We are going to review some of the concepts associated with this 21-part teaching on spiritual warfare. We will then show you how these can be applied and also add some additional notes.
Spiritual warfare is against spiritual wickedness, but it also can be applied to people. How do we fight spiritual battles? With our testimony, bearing witness, enduring reproaches, having a conflict against heretical teachers, watching for errors and heresies, rejecting the stubborn and the incorrigible.
So, what we are going to do is list the concepts you will need to know when in a spiritual battle. Then we are going to go over warfare truths, or axioms; how to prepare for a battle; psychological warfare; who our commander is; how to attack; what to do when attacked and how to act after a victory. All this will come from what we have just studied in our 21-part teaching on spiritual warfare. So, why study spiritual warfare? A compass can tell you true north, but it does not tell you where the mountains, rivers and swamps are. If forging ahead heedlessly cause you to land in a swamp, what’s the use of knowing true north.
TERMS TO KNOW
*Yehovah Tzavaot- Hebrew for “Lord of the Armies” and it is a title. This is used when Yehovah is coming from a military position of power.
*Don’t fight battles you are unprepared for
*Laws of Warfare- Deut 20.1-20; Num 4.3; Judges 3.1-2; Eph 6.10-17
* The Lord is a warrior- Exo 15.3
* The Basar- the word in Hebrew for “gospel”, meaning “good news from a battle”- 1 Sam 31.9; 2 Kings 7.9
* Moreshet Karav- meaning “heritage of battle” and this concept is taught to Hebrew children- Isa 58.14
* Strategy is the plan to win the war
* Tactics is the plan to win the battles that will win the war
* Wars are not won with bombs, but with information. Control the information and facts and you control the battlefield.
* The Art of Warfare- is the attempt by one entity to impose its will over another by force
* Casualties- our lives, hearts and minds
* Fort/city- is you, your family, congregation- Ecc 9.14-16; Jer 1.18; Matt 13.45-46
* Mobility- being able to move, your walk with God, a mobile firing platform (like a chariot or tank)
* Firepower- weapons with a purpose to hit the enemy at various ranges (prayer, Scripture, books, media and speech)
* Security- personal defenses and walls, stability, knowledge, wisdom, understanding- Isa 33.6
* Wall foundation- the Torah and the Scriptures
* Shield- faith, confidence; two types: a magen is small, round shield used in close combat, and a tzinah is larger shield used against long range weapons. Too much confidence (tzinah) or too little confidence (magen) can hurt you in a battle. You need the right shield at the right time. A shield deflects arrows and missiles of “untruth” and “false doctrine, teachers/prophecy”
* Towers- units of study that you master to fortify your wall and city with; Square towers mean you know something “in the rough.” A semi-circular tower means you know a subject well it deflects better than a square tower
* Balconies- is the application of what you know (units of study) in defense
* Glacis- is your attitude, what is before your walls and city, a spiritual “stiff arm”; the enemy will try and wear you down- Judges 7.5-6; 2 Tim 4.2; 2 Kings 14-19
* Moat- is observance, to “keep” a guard, that which keeps the enemy away from your walls, not built overnight
* Water source- is the living water of true teaching, “mayim chaim”, life. Wells are dug deep and bringing up wisdom. Water is buried below the ground, hidden, but it is accessible to those who understand how to get it and how vital it is to life. But to obtain it takes a lot of work to bring it up to the surface
* Gates- the weak point in your defenses and life. These need attention because just like the five senses in the physical world, these “gates” help you relate to the spiritual world around you
* Sword- is a sharp mind in the Torah and Scriptures, sharp words (Psa 59.7) that can “stab” with two edges (Law and the Prophets) in a piercing one time blow
* Arrows/stones- our words (Psa 120.4)
* Helmet- covers your “head” against false teaching and psychological warfare
* Bows and slings- that which fires the arrows or stones, information, words mean things. The quiver is what stores the information, the memory. The composite bow is symbolic of the blending of many areas of study together for a long range weapon
* Spear/javelin- a medium range weapon, keeps the enemy at a distance and not too close. This can be anything that can keep an opponent way from you till you are ready (like not responding right way to a phone call, email, etc)
* Axe- anything that pierces or cuts you, like a “cutting remark.”
* Mace- a heavy blow, beating you in one blow, like a sudden death, loss of a job or a divorce
* Battering ram- repeated “frontal assaults” and a pounding right in the gut, and if not stopped, you are through
* Terrain- there are three types of battles you are in:
a duel-one on one battle (an argument, discussion, debate)
small groups-your group against another group
armies-large movements against another large movement (like elections, etc)
* Conservatism- not changing with new tactics or weapons. This can lead to destruction, like the Philistines would not get the composite bow and this lead to their defeat against the Egyptians who used it
* Basis for strategy and tactics- surprise, maintenance of aim, ecology, concentration of force, security
* Surprise- to move your “force” to engage the enemy at a time and under conditions he does not expect, or has prepared for. He cannot react with his own weapons and forces to any affect.
