Are you or someone you know facing some kind of opposition in your life right now? If so, I want to encourage you today. Jesus said in second part of John 16:33, “…In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” (NKJV)

Christ’s victory is a Christian triumph. Christ overcame the prince of this world, disarmed him, and cast him out; and He still treads Satan under our feet. He overcame the wicked of the world, he put his enemies to silence, and to shame; He is telling us here, “And you be of good cheer, for the Spirit will enable you to do so too.” ¹

In mid-March, I woke up one morning hearing the Lord say the following message to me:

“The Lord is saying to you today, DO NOT be dismayed by the opposition that is surrounding you. I see the plots and plans with intent to overwhelm and DISARM you. Do not comply, for your weapons are mighty and powerful and they destroy every sophisticated argument that is set up against my plans and purposes being accomplished in and through you. Remember and stay alert that you have an enemy roaming to and fro seeking every opportunity to devour the good plans I have designed for you. Do not look to the left or to the right, keep your eye on the prize the I have set before you. Do not allow these attempts to alter your course. Be strong, be resilient, for if I am with you who can be against you says your Lord!”

When I began to consider this message, the Lord immediately started to show me the battle between David and Goliath.

1 Samuel 17:4-11 NKJV

4 And a champion went out from the camp of the Philistines, named Goliath, from Gath, whose height was six cubits and a span. 5 He had a bronze helmet on his head, and he was armed with a coat of mail, and the weight of the coat was five thousand shekels of bronze. 6 And he had bronze armor on his legs and a bronze javelin between his shoulders. 7 Now the staff of his spear was like a weaver’s beam, and his iron spearhead weighed six hundred shekels; and a shield-bearer went before him. 8 Then he stood and cried out to the armies of Israel, and said to them, “Why have you come out to line up for battle? Am I not a Philistine, and you the servants of Saul? Choose a man for yourselves, and let him come down to me. 9 If he is able to fight with me and kill me, then we will be your servants. But if I prevail against him and kill him, then you shall be our servants and serve us.” 10 And the Philistine said, “I defy the armies of Israel this day; give me a man, that we may fight together.” 11 When Saul and all Israel heard these words of the Philistine, they were dismayed and greatly afraid.

Do you see that word in the last sentence? They were DISMAYED!  The opposition they were facing dismayed Israel’s army.  This giant was over 9 feet tall and wore a bronze coat that was 125 pounds!  His taunting was a specific strategy with intent to overwhelm and “DISARM” them and cause them to give up and run away.

This is exactly what our enemy does. In the Bible, we see a reference that compares the devil to a roaring lion. (1 Peter 5:8)  Did you know you could hear a lion’s roar for 5 miles?²

The enemy roars loud and taunts us just as Goliath was doing. However, the Word the Lord gave me reminds us that since our weapons are mighty, we should never allow these strategies to disarm us.

2 Corinthians 10:3-4 NLT

3 We are human, but we don’t wage war as humans do. 4 We use God’s mighty weapons, not worldly weapons, to knock down the strongholds of human reasoning and to destroy false arguments.

This brings me back to the story; while Israel’s army was disarmed with fear, David responds differently. If you know the story, David was too young to be fighting, he was back taking care of the sheep, but his father sent him to the battlefield to take some food to his brothers, and get a report on how the battle was going.  When David saw what was happening, he said he would go fight Goliath.  Saul told him he couldn’t do that because he was just a youth, but look how David responded:

1 Samuel 17:34-37 NKJV

34 But David said to Saul, “Your servant used to keep his father’s sheep, and when a lion or a bear came and took a lamb out of the flock, 35 I went out after it and struck it, and delivered the lamb from its mouth; and when it arose against me, I caught it by its beard, and struck and killed it. 36 Your servant has killed both lion and bear; and this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, seeing he has defied the armies of the living God.” 37 Moreover David said, “The Lord, who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, He will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.” And Saul said to David, “Go, and the Lord be with you!”

David recognizes that he didn’t fight the lion and the bear with his own strength, but through the Lord. His weapons were not carnal they were mighty through God!  If you know the story, David tried to put on armor, but it didn’t fit him, so he went out to face this 9 foot giant with a sling and 5 smooth stones, let’s pick up reading at that point in the story…

1 Samuel 17:43-46 NKJV

43 So the Philistine said to David, “Am I a dog, that you come to me with sticks?” And the Philistine cursed David by his gods. 44 And the Philistine said to David, “Come to me, and I will give your flesh to the birds of the air and the beasts of the field!” 45 Then David said to the Philistine, “You come to me with a sword, with a spear, and with a javelin. But I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. 46 This day the Lord will deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you and take your head from you.

In the natural, a sling and a stone is not a mighty weapon, but when it was used in the name of the Lord it became a supernatural weapon that was unstoppable, which took down the greatest giant!

1 Samuel 17:48-51 NKJV

48 So it was, when the Philistine arose and came and drew near to meet David, that David hurried and ran toward the army to meet the Philistine. 49 Then David put his hand in his bag and took out a stone; and he slung it and struck the Philistine in his forehead, so that the stone sank into his forehead, and he fell on his face to the earth. 50 So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone, and struck the Philistine and killed him. But there was no sword in the hand of David. 51 Therefore David ran and stood over the Philistine, took his sword and drew it out of its sheath and killed him, and cut off his head with it.

This brings me to my second point about weapons. Not only was David armed with a weapon with supernatural strength, but also now, we see that he takes the enemy’s weapon and turns it against him!

David demonstrates with God on your side, you can take the enemy’s weapon that is intended to destroy you and your destiny, and use it to cut off the head of your greatest opposition!

The enemy meant to cause you to be dismayed by the opposition he is bringing against you, he used strategies intending to overwhelm and disarm you, but your weapons are mighty through God and He can take what was intended to take you out and make it a strong weapon in your hands!

If you know the story about Joseph, the enemy wanted to use his brothers to destroy him, but God had a plan for Joseph’s life and when it was all over he told his brothers not to be upset with what they did, God used it to preserve His people. (see Genesis 45:4-5)

Now if you are facing great opposition, the last thing you often want to hear is how God will use it for good, but if we know that in this world, we will face tribulation and opposition, why not at least make the pain mean something?

You have heard it said, “New level, new devil” but what you must remember is that with every defeat of the new devil, you can disarm the enemy of the very weapon he attempted to use against you!

To demonstrate this point, consider David again. Goliath was just one of his first battles.  If you read about the life of David, he was a great warrior.  Saul was jealous of David and his success.  He knew the anointing that was on David’s life, and he knew he was anointed to become the next king.

Saul turned on David, and sought to take his life. David and a few of his men ran for their lives and they find themselves at the site of the tabernacle.  Look at what David asks the priest:

1 Samuel 21:8-9 NKJV

8 And David said to Ahimelech, “Is there not here on hand a spear or a sword? For I have brought neither my sword nor my weapons with me, because the king’s business required haste.” 9 So the priest said, “The sword of Goliath the Philistine, whom you killed in the Valley of Elah, there it is, wrapped in a cloth behind the ephod. If you will take that, take it. For there is no other except that one here.” And David said, “There is none like it; give it to me.”

First, we saw that God provided David with a supernatural weapon to use against his enemy. Secondly, David used the enemy’s own weapon to cut the head off the opposition. Now, we see that in a future time of need, David is able to go back and use that same weapon for a new opposition!

Can you see the pattern here? When David was faced with the biggest battle of his life, Goliath, he pulled from his previous victories.  He reminded himself that just as God had delivered him from the lion and the bear, he would help him defeat this giant.  He won the battle, he used the enemy’s weapon to complete the victory, and now that same weapon is available to help him win in another opposition.

We shouldn’t face our opposition from a victim’s mentality, happy to just survive the battle, we should disarm the enemy and then turn his very weapon against him and in all future battles!

How can you do that in your natural life? By understanding the strategies the enemy tries to use against you.

1 Peter 5:8-10 NLT

8 Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. 9 Stand firm against him, and be strong in your faith. Remember that your Christian brothers and sisters all over the world are going through the same kind of suffering you are. 10 In his kindness God called you to share in his eternal glory by means of Christ Jesus. So after you have suffered a little while, he will restore, support, and strengthen you, and he will place you on a firm foundation.

The best way to form a winning game plan is to study your opponent, and to understand your own areas of weakness and vulnerability. If you have an area of weakness that the enemy always exploits, you need to allow the Lord to help you deal with that weakness for the last time.  Recognize that the enemy uses his plots and plans with intent to overwhelm and DISARM you. Remember and stay alert that you have an enemy roaming to and fro seeking every opportunity to devour the good plans God has designed for you.

Your enemy would not be trying so hard to overwhelm and disarm you if he wasn’t afraid of the good plans God has designed for you! In closing remember the last part of the Word of encouragement from the Lord:

“Do not look to the left or to the right, keep your eye on the prize the I have set before you. Do not allow these attempts to alter your course. Be strong, be resilient, for if I am with you who can be against you says your Lord!”

Stay firm in your faith today! Keep your eye on the finish line and you will see the great plans God has designed for your life!

 

1. Matthew Henry’s Commentary on the Whole Bible, PC Study Bible Formatted Electronic Database Copyright © 2006 by Biblesoft, Inc. John 16:33

2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lion 4/21/17