Weapons of all types threaten to come against us all the time. Knives and guns on occasion, but most commonly the weapons threatening us are merely the people we interact with daily.
By a show of hands, how many have identified a coworker, a neighbor or a relative as an enemy? If you've ever had someone almost run you over as you tried to cross the street, you know that even a brief, unpleasant encounter with a complete stranger can create an enemy and instigate a desire to use one of those weapons of warfare to fight back!
People around us do things that are so foul, it feels like a war. In retaliation, our instincts want us to use the same weapons that we despise to discourage our enemy from further attack. We don't like to feel that any one has gotten the best of us. Even in cases where we may never see the person again, we still want to make sure they know that "we aint havin it!".
Is this the right road? Should we react to conflict the same way the world does? Should we have weapons of warfare locked in cabinets and tucked away in nightstand drawers for an enemy we fear may invade? Should we fight the way everyone else is fighting when faced with a confrontation? If there really is a war going on, does it have to involve us?
Paul answers these questions in II Corinthians 10:4. He confirms that we are indeed at war; our enemy is very real and is attacking. However, the weapons we should utilize are not earthly weapons,
"For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds"
Carnal weapons have no affect against the real enemy. In this verse Paul explains that we have in our possession weapons that are mighty and they will defeat the "stronghold" that the enemy presents in our lives.
We are most accustomed to weapons that are carnal or "of this world structure". These weapons are not always physical. Manipulation is a carnal weapon. Spitefulness and animosity are carnal weapons. Antagonism and resentment are carnal weapons. All of these have no place in our lives but we use these weapons and often find them directed toward us in an emotional battle. When a Christian uses these weapons, however, he or she is presented with a problem the ungodly people do not face: These weapons are more damaging to us then to the person we inflict them upon.
How so?
When a Christian is in a carnal fight, it's like a head-butt to a brick wall, we injure ourselves more than we do the wall. Why? Because God has a standard for Christians. When we hurt each other emotionally or physically, we fail to meet that standard. God's intention is not to damage a person that you view as an enemy, but instead for you to live an abundant life in spite of that person you view as an enemy; and maybe even win that person over to Christ.
The truth is, it's easy to believe that an individual attacking you is evil and therefore your enemy. But, in actuality, the person opposing you isn't the enemy. You must understand that your real warfare is against Satan. The person opposing you is just a pawn spiritually blind and foolishly allowing him or herself to be used by the evil principalities that dwell on this earth. Jesus understood this; which led him to cry out while he was being crucified and plead for the forgiveness of the ones who were crucifying him,
"Father forgive them, they know not what they do!" Luke 23:34
Jesus showed that the weapons used against us are often carnal, but carnal warfare is not how we should respond. We have weapons to respond to the enemy with in this warfare. And, according to Paul, though they are not carnal, they are mighty; in other words they will be effective in defeating the enemy.
So, if our weapons are not carnal, what weapons are they? How should we fight back? How should we respond to an adversary? How should we respond to the real enemy?
Paul teaches in II Corinthians 10:5 that we are to fight by,
"Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God".
Your real weapon is not physical, it's in your mind! You can fight evil principalities with the knowledge you have of God's Word! When a person opposes you, it's because that person has lost the battle against evil principalities in their mind and now you are seeing the effects. They are suffering from a lack of knowledge; in other words, they don't know any better. In order for you to be successful in an area where others are not, you can't do what they are doing. Your weapon is to make a better decision in your mind than those around you are making.
Paul says cast down wrong thoughts or wrong "imagination" that exalts itself against the knowledge you have of God. He goes on to say in verse 5 of the passage that you should capture every thought and bring that thought into the obedience of Christ. Any thought... every thought that is not Christ-like should be arrested and detained without bail. Paul expands a little further in Romans 12:1-3. He says.
"do not conform your thinking to this worlds ideas, but instead be transformed by the total renewing of your mind... "
The things that you believe in your mind will determine your effectiveness against the real enemy. If you believe everything Jesus has said about who you are and what you can do, then you will not be detoured by the enemy. But, if you believe what the world is teaching; that you are powerless and just as vulnerable as everyone else around you, then you've lost the battle in your mind and therefore will lose against the real enemy. To win, you must rid yourself of old negative ways of thinking and embrace new ideas. You must completely renew your mind.
One critical step in the process of renewing your mind is to receive the FULL gospel. If you don't habitually receive the WHOLE word of God, you will have no new ideas to renew your mind to! This is another place where many Christians go wrong. Some of the ideas that are taught at churches today are not biblical and are honestly just as damaging as those being purged. The most damaging ideas, in my opinion, are those that reject the Anointing Power of God. Worst also are those erroneous ideas that separate and isolate us from each other. These concepts are exactly the warfare that Paul is pleading we recognize.
To fight the real enemy, we must turn to our real weapon. We have to capture the new ideas that we are transforming our minds to understand. We have to digest these ideas to combat the wrong imagination that will come against the Word that we are trying to devour. And confidence in this weapon will increase with more knowledge of the Word over time. When we develop in this area and allow God to strengthen us, no weapon that the devil forms against us will concur us!
