The weapons of our battle
Saint Paul said in his letter to the Corinthians that the weapons of our battle are not of flesh but of spirit. We do not force people to believe in Christ. We do not blow up ourselves in order to expand our religion. We do not fight evil with bombs and explosions. I do not force my parishioners to welcome Christ in their hearts. The weapons of our battle are spiritual. These weapons are enormously powerful, capable of 4 things:
1- destroying fortresses (strongholds);
2- destroying erroneous thoughts (arguments);
3- destroying every pretension raising itself against the knowledge of God (proud);
4- taking every thought captive in obedience to Christ.
That was the mission of John the Baptist: calling everyone to repentance so that everyone might understand the message of Christ. Without repentance we can never understand the will of God in our lives. John the Baptist was preparing the way for Christ in destroying fortresses, erroneous thoughts, every proud, and taking every thought captive to obey Christ.
1- Destroying fortresses:
Fortresses are everything that resists the entrance of Christ the King in the heart. They are every attitude I take refusing to surrender to Christ. The doors of my city (heart) might be locked in the face of Christ the King for different reasons:
- because I have another king (money, fame, power, lust, etc…)
- because I feel shame for something I did in the past
- because I have fear of the expectancies of Christian life.
The Christian has a weapon he can use to destroy the fortresses he has built and accept Christ in his heart.
2- Destroying erroneous thoughts (arguments):
Each one of us has many erroneous thoughts concerning Christian life. These thoughts forbid us to follow Christ with joy and freedom.
Ex1: “If I follow Christ, God will put me to the test. I will be tempted with sufferings. I will be persecuted.” This is an erroneous thought.
Ex2: “If I follow Christ, I should never feel angry, sexual feelings,…” This is an erroneous thought.
Ex3: “Before thinking about following Christ, first I must be perfect, a saint.” This is an erroneous thought.
The Christian has the weapon of truth that destroys these erroneous thoughts.
3- Destroying every pretension raising itself against the knowledge of God:
Ex1: “I do not need God in my life.”
Ex2: “I am able to fix my life and reach success without the help of God.”
Ex3: “I can reach happiness without God.”
Pride forbids me to understand the mysteries of the Kingdom.
The Christian has the weapon of humility that destroys pride.
4- Taking every thought captive in obedience to Christ:
Our love for Christ and our spiritual experience with him made Jesus Christ a Living God, Present with us everyday. He is no more a distant God. Rather He is close to us. When Christ becomes alive within us, we possess a spiritual weapon that takes every thought captive in obedience to Christ. We attract others to Christ through our words, example, and love. We start to point at Jesus as John the Baptist did: “This is the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.” We start to testify as John did: “I myself have seen and have testified that this is the Son of God.” When we point at Jesus and give testimony, then, we attract every thought to obey Christ and love Him.
