Kerry Shook - Fight To The Finish
You know, computer technology has come a long way with virtual reality, and I know it's really just beginning. It's kind of scary to think about where it's all going with VR. Recently, one of my kids got some VR goggles, and I put them on, and I found myself on about a 1-foot-wide beam, about 100 feet in the air. And it felt so real that my heart began to race, my legs got wobbly, and then I began to lose my balance. But then I was brought back to reality, as I heard laughter breaking the silence, as my family was laughing at me and not with me.
So, I took the VR goggles off, and I was back to reality, and it felt really good. We know that VR is not real. It's virtual reality, but it's not reality, but the Scripture tells us that even what our eyes are looking at isn't full reality. It's not true and complete reality, because there is this unseen world that's going on all around us that usually we're not aware of that our physical eyes just can't see. There's a supernatural battle going on all around us that we just can't see it. It's God versus Satan. It's angels versus demons. It's good versus evil. There's this cosmic clash that's going on all around us, and usually we're completely unaware of it.
And some of the battles that you're facing right now are spiritual battles. Some of the struggles that you're facing right now are supernatural struggles. And so we're starting this new series where we're gonna put on our spiritual reality goggles, so that we can see what is unseen, what we're usually completely oblivious to, so that we can see how we can win the fight that we're facing. We're calling it "Fight to the Finish," because sometimes in this life it seems like every day is a battle. You're just fighting to get through the day, because every one of us face battles.
Some of you today are battling with doubt. Some of you today are really battling with temptation, and you feel like you just keep failing. Some of you today are battling with conflict and disunity in a marriage relationship, or in your family. Some of you today are battling with depression, or you're battling with anxiety, or you have a battle in your finances or work, and some of you today are battling with grief, and it's just a fight to stay standing each and every day.
You see, every one of us face battles, and I'm not saying the battle you're facing right now is all caused by Satan, but there usually is, in every battle, a component of spiritual warfare. There's some spiritual warfare in just about every fight that we face, but the good news is God wants to give you his power for every battle you face. So, would you open your Bibles to Ephesians chapter 6? And would you stand in honor of God's Word, Woodlands Church? And follow along with me. And that about wraps it up. "God is strong, and He wants you strong. So take everything the Master has set out for you, well-made weapons of the best materials. And put them to use so you will be able to stand up to everything the Devil throws your way. This is no weekend war that we'll walk away from and forget about in a couple of hours. This is for keeps, a life-or-death fight to the finish against the Devil and all his angels".
You can be seated. I want you to focus in on that phrase, "Fight to the finish," because on this earth you will always have a fight. There will always be a spiritual battle to face, and it's not virtual reality. It's reality. It's a life-or-death struggle. It's serious business. But the good news is God has given you the strength for every struggle that you face. And this passage in Ephesians chapter 6 tells us that God has equipped us with everything we need to win the battle that we're facing.
I want us to do a little study of Ephesians chapter 6 today. In Ephesians 6:12, in the NIV it says, "For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world, and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms". Focus in on the very first part of that verse. "Our struggle is not against flesh and blood". You see, usually, we think the battle, the conflict is with another person, and that maybe it's a coworker, or a friend, or a boss, or maybe it's our marriage partner, or someone in our family, but usually we think that the battle is with another person, and nothing could be further from the truth, because really it's a cosmic clash, and our real battle is not against another person, but against the powers and principalities of evil.
Now, our enemy has limited power, but he does have power. So, we need to be aware of who the real enemy is, because usually we're not aware of who the real enemy is. We're fighting other people. We're in conflict with others, and we're worried about circumstances, and we don't really know about the spiritual war that's going on all around us. And then we need to know not only who the enemy is, but what the enemy strategy is, because Satan has had the same strategy from the very beginning, and so we can know what his strategy is from looking at Scripture. In World War II, General Patton defeated General Rommel, the Desert Fox, in one of the most decisive battles in the desert.
