In the Art of War, Sun Tzu offers some wisdom about knowing your enemy. “If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained, you will also suffer a defeat. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle.” It may seem odd for Christ-followers desiring to proclaim the Good News of the Gospel of Peace to consider wisdom about war from Sun Tzu. And yet, this bit of Sun Tzu’s wisdom is not at odds with the Bible.
In considering the Full Armor of God, Paul identifies the enemy, “For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.” (Ephesians 6:12, NLT)
Paul makes it clear that our enemy is not other people, although those people may be tools of our enemy. Our true enemy is Satan and the kingdom of darkness in its various forms. In this verse, Paul indicates a kind of demonic order or authority. Darkness takes on many forms and shadows, but the light of the gospel dispels them all.
Since the enemy uses other people as his minions and tools, it is easy to see them as our enemy. However, we are in a different kind of war. Our mission is to rescue the soldiers of darkness, not to destroy them. It’s easy to set our sights on a human target. And yet we require the wisdom and empowerment of the Holy Spirit to oppose their threat while also extending the Gospel towards them.
Using broad stroke observations. Christians in the west (Europe and America) have forgotten who their enemy really is. The kingdom of darkness is seldom considered. In short, they don’t know their enemy very well, and spiritual realities are not common experiences. Hiding in plain sight is one of the enemy’s tactics. And yet, evil grows because the darkness is ignored.
Again using broad stroke observations. Christians in much of Africa and India know well the power of the enemy. Spiritual realities are common. While the enemy is known, he has fooled many into believing they are powerless. In essence, they don’t know themselves and their position in Christ. The Bible says, “But you belong to God, my dear children. You have already won a victory over those people, because the Spirit who lives in you is greater than the spirit who lives in the world.” (1 John 4:4, NLT)
We must know our enemy and know ourselves (and know Christ) in this battle. The war is already won, but the fight continues because people are still in darkness. How do we fight the good fight of faith? That is what this entire section of Ephesians is about and what we will explore as this series unfolds.
But I don’t want to leave you without some ammunition. As a Christ-follower, your most powerful weapons are prayer and compassion. Sometimes we can’t directly confront the evil we see in a person, but we can always pray that the light of Jesus Christ will dispel their darkness. There is also tremendous power in compassion; those acts of love and mercy shake the very core of Satan’s kingdom. Remember always; our mission is the same as Christ’s – “God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him.” (John 3:17, NLT)
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