Love Worth Finding

Guest (Male): Listen closely to Adrian Rogers as he describes the spiritual war taking place all around us.

Adrian Rogers: We're going to talk about a warfare today because there is a dark, diabolical, deadly, dirty war. It is a war between light and darkness, heaven and hell, Christ and Satan. And whether you realize it or not, you are a part of that war and you cannot possibly be neutral. If you try to be neutral, you're going to find yourself in the crossfire and in the most dangerous place of all.

Guest (Male): Welcome to Love Worth Finding featuring the profound truth of the gospel simply stated. As we just heard, we are part of a spiritual war between light and darkness, good and evil. We can't afford to be ignorant and we can't possibly be neutral. But we do not wrestle against flesh and blood. We wrestle against principalities and powers of darkness.

Pastor, teacher, and author Adrian Rogers said when you were born again, you were born to win. Ephesians chapter 6 shows us how to prepare ourselves for this battle. If you have your Bible, turn there now beginning in verse 10 as Adrian Rogers shares part one of Christian Warfare.

Adrian Rogers: Would you take God's word and find Ephesians chapter 6? We're going to talk about a warfare today because there is a dark, diabolical, deadly, dirty war that is being fought in America. It is a form of guerrilla warfare: sabotage, subversion, innuendo, sniping.

It is a deadly war. It is a war between light and darkness, good and evil, heaven and hell, Christ and Satan. And whether you realize it or not, you are a part of that war. You cannot afford to be ignorant and you cannot possibly be neutral.

If you try to be neutral, you're going to find yourself in the crossfire and in the most dangerous place of all. You dare not, I say, be ignorant. You must not endeavor to be neutral. I want us to read about that warfare. Ephesians chapter 6 and verse 10:

"Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.

Wherefore take unto you the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; and your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;

Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;

And for me, that utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in bonds: that therein I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak."

We are at war. This message is a warning, a call to arms, but a declaration of victory. I want to say again, when you were born again, you were born from above. And you being heaven-born are heaven-bound, but you were also born for a battle. You were born for the battle.

But again, when you were born again, you were born to win. That is what you must understand. And this is a wonderful passage of scripture that talks about the Christian warrior. Now, it's not merely talking about the pastor or the evangelist or the missionary. It is talking about you, sir. It is talking about you, lady.

So let's learn what God's word is saying, not just in general or not long ago, but what God is saying with specificity to you this morning. Are you with me? I want you to listen now. There are several things I want you to notice.

First of all, the Christian warrior and his adversary. We must, we must know our enemy. Look if you will again in verse 11. He says, "Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil." That's your adversary. You must know your enemy. He is called the devil.

Now, the devil today is sort of a laughable character. We think of the devil as some medieval superstition. Today, we make light of the devil. We call football teams devils and demons. We talk about deviled ham and devil's food cake. It's sort of a joke.

We think of the devil as some sort of a guy in long red underwear with a pitchfork trying to catch somebody bending over. I mean, that's the idea. That is the caricature that we have of the devil. Our sophisticated age today makes the idea of a real and a personal devil more or less laughable.

But you have an enemy. He is very real. The Bible does not speak of him as some figment of the imagination, but it has always been his purpose to pull the veil of darkness over his kingdom and either have his very existence denied for a while, but he really doesn't want that. He wants worship.

He will only use this disguise so long before he removes the veil himself and says, "Bow down and worship me." Now, it's important that we understand who the devil is in our warfare because if there is no enemy, there's going to be no preparation for war.

We used to sing a song about the Lord Jesus. We sing it sometimes in this church: "He lives, he lives, Christ Jesus lives today. He walks with me and he talks with me along life's narrow way." You could sing about Satan: "He lives, he lives, Satan lives today. He wars on me and works on me along life's narrow way."

You have an enemy, and you must understand this. Now, how is this enemy described? Well, I want you to see first of all, he is a decided fact. F-A-C-T. Verse 11: "The devil." I hope you believe in the devil. If you don't believe that the devil exists, you are in a very precarious situation.

Not only is he a decided fact, he is a destructive foe. Notice how he is described. Look in verse 11: "That ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil." Look at that word "wiles." The Greek word for wiles is *methodia*. It's the word we get "methodical" from. It's the word we get "method" from.

Satan is very methodical. In Satan's warfare, he is very strategic. He may even step back two steps in order to go forward three steps. He may let you think that you're getting away with your sin. He may even seem to be blessing you and helping you along your way. He is very strategic.

He has made a plan to sabotage your life and your home. The dynamite is in place, the fuse is laid, the match is struck, and Satan is working on you. He is wily. He is subtle. Apart from the leadership of the Holy Spirit of God, he would deceive the very elect. He is, first of all, strategic. Verse 11.

Also, he is spiritual. Look in verse 12: "For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world." Now watch this: "Against spiritual wickedness." Boy, there's a lot of that going on today. Spiritual wickedness.

