“When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own house, his possessions are safe.
But when someone stronger attacks and overpowers him, he takes away the armor in which the man trusted and divides up the spoils." LUKE 11:21-22
Reading this passage recently, triggered something in my inside. It raise two issues for me here:
The first is that it talks about a strong man, fully armed guarding his own house. Are we protecting our homes spiritually? Its our responsibility to do so and we must be STRONG then FULL ARMED! How do we do this? We must first be motivated by the possessions we have and the desire to protect our valuables.Do you appreciate your spouse, your kids, your health and your gifts/talents bestowed on you by the Lord? What you do not appreciate, depreciates with time.How do we get fully armed? Walking in the Spirit and praying in the Spirit. How strong are you? There is no objective yard stick for measuring spiritual strength but you should be able to assess your weaknesses and your present state. The Holy Spirit will convict you of sin, righteousness and judgment. It is your weakness that excites the enemy. But the Apostle Paul says..."When I am weak, then am I strong!"
The next challenge here is that the word talks about a "STRONGER ONE" attacking. This tells me that no matter how strong you think you are, the enemy has assessed you rightly or wrongly and he is in the business of preparing an opposition that matches your present state so you have to be on the watch...let him that thinks he stands, take heed..1Cor 10:12. So you are called upon to be steadfast unmoveable always abounding..."Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord."1Cor 15:58 I also admonishes us to "10 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.
11 Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil." Eph 6:10&11
Will you be ready, will your marriage and health stand the next attack? Can you defeat the so called "stronger than you" when he comes next time?
You can and you must. For the weapons of your warfare are not carnal but mighty through God...."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;"2Cor 10:3-5
You must be prepared for the next battle!