the battlefield
As the atrocities of Russia’s war on Ukraine flood our eyes and ears, we are reminded with clarity that it’s not supposed to be this way. We find ourselves on our knees in prayer, crying, Why, Lord? Or some of us ask, God, how can you be real when there is so much suffering and despair here? How is it possible that a good God exists when such horrors abound?
We must go back to the beginning, before sin had a chance to taint the perfect world this earth had once been. Genesis 1:31 tells us, “God saw everything he had made, and behold, it was very good.” God declared His creation to be very good, so when we look at the world around us and see heaps of brokenness lining the streets and smothering our lives, we can be justified in thinking it’s not supposed to be this way. We are quite literally living on a battlefield.
Just two chapters later in Genesis, we encounter the earth’s first battlefield. God’s flawless garden is compromised by the enemy, who uses his tactics of deception and guile to plant seeds of doubt into the human heart, seeds that quickly blossom into full-fledged sin.
It may appear that Satan won that initial battle, but in God’s first rescue of His children, when He covered them with His love by clothing them and not forsaking them, we see a promise of the Rescuer who will decisively win the final battle. He is the Seed that will destroy any wild seeds the devil has sown. God tells the serpent in Gen. 3:15, “And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.”
For the rest of this already-not yet period in which we live, where Christ has already died on the cross and defeated death by rising from the grave but has not yet returned for the final victory to crush the serpent’s head, Satan is in his death-throes, trying to strike heels and inflict as much collateral damage as he can. God, on the other hand, is giving time for His children to come to repentance. Peter taught, “With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance” (2 Pet. 3:8-9).
So what are we to do? How do we respond to the evil and suffering that the enemy imposes upon us as he awaits his demise?
1. We must be reminded of the promises of God. We will be restored to Him, He will dwell with us, and as Rev. 21:4 says, “He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”
2. We must put on our armor and fight. “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free” (Gal. 5:1), but He has not freed us to step away from the battle. Rather, we have freedom so that we can stand firmly on the battlefield and fight for the One who has given us life. This is a call to action against the darkness that blankets our world and tries to blind us to the goodness of God.
Some of this darkness is on full display for our eyes to see. Just look at the wars, the genocide, the infanticide, and the human trafficking happening across the globe. We see addiction, cancer, adultery, divorce, and death in lives of people around us whom we love. We know in the deepest part of our hearts that it’s not supposed to be this way. This is just the portion of the darkness that we can see.
Much more of the darkness is hidden behind a veil. There is a spiritual battle raging in the realm that is invisible to us. Do you want proof? Is it merely a coincidence that just this week I had the worst day I can remember in ages, a day that came on the tails of four of us sick with influenza, weakened physically and emotionally, and on that very day, in the midst of heartache, I received an unexpected package that on any normal day would elicit inexplicable joy?
Tears had literally been flowing for hours on end and my heart was an upside-down mess of confusion as I tore open the bubble-wrap envelope to discover the first hardback copies of Known: A Study of the Good Shepherd, my debut publication, a project that I hope to use to reach more people with the Gospel. I was reminded of what Jesus said, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy” (Jn. 10:10). The enemy was actively trying to steal my joy.
I have experienced instances like this far too often to call it coincidence. It often happens just before I am about to teach God’s Word to a group of women. My fellow teachers report the same phenomenon when they are in preparation. It happens frequently on Sunday mornings before going to church, when I cannot wrangle the five of us into the car for the life of me and suddenly we’re all shouting at each other. WE ARE HEADED TO CHURCH, PEOPLE! It happens in the airport while waiting to go through security or while we are packing the car for a trip, times when Brian and I are supposed to be modeling patience and self-control for our children. The enemy exploits our moments of weakness. He wants to undermine our effectiveness as followers of Christ.
This brings me back to the package. Of course Satan wanted to instill doubt into my heart before I received this powerful tool. He wanted me to second-guess the mission, to question whether I have the proper balance with Brian and the kids, to think that I’m a terrible mother and to wonder if my marriage is falling apart. LIES. All lies. But if he can weaken me in any area of my life, he will do it. He will do anything to stop the Gospel from going forth. He knows he cannot snatch me out of the Lord’s hand (Jn. 10:28), so he tries to make my witness ineffective. He wants me to doubt God and myself.
Sisters and brothers, I urge you to recognize the spiritual battle being waged around you. It is only when we fully recognize our enemy that we can fight most effectively. God has not left us to fight alone. He has given us His own armor (Is. 59:16-17), and we are to wear it while living lives of faithful prayer. I will leave you with Ephesians 6:10-20:
“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints, and also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains, that I may declare it boldly, as I ought to speak.”
Is it coincidence that last week the Lord led me to purchase two copies of Priscilla Shirer’s The Armor of God to complete with my daughter? Is it coincidence that Scarlett, just days before I handed her the book, had been thinking about a recent Southeast Christian sermon series called The Invisible War and was wanting to learn more about it? Is it coincidence that we often meet opposition when actively pursuing the work and truth of God?
Make no doubt about it. We stand on a spiritual battlefield. I have chosen the side of the Victor and I have given Him my life. What about you? It’s never too late to choose Jesus.
