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[0:00] Would you take your Bible off stage?! I would like Molly Collins.

[0:36] Where are you, Molly? Would you come here to the front, Molly, please? I don't want you to touch this.

[0:50] I don't want you to get close to this. Stand right over here. Does anybody know what this is? What is it? What is it? It's not a bear trap.

[1:02] A bear trap is about 50 pounds, and they're illegal. No, they are. You're not allowed to trap bear anymore. This is just a little old minor old foot trap.

[1:15] But I'm going to use it as an illustration here. Okay. That's a smart girl.

[1:38] I don't know. I don't know what you think I'm going to do with that pencil, but it's not what you think I'm going to do. Take your Bibles. Take your Bibles. Take your Bibles.

[1:49] And turn in them to Ephesians chapter 6. Stay with me, Molly.

[2:02] Don't leave. Okay. Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might.

[2:14] Put on the whole armor of God. Put on the whole armor of God. God. That you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil.

[2:24] For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.

[2:48] And Molly, what I want you to do is point from a safe distance. Point at that trap. There you go.

[3:00] Ow. There it is. Thank you, Molly. Thank you, Molly. Thank you. How many of you understand how serious our enemy is about destroying you?

[3:34] Probably one of the tests of how seriously you take the enemy is whether or not this morning as you were getting up and going through the responsibilities of your mourning.

[3:49] For one, if you took the time to pray, to read the Scriptures, do you follow that? If you don't think there is an enemy after you, you probably didn't do that.

[4:04] In fact, one of the things that Jesus said, He said it in numerous different places, but one of the things that He said when His disciples asked Him, teach us about prayer, He said, pray this way, right?

[4:19] Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name, kingdom come, all that kind of stuff, and lead us not into temptation. Elsewhere, Jesus, as He was talking to His disciples, as He went into the Garden of Gethsemane to pray, prior to His crucifixion, He said, listen, pray that you don't enter into temptation.

[4:44] That's what He said. Let's pray.

[5:02] Our Father God, we are so deeply blessed, we who know Christ, to have the blessing of relationship with the Lord Jesus as our God and Savior, and to have the Word that is given to us as this rich and incredible blessing, that we might be completely furnished unto all good works, and to have the indwelling Spirit who abides in us and is our advocate and our ally and our enabler, and who we may justly rely upon to not only understand the Scriptures, but to put them into practice.

[5:58] I'm thankful for the Spirit of God that I am so deeply dependent upon in preaching. and that same Spirit who is actively at work in the lives of believers, that they might find the answer in the prayer that we find in the Psalms where it says, Open my eyes that I might behold wondrous truths out of thy law.

[6:30] And so we want Your Spirit to work in us this morning that we might be different as a result of hearing the Word. And we ask this in Jesus' name. Amen.

[6:46] Well, by this point, you figured out that we're coming close to the end of the book of Ephesians. And I have enjoyed this book tremendously, but I have to tell you, I'm beginning to kind of make that transitional shift in my prayer life and beginning to think about the book of John.

[7:04] And Lord willing, and should He tarry and you permit, I intend to begin preaching in John sometime in the fall, maybe late summer. We have three other groups that are going to be doing Scripture Memory.

[7:19] Tom and Carrie, you're doing next week. Am I correct with that? And then after that, I think Mary and the children, you're doing six.

[7:30] Are you not doing six? Yeah. You're doing six. Isaac and company, you guys are doing five. Am I right? See, there we go. We got it all worked out. And we're coming close to the end.

[7:41] How many of you know how the book of Ephesians kind of begins? Does anybody have one of those favorite verses that you can lock in and say, here's how it begins? Let me help you with this. It says in Ephesians 1, verse 3, it says, Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenlies with all spiritual blessings in Christ Jesus.

[8:02] We're blessed in Jesus. It doesn't get any better than that. And here, Paul opens up this unbelievable book that brings glory to Christ.

[8:17] It causes us to look forward to the day that we're going to be home with Him. And yet, as Paul comes towards the end of this book, he goes into perhaps one of the more militant and challenging passages that we find in the New Testament because he tells us that we're involved in conflict.

[8:40] And here we are. We're dealing with this and where Paul kind of reminds us that we're involved in warfare and that we have a horrible enemy that is absolutely bent on our grief and our shame.

[8:55] And one of the things that we should know from the very beginning is that we're not home yet. You know, it would be nice, wouldn't it, to be home? It says in the Scriptures, absent in the body, what?

