Anyone who has not signed on for warfare has not fully understood the call of Christ.

Anyone who has not signed on for warfare has not fully understood the call of Christ. Jesus never said, “If you have problems in this world…” but “When you have problems…” One of the saddest things to see is a person who longs to follow Christ but is not willing to stay in it for the long haul and withstand all that Satan wants to throw at him. We love to applaud people like Job (from Scripture) who have the enemy’s worst thrown at them but continue to stand. However, we miss that Christ’s call on us is for that same kind of faith and perseverance.

That is why God gave us the Holy Spirit as a comforter and guide. He works deep inside us to change our desires from pleasing ourselves to pleasing God. It is the Holy Spirit working through the Bible who gives us the ability to control our thoughts (or, as Paul put it, to take every thought captive). The Holy Spirit is the only one who can relieve the strong urgings of the “old self” and help us to subdue them to the desires of the new self. It is His power that enables us to break habits that have been repeated countless times, to step away from the bondage of our enemy and to overcome Satan and all his subtle temptations.

At RCC, we’re beginning a series called “The Campaign” this Sunday. It talks about these very issues—advancing God’s kingdom while stepping away from ours. I ask that all you Ridgies out there will be in prayer for one another as we dig into a subject that Satan hopes you never understand. Be prepared for his schemes and don’t be surprised by what lengths he will go to to keep you from being a part of these days in the life of our church.