16:32 and to demonstrate that, we have examples in the Bible, 16:35 repeatedly we see physical things being healed 16:40 by spiritual things, 16:42 and so, when we look at, let's say, 16:44 the woman with the issue of blood 16:46 in Matthew 9 verse 20 to 22, 16:49 the story is also in Mark and in Luke, 16:51 Jesus healed the bleeding woman, the woman's issue was blood... 16:56 blood was falling from her, the Bible says, 16:58 for so many years 16:59 but in Luke 8:48, Jesus says to her, 17:03 "Daughter, be of good comfort: 17:05 they faith hath made thee whole; go in peace. " 17:08 "Thy faith... " 17:11 a spiritual thing healed her physical ailment. 17:15 Jason: Hmmm... 17:17 Nadine: So there we see 17:18 spiritual things healing physical things 17:20 that was the Spirit behind the thing 17:22 so, yes, He could have just healed her 17:23 and her blood would have stopped flowing, 17:25 but he said, "Thy faith... " 17:27 so there was a spiritual element 17:28 attached to that physical healing... 17:30 when we look at the man who was born blind... 17:33 he's another story... 17:35 the gospels in John 9:1-12 and so on... 17:38 Jesus saw the man who was born blind since his birth 17:41 and the disciples begin to ask, 17:42 "Rabbi, who sinned... he or his parents?" 17:45 So, when we look at John 9 verse 3, 17:48 Jesus said, "Neither this man nor his parents sinned, 17:52 but this happened so that the works of God 17:55 might be displayed in him. " 17:56 So, it was a spiritual healing 17:57 because it was for the glory of God. 17:59 Jason: Hmmm... hmmm... 18:00 Nadine: And so, we see that again 18:02 and when we look at Jacob's limp, 18:03 Jacob was in a physical battle 18:05 because he was trying to access something spiritual... 18:10 that name changed... 18:11 that thing that he desired so much of God 18:13 so, some people say, "Sickness runs in my family" 18:16 and there's a joke that goes around... 18:18 and they say, "Sickness doesn't run in your family... 18:20 it's just that nobody in your family runs... " 18:22 but that's just a joke... you know, 18:24 but the truth of the matter is 18:26 sometimes regardless of how hard some people work, 18:28 they say, "I can't get a break in life" 18:30 and we accept these things as just... part of our lives... 18:33 "Oh, well, my family is poor so I'm poor... " 18:36 not realizing... the Bible itself says that 18:38 there are things such as generational curses 18:40 that could actually affect us, the Bible says, 18:42 unto the third and fourth generation, 18:45 we find that in Numbers 14 verse 18, 18:48 then we have Gehazi 18:50 who went behind Elisha's back and took the gifts, 18:53 you remember that? 18:54 When he was healed from leprosy... 18:57 Jason: And he took the gifts... 19:00 Nadine: He went after the guys... Naaman and his people 19:04 and said, "You know what? 19:05 My master has sent me to collect the gifts... " 19:09 even when Elisha had said, 19:10 "We're not going to take anything from you 19:12 for healing you... " 19:14 and so, the Bible tells us there in 2nd Kings 5:27... 19:18 because he had done that, 19:20 when he went back and Elisha asked, "Where were you?" 19:22 Because he was trying to hide what he had just gotten, 19:24 he said, "Leprosy will follow you 19:26 and your descendants forever. " 19:28 So, there we see that... that... that generational curse 19:33 so somebody will have the leprosy 19:34 and they didn't do anything but it came from that tribe, 19:38 or it came from back then... or something like that 19:40 so, the generational curses are actually there 19:42 so many things that we need to pray off... we are accepting 19:45 because, I believe, let's say, 19:47 even though there's that generational curse, 19:49 let's say, in a family and so on, 19:51 we can now make new covenants with God 19:53 because He gives us that access to Him. 19:55 So, all hope is not lost... we can access God for ourselves. 19:59 Jason: And now, his family members were mad at him! 20:01 Nadine: I would imagine, right, yeah... 20:04 and then another point, the second point is that: 20:06 We fight the wrong people. Jason: Hmmm... hmmm... 20:08 Nadine: So, many times, we're engaging in battles 20:10 with people in our lives... 20:12 we see our spouses as our enemies 20:14 because we are constantly fighting with these people 20:18 but these people are truly not our enemies, 20:20 remember that text, Ephesians 6 verse 12... 20:23 who are our enemies? 20:25 Jason: The spirits... 20:26 Nadine: So, you see, 20:27 sometimes we have problems with the same person. 