SPIRITUAL WARFARE
2 Corinthians 10:3-6
(August 7, 2019 – WED p.m. – MBC baesa)

Believers should be much aware of the warfare we’re facing. Don’t underestimate the subtle enemy the Devil. We must know his tactics, tools and target to prepare ourselves in this biggest war we ever face. There is no longest and heaviest war ever than the spiritual warfare against the wicked one, the devil. The Devil never changes his scheme. Let the Word of God reveals to us about this spiritual warfare and how to win.

I- THE PAST SPIRITUAL WARFARE
     A. Methods of Approach of Satan (Genesis 3:1-6)
Genesis 3:1-6 “Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? 2 And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: 3 But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. 4 And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: 5 For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil. 6 And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.”

Interestingly, notice the steps Satan used in getting Eve to believe his lie.
          (1) Satan Questioned God’s Word.- Genesis 3:1 “yea, hath God said,”?
Satan did not deny that God had spoken; he simply questioned whether God had really said what Eve thought he had said. Perhaps, Satan’s suggestion is to make misunderstood what God had said. You need for yourself to rethink what he said. Note also that Satan is also questioning God’s goodness. ''If God really loved you, He wouldn’t keep something from you.'' Do you remember in the New Testament when the Devil tried the same approach with our Lord in the wilderness: ''If you are God’s beloved Son, why are you hungry?''
          (2) Satan Denied God’s Word. - Genesis 3:4,5 “Ye shall not surely die”
It is very near from questioning God’s Word to denying it. We all know that neither Adam nor Eve had ever seen death. All they had to do to live is the Holy Word of God, but this was all they needed. Even when Satan denied God’s Word, Eve should not listen to Satan’s questioning of the Word of God so that She would never fall into his trap.
          (3) Satan Substituted his own lie. - Genesis 3:5 “You will be like God”- NASB
We must realize that at this point Adam and Eve were already made in the image of God, but Satan tempted them with an even higher position to be like the Most High God. To be like God is Satan’s greatest ambition when he was angelic servant of God named Lucifer.- Isaiah 14:12-14. Although Satan is a created being, he longed to be worshipped and be served like the Creator. That was his attitude that lead him to conduct rebellion toward God and dreaming to establish his own kingdom. This world of civilization was controlled by that lie. Satan also desires worship and service that even challenge Jesus Christ to do this for him which Christ would never him. – Matthew 4:8-10.
     B. Materials as Armor of Satan (I John 2:15-16)
1 John 2:15-17 “Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.17 And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.”
• We notice that the emphasis of this passage is the world. Satan is influencing us to love the world. Satan uses
the world as his tool to counterfeit the will of God.
• The Devil wants us to love the world because that love of the world will displace love of God. The love of God, will displace love of the world. In v.16 explains that everything in the world is not of God. If you love God you cannot set your heart on what is not of God! Jesus taught the same principle in Matthew 6:24 explaining that one cannot love God and money.
• Satan deceives us by the world that is passing away and also it's lust. If you love what is passing away, you will pass away. In other words if your life is composed of loving the desires of the world which are passing away, so too will you!
• If you do His will you have eternal life. We all know that doing good as the general direction of your life does not save you, but it does prove that you are saved. The opposite of loving the world is not only loving God but doing the will of the Father. Satan do not want you to love God because it will lead you to love His will. Don't say you love God and don't love what He tells you to do.

