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Hey, what's going on, guys? Welcome back to another episode of Preaching to the Choir. What spiritual warfare really looks like. It's an interesting topic because it's popular. We talk about spiritual warfare often. Many people imagine it as something metaphysical, mystical, distant, or dramatic. The truth is that spiritual warfare is usually much closer, quieter, and more personal than people really expect, because it's most often the daily impact and conflicts that we have between truth and deception, light and darkness, faith and fear. So another question is, is there real evil? Scripture is clear. It's not just an idea. It is real, active and present in the world around us. Ephesians 6:12 says, for we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. This tells us something important. The real battle is not against people. It's spiritual. Even when it shows up through human behavior and action, it's spiritual. Jesus himself spoke openly about demons and spiritual oppression. In Mark 5, he encounters a man possessed by many demons. Christ does not treat evil as a metaphor. He confronts it directly, calmly, and with authority. Are demons on the earth? Well, the Bible presents spiritual forces as real and active, but Scripture also shows that fear is never the posture of a believer. We are told in 1 John 4:4, Greater is he that is in you than he that is in the world. The focus is not fascination with darkness. The focus is the authority of Christ over that darkness. Spiritual warfare is not about obsessing or whether or not there is demons or not is about recognizing that the enemy works through deception, division, despair, resentment, addiction, bitterness, pride and hopelessness. Meaning for sure, the people you're interacting with are influenced by these evil things. So what spiritual warfare actually looks like in a practical sense is not what the movies portray. It looks like the voice that tells you you are alone, the temptation to respond to hurt with rage, the slow erosion of hope when life feels unfair. Isolation that convince you no one understands because no one knows who you are. Fear that pulls you away from your purpose. I know this very intimately this week feeling full of despair, the complications that I'm dealing with. But that's exactly how demons, evil influence you. Through deception, through division, and through despair. John 10:10 says, the thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. Spiritual warfare is often a fight over your mind, your identity and your purpose. And there are moments in life when evil feels undeniable. Some of us have seen it face to face. I've seen it face to face. On several operations that I've been on down range, I remember the intelligence briefs that we got. It seemed like a nightmare, the things they were doing to other people. Torture, murder, the handprints on the wall marred in blood, the videos that were disseminated and that we watched. This led into the propaganda that ISIS pushed primarily to influence the masses. That's real evil. I saw it face to face, but I've also seen it transitioning into civilian life with other people around me being influenced in a negative way, being angry, full of resentment, who claim to be Christians. In war, you sometimes witness things that go beyond normal human behavior. You often see cruelty and chaos, destruction that makes you question humanity itself. But you also see something else. You see courage, sacrifice, and men willing to lay down their lives for each other. That contrast reveals something profound. That darkness is real, but so is light. Evil exists, but it does not get the final word. The battlefield teaches the hard truth. Evil often appears when fear and hatred go unchecked. But it also teaches that faith, brotherhood, your moral convictions, your love. Push back against it and you see. Most people will never stand on a battlefield, but every person will fight in a spiritual battle. It happens when a father decides to fight for his children. A man chooses integrity when no one is watching. A person faces betrayal and decides whether bitterness will define them. These are spiritual moments in our lives. At crossroads, the enemy does not always come with violence. Sometimes he comes with exhaustion, distraction, discouragement. Ephesians 6 gives a practical response. A belt of truth, a breastplate of righteousness, a shield of faith, a helmet of salvation, and a sword of the spirit, which is the word of God. Notice that most of the armor is defensive. Spiritual warfare is often about standing firm rather than chasing battles. How we confront evil in our lives every single day is simple. You stay rooted in the truth. You refuse to let the bitterness take hold. You remain accountable and in the community, praying even when you feel numb, and choosing forgiveness without denying the reality that you're in. I choose forgiveness this week, but I won't cower in fear in the fetal and deny the reality that I'm in. I'll get to my knee, I'll stand up, I'll pick up the sword, and I'll fight, but the right way. James 4, 7 says, Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Resistance begins with the offensive submission to God, not with trying to fight it alone. This resistance to putting in or pouring in our faith and instead trying to have control, is what leads us down the wrong path. When I think about this it does scare me because I do think there is evil darkness and demons on this earth. Real evil for sure exists. Many of you have seen it. Some have felt it up close in war and loss or in betrayal. But the message of the gospel is not that darkness is powerful is that darkness has already been overcome. Spiritual warfare is not about fear. It is about awareness, your discipline and faith. The question is never whether or not evil exists because it does. It's how we choose to stand when we encounter it will we mirror the darkness we face. That choice made multiple times daily. That's spiritual warfare. That's what it is. Guys, I appreciate you. If you want to support my nonprofit and the channel pick up the preacher in the choir hat in the links down below. I'll see you guys next time. Have a good day and invest it in your family. Thanks guys.