God seeks the pleasure of our company, and he wants us to live in that place forever. Spiritual warriors know that every situation has been designed for us to discover God’s presence and find appropriate access, using our circumstances.
Confidence in his nature is our entry point, always. To live in his presence with confidence is his will for us. Our inheritance is to belong to the presence of God with utter conviction and assurance
The word warrior conjures up images of violence and conflict, confrontation and opposition. While there is obviously some truth in that (we are called to fight) a warrior is much more than that. The weapons of our warfare are more powerful than the ones the enemy wants to use on us. A spiritual warrior is essentially peaceful, untroubled, and calm. That place of calm and tranquility as a source of internal power and anointing that causes God’s people to overcome.
We win through peace! We overcome by being overjoyed. We overthrow by being overwhelmed. The goodness of God, the sheer beauty of his nature, has so captivated and filled us that the enemy is pushed away and given no room in our lives. All Our permissions are given by God. We want him to affect and influence us. Opposition attaches to what we don’t remove. We have reclaimed our inner territory so that we can recover the ground around us.
A spiritual warrior has many positive attributes of dedication, focus, commitment, and discipline. These are all earthed in a joy that is contagious and a peace that is outrageous. They have been overwhelmed by love, and it shows. They have an exuberance in grace that wins people to the truth of God.
Warriors have a clarity of vision plus the internal compass and resources to keep going in that direction, no matter what is happening or how powerful the opposition is against them. Under real pressure, we fold; or we focus.
Every champion in Scripture seemed to move from one crisis to another. Warriors know that there can be no crisis without process. Process is a series of steps that take us from one place to another. Process is where the father reveals his intentionality, his purpose, his plan. No matter how powerful the opposition is, God has a plan for them.
Pharaoh, the most despotic ruler on the planet in the time of the ascendancy of Egypt, had to learn his place in the purpose of God.
Exodus 9:12 – in the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart, and he did not listen to them, just as the Lord had spoken to Moses. Then the Lord said to Moses, rise up early in the morning and stand before Farrell and say to him, thus says the Lord, the God of the Hebrews, let my people go, that they may serve me. For this time I will send all my plagues on you and your servants and your people, so that you may know that there is no one like me in all the earth. For if by now I had put forth my hand and struck you and your people with pestilence, you would then have been cut off from the earth. But, indeed, for this reason I have allowed you to remain, in order to show you my power and in order to proclaim my name through all the earth. Still you exalt yourself against my people by not letting them go.
Romans 9:17 – for the Scripture says to pharaoh, for this very purpose I raised you up, to demonstrate my power in you, in that my name might be proclaimed throughout the whole earth.
God hardened Pharaoh’s heart so that he resisted against Moses. The Lord is in charge of our opposition for his own purpose. Our role is to cooperate with the sovereignty of God. On the mission field you come up against human opposition in the face of power – hungry officialdom. Do not get angry or feel helpless. Just wait and pray. We chose not to be desperate, but calm. We got into the face of God for our confirmation; we never believe man. Doors will open because God is with us. Sometimes it will be dramatic; most times you don’t know what happened.
Pharaoh had his purpose; so did Moses. There is no one like God in all the earth. We have to learn that, so does the evil one. The Lord loves to show his power to the enemy. Our role in his Majesty is to proclaim him. That’s what David did against Goliath. Proclamation intimidates; that’s why we do it. We fight the good fight – 1 Timothy 6:12 – of faith. A good fight is one that we don’t lose.
Crisis is a normal event on the road to fulfilling our destiny;
2 Corinthians 6:4 – but in everything commending ourselves his servants of God, and much endurance, and afflictions, and hardships, and distresses, in beatings, in imprisonments, Intel motes, and labors, and sleeplessness, and hunger, impurity, and knowledge, and patients, and kindness, in the Holy Spirit, and genuine love, in the word of truth, in the power of God; by the weapons of righteousness for the right hand and the left, by glory and dishonor, by evil report and good report; regarded as deceivers and yet true; is unknown yet well known, as dying it behold, we live; as punished yet not put to death, as sorrowful yet always rejoicing, as poor yet making many rich, is having nothing yet possessing all things.
2nd Corinthians 11:23 – are the servants of Christ? – I speak as if insane – I more soul; and farmer labors, and far more imprisonments, Dean times we don’t number, often in danger of death. 5 times I received from the Jews 39 lashes, 3 times as being with rods, once I was stoned, 3 times I was shipwrecked, night and a day I have spent in the deep. I’ve been on frequent journeys, dangers from rivers, dangers from robbers, dangers from my countrymen, dangers from the Gentiles, dangers in the city, dangers in the wilderness, dangers on the sea, dangers among false brethren; I’ve been in labor and hardship, through many sleepless nights, and hunger and thirst, often without food, and cold and exposure. Apart from such external things, there is the daily pressure on me of concern for all the churches. Who is weak.my being weak? Who is leading the sin without my intense concern? I have to post, I will boast of what pertains to my weaknesses.
