If the Battle is the Lord’s… Why Am I So Tired?
By Randy Newberry
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Copyright © 2004 by Randy Newberry
Scripture taken from the New King James Version, unless otherwise noted. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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Table of Contents
Introduction
Why are we so tired? It seems as if we are worn out. A vast majority of people, not just Christians, are disgusted, discouraged and defeated. There must be a reason or reasons why. Sometime ago the Lord gave me this title. For a long time I would just mention the title in my messages and the response would be very encouraging. But I really had not given the subject a whole lot of thought. Then it would come up more and more. So I finally decided that I would give it a shot. And here it is. I hope that you will find this attempt to bring some sort of balance to the body of Christ concerning spiritual warfare, and just plain everyday living worthy of your time.
God bless you,
Randy Newberry
David declared in 1 Samuel 17:47, “And all this assembly shall know that the Lord saveth not with sword and spear: for the battle is the Lord’s, and he will give you into our hands.” Of course, this particular battle is the epic battle of the Israelites and the Philistines. We know it as the story of David and Goliath, but it really was not just about David and Goliath. It is a graphic picture of the church. We see the Israelites on one mountain and the Philistines on another with a valley between them.
The Philistines would send out their champion named Goliath (whose name means splendor). He would challenge the Israelites every day for forty days. Forty is the number of temptation in scripture. Jesus was tempted forty days in the wilderness (Matthew 4:1). Every day the giant, Goliath, would issue a challenge to the Israelites to send out a man to fight against him. Whoever would win this fight, the other side would serve them. My first question is, why were they letting the enemy issue the challenge? Who is he to determine our battles or strategies?
It is no wonder to me, when anyone but God is leading, that we find ourselves in situations and circumstances beyond our control. No wonder we are so tired, frustrated, and discouraged! I have often wondered why so many people give up or burn out. Ministers are quitting the ministry and people are just giving up on life altogether. Something must be wrong; not with God’s plan, but perhaps our execution of His plan.
Thank God David shows up on the scene when he does. He overhears this giant challenging the people of God. David, representing our Savior, accepts the challenge. David asks in verse 29 of Chapter 17 in 1 Samuel, “...Is there not a cause?” Sometimes the reason for our lack of determination to do what we know is right is our lack “of a cause.” Our cause will keep us going. It will give us the unction to function. Maybe we just need to re-examine our “cause.” David’s “cause” gave him the backbone to stand against a giant. He took care of Goliath in short order. He had faith that his God was more than able. If we really believe that our God is able, it will make our plight much easier.
There is another place in scripture where this is repeated, the battle between Jehoshaphat and the Moabites, Ammonites, and the inhabitants of Mount Seir, in 2 Chronicles 20:15. The Spirit of the Lord came upon Jahaziel, and he said, “Hearken ye, all Judah, and ye inhabitants of Jerusalem, and thou king Jehoshaphat, Thus saith the LORD unto you, Be not afraid nor dismayed by reason of this great multitude; for the battle is not yours, but God’s.” Listen to verse 17, “Ye shall not need to fight in this battle: set yourselves, stand ye still, and see the salvation of the Lord with you, O Judah and Jerusalem: fear not, nor be dismayed; tomorrow go out against them: for the Lord will be with you.” Verse 20 says, “And they rose early in the morning, and went forth into the wilderness of Tekoa: and as they went forth, Jehoshaphat stood and said, Hear me, O Judah, and ye inhabitants of Jerusalem; Believe in the Lord your God, so shall ye be established; believe his prophets, so shall ye prosper.” Verse 21, “And when he had consulted with the people, he appointed singers unto the Lord, and that should praise the beauty of holiness, as they went out before the army, and to say, Praise the Lord; for his mercy endureth for ever.” Verse 22 says, “And when they began to sing and to praise, the Lord set ambushments against the children of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, which were come against Judah; and they were smitten.” There is one more verse that we must read, verse 25. “And when Jehoshaphat and his people came to take away the spoil of them, they found among them abundance both riches with the dead bodies, and precious jewels, which they stripped off for themselves, more than they could carry away: and they were three days in gathering of the spoil, it was so much.”
Now this is the way it is supposed to be. When the enemy comes against us, the people of God, the Lord fights the battle, and when we sing praise to God, we walk away with a blessing that is too much to carry. What a way to do battle! I believe that there is much to learn from this battle. The first thing they did was to seek the Lord for direction. Do not fight any battle without the word of the Lord. Secondly, Jehoshaphat said, “believe in the Lord God, so shall ye be established.” Established in what? The Lord. We must establish ourselves in Him. To be established means to be settled, settled in Him, not wavering. People should know where we stand with the Lord; that the Lord fights our battles. There should also be no question about our character; our character has been established.
