ZA MAGAZINE // seek truth.

Matthew 16:18
And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.

I love the last part of this verse, because…well, it’s so cool to know! Hell isn’t gonna win! If you think about it, this is talking about Christians going on the offensive too, because gates can’t attack; they can only defend. Therefore, we’re going to break down the gates of Hell, storm it, and win! Praise God!

However, I think that this is an incomplete picture of spiritual warfare. We talk about putting on the armor of God (Ephesians 6:10-20) because we’re gonna go into battle. Wrestling against spiritual forces; that kind of thing. Maybe this is just something I’ve been experiencing, but I feel like I have to be fighting all the time! However, a quick look through the book of the Psalms reveals that there’s more to spiritual warfare than attacking.

Psalm 59:9
O my Strength, I will watch for you, for you, O God, are my fortress.

A fortress represented the most secure place of the day. There were walls, there were forts, and then there were FORTRESSES. They were big, they were stone, they held a lot of people and a lot of resources, and the only real way to crack them in the time of David was to lay siege and starve the people out.

We have a tougher time understanding this today because fortresses really started to become obsolete when gunpowder came to be. Today, the combination of mobile warfare and heavy firepower from both the land and the air have pretty much rendered a big ol’ fortress obsolete. However, there was a time when these things were impenetrable! Think of one of those secret government bunkers. You know, the ones you see in movies where the President goes when the world gets nuked. He’s underground and under a foot of steel and no one knows how to find him, so he’s safe! That’s the feeling that an average person would have in a fortress.

Psalm 61:3-4
3 For you have been my refuge, a strong tower against the enemy.
4 Let me dwell in your tent forever! Let me take refuge under the shelter of your wings!

That word refuge in our language means “a condition of being safe or sheltered from pursuit, danger, or trouble. The Hebrew from which it is derived essentially says the same thing: “flee for protection.”

Psalm 64:10
Let the righteous one rejoice in the Lord and take refuge in him! Let all the upright in heart exult!

Psalm 71:3
Be to me a rock of refuge, to which I may continually come; you have given the command to save me, for you are my rock and my fortress.

The fortress isn’t where you attack! The fortress is where you flee to when you’re done fighting and you’re ready to hide. The fortress is used in times of peace as well. As Buzz told me when he was looking over this article, we can take refuge in the Lord and His word at any time. There are plenty of times in the Psalms where God is described as a fortress and as a place of refuge for people. Because sometimes in a war, you have to retreat! You have to flee, you have to hide, you have to lick your wounds. When it’s nothing but attack, you get tired and weak and you make mistakes.

But if you will allow me one more quotation from Psalms, we’ll fit in the last piece of the puzzle.

Psalm 23:5a
You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies…

So maybe a table isn’t a fortress, but this hammers home the point that God is with us wherever we go. And He’s not just standing there with us, He’s there to actively provide for us and care for us. So don’t think of a fortress as a static place that you went too far away from when you tried to storm the gates of Hell. No, your refuge and retreat is right in the middle of the battlefield. Never stop fighting! Just make sure that you keep your strength up.

The main point is that spiritual warfare has its ebbing and flowing. There are going to be times where things get really tough and all you can do is hide in the prayer room, hide in your Bible, and seek the Lord. Other times, you’re gonna be out on the streets, out with your peers, out fighting the big spiritual battles. When you’re out fighting, remember that your supplies are coming from your fortress. Stay in prayer always and never get so focused on service that you forget about the One whom you are serving. But when you have to retreat, when you feel weak, when you feel overwhelmed, stand on this amazing Rock! Hide in your mighty fortress! There are seasons for everything and you have to be patient when things are really tough.

Grace and peace,
Brendan