II- THE FUTURE SPIRITUAL WARFARE (Revelation 12:13-17)
Revelation Chapter 12 describing primarily the activity of Satan in the final stages of his long war with God.
     A. Methods of Approach of Satan (Revelation 12:4-5)
Revelation 12:4-5 “And his tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven, and did cast them to the earth: and the dragon stood before the woman which was ready to be delivered, for to devour her child as soon as it was born. 5 And she brought forth a man child, who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto God, and to his throne.”
          1. Method of Deception by Exalting himself he lead third part of the angels of heaven.
• Satan here as the master deceiver, by exalting himself he take 1/3 of stars which are angels with him, he deceives.
          2. Method of Deception by offering peace treaty with Israel, but at the end he will break it the middle of 7 years tribulation (Daniel 9:27) because of his long time hatred and evil intention to kill the Savior Jesus Christ.
• It says verse 5 Satan the dragon “stood before the woman” (nation of Israel) for he wants to devour the baby, which means the devil wants to totally wipe out the offspring of Israel which is Jesus Christ. It has been recorded time and time again that Satan repeatedly attempting to kill baby Jesus from Old Testament to the New Testament. Satan methods is deception.
• It says in verse 4 “to devour her child” As God had prophesied, there was established ongoing enmity between the seed of the woman and the seed of the serpent (Genesis 3:15). This is born out in the lengthy pattern throughout history of attempts to destroy the line leading from Adam—through Abraham—to bring forth the promised Lion from the tribe of Judah (Genesis 49:10). Historic evidence of Satan’s attempt to thwart the Messianic promise is abundant: Cain’s murder of Abel (Genesis 4:8); the pollution of the offspring of men by the “sons of God” with the “daughters of men” (Genesis 6:2-4); Pharaoh’s attempt to kill all male Hebrews (Exodus 1:16, 22; Acts 7:19); Haman’s attempt to wipe out the Jews (Esther 3:6); Athaliah, Ahaziah’s mother, attempts to wipe out all the royal heirs of Judah (2Chr. 22:10); Herod’s slaughter of the babes in his attempt to murder Jesus (Matthew 2:16). “The most direct attempt was, of course, in the crucifixion of Christ.”The importance of the line leading to the Messiah is also seen in God’s supernatural intervention to allow Sarah to conceive in her old age (Hebrews 11:11). Ultimately, the seed of the serpent did in fact bruise the heel of the redeemer—at His crucifixion (John 8:44). Yet this “victory” of the serpent resulted ultimately in the bruising of his own head (Genesis 3:15). For the child overcame death and was ultimately caught up to God (Revelation 12:5).
• Again in verse 4 it says “as soon as it was born.” Although the serpent stood before the woman over an extended period of time, he made one last attempt when the child was first born. Through Herod, the serpent ordered the slaughter of all male children in Bethlehem and its districts who were two years old and under (Matthew 2:16).
     B. Materials as Armor of Satan (Revelation 12:15 & 17)
Revelation 12:15, 17 “And the serpent cast out of his mouth water as a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood. 17And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.”
          1. Satan’s material or tactic he uses is water like a flood is his pursuit of the woman.
Flood is used to describe a large quantity of water, as during natural disaster. Since the origin of this flood is a sign (the mouth of the great dragon) and the text says “as a flood”, it is best to take this as a figure of speech denoting the overwhelming military force of an adversary (Psalm 65:7; Psalm 69:2-4; Psalm 124:1-5; Isaiah 8:7; Isaiah 59:19; Jeremiah 46:7-8; Daniel 9:26; Daniel 11:21-22). The dragon’s pursuit of the woman may be a continuation of the Beast’s invasion of the glorious land. Therefore the flight of the woman which is Israel does not happened until after the abomination is set up (Matthew 24:15). By the invasion of the Antichrist continues in his pursuit of the woman.
          2. Satan’s another material or tactic he uses here is the global war.
It says in verse 17 “And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed.”
Many Bible interpretation from commentaries that Daniel 11:41 referring to the Beast occupying the land of the Palestine. This causes the Beast to move in is the invasion of Palestine from the north by the King of the North (Daniel 11:40). The covenant or treaty made by the Beast with Israel has evidently guaranteed Israel an inviolate right to the land. Some event must be necessary to cause the Beast to break the covenant. This covenant or peace treaty with Israel is said to be broken in the half period of the week (Daniel 9:27) of the seven years tribulation. The cause of the breaking of the covenant is seen by the invasion from the north and may be concluded this will occur in the middle of the week or (seven years tribulation). This is Satan’s war against Israel.
     C. Mark of the Aim of Satan (Revelation 12:13-17)
Revelation 12:13-17 “And when the dragon saw that he was cast unto the earth, he persecuted the woman which brought forth the man child. 14 And to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent. 15 And the serpent cast out of his mouth water as a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood. 16 And the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed up the flood which the dragon cast out of his mouth. 17 And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.”
Here we can see the mark, target, goal or objective of Satan the dragon:
          1. The total annihilation of Israel. (v. 13 -16)
• It speaks of how the devil will make war against Israel, trying to destroy her (Satan knows his time is short, relatively speaking—see Revelation 20:1-3, 10). The vengeance of the dragon against the woman is fierce now (v. 13). Satan knows his time is short. This is a repetition of the revelation of v. 6, but now we understand the fierceness of this period of wrath – “the Great Tribulation”. In verse 14 it also reveals in that the Lord enables many Jews to escape the wrath of the dragon by providing foods and protecting them in the wilderness for “a time=1 year, times=2 years; and half a time=half year; in other words, 3 and a half years—this is another reference to the last half of the seven years tribulation.
          2. The tragic destruction of the faithful who are committed to Christ (v.17)
• The dragon will turn his attention on Jews that remain (“the remnant of her seed”-KJV; “the rest of her children”-NASB). These are the believing Jews. Is this the 144,000 Jews from the tribes of Jacob?. Those in flight were not yet believing.
• Satan is so desperate so his goal is to destroy those who give their allegiance to the Lord Jesus Christ. These are the faithful keepers of the God’s commands and having testimony about Jesus Christ.

III- THE PRESENT SPIRITUAL WARFARE (Genesis 3:1-6; I John 2:15-16; 2 Corinthians 10:4-6)
     A. Be Aware by Understanding Satan’s strategies.
          1. Satan’s design of confusing you (Genesis 3:1-6)
          2. Satan’s delight of accusing you (Revelation 12:10)
          3. Satan’s desires to devour you (I Peter 5:8)
     B. Be Active Fighting by Using God’s resources. (I Peter 5:9-11)
          1. Spiritually Resist the Devil – v. 9 “Resist”; James 4:7
          2. Strongly Remain in the faith – v.9 “stedfast in the faith”; 1 Corinthians 15:15
          3. Sincerely Receive suffering – v.9 “knowing that the same affliction are accomplished in your brethren”
          4. Submissively Wait on God’s time to restore you – v.11 “who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.”