When the Fight Calls, Part II: Weapons for Warfare

In the last article, we spoke about the reality of spiritual warfare in our lives as followers of Christ. We saw that even as we experience attacks, we fight from a place of victory because of Jesus’ victory over death, sin, and Satan. 

2 Corinthians 10:3-4 reminds us: “For though we walk in the flesh, we are not waging war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds.”

God has given us several spiritual weapons that are essential to use in our spiritual fight. An amazing story in 2 Chronicles 20 perfectly illustrates the power of using the weapons of prayer, fasting, and worship in our warfare. 

Prayer and Fasting

Under King Jehoshaphat’s reign, foreign nations had waged war against the people of God and were about to attack them. We pick up the story in verse 3:

“3 Then Jehoshaphat was afraid and set his face to seek the Lord, and proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah. 4 And Judah assembled to seek help from the Lord; from all the cities of Judah they came to seek the Lord… 5 And Jehoshaphat stood in the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem, in the house of the Lord, before the new court, 6 and said, “O Lord, God of our fathers, are you not God in heaven? You rule over all the kingdoms of the nations. In your hand are power and might, so that none is able to withstand you…12 O our God, will you not execute judgment on them? For we are powerless against this great horde that is coming against us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on you” (2 Chronicles 20:3-6, 12).

Amid his fear, the King’s first response was to declare a fast and assemble the people to pray and seek God. 

Prayer and fasting are ways we express our utter dependence on God. When we pray, we acknowledge that we cannot change our situation and need Him to intervene.

Fasting helps us fix our attention on God and reminds us that He has everything we need, even in a crisis. It is a way to sharpen our affections and fuel the desperation of our prayers. Fasting is how we say, “God, I need you more than I need food. You alone are the most important and first in my life.” 

The Gospel writers tell us that even Jesus regularly took time away to pray and spent forty days fasting, knowing he would be tempted in the wilderness. He was filled with the Holy Spirit and successfully withstood Satan’s temptations. 

If Jesus spent time in prayer and fasting, how much more do we need to? 

Worship

In addition to prayer and fasting, 2 Chronicles 20:18-19 tells us, “...all Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem fell down before the Lord, worshiping the Lord. And the Levites, of the Kohathites and the Korahites, stood up to praise the Lord, the God of Israel, with a very loud voice.”

And in a bold move, on the day of battle, Jehoshaphat puts the singers and worshipers at the front lines: “At the very moment they began to sing and give praise, the Lord caused the armies of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir to start fighting among themselves” (2 Chronicles 20:22).

Wow! When we glorify God in worship and thanksgiving, our enemy is confused and shrinks back! Singing the praises of Jesus has power because Jesus’ name is above every other name, and no one can stand against it (see Philippians 2:9). Worship declares Jesus is King and reminds us of our victory in Christ. So put on your favorite worship playlist and sing your heart out! 

Seeing Breakthrough

Even the early church understood the power of prayer, fasting, and worship to fight spiritual battles.

In Acts 12, Peter’s miraculous release from prison with the help of an angel is undoubtedly connected to the fact that “earnest prayer for him was made to God by the church” (Acts 12:5).

In another miraculous prison-break story, an earthquake that opened all the prison doors and unlocked all the chains happens on the heels of Paul and Silas “praying and singing hymns to God” (Acts 16:25).

Scripture is filled with examples of faithful Christians engaging in spiritual warfare through worship, prayer, and fasting followed by God responding in answered prayers and breakthroughs. 

These practices are less about twisting God’s arm into doing us favors and more about us positioning ourselves to receive what God, in His generous love and care, wants to do. God is good and wants us to realize we can do nothing apart from Him! It brings Him glory when the enemy is pushed back, and His children walk in victory as they advance His gospel. 

So whether you’re in the middle of a battle or preparing for one, spend time in prayer, fasting, and worship, and remember as you do to “Stand firm, hold your position, and see the salvation of the Lord on your behalf” (2 Chronicles 2:17).

(To go deeper in prayer and fasting, check out the book Habits of Grace by David Mathis.)

Renée Ghobrial is the leader of Youth Ministries for the Baptist Churches of New England.