“Teach them this and tell them what I’ve said.”

A letter to those who have an ear to hear what the Spirit of God is saying. To the church to find certainty in Christ during uncertain times.

Mark 13:5,8 (NLT)

Jesus replied, “Don’t let anyone mislead you, for many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah.’ They will deceive many. And you will hear of wars and threats of wars, but don’t panic. Yes, these things must take place, but the end won’t follow immediately. Nation will go to war against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes in many parts of the world, as well as famines. But this is only the first of birth pains, with more to come.”

Considering The Nature of War

Every army is called to deal with war. We can see an outplay of what is happening in the spirit realm as it manifests and takes shape in the natural realm. Even natural armies and armed forces know how to evaluate what they’ve seen historically unfolding, and from this vantage point build battle strategies.

I served one enlistment of four years in the United States Marine Corps. In our training manual, Warfighting, both the nature and evolution of war are described. This is because, “While the basic nature of war is constant, the means and methods we use evolve continually;” thus, “it is important to understand which aspects of war are likely to change and which are not” (Krulak 17). Else we are fighting a losing battle if we go to war without expecting to win. This is because, “If we are ignorant of the changing face of war we will find ourselves unequal to its challenges” (Krulak 17).

In his book Strategy, B. H. Liddell Hart said, “In war the chief incalculable is the human will” (323). If he is correct, then we can know the human will is one element that is ever changing the face of war. It seems then that this uncertainty in war is a certainty that cannot be accounted for. For who can bring the will of another into subjection except that they choose to yield it? Where then can we seek to find certainty when we are thrust into times of wars and rumors of wars?

Certainty and Uncertainty in War

Certainty in the outcome of war is not possible from the natural standpoint. “The essence of war is a violent struggle between two hostile, independent, and irreconcilable wills, each trying to impose itself on the other” (Krulak 3).

We know that in reading the Bible from cover to cover that we start in the beginning with chaos and disorder. In the very first chapters of Genesis, we see God’s focus is to restore His divine order. Then, He crowns Adam and Eve with dominion to keep the order He’s established (Gen 1:28). It’s not until the final pages of our Bible that we see His permanent solution enacted. All things will eventually be brought back into perfect peace and His divine order under the reign of our Lord Jesus Christ in a new heaven and new earth (Rev 21:1,7).

We are not meant to idly pass the time in waiting for this remedy to transpire. We are still carrying within our humanity the mandate to take dominion in establishing His kingdom reign in the earth. This calling is certain as we are created in the image and likeness of God (Gen 1:26,27). It is also evident in that Jesus has commanded us to, “Go into all the world and preach the Good News to everyone” (Mk 16:15 NLT).

A Call to Spiritual Arms

Luke 19:13 (KJV)

He said therefore, “A certain nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom, and to return. And he called his ten servants, and delivered them ten pounds, and said unto them, Occupy till I come.”

To occupy till the Lord returns means we are to conduct the business of heaven here on the earth. This business can include our call to Him to fight the good fight of faith (1 Tim 6:12 KJV) and to rule and reign on the earth as His ambassadors who enforce His victory (Rev 5:10).

Militarily speaking, to occupy means to hold the ground we are in possession of. To take enemy territory is to take ground the enemy is holding. We are called to do this as Jesus said He will build His church, and all the powers of hell will not conquer it (Mt 16:18 NLT). We are His church, and all the powers of hell will not conquer us, neither will the gates of hell prevail against us (Mt 16:18 NKJV). This means we are to advance militarily into enemy territory.

Our weapons being spiritual in nature as a spiritual kingdom. Weapons that are mighty in God for the pulling down of strongholds (2 Cor 10:1,6) because we wrestle not with flesh and blood but with principalities, powers, rulers of the darkness of this world and spiritual wickedness in high places (Eph 6:12 KJV). For we are given authority to use His name and to govern as His legislative assembly (Jn 15:16; Mt 16:18 TPT).

We have the keys of the kingdom as weapons so that whatever we bind on earth is bound in heaven, and whatever we loose on earth is loosed in heaven (Mt 16:19). Weapons we wield by the words of our mouth. That we might create into being the God reality, seeing His will done on earth as it is in heaven.

