Why does god allow spiritual warfare

Supreme love for God, the antithesis of loving the world, is the antidote to the challenges of the world. Such prayer is powerful to bring victory in the spiritual battle in the world. The New Testament uses flesh sarx to describe human nature and flesh, and body soma to depict the human body. Often flesh is used to speak of the weaker aspects of human nature, subject to temptation Matthew ; 2 Peter Paul warns against being enslaved by the desires of the flesh Ephesians , and challenges believers not to allow their minds to be set on the flesh Romans —7.

The warfare with the flesh is with the fallen nature of humankind, which is now directed away from God and His will toward sinful inclinations and desires. In the fall into sin, Adam and Eve yielded to the temptation to have their eyes opened, be like God, and know good and evil Genesis Instead of continuing to recognize God as supreme and allow Him to be the determinant of what is right and wrong, they chose to exalt themselves and to direct their own lives.

Such sin caused them to be no longer turned toward God but to be turned inward on themselves. The decision to remove God from His central place in human existence allowed evil to run unchecked, causing desires and passions to lead humankind away from the plan of God. This war with the fallen nature of humans, resisting what God decrees as right, still rages today. The challenge in the warfare against the flesh is to crucify the passions and desires of the flesh and to live by and keep in step with the Spirit Galatians — The salvation provided by Christ grants freedom to the believer, but Paul cautions against using that freedom wrongly by indulging the flesh.

The direction of the unchecked flesh is to broken relationships and personal harm, which are antithetical to the work of the Spirit in the lives of believers. The apostle Paul clearly states the biblical view of flesh, noting that the sinful passions are at work, leading to death Romans The danger is that even though individuals have become believers, they could refuse to set their minds on the Spirit, choosing instead to yield to the desires of the flesh.

Continuing refusal to allow the Spirit to govern their lives results in spiritual death because the flesh is hostile to God Romans —8. Warring with the flesh grows out of the recognition that the work of Christ has dealt a mortal blow to the flesh.

The believer engages in spiritual warfare against the flesh by choosing to allow the Spirit to lead, guide, and direct all their living. The Spirit provides resurrection life to the believer so that victory in the spiritual battle against the flesh can be realized Romans — Victory is gained over the flesh as the Spirit empowers one to overcome the desires of the flesh and its sinful activities. As the believer continues to allow the Holy Spirit to lead and guide them, He increasingly produces Christian character in their lives Galatians — These fruit of the Spirit—love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control—evidence victory in the spiritual warfare with the flesh.

Some may question theologically and practically if spiritual warfare against the devil is real and relevant to their lives and ministries.

The consensus of Assemblies of God thought is that an unseen enemy, the devil, exists and is devoted to opposing God and destroying humanity. Immediately after He was anointed with the Holy Spirit to begin His public ministry, Jesus experienced a personal confrontation with the devil Matthew —11; Mark —13; Luke — The war was and is real.

The biblical writers evidence belief in the existence of the devil, whom they depict as a personal entity. He is described as a serpent in the confrontation with Adam and Eve in Genesis 3.

Capable of knowledge, speech, and persuasion, all indicators of a personal entity, he tempted them, and they fell into sin. First Name required Please provide your first name.

Please provide your last name. Email required Please provide a valid email address. Please indicate which email s you would like to receive. Send me the Our Daily Bread devotional email, including stories, resources, news and opportunities to help me grow closer to God daily.

Sign Up. Our mission is to make the life-changing wisdom of the Bible understandable and accessible to all. Help Contact Us Volunteer. We use cookies to offer you a better browsing experience, by continuing to use this site you agree to this.

Find out more on how we use cookies and how to disable them. Find out more. Privacy Overview This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible.

Strictly Necessary Cookies Strictly Necessary Cookie should be enabled at all times so that we can save your preferences for cookie settings. Enable or Disable Cookies. Enable All Save Settings. Sign in with Facebook. Username or Email. The other promise is that we have immediate assistance available to us. If this is not you—which is to say, if you are a Christian brother or sister who constantly seems to be getting cut, bloodied, or wounded by the jabs and thrusts of the enemy and cannot understand why—I have difficult and exciting news to share: there is armor available to you.

Learning to put it on will likely be hard work, but the best of your spiritual life is in your future. You are not meant for weakness. Spiritual Warfare in Mission. Find a Chapter. Study the Bible. Skip to main content. November 13, Blog Categories:. Thank You. You simply claim by faith the righteous character of God made available to you through Jesus. Righteousness is something we are given by God and something we grow into. You are covered in Christ's righteousness that declares you innocent before God, and His righteousness allows you to grow in your own obedience as the Holy Spirit changes you.

Shoes were extremely important for a Roman soldier. The soldiers traveled long distances at a time, and their shoes allowed them to move quickly. The last thing anyone wants is to walk barefoot on hot, rocky or wet ground. What are you doing every day to bring peace to others?

How can you share the good news about Jesus with people in your life? What are you doing each day to live as God intends you to live? Answering these questions will help you stay alert and ready to ward off spiritual attacks.

A Roman soldier would hold up his shield to protect himself from arrows. The shield was probably four feet tall and a foot and a half wide. It was made of wood and leather, with pieces of metal at the top and bottom. Your faith serves the same purpose.

The devil will try to wound you by throwing lies, accusations or other negative ideas at you. A way to grow in trusting God is to begin each day by taking a few minutes to remind yourself what is true about God and what is true about you.

Finding a verse or two you can meditate on throughout the day will help trust in God become your natural response to any situation. This is like taking up your shield for the day ahead. It needed to be strong enough to give the soldier confidence as he went into battle. The absolute certainty of salvation can give you the confidence to enter the battle and, if necessary, take some blows. Read more about the helmet of the hope of salvation. Your salvation is the greatest gift Jesus could ever give you.

Meditating on the salvation you can never lose will help you overcome the fear that your thoughts or actions can ever separate you from God. This is the only piece of equipment designed for going on the offensive in spiritual warfare. It was difficult to stop. Paul describes the sword of the Spirit to remind you that you do not always have to be on the defensive in the spiritual warfare you experience.

Just as Jesus used Scripture to ward off the attacks of the devil during His 40 days in the wilderness, we can rely on Scripture to fight back when we feel under attack. Explore resources to help you read the Bible. As a Christian, you can make choices that will make you less vulnerable to attacks from your spiritual enemy, the devil.

One of the best choices you can make is to read Scripture and commit some of it to memory. When you ask the Holy Spirit to help you bring to mind passages of Scripture when you most need them, you can be confident He is ready to answer that prayer.

Two other places in Scripture are especially useful in preparing for spiritual warfare. The first is Romans And do this, understanding the present time: The hour has already come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. The night is nearly over; the day is almost here. So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. Let us behave decently, as in the daytime, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and debauchery, not in dissension and jealousy.