And Patton would later say, "I was able to defeat him, because I'd read his book". For Patton had read Rommel's book on tank warfare, and he knew exactly what the enemy's strategy would be. And we need to know what our enemy's strategy is, so we can experience God's victory. And his strategy has always been the same. He starts with deception. He wants to deceive you. He lies to you. In John 8:44, it says, "From the very beginning the devil was a murderer and has never been on the side of truth, because there is no truth in him. When he tells a lie, he's only doing what is natural to him, because he is a liar and the father of all lies". He's the father of all lies. He's always lying to us.
First, he'll lie to you about who you are. He'll say you're no good, you're not worthy. God can never use you. Any time you have a thought that comes into your mind that says you are not enough, you'll never be enough, you're worthless, you just don't have what it takes, any time you have a negative thought like that, that comes in your mind, that's from the enemy. It's a lie from the enemy, because God says the truth, if you're a Christ follower, that you are righteous in Christ. You're a child of God. You're worthy, because Christ has made you worthy, that you are chosen by God, and God has a purpose for your life. You are worthy because of Jesus Christ, and God wants to use you. You are enough because of Christ, and you have what it takes because of Christ. You can do all things through Christ, who strengthens you.
That's the truth. And he will lie to you about who you are. And then he will lie, one of his favorite lies is you're the only one. You're the only one struggling with what you're struggling with. And you walk into church, and he will whisper to you, "You're the only one going through pain. Look at all these happy people. They don't have any problem. Look at the praise team. They're singing, they're smiling, they're so happy". "I mean, everything is working great for them, but I'm the only one in pain. I'm the only one really hurting". Or he'll say, "You're the only one who's carrying a huge burden. No one else is carrying the burden you're carrying. No one else is struggling in their finances. No one else is struggling with that addiction. No one else here is struggling with that problem that you have right now. No one else here is going through that grief. No one else here is going through that pain. You're the only one".
Because if he can isolate you into believing the lie that you're the only one struggling with what you're struggling with, then he can really attack. He can have a field day in the spiritual war and just hammer you. And so I have to say the truth. When I feel like I'm the only one, I have to remember the truth. I have a church family around me, as a Christ follower, and that's one of the advantages of a big church family, that I can tell you that whatever you're going through, whatever pain you're experiencing, everyone here has a hidden hurt, and there's many people that are going through the same thing you're going through or have already gone through it. And then he'll lie to you not only about who you are, but he'll lie to you about who God is.
Especially when you're going through problems and pain, and you can't see what God is up to, and it feels like God is nowhere around, he will lie to you about God, and he'll say, "Does God really even care about you? God doesn't care. Does God really even know what you're going through? I don't think so". That's what he said to Adam and Eve. He lied to them about God. "Is God really a good God? Then why would he have allowed this in your life? This is really bad. This is evil. This is painful. And so how could God be a good God and allow all the suffering in the world"? He will always lie to you about who God is, especially when you're going through pain. He'll lie to you about sin. He's a beautiful angel. He makes sin look good, make it look beautiful, make it look so appealing.
And every time I sin, it's because I'm believing a lie. Every time you sin, it's because you're believing a lie. You think that, hey, that's gonna bring more fulfillment. That's gonna meet a need. That's going to be a good thing, or it's okay, or it's not that big a deal. Everyone's doing it. Every time I sin, I believe a lie, because the truth is sin is devastating to us and destructive to us. It's not that sin is bad. It's just you weren't made for it. God created you. He knows how you're made. He made you. He gave you an owner's manual, the Bible, and it shows you how you work best.
And if he says, don't do this, and don't do that, it's not to make you miserable. It's because he knows if you do that, you weren't made for that, and it will be destructive to you. It's like an electric toaster is made to toast, toast; and if you put a fork in the electric toaster, it's not a good thing, because it wasn't made for that. It's a really dumb thing, and that's the way sin is. It's not that sin is just so bad. It's that sin's really dumb, because you weren't made for that, and that's what brings devastation to us. That's why it brings addictions, and that's why it brings hurt and pain. That's why it brings disconnection, all the things that Satan is looking for, and destruction, because you weren't made for it.