[9:08] Present with the Lord. And I like the song that our choir sang this morning. Man, what a, what a, that was good. And just listening to you guys sing, I'm up here.

[9:18] There's only one thing that goes along with our corporate singing, and that is that I sometimes don't get some of the words right. Am I right, young ladies? They're sitting over here just having just a snickering time because I sing different words than they do.

[9:32] And it doesn't put me off so long as they can handle it. But we're just, we're having a great time singing and rejoicing in the Lord Jesus Christ. And yet the fact of the matter is, is that we're not home yet.

[9:45] We're not home yet. And Paul, this morning, wants us to understand just how serious this conflict is. And so as you take up this passage, let me kind of set the broad picture, and then we're going to come down into it a little more narrow, a little more specific.

[10:03] But I want you to understand that for one thing, Christ commands, and this is something that we have to understand, what is given to us here is given by a very pointed fashion. Christ commands a warlike mindset.

[10:17] Now, you have to face it. Nobody really likes war for long. It's fun to play paintball, you know, I mean, it's as long as you're not getting hit, right?

[10:27] But the fact of the matter is, is that war is really not something that is entertaining. It's horrible. It's brutal. When I was younger, I remember just during the time, I was back during the Vietnam era, and I remember working with a man who was a veteran of Iwo Jima.

[10:47] Later on, I had a friend who actually was in Vietnam, and he was on long-range patrols by himself. He was a forward observer for artillery, and he would be sent out into the jungles alone by himself, only he and a dog, and they would spend a week out there scouting and then calling in shots.

[11:06] One of the things that I discovered about combat veterans is that none of them sit around thumping their chest talking about how neat it was. In fact, I've got to tell you, neither of these guys were the least bit interested in sharing some of their old war stories with me.

[11:22] They really didn't want to talk about it. Combat was something that they hated, and even though they'd come out a winner in one sense, they were not very pleased with what all had taken place, and so they were very cautious.

[11:34] I want you to understand that we're at war, and so our Savior tells us here in this passage that we face an enemy that is bent on our destruction, our harm.

[11:49] And one of the things that goes with preparing to preach is actually, and you would understand that this would be reasonable, that as I am preaching or as I'm studying in the study there, and as I'm meditating and praying about it, I have your faces and your hearts before me in the study and in my private time.

[12:08] Does that make sense? One of the things that goes with being a shepherd in the same place for quite a few years is that I know some of the things that have happened in your life, and I know some of the things that the enemy is trying to do to unhinge and to harm you.

[12:25] And I know some of you that are almost brain-dead to what he's doing. And so it follows then that when I take up this passage prompted by the Spirit of God, and I come to you, I say with a shepherd's sympathy, listen carefully.

[12:48] This is for you. I want you to understand as we look at this passage that one of the things that we should know at the very outset is that we're not to fight in our own power. We're not to fight in our own power.

[13:01] It says, finally, there in verse 10, Be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might. Put on the whole armor of God that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil.

[13:20] You know, I go back to what I said earlier that, you know, apart from video games and stuff like that, real combat is not something that is entertaining and something that we take pleasure in.

[13:30] It's hard and it's difficult. And as we think about what is being spoken of here, I want you to understand that the Spirit of God wants you to understand clearly that this battle that we're involved in is something that has great risk and great harm and you will not escape it until the day you draw your last breath.

[13:54] My dad is 90. I don't mean to overplay the fact that my heart's caught up in that, but I want to tell you, I've watched my father over the last number of years and on recurring occasions, I've spoken to him very explicitly and clearly and said, Dad, you can't stop the fight.

[14:15] I'm not talking about the physiological fight. I'm talking about the spiritual conflict where the enemy is very interested in allowing discouragement and despair to breed over and eventually produce bitterness in the life of an individual who has served with rich distinction.

[14:35] And I say to him, Dad, you have to stay focused on the Lord Jesus Christ and live your life for Him even as you live it, doing nothing other than drawing breath where you sit.

[14:49] We're involved in conflict and it won't stop until the day we're home. And you've heard the passage where it says, Be strong in the Lord and the power of His might.

[15:00] In other words, don't try this alone. You desperately need help for this daily battle. Furthermore, I do want you to understand something as we look at this passage, that this battle is defensive by design.

[15:16] Defensive by design. He is not calling us to be, you know, ninja turtles or navy seals. You know, it's not a lot about, I'm out there doing my thing and, you know, I'm a punching it out for Jesus kind of guy.

