2 Corinthians 10-13
The Spiritual Battle Ground
Most Christians are familiar with the concept of spiritual warfare. Paul taught that we are to put on the full armor of God and take our stand, “…against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.” Ephesians 6:12b NASB
In this section of scripture, from Ephesians 6:10-20, Paul tells us to put on the full armor of God, which he describes in verses 13-18. The majority of the armor we are to put on is taken from Isaiah 59:15-20. The verses in Isaiah are talking about Jesus. I take this to mean that when these spiritual battles rage against us we are to be dressed like Christ Jesus, or be Christ-like. Whenever there is a reference in the New Testament to a passage in the Old Testament I always go to the Old Testament passage and read the context. I want to know what was going on and why the New Testament writer referred to that particular Old Testament passage. This is what I recommend you do and don’t be afraid to read the chapters before and after the passage. There is also a reference to Isaiah 52:7. So that said, let’s get back to 2 Corinthians 10.
In 2 Corinthians 10:3-6 we read of one of the most common places spiritual battles take place. It is in the mind and the battle is against the thoughts. Verse 5
As we read this verse I believe we need to be careful here. I think there is a tendency among believers to project this battle on others and not take a reflective look at ourselves. I fear that if we do this we may well miss the point that we need to take captive our own thoughts and make them obedient to Christ as well as others. Certainly we can present scriptures to people who do not believe as we do or believers who have wandered from the truth. We can pray for them and we can even argue with them and prove our point. But do we really know the scriptures? Do we really pray in the Spirit so we know the mind of Christ? Are we on the right path?
In Matthew 16, verse 15, Jesus asked the disciples who they believed Jesus was. Peter said, Jesus was the Christ the Son of God. Jesus told Peter that only God the Father revealed this to Peter. He could not have gotten this from anywhere else. Verse 17
However, just four verses later, Jesus told the disciples that He would be handed over to the elders in Jerusalem and killed. Peter took Jesus aside and rebuked Him to which Jesus replied, “Get behind Me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to Me; for you are not setting your mind on God’s interests but man’s.” Matthew 16:23 NASB
Have we truly put on the full armor of God or do we battle with the things of the world that come into our mind from what we look at, listen to, or think about? For another example, check out Matthew 6:19-24. Note that the battle was within. It began with a longing of the heart. Soon the eyes were focused on the wrong things and the body was soon to follow. This is why I believe we need to take captive our thoughts and make sure they are obedient to Christ Jesus.
Here are some more verses for further study.
Luke 8:26-35; Romans 8:1-11, 12:1&2; 1 Corinthians 2:6-16; Philippians 3:17-21; 1 Timothy 6:3-10
Pastor Dave