Why Fight It?
Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. —Ephesians 6:11-17
Christians are under ATTACK! We are attacked by the flesh… by the world… and by spiritual wickedness in high places. As Lester Roloff used to sing, “It’s a battlefield brother—Not a recreation room!” We are engaged in spiritual warfare.
We have armor (text) and weapons (2 Cor. 10:4-5–We do not WAR after the flesh: For the WEAPONS of our WARFARE and not carnal, but mighty through God to the PULLING DOWN OF STRONG HOLDS.”)
We are SOLDIERS—“Endure hardness, as a GOOD SOLDIER of Jesus Christ. No man that WARRETH entangleth himself with the affairs of this life: That he may please him who hath chosen him to be a SOLDIER” (2 Tim. 2:3-4).
We are admonished to “earnestly CONTEND for the faith, which was once delivered unto the saints” (Jude 1:3). We must contend against the agents of Satan—False prophets (2 Cor. 11:13-15). There are those who would discredit our faith… our Bible… and our churches. They are “the enemies of the cross of Christ” (Phil. 3:18).
Paul wrote to Timothy—“This charge I commit unto thee. son Timothy, according to the prophecies which went before thee, that thou by them mightest WAR a good WARFARE” (1 Tim 1:18). He exhorted Timothy to “FIGHT the good FIGHT of faith” (1 Tim. 6:12). Paul realized he was to fight. He wrote in 1 Corinthians 9:26, “SO FIGHT I, not as one that beateth the air.” Paul fought the fight of faith all his life. Just before Paul was martyred for Christ he said, “I have FOUGHT a good FIGHT” (2 Tim. 4:6).
Do you ever get tired of fighting spiritual warfare? Are you ever tempted to “throw in the towel” and say, “I quit!” Has the battle become too hard. Why fight on? Why fight it? Here are a few reasons why you must continue to fight:
First, you should fight it because you want to be a winner and not a loser! God has called you to WIN (Rom. 8:37; 2 Cor. 2:14). Quiters never win. Quiters are losers. As long as you keep fighting, you haven’t lost! No matter how many times you get knocked down, if you keep getting up you haven’t lost (see Prov. 24:16).
In 1975, Muhammad Ali was the heavyweight champion of the world when he fought Smokin’ Joe Frazier for the third time in Manila. Two-thirds through the fight, Ali was ready to quit. Ali said after the fight: “In the 14th round, you wanna throw up; you wanna die you hurt so much. Your hands hurt; your sides hurt; your everything hurts. I ALMOST QUIT AFTER THE 14TH ROUND, but I am the champion. CHAMPIONS DON’T QUIT!” [The Seattle Times, Oct. 1, 1975; G-3.] Amen!
Satan never quits—Why should you.
Second, you should fight it because it involves your LIBERTY! We have liberty in the United States today because someone fought for it!
To whomsoever you surrender, they become the victor and you become their servant. Romans 6:16 says, “Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves to obey, his servants year to whom ye obey.” Jesus said, “Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin” (John 8:34).
There are those who are enslaved by strong drink, drugs, cigarettes, lust, greed, etc. Why? Because they caved in to those things. They quit fighting the temptations, and now they are controlled by what they surrendered to.
Third, you should keep fighting because of your INFLUENCE. Jesus said “Ye are the SALT of the earth” (Mt. 5:13). Your life is an influence. No man is an island. “None of us liveth to himself, and no man diet to himself” (Rom. 14:7). Someone is following your example. Paul knew this—“We have not power, but to make ourselves and example unto you to follow us” (2 Thess. 3:9). If you quit fighting, it will influence someone else to quit fighting!
After Christ was crucified, Peter went back to the fishing business. But he was not alone. Peter’s influence also effected the other disciples. Peter said, “I go a-fishing.” The other disciples responded, “We also go with thee” (John 21:3).
Your family is watching you. Your friends are watching you. Your co-workers and classmates are watching you. Other church members are watching you. If you quit, what will happen to them? One of the most selfish thing you can do is quit.
Why fight it? Because Jesus never quit! He stayed in the battle to the very end! “For consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, LEST YE BE WEARIED AND FAINT in your minds. Ye have not yet resisted unto blood, STRIVING against sin” (Heb. 12:3-4).
Remember, “Champions don’t quit!” Be a champion for Christ!
On September 23, 1779, John Paul Jones, the commander of the Poor Richard navy ship engaged in a battle against a larger and better fitted fleet. The ships got so close the masts got entangled and the gun muzzles actually touched each other. The fight became severe and the Poor Richard was heavily damaged and about to sink. The British commander called out to the American commander if he wished to surrender. John Paul Jones answered back, “I have not yet begun to fight!” After about three more hours of fierce fighting, the British commander finally surrendered to Jones.
The fighting may be long and weary—It might cause some damage—It might seem like a lost cause, BUT THAT IS THE TIME TO KEEP FIGHTING! Don’t give up! Don’t surrender to the enemy. There is still more “fight” in you that you thought!
Fight on!
