Recognize Your Rivals

Apr 23

When you gave your life to Christ, you were auto-enrolled into Heaven’s Army. That means you were enlisted into the Army of Light who wages war against the kingdom of darkness, daily. Knowing who our spiritual enemies and rivals are is essential to walking victoriously in Christ. While it is important to know that we have spiritual rivals, it’s equally important to identify other “rivals" that show up in our every day natural life that drive a wedge between us and our Heavenly Father. If you want to start unveiling the hidden rivals in your life, read the full post below.

ENCOURAGE

Anchor Scripture: Ephesians 5:15-16

“See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil.”

God, who is the Creator of all things, has no rival. He is in a category all by Himself— Holy, Perfect, Sovereign, and Mighty. However, some believe that the devil is God’s rival, and that is not so. Perhaps we could say during his rebellion in heaven he was, but he was defeated on the cross. Hallelujah! As believers, we must understand that Satan is not fighting against God, he’s fighting against US. Since we know that he’s fighting against us, we ought to learn to wage war back, right? Let’s take a look at what the word says:

Matthew 11:12- “And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence, and the violent take it by force.”
Ephesians 6:11- “Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.”
James 4:7- “Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.”
1 Peter 5:8-9- “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. Resist him, steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world.”

The Bible perspicuously instructs us to withstand, contend, war, resist, and fight against the kingdom of darkness. You may wonder, what and why exactly are we fighting? That answer is also made clear in the scriptures:

The What: We are fighting in a spiritual war against principalities, powers, rulers of the darkness of this age, and spiritual hosts of wickedness in heavenly places (Ephesians 6:12).
The Why: We are fighting because the enemy (who is called the thief, father of lies, prince of the powers of the air, etc) has come to steal, kill, and destroy everything in us, our lives, and God’s plan in an effort to keep us separated from God, both here and in eternity. His ultimate desire is to keep us on the path to destruction and death (spiritual and natural).

Knowing that we are in a spiritual war and that Lucifer and all the fallen angels (demons) are our rivals is clear. But what about the other subtle rivals in our lives that have crept in unnoticed? It’s one thing to know we are in a spiritual war, but another to understand that spiritual warfare comes in many forms and fashions, and uses whatever weapons that will keep us away from relationship and right-standing with God. Again, God has no rivals, but you and I do; And unfortunately we can become the culprits who create and invite rivals into our lives that work against our attention, devotion, and relationship with God.

My question to you is: Who are your rivals? A rival is someone who is actively competing or working against you to reach or obtain something that only one person can possess. A rival is also defined as an adversary or opponent—someone who seeks your demise and destruction for pleasure or gain.

So, again, who are your rivals? It’s not just Satan and demons. It’s addiction to social media and entertainment. It’s running to sex, your ex, or the next for comfort instead of the Holy Spirit. It’s looking up your horoscope instead of looking to the word for direction. It’s relying on crystals for healing instead of going to the Great Physician. It’s over commitment to social groups, gatherings, work, and play that leave you no room for God. It’s spiritual laziness. It’s lack of mental, spiritual, and physical discipline. It’s unbridled lips and gossiping tongues. It’s being unrighteously angry and reacting with dysregulated emotions without remorse. It’s non-stop complaining and murmuring. It’s erecting idols in our lives that push God off the throne of our hearts. It’s clinging to fear, doubt, and insecurity instead of our identity in Christ and the truth of God’s promises. It’s disobedience and delayed obedience, which is just plain disobedience. It’s the backbiting, strife, and division. It’s lust and covetousness in the heart. It’s looking past the poor, the widow, and the orphan. It’s unrepentant sin and pride. It’s choosing to live for yourself 6 days out of the week then on Sunday you repent just to go back to your vomit again. It’s choosing to stay ignorant to avoid accountability and responsibility. It’s giving God 5 minutes of your time before bed when He gave you 1,440 minutes in a day— that’s 0.346% of your time in a day.

Our rivals are sometimes ourselves and our choices. It’s our decisions, our flesh and spirit competing desires, our distractions, our silly belief that we have all the time in the world to “get around to it.”

Family, you and I are often our own rivals, getting in the way of our fellowship and communion with God. We get caught up in both the pleasures and vices of life, taking it for granted, forgetting that this is all for a moment and that what comes next is eternal. There is a hereafter, and how we spend our time on earth is crucial to where we’re headed next (Proverbs 23:18). I write with conviction, having seen myself at different times in my 3 years of seriously following Jesus, slowly drift into distractions that may not necessarily be “bad" or “sinful,” but they’ve impeded on my time, focus, and consequently my relationship with God. But thank God for His mercies that are new every morning and His grace that allows us to repent and be set on the right path again. Friends, I want you to learn from my errors and quickly identify what is or is becoming a rival against your relationship with God so that you can remove them from your life.

I pray that this post encourages you to take the time you have and seek what God would have you do with it. We have to fight for our secret place. We have to fight against every temptation, desire, and distraction that tries to erect itself as an idol, or rival, in our lives. We must desire relationship and intimacy with the Lord more than anything, especially in these last days. Be blessed and as always, go with God!

EQUIP

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