النص 🔗
WEBVTT
00:00:37.207 --> 00:00:47.857
If you've been listening to this podcast for a while, you've probably noticed that I went quiet for a few months, no episodes, no updates, just well silence.
00:00:48.667 --> 00:00:50.438
And that wasn't because ministry slowed down.
00:00:50.467 --> 00:00:54.798
It wasn't because life got easier and it definitely wasn't because I ran out of things to say.
00:00:55.962 --> 00:01:00.912
It was because God had me focused, deeply focused on something that required more than my spare time.
00:01:01.423 --> 00:01:04.662
It required my attention, my prayer, my wrestling, my obedience.
00:01:04.662 --> 00:01:16.302
So over the past several months, I've been writing and finishing a book on spiritual warfare, a subject that a lot of Christians either avoid entirely or approach in ways that are more dramatic than biblical.
00:01:17.203 --> 00:01:18.552
That book is now released.
00:01:18.552 --> 00:01:22.912
It's available on Amazon and at South Shore Church this weekend if you attend South Shore.
00:01:22.912 --> 00:01:28.492
And on February 1st, we're launching a small group video series and curriculum built around it.
00:01:29.122 --> 00:01:32.872
And that's why this episode matters because this isn't about promoting a book.
00:01:32.872 --> 00:01:38.393
This is about preparing God's people for the battles they're already in, whether they recognize them or not.
00:01:39.022 --> 00:01:42.622
So you don't have to be obsessed with the enemy to be vulnerable to him.
00:01:43.163 --> 00:01:44.633
You just have to be unaware.
00:01:45.752 --> 00:01:52.712
As you and I step into 2026, I believe this conversation is timely necessary.
00:01:53.073 --> 00:01:53.913
And pastoral.
00:01:54.002 --> 00:02:00.513
So today I wanna talk about spiritual warfare, not from a place of fear, but from a place of clarity.
00:02:00.932 --> 00:02:07.203
Not speculation, but scripture, not sensationalism, but sobriety.
00:02:07.353 --> 00:02:15.872
And my prayer is that by the end of this episode, you won't walk away looking for demons under every rock, but you'll walk away spiritually.
00:02:16.097 --> 00:02:21.768
Awake for many Christians, spiritual warfare falls into one of two extremes.
00:02:22.127 --> 00:02:30.918
If you know my story, I grew up Bicostal, half Baptist, half Pentecostal, and so on one side, everything is spiritual warfare, right?
00:02:31.367 --> 00:02:34.967
A flat tire, a bad mood, a slow wifi connection.
00:02:34.967 --> 00:02:39.527
People blame on the devil on the other side, nothing is spiritual warfare.
00:02:39.888 --> 00:02:43.217
We explain everything psychologically.
00:02:43.437 --> 00:02:45.777
Emotionally or circumstantially.
00:02:46.078 --> 00:02:52.918
And we leave no room for a real enemy, but scripture refuses to let us live in either extreme.
00:02:53.758 --> 00:03:00.568
The Bible is clear that we have an enemy, but it's also clear that we don't need to fear him first.
00:03:00.568 --> 00:03:01.318
Peter five, eight.
00:03:01.367 --> 00:03:10.117
The verse that sparked all of this for me I'll talk about that in the book, but at a men's Bible study about a year and a half ago, says this, be alert and of sober mind.
00:03:10.582 --> 00:03:16.133
Your enemy, the devil, prs around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.
00:03:17.003 --> 00:03:19.343
Now, notice what Peter doesn't say.
00:03:19.343 --> 00:03:20.302
He doesn't say Be afraid.
00:03:22.168 --> 00:03:23.968
He doesn't say be obsessed.
00:03:24.538 --> 00:03:26.758
He doesn't say, go looking for the devil.
00:03:26.938 --> 00:03:31.018
He says, be alert and be of sober mind.
00:03:31.587 --> 00:03:33.867
See, spiritual warfare isn't about panic.
00:03:34.228 --> 00:03:35.337
It's about perception.