These are weapons of powerful authority, as Jesus said in Luke 10:19 NKJV, “Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you.” This means we are advancing forward to trample His enemy under foot as His Body of believers and ambassadors in the earth.

Therefore, we are called in Him to wage war with certainty because our outcome is sure. We have the certainty that we are assured of His victory. For the fog of war is the uncertainty in the friction of opposing wills (Krulak 5). Therefore, we must eliminate this fog to apprehend and enforce the victory He has already won in taking our dominion in Jesus’ name.

More Than Conquers in Christ

It is God’s intentions that we understand that as children of God we are born into the ferocity of Christ. Jesus said, “And, from the days of John the Baptist till now, the reign of the heavens doth suffer violence, and violent men do take it by force” (Mt 11:12 YLT98). We didn’t enter His kingdom by casual entrance, as if by accident, but we laid hold of it forcefully. All His promises are yes and amen but must be laid hold of with force if we wish to inherit the promise (2 Cor 1:20). For He has conquered all the power of the enemy as this was an essential part of His mission. “For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil” (1 Jn 3:8 KJV).

We are meant now to enforce His victory. We are to understand that we are positionally one with Christ in Him being seated at the right hand of God Our Father (Eph 2:6). A seating that places us far above all principalities, powers, mights and dominions (Eph 1:19,22). For He conquered His enemy.

“Then Jesus made a public spectacle of all the powers and principalities of darkness, stripping away from them every weapon and all their spiritual authority and power to accuse us. And by the power of the cross, Jesus led them around as prisoners in a procession of triumph. He was not their prisoner; they were his!” (Col 2:15 TPT)

We are to take on His warrior mindset that failure is not an option, because we are more than conquers in Christ Jesus (Rom 8:37). This is an eternal position that lasts throughout all ages. As such, we have certainty in Christ.

Submitted to God

However, we are not resting in this certainty unless we are in alignment with these truths. Alexander Archer Vadegrift was the 18th Commandant of the Marine Corps. He was a four-star general and medal of honor recipient for his actions in WWII. He wrote “Battle Doctrine for Front Line Leaders” where he said, “Positions are seldom lost because they have been destroyed, but almost invariably because the leader has decided in his own mind that the position cannot be held” (Krulak 7). Again, we see the human will affects the outcome in war based on whether the person believes they will be victorious or defeated. The human will must then be bent to be uncompromising in victory, for thanks be to God who always leads us in triumph (2 Cor 2:14). Our will must be brought into submission to God’s will, for if we submit to God then we can resist the devil and he will flee in terror from us (Ja 4:7).

We cannot enforce victory over an enemy, even when he is defeated, if we’ve given agreement to him. James 4:7 says, “submit to God, resist the devil and he will flee from you.” Our will cannot be in friction with God’s will to succeed. Any place that we agree with the enemy is a place that we disagree with God. This must be addressed in us all daily as we work out our salvation with fear and trembling before our holy and righteous God (Phil 2:12,13).

Our adversary may be wily, but there is nothing new under the sun and he is therefore predictable (Eccl 1:9,11). For he is exposed in scripture as a murderer and a liar (Jn 8:44). We should never agree with or submit to our enemy. Every lie of the enemy can be demolished by the Word of God. Jesus gave us this example when He spoke the written word to the devil when He was tested in the desert (Mt 4:1,11). If man fails to identify the enemy in the Bible, then the enemy can be seen in history negatively repeating itself when the restraining force in the earth does nothing to stop him (2 Th 2:7). This is because it is plain to recognize that anything that steals, kills and destroys is the fruit of demonic works (Jn 10:10).

The Certainty of His Will

We understand that all victory is found in our position in Christ. He is eternal certainty. Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever (Heb 13:8). God is unchanging. If we gain an audience with Him, we will have whatever we ask of Him that is in agreement to His will.  

