–Isaiah 62:6-7 NET – 6 I post watchmen on your walls, O Jerusalem; they should keep praying all day and all night. You who pray to the Lord, don’t be silent! 7 Don’t allow him to rest until he reestablishes Jerusalem, until he makes Jerusalem the pride of the earth.
You probably have heard me say this before, or maybe you have not, but to me the greatest line of offense is defense. I mentioned in my last blog post that I am not a fighter. But I am a protector, and as a protector I do whatever I can to protect people I care about. Often when people think about battles, they focus more on the offensive with attacking and fighting. But to be able to go the distance, and to preserve in the battle you have to know how to defend yourself, how to block the attack of the enemy. Being on the defensive can slow down an advancing enemy. In boxing, the most vulnerable and critical weakness of a boxer is their face and head. Knockouts happen with repeated hits to the face, not to the body. Boxers have to know how to protect themselves in addition to learning how to punch. A boxer will try to protect their face by blocking it with their arms to cover the face. A boxer’s defensive stance is to keep their guard up, because you don’t always know when the opponent will take a swing. In football you have offensive linemen and full backs to block the defending opponents. Ancient warriors in battle had to learn how to defend with their weapon, not just know how to attack with a weapon.
With spiritual battles we need to keep our guard up and not abandon our post. For pt. 3 of this series on spiritual warfare I will be using the illustration of “Watchmen” and intercessors. We need to defend where and what God has called us to. We need to be diligent, vigilant, sober minded, focused, and on guard with what God has entrusted us with.
A watchman is someone who is assigned to guard and protect a building or people. A good example would be a security guard. Watchmen are usually posted on high walls or in watchtowers to get a better visual of an area and a visual of any attacks coming from a distance. A watchman knows how to train their eyes to see and ears to hear when an enemy is nearby. A watchman knows how to observe and be aware of their surroundings and the environment they are in. Someone who is alert, prepared and ready at moment’s notice to sound the alarm and defend when danger is present.
Isaiah 21:5-8 NKJV – 5 Prepare the table, Set a watchman in the tower, Eat and drink. Arise, you princes, Anoint the shield! 6 For thus has the Lord said to me: “Go, set a watchman, Let him declare what he sees.” 7 And he saw a chariot with a pair of horsemen, A chariot of donkeys, and a chariot of camels, And he listened earnestly with great care. 8 Then he cried, “A lion, my Lord! I stand continually on the watchtower in the daytime; I have sat at my post every night.
Serving in the military helped me to understand the importance of how to execute a mission when given a mission. The military also helped me to understand the importance of being vigilant when on guard duty. When you are assigned to guard duty you have to remain alert, no matter how tired you are. You have to remain diligent, no matter the environment you are in. To guard people we had to learn how to be aware of our surroundings, and how to look for escape routes or places of safety to protect people. And one of the most important things we had to learn on guard duty is that you never, ever, abandon your post till given direct orders to.
When you abandon your post then whatever or whoever you are guarding is vulnerable to any enemy attacks. You are assigned to that area for a reason, so it is your responsibility to protect and defend. What I had learned in the military has helped me also to understand how to be on guard for my family, friends, co-workers, church family, and even in public places. And there are times when unfortunately, I tend to be “overprotective” of people I care about. There needs to be a balance because if you are overprotective then it is easy to let your own guard down from protecting yourself, (see my bog post titled: “Guard Your Heart – Proverbs 4:20-23”).
2 Corinthians 10:4-6 NKV – 4 For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, 5 casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ, 6 and being ready to punish all disobedience when your obedience is fulfilled.
If you feel like you are called to be a watchman / intercessor, then remember to never abandon your post for any reason till God gives the direct order to walk away. There are times when God may position you in a hostile environment which can be difficult, but He has your there for a reason. There may be times where you feel like it is too much to manage, or the battle is too hard, or you feel overwhelmed, but do not abandon your post till God tells you too.
Years ago, my family and I relocated to another town that God was calling us to. The first year there was hard because we were in a new environment, and we only knew a couple of people at the time. Relocating was also hard because we had to leave our family and friends. Our ministry was going great where we were living at, so it did not make sense as to why God would have us move but He confirmed His word multiple times that we needed to move. What also made that first-year tough was because at the time there was a strong religious spirit in the town we moved to. You could feel the heaviness of the oppression of religion. Even though we knew we were walking in faith by being obedient to God, still it felt as if God had led us to the wilderness to die. There may be times when in spiritual warfare where you feel like you are trying to be “ran out of town” in the places where God has you. But as difficult as that first year was, we knew we had to trust God in where He sent us. A year felt like eternity, but as we continued in faith, we had met other Christians in town with a similar vision and same heart to see people set free from the oppression of a religious spirit. When you are in God’s will and you stand in unity with your community there is favor, breakthrough, and freedom. When you stand in unity with your community with God then you can run the principalities of darkness out of town. To be honest there were times when we wanted to run away, but we knew that God’s will for our family was more important than the difficulties we had to endure. Despite the difficulties we refused to abandon our post. We stayed till God had called us to go somewhere else.
Wherever you are at in this moment, if you feel that God has called you there then He has you there for a reason. As Christians we pray for God to open doors, and when He does, we should not be afraid to step through that door, even when we are being sent into unfamiliar territory. Remain diligent, vigilant, sober minded, focused, and on guard with what God has entrusted you with. Do not be found asleep like the disciples were after Jesus had asked them to keep watch while He went to go pray.
Matthew 26:36-46 NKJV – 36 Then Jesus came with them to a place called Gethsemane, and said to the disciples, “Sit here while I go and pray over there.” 37 And He took with Him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and He began to be sorrowful and deeply distressed. 38 Then He said to them, “My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death. Stay here and watch with Me.” 39 He went a little farther and fell on His face, and prayed, saying, “O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will.” 40 Then He came to the disciples and found them sleeping, and said to Peter, “What! Could you not watch with Me one hour? 41 Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” 42 Again, a second time, He went away and prayed, saying, “O My Father, if this cup cannot pass away from Me unless I drink it, Your will be done.” 43 And He came and found them asleep again, for their eyes were heavy. 44 So He left them, went away again, and prayed the third time, saying the same words. 45 Then He came to His disciples and said to them, “Are you still sleeping and resting? Behold, the hour is at hand, and the Son of Man is being betrayed into the hands of sinners. 46 Rise, let us be going. See, My betrayer is at hand.”
As watchmen and intercessors, it is time to wake up. Be alert, prepared and ready to sound the alarm. Ask God to give you eyes to see and ears to hear. Be sober minded, learn to discern the tactics of the enemy. Be in unity with your community. Keep your guard up and never, ever, abandon your post till God says so!
Isaiah 52:7-9 NKJV – 7 How beautiful upon the mountains Are the feet of him who brings good news, Who proclaims peace, Who brings glad tidings of good things, Who proclaims salvation, Who says to Zion, “Your God reigns!” 8 Your watchmen shall lift up their voices, With their voices they shall sing together; For they shall see eye to eye When the Lord brings back Zion. 9 Break forth into joy, sing together, You waste places of Jerusalem! For the Lord has comforted His people, He has redeemed Jerusalem.