[15:30] If you read the passage, you understand that the entire picture is this defensive mindset. Put on the whole armor of God that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil.

[15:48] The imagery that Paul relied on was imagery that communicates a defensive and protective environment where we are resisting the adversary.

[16:06] We're not out there duking it out with him on our own. The word stand that Paul uses here is a word that talks about kind of getting anchored in.

[16:16] It's talking about getting set. Probably there are a few of you here that at one time or another in P.E.

[16:27] before there were too many injuries, played something called Red Rover, Red Rover, Let Timmy Come Over. Come on, anybody here? Raise your hand and say, I did that.

[16:39] Okay? And, you know, what you did was you picked on the wusses to begin with. You know, the little guys that weighed 69 pounds and you and whatever, they would come running at you.

[16:51] And what was the game? If they broke through, what happened? They took one back with them. But if you held on, they were toast and they were part of your line, right?

[17:02] And the way in which you did that is you said, you know, let Timmy come over and Timmy would come running at you with his little frame and not anymore, but, you know, he'd come running at you and as he was getting closer and closer, what were you doing?

[17:16] You know, and as the guy would bump into you, kind of give a little bit. How many of you learned that? You know, give a little bit and pretty soon his energy was dissipated and you had him. In ancient warfare, I want to tell you something.

[17:29] Ancient warfare was not like this. We are on the other side of the country playing with a video game and we're going to drop a rocket on somebody over in, you know, Afghanistan. Ancient warfare was very personal, in your face, right up.

[17:43] Essentially, it was an armed shoving match where you got real close and here's the truth. The ones who turned down, backed down, turned around and ran were the ones who got stabbed in the, guess what?

[18:00] The back. And so what you wanted to do in warfare was you wanted to get your shield out in front and you wanted to get, and the soldiers actually had leather sandals with iron cleats in them.

[18:15] They weren't for walking on the beach in. They were for, you know, digging their way in and then here would come this horde of, you know, unwashed enemies.

[18:26] You know, whoo, camping in the old days was really bad. You know, they'd come running at you and then bang, they'd slam into you and then what were you doing with your little spear and your little sword? What were you doing? Does anybody have an idea?

[18:38] You were sticking them wherever place you could. You know, I mean, there's nothing wrong with chopping off a guy's leg. Do you understand that? Or stabbing him in the thigh.

[18:49] You know, wherever, you were just flailing at him. And your safety was in being locked into a defensive, protective environment and staying there.

[19:05] I want you to understand that as you look at this passage as we open up, you have to understand that we are to rely upon his power and we're to rely upon his armor and we're to stand firm in him and we're to stand together as a body rather than as these solo secret agents for the king.

[19:23] Listen to me. I think one of the things that has really amplified Satan's effectiveness in contemporary Christian living, in causing harm to contemporary Christian living, is that there's so many people out there today that I bump into who call themselves Christians that really have no ongoing connection with a body of believers.

[19:54] And they are out there by themselves trying to deal with an adversary and they have no companionship, no help, no encouragement, no people to depend upon that are going to say to them, hey, don't be doing that.

[20:06] You're going to get hurt. Well, I want you to understand as we look at this passage there in verse 11, let me read it to you. Put on the whole armor of God that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil.

[20:25] So, one, we see that we're to have this warfare mindset, but second, Christ wants us to understand who our enemy is. Now, in that verse, it says that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil.

[20:40] Let me give you a little bit of translation here, and I'm not all about the Greek kind of piling on you so that you go home and know the recipe. I want you to know the cake, but here's the deal. That word scheme is the word methodea.

[20:53] Hmm. What does methodea sound like? Does anybody have an idea? Come on, give me the English word. Method. And when Paul tells us that there is a methodea, what he is telling us is that Satan actually has a plan and is working according to a systematic pattern to try and hurt you.

[21:20] That's what he's saying. Look at it again. It says, that you may be able to stand against the schemes or the methodic attack of Satan against you personally.

[21:32] David Jeremiah makes a statement that, and it's sanctified imagination.

[21:42] How many of you understand what sanctified imagination is? It's kind of like speculation, okay? But in his sanctified imagination, he talks about the fact that you could probably go into the devil's office and you'd find a filing cabinet and there in the filing cabinet was a file with your name on it.

[21:57] And Satan has an idea of how to mess you up. You personally. He's got a file that says Tim Knoyer on it.

[22:08] He's got one that says Henry Covert on it. He's got one that says Gordy Hickey on it. He's got one that says Saul Green on it. He's got one that says Bob Consul. He knows us. And he's after us.

