Fight the real enemy
Ephesians 6:12 emphasizes that we do not wrestle with flesh and blood, but against principalities, against rulers of the darkness and against spiritual hosts of wickedness. I guess that most of us are still fighting the wrong enemies. When someone applies force against us, we are tempted to pay back in the same currency. But when we apply counter-force the conflict increases. Examples of such actions are daily in our newspapers. The world is full of conflict and misunderstanding between people, families, communities and nations. Aggression that is countered with similar force leads to increased trouble, violence and war. Does that mean, that we should not fight back? Do we always need to allow that people take advantage of us, because they know that we follow the example of Christ and that we offer the other cheek? (Matthew 5:39) Jesus tells us, that we should not resist an evil person. But there is something we must do. We should learn from Jesus, how we can fight our enemies.

Wearing divine armor
Paul commands to put the whole armor of God. (Ephesians 6:10-20) As Paul lists all the parts of the armor, it becomes clear, that all parts of the armor are of an defensive nature, except one. The one weapon of warfare for attack is the sword of faith. When we analyze the various parts of the armor, we will easily see, that they are for our protection. God has supplied us with that armor of protection which is the belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, boots fitted with gospel of peace, the shield of faith and the helmet of salvation. God has freely given us all those assets that protect us on our journey in this world. All of those pieces of the armor must be worn in order for them to do their intended work. But the sword of the Spirit, the Word of God, must not just be carried, but used in order to pierce to gates of darkness. It is the Word of God that defeats our foes and gives us reprieve from the attacks of the evil one.

Our only weapon of attack
Jesus demonstrated to all of us, how we must use the sword of faith. When He was under attack from the devil, who clearly wanted to lead him astray, Jesus fought back with the Word of God (Matthew 4:2–11). His answers to the temptations of the evil one were always the same. He simply stated: “It is written!” He derived His power from the written Word of God. The words of the Bible in the mouth of Jesus became such a lethal weapon, that the devil had no choice but to withdraw for a while. Satan could not stand the sword of faith when Jesus yielded that sword calmly but precisely. Every stroke with the sword of faith was totally on target. Satan could not find any argument with which to counter His words. After three attempts, Satan had no choice but to walk away.

It is unfortunate, that many of today’s Christians seem to enjoy fighting the evil one with the same weapons that he is using, rather than the sword of the Spirit. Statements of us binding the devil and stepping on him with force show this unfortunate trend. Let us learn from Jesus, who overcame Satan simply using the Word of God. And even when Satan managed to have Him nailed to the cross, He overcame him in humility breaking hatred with love when He prayed, Father forgive them, they do not know what they are doing (Luke 23:34).

Let us read, know and use the Word of God in humility just like Jesus did. This will still break the force of evil, even today.