“Therefore, submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God; and He will draw near to you…Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up” (James 4:7, 8, 10).
Spiritual victory over worldliness is not accidental. If you are not consciously and constantly battling against friendship with the world—i.e., carnal values—you are losing the war by default. Satan is gaining territory in your heart because you have failed to even fight him for it.
If, on the other hand, you are actively engaging the enemy in obedience to God’s Ten Step Battle Plan, what wonderful blessings you are receiving:
The devil will flee from you. Although the adversary and his allies are powerful and extremely dangerous (Ephesians 6:11), “He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world” (1 John 4:4). Just as Satan fled the battlefield when Jesus wielded the sword of the Spirit in response to his temptations (Luke 4:1-13), so you can withstand the wiles of the devil in the evil day (Ephesians 6:11, 13). Because of this, worldliness is inexcusable in your life.
God will draw near to you. Jehovah of hosts knows how challenging and intense the battle with worldliness is for His children. Therefore, He does not desert them when the conflict rages; rather, He loyally comes to the side of His courageous spiritual warriors. Just as the Lord stood with Paul and strengthened him when all others forsook him (2 Timothy 4:16-17) when the heat of battle intensified, God draws near when you stand your ground and fight the enemy and his ally called worldliness.
God will lift you up. The good news of the gospel is of spiritual victory in Christ Jesus. When you humble yourself in the sight of the Lord and valiantly engage the enemy on the battle front, He will see that you are “more than conquerors through Him who loved us” (Romans 8:37). No medal of honor given by any military can compare with the glory God gives His courageous spiritual combatants.
Soldier of Christ: Arise. Put on the whole armor of God. and Withstand the enemy at the battlefront of worldliness.
You can and must defeat this foe.
