Transcribed from the tape message recorded September 22, 2001

As you probably noticed on the tape--the label or the name of this tape was that we are at war and that's what I'm going to talk about, but in a little bit different way than on TV and all of this because I want to cover it from the viewpoint of the church and the involvement in this war as the church--as the people of God. And so may the LORD help me to bring this together properly and in a way that can do something for the building up of the body of Christ and the preparation of the body of Christ.

And what I really am issuing here is a wake up call--a wake up call to the body of Christ. We need to wake up because we are at war and for many, many of us we have been sleeping, and it's time to wake up and its very, very important that we wake up. I'm going to start with a reading in the book of Revelations chapter 12 and verse 7:

And there was war in heaven, (so you see we're not the only ones that have wars) there was war in heaven, Michael and his angels waging war with the dragon. And the dragon and his angels waged war, and they were not strong enough, and there was no longer a place found for them in heaven. And the great dragon was thrown down, the serpent of old who is called the devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him. And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying,

"Now the salvation, and the power, and the kingdom of our God and the authority of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren has been thrown down, who accuses them before our God day and night. And they overcame him because of the blood of the Lamb and because of the word of their testimony, and they did not love their life even to death. For this reason, rejoice, O heavens and you who dwell in them. Woe to the earth and the sea, because the devil has come down to you, having great wrath, knowing that he has [only] a short time."

And when the dragon saw that he was thrown down to the earth, he persecuted the woman who gave birth to the male [child.] And the two wings of the great eagle were given to the woman, in order that she might fly into the wilderness to her place, where she was nourished for a time and times and half a time, from the presence of the serpent. And the serpent poured water like a river out of his mouth after the woman, so that he might cause her to be swept away with the flood. And the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened its mouth and drank up the river which the dragon poured out of his mouth. And the dragon was enraged with the woman, and went off to make war with the rest of her offspring, who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus. (Revelation 12:7-17 (NASB))

So there is a war, and it's a war that's been going on all the time. It has not ceased for a long, long time, that war. The war changes, and even as we find that down through the ages, war has changed and shifted all the time in various different ways, we find now that even in the natural, there is another kind of war that we're confronted with as a nation, but it's a war, just the same. And even the church has to be aware of that too, that there's a war going on and that the church has a very, very important place in this war. In fact the place, I believe, is this important: that if the church does not wake up and use its authority that God has given it and speak with that authority and come against these spiritual powers that are involved, then we are in trouble, we are in trouble as a nation, we are in trouble as a world even. Because we need to use the authority that God has given us, or I believe the battle will be lost.

If the church-it's not just a matter of sending armies to another country or dropping bombs or doing it-that's part of it. But another part of it is this, and that is the spiritual realm, and our armies out here can't do much about that spiritual realm.

But the church can. The church needs to wake up, I mean every bit of it, from the Catholic, Protestant, all the way through from one smallest group to the largest ones, they all need to wake up and come together in a common authority, speaking against the enemy, binding the enemy, binding the evil spirits. Because they're at work, and they work through people, and they work through multitudes, and they work through nations; and that's what we're confronting right now.

And so, may God help us to wake up. And so I call you to wake up now and use-use the authority that God has given you. Use it as an individual. Use it with your church. Use it with other groups of people any time, anywhere you have an opportunity, every day, speak out and speak with authority against those spiritual things, binding them, rebuking them, in the name of Jesus Christ.

It is vitally important that we do that. I believe that this event that has happened has woken up the nation now to its danger, but I don't know if the church has woken up yet. You see they've turned to God; and they're praying, yes. But it's more than that. It's a matter of using the authority that God has given us and recognize that the enemy is not just flesh and blood. But the enemy is much more subtle than that and perhaps much more powerful than that. And only the church can defeat that part of it. That last verse I read:

And the dragon was enraged with the woman, and went off to make war with the rest of her offspring, who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus. (Revelation 12:17 (NASB))

What better weapon to use than a weapon--than a false religion, a religion man-made, a religion that many people will accept, embrace, and believe in, a false god that somehow offers you all these wonderful things? What better weapon to use working through men than that? And we know from past history, that so many terrible things have happened in this world because of man's religion and because of false religions and all the terrible things that have happened and the way the enemy has used these things so many ways. And may God help us to have discernment and see clearly.