* Firebrands/coals- thoughts and words that seem dead on the surface, but are hot within later, troublesome people (Isa 7.4)
* Auxiliary forces- those close to us who turn against us and fight with our enemy (family, friends, co-workers, etc)
* Siege- a long, drawn out trial or battle (a divorce, financial problems, health, unemployment, etc)
* Posterns- schemes, undermining “tunnels” coming against you from another while you are attacking on the outside (they come out of their defenses/city against you in a “hidden” attack)
* Allies- those close to us who stand with you against an enemy (family, friends, co-workers, congregation, etc)
Spiritual Warfare means getting involved
WARFARE TRUTHS
* The study of biblical warfare can be applied to our own spiritual warfare, it also teaches about future battles predicted in the Bible, and to study warfare will help understand a particular passage when we come to it
* Know you are going to be attacked, and make provisions beforehand. You fight with the army/weapons you have, not the ones you wish you had, so prepare before the battle
* War is the attempt of one side to impose its will on the other side. Strategy is the way you win a war, tactics is how you win a battle. The strategy of the enemy is to take the Torah away so that you do not know God. The tactic is to get the Jews to look at what was done to them in the past and not see the Messiah in the Torah. To the Gentiles, it is to confuse who Messiah is, what he said and to not study the Torah at all because it has been “done away with.” Many believe in God, but they don’t believe God (Apostles Creed). The third goal is to keep the two groups apart
* To be forewarned is to be forearmed. The enemy will attack you, no exceptions. Wars and battles are always fought by scared people who would rather be somewhere else
* The art of warfare is to seek superiority over the enemy in three areas: mobility, firepower and security
* Spiritual warfare is a process of difficulty. The first enemies are simple and not so sophisticated. In later battles, the enemy, his weapons and defenses get better and better, so your weapons and defenses should be better and better
* “Roman” attacks require intervention from God. The Roman attacker comes at you with the attitude that you will be destroyed, no matter the cost. They like to intimidate and divide you, keep you off balance and infiltrate.
* Vanity and pride is one’s greatest weakness (Ahitophel and Absalom versus Hushai and David-2 Sam chapters 16-17)
* Spiritual and physical battles often go hand in hand, and casualties will occur.
* “If you have run with the infantry and they wearied you, then how can you contend with the cavalry. And if you are in a land of peace, in the land you trusted and they wearied you, then how will you do in the flooding of the Jordan (idiom for when an army attacks, like the Babylonians, in Jeremiah’s case-Jer 12.5)
* As always, the best defense is a good offense
* Never use a high calibre “bullet” on a low calibre target. In other words, don’t cast your pearls before swine
* No matter how strong your defenses are today, if you stay the same an enemy will come along who can knock your walls down (Jerusalem against the Assyrians, Jerusalem against the Romans)
* Don’t get stuck in the Bronze Age fighting Iron Age enemies
* Don’t rely on past victories (tactics) to win future battles. The enemy will have learned your tactics and developed something superior to counter-act it
* “Hittite” attacks like to undermine you, talk behind your back to others to make you look bad. You must confront a “Hittite” attack face to face and “cave-in” his “tunnels” before it is too late. They do not like confrontation
* Know your enemy, his weapons and tactics by assessing and evaluating
* Don’t underestimate your enemy like casemate walls at Masada against broad wall battering rams; nobody thought anyone could reach the walls there so they did not make them thick enough
* The success of a battle is determined by the abilities of the enemy
* The attitude of the commander and the spirit of the troops will change the outcome of a battle (sons of Israel against the sons of Benjamin-Exo 13.17; Judges 20.18-48)
* The real miracle at Chanukah is when faced with assimilation to Greek religions and philosophy (Christianity is steeped in Greek philosophy) or following the Lord, you choose to follow the Lord, even if you have to separate and go into the wilderness alone to do it. This will come at a great price
* “Philistine” attacks try to draw you out into a confrontation, face to face, in close combat. They like confrontation. Make sure you don not confuse a “Hittite” attack with a “Philistine” attack
* “Assyrian” attacks overwhelm you, are costly and nasty. They will play dirty and are able to wage war from several areas, high in casualties and you can’t win, there will be “domino” effect problems, they are organized, even if your friends are under attack and can’t help, you are cut off and alone, your spiritual walk can deteriorate, your strength won’t win, you need intervention from God, you can’t fight them in open terrain and your only hope is a strong fortress and hope something happens to draw them away from you, they will “decapitate you, cut your hands off, impale you” if they win, anyone in their way is trampled (this can happen in a congregation, your family or business), you are outnumbered, out-maneuvered and outgunned. But don’t panic and start running, you’ll “get killed” anyway so you might as well fight and not make it easy on them
* Never interrupt your opponent when they are making a mistake *Manners may win friends at a tea party, but they don’t win wars
In Spiritual Warfare-Review, Application and Additional Notes II, we will begin with psychological warfare.
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