Weapons Utterly Destroy – How to Overcome Spiritual Strongholds

Weapons Utterly Destroy – How to Overcome Spiritual Strongholds notes. The apostle Paul instructs us there is a war. Not only is there a war, but we are the participants in this war. This war is of maximum proportions. This war is a war far advanced from any of the thousands of natural wars ever taken place in the natural. Also, this war does not only affect one or two nations. It affects the entire globe. It affects every person now on this planet or that will ever exist upon this planet we call Earth, and it is a mighty war using advanced weapons.

These weapons are unknown and hidden from the common man. Only the New Testament believer has access to them. The sad part of this war is every person is doomed unless they use and activate the weapons of our warfare. These weapons utterly destroy.

Introduction – Weapons Utterly Destroy – How to Overcome Spiritual Strongholds

by Delbert Young

Weapons Utterly Destroy – How to Overcome Spiritual Strongholds

Scriptures: 2 Corinthians 10:4, Romans 16:20, Ephesians 4:27, 2 Corinthians 10:3-6, Luke 17:20, 2 Corinthians 10:5

[2 Corinthians 10:4] (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;)

1. We Are At War

Christians are under the impression because they are “saved,” they are protected from the devil. That is a tremendous deception of Satan. As we will see, even believers are beguiled and destroyed. Does not the Bible say, “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge” (Hos 4:6)? Marriages are destroyed because believers do not activate their weapons.

Finances are a pitiful witness for the kingdom because believers do not activate their weapons. Christians are experiencing mental and emotional breakdowns because they do not activate their weapons. Health is devastated because Christians do not activate their weapons. Children are in rebellion, on drugs, and taken captive by Satan because we do not understand nor activate our weapons of warfare.

Weapons Utterly Destroy – How to Overcome Spiritual Strongholds

Our desire here is to make us aware of the weapons of our warfare. We want to teach about them. Also, we want to know how the enemy has convinced us not to use our weapons on him. Through our neglect, we have given mercy to the devil. We could destroy the enemy. Instead, we allow him to exist. When the Lord God was ready to take his people into the land (Deuteronomy 7:2) he told them “….thou shalt smite them, and utterly destroy them; thou shalt make no covenant with them, nor shew mercy unto them.”

He told them to “utterly destroy them.” Did they? No. Though they had the power to “utterly destroy,” they allowed the enemy to convince them otherwise.

So it is today.

We possess weapons of mass destruction. Not only can we “pull down” the strongholds of the enemy, we can “utterly destroy” the enemy. We could totally annihilate the enemy. We have weapons that can penetrate the thoughts of man. Also, we have weapons that can win arguments. We have weapons that can make mankind grasp the knowledge of God. We have weapons that can bring thoughts into captivity and subjection to Christ.

Weapons Utterly Destroy – How to Overcome Spiritual Strongholds

Furthermore, we have weapons that can take captive rebels and bring them to Christ. We have weapons that can “utterly destroy” Satan’s strongholds and take his people captive. Were we to properly utilize our weapons, we could extinguish the enemy from this planet! Think about it! Why would we be given weapons if we were not to do exactly that? The minds of the apostles were to crush Satan, not allowing him to remain in our land.

[Romans 16:20] The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The blessings from our Lord Jesus Christ be upon you.
[Ephesians 4:27] Neither give place to the devil. (emphasis added)

In the final analysis, we have been given weapons to drive the enemy from our lives. If we drive him from our lives, we drive him from our land. We have been convinced to await some fictitious escape, during which time the devil takes over the planet. We are given an untrue picture of believers rendered helpless and, therefore, must be removed from the planet. Why? How can this be?

If our weapons are powerful enough to destroy the strongholds of Satan and to change the thoughts of man, how could we be helpless to any “antichrist?” That teaching is simply not true. By that wrong teaching, the enemy has removed our mighty weapons that will cause mass destruction to him and his kingdom.

Weapons Utterly Destroy – How to Overcome Spiritual Strongholds

2. Translations

Let’s look at 2 Corinthians 10:3-6 from several of the more popular translations. This will give us a very good grasp of the passage.

King James

2 Corinthians 10:3-6

3 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh:
4 (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds😉
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;
6 And having in a readiness to revenge all disobedience, when your obedience is fulfilled.

Weapons Utterly Destroy – How to Overcome Spiritual Strongholds

NIV

2 Corinthians 10:3-6

3 For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does.
4 The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds.
5 We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.
6 And we will be ready to punish every act of disobedience, once your obedience is complete.

Living Bible

2 Corinthians 10:3-6

3 It is true that I am an ordinary, weak human being, but I don’t use human plans and methods to win my battles.
4 I use God’s mighty weapons, not those made by men, to knock down the devil’s strongholds.
5 These weapons can break down every proud argument against God and every wall that can be built to keep men from finding him. With these weapons I can capture rebels and bring them back to God and change them into men whose hearts’ desire is obedience to Christ.
6 I will use these weapons against every rebel who remains after I have first used them on you yourselves and you surrender to Christ.

