Sword Fight

Swordfight

II Timothy 3:16-4:4

You will hear said in today�s world that: Christ is the divine ideal. During his earthly life, Jesus cast out evil spirits, which are false beliefs.

Also, Jesus� teachings, like those of Buddha, Confucius, and the like, are of value for a world religion.

And, All people are children of God; the job of the church is not to convert them, but to inform them of their status so that they will live accordingly.

I want you to know that I�ve just fed you three whopping big heresies. I hope you knew it.

The following notes concern combating heresies in the modern church and in our own hometown.

Let us consider:

I: Who is the fight really against???

A. Is it a heretical branch of the church? The heretics in the church?

                B. Ephesians 6:12 teaches us that, "�our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against rulers,
                    against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against spiritual forces of evil in the
                    heavenly realm.
                    1)   If not flesh and blood then the rulers, authorities, and powers of this dark world are
                    2)   Dark spiritual forces, not men. The evil actions of men are based on their lack of belief in the One
                         God and their surrender to the spirit of Anti-Christ. In other words, the realm of Satan is the
                         enemy.

II: How do we defend against things unseen?

A) Salvation is first step: 1) Romans 3:23, 2) John 3:16, 3) Acts 3:19, 4) Believe
1) Know the defender, JESUS!

                B.   Grasp the sword by the handle not the blade!
                        1) Ephesians 6:17 tells us, "Take the helmet of Salvation and the sword of the spirit, which is the
                            word of God.
                        2) Study as II Timothy 2:15 tells us, "Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a
                           workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.

III: Once we are prepared, how do we help those already caught?

Preparation

Start with Prayer. Ephesians 6:18 teaches, pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all saints.

Conduct proper research about the problem. I like the way the KJV speaks (using II Timothy 2:15 again), "Study to show thyself approved, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth."

Confrontation

Prayer first again. Recognize our position in the scheme of things. God is the leader. Get His direction.

Love Next. I John 4:7-11 tells us, "Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.

Claim the promise.

God�s word will not come back void. As Isaiah 55:11 teaches, "�so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return unto me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it. Example, I once witnessed to a Blind man who was scheduled to go for a baptismal ceremony and induction to a heretical branch of the church. I left him feeling I had been totally useless in convincing him of the truth in God's word. His wife called me some days later to tell me he couldn't be inducted because he could no longer bring himself to believe that they were telling him the truth. God's word did not come back void.
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