The Charge

“This charge I commit to you…
that you might war the good warfare.”
1 Timothy 1:18 (LITV)

This charge (“commandment” Greek) is the duty of every Christian. It is a call of the Spirit of God to His own. The enemy goes about “as a roaring lion,” seeking to devour the weak, the tepid, and the vulnerable. The unsuspecting and spiritually ignorant are oblivious to the subtle stratagems and devices of the enemy. There is a full-on assault in the hidden realms of the spirit where the enemy is speaking “great things,” seeking to fatigue us and tread on our resolve. But it is in our having “DONE all” (Eph 6:13) that we may stand against the wiles of our adversary.

Daniel saw our day: the enemy speaking words of power (inwardly and outwardly), seeking to wear down (erode) the fortitude of the saints of God.

“And he shall speak words against the Most High,
and he shall wear* out the saints of the Most High.”
Daniel 7:25 (LITV)

Paul, knowing the assault that the people of God in the last days would face, declares:

“Because of this, take up all of the armor of God that you may be able to resist in the evil day, and having worked out all things, to stand.”
Ephesians 6:13 (LITV)

I love the LITV translation of this verse. The KJV uses the phrase “done all,” but the Greek implies a working out, an experiential handling of our spiritual weapons so that we become proficient in the use of the armor of God. Our ability to stand in God in this crucial hour is dependent on us walking and learning to use these spiritual weapons in our everyday lives.

The Faith Born Of God

Spiritual victory is the result of faith. Faith is the power by which His armor becomes our experience. “Faith” that is only a statement or a belief will never produce spiritual victories. It is a faith that has no pulse of the Spirit, a faith that rests upon words and teachings rather than The Faith that holds us in the battles and causes us to triumph in Christ alone.

“For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world:
and this is the victory that overcometh the world,
even our faith.”
1 John 5:4

Deep and precious truths are hidden in plain sight in God’s word. A careful reading of the scripture above reveals to us the true nature of His faith at work in our lives. What is the “whatsoever” that is born of God that overcomes the world? FAITH. Faith is not the result of some mental gymnastics, it is not a persuasion that we come to, or the result of our opinion of God. True living faith is the “whatsoever” born of God within us. It is a living impartation of the Christ Himself birthing within us an indomitable faith that by its very nature “overcomes the world”!

When Paul spoke of the life he lived in the flesh, he declared that Christ’s faith carried Him, not his own!

“the life which I now live in the flesh
I live by the faith OF the Son of God…”
Galatians 2:20

An even more accurate translation of the Greek is:

“…that which I now live in the flesh—
I live IN the faith of the Son of God.”
Galatians 2:20 (LSV)

Like a fish in an aquarium, Paul lived IN THE FAITH. It was an atmosphere of life that Paul breathed in. It was the source of his victorious living and caused him to no longer rely upon his own resources. His life was one of being borne along by the wonder of the Life of Christ, a life that was ever warning, pleading, and pressing the people of God to live “godly in Christ Jesus”!

His ministry was not one of eloquence in men’s words but a “demonstration” of the Spirit. His life was one of reality; he continually lived through the resources of the living Christ.

“And my speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man’s wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God.”
1 Corinthians 2:4-5

If our faith is based on the wisdom of men, it holds no life. It carries no pulse of the divine and will not produce victory in the trials and testings of life.

The only means of victory
is the faith that is born of God.

 

May we breathe in the essence of His Word:

“whatsoever is born of God
overcometh the world.”

Let us return to the living faith, the faith that causes us to triumph in every situation, born of God and sustained by God through our ever-growing relationship with Him. True faith is the result of our relationship with Him. As the branch abides in the vine, it receives the living wonder of His faith and the impulse of the life we “now live in the flesh.”

Faith and Works

Faith must produce works. It must reveal the matchless works of His Life in and through our fragile earthen vessels. Our victory in Christ is only because His Faith has been born in us.

“Marvel not that I said unto thee,
Ye MUST be born again.”
John 3:7

* “to wear out” “An Aramaic verb meaning to oppress, wear down. The word indicates a partially successful attempt to defeat or weary the saints of the Most High” – Spiros Zodhiates

This Aramaic word is only used once in the scriptures. It is a word to fully describe and reveal to us the work and the power by which the enemy seeks to overthrow God’s people. Its usage in this portion of scripture indicates a partial conquest over some of God’s people. It is a day for diligence, a day to “not grow weary in well doing…” (Roman 2:7; Galatians 6:9; 2 Thessalonians 3:13). It is critical we recognize that “well doing” is the result of His faith producing the works by which we prevail!

May we heed the exhortation of the Spirit:

“And he that overcometh,
and keepeth My works unto the end,
to him will I give power over the nations.”
Revelation 2;26

Related Post: Warfare: The Sign of Life

“To remove warfare from a spiritual life is to render it unspiritual. Life in the spirit is a suffering way, filled with watching and laboring, burdened by weariness and trial, punctuated by heartbreak and conflict. It is a life utterly outpoured for the kingdom of God and lived in complete disregard for one’s personal happiness.”
– Watchman Nee

Brian Troxel