Fighting the Battle vs. Winning the War
Have you ever felt like you are fighting an uphill battle? Does it sometimes feel like, for each step forward, you are knocked three steps back? I know I have felt that way. Whether our battles are internal, external, (or both), sometimes they can feel like they will never end. We all face challenges in many different forms: mental, physical, spiritual, relational and emotional—as well as overwhelming combination of them all. Sometimes it can feel so exhausting to keep fighting when there seems to be no end in sight. Is victory even possible?
While asking God for His help regarding a specific area of my life, (one I have prayed about MANY times), I was reminded that victory IS possible. In fact, with faith in God, it is guaranteed.
I have often thought about how if overcoming the obstacles and challenges in my life depends on me, then I am doomed to fail. I cannot claim to posses any super strength or abilities; I have weaknesses, flaws and many areas that seriously need improvement. Yes, I have been blessed in many ways, but I am also really good at making a mess of things when left to my own devices.
Turning to God's Word with this thought in mind, I found myself drawn to a familiar passage about the armour of God. I've read it many, many times, and heard teachings on it on several occasions through the years. I remember praying this when I was younger, pretending to put on imaginary armour, hoping that by “putting it on”, I would be safer and stronger. It was a good thing to reflect on, but what does it really mean?
“Therefore, take up the whole Armor of God, so that you may be able to withstand on that evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. Stand therefore, and fasten the belt of truth around your waist, and put on the breastplate of righteousness. As shoes for your feet, put on whatever will make you ready to proclaim the gospel of peace. With all of these, take the shield of faith, with which you will be able to quench all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. Pray in the Spirit at all times in every prayer and supplication. To that end, keep alert...” Ephesians 6:13-18
This time, the thing that stood out to me was not how I needed to declare all these things over myself and make sure that I'm properly wearing “my armour”, but rather, how it is really not about me at all. The armour of God is, in fact, exactly that. It's His. It comes from Him, not from us. It isn't something that we put together, but it is something that is received. He gives us the truth and He gives us His righteousness, His salvation and His Word. We only need to accept and receive it from Him, being responsible ourselves for only three things:
We need receive His salvation. He alone is our Savior, having provided the way for our redemption and restoration through Christ Jesus. Once we have received this, we can wear the helmet of His salvation in confidence, and not let our thoughts condemn us.
We need to have faith. We cannot receive Him without faith, for we must first have faith that He is who He says He is and choose to trust in His love and salvation for us. Faith is all that He requires of us, and it is the shield that will enable us to endure whatever may come against us.
We need to be prepared. Paul says, “As for shoes, put on whatever will make you ready to proclaim the gospel of peace.” We need to be ready to listen and follow Him wherever He leads us. He is able to guide us through the storms of life and lead us into the great plans and purposes He has for us—we just need to be ready and willing. If we do our part to prepare ourselves, spending time in prayer and in His Word, He will be faithful to direct our paths and lead us safely through every single valley.
If we have chosen to be clothed with the Armour of God, all we really need to do to claim the victory is to simply stand. Having done all we can on our part, He will be the One who brings the victory. And the victory is already won. We are secure in Him; He has given us everything we need.
Under the protection of God's armour, we don't have to do anything to ensure our victory. He has taken care of it. Our hearts are protected by HIS righteousness, and our minds our protected by HIS salvation. We will still need to endure the battle, but we can be assured that we will not be harmed.
God has not just ensured our survival, however, but He has also given us weapons to defend ourselves and deflect any attacks against us. As we stand equipped, we also have at our disposal the shield of our faith. All we need to do is raise it, and hold it steady. We also have the ability to cause the enemy to retreat by wielding the Sword of His Spirit the Lord has given us, which is found in the power of His Word.
This revelation freed me from the weight of being responsible for putting together my own armor, allowing me to instead rest in the knowledge that, in God's armor, victory is inevitable. All I have to do is stand firm in Him.
I was struck with how this closely relates to David's battle with Goliath. His battle was a very real, physical battle in which his life was at stake. Losing would literally cost him his head. He had no upper hand in this battle, but was actually the least likely to succeed out of all the fighting men, according to outward appearances. There was only one thing that he had in his favor that set him apart, and that was faith.
David boldly modelled what it means to truly rely on the armour of God. To the astonishment of the king and his men, he chose to forgo man-made armour, and proceeded into battle carrying just five smooth stones and the name of the Lord. David politely turned down the offer of the king's armour because that was “not his way”. David's way had been and would be to rely on the salvation of God. He had not fought against against lions and bears by depending on his own armour or strength, but by trusting in the deliverance of the the Lord. The Lord was His strength and victory—he didn't need anything else.
“But David said to the Philistine,
“You come to me with sword and spear and javelin; but I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied.”
“The Lord does not save by sword and spear; for the battle is the Lord’s,
and He will give you into our hand.”
1 Samuel 17:45,47
Most of you know the ending of this story. And if you, like David, trust in the Lord as your strength and salvation, then you also know the ending of your story. You have an armour that will outlast any storm, even an all out ambush. Because its not your armour. Its God's.
Is God your victor? Then you got this. All you have to do now is stand.