Paul experience highs and lows in life and circumstances. He knew that he would always have favor with God even when there was no favor with man. Whenever I was beaten on the mission field, I never attributed that to disfavor with God. Sometimes the favor of God lies in what could have happened but didn’t, as well as in what did happen that was better than we imagined. A true warrior has already given their life away. it Does not belong to them but to Christ. For me to live is Christ, to die is gain – Philippians 1:21 – was Paul’s battle cry – among others. He had a fine sense of himself in the worth and value of Jesus. He has suffered the loss of all things and counted that as a minimal thing compared to knowing Jesus – Philippians 3:8. He knew that there are times when a warrior puts the life of Christ on the line for the purposes of God – Philippians 3:10. We are not putting our lives on the line. We are dead and our lives are hid with Christ in God – Colossians 3:3.
Christ is our life – Colossians 3:4; and when he is revealed in us, his glory is manifested also. Warriors, when confronted with a huge challenge or an assault, do not immediately march out to deal with the enemy. Rather, they first march into their innermost being to submit to God. Maturity in our inner man is the key to remaining in tune with God on the battlefield.
They march inwardly to be changed; they march outwardly to make a change. That inner place is our refuge in God that also becomes a fortress against the enemy. A safe place in God becomes a strong place against the enemy.
This internal space where our inner man is constantly in fellowship with Christ within, provides us with the ability to look at the invisible realm of the kingdom. When we view life in the spirit from this place it is impossible to be downhearted. We see through the eyes of an ever present Christ. His perspective on life is glorious.
2nd Corinthians 4:16 – therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying, it are inner man is being renewed day by day. For momentary, light affliction is producing for us and internal weight of glory far beyond all comparison, while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal.
When Christ controls our inner space, his glory is manifested within. The kingdom opens up all the possibilities of heaven to us. The invisible becomes as real to us as the temporal. The spiritual dimension of Christ within becomes more real for us than the natural realm. We have reached our seat of government. In this place, all powers of the enemy, assaults, difficulties, problems, and diversity become downgraded to a light momentary affliction. What a brilliant concept! It’s an astonishing point of view. Christ within – the confident expectation of glory – Colossians 1:27. What was Paul seeing in his spirit that made him downgrade the enemy and adversity to such a ridiculous level? It was that these outward problems paled in comparison to the rich inward life of the King and his kingdom.
The old covenant heroes proved these truths about the presence of God, and they did not have Christ within. Daniel knew God so well; he was described by an Angel as a man greatly beloved of God. Daniel was a force for good and for God from within the very heart of the Babylonian and Persian empires. He served several world rulers, notably Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon and Cyrus of Persia. Daniels story is a testimony to how God works in us and through us no matter how difficult our surroundings.
Daniel was one of 3 governors overseeing 120 regional officers who welded great power in the providences. The King was so impressed by the excellent spirit in Daniel, he gave thought to promoting him over the whole realm. The other powers in the land were horrified at this and conspired against Daniel. They could find no fault in his faithful stewardship of Darius the King, but they discovered an opportunity against Daniel through his relationship with God. Daniel loved to pray 3 times a day. They knew that Daniel faithfully obeyed the law of the land; but when that law conflicted with the law of God, then you would choose the latter.
They convinced the King to write a decree stating that no one could pray for 30 days. If they broke this law, they would be thrown into a lions den. Once a royal decree was made, it cannot be revoked until it’s time of expiration. Daniel is thrown into the lines den, has an angelic visitation – Daniel 6:21 – 22, and is miraculously delivered. The King is so overwhelmed he writes a decree:
Daniel 6:25 – then Darius the King wrote to all the peoples, nations and men of every language who are living in all the land: Mayor peace abound! I make a decree that in all the dominion of my kingdom men are to fear in trouble before the God of Daniel; for he is the living God and enduring forever, and his kingdom is one which will not be destroyed, and his dominion will be forever. He delivers and rescues and perform signs and wonders in heaven and on earth, who has also delivered Daniel from the power of the lions. So this Daniel enjoyed success in the reign of darius and in the reign of Cyrus the Persian.
