My nephew wrestled in high school and I remember him telling me how unique wrestling is from a team sport because it’s not like football or basketball… It is just sheer strength against sheer strength, cunning against cunning and may the best man win.
Wrestling is a sport where you are literally grappling with your opponent and using every ounce of strength you have to try and overcome someone who’s trying to do the same to you. Experience matters, like it does in life, but at the same time pure strength can be hard to overcome.
Why in the world am I talking about wrestling today? There is a verse in Ephesians that communicates to you and to me about a battle that we Christians find ourselves in. And this battle is unique because we can’t see our opponent. But I felt it very necessary to communicate something that you may or may not have thought of before.
I think it is pretty obvious and and frankly safer to fight a battle from a long way away. In the US military, snipers can fire at targets over a mile away and be successful. In most successful battles going back to the Civil War, soldiers would set up cannons and fire at the opponent so they could soften the front lines in order that their infantry could advance. After all of that preparation, it was the infantry who gained the physical ground and ultimately again, battled their opponent, man-to-man.
So today guys, I wanted to introduce you to the warfare that our enemy is executing on us… You and me. Depending upon which translation you read, Ephesians 6:12 tells us that “we are not wrestling against flesh and blood, but rather against the rulers, the authorities, and against the powers of this dark world, and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms”
What does that really mean? That means the enemy is not a mile away, he’s not next-door… He is right next to you, whispering in your ear. Telling you things that are not true in order so he can bump you off your path and get you going in a different direction…
We are literally wrestling with the enemy as Paul says. We are not dancing. We are wrestling. It’s important that you recognize how close your enemy actually is or, how close he is to your family. It’s easy to go about our day and never really think about that battle going on. But I assure you, it is, and there is active strategy being put forth and executed to destroy you and everything you love. You, must think about it and be ready for each day.
Now that we know what we are up against, how do we fight?
This will probably surprise you but when your adversary is the devil, you don’t stand and fight, you resist. I say this again, if you try and fight, you will lose. Even Jesus, after spending 40 days in the wilderness, Satan came and met with Him with the sole reason to tempt Him (Matthew 4:1-11). You will notice that Jesus did not fight but rather He resisted and that is exactly what we are called to do, resist. Take a look at these 2 verses:
- Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. James 4:7
- Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings. 1 Peter 5:9
Guys, if you only recognized the power you have right now that already exists within you as a believer, it would really change your mind about wrestling not against flesh and blood. Yes, you are a target, but not defenseless. The power within you comes from God’s Holy Spirit which is pure strength from Him to use when you are in a wrestling match. If you feel an evil presence of unseen forces, then call on His name. He will not abandon you. Most importantly remember the words of the Apostle John below which is always a gut check reminder for me-
Greater is He that is in you, than he who is in the world. 1 John 4:4
Until next time Guys-
