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The Process of Revelation, Deliverance, and Redemption has Begun!

Although we are living in an age of God’s grace towards the world, at the spiritual level, we are also engaged in a spiritual war that has been waged for millennia. As Christians, we are soldiers of the Lord in this spiritual war and will live out our entire lives on a spiritual battlefield.

A critical milestone was passed in this spiritual war at the time of the First Advent; the incarnation of the Second Person of the Holy Trinity introduced a dramatic change in God’s relationship with mankind.

After the ascension of the Lord Jesus Christ, a new relationship was revealed at Pentecost, May 25, AD 33, when God, the Holy Spirit, the Third Person of the Holy Trinity, took up residence in all who were born again by faith in Jesus Christ as Savior!

We are now living in the time spoken of by Jesus when he told the Samaritan woman in John 4:21-24 where it is written:

“²¹ Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe Me, the hour is coming when you will neither on this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, worship the Father. ²² You worship what you do not know; we know what we worship, for salvation is of the Jews. ²³ But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. ²⁴ God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”

The temple is no longer a structure built by man, the temple is each individual born again Christian; in 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 it is written:

“¹⁹ Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? ²⁰ For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.“

The Emergence of God’s Expeditionary Force!

On May 25, AD 33 a truly wondrous change was introduced to mankind, a unique, truly new creation, made its appearance on the earth; the Third Person of the Holy Trinity, God, the Holy Spirit, indwelt every born again Christian in an eternal union of God and man.

The process of conformation had begun as described in Romans 8:28-30 where it is written:

^“28 And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. ²⁹ For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. ³⁰ Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified.”

As Christians, we have been given a variety of jobs that need to be done for God, after all, we are God’s representatives on earth and have been left here to serve him!

I have written extensively on the spiritual warfare and in a three-part series named, “To the Soldiers in the Spiritual War.” I covered, in some detail, the nature of the spiritual war in which all Christians are soldiers.

As soldiers in a war situation, it is very important to be able to identify the enemy, the Bible provides the information needed to make that vital identification.

It is Essential to Clearly Identify the Enemy!

In Ephesians 6:10-20, we are given the basic essentials of the conflict we are fighting.

¹⁰ Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. ¹¹ Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. ¹² For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. ¹³ Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.

“¹⁴ Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, ¹⁵ and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; ¹⁶ above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. ¹⁷ And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; ¹⁸ praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints— ¹⁹ and for me, that utterance may be given to me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel, ²⁰ for which I am an ambassador in chains; that in it I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.”

Please note a key point, we are not fighting flesh and blood, other people are not the enemy; unbelievers of all sorts are nothing more than victims who need rescue from the “principalities, powers, rulers of the darkness of this age, and the spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. These spiritual forces are the enemies of God against whom the spiritual battle is being waged!

To see flesh and blood as the enemy is to fall into Satan’s trap; this is the Satanic deception which works to Satan’s advantage! Satan has been particularly successful using race as a point for conflict!

Flesh and blood, humanity in other words, is now living in an age of grace, a time when the sins of the world have been paid for in full by the death, burial, and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. That is why Jesus Christ told Nicodemus in John 3:16-17;

“¹⁶ For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. ¹⁷ For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.”

As God’s representatives on earth, Christian soldiers are at war with spiritual forces, not flesh and blood. It is vital we fight this war in the power of God, the Holy Spirit and use the whole armor of God as God directs.

As empowered by God, the Holy Spirit, our offensive weapon is the word of God, the same power God used to create the heavens and the earth and will use to restore the earth to mankind.

“¹¹ Now I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse. And He who sat on him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and makes war. ¹² His eyes were like a flame of fire, and on His head were many crowns. He had a name written that no one knew except Himself. ¹³ He was clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God. ¹⁴ And the armies in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean, followed Him on white horses. ¹⁵ Now out of His mouth goes a sharp sword, that with it He should strike the nations. And He Himself will rule them with a rod of iron. He Himself treads the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. ¹⁶ And He has on His robe and on His thigh a name written:

KING OF KINGS AND
LORD OF LORDS.“

The world is changing before our eyes, only God knows if this is signaling the approach of the end of “The Times of the Gentiles.” The Bible reveals a deterioration of world conditions before the removal of born again Christians but we do not know exactly how bad it will get before those born again by faith in Jesus Christ are removed at the Rapture.

We can know one thing with absolute conviction, God is in control of all things and is working all things after the counsel of his own will. Our responsibility and privilege is to rejoice in the Lord, always, again I say, rejoice!

(Art, “East of Eden” by Adele Bower Copyrighted)