20:29 Jason: Hmmm... hmmm... 20:30 Nadine: It may sound so frivolous 20:32 but I have the same problem with you this year 20:33 and somebody else next year, 20:35 and somebody else the following year 20:36 and so, the thing about it is... are these people all problems? 20:40 Jason: No, the common denominator is yourself. 20:42 Nadine: But the common denominator is also the spirit 20:45 that's behind... exactly... 20:47 because the spirit moves... you see... 20:48 so it moves from one person to another 20:50 because the enemy knows our weaknesses 20:52 and he knows exactly what he wants... to taunt us... 20:55 to prevent us from being faithful to God 20:57 and so, we waste a lot of time fighting people 21:00 when really... we should be looking at the spirit 21:03 behind what is happening 21:04 for us to be victorious in our prayer lives and so on... 21:08 and part of that is for us to actually know the enemy... 21:11 because if we know the enemy, 21:13 you know, like, you love basketball... 21:15 Jason: Yes. 21:16 Nadine: I'm not a basketball player... 21:18 I mean, I played it for a little bit... 21:19 I broke my leg... but I'm not a basketball player 21:22 but I've read, of course, 21:24 when I was working on the book doing my research... 21:26 that when people are engaged in battle... 21:29 they would... they look at sports as a battleground... 21:33 so, the coaches and the guys on the team 21:36 would study the rival team 21:38 because they want to know the weaknesses of that team 21:41 in order that they could break the psyche of these guys 21:44 when the game starts... 21:45 Nadine: And so, part of our journey 21:48 in fighting... or in engaging in spiritual warfare 21:52 is recognizing that the tricks of the enemy 21:55 are not new, Jason, none of them are new... 21:57 Jason: Hmmm... hmmm... 21:58 Nadine: He's using the same old tricks all the time... 22:00 and so, because we know his tricks, 22:02 we know how we can use the Word of God now... to fight... 22:05 Jason: Yeah. 22:07 Nadine: And so, we need to know our enemy 22:08 and some of the examples of fighting the wrong persons 22:11 in the Bible... we look at the story of Saul... 22:13 remember when David used to play that harp for him... 22:16 I think, that story is in 1st Samuel 16 verse 23, 22:19 so Saul was possessed by a tormenting spirit... 22:22 the Bible says... and when David would play that harp 22:25 the tormenting spirit would leave him... 22:27 so, that happened one day... 22:29 the following day... David came... 22:31 and David was playing the harp... 22:32 and that tormenting spirit was again in him... 22:35 he even threw a dart to try to kill David... 22:37 that's why David had to end up running... 22:39 so the thing about it is that... 22:41 Saul who was fighting David... 22:43 and it would appear that Saul just wanted to kill David... 22:45 but it really wasn't David... 22:47 or it wasn't really Saul that was the problem... 22:48 it was the enemy and the tormenting spirits in Saul... 22:51 that was after David... 22:52 and so, there we see sometimes... 22:54 David could have fought back that time... 22:57 but the Spirit of God... the Bible says... 22:59 was with David... 23:01 that's why Saul did not kill him... 23:02 and so, we see here sometimes 23:04 that we could engage in battle with the wrong people. 23:07 Thankfully, David did not take him on at the time... 23:10 so, the enemy wasn't there 23:13 and the enemy really was not Saul himself 23:17 but the enemy that was using Saul... 23:18 and then the third point that we want to look at 23:21 in Ephesians 6 verse 12... 23:22 that can help us in our spiritual journey 23:25 is that, we act, sometimes, like we don't believe... 23:28 and instead, we need to believe 23:29 and if we actually believe 23:32 that we are engaged in spiritual warfare, 23:33 then our approach to prayer will be totally different... 23:36 because, number 1... 23:37 when we know that who we are fighting... 23:39 when we know that the battles we are fighting 23:42 are actually battles that are coming from the enemy, 23:44 then we are going to spend a little more time 23:46 getting to know Jesus. 23:47 He is out Leader in the war zone. 23:50 He's the Platoon Leader... He's the Captain... 23:52 He's the one leading us in battle... 23:55 and so, if we recognize that we are in warfare, 23:58 then we need to act like we believe that 24:00 and we need to spend more time with Him 24:02 so that He is the only one 24:03 who can actually reveal the battle plan 24:05 for our success in war... 24:07 and so we need to spend time doing that... 24:10 we need to also know ourselves 24:11 because when you are in a war, 24:13 your enemies want to learn your weaknesses. 