II Corinthians 10:3-5 “For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;”

We walk (live) in the human flesh, and, like other human beings, we have to deal with things on our jobs, in our businesses, and with our families. We have to deal with people we meet every day. In all of this, we have to know one thing: we do not war according to the flesh or with natural weapons. Trying to wage war in the flesh will not produce good results. You might win a battle by smacking someone in the mouth, but you will lose the war by giving in to the negative spirits of anger, violence, and “getting even."

When you give in to the flesh and let it rule, you are actually giving yourself over to be used by the wicked one who is the source of violence and negative behavior. Just as our power for good comes from a source outside of ourselves, likewise, the source of evil and violence is outside and comes from the realm of darkness. The outside source of all that is good is God. Our power to make good decisions comes from God as He pours out His spirit into us. Remember what we read: The “weapons of our warfare are not carnal…” Think about what weapons do. Weapons are designed to destroy and to serve as a form of defense or attack. When we give in to our flesh or natural nature, we fight with words or physical blows. Some people think this is going to solve problems; it really only creates more problems. Our warfare is not fought with guns, bullets, fists, or hurtful words.

The weapons of our warfare are “…mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds…” We must rely on the weapons of the All Mighty God who sends us heavenly power to be victorious in our daily battles. Just as an electrical power generating plant sends electrical power into homes to produce light and heating, we have received all of the power from God that we need to live our lives in victory. Electrical power is in the wiring in a home, but neither lights, nor heat or the stove to cook food will turn on by itself. Someone must turn the switch and “tap into” the energy source. The same is true of our lives in Christ. The Holy Spirit lives inside of us, but if we ignore Him and act on our own, the power for true victory lies dormant in us. The untapped Source of power is not active, and we fall prey to the flesh, the using of our flesh by the adversary, and carnality. The word of God teaches us how to turn on the power in us. You must hear and obey the word of God, because the Word is our weapon. The word of God is our “…sword of the Spirit…” (Ephesians 6:17).

You have to attack spiritual things with spiritual things. You have to hit the switches through the word of God and your life will get lit up the way it is suppose to be. God desires to make us into the image of His Son. How was His Son? The Son of God was the, “…light of the world…” (St. John 9:5). Jesus said that we are “…the light of the world…” (St. Matthew 5:14). The word of God also tells us that “…as He is, so are we in this world.” (I John 4:17). You must take a stand on the word of God. You must take what belongs to you. The Kingdom, peace, joy, wealth… all of the goodness of God belongs to you. You must understand that and claim it. You must know what is yours. When you don’t know what is yours, or where the “switch” is, you live beneath your privilege in the Kingdom. You will walk around like a rich person who doesn’t know that he is rich. You have to get your mind straight by filling it with the word of God. You must realize fully that our weapons and our warfare are spiritual, not carnal. Armed with the spiritual weapons of the word of God, trust in God, peace of mind and prayer, you cannot be defeated.

You do not have to try to defeat somebody by arguing, cussing, throwing punches. You don’t have to win an argument to be a winner. Remember that a soft answer turns away wrath, anger and getting even. When you go God’s way, He gets the glory. Do not fall for the old lie that “a soft answer makes you weak”.

II Corinthians 10:4-5 “(For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ”

When we think of a strong hold, we think of a fort, a fortress, a hideout, a bulwark, a defense. A strong hold in the mind can be ideas and opinions that only the word of God and the spirit of God can root out. Being set in ones ways is a kind of mental strong hold. Being locked into some kind of religious doctrine is a kind of strong hold. The word of God and the spirit of God are powerful weapons for pulling down strong holds of the mind. The Word says that our weapons are powerful for pulling down strongholds. Praise God for His word and His Spirit! You have to know your weapon. If you don't know that you have a mighty weapon, then you can't use it. You have to know what you have and where it is. The weapons that you have been given are for warfare. You have the weapons, but you must use them. God is not going to give you the power and then turn the switch on for you, too. The power producer is not going to come down and turn on your light switches for you. They only supply the power. God supplies you with the power, and the word of God teaches you how to turn the power on. You have the power. I'm not trying to give you any power. You have it already. When you were born again, the Holy Spirit came; Christ came into you. You are fully equipped. What I'm doing is showing you how to operate in these heavenly powers, these spiritual powers.

Imagine that I am pulling down some long thick, heavy curtains. I’m holding them with two hands, but I just can’t yank them down, even though my grip is strong. Well, somebody has to be stronger than I am to pull them down. In your life the word of God and the Holy Spirit are the power for pulling down things that are too strong for you. Even after you are saved, the enemy can come along like a flood. He can gain a strong hold on your mind, and when he does, he hangs on and won’t let go. Many different things can create strong holds in your mind and keep you in bondage. Some strong powers that captivate the mind include unforgiveness, envy, jealousy, spite, and resentment. You must rely on the word of God and the spirit of God for casting down those things that are of the darkness so that the light of Christ can shine brightly through you. All of this takes place in the mind. The mind is the battlefield. We either lose or win in the mind.

II Corinthians 10:5 “Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ.”

The weapons of our warfare are powerful for casting down imaginations or wrong thinking that is negative and full of pride. The enemy uses fleshly thinking. You have to cast this kind of thinking aside. You have to do it. You have to draw near to God and resist the devil so that he will flee. You have to speak what the word of God says. No one can do this for you. You have the power. The power has been given to you. You must make the decision to live victoriously or defeated. You have to decide to live in the prison of your negative thinking or in the bright sunshine of the freedom that we have in Christ. You must take the knowledge of God that you have been taught from the word of God and let it rule your life rather than letting your wrong thinking and twisted imaginings rule your life. You must not allow yourself to sit in the congregation every time the doors of the church are open and to hear and learn nothing. Hearing the word of God and not obeying it creates a playground for the enemy to play. You have to be educated in the ways of God, the things of God, the knowledge of God. That's why you come to church. You must take in, digest, and use every part of your education in heavenly things. You are supposed to learn. You are a disciple; a true disciple takes the techniques and the teaching and makes it work in his or her life. You have the power in you. You don't have to think or dwell on something that you know exalts itself above God, above what you’ve been taught, and above the Truth. Instead of thinking on what is negative, fill your mind with the Word.

Speak the word of God on every challenge. Say what God says in His word when thoughts that oppose the word of God are whispered in the mind. When the thought comes, “I am all alone; I don’t have anybody to care for me”, speak the Word that Jesus said, “I will never leave you or forsake you”. Personalize the Word. Say, “Jesus will never leave me or forsake me!” Practice using the Word when things that oppose the truth of God arise. Practice produces confidence. Practice speaking the Word and let the Word build your confidence and trust in God. Again, you have to have the knowledge of God. Satan has to know you have the knowledge. You can't come to Satan with your own words. You have to have the knowledge to speak the word of God. That is what Jesus did when Satan challenged Him. You are not greater than Jesus! Jesus is your teacher; you are to learn from Jesus. Learn the lesson well and put the lesson into practice. Jesus had to say, “It is written…” Surely you know and understand that you must do the same. I say again, you must know the word of God. If Satan knows you don't know the Word, then he can play games with you and mess you up. Get in control of your life. Don't let your imaginations, your little feelings, and emotions mess up your life.

Bishop W. C. Hunter

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