The Good Fight of Faith
“Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses.” I Timothy 6:12
I never thought about faith being a fight. We know that there is a battle going on between good and evil and has been waged since the dawn of time. This battle began in the Garden of Eden when Satan deceived Eve into challenging God and His goodness. Adam joined in with Eve and disobeyed the only rule that God had given them in their paradise home. I can’t help but wonder what Adam was thinking when he took a bite of that forbidden fruit. He likely didn’t know that it would be the shot, rather, the bite felt around the world. I don’t think that the two of them meant to challenge their Creator; they were just tools of Satan. He was the real challenger. He was the enemy and still is.
What began back then has become a raging war between God, all those who believe in Him and have placed their trust in Christ, versus the forces of Satan, his demons, and the spirit of antichrist which makes its home in the hearts of those who have rejected Christ and decided to forge their own way to a pseudo utopia of their own making. They have fallen hook, line, and sinker for Satan’s lies because he is a very good liar if one could call that ability “good”. His expertise lies in the fact that Jesus called him the father of lies (John 8:44). Satan will do anything he can to try to diminish, disrupt, or dispirit the faith of every born again believer. That’s how he wages war against the Lord, by forcing collateral damage.
The good thing is that those of us who are followers of Christ have the entire forces of heaven behind us to help us fight that good fight of faith. There is a lot that we can do to strengthen our resolve to do battle with sin, Satan, and the forces of evil. The first thing to do in this battle and in any endeavor is always to pray. God already knows what we need to do battle, but He still wants to hear from us because when we go to Him in prayer, we are showing our dependence on Him. And believe me, without His help, we are doomed to fail. Satan is a strong adversary, but he is vulnerable when we pray. Of course, along with praying, comes Bible study. Folks have said that when we pray, we are talking to God, and when we read His word, He is talking to us. If you want to know how God intends for us to fight against evil and promote what is good and right, it’s all in His word. Don’t be hesitant to delve into His word. You might be surprised at how much you learn. Great military leaders have a strategy for fighting wars that is planned out and implemented by those soldiers under their command. They follow the rules of engagement. It is no different for the believer.
There is an old saying, “To the victor, go the spoils, that is, the winner of the battle, race, or contest receives the prize or reward. The reward for those who fight the good fight of faith is eternal life. Paul tells us to “lay hold on eternal life”, to cherish and look ahead to the life in heaven which Jesus has prepared for us because we belong to Him. Our manner of life should reflect our profession of faith that we have made before others. We are always to let our light shine (Matthew 5:16) and not fear the battle before us. We can’t give in, give up, or surrender. Let’s not let Satan steal our joy. It is easy to get depressed in this day of seemingly insurmountable problems, pandemics, and pessimism. I get depressed watching the news. Everyday it’s a new situation or report of death and/or destruction. Hatred is being paraded like never before. The bad news never lets up. It seems that this war between good and evil has reached a new level, but I think Satan knows that his time is growing short, and thus he is going to create as much chaos as possible in the time he has left. My admonition to all who belong to Christ is to live one day at a time with a determination to rely on our faith in the Lord and to be armed with the Holy Spirit. And remember, the devil and his minions are the real losers.