Then Jehoshaphat said, “believe his prophets, so shall ye prosper.” I am well aware that not everyone who gives a word of prophecy is actually hearing from God. So it makes it hard sometimes to know what to believe. But I have learned from the book of Revelation 19:10, where it says, “...for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.” In other words, the spirit will bear witness with the Christ in us. The word will be producing Christ in us, not just pleasing the flesh.
The third thing Jehoshaphat did was to do exactly what God directed him to do. It did not seem like a good plan to the natural mind. Many times God’s ways do not make sense to us carnally. But God’s ways are higher than man’s ways. Because of his obedience, they not only won the battle, they were blessed beyond their wildest dreams. They were just fighting to stay alive, but God wanted them to have their lives and have them more abundantly. This sounds like the same plan that Jesus spoke about in John 10:10, “The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.”
One thing I want to emphasize is when we are obedient to the plan of God, not only are we able to win our battles, but we do not wear ourselves out in the process. We also get the spoils from the battle. With God it is a win-win situation. I must point out that this battle was also fought in a wilderness. The wilderness seems to be the place of many battles. The most important battles in scripture were fought in the wilderness. The children of Israel wandered in the wilderness for forty years before entering into the promise land. A wilderness is a barren, empty, desert-like place. Most of our more important battles in life are fought when we are going through rough places. Remember, these are the battles that determine our future or destiny. In these times, we really need to heed to the divine leadership of our Lord.
Another one of my favorite scriptures dealing with spiritual warfare is Psalm 68 verse 1, “Let God arise, let his enemies be scattered: let them also that hate him flee before him.” When we let or allow God to arise within us, He takes his rightful place on the throne of our hearts. This means He is calling the shots. He is making the decisions in our lives. The enemy has to flee. He cannot get in to put in his two-cents worth. The Apostle Paul says in Ephesians 4:27, “Neither give place to the devil.” Give him no room in your life. Many people have a great big devil and a very little God, or so it seems. All they can talk about is how Satan is fighting or how hard it is to live right. If our focus is on the enemy, he will be larger than life. If our focus is on God, then He will be larger than life. Which one do we want to be larger in our life?
We know that Christ in us is the hope of glory according to Colossians 1:27. When we allow the hope to spread by letting Him arise, there really is no weapon formed against us that can prosper, or gain ground in our lives, and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn, this is the heritage of the saints (Isaiah 54:17).
I really like the part about this being the heritage (or the inheritance) of the saints. We are the saints of God. These promises are for us, but we must activate them in our lives. How many times did Jesus say things like, “If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth,” (Mark 9:23). John 14:12-14, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father. And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it.” So you see, one of our greatest weapons is simply to believe.
Notice, He did not say those who fight the hardest or pray the loudest, or work the most hours will receive. No, He said those that believe. It is easier for us to work hard than for us to believe. Mostly because what we have to believe is not “carnally correct.” By this I mean that it does not make sense to the carnal mind. But then Paul said in Romans 8:5-8, “For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God.”
I do not know how much plainer it can be put. The carnal mind is enmity or the enemy of God. Yet we tend to want to reason everything with our carnal minds. God’s ways are higher than man’s ways. Just like the battle that we read about earlier, with Jehoshaphat: how many modern day battles have you heard about where they sent singers and praisers before the army? It does not make sense to us because we see through natural or carnal eyes. Obviously, God has His reasons. Maybe the warfare was won by the praisers and singers before the natural army arrived on the scene!
I wonder how many times praising was the plan of God in our everyday warfare against our enemies, but we were too busy to consult God first, or if we did, we were too embarrassed to do it. We think, “we can handle this one God; you can take a break. I’ll show you how capable I am,” only to find ourselves in a bigger mess than ever. We need God’s help, always in everything we do, whether it seems spiritual or not. Many times we wear ourselves out trying to impress others. If we could forget about trying to impress everyone else and only try to please God, the battle would not be nearly as difficult. Remember the battle is the Lord’s!
Chapter 2: Weapons of Our Warfare
Paul says in 2 Corinthians chapter 10 verses 3-6, “For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds); Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ; And having in a readiness to revenge all disobedience, when your obedience is fulfilled.”