Daniel also had 3 friends: Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego who face a similar problem of jealousy, lies, power brokering, and corruption in the time of Nebuchadnezzar – Daniel 3. The King made a golden image and ordered that everyone should attend its dedication ceremony and bow down before it. Daniel’s friends refused to obey the command and were brought before the King who was furious with them. They knew the penalty for disobedience. They knew the options available to them: bow down or die a horrible death.
They answered the king immediately:
Daniel 3:16 – Shadrach, me shack and Abednego replied to the King, old Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to give you an answer concerning this matter. If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the furnace of blazing fire; and he will deliver us out of your hand, looking. But even if he does not, let it be known to you, O king, it were not can the serve your God’s worship the golden image that you have set up.
This is a predetermined response, composed in advance. Warriors are always clear in their thinking and their responses. The King was so outraged he had a furnace heated 7 times hotter than normal. The soldiers who threw them into the furnace were killed by the flames. The King was astonished to see 4 men in the furnace, not 3; and the 4th was unlike anyone he had ever seen – 3:25. Everyone was amazed and astounded that Shadrach, me shack, and Abednego were not only alive; they had not one burn, their clothing was intact, and there was no smell of smoke on their bodies! Nebuchadnezzar also passed a decree that no one can speak against the God of the Hebrews. He promoted the men to serve as governors in the providence of Babylon.
Champions have a view of God that sets them apart in their day. They understand that all crises are part of a process that God has set in motion. They are not overwhelmed by the event because they are aware of the process that God is developing around them to train, equip, and empower them in his name.
The process is always about our development into the place that the father his set aside for us in Christ. Through all the ups and downs of our life’s journey, when we commit ourselves to the process of God, we grow up in all things in Christ. Immature people only focus on the crisis itself, not the bigger picture of their own development. The father gives us prophecy so that we can get a handle on our identity for the future. All our life circumstances after that are designed to produce the character, quality, personality, and attitude that we need to develop in order to become the person he envisages us to be in Christ.
Process is where we discover God at work in our lives. It is where we submit to the work of his hands. Process is everything. There is no growth or maturity without it. If we do not submit to the process, the enemy will not submit to us. The process is the foundation for our obedience which results in our authority. There is no authority outside of our submission.
Process is joyful. It’s full of learning in love and presence. Process is discipleship 101 with the Holy Spirit. We are personally mentored in life by the 3rd member of the Trinity! Yahoo, and again I say, Yahoo!
The Holy Spirit is breathtakingly brilliant. The best teacher, facilitator, and mentor – absolutely fabulous! He loves to lead us into experiences of truth. He is so amazingly wise about everything – a genius, in fact. And, most astonishingly he is our comforter on the days when the lessons are really tough. Warriors must have tough training at times to acclimate them to places a real power and strength. We learn obedience by the things that we suffer – Hebrews 5:8. In Saying yes to Jesus, we must say no to other people and other things. Sometimes the no is painful.
The process that the father seeks to commit us to will be the breaking and the making of us. He will break our independence and self-reliance. He will break the power of our own soul. He will make us both a warrior, and a son – generic – of his love. Process is our own personal action plan for growth and development.
We learn in process that the purpose of problems is to produce faith. The aim in allowing demonic opposition is to develop power and authority in us. The intention behind human opposition is that God will use it to teach us grace. Tribulation is designed to produce patience and endurance. The objective behind conflict is to increase God’s love in our hearts and bring us to full maturity in his nature. When God allows temptation (that doesn’t mean he causes it – he cannot tempt) he seeks for us to be advanced in righteousness. When our resources come under attack, he teaches us how to give so that all our needs can be supplied in Christ. Process is where we discover God to be all that he ever said and all we will ever need.
Assignment – make a list of the current areas of struggle and difficulty; what is being revealed to you in Christ? What prophetic words have been spoken over you? What are the key descriptive words and phrases that point to your identity? What is the Holy Spirit processing in your life at this time which is in line with this identity being formed in you?
Commission – what attribute does God want to cultivate in you? What is the problem he will use to develop it? What is his intention? How must you cooperate? Develop an action plan for all your processing so that you become focused and obedience in your lifestyle.
Example (attribute – faith) problem – financial resources are under attack – intention – to teach us how to give. – Cooperation – learn to sow and reap.
Attribute (grace) problem- a difficult relationship with a person who is against me – intention – to enable me to love like Jesus. Not give like for like. – Cooperation – learn how to move in the opposite spirit. Be gracious and loving.
Attribute (sovereignty of God) problem- spiritual opposition, prolonged attack. – Intention – to discover Majesty of God and stand in his steadfast spirit – cooperation – learn endurance and praise under pressure.