In Ephesians chapter 6 . . . I'm sure these scriptures are some that you've all heard many, many times, but I want to cover them once again because this is a time when we need what these scriptures have to offer, the knowledge and wisdom that's here. And in Ephesians chapter 6 verse 10

Finally, be strong in the Lord, and in the strength of His might. (Ephesians 6:10 (NASB))

Don't rely upon our own strength. Don't rely upon just the natural strength of our nation. But look to something far greater than that, because we need something far greater than that. Be strong in the Lord, and in the strength of His might. Rely upon His power now to give us the victory in this situation.

Put on the full armor of God, that you may be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. (Verse 11) And the devil's schemes are in all of this that is going on. Put on the full armor, that you may be able to stand firm. There are many Christian people right now that are not standing very firm. They're filled with fear. They're filled with worry. They're filled with terror. You see, this attack has accomplished some of what the enemy wanted to do. You see, it ministers fear and terror. It murders and kills--that's what it accomplishes and that's what it wants to accomplish.

Even though those buildings are down and all those poor people have died there in that situation , but yet in spite of that, those spirits are still at work. Somehow it loosed . . . It loosed a whole group of spiritual beings in this United States, and they're spirits. They are spirits of terror, spirits of fear. They're murderous things. We've already seen some of this already as people right in this country have turned around and neighbors that they have known all their life, and yet because of their color or because they have an Arab background or whatever they have shot them and killed them and abused and they were citizens of this country. They're not killers; they're not murderers or anything else but yet, instantly something has happened you see that terror, fear, that spirit of murder has come and it's trying to find people to use.

It's trying to fill people with that fear and terror, and it's doing a job of it right now and many, many people are being affected by it. Some of you maybe are. A fear is in you. A terror is in you. The worry is in you. It's there. Recognize it for what it is, and recognize it for where it comes from, and don't allow it to stand. And this is where the armor of God comes up. Put on the full armor of God, that you may be able to stand firm and not be afraid and not be worried and not be terrified and not have murder in your heart.

Are you hearing me? I hope you are hearing me--what I'm saying. It's vitally important. This is not the scheme of just one man, or fifty men or a hundred men around the world. Yes, they've been scheming, but that's not where the scheme came from. The scheme came straight from the devil and he put it in the hearts and minds of these people, and they were open to it and they're moving with it and they are filled with hatred and they are filled with bitterness and they are filled with murder, and they are filled with all of these things. That's what they're full of now. But the scheme did not come from them. It came from a higher source than that . . . a greater power than that.

Verse 12 goes on to say, For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but isn't that what we get our eyes on and we say "oh they are the enemy; there's the enemy." But right now in this situation, the enemy is hard to see and the enemy is hard to find; and what nation, what country is he in? See, he's all over the world. He's all over the world, and he is spiritual. He's not just flesh and blood. He uses these people from all over the world, but yet the enemy himself is something different than that.

Our struggle is not against flesh and blood but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual [forces] of wickedness in the heavenly [places.] (Verse 12)

One of the things that I heard many years ago, way back at the early years of our ministry, was to the effect that the spiritual and the natural are kind of a mirror of one another, and when you have a tremendous spiritual warfare, spiritual battle going on in the spiritual realm, then it also occurs in the natural, and in the physical. I believe that . . . like during the second world war, there was a tremendous spiritual war going on in the heavenlies, and it was taking place; and as a result of that, we had this world war that stretched on and on and on. I believe with the first world war, it was the same thing again, just a tremendous warfare going on in the spiritual realm.