Once again, we are reminded in scripture that our warfare is not after the flesh, or done by the flesh. We cannot do spiritual battle with carnal minds. He said the weapons of our warfare are mighty through God. What are the weapons? Ephesians 6:10-18 gives us a list of the weapons and the armour or protection that we need for this battle. The reason we must take the time to go over these scriptures is because of the vital importance they are to our everyday walk in Christ.
Verse 10 says, “Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might,” not our might. “Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints.”
Now let us go back and examine what Apostle Paul was instructing us to do. First, he said to be strong in the Lord and in the power of his might. We must understand that our strength is not of ourselves. Paul says in 2 Corinthians 12:10, “….for when I am weak, then am I strong.” He also said in verse 9 of the same chapter, “And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness.” Jesus is the one saying this. His strength is made perfect in our weakness. Our strength is in Him and in His might, not our own.
Then he says, “to put on the whole armour of God.” The armour of God is a protective covering against the enemies’ attacks. Remember earlier we read of David and Goliath, when David convinced Saul to let him go fight the giant, Saul told him to try on his armour. When David did this, he found it to be too big, it just did not feel right. Many times we try to put on someone else’s armour. What I mean by this, is asking someone else what to do in certain situations, and not asking the Lord for ourselves. What someone else would do may be good for them, but God might have us do something else. For instance, I may be going through something that my wife, Linda, has gone through before. So I would ask her what she did at that time. She may tell me that she fasted and prayed for three days, but when I tried it all I got was hungry, because I did not seek the Lord. Her advice was good, but it did not work for me. Saul’s armour was good, but it did not work for David.
Then Paul says, “to put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil,” (Ephesians 6:11) or the attacks of the devil. The Amplified Bible says, “against all the strategies and deceits of the devil.” He then says, “that our warfare is not against flesh and blood but against principalities.” The first thing that comes to my mind when I hear the word principalities is the word principles. Principles are the fundamentals. Fundamentals of our faith many times are shaky, especially when so many Christians today are being raised on emotions rather than true spiritual principles. Jesus taught many Kingdom principles throughout the four gospels.
In fact, He was speaking of this very thing in Matthew 7:24-27, “Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock. And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.”
When the storms of life come, we need to know that we have built our lives on solid spiritual principles so our lives will not fall apart. Sadly to say, our hospitals, prisons, even asylums are full of people who did not heed the word of the Lord. Many of our homes, even in the church, are falling apart due to a lack of a solid foundation. Jesus is our foundation. Not even the church can take the place of a real relationship with Him.
Much of our battle is in the mind. Mental fatigue is one result of the battle within the mind, without proper principles in place. Our basic principles are really, “what we believe” and this is what determines our success or failure in life. I am not writing this just so we can be better church members. My goal is to help us be more effective in life and have more joy. If the church is where it should be, then it can truly be a light to those who are trying to find their way. It is kind of like trying to make a child grow; all we really have to do is keep him healthy. He will grow. The same thing works for the church or a relationship: keep them healthy and they will grow.
Now, back to the scriptures at hand. Principalities also refer to demonic forces. We know that our enemy is a liar and the father of lies. Every thought that he puts in our mind is a lie, or based on a lie. If it appears to be true, it is being misused. He will not speak truth. He cannot handle the truth. The truth will expose him, so he must use deceit and lies.
Not only do we wrestle against principalities, but powers and against rulers of darkness in this world. Powers in this particular use makes me think of the ability of one person having control over another. This also can be demonic or it can simply be a form of manipulation. We know that manipulation is actually a form of witchcraft. It can also be as simple as depending too much on what someone else thinks. The need to please sometimes puts us under a sort of spell. If I care too much about what someone else thinks, they can have power over me. For example, if I know that I should speak to someone about Jesus but I am afraid they might laugh or think something bad about me, then they have too much power over me. We may not even know it, but we are giving more power by caring about our feelings than we are about being obedient to God. We must care more about pleasing God than man, even our own selves.
The rulers of darkness are those who have power to impart evil. Once again, it can be demonic, but it can also be fear, doubt, or unbelief. These things can bring much darkness to someone’s life. Many times, people spread darkness by planting seeds of doubt or unbelief in the mind of another. For instance, I once heard of a famous body builder who would see his opponent before a contest and ask him if he was feeling alright. He remarked that he looked a little pale, when in reality it was just a ploy. But if the opponent had listened to this remark, it would have affected his performance and gave the other person an edge over him. It works the same with negative influence. Just being around someone who is negative will make us the same way if we are not careful. Many times the perpetrators do not even realize what they are doing.