So, we need to be aware of the enemy's strategy. But the most important thing we need to be aware of is the outcome of the whole thing, that Christ has already won the victory. Some Christ followers don't know that Christ has already won the victory. It's like a soldier that fights on after the war is already won, because he doesn't know. It's like a soldier who thinks that he hasn't won, and he doesn't get it. He doesn't know that the war is already won. You see, we fight battles. There's no doubt about it. But yet we fight in victory, and that changes everything, because Christ has already won the victory.
Satan is a defeated enemy, and I need to be aware of that, because that's what gives me great victory is when I stand in Christ's victory. In Ephesians 6:13 it says, "Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you've done everything to stand, stand firm then". The word "stand" is mentioned three times here, because you don't have to go out and fight Satan yourself. You just stand in Christ's victory and what he's already done for you. If you run after and try to attack Satan, you're gonna be knocked out in the first round. All you have to do is stand, stand, stand, stand. You stand on God's promises. You stand in Christ's victory. You stand in who you are in Christ. You stand on the truth; because when Christ died, rose again, he won the victory over Satan once and for all.
He won the victory over death, and the grave, and hell itself. And all we have to do is stand in that victory. Look at the next verse in Ephesians 6:14. It says, "Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place". So the belt of truth kind of holds it all together, and the belt of truth is God's voice of truth. When you hear all these other voices, and the enemy's voice coming at you, telling you lies about yourself, about who God is, about sin, then you stand on the truth, and you've gotta know the truth from God's Word. And what God says about you is true. Whether you feel it or not, it's true. It is reality, not virtual reality.
And so we have to put that belt of truth on every day and not give in to Satan's lies. And then it says the breastplate of righteousness in place. The breastplate of righteousness protects your heart. And one of Satan's big goals is to wound your heart, because his greatest fear is a Christ follower who lives wholeheartedly, not with half their heart, with a third of their heart, but totally wholeheartedly surrendered to God, totally wholeheartedly giving themselves to others. That is Satan's greatest fear, so he will try to wound your heart in this war. And every one of us have experienced that. Satan fears you. Did you know that?
Satan is afraid of you, but not if you live with half-heartedness to God and to others. You live with a wide-open heart because of Christ's righteousness, because he has covered you, and he will guide you and strengthen you, and it's his approval that you need. You can be rejected by everyone else, but if you're a Christ follower, following him, you find the approval of God himself, and he's the audience of one, the only one that counts. But then look at the next passage. Ephesians 6:15 says, "With your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God".
So, first, it says your feet need to be fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. And so are your feet ready to walk across the room to share the gospel with someone else, to give the good news, the cure to someone else, or do you just want to keep it to yourself? I mean, that's what Satan hates is when we start telling others about Christ. Are you ready to walk across the street with your feet fitted with your feet fitted with the gospel of peace to invite your neighbor to Easter services, or to invite a coworker or a friend? The worst thing that can happen is they say no. And 95%, I believe it is, of all non-church goers say that they would go if only a friend would invite them.
And so God's placed you in that place for a reason. Are your feet ready to walk across the room? And then he goes on to say, "Take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one". Satan's always shooting flaming arrows at us, and they just bounce right off that shield of faith. And the shield of faith is that you take the little bit of faith you have, the mustard seed faith, and you place it all on Christ, because your faith is only as good as the object you placed it in. If you have faith in faith, that's worthless. If you faith in yourself, that's worthless. If you have faith in someone else, you can get let down, and you probably will.
But when you have a little bit of faith, even if it's imperfect, and you place it all on Christ, you have a shield of faith, a shield of faith, and it doesn't matter what you feel at a certain moment. You've got a shield of faith, and you take up that shield of faith, and Satan shoots those fiery arrows at you, and they just bounce off the shield of faith. And every once in a while, God opens up the shield. And we don't understand all the reasons why until we get to heaven. But sometimes he opens up that shield, and an arrow hits us and wounds our heart, and we don't understand it, and it doesn't make any sense, and it feels like that God is not really protecting us, but that's when the shield of faith comes back, and you say, "In faith, God, I know I don't get it. I hate it. But I know that this is for your ultimate glory and my ultimate good, even though I don't understand it".
