world. This deserves our attention because, I believe, this battle is at the root of so much that gets in the way of our understanding about God’s love for us. This battle is at the root of many of the conflicts we experience with others. It is at the root of so much of what we think is wrong about ourselves. It is at the root of what immobilizes us and makes us feel “less than.”
As a result, it is very important to talk about this issue of spiritual warfare, because God promises us freedom—and yet countless Christians (many whom are very godly and devoted) are stuck. Immobilized. Prisoners to things we as Christians shouldn’t theoretically be prisoners to. Things you would expect you would be free from when you are bathed in God’s love.
And that’s because this battle for our freedom is about Satan doing everything in his power to keep us stuck. Everything in his power. His power is way less than God’s, but make no mistake, he’s pretty powerful. The Bible describes him as the ruler of this world (John 12:31). We need to be clear about who our enemy is. Battle Tactics 101 involves understanding who your enemy is so you are armed and prepared for the attack. It’s hard to ready yourself for battle if you don’t know what or whom you are battling. People make whole careers out of studying enemy tactics, because it is critical to the success of a battle. Profiling, for the FBI, CIA, provincial police forces and the Royal Mounted Police, is a crucial component to solving crime. Why? Because when you have a sense of who you are looking for, it makes it a whole lot easier to spot him (or her) and figure out what his next step is so you can stop him. It is wise for us to understand who our enemy is so we can spot him when he is at work. So we don’t unintentionally accept something as truth when it’s really an enemy attack. So we don’t find ourselves imprisoned when we are supposed to be free.
Our enemy is content to keep us stuck in whatever will best prevent us from feeling or being free. It could be a thought. It could be a behaviour. It could be a situation. It could be in the past. It could be in the present. Because of God’s love, there is no condemnation, but our enemy wants you to think there still is. Because you can’t feel freedom and condemnation at the same time. See how subtle that is? He doesn’t have to get you to commit some major “crime” or “sin”—he just has to make you feel guilty about something or unforgiven. Not good enough. And then he has you.
Because ultimately, this battle for our freedom exists because of God’s life-changing love for us. Satan knows how powerful it is for you and me to truly understand the depth and breadth of God’s love for us and how it has the capacity to fill those deep, soulful places…so he works very hard to prevent that from happening.
This isn’t just a theory that makes a good subject for theological debate; it is real life. There is a spiritual battle going on that we are a part of as Christians. Isaiah 61:1 is an Old Testament prophecy of what the Messiah would come to do, later quoted by Jesus in the Gospels (Luke 4:18) as His mission for His time here on earth. Notice what He says—He came to bring release from darkness for the prisoners. Many Christians believe this refers to the act of salvation, that by defeating Satan through His death on the cross Jesus has brought release from darkness for the prisoners. Which is 100 percent true. But this idea of freedom isn’t just about salvation. It is also about sanctification, the process of us being made more and more like Jesus as we grow closer in our relationship to Him, deepen our understanding of who He is, and are changed by His presence in our lives. Our release from darkness is involved in that process as well.
We are free, from an eternal perspective, as soon as we accept what Jesus did for us on the cross (please see appendix E if you are not clear about what exactly I’m referring to). That salvation is secure, and the Bible says in Romans 8:38–39 that nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus. Nothing. But if you notice, Isaiah 61:1 (a.k.a. Jesus’ mission on earth) is about more than that. It also says He came to bind up the broken-hearted. He loves us so much that He cares about the hurts in our lives and wants us to be healed from them. He offers in relationship with Him a place where those hurts can be left, where they do not define us or hold us down. So we can feel free.
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