And that once again, we are confronted with the same thing. There seems to be lulls in between where it kind of drops off where there seems to be some major victories and then it drops off for a while until the forces seem to build up once again, and then all of a sudden, it comes again, and we're confronted once again with it in a totally different and unexpected way than we've been confronted with it before. Remember, the enemy schemes; he's very subtle. And so what's going on-there's a tremendous spiritual warfare going on, not just the natural one, and it's the church is the one that needs to stand in the gap in this situation of the spiritual part of the battle. We can send our armies and take care of the physical part of it and hopefully have some wonderful victories. But without the backing of the church using the spiritual authority that God has given us, then they're in trouble. There could be many, many loses of life. There could be years and years and years with no real victory from it. But I believe that if the church wakes up and says, " we have the authority; we'll use that authority; we will bind these things" and then the victory will be much quicker for us. . .and maybe, even cheaper.

I wish that I could proclaim this message to the nation because I think the whole nation needs to hear it, maybe the whole world needs to hear it. I hope and pray that God will lift up hundreds of pastors, ministers, teachers, evangelists, whatever all around, bringing out the same message strong to every church, every one of them will hear the message clearly and the church will rise up in its full strength, because it's so important that that happen right now for us, for this nation, and for the world . . . and for peace

Verse 13 Therefore, take up the full armor of God, that you may be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. The resistance has to come within us, because that's where the battle's going to be waged. It's going to be waged against you.

I don't believe that we can even begin to comprehend the amount of spiritual beings that have been released somehow that have gathered and somehow been released into this nation to torment and trouble individuals. Can you imagine the amount of them there has to be for someone to torment every individual in this nation? To trouble their minds and hearts and trouble their homes? But they're there! Believe me they're there. It's for real.

And it says we need the full armor, not just a part of it, not just one or two pieces of it. We need that full armor and we'll be able to stand firm in this and have the victory Therefore, take up the full armor of God, that you may be able to resist in the evil day. Whenever these things come against you, you'll be able to stand firm and have a victory and stand in the gap with the rest of the church for a victory for our nation

Then in verse 14, Stand firm therefore, having girded your loins with truth. Pray for discernment. Pray for clear discernment because there is a lot of lies out there, there's a lot of propaganda. You're going to hear it from all over the place from every direction. Not all of it is lies; some of it is truth, but yet a lot of it is lies and you're going to have to be able to discern the difference between the truth and the lie. And you need to discern that clearly, and that is a part of our armor that we need to have to be able to see the truth, to know the truth, to recognize the truth for what it is, from whatever source it comes from whether it is something somebody has written, or said on TV, or you hear from the people around you, or you hear from your neighbor, or you hear from your pastor, you need to be able to discern the truth and walk in it. That is a part of the armor. It's knowing and seeing the truth and ministering the truth yourself. Making sure that you don't want to allow the lie to work through you and to affect some of the people around you, and so that the enemy uses you without you even being aware of it to spread the lie and to spread the untruth to some of the people around you, to spread fear and worry to some of the people around you.

Put on the breastplate of righteousness, (Verse 14) May God help us to function as a righteous people so that we don't have these horrible things happening that we are seeing on TV now against these different people in this nation. Our battle is not flesh and blood. It's not against some family because of their color or their race No that's not where its at. And we must really guard ourselves. We must walk in a righteous way and we must see into people's hearts instead of just seeing the outside, the external. There are a lot of innocent people that are being -- they're being terrorized now they are literally being terrorized by citizens of this country. That is bad. That's wrong. That's not good at all. And we need to be aware of that. That's not the route to take, and may God route out the anger in our hearts. There's something about a righteous anger is fine, that but when it becomes an unrighteous anger, then it brings hatred and murder, that is a totally different thing. And in the church we should not allow that. We should not allow that to touch our hearts, and whatever's there, we should banish it just as quick as we can and recognize the fact that there's some there that say "God help me to get this out of my heart."

Verse 15: And having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; the good news, the good news. Make sure that even in these desperate times, we spread good news and not bad news, and hopefully every one of you have enough understanding of the Bible so you know what it teaches; it doesn't teach us war and killing as such. It says that we are to spread faith and hope and love and we are to even love our enemy , and we are to pray for our enemy. That's what they need; They need prayer. They are bound; they are deceived; they are tools of the enemy; and they need salvation too. And we need to somehow get that in our heart that these people right in this country now that are being terrorized by citizens in this country, that they need our prayer. They need our intervention on their behalf right at this point. We need to love them; we need to care for them.