We know that if we ask anything according to His will He hears us, and we will have whatever we ask of Him. That means it’s essential to victory that our will aligns with His will. Otherwise, we ask a miss, that we might spend it on our flesh (Ja 4:3), which means we are asking things contrary to His will.

This is the [remarkable degree of] confidence which we [as believers are entitled to] have before Him: that if we ask anything according to His will, [that is, consistent with His plan and purpose] He hears us. And if we know [for a fact, as indeed we do] that He hears and listens to us in whatever we ask, we [also] know [with settled and absolute knowledge] that we have [granted to us] the requests which we have asked from Him. (1 Jn 5:14,15 AMP)

Prophecy Eliminates the Fog of War

Prophecy then is a weapon of war that eliminates the fog of war in establishing within us the certainty of God’s will. For no prophecy is of private interpretation (2 Pt 1:20). All genuine prophecy is inspired by the Spirit of God and is in agreement with the Word of God (2 Pt 1:21). There is nothing more certain in all of the universe than the word of God as it is written, “heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away” (Mk 13:31 NIV).

Prophecy is a Weapon

Prophecy makes God’s will and outcome clear to us. By this we wage a good warfare with our words of prophecy, just as Timothy was instructed to by the Apostle Paul.

This charge I commit unto thee, son Timothy, according to the prophecies which went before on thee, that thou by them mightest war a good warfare. (1 Tim 1:18 KJV)

Timothy, my son, here are my instructions for you, based on the prophetic words spoken about you earlier. May they help you fight well in the Lord’s battles. (1 Tim 1:18 NLT)

So Timothy, my son, I am entrusting you with this responsibility, in keeping with the first prophecies that were spoken over your life, and are now in the process of fulfillment in this great work of ministry, in keeping with the prophecies spoken over you. With this encouragement use your prophecies as weapons as you wage spiritual warfare by faith and with a clean conscience. For there are many who reject these virtues and are now destitute of the true faith. (1 Tim 1:18,19 TPT)

When we agree with the prophetic words spoken over the areas of our lives that scripture doesn’t specifically address, then it will demolish all uncertainty so that we might war with certainty and win. It is clear then why scripture says all may prophesy and entreats us to desire to do it. For it is necessary weaponry for unrelenting warfare to manifest the will of God on the earth (1 Cor 14:1). As such, every member of His ranks should be weaponized with it.

His Royal Protocol to Come Boldly

If we are given audience with Him there are five tests we can use to see if we are in agreement with His will. For the Lord says:

“Here is the checklist for coming boldly to My throne, and to ask anything according to My will that you may have what you request in My name. And, very few meet all these requirements. For when I give you audience with Me, you must be wise as Queen Esther in knowing you are there to minister to Me and to execute My will.”

Our Checklist from the Lord

This is the list the Lord spoke to me:

1. “Motive – Why have you sought after audience with Me? Is it to promote your interests or Mine?

2. Condition – Have you come with a pure heart and clean hands? Have you come presenting yourself a vessel of honor, or are you a vessel of dishonor?

3. Purpose – Are your purposes My purposes?

4. Plans – Have you come to tell Me how to do it, or will you come to get My plans? Will you execute My plans?

5. Pursuits – What is the outcome you are after? Is it to see My will accomplished in the earth, or is it any other reason?”  

“When in My presence, if you are given audience with Me, test those five to see if you are in agreement with My will. Then you may ask on behalf of Me and you will have what you’ve asked for.”

Queen Esther as Our Example

If we look to the wisdom of God displayed in Queen Esther’s life, we can see that she ministered all five points on God’s checklist when given audience with the king.

During uncertain and perilous times for herself and her people, Queen Esther established God’s will on the earth. We see that Esther knew her time, and she came as a Queen on behalf of a people. She was born for such a time as this and was positioned to provide deliverance. She trusted in God’s timing and in His order in laying aside her will for His will. The Lord removed uncertainty in her by making His will clear through Mordecai when he said:

“Don’t think for a moment that because you’re in the palace you will escape when all other Jews are killed. If you keep quiet at a time like this, deliverance and relief for the Jews will arise from some other place, but you and your relatives will die. Who knows if perhaps you were made queen for just such a time as this?” (Est 4:13b,14 NLT)

Mordecai prophesied to the Queen, and she received the power of God to wage war according to God’s will.

