Ok, let me backtrack just a moment and say that I really don't think we should all watch violent war movies.....but it did get your attention didn't it?!
And here's my point. I don't think most of us who profess Christ as our Lord (read: Commander-in-Chief) and Savior truly understand the spiritual war we are in and especially how violently our enemies oppose and desire to severely damage and if possible destroy our very souls. Now my use of the plural form of enemy is not a typo. I am referring to the dark threesome of our sinful flesh, the world, and Satan himself. This is a devastatingly powerful alliance which, has committed itself to the total destruction of our souls. These three are as committed as they can possibly be to fighting a full-scale, take no prisoners, brutally savage, all-out, merciless, and spiritually toxic war against our very souls with the intent to, at the very least render us inoperative and no longer effective as combatants in battle. More desirable than this however, to this unholy alliance, is to so damage our souls through a barrage of effective, soul-crippling, spiritual-life-sapping, and collaterally damaging attacks that we look, live, and feel more like our enemy than we do our King.
Some of you don't need a war movie to help you envision the destruction of war because you were there. You've seen what war does. You've heard the cries, felt the darkness, and captured the destruction in your memories never ever to be forgotten. Others have experienced the carnage of war as a result of its collaterally damaging affects which with precise potency can be even more savage than the first-strike itself. For those who have never seen or felt war there are war movies. And I'm not talking about the sounds of bombs off in the distance, bases still intact, no blood, no screams, non-terrifying movies of a generation ago with actors still wearing unsoiled, unspoiled, untouched, unmarred, and still gleaming uniforms. No, I'm talking about movies like "We Were Soldiers and Young" and "Hacksaw Ridge" in which the watchers are shocked, sickened, and may even find themselves forced to turn away from the carnage depicted on the screen.
You see, war destroys. That is what it is designed to do. Wars are fought to destroy the enemy as ferociously fast and effectively as possible. Wars are all about crushing and terrorizing the enemy so as to make him give up the fight, surrender the cause, and never rise up in arms again. And this is what our three-fold enemies have in mind for us. Don't believe me? Take a look at 1 Peter 2:11. Peter does not use the word "war" for its attention grabbing value. Rather, when he tells us that our fleshly lusts are waging war against our souls think about those really violent scenes in those war movies you have watched lately and then come to grips with the fact that this is no movie. This is the real thing. What your fleshly lusts are doing to your soul are for the intent of so severely damaging your soul that you surrender the fight, are taken prisoner, and lost to the cause. This is spiritual warfare and it is deadly to the soul that is unprepared or unwilling to fight (Rom. 8:13).
That's the bad news. The good news, however, is that no matter how critically wounded the soul it can be restored. No matter how devastating the damage our souls can be revived and renewed. Psalm 19:7 gives us this hope. But you need to look it up and read it to find the hope. No one else can do this for you. Its your soul, your battle, and your duty. Read it and you will see. Then read verses 8-11. There is indeed hope for even the most severely damaged souls who will give their attention to God's Word and fight. It is possible to restore the soul, reengage the enemy, and win the war! Don't Quit. Don't Give-In.
And here's my point. I don't think most of us who profess Christ as our Lord (read: Commander-in-Chief) and Savior truly understand the spiritual war we are in and especially how violently our enemies oppose and desire to severely damage and if possible destroy our very souls. Now my use of the plural form of enemy is not a typo. I am referring to the dark threesome of our sinful flesh, the world, and Satan himself. This is a devastatingly powerful alliance which, has committed itself to the total destruction of our souls. These three are as committed as they can possibly be to fighting a full-scale, take no prisoners, brutally savage, all-out, merciless, and spiritually toxic war against our very souls with the intent to, at the very least render us inoperative and no longer effective as combatants in battle. More desirable than this however, to this unholy alliance, is to so damage our souls through a barrage of effective, soul-crippling, spiritual-life-sapping, and collaterally damaging attacks that we look, live, and feel more like our enemy than we do our King.
Some of you don't need a war movie to help you envision the destruction of war because you were there. You've seen what war does. You've heard the cries, felt the darkness, and captured the destruction in your memories never ever to be forgotten. Others have experienced the carnage of war as a result of its collaterally damaging affects which with precise potency can be even more savage than the first-strike itself. For those who have never seen or felt war there are war movies. And I'm not talking about the sounds of bombs off in the distance, bases still intact, no blood, no screams, non-terrifying movies of a generation ago with actors still wearing unsoiled, unspoiled, untouched, unmarred, and still gleaming uniforms. No, I'm talking about movies like "We Were Soldiers and Young" and "Hacksaw Ridge" in which the watchers are shocked, sickened, and may even find themselves forced to turn away from the carnage depicted on the screen.
You see, war destroys. That is what it is designed to do. Wars are fought to destroy the enemy as ferociously fast and effectively as possible. Wars are all about crushing and terrorizing the enemy so as to make him give up the fight, surrender the cause, and never rise up in arms again. And this is what our three-fold enemies have in mind for us. Don't believe me? Take a look at 1 Peter 2:11. Peter does not use the word "war" for its attention grabbing value. Rather, when he tells us that our fleshly lusts are waging war against our souls think about those really violent scenes in those war movies you have watched lately and then come to grips with the fact that this is no movie. This is the real thing. What your fleshly lusts are doing to your soul are for the intent of so severely damaging your soul that you surrender the fight, are taken prisoner, and lost to the cause. This is spiritual warfare and it is deadly to the soul that is unprepared or unwilling to fight (Rom. 8:13).
That's the bad news. The good news, however, is that no matter how critically wounded the soul it can be restored. No matter how devastating the damage our souls can be revived and renewed. Psalm 19:7 gives us this hope. But you need to look it up and read it to find the hope. No one else can do this for you. Its your soul, your battle, and your duty. Read it and you will see. Then read verses 8-11. There is indeed hope for even the most severely damaged souls who will give their attention to God's Word and fight. It is possible to restore the soul, reengage the enemy, and win the war! Don't Quit. Don't Give-In.
No comments:
Post a Comment