Christianity 101: Building a Firm FoundationSample

The Gift of Spiritual Warfare…

The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.
John 10:10 NKJV

God has called us to live victoriously and abundantly in His marvelous light! Nevertheless, we must understand a little about our adversary and a whole lot about the tools Jesus has given us to defeat him.

Most Bible scholars agree that the devil was once positioned high in God’s order of angelic beings that He created (Ezekiel 28:1-19). However, Lucifer was cast out of heaven due to pride and attempting to usurp God’s position (Luke 10:18). Our enemy is finite—he can only be in one place at a time—and he is NOT God’s peer. Other angels in his rebellion were also expelled from God’s presence, and they now do the adversary’s bidding as demonic beings.

The enemy has a bit of might, but our GOD is ALMIGHTY!

Jesus has restored our God-given authority over our adversary (Luke 10:17-18). He has also given us His name to cancel the enemy’s work in our and others’ lives as the Holy Spirit directs us (Mark 16:17).

The Lord has also clothed us with His armor to cover and protect us in spiritual battle (Ephesians 6:10-18). The elements of this armor are truth, His righteousness, peace, faith, and the power of His salvation covering our minds. Our offensive weapon is His Word, the Bible, upon our lips as we pray in the Spirit.

And where does this spiritual battle take place?

In prayer! Our battles are not with flesh and blood—people— but with principalities and powers of darkness. Enemy strongholds are defeated as we pray in the Spirit and speak God’s Word and the power of Jesus’ Name with the Holy Spirit’s leading.

Although we still walk this earth, we are spiritually positioned with Christ in heavenly realms over the enemy (Ephesians 1:20-21, 2:5-6). And because our once-dead spirit has been born again by the Holy Spirit, a Jesus believer cannot be possessed by a demon (an unfortunate rendering of the Greek New Testament words demonized or influenced in the early KJV of the Bible).

However, Christians can be oppressed in areas of their soul—mind, emotions, personality, and intellect—and their physical body. The apostle Paul calls these areas strongholds, and they can be victoriously broken with the tools God has given us because of Jesus’ cross.

As with all our lessons, let’s dive deeper into God’s Living Word, the Bible, to learn all He has given us, who we are as His beloved children, and to hear His voice speak directly to us. In Him, our journey has overwhelming purpose, genuine joy, lavish fruitfulness, and incomparable adventure with every step we take.

• How are you encouraged or challenged by Jesus’ words in Luke 10:17-20?
• What do you learn from 2 Corinthians 10:3-5?
• What do you think it means to give the enemy a place in your life, Ephesians 4:27?
• There is untold treasure in Colossians 2:13-15. What speaks to you?
• Read about God’s Armor in Ephesians 6:10-18. What piece of this armor do you currently need to apply?

Was this plan helpful? It was adapted from the interactive discipleship book Building a Firm Foundation: CrossPointe #1, by Sue Boldt.