We can also see that Esther was a Queen who was in authority and also under the authority of the King. She was able to come before the king without an invitation because she was coming on behalf of a higher kingdom. Even though she may be punished by death, she acquired boldness in that she was sent on a mission by the King superior to all kings. In this, she was moved by the Highest authority. An authority that trumps all other authorities.

Queen Esther prepared her heart and the heart of her nation when she responded to Mordecai, “Go and gather together all the Jews of Susa and fast for me. Do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. My maids and I will do the same. And then though it is against the law, I will go in and see the king. If I must die, I must die” (Est 4:16,17 NLT). By this, she was able to come boldly to the king as she demonstrated the principles in 1 John 3:18,22 NLT:

Dear children, let’s not merely say that we love each other; let us show the truth by our actions. Our actions will show that we belong to the truth, so we will be confident when we stand before God. Even if we feel guilty, God is greater than our feelings, and he knows everything.

Dear children, if we don’t feel guilty, we can come to God with bold confidence. And we will receive from him whatever we ask because we obey him and do the things that please him.  

A final point of wisdom from Queen Esther is that she knew the priority of ministering to the needs of her King before making requests of her own. Even though her needs were desperate, it did not change the worthiness of her King. She gave herself to attending to her King first, then in time made her request known.

Queen Esther’s life mirrored the principles taught to us in the Lord’s prayer. Jesus said we are to pray in this manner, “Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven” (Mt 6:9,11 NKJV). Only after we’ve attended to His needs, do we make a request of our own.

“Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors” (Mt 6:12 NKJV). We are to make requests of Him, but we are to do so in His divine order. He even specifies that we do not repent first. This is so that we would not be ones ruled by sin consciousness, but that we would be grace conscious as ones who live ruled by love and consecration to Our King.

The Passion Translation states the Lord’s prayer this way:

“Our Beloved Father, dwelling in the heavenly realms, may the glory of your name be the center on which our lives turn. Manifest your kingdom realm, and cause your every purpose to be fulfilled on earth, just as it is in heaven. We acknowledge you as our Provider of all we need each day. Forgive us the wrongs we have done, as we ourselves release forgiveness to those who have wronged us. Rescue us every time we face tribulation and set us free from evil. For you are the King who rules with power and glory forever. Amen.” (Mt 6:9,13)

When we pray for deliverance from evil it is placed at the end of the prayer. Esther demonstrated this when she only made her request after having thrown the king two banquets. This table was prepared in the presence of her enemy, and once the king vindicated the Queen, she still further petitioned for the salvation of her people. The king gave the Queen and Mordecai permission to write the decree to save their people, and that he would place his royal seal on whatever they wrote (Est 8:8). This is such a demonstration of how the Holy Spirit partners with us to bring about God’s will in whatever we are asking of Him as He already approves because we have His heart.

In relation to the Lord’s prayer, it is right to pray for our request for deliverance last as He has already gone before us and obtained the victory. We are to be focused on glorifying God. We are not to be focused on the enemy. We do deal with the enemy, but God’s always our priority. The devil is to be addressed through his position of being under our feet, and never should he be given more attention than we our giving of our attention to God.

In Summation

C.C. Krulak wrote that making decisions “is essential to the conduct of war since all actions are the result of decisions or of nondecisions. If we fail to make a decision out of a lack of will, we have willingly surrendered the initiative to our foe” (85). Then it is prudent to remember “that while we are trying to impose our will on the enemy, he is trying to do the same to us” (Krulak 85).

It is my prayer then that these words land in our hearts, take root, and bear the fruit of the fear of the Lord and consecration to His call. That we would align our will with God’s will, and that we would be one with God and in our oneness with Him achieve oneness with each other.

Just as God the Father, Jesus the Son, and God the Holy Spirit are one (Jn 17:11).

May it be said of us and our churches that we are Your houses of prayer (Lk 19:46).

In Your name Lord Jesus, let it be so.

Amen