00:03:35.968 --> 00:03:39.748
The enemy's greatest victories don't come through dramatic attacks.
00:03:40.318 --> 00:03:41.343
They come through subtle.
00:03:41.617 --> 00:03:46.538
Distractions, quiet compromises, and a slow drift.
00:03:46.897 --> 00:03:55.418
And if you're not careful, you can live your entire Christian life battling the symptoms while ignoring the strategy behind them.
00:03:56.527 --> 00:04:04.242
One of the biggest misconceptions about spiritual warfare is the assumption that the enemy's main objective is possession.
00:04:05.788 --> 00:04:07.498
But scripture paints a different picture.
00:04:07.948 --> 00:04:08.277
Again.
00:04:08.397 --> 00:04:10.888
Peter says, the devil is looking for someone to what?
00:04:10.978 --> 00:04:12.867
Devour that word matters.
00:04:13.258 --> 00:04:17.637
To devour means to consume, to erode, to dismantle over time.
00:04:18.267 --> 00:04:22.377
The enemy would much rather wear you down than scare you outright.
00:04:23.517 --> 00:04:24.237
What does he devour?
00:04:25.317 --> 00:04:26.487
He devours your joy.
00:04:27.402 --> 00:04:29.112
He devours your confidence.
00:04:29.322 --> 00:04:30.913
He devours your marriage.
00:04:31.272 --> 00:04:32.682
He devours calling.
00:04:33.163 --> 00:04:48.462
He devours spiritual hunger, and he often does it through things that seem ordinary, unresolved bitterness, chronic isolation, hidden sin, spiritual apathy, exhaustion that never gets addressed.
00:04:49.468 --> 00:04:52.077
See, the enemy rarely kicks the door down.
00:04:52.168 --> 00:04:53.577
He waits for us to leave.
00:04:53.577 --> 00:04:54.387
It cracked open.
00:04:54.987 --> 00:05:00.837
That's why scripture constantly warns us about vigilance and humility and endurance, not fear.
00:05:01.167 --> 00:05:03.837
That's why scripture tells us not to give the devil a foothold.
00:05:04.537 --> 00:05:12.817
When people hear spiritual warfare, they often think about something happening to them, but more often than not, the battlefield is within us.
00:05:13.447 --> 00:05:26.798
Paul writes in Ephesians chapter six, verse 12, for our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the
Load full transcript
authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.
00:05:27.608 --> 00:05:32.932
That doesn't mean every thought is demonic, but it does mean not every thought is neutral.
00:05:34.152 --> 00:05:36.312
The enemy traffics in lies.
00:05:36.852 --> 00:05:47.832
He whispers distortions about God's character, about your identity, about your worth, about your future, and if he can't steal your salvation, he'll aim for your effectiveness.
00:05:48.673 --> 00:05:51.882
See, the enemy doesn't need to remove you from faith.
00:05:52.302 --> 00:05:54.972
He just needs to reduce you to survival mode.
00:05:56.007 --> 00:05:59.457
And that is where discouragement becomes dangerous.
00:05:59.727 --> 00:06:02.457
That's where isolation becomes lethal.
00:06:02.457 --> 00:06:06.597
That's where secrecy becomes strategic for the wrong side.
00:06:07.977 --> 00:06:17.757
See, one of the chapters in the book that I felt the strongest burden to write was about isolation, because isolation isn't just unhealthy, it's unbiblical.
00:06:18.477 --> 00:06:20.067
Think about Peter's imagery again.
00:06:20.757 --> 00:06:23.007
A lion doesn't attack the herd head on.
00:06:23.697 --> 00:06:26.097
It looks for the one that's separated.
00:06:26.667 --> 00:06:28.077
Now, that's not accidental.
00:06:28.647 --> 00:06:38.427
That's strategy And isolation is the enemy's favorite environment, and I've seen this play out pastorally over and over again.
00:06:39.387 --> 00:06:41.608
People don't fall away from faith outright.
00:06:42.117 --> 00:06:43.108
They drift quietly.
