Conquer With Love!

This is not warfare in the customary ways of the human mind.
It is a dissolving of evil by that which is good.
Love comes forth from God; for He alone is Good.
All that came from Him is good and it can be reabsorbed back into the good that is God.
The sword is mighty and it is the word of God. (Ephesians 6:10-18)
The living (S)words of God pierce through any and all weapons and armor of the enemy.
When confronted with the warfare of the evil one, to respond in like-kind, physical violence,
is to deny the true power of God!

For to fight that which is evil with his own weapons of violence is to feed that same spirit.
But, oppose evil with love! The love of God!
To cover evil with goodness to dissolve it is to wage a mighty battle.
(Matthew 5:44, Luke 6: 27-36, 1 Corinthians 16:14, 1 Corinthians 13)

For indeed there is a battle in the flesh.
That flesh that is battled is your own.
For every fleshly impulse tells you that you must respond “like-to-like”
But that is not the way of the Spirit of God.
You may conquer and defeat evil only with good! (2 Corinthians 10:3-6)
With God and God’s love alone can the strongholds of darkness fall.

The first enemy to be defeated is your own un-belief. (Matthew 17:20, Mark 9:23)
You must defeat this enemy within your own camp first.
(Mark 9:23-25, Mark 16:16, John 3:18-19, Matthew 7:21, Matthew 17:20, John 12:48, James 1:6, 1 John 5:19-21)
Then take hold of the weapons of warfare:
The shield of faith, the sword of the Spirit and the feet of the good news;
The news that comes forth from the loving heart of God!
The gospel is goodness! It is hope!

Kindness is not kindness if it is not from a heart that is surrendered to the Lord God of love!
To react in anger, violence and revenge feeds your enemy and makes it stronger.
As soon as you feel those impulses, you know that the enemy is within already!
That enemy must not ever enter! (1 Peter 3:9-12)

That is why you are covered in the armor designed by the Father Himself.
The helmet of salvation is to protect your eyes, your ears and your mind from the poison arrows.
The shield of faith is indeed a shield: Know what truth is!
Know it!  Jesus is the truth!
Stay behind Him!

The belt of truth girds up your loins.
You will know the truth with your belly,
for out of it flows rivers of life-giving water.
You know by the spirit, you feel it in the depths of your being.
It is covered by this belt of truth that fastens your very garment to your body.

The breastplate of righteousness protects your heart.
If there is un-righteousness in you, your heart is the first to betray you.
Your heart belongs to Me.
You must love Me with all your heart, your soul and your strength.
(Luke 10:25-28, Mark 12:28-34, Deuteronomy 6: 2-9)

All of that belongs to Me so that I may bring forth a new heart,
a new mind and a new creation. (1 Corinthians 2:14-16, 2 Corinthians 5:17)
Cover yourself with the protection that I designed!
The belt of truth affixes the shield of faith against the body.
Without truth there can be no true faith.  They go together.
If there is no truth, the shield of faith has nothing to attach to.
Righteousness protects the heart, faith protects the body,
truth holds everything together.
You will know the truth and out of your belly will flow rivers of living waters. (John 7:38)

 Go forth armed with the double-edged sword that will not murder!
It will not kill. (Hebrews 2:13-14,  Ephesians 6:17)
It will instead destroy the lies of the enemy and set your enemies free!
Free to see the glory of the Lord and His mercy and love for them!
The sword you are given to carry is the word of redemption and salvation!
It is the promise of love and the word of truth.
It slices through the heavy fog of deception.
It divides the truth from the lie that was attached to it.
It gives light, it gives life, it brings joy and redemption for My children!
(John 10:9-10, John 1:4-5, John 9:5, John 8:11-12)

You are to destroy the works of the devil, not to destroy My beloved children.
They are to be saved!
They must be given the opportunity to know the truth.
(Ephesians 6:10-17, 2 Peter 3:8-9)

[Originally Composed: Wednesday, March 11, 2009]

The Scripture passages are referenced so that you may study the scriptures to see how beautifully everything conforms together and is grounded in Him.  The references are not intended as a direct quote of any written translation of the Bible, but rather as a reference to anchor my writing in scripture.