Joel 3

“Proclaim this among the nations: ‘Prepare for war! Wake up the mighty men. Let all the men of war draw near; let them come up. Beat your plowshares into swords and your pruning hooks into spears. Let the weak say, ‘I am strong.’’” (Joel 3:9–10, NKJV)

There is an ancient cosmic battle which began in the Garden of Eden. The enemy of our souls seeks to destroy those who are made in the image of God. No one can avoid this battle because we are born into it. We either fight the good fight or else we succumb to the evil and perish. But God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, so that we would not perish but have everlasting life. The devil comes to destroy, but our Good Shepherd comes to give us abundant and eternal life. But to overcome sin and the world we must prepare for war.

The mighty man cannot be sleeping; he must watch, pray and act. The men and women of war must put on the full armor of God and take up the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God. The plowshares of peacetime must be beaten into battle swords. There will be a time of peace when Satan has been bound and cast into the bottomless pit, Christ reigns on the throne of David, and the earth is filled with the knowledge of the LORD. Until that time, let us say, “I am strong in the strength of the Lord.”

“A final word: Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil. For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.” (Ephesians 6:10–12, NLT)