00:06:43.467 --> 00:06:45.358
They disconnect relationally.
00:06:45.717 --> 00:06:54.897
They stop being known, and that's why I'm excited about the small group curriculum launching February 1st, because spiritual warfare is not meant to be fought alone.
00:06:55.707 --> 00:07:01.472
God designed community not as a convenience, but as protection.
00:07:02.652 --> 00:07:04.272
Now, let me get personal for a moment.
00:07:05.577 --> 00:07:08.277
I didn't write this book because spiritual warfare is trendy.
00:07:09.312 --> 00:07:15.552
I wrote it because I've watched too many believers get blindsided by battles they didn't know they were in.
00:07:16.512 --> 00:07:23.697
I've watched faithful people grow weary, not because they stopped loving God, but because they didn't recognize the weight they were carrying.
00:07:24.957 --> 00:07:26.967
And honestly, I've felt it myself.
00:07:27.657 --> 00:07:30.327
Moments where discouragement didn't make sense.
00:07:30.597 --> 00:07:38.367
Seasons where joy felt distant times when the resistance felt disproportionate to the circumstances.
00:07:39.597 --> 00:07:43.108
And writing this book forced me to slow down and ask better questions.
00:07:45.007 --> 00:07:47.167
What does scripture actually say about this?
00:07:47.497 --> 00:07:51.548
What does a healthy theology of spiritual warfare actually look like?
00:07:52.237 --> 00:07:55.687
How do we stay alert without becoming anxious?
00:07:56.077 --> 00:07:57.877
See, awareness is not paranoia.
00:07:58.387 --> 00:07:59.497
It's maturity.
00:08:00.487 --> 00:08:07.537
And so this book isn't about dramatizing the enemy, it's about grounding believers in truth, humility.
00:08:08.247 --> 00:08:12.477
And hope, and here's the most important part I want you to hear today.
00:08:13.027 --> 00:08:17.467
Spiritual warfare is real, but so is Christ victory.
00:08:18.187 --> 00:08:20.347
Paul reminds us in Colossians two 15.
00:08:21.412 --> 00:08:30.772
He says, in having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them triumphing over them on the cross.
00:08:30.983 --> 00:08:31.792
Can you imagine that?
00:08:33.263 --> 00:08:37.258
God himself, Jesus in the flesh made a public spectacle of the devil.
00:08:38.182 --> 00:08:40.493
That means the enemy is active, but he's defeated.
00:08:41.003 --> 00:08:43.072
He's present, but he's not sovereign.
00:08:43.793 --> 00:08:47.722
He might be persistent, but not powerful enough to overcome Christ.
00:08:49.403 --> 00:08:50.932
See, we don't fight for victory.
00:08:51.082 --> 00:08:54.743
We fight from victory, and that truth changes everything.
00:08:55.283 --> 00:09:01.097
It gives us confidence without arrogance, humility without fear, and courage without chaos.
00:09:02.258 --> 00:09:14.018
See as we step into 2026, my prayer for you is simple, that you would be spiritually awake, that you would be biblically grounded, that you would refuse to fight battles.
00:09:14.018 --> 00:09:18.507
God never asked you to fight, but also refuse to ignore the ones that he did.
00:09:20.632 --> 00:09:23.332
Now, if you haven't picked up the book yet, I'd love for you to do that.
00:09:23.812 --> 00:09:37.192
If you're a part of South Shore, I hope you'll jump into a group when the curriculum launches February 1st, and if you're listening from somewhere else, my prayer is that this content strengthens your walk with Jesus right where you are.
00:09:37.763 --> 00:09:40.432
See, the goal isn't to be impressed by the enemy.
00:09:40.462 --> 00:09:42.653
It's to be anchored in Christ.
00:09:43.913 --> 00:09:45.533
I'm so grateful you're here.
00:09:45.962 --> 00:09:50.882
I'm excited to be back and I can't wait to walk through this season together.
00:09:52.232 --> 00:09:55.682
May the grace and peace of God rest with you today.