[22:21] I want you to understand something about Satan's strategies. For one, they're insanely repetitious. Don't take pleasure in the fact that he's so repetitious because we are incredibly foolish.

[22:35] I mean, you know what? I'm not going to set it again, but you know, I could set this trap and just put a little bit of rancid meat on it.

[22:49] Do you follow that? And then just cover a little bit of grass and stuff like that and set it out in my lawn and guess what would happen within a day or two? There would be something in it.

[23:00] Not something I'd eat, but it would be something in it. Okay. And I could take the same trap this fall. It was pretty cold.

[23:10] You know that. Pretty cold. And I went out in my garage. My wife has a pathological hatred for mice. And I am the family mousetrapper.

[23:25] Okay. And in fact, I bought like about six bags of them and she said, honey, why did you do that? We have three left over from last year. I said, never hurts. And if my wife has anything about mousetraps, it just use them.

[23:38] So I'm out there setting these mousetraps all over the place. You know what? A couple times I could catch the same, two or three mice on the same trap with the same peanut butter bit. Now how deceptive is a little blob of peanut butter on a mousetrap?

[23:52] Very? No. But it works. Just so long as they don't eat much of it, I just reset the thing. Do you follow that? Just kind of bend the spring back and clean the other one off and don't even have to lay it far away and ready to go.

[24:08] Now look here. It says Satan has a strategy. He's got a strategy. And he's after you.

[24:21] I want you to understand that he has classic attacks that have succeeded since the garden. And he also knows your particular weakness. Look in your Bible just for a moment.

[24:35] Go over to Hebrews 12, verse 1. Hebrews 12, verse 1. There are minor differences in the way this verse is translated, but I want you to look in particular at what it says there.

[24:52] And the sin which clings so closely. King James says the sin that does so easily beset. And one of the things that I would understand is that sin does cling closely to all of us, but there are some sins that cling more closely to one of us than the other of us.

[25:14] Let me give you a couple of illustrations. Satan did not use wine or the barber chair to get Samson. Do you understand that? But Satan had Samson figured out, didn't he?

[25:30] Satan had Samson figured out. And from early on in Samson's life, he began to show a pattern of immorality, and at the end of the day, it was his lack of discretion and obedience to the Scripture in relationship to the matter of immorality that led him to give away the secret.

[25:52] And he ended up having his eyes poked out. Lot didn't fall to the wiles of a seductive woman.

[26:04] Do you realize that? Lot was not snared the same way that Samson was. Lot wanted prominence.

[26:17] Lot wanted property. Lot wanted significance, and he was willing to put himself wherever it would pay out to his advantage.

[26:32] There's some of you sitting here this morning that in the course of your lifetime are going to find over and over again that Satan is going to tempt you with certain advantages and certain advances in your career that seem on the surface they make sense, but they draw you closer to the pit and to Sodom and Gomorrah.

[27:02] Judas was never tempted that we know of by immorality, by drunkenness.

[27:16] He was never tempted by some of the things that some of you sitting out here this morning have found yourself in conflict with over and over again, but I want you to understand that it tells us that Satan got the best of Judas and his life was destroyed by the temptations that came.

[27:36] So here's the deal. If you're wondering what Satan may have in your file as shortcuts to attacking Tim or shortcuts to attacking Brenda or whatever, you know, here's how you can kind of figure it out.

[27:56] Find out where you've fallen most often. Do you follow that? And by this time, most of you here are old enough to have had enough recurring incidents in particular areas where you say, ah, I'm a guppy there.

[28:13] How many of you follow what I'm saying? It's like, got me again. If you're a repetitious powder, do you know what a repetitious powder is?

[28:26] Everybody smile. It's someone who does it often. Or if you're a person who is often offended, easily offended.

[28:38] You know what an individual is who's easily offended? They're constantly, somebody's got them worked up about something. Or if you're a person who finds yourself snared by subtle suggestions to immorality over and over again.

[28:58] Or you're just not satisfied with the things that God's provided. I don't know what it is. If you find yourself in this repetitious pattern, here's what you can figure out.

[29:09] Satan's got your number. He's got it. Now, I want you to recognize something else in this passage.

[29:22] He has a strategy. But I also want you to understand that this warfare is not about us or others. It's really stunning to stop for a moment and look at what it says there in verse 12.

[29:36] It says, For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood. You know what most of us believe? Honestly, truthfully, we believe that the biggest problems we have in our life are what? Other people. Huh?