24:15 Jason: Oh yeah... 24:16 Nadine: Just as the teams would study their rivals 24:19 so our enemy has also studied us... 24:21 he knows our weaknesses 24:23 and if we study war on a deep level... 24:25 I got to do that while I was doing the book 24:27 is that... these people would know your weak points, 24:31 they know who you love, 24:32 they know who means the most to you 24:34 and they would use these people to try to weaken you 24:37 so they will kidnap your family or do all kinds of stuff 24:40 because they know the spots that they can touch 24:43 that could really interfere with you... 24:45 so we need to know ourselves and we need to know our armour 24:48 because we have the belt of truth 24:50 which actually is... your entire armour can fall apart 24:54 if you don't have on a belt... 24:56 so, people get dressed very nicely... 24:58 but just imagine... 25:00 you have on a nice suit and everything... 25:01 you have no suspenders but you have no belt... 25:03 your pants can fall down 25:06 and you can be totally exposed and vulnerable and weak... 25:08 and so, in... in warfare... 25:10 we need to recognize that we need to have 25:13 our armour on... that belt of truth... 25:15 that will really keep everything together... 25:18 the breastplate of righteousness... 25:20 of course, it's another piece that's important 25:22 because it protects 25:24 our heart and soul 25:25 from the attacks that the enemy sends our way... 25:28 then we have the shoes of the gospel of peace... 25:31 so, we don't only need the shoes 25:33 to share the good news about Jesus, 25:34 we also need these shoes to keep us grounded as we fight 25:38 because the shoes that these guys used in war 25:41 would have spikes in it 25:42 so when they would walk through the rough terrains... 25:44 they would be able to get balanced properly 25:46 and stuff like that... 25:48 so, in our own experiences and life, 25:49 we need to be so grounded in the truth... 25:51 grounded in the shoes of the gospel of peace... 25:54 but when the rough instances or the rough terrains 25:58 and the war zones come, 25:59 we are able to still stand in truth 26:01 and be true to God... 26:02 and then, we also need the shield of faith 26:05 to help us push and punch forward... 26:07 what I like about the shield of faith... 26:09 it's the only... 26:11 the piece you actually have to take up the shield of faith 26:13 it's not something that is going to be attached to your body... 26:16 like the breastplate or the belt and the shoes and so on... 26:19 you have to take it up... 26:20 and then the helmet of salvation... 26:22 that gives us the hope and assurance 26:23 that even though the blows and the attacks come... 26:26 they will not get... damage our head 26:29 or even give us internal or permanent damage 26:32 and so on... 26:34 and the sword of the Spirit... the Word of God... 26:36 we need that piece of armour... 26:38 because it means from any angle... 26:40 we take that sword... we can cut... 26:42 because both sides of the sword are sharp... 26:45 that's beautiful... that's the Word... 26:46 both sides of the sword... anywhere we can take it... 26:49 it can be used to cut apart 26:50 warfare that is happening in our heads 26:53 because sometimes the battle is really taking place up there... 26:56 it's the battleground that the enemy is after... our minds... 26:59 that's where the real war takes place... 27:01 the enemy... trying to do that 27:04 so, we need to keep that Word to bring spiritual division 27:08 and in Job 5 verse 12, the Bible says that: 27:11 "He disappoints the hands of the crafty and the wicked... 27:14 and schemers 27:16 so that their hands cannot perform their enterprise. " 27:19 And that's why we need to have the Word of truth... 27:21 we need that sword of the spirit... 27:23 that... that Word of God 27:25 so that we can continue to fight... 27:26 and so, we'll just say a quick prayer... 27:28 and ask God to just help us to be able to use 27:31 what we have learned today to be able to fight. 27:33 "We thank you Lord for just giving us this opportunity 27:37 to learn and learn more about how we can fight 27:40 and engage in spiritual warfare and come out victorious, Lord, 27:43 may we continue to access your Word 27:45 as the sword... we pray in the name of Jesus, amen. " 27:49 Jason: "Amen. " 27:51 Thank you again for that wonderful information 27:53 and thank you for joining us, be sure to tune in next time 27:58 when Dr. Nadine shares more information 28:00 to supply the missing peace. |
Revised 2018-03-07