I watched a documentary the other day about the end of World War II and the rejoicing that went on after it. Our country went from the havoc of war to a state of national tranquility. It may be difficult for many of us to relate to that time, having not lived in it. But most of us probably have experienced times of crisis, hostility, intense stress or pressure. You remember the sigh of relief when those periods of life were over. It is a feeling of calm like no other.
Yesterday in looking at Romans 16:19, we saw that Paul exhorted the believers to pursue the good and avoid the profane. This refers to a conflict that goes on in every believer. Peter specifically likened it to a war, “Dearly beloved, I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul;” (1 Peter 2:11, KJV 1900)
Our adversary in this war is Satan and he uses a variety of means in it. There are spiritual forces of evil at work in this world (Ephesians 6:12). These forces use deception to tempt us to appease the flesh in ways contrary to the ways of God. Satan also uses false teachers, who come as wolves in lambskins as we saw earlier in Romans 16:17-18. Satan has also established a system, the world system, in which we live as strangers and aliens. This system is established to worship the creature rather than the Creator (Rom 1:25; 1 John 2:15).
Paul spoke of our intense struggle in this war earlier in the letter (Rom 7:13, ff). He also explains it in his letter to the Galatians, “For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.” (Galatians 5:17, KJV 1900) So, this is a life long battle for the believer.
Yet, here is the good news with this war. The God of peace is speedily bringing it to an end. It will end with the demise of the author of evil, Satan. There is a time coming when we will experience a state of tranquility. A time is quickly coming when the war will be over. Then we will experience peace like we have never known before. Today we know this peace in part because we know the God of peace. Because we know Him now, we have the confident expectation of the end of this war and eternal bliss. So, stand firm in the battle for the end of the war is guaranteed.
Renewing the Heart 