[29:50] Other people. In fact, you wouldn't want to do it publicly, but the truth of the matter is if I ask you to make a short mental list of who you really would like God to change, you're not first on the list.

[30:07] Not because you are so spiritually perceptive, but because you're so dull. Now, there it is. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood.

[30:19] What? Well, that is the Bible, so I've got to trust it. Okay. And it says, But against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.

[30:36] Now, this Bible verse is not undermining the doctrine of the battle we have with indwelling sin, and I've got enough problems with me. But the Bible tells me there's an enemy that I have that's out to destroy me.

[30:49] Out to harm me. Out to ruin my life. I've shared with you before that there was a time in my life where, largely because of my own sin, Judith and I went through an incredibly difficult time.

[31:09] And in that time, I remember how close I came, this is the truth, to one sin after another. I was almost overwhelmed by a desire for revenge.

[31:25] I was almost overwhelmed by anger and bitterness. It consumed me. I had an hour drive to work, and I can tell you that somewhere along, about 30 minutes into that drive, I would often, by the way, how many of you know that I'm an emotional person?

[31:41] I can get worked up, you know, it's like, about 30 minutes into the drive, I was crying, driving my pickup truck, and slamming the metal dashboard. This was before people had the intelligence to wrap dashboards with something a little more protective, you know.

[31:55] And my thumb, my back of my hand was black and blue, you know. I was beating that dashboard in my, and I remember one day kind of stopping, pulling over to the side of the road, and said, what is going on?

[32:08] And out of the clear blue, my Aunt Lou, who's with the Lord now, called me. She said, Tim, don't give in to bitterness.

[32:21] And when Aunt Lou told me that, I thought she had a right to tell me, because I knew how she had trashed her life because she'd given in to sin.

[32:32] Paul says to us, he says, listen, the problem you're having is not people.

[32:43] You have an enemy who wants to destroy your soul. I want you to understand that the Bible wants us to understand that this is spiritual warfare.

[33:02] It was spiritual warfare that destroyed Samson. It was spiritual warfare that just absolutely trashed Saul's life and David's family and Solomon's life and caused Ahab's death.

[33:18] By the way, not have you go there, but you'll remember the little passage where Ahab the king is kind of debating whether he ought to go to battle with another king, and we get a picture into heaven, you know how that's going, and in heaven, God says, well, I wonder how we can deal with Ahab, and a little devil comes up and says, hey, how about I do this?

[33:40] And it worked. Remember also when Jesus says to Peter, he says, hey, Satan has desire to sift you. Satan wants to trash your life, Peter.

[33:54] And then some of the sweetest verses in the Bible, but I have prayed for you. I love that one. I have prayed for you. So what is our spiritual enemy's strategy?

[34:15] Now remember I said that he is insanely repetitious? So if you get it right from the beginning, you should be able to figure out how it goes. Does that help you a little bit? It doesn't mean that you can fight this battle on your own, but at least if he is strategic and he has a settled plan to go about it, you ought to know how that goes.

[34:35] So turn in your Bible as we close to Genesis chapter 3. Genesis chapter 3, and I'm going to tag four quick points.

[34:47] In Genesis chapter 3, we have the story of Adam and Eve falling into sin, and let me just kind of spin this out quickly for you.

[34:57] Number one, he came in created form. Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, did God actually say, now who do we know is actually employing the serpent?

[35:11] Who is it? It's Satan. The strategies of Satan. He uses physical entities and physical circumstances.

[35:26] And by the way, he won't come with horns. I tell you, I've had more people tell me, well, it was an open door.

[35:39] Have you ever heard that one? It was an open door. I'll never forget hearing a pastor say that when the door pushes open, you want to find out whether the hoof is cloven or the hand has a nail pinned in it.

[35:51] Do you follow that? I want to know who's behind that. He came in created form, and he will attack you using people as his agents.

[36:06] And by the way, I wouldn't go up to your wife the next time she's not cooperating with you and say, you are Satan's instrument. Not a good idea.

[36:18] Follow that. I know some of you are going to try it. It's not a good career path. I speak with experience.

[36:31] Your wife is God's agent. She's there to help. So, God's going to use people. Admit that. Secondly, he came with a challenge to God's Word.

[36:42] He came with a challenge to God's Word. He said, did God actually say? He's going to do that with you. Incidentally, if you're largely ignorant about God's Word and what it has to say, you are even more vulnerable.

