Strongholds are deeply entrenched patterns of thought, behavior, or spiritual influences standing in opposition to the knowledge and will of God.
As we discuss this subject, I’m aware of many great books on the subject that are worth reading. Equally, there is a bunch of nonsense written by perhaps well-meaning scholars who have gone to extremes. Suffice it to say that strongholds can be personal sins, collective cultural practices, or ideologies that lead individuals and communities away from a life aligned with Scripture and the character of Christ. Wherever we find a stronghold, we find Christ ready to provide a way out. “The Lord is good, a refuge in times of trouble. He cares for those who trust in him...” (Nahum 1:7 NIV) CHRIST-FOLLOWERS ARE AT WAR Strongholds are mostly ideological and spiritual. They are "arguments" and "pretensions" that oppose the knowledge of God. "For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ." (2 Corinthians 10:3-5 NIV) We are equipped by Christ with His spiritual weapons, endowed with divine power, to overcome strongholds. It is important to realize that our spiritual warfare is fought in the realm of beliefs, thoughts, and understandings, in the unseen but very real realm of the spiritual world. For me, I don’t think enough about this war, so I am grateful that Christ has led me today to dig into this subject. After I finish capturing what I believe the Lord wants me to say today, I am going to pray over my family, that we be protected from any and all attacks of Satan and his demons. We are at war. Let’s not forget that. SATAN IS CONSTANTLY SENDING DEMONIC ATTACKS AGAINST US I often forget that there is a war going on between Satan and Christ. Total, despicable, hateful, diabolical evil versus total, pure, absolute, perfect good. "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." (Ephesians 6:12 NIV) We must overcome the influences and powers that can act as strongholds in our life or community, actively resisting and overcoming that which tries to deter individuals and communities from this path. I heard a sermon recently where the pastor said that Satan can’t be everywhere, and that is true. However, he does not have to be. He is the CEO of Satan, Inc. His organization is made up of demons. He can be in one place, but be sending out demons in every direction to attack Christ-followers. We can see the results of these attacks as we watch an epidemic of seemingly Godly pastors fall into sins that disqualify them from vocational ministry. It is a bloodbath and it’s getting worse by the day. Or we see Christian marriages blowing up everywhere, with a 50% divorce rate, equal to the non-Christ-following world. Marriages are under attack. Our pastors are being spiritually slaughtered. Don’t tell me that there is not a war going on. The proof is everywhere if we would just look. And the fall of a pastor, like the fall of a marriage, or that of any individual usually begins with a stronghold. IDENTIFYING STRONGHOLDS Tomorrow, I will address the “how” of identifying strongholds in Part 2. And in Part 3, I’ll give you methods to overcome them. Stay tuned. Your aspiring servant, Daniel M. February 28, 2024 POSTSCRIPT: Dear friends, if this daily, transparent “Conversations with Christ” blesses you, please go to www.SOLIDpastors.org, where you will find these posted, and a repository of all, in English and Spanish. If you ever want to chat, you can reach me at [email protected]. May Christ bless you richly as you have your own intimate, daily conversations with Christ. Comments are closed.
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