You see, sometimes people think because something is spiritual, it is good. No, there's spiritual goodness and there's spiritual wickedness. The Bible says believe not every spirit. Test the spirits, whether they are of God. Sometimes people get into séances, necromancy, Ouija boards, horoscopes, clairvoyancy, visions, Hindu mysticism.

They say, "Oh, but Pastor, there's really something to it." Yes, there is something to it. There is spiritual wickedness. Now, your enemy: he is strategic, he is spiritual, and Martin Luther said his power and craft are great and armed with cruel hate. On earth is not his equal because not only is he strategic and spiritual, he is strong.

Look again, if you will, in verse 12. There he talks about principalities and powers. In your flesh, you are no match for your adversary. You are puny and weak if you come against Satan in your own strength. You might as well be throwing snowballs at the Rock of Gibraltar than to come against Satan in your own strength.

He is powerful. "We wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities and powers, authorities." And then again, he's also sinister. Look if you will in verse 12. There the Bible talks of darkness and there the Bible talks of wickedness. Satan has dark, devilish, tyrannical power.

He is in a fight to the finish and there's nothing that that dirty devil will not do to wreck, to ruin, to destroy your life. I believe that he knows he has but a little while and he is like a cornered animal. He is fighting with no holes barred.

Now, he is a decided fact, he is a destructive force, but he is, listen to me, a defeated foe. He is a defeated foe. Look if you will again in verse 10. Here's what the Apostle Paul says: "Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might."

Because our God has already defeated Satan. It's not that Satan shall be defeated; he is already defeated. He is a defeated foe. In Jesus said, facing the cross, "Now is the prince of this world cast out." Put in your margin 1 John chapter 4 and verse 4: "Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you—who is that? The Holy Spirit—than he that is in the world—who is that? The devil."

You see, Satan is strong, Satan is sinister, Satan is strategic, Satan is spiritual, but God is almighty and greater is he that's in you than he that is in the world. And so, if you don't ever learn these truths, you're not going to understand victory.

Now, Pastor, if Satan is a defeated foe, then why do I have to be warned? Because while Satan's back was broken at Calvary, God still allows Satan to have power on this earth. It is limited power, and it is power that we as Christians can and shall overcome in the Lord Jesus Christ. But it is a part of God's plan to make overcomers of us and get greater glory to himself.

I was reading in the newspaper about rattlesnakes, and I clipped the article. And here's what it said: "Doctors in Arizona have a warning for the public. A rattlesnake can bite even if his head has been cut off." That's an interesting article.

And I copied out a part of that article: "Five of 34 rattlesnake bites that Jeffrey Succard and Frank Lovecchio of the Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center in Phoenix treated between June 1997 and April 1998 involved snakes that the victims thought were dead. The rattlesnake had been killed; in some instances, his head had been cut off, but even that severed head had bitten the individual."

So here's a snake who's dead who's still biting. That is a good description of Satan. He has been defeated. His head was severed at Calvary and yet he still has dark, diabolical power.

Now, that's the very first thing you need to understand. That is the Christian warrior and his adversary, the devil. Now here's the second thing. How important it is that you understand this, and that is the Christian warrior and his armor. We need not only to recognize our enemy, we need to prepare for the battle.

Now, if you don't prepare for the battle, you're going to lose it. You are to put on the whole armor of God, and it is to be holy armor. Notice verse 13: "Wherefore take unto you the whole armor of God." That is so very important: that you take the whole armor, that you don't leave off a piece.

I can remember the game well. I was feeling good. My ankles were taped. I was ready. It was the kickoff. We were kicking to the opposing team. I was on the team that would go down to try to make the tackle. I found myself after the whistle ahead of the pack. I saw the man who was trying to pick up the ball. He was fumbling the ball. It was down there and there he was, almost on his own goal line.

I thought if I can just hit him while he's trying to pick up that ball, there will be a fumble, we'll score. And I was going full speed. And then I saw one other individual. I can remember it like yesterday. He lined up with that ball carrier behind him and he was between myself and the ball carrier. I said, well, if I go to the right, I'll miss the ball carrier. If I go to the left, I'll miss the ball carrier. There's only one thing to do and that is to go through this man to that man.

So, I'm going full speed. This man is coming at me full speed. The man is back there still trying to pick up the ball. I'm trying to look over this man who's down to block me at the ball carrier to keep my eye on the ball carrier, never slowing down a bit. We collided like two locomotives.

Next scene, I'm on the bench opening my eyes, trying to figure out what on earth happened. I'll tell you what happened. I thought I could go a little faster if I left off one part of the protective armor that a football player is supposed to wear. Just one piece. I said, if I leave that off, if I leave that one piece off, I will be faster. Friend, I was O-U-T, out.

Put on the whole armor of God. Don't leave off one piece. Now, let's look at that armor. God describes that armor. First of all, look at it. He says here: "Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth."

