The Plundering

We’ve been talking about the strong man and the Stronger Man.

The strong man is invincible as long as you or I try to take him on.

Yet, we know there is One Who is stronger. Our Jesus attacks, overpowers and conquers the evil one that we thought so indomitable (Luke 11:22). Our responsibility is to pray that the Stronger Man’s power be released into the lives of those held captive.

Too often however, Christ remains waiting to intervene because we are too slothful to intercede (Isaiah 59:16).

Let’s grapple with the benefits of our intercession. It just may stimulate you to prayer.

When we liberate our Mighty Victor into the life of a friend, Christ takes action in two ways:

He strips the evil one of all the weapons and armor

used against our loved one

And

Our Stronger Man freely distributes all plunder

previously owned by the evil one (Luke 11:22).

The armor:

The evil one arms himself just like the Christian is instructed to do (Ephesians 6:11-17).

Could it be that satan girds:

His loins with deceit,
His chest with unrighteousness,
His feet with strife and contention?

Might he be:

Holding a shield causing doubt and fear,
Wearing a helmet initiating destruction,
While wielding a sword that wounds with apathy, blame and guilt?

What if you and I directed our prayers specifically to find a chink in the strong man’s armor? What if our intercession asked that Christ’s sharp sword of Truth penetrate in precisely the spot where deceit’s metal is weakest? Our strong, resistant faith off-balances the evil one, so that the Holy Conquerer can strip him of his armor (1 Peter 5:8-9).

The plunder:

When the Lord is victorious, He not only removes the weaponry of the strong man, but also allocates the evil one’s wealth to others.

“When He ascended on high, He led captive a host of captives and he gave gifts to men” (Ephesians 4:8).

And just what are those gifts of plunder?

“He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists and some as pastors and teachers…” (Ephesians 4:11, 1 Corinthians 12:8-10).

In other words, when we pray for Christ to release someone from the clutches of satan’s deceit, we are also inviting Him to use their captive experiences for His glory.

We intercede for the addict and watch Him use their testimony to others with dependency issues.

We pray for the greedy and see a life turned into lavish giving.

We pray for the lonely and stare as one solitary life blesses many, many others.

You want to do something for the Lord today? Then intercede.

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