For, you see, that shield of faith makes all the difference, when you take the little bit of faith you have, and you place it all on him. But then he goes on to say, "Take the helmet of salvation," and the helmet of salvation is that helmet that protects your mind from all the lies. The helmet of salvation is that once you come to Christ and you receive his free gift of salvation, your ticket to heaven is secure. No matter what goes on in your mind and your heart, no matter what depression you walk through, no matter what pain you walk through, no matter if your mind is spinning out of control, you have the helmet of salvation, because you have Jesus in your heart, and you have the truth that you'll be in heaven one day, because he has saved you, and he saved you from your past, he saves you in the present, and he saves you one day in heaven in your future.
And then he goes on to say, "And the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God". We have our weapon, the sword of the Spirit, and it's really claiming promises and standing on promises. So, get into God's Word. Get to know God's truth, and stand on those promises even when you don't feel it, because his promises have never failed. His promises remain. He holds you in his hands, and he'll never let you go. But then I want you to see the next verse. Verse 18, it says, "And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord's people".
So, prayer is the key. If you want to fight the battle, you fight it on your knees in prayer, because prayer moves the hand of God. Prayer removes the hand of Satan. When you pray, Satan fears it. He will want you to do just about anything other than pray. He's fine if you do a bunch of good things at church even. He's fine if you get really busy doing a lot of good things to help other people, as long as you don't pray, but he fears your prayers, 'cause he knows prayers move the hand of God. Look at Luke 10:19. Jesus said this about you. "And I've given you authority over all the power of the Enemy, and to walk among serpents and scorpions and to crush them. Nothing shall injure you".
Christ has given us authority over the enemy. Christ won the authority at the cross, and he's given it to us, that authority over the enemy. So, that means that I can pray and bind Satan, in Jesus' name. I can pray and say, "In Jesus' name, Lord Jesus, in your name, bind the enemy from my life, today, and from this circumstance. Just bind Satan away from this, so that he can't work in this situation". And then we can speak directly to the enemy. Did you know that? You don't bow your head and pray to him. You open your eyes, and you speak directly to him when you feel the enemy really attacking you with lies, and the enemy really attacking you.
You just say, "In Jesus' name, Satan, I command you to leave me. I command you to get away from me, in Jesus' name, because I have authority over you, in Jesus' name". Martin Luther, who, you know, he was the beginning of the Reformation. It was back in the Dark Ages. The priests were taking money and then forgiving people of their sins. Said, "You can't get your sins forgiven unless you pay us". I mean, it was just terrible. And in the Dark Ages, the priests said, "We're the only ones who can read Scripture". So, they wouldn't give the people the Word of God. "You've gotta look to us 'cause we're more spiritual than you are".
And then, of course, Christ came so that we don't have to go through any human being. We can go directly to God through Jesus Christ, who's made a way for us. And Martin Luther began to read God's Word, and he realized it, that salvation was by faith, and he began to post the thesis on the door at the church in Wittenberg, and he began to proclaim this. And so do you think the enemy, he was the only one, do you think the enemy was after him? You better believe it. And one night, Martin Luther woke up in the middle of the night, feeling some presence there. He looked up, and it was Satan himself. And he said, "Oh, it's just you," and he rolled back and went to sleep, because he knew that he had authority over the enemy.
I don't know that I could've done that, but he knew he had authority over the enemy, in Jesus' name, in Jesus' name. We can, in Jesus' name. Stand in his victory because of what John 19:30 says. Jesus on the cross, "When he had received the drink, Jesus said, 'It is finished.' With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit". Now, it says, "It is finished". He doesn't say, "I am finished". Jesus said, "It is finished". He didn't say, "I'm finished". He said, "It is finished". What was it? His purpose. He completed his purpose on earth. His purpose was to die on the cross for all of our sins, to defeat the enemy, to defeat all of sin and death and hell itself. And because it is finished, I can fight to the finish, in his power.