The church has been asleep too long and it needs to wake up--been asleep for quite a long time, maybe since after world war II was over and things come to a peace and then it kind of lulled off and went back to sleep again. And we have not been watching ourselves very clearly and one of the tremendous things very subtly that sneaks in---and I believe this nation has become greedy. Not every person individually, but yet, as a whole, everybody all had to get rich, all had to get greedy--a tremendous amount of greed in our country.

Values and morals slipped tremendously from what they were in the 50's . . .45. . . after World War II. They just kind of plummeted downhill tremendously, the values and morals of this nation. All the thousands of millions of children of that were aborted. What an evil thing. The church stood by and allowed God to be taken out of the schools. Where you could talk about all other types of things we wanted witchcraft and everything else in schools and you could not talk about God or could not pray. And then we wonder why, why do we have our kids killing one another in our schools.

Because you took God out. You didn't have the strength there any more to resist the enemy and keep him out we've done the same thing with our government and where our government become very corrupt because we took God out. You can't talk about God around here. You can't pray around here. You can't do that around here. We took him out of everything and that our protection was gone. Our strength was gone that we needed to withstand the enemy. And I hope this is enough of a wake up call that it just happened to make us aware of it and bring this country alive again and says, "Hey, we need God."

I want to tell you and if we're going to win this battle, we need God. We need him active in our school. We need Him active in our government. We need Him active in our business. We need him active in our church. We need Him-and I think even in many churches, it's like God is asleep, but we've allowed that to happen. It's not that God is asleep. The church is asleep, and they're not using any of the things that God has given them to use. And may God wake us up and make us aware of it. Or we're in deep trouble.

I think in a time like this, we need to be very careful, even with one another, that we minister peace, and faith, and love and encouragement and hope one to another. Not fear and worry and distress and all this type of stuff and anger and resentment. It's so easy to give that to other people. No, we need to minister the gospel of peace; that's what we need to do. May God help you to do that.

Verse 16, it says: in addition to all, taking up the shield of faith with which you will be able to extinguish all the flaming missiles of the evil [one.] The shield of faith. What's the opposite of faith? Worry. Worry, fear, they all enter in. And we must stir up our faith, each one of us individually. We must stir up our faith and we must stir up the faith of people around us-that says "Hey, you know, we have to believe; we have to trust in God." We have to stir up our faith and believe.

Faith has a lot to do with trust. Who are we going to trust? Who are we going to apply our faith in at this point? Am I going to apply all my faith in my government? In my president? Or in my church or in my pastor? Well, we need to faith in those things, but above all, the greatest area we need to have faith is faith in God. Trust in God. Confident assurance, that's what it is. Do you have it? Do you have faith? Do you have confident assurance? So that the worries, the fears, the distress, and all this can't enter into your mind into your thoughts into your soul, into your heart.

That, that is our defense. That is our shield, and if you're not using it, you're going to be filled with worry, you're going to be afraid. You're going to be nervous. You're going to be frightened, thing after thing, as you hear this bit of bad news and that bit of bad news, this is all going to enter in and get a hold of you. It doesn't have to happen. You can stand firm if you put the shield of faith up there that says, "No, no, I trust God. No, I trust God. . .I choose to put my faith and trust in God." And in doing that, all of a sudden, the shield is up and the fear and worry cannot enter into our hearts and get a hold of us. And then we don't have to spread it out to our children, to our families, and to the people around us.

Going on to verse 17: Take up the helmet of salvation, The helmet of salvation. You know, it is so important in this situation, and in this war that we're in, that goes on and on and on, that we have the full armor on. Part of that armor is salvation. Part of that armor is being . . .whatever label you use, whether you use the label of being born again, having a conversion experience, whatever your particular church uses for a label of drawing close to Jesus. Make it simple; do whatever, but we need Jesus. We need Jesus Christ in you, the hope of glory, the hