"The Fight Is Real"

The Fight Is Real

There is something remarkable about a person who has something to fight for. A mother whose child is sick will fight in ways she never knew she could. She will go without sleep for days. She’ll sit in hospital corridors for weeks. She will battle doctors, insurance companies, and her own exhaustion. And she will not stop because her child’s life is on the line. And when a mother has something to fight for, nothing can stand in her way.

William Wilberforce spent nearly five decades fighting to abolish the slave trade in the British Empire. Year after year, he introduced bills in Parliament. And year after year, they were voted down. He was mocked. He was opposed. His health deteriorated, but he kept fighting. He kept fighting because he believed that every human being was made in the image of God. And just 3 days before he died in 1833, the Slavery Abolition Act was passed. Millions of people were set free because one man refused to stop fighting for what was right.

During the Second World War, a young American medic named Desmond Doss stood on a cliff called Hacksaw Ridge on the island of Okinawa. He refused to carry a weapon because of his faith. Many called him a coward. But when the battle turned and his comrades were falling all around him, Desmond ran into the gunfire. Not with a rifle, but with a rope. And one by one, he lowered 75 wounded soldiers off that cliff to safety under enemy fire through the night, praying the same prayer over and over. Lord, help me get one more.

Now, in the Bible, in Matthew 15, there is the Canaanite woman, a woman who came to Jesus crying out for her daughter who was suffering terribly. At first, Jesus did not answer her a word. His disciples wanted to send her away. He told her that the help was for the children of Israel, not for her. But she would not stop. She knelt before him and said, “Lord, help me.” And even when he tested her further, she pressed in. She fought for her child until Jesus said, “Woman, you have great faith. Your request is granted.” And her daughter was healed that very hour. There, was a mother with faith fighting for her child.

Jacob, he wrestled with God through the whole night. A man came and struggled with him until daybreak. When the man saw that he could not overpower Jacob, he touched his hip and put it out of joint. But even injured, even in pain, Jacob held on. He said, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.” And God blessed him there and gave him a new name, Israel. Which means he struggled with God and with men and overcame because Jacob refused to let go of the blessing.

Esther was a queen, but she was also a Jew, and a decree had been signed to destroy her people. To go before the king without being summoned could mean death. But she said, “If I perish, I perish.” She fasted. She planned, she went in, and she fought for her people until the decree was overturned, and they were saved. All because Esther had something worth dying for.

Now I ask you today, what are you fighting for? Because I believe the greatest fight a Christian will ever engage in is not fought with fists or weapons or political influence. It is fought on your knees. The greatest fight of your life is the fight to pray. In the New Testament, there is a key message that comes up over and over again. And that message is about prayer. 

In Romans 12, we’re told to be constant in prayer. In 1 Thessalonians 5, we’re told to pray without ceasing. In Ephesians 6, we are told to pray at all times. In Colossians 4, we’re told to continue steadfastly in prayer. In James 5:16 (ESV), the Bible says, “Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.” Great power. Not a little power, great power as it is working. Meaning prayer is active. It is doing something. Even when you can’t see the results, prayer is at work. In the spiritual realm, things are shifting. Chains are breaking, doors are opening, angels are being dispatched every time a righteous person prays, and these are just a few scriptures. I haven’t touched on all of Jesus’s teachings about prayer given in the 4 gospels.

And so, people of God, let’s fight to pray. When life is good, remember to pray. When life gets challenging, remember to pray. Come rain or shine, pray. Regardless of the season you’re in, you have to fight to pray. Because I want you to understand something, prayer is not easy. It should not be casual. It is indeed spiritual warfare. The Bible says in 2 Corinthians 10:4 (NKJV), “For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds.”

Prayer is a weapon. And like any weapon, it requires discipline to wield. It requires commitment. It requires a fight because the enemy knows that a praying Christian is a dangerous Christian. And the enemy will do everything in his power to keep you from your knees. 

Think about Daniel. In Daniel chapter 6, a decree was issued that anyone who prayed to any god other than the king would be thrown into the lion’s den. Daniel heard about the decree. He knew the consequences. He knew that those lions were real. But the Bible says he went home, opened his windows toward Jerusalem, and prayed three times a day, just as he had always done. Daniel fought to pray even when it was illegal. Even when it could cost him his life, he didn’t stop. He didn’t hide. He did not go silent. He opened his windows, and he prayed. And when he was thrown into the den, God shut the mouths of the lions. The man who fought to pray was the man God fought for. 

Think about Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane, the night before the cross, the weight of the world’s sin pressing down on him, his sweat falling like drops of blood. And what did he do? He prayed. He fought to pray. 

He told his disciples, “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation.” But they fell asleep. Three times he went back to prayer. Three times they drifted off. Jesus fought to pray on the hardest night of his life. And that prayer sustained him through the cross. But the disciples didn’t fight to pray. They slept. And within hours they scattered. They fled. Peter denied him three times. The ones who didn’t pray, didn’t have the strength to stand. That is the danger of prayerlessness.

Prayerlessness opens the door to the enemy. Prayerlessness results in a person becoming spiritually dull. They become desensitized to the things of God. When you stop praying, you stop fighting. And when you stop fighting, the enemy advances. And I want you to understand this, as children of God, we have enemies. We have many enemies. We have the devil and his demons to contend with. We have the world and the flesh as enemies. But you, my friend, are strengthened by your prayers.
Here’s the truth that should give you boldness. All of these enemies have one thing in common. They cannot win. I repeat, they cannot win against the power of God. They cannot overcome the blood of Jesus. They cannot destroy a person who fears God.
They cannot overwhelm a person who is always found in a posture of prayer. The Bible says in Psalm 34:7 (NIV), “The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him, and he delivers them.” 

You see, God is with us. His angels are around us, but we must not be blinded to the dangers of neglecting our weapon. Prayer is the weapon. And a weapon that is never used, is a weapon that offers no protection.

Think about Elijah on Mount Carmel. Before fire fell from heaven, what did Elijah do? Elijah prayed. In 1 Kings 18:36-37 (NKJV), he stepped forward and called on the name of the Lord and fire fell. Not because Elijah was extraordinary, but because Elijah prayed. And the God who answers by fire answered.

James 5:17 (NKJV) says that Elijah was a human being even as we are. He was a man with the same weaknesses and limitations that you and I have. But he prayed earnestly, and his prayers moved heaven.

If God is with us, tell me who can stand against us. Who can stand against Jesus? No one. No man, no demon, no devil. So, fear God. Pray daily. Pray without ceasing. Be constant in prayer because God acts in response to prayer.

In Psalm 27:4 (NIV), David writes, “One thing I ask from the Lord. This only do I seek, that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple.” One thing out of everything David could have asked for, the kingdom, riches, victories, he asked for one thing, and that was to dwell in God’s presence and be able to gaze on his beauty and just to be near him. That’s what happens when you spend time with someone you love. You don’t want to be anywhere else. You don’t want anything else. Their presence becomes enough.

Now, the second thing that spending time with God does is it strengthens our faith. And don’t make the mistake of thinking that God is the one who benefits from us taking the time to get to know him. That’s not the case. Spending time with God doesn’t help God. It helps us. God already knows us. He knows the depths of our thoughts and motivations. He knows what we try to hide in the cover of darkness. He knows all and sees all. It’s us that need to know him. We need to trust him. And there is no other way to develop trust than to spend quality time with someone. You wouldn’t go to battle with someone you don’t know. You only know from experience, and that experience is gained through quality time. 

Think about the disciples. For 3 years, they walked with Jesus. They ate with him. They traveled with him. They watched him heal the sick, raise the dead, calm the storms, and feed thousands. And it was through spending time with him each day that built their faith. They saw his character firsthand. They experienced his faithfulness, his loving kindness, his mercy, his patience. And when the time came for Jesus to send them out into the world to preach the gospel, to face persecution, even death, they were ready because they knew who they’d spent time with. They knew his character and completely trusted.

Listen, the more you spend time with God, the more you’ll know his faithfulness and the more you’ll trust him in the storm. You will boldly know that he is a promise keeper.

So I say to you today, we must persevere in prayer. We must keep pushing in prayer. Like a mother fighting for her child, fight for your prayer life. Like Wilberforce who fought for decades and never gave up, keep praying even when the answer hasn’t come yet. Like Desmond Doss who prayed, “Lord, help me get one more.” Keep going back to God, one more prayer, one more day, one more act of faith on your knees. Your fight is on your knees. God will do the rest.