First of all, you put on the girdle of truth, which is the believer's integrity. Truth stands for integrity. You see, a soldier in that day wore a tunic and he had a leather belt. Sometimes you see motorcycle riders with a leather belt around. Sometimes you see weightlifters with a big, strong leather belt around them because that is to hold this center of strength together.

A warrior in that day had a leather belt, a girdle, that was cinched up tight to prepare him for the battle, to protect his loins. And on that belt, he would hang his weapons of warfare. His dagger would be there, his sword might be there. This belt was very important and it held his tunic together because he didn't want his long, flowing tunic to be out in the wind or to be snagged or to be caught.

And so, he is to wear a girdle, a belt of truth. Now, that belt, my friend, is integrity. It is integrity that holds everything else together. Truth and integrity are synonymous. You are to believe the truth, you're to know the truth, you're to love the truth, you're to tell the truth, you're to live the truth, you're to preach the truth. And if you don't, your life is going to come apart.

You cannot, I say you cannot get into this battle unless you have the belt of truth. Satan is a liar and Satan will come against you with lies. Jesus is the truth. Satan's attack is lying. His attack on you is to bring a lack of integrity into your life. Are you wearing at this moment the girdle of truth or are you living a lie?

If you are not wearing truth, if you do not have the girdle of truth, if you do not have integrity in your life, in the big things and in the small things, you are going to lose the battle. It is truth that holds everything together and without truth, everything falls apart.

Here's the second piece of armor. That is the breastplate of righteousness. Now, righteousness is the believer's purity. That is, there is to be no unconfessed, unrepented of sin in your life.

A warrior at this time had a breastplate. It would be made of woven chain sometimes. It would cover his heart. It would cover his lungs. It would cover his intestines, his vital organs. And without that breastplate, of course, he was very vulnerable to any sword thrust, to any arrow. And so he has to have a breastplate, and that breastplate is righteousness.

And what is righteousness? It is purity. Jesus said, "Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God." Now, what the enemy wants to do is to attack you not only with lies, but he wants to attack you with impurity. He wants you to read some filthy men's magazine. He wants you to watch some filthy movie and then come to church on Sunday morning. He wants to get that into your heart, into your mind. He wants to get you doing some little dirty, crooked business deal.

Oh, you say it's no big sin. That's right, but it's a crack in the armor. It is a crack in the armor and Satan knows where that crack in the armor is. "Who is it knocks so loud?" a lonely little sin. "Come in," I answered, and soon all hell was in.

Now, have not only integrity, but have purity. Keep your heart with all diligence. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. Now I'm asking you a question: don't answer it out loud, but answer it. Is your heart pure? I mean, is your heart pure before God? If not, you cannot win in the warfare. There's a piece of your armor that is missing. Now, Satan fears a holy Christian.

Thirdly, you put on the shoes of peace. Look if you will also in verse 15: "And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace." The believer's integrity, the believer's purity, and the believer's tranquility. Put on the shoes of peace. Your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace.

A Roman soldier needed good shoes to fight with. A Roman soldier would have hobnails on the bottom of his shoes, very much like football cleats, because when you're fighting, you need a place to stand. You need to have good footing.

In this passage, Paul is going to tell us to stand, to stand, to stand. And therefore your feet need to be shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace. That is tranquility. He's talking about peace now. He's talking about peace with God and he's talking about peace with one another and he's talking about the peace of God in our hearts.

You see, Jesus gives peace. And unless you have peace, you can never make war. Sounds like a contradiction, doesn't it? But you've got to have that peace of God in your heart.

You see, how does Satan attack? Well, he comes against your integrity with lies. He comes against your purity with lust. But how does he come against your tranquility? Well, he puts stones and briars and doubts and discouragement. Whatever he can do to destroy your peace.

Do you have peace right now? But if you don't have peace right now, I'll tell you why you don't have peace right now. It's not because of circumstances. Peace in the Bible is not the subtraction of problems from life. Peace is the addition of power to meet those problems.

The Bible says, "Great peace have they that love thy law, and nothing shall offend them." Now, the only way you can live that way is to put on these shoes of peace. That is the preparation of the good news of peace. Jesus made peace with the blood of his cross. And if you don't have this, if you don't have this, you're going to slip and fall in the battle.

So many people I've seen them fall not because of a lack of integrity and not because of a lack of purity, but because of a lack of tranquility. Something will happen: some sickness, some disappointment, some financial reverse, some wayward child, and they lose their peace. You put on those shoes of peace so you can have a firm place to stand. Because if you don't, you may slip and you may fall.

Guest (Male): In coming up tomorrow, we'll hear part two of this important lesson. But maybe today you have questions regarding your faith. We'd love to offer an insightful resource on our website. It's our Find Answers page. There you'll find resources and materials that will answer questions you may have about beginning a relationship with God.

We also want to invite you to check out our Grow Your Faith page where you can get grounded and dig deeper in God's word. Go to lwf.org/radio and click the tab that says Grow Your Faith or Find Answers. We can't wait to hear from you today.

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