Spiritual Warfare and the End Times

I don't know about you, but lately, probably in the past few months, I have felt an ever-increasing sense of darkness and evil all around me.  I have mentioned it to a few friends and most of them have said they have felt it too. What is this dark force? I believe it is the Antichrist and the coming One World Beast System. I believe this dark shadow that will overtake the world is soon upon us. 

 

I'm not a person who gets depressed.  I never have been. That's why it's been so odd lately to feel a dark sense of sorrow and hopelessness come over me. At times it has been almost debilitating. Part of it, I'm sure, is that I keep aware of what's going on in the world, so I know about a lot of the evil things that are occurring.  Yet, I've been a watchwoman for years and have never felt the darkness this thick. 

 

The biggest attacks come at night when I lay my head on my pillow, when I'm tired and can't even think straight. Then I can almost feel the dark spirit come over me, taunting me with my deepest fears... the loss of a loved one, an accident, illness. a lost family member going to hell.. etc.. My heart squeezes and my pulse races and I do my best to fight it off. But I learned long ago the incredible power in the name of Jesus in those situations. One word, one command to leave in that name, coming from a committed Christian and the enemy cannot stay. 

 

Anyway, on the off chance you are feeling attacked these days as well, I want to give a few pointers I've learned over the years. 

 

1. The Armor of God 

 

You're probably familiar with the pieces of armor Paul lists in Ephesians 6. You've probably heard sermons on them. You might have even been told that when you get up in the morning, you need to mentally put these things on

 Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God;

But, honestly, that's not true. These pieces of armor should ALWAYS be on you. You shouldn't have to mentally, spiritually, or mock-physically put them on. If you are a committed, obedient follower of Jesus who loves the Lord and has a relationship with Him and if you are growing in your walk with Him, you should already be fully armored with truth, righteousness, the Gospel, Faith, Hope, Salvation, and the Word of God. 

2. Pray without ceasing!

Right after Paul lists the armor, he says this.

Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints

 

Pray without ceasing. In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. 1 Thess 5:17
 

The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much. James 5:16

Prayer changes things. Prayer knits you and the Lord together in a close relationship. You want to fight off the enemy. Pray always! Have a running conversation with God.

3. Walk in the Light

 

I like to picture Christians as having a circle of light around them, like a bubble of light that can only be seen in the Spirit realm. My husband saw this when he first got saved. Christians encased in light. We stay in the light by living a life of love and obedience to God. If we decide to be disobedient and purposely sin, we step out of the light. When we step out of the light, we expose ourselves to the enemy's attacks. 

 

4. Read the Bible. 

 

Don't just read. Study it. Learn it. Look up words that connect to each other throughout the entire book. Study the original languages. Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal things to you. Read it each day. Don't substitute devotions or an online sermon for reading it yourself. Jesus used the Scripture to combat Satan when Satan tempted Him in the Wilderness. He could not have done that without knowing the Scripture. If God needed to do that, why do you think you don't? 

5. Have a close relationship with Jesus. Know the Lord

This comes out of praying and walking in the light and reading the Bible. If you do these things, they you will be in relationship with Jesus. You will know Him, recognize His voice and His leading.

Remember the 7 sons of the Jewish High Priest who tried to cast a demon out of a man? 

 Now there were seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, doing this.  But the evil spirit responded and said to them, “I recognize Jesus, and I know of Paul, but who are you?” And the man in whom was the evil spirit, pounced on them and subdued all of them and overpowered them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded.  Acts 19:14-16

It's not enough to shout out the name of "Jesus". You have to be in relationship with Him! 

6. Be constantly filled with the Holy Spirit

Ask the Holy Spirit to fill you each morning and don't do anything that would grieve Him (such as purposeful sin). Listen to Him when He convicts you and repent immediately. The Holy Spirit can be a great friend to you. He can interpret Scripture for you, guide you, teach you, warn you, and nudge you when you need nudging. The Holy Spirit is the power cord that links you to Jesus. Stay plugged in! 

One thing to remember about our enemy is he knows your weaknesses. He knows the things that frighten you. He knows who to get to hurt you. He knows everything about you. He can see how much faith you have and how frightened you are. He sees where there may be holes in your armor. If he can't see an opening, he'll leave you alone and try again later. 

In other words, a committed obedient follower of Jesus who is in a close walk with the Lord, knows the Word of God, and is filled with the Holy Spirit, the enemy cannot touch. If he tries, a response from the Word of God and/or a simple rebuke in the name of Jesus will send him packing.

I've seen this in real life multiple times. One of those times was in Jamaica where demons were manipulating lights on and off in our hotel room and my husband was caught in a horrid nightmare. I simply sat up in bed, figured out what was going on and shouted. "Get out in the name of Jesus!" 

Bam. They left. It works. 

Spiritual Warfare doesn't have to be complicated or difficult. Jesus has already won the battle. We just have to walk in that victory and use the weapons He has given us. I hope this helps you, cause Lord knows, the warfare is getting intense and will continue in these last days before our Lord comes to get us!!

 

P.S. The picture above is how I hope I am seen in the Spirit Realm!  How about you? How do you hope you are seen?