[37:01] Do you follow that? God has given us His Word for our protection. So, Satan comes to you and said, did God really say and some of you are sitting there, I don't know.

[37:16] I'm not real sure. Well, you leave it open for Satan to help you figure out the way he wants you to figure it out. Know the Word. Know the Scriptures.

[37:27] Know what it has to say. And don't be sitting there just kind of thinking, well, no big deal. Let me tell you something. The Word is your great ally in helping you not be overwhelmed by the enemy of your soul.

[37:39] Third, He came with a denial of God's warning. Now, look at what it says there. Verse 4, but the serpent said to the woman, you will not surely die.

[37:51] Now, listen, if you don't catch anything else, I want you to understand this. God tells us the truth about how the story ends. I want you to hear that.

[38:03] God is in the business of being truthful. He'll tell you how the story ends. Satan doesn't do that. He will tell you that if you trust in Him, your life will be spent in His presence in all of eternity, and the end will be good even though the journey will be tough.

[38:23] I can't help but think this morning about a Chinese couple that Judith and I picked up at the airport about three years ago and brought to our home, and subsequently they came to Christ.

[38:39] They're living in China today. He's a PhD. His specialty is in computer software. Always a little curious what he did for the government, but I won't go there.

[38:51] You know, he got saved. His wife got saved. How many good Christian churches do you think he can find in the gargantuan country where he's set?

[39:01] Not very many. His name, English name is Sam. His wife's name is Alice. Daughter is Ariel. I still hear from them.

[39:12] You know what? Life here, regardless of where we are, is going to be short. And God tells us that those who trust in Him will enjoy eternity forever in His presence.

[39:29] Satan says, hey, it's not going to work out that way. No, God tells us the truth. Fourth, he came with a denial of God's goodness and God's heart.

[39:42] You see, Satan always lies about not only how the story ends, but he also lies about God's intentions and His challenge in your life.

[39:54] Do you follow that? Oh. Chasing that boy is going to end up good even if he is an unbeliever.

[40:08] Even if you ought not to be involved in that behavior. Lying about something at work is going to protect your job and you'll come out ahead.

[40:23] Just being a little dishonest is to your benefit. Being involved in personal gratification is understandable.

[40:37] in every step, Satan lies about God's goodness in his heart and you can track every one of your temptations back to those things.

[40:52] So, let me close with this. Satan is a strategist who's out to trash your life. Everybody here would say, I got that.

[41:05] Right? I got that. And, he has a strategy actually that's got you in mind. I got that.

[41:15] how can you tell where he's working by repetition? Hmm? How do you then respond to this passage?

[41:30] what you do is say, if you love me enough to tell me about the adversary and how he wants to destroy me, then I should respond with defensive, protective covering in the ministry of the Word of God and in the Spirit of God that I am not a spiritual casualty going forward.

[41:57] Listen to me. You're going to fall into one of three categories this morning and I'll close with this.

[42:13] There are going to be some of you here that through the prompting of the Spirit of God you're going to say, I don't want to keep on being a spiritual casualty to an enemy who hates my soul.

[42:24] I know Jesus. and I want to take spiritual conflict and spiritual warfare more seriously and I am prayerfully going to humble myself and say, Lord Jesus, work in me through your Spirit to teach me all that I need so that I am not being bulldozed by my enemy.

[42:48] There are going to be some of you sitting here right now saying, I wish this sermon would be over so I could leave because I just really, it gives me the creeps to listen to this and there are some of you sitting here that do not know Christ who someday will stand before him as the judge of the whole earth and he will say this, I died to pay the penalty for your sins and I made the issue of the darkness of your soul clear and you in your pride hung all kinds of excuses around the subject of your soul's need and I think about what it says in 2nd

[43:53] Corinthians it says we in Christ's stead plead with you be reconciled to Christ and if you're here this morning and you do not know Jesus Christ I would plead with you in Jesus' place lay aside your pride and your stubbornness and quietly confess the bankruptcy of your soul and say I believe Jesus died for my sins and I trust him to be my savior let's close in prayer our father God we are so very thankful for the blessing of your word and for the clarity with which you tell us that we as your children do have an enemy who wants to harm us but thank you so very much that you have given us salvation through the

[44:57]  Lord Jesus and you have given us protection and enabling through the word of God and the sweet spirit that dwells within and help us to be a people that are well armed and really sensitive to this battle so that we may live joyful productive lives for the brief time that we're here for the sake of the King we ask this in your precious name Amen we're going