Prayer and Warfare 279
adversary. The latter mounts an assault in order to depress the
believer’s inner man and thus to afflict his soul. If the child of God
has come to appreciate the wiles of his assailant, he will not
surrender at any point but will instead resist; and his emotional soul
is thereby protected. Resistance in the inner man forces the enemy to
go on the defensive.
Resistance is one of the indispensable elements in spiritual
combat. The best defense is a continuous offense. Oppose with the
will as well as with the strength in the spirit. Giving opposition
means struggling free from the power of suppression. The opponent
will be routed if one fights his way out by the spirit. But should one
allow the enemy to attack and not resist in return, then that one’s
spirit will surely be depressed, sink very low, and may require many
days before it regains its ascendancy. The spirit that does not
withstand the enemy is often a suppressed one.
How shall we resist? With the Word of God which is the Sword of
the Holy Spirit. As a believer receives God’s Word it becomes “spirit
and life” to him. Hence he can employ this as his weapon of
resistance. A heavenly believer knows how to use the Word of God
advantageously to break down the enemy’s lie. Even now a battle is
raging in the world of the spirit. Though unobserved by the eyes of
the flesh, it is sensed and proven by those who are seeking heavenly
progress. Many who are deceived and bound by the enemy need to
be released. Not only is there need for release from sin and
selfrighteousness; many who are bound as well by supernatural
experience need release also. Due to curiosity and the prospect of
pleasant sensations, Christians gladly welcome these supernatural
phenomena, not recognizing that these merely puff up their pride
without producing any real or lasting result in terms of a holy and
righteous life or spiritual work. When the evil spirits succeed in their
deceptions they gain a footing in the believer. From this ground the
enemy gradually enlarges his frontiers until finally he renders the
believer as one who walks in the flesh.