2 Corinthians 10:4-18
THE BATTLEFIELD
There are a lot of things going on that we can’t see. Remember when Elisha and his servant were surrounded by enemies? The servant was afraid, but Elisha prayed, “Lord, I pray, open his eyes that he may see” (2 Kings 6:17). When his eyes were opened, he saw the mountain full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha. There were more with them than they could see physically.
This unseen world affects you on the way to church and on Sunday morning when you get up. You’re trying to get everything done so you can arrive with a big smile, but frustration is building. Finally, you get everybody dressed and run out the door, only to remember you forgot something. The commander is saying, “Good, good. It’s working.”
Sometimes the enemy drops bombs of discouragement on us. Other times, there is protection we don’t even know about. There may be a shield around us or a hedge of thorns Satan cannot get through. Now imagine you’ve made it to church and settled into your seat. The service is beginning, and there is no telling what blessings God is ready to give you. The unseen world doesn’t want you to receive them.
Think about that unseen world at a church service. There is a command center with people radioing back and forth, tanks rolling up and down the aisles, planes overhead, and soldiers carrying grenades, machine guns, and bazookas. These are enemies coming against our lives and what God wants to give us. The commander is radioing back and forth, coming up with strategies.
He sends out distractions. Maybe you’re thinking about the roast at home or the bills coming due. Then there’s the cell phone. Sometimes there’s a real reason to check it, but it can also distract you from receiving what God has for you. Maybe a young person is worrying about a bully at school. There can be all kinds of distractions.
There is a critical time during the service when someone may feel conviction they’ve never felt before. It’s an opportunity to come forward and say, “I need to be saved today.” Somebody would be glad to show them from God’s Word that they can be saved. Meanwhile, the enemy shoots those bullets, saying, “You can’t be saved. You couldn’t be saved. You couldn’t do that.”
Think about an invitation. Someone new is looking around, trying to decide what to do. The commander is saying, “Get a couple of them to walk out. Let’s get some noise going in the back. Let’s get some people putting their coats on.” There is a battle taking place, and more is happening than what we see with our physical eyes.
IN TUNE WITH CHRIST
We need to remember that the weapons of our warfare are not carnal.
2 Corinthians 10:4–5 says, “For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ.”
If this depended on human persuasion, we could orchestrate events to get the results we wanted. But it doesn’t. The Holy Spirit does the work within our lives. As we trust God, we find the protection and strength we need. Sometimes sin opens a breach in that protection. The enemy studies our weaknesses. He may not know our thoughts, but he has seen what we’ve said and done and knows our inclinations. He looks for a weak point and attacks there.
Sometimes we depend on our own strength. Then comes a letdown, and the fiery darts begin to get through. We need to depend on Christ. We don’t have tanks and flamethrowers to fight the devil and his minions.
James 4:7 tells us, “Resist the devil and he will flee from you.”
We also need to recognize that Christ is the powerful one and look to Him throughout the day.
Ephesians 6 talks about putting on the whole armor of God. The helmet of salvation and breastplate of righteousness represent spiritual equipping. When we leave church and go into the world, we still need God’s wisdom. We can order something and find out it isn’t the right size. We need to look to Christ for wisdom in the things we face.
Think about Peter’s vision in Acts 10. A great sheet came down from heaven, filled with animals, including unclean animals. God told Peter to rise, kill, and eat. Peter objected because he had never eaten anything unclean. God answered, “What God has cleansed you must not call common” (Acts 10:15).
Now imagine big sheets above us, billowing out and filled with blessings. There is joy, peace, and the ability to be long-suffering. All kinds of blessings are there in the unseen world, but distractions can keep us from recognizing them. We may have had conflicts before church. A husband and wife may have had a spat, but finally they get there and calm down. Then the service starts, and distractions come from every direction. We need to ask God to help us see what He has in store for us.
This isn’t all imaginary. Spiritual forces are at work. There are unseen things that come against us and unseen things that bring us victories. We don’t understand everything happening around us, but we need to pray and recognize that God is at work.
Think about George Müller, who started orphanages in England. He decided he would not ask people for money but would trust God to provide. That doesn’t mean every Christian must do things his way. He was following what he believed God had impressed on him. Müller prayed for money to build the orphanage, and the building was ready to open. But on the appointed opening day, no applications came in for any orphans. He realized he had prayed for the money, the building, and the workers, but he hadn’t prayed for the children. He prayed that evening, and the very next day the first application came in. Within a month, 42 children had applied, and 26 were already living there.
Sometimes the children gathered around the dinner table with no food. A well-known account tells of a baker who brought bread to the orphanage and a milkman whose cart broke down nearby, leading him to offer the milk to the children. This account is repeated in later biographies, though I would be careful about presenting every detail as something confirmed in Müller’s own records. God provided for the work in unexpected ways. For 24 years, Müller and his workers had been praying for the spiritual welfare of the children. Müller recorded that during one period, about 60 children came to believe in the Lord Jesus within a few days. We don’t understand everything happening in the unseen world, but we need to pray and trust God to work.
Paul and Silas were thrown into the inner prison at Philippi, bound in stocks and bonds. They couldn’t fight their way out, so at midnight they prayed and sang praises to God. An earthquake opened the prison doors and loosened their shackles. They could have escaped, but they stayed. The jailer thought the prisoners had escaped and was about to take his own life. Paul called out, “Do yourself no harm, for we are all here” (Acts 16:28).
The jailer asked, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” (Acts 16:30).
They answered, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household” (Acts 16:31).
God worked in a way they could not have orchestrated themselves.
DON’T COMPARE YOURSELVES AMONG YOURSELVES; GLORY ONLY IN CHRIST
Second Corinthians 10:12 says, *“For we dare not class ourselves or compare ourselves with those who commend themselves. But they, measuring themselves by themselves, and comparing themselves among themselves, are not wise.”
Paul had people opposing him in the Corinthian church. They compared themselves with one another and criticized Paul. He reminded them that such comparisons were not wise. Sometimes we see talented, hardworking people and feel terrible because we don’t measure up. Other times, we do well and become proud. Neither response is helpful. We are not wise to compare ourselves among ourselves.
Second Corinthians 10:17–18 says, “But he who glories, let him glory in the Lord. For not he who commends himself is approved, but whom the Lord commends.”
Jeremiah 9:23–24 reminds us not to glory in human wisdom, might, or riches, but to glory in understanding and knowing the Lord. We are not to be proud of how smart we are, how strong we are, or how much we have. What are we to glory in? The Lord. Whatever good we do, our abilities are gifts from God. Whatever blessings come our way, even when we pass them along to others, they still come from God. We glory in Him.
CONCLUSION
There is a lot going on in the unseen world. I have painted an imaginary picture, but spiritual forces really are at work.
First Peter 5:8 warns us that “your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.”
Make sure you are in tune with Christ. Make sure your sins are confessed and you desire to serve Him in all you do. Don’t compare yourself with others, and glory only in Christ.