We must move on to the weapons. The first thing He says to do, “is stand.” We have heard it said that a person who will not stand for something will fall for anything. I believe the Apostle Paul is telling us to take a stand for God. We should stand with our loins girt about with truth. The truth will make us free! There is so much that we could say about truth. “Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6). The truth will stand and it will make us able to stand.
Then He said, “to have on the breastplate of righteousness.” We know the breastplate covers the chest area, and this is where all of the vital organs are, such as the heart. Having on the breastplate is having our heart right with God. Our righteousness is with God and not in our own works. Righteousness means to be in right standing.
Having “your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace” speaks of being prepared or ready to speak peace in any situation. The shield of faith protects against the fiery darts of the wicked. Many books have been written on faith. I was just reminded of one verse in Hebrews 11:6 that says, “But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.” When our faith is intact, there is really not much the enemy can do to us. That is why our faith is constantly being attacked. Do not give in. Keep the faith. Faith will move mountains and it will move God!
Next is the helmet of salvation. Of course, the helmet is the protection for the head, or the mind. We have the mind of Christ according to 1 Corinthians 2:16. It is in the mind that we know things—things like, we are called to be Sons of God. If the enemy can get us to doubt our identity in Christ, then he can rob us of our blessings and have his way in us. The helmet of salvation is knowing, knowing your relationship with God. Hosea 4:6 says, “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee…” That is why this piece of armour is so important. The lack of knowledge is destroying many people because they do not know who they are in Christ, not knowing their place in His body, the church. They say that knowledge is power. Know God. The more we know the truth about God, the more we will want to serve Him.
He then says, “to take the sword of the Spirit which is the word of God.” This really is the only weapon that we have. That is why it is so important to know the word of God, not just the written word. We can never know too much scripture, but we also must understand that Jesus is the Word of God made Flesh (John 1:14). Knowing Him is knowing the living word. Knowing His voice will drastically reduce the risk of falling or being led astray. He said, “my sheep know my voice, a stranger they will not follow” (John 10:4-5). The only way to know someone is to spend time with them. We must spend time with God, not just telling Him our troubles, but listening to His voice in our hearts. Paul also says in Philippians 3:10, “That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death.” This is really knowing Him. Many want to know Him in the power of His resurrection, but what about fellowship with Him or His sufferings? It has been said that we really do not know someone until we have been through some rough times together. Staying with Jesus through hard times will prove rewarding.
I remember my first trip out of the United States. I was going to India to minister. I had never flown in an airplane and I was to be gone for sixteen days. My wife, Linda, and I had never been apart that long during our marriage of thirty years. In addition, I was going to a foreign country alone! I really had to trust God. I prayed like I had never prayed before. I learned to lean on Him in ways I had never thought of before. I was to minister to thousands and had never preached with an interpreter. I faced fears that I did not know I had. Did you know God was faithful in every way? The more I leaned on Him, the more I found Him to be worthy of my trust. God is faithful, and I know Him now, like I had never known Him before.
We may be thinking this is all well and good. How can we use this as a weapon, a sword? You see, the greatest battle is really in the mind. When we know the word of the Lord we can fight back any attacks that come our way. We can quote scripture, and we can dismantle any lies that come against us by knowing we have a word from God. Let’s look at 2 Timothy 2:15, it says to “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” Many times when we read this scripture we think He is saying that the more we study the more we will be approved. I am not arguing against this, but I think He is also telling us when we study, we should be finding out that we are approved! We are approved not by our works, but by His works.
Now, I am not saying that we should not study. I am saying when we study that we should be really hearing what the Lord is saying to us, not necessarily what we have always been told. He also says in 2 Timothy 3:16 that “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, (teaching) for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: (17) That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works.” The word of God is good for us. It will make us perfect or mature in Him. This is the real goal anyway. Many times the Word is used to beat ourselves up or beat up others. The Word is a sword or weapon to use on the enemy, not on ourselves for destruction or on our brothers and sisters. We are not even to use it to destroy people out in the world. We should use it to build up one another, to encourage, and to strengthen.
“For the word of God is quick, (alive) and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart” (Hebrews 4:12).
You see, the Word of God is a mighty weapon and it must be used correctly. Too much damage has already been done by well-meaning Christians using this powerful weapon. The Word of God should only be used on others as we would use it on ourself. In fact, we should use it on ourself first, then we probably will not have to use it on anyone else!