fight

In response to the previous message, someone asked me if I could stand it, 'all those negative things'. Well, you do what you think you should do for the Lord. I can't close my eyes to everything that's going on. In recent weeks I have already met several believers, who in one way or another suffer from the consequences of the apostasy that is going on on Christian property. And everyone tries to make something of it in their own way.

You cannot ignore the fact that one 'Bible-believing Christian community' after another ends up in the spiritual-charismatic wastewater of our time. You can experience up close that a community is completely turned around within 25 years. Can you do something about it then? I have no illusions that this development can be stopped. In fact, the Bible clearly states that this is something that will happen in the last days. And yet we are called to go to war.

Conflict

To begin with, we must realize that there is a fierce battle going on for the souls of all people. Also from all who are called 'Christian'. We must be aware that Satan is pulling out all the stops to try to divert the believers from God's way and to bring them under his own influence. And he does so in the most cunning ways.

“Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the devil's crafty temptations. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the world rulers of the darkness of this age, against the spiritual powers of evil in the heavenly places.” (Ephesians 6:11-12)

All the powers of darkness and evil in the invisible world, led by the devil himself, are trying to pull the Christians away from behind Christ. A believer who does not see that this is happening is in great danger of being misled. After all, it is in the first instance a matter of standing up for ourselves and being able to resist, as this same part of the Bible in Ephesians 6 also tells us.

• “(…) that you may be able to stand (…)” – verse 11
• “(…) that you may resist (…) and endure.” – verse 13
• “Stand then (…) – verse 14

The truth

“Stand firm then, your waist girded with truth” (Ephesians 6:14).

The first piece of armor in this battle is the truth. That is what the battle is about: the truth of God's Word. We can only survive if we surround ourselves with the truth of God's Word. Don't be tempted to hold different views. The truth of God is always in question (see also here). No wonder that in the beginning the believers persisted in "the doctrine of the apostles."

Many today say that the struggle Christians face is not about the truth, because the truth does not exist. It's a personal struggle. Things in your character or in your habits that you should change or things that you are having a hard time with. Or it is about fighting injustice in the world, which is said to be the Christian duty to act against. Well, these are not minor things in and of themselves, but they are not the things the Bible means when it comes to the spiritual warfare we have to fight. It is about the truth of God's Word: "Is it really so that God has said (...)?" (Genesis 3:1).

The Apostle John rejoices when he observes that the believers – including the young – “walk in the truth” (2 John 4 and 3 John 4).

Fighting in the prayers

Finally, in Ephesians 6 the prayer and supplication is mentioned, without this being directly mentioned as part of the armor. Yet it is a 'warfare' as Paul also calls it in the letter to the Romans:

“And I call you, brethren, through our Lord Jesus Christ and through the love of the Spirit, to join me in fighting in the prayers to God for me (…)(Romans 15:30)

In Jerusalem there were those who opposed Paul's preaching. He calls them "disobedient" and apparently he has great difficulty with them. It could even be that because of their opposition the believers in Jerusalem would not accept the gifts of the churches in Macedonia and Achaia (see verse Romans 15:26). Paul prays to be delivered from these disobedient ones and he calls on the believers in Rome to pray for it too. He calls it "fight in prayers'.   

But contending in prayer is only possible when we are aware of the spiritual battle that is going on wherever the Lord's workers are engaged for Him. Realizing that the adversary is out to destroy the work in cunning ways. Then we can pray focused.

I call you brothers

Paul here calls on us to fight for him in prayers. 'Summoning' is not just asking a question, no, it means 'prompting' and even 'begging'. Paul begs the believers to join him in prayer. It is as if his life would depend on it, so to speak.

The same word 'call up' is then used in the next chapter as (Romans 16:17) when it comes to the opposition to the truth among the believers in Rome.

I have a hunch that these two calls are not in this order by accident. First see that there is a battle going on and therefore contend in prayers with the laborers of the Lord. This 'exercise' is necessary in order to stand firm for the truth in one's own community (16:17-20).

“The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you” (Romans 16:20b).