Weapons Utterly Destroy – How to Overcome Spiritual Strongholds

New American Standard

2 Corinthians 10:3-6

3 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh,
4 for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses.
5 {We are} destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and {we are} taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ,
6 and we are ready to punish all disobedience, whenever your obedience is complete.(emphasis added)

The Word of God is crystal clear.

we are in a war.
this war is more elevated than any war ever fought in the flesh.
we have been given weapons of our warfare to use in this war.
these weapons are from God for the purpose of destroying every fortress and stronghold of our enemy.
with these weapons activated we utterly destroy argument, imaginations, thoughts, disobedience to Christ, and ignorance about God. Number 6, these weapons are used on believers until their obedience is complete.

Weapons Utterly Destroy – How to Overcome Spiritual Strongholds

3. The Location of this war

A principle of war is that the victor of the battle possesses the land or territory upon which the battle was fought. The victor can then do as they wish with the possessed land. The actual location of this war is between our ears–our soul. The war is about who will control the soul.

Too often, we allow our imagination to overtake us. We imagine a battle up in the sky. We imagine little devils flying around fighting with angels. This is not an accurate picture. That picture will cause us not to see where the real battle exists. That battle will cause us to place the war “out there somewhere” when, in fact, it is “in my own soul.” If the battle is for the soul, then the soul is the battleground. The victor of the battle possesses the land or the soul.

My soul is my “heavenly place.” In my heavenly place abides the Lord God and his kingdom or the devil and his kingdom. That thought may be a little different from the way we are taught to think. Nonetheless, it is accurate. We have a wrong image of the kingdom of God coming in some natural way of observation. That is just not true for the kingdom in not “out there.”

Weapons Utterly Destroy – How to Overcome Spiritual Strongholds

The kingdom is in the soul. One day, Jesus was asked by religious ” know-it-alls” about the coming of the kingdom of God. He told them they were in error and did not understand the coming of the kingdom. He told them they had taught the kingdom wrong and had caused people to misconceive it. The following is the passage.

Luke 17:20 And when he was demanded of the Pharisees, when the kingdom of God should come, he answered them and said, The kingdom of God cometh not with observation: 21 Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you. (emphasis added)

It is the same today. We have been taught incorrectly about the kingdom of God. It will not come with observation with the natural eye. This is because it must be within you. No law or legislation will bring the kingdom. Never will Jesus nor will Father God legislate the kingdom. Law and legalism do not change the soul. They restrain the wicked and protect the righteous.

I do not need a law telling me not to steal. There is no desire in me to steal. I do need a law telling thieves not to steal from me. I do need a law that, by punishment, will restrain them. The kingdom is simply that way. It will not be observed out there, for it is within you.

Weapons Utterly Destroy – How to Overcome Spiritual Strongholds

The kingdom is within our souls, or it is not at all. In my soul abides the throne of God, for I am the temple of God (1Co 3:16; 6:19). My soul is his heavenly place. When he comes into my life, he comes into my soul and establishes his kingdom. He begins driving out every enemy from that land. He desires to possess that land and will utterly destroy the enemy. Also, he will make no covenant with the enemy. He will not marry the enemy. He will destroy every offspring of the enemy. That is where the war is fought.

The war is in the clouds, but the clouds are in my head. The battle will bring one kingdom or the other possessing the land of my soul. I will experience righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Ghost, or I will experience the destruction by the kingdom of darkness.

Romans 14:17 For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost.

Please note from the previous scripture reference (Rom 14:17) that the Holy Ghost is necessary for the kingdom. Through the Holy Ghost, weapons are provided that bring righteousness, peace, and joy. The kingdom is a present reality, for the Holy Ghost is a present reality. If we have the Holy Ghost, then we have the kingdom. That truth alone will demolish many of Satan’s strongholds and fortresses. The devil uses the lie that the Holy Ghost is not for today. Today, the Holy Ghost can only “save” the untruth.

Weapons Utterly Destroy – How to Overcome Spiritual Strongholds

We see that the location of the war is in our souls. It is not “out there,” but rather “in here” in my thinking and thought process. The purpose of the war is to determine who will control our thoughts.

2 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; (emphasis added)

The weapons bring every thought into the obedience of Christ. We cast down imaginations. We cast down everything that the enemy attempts to use to stop us from acquiring the knowledge of God! Without the knowledge of God, we are doomed. We have no ability to even know we are in a war. We have no ability to discern if we are being deceived, and we are at the mercy of Satan.

So, we accept his lies as truth. We must, for we know no better. He then has control of our soul, and there he will establish his kingdom. It does not need to be that way. We are issued weapons to utterly destroy every stronghold and fortress he has built. However, we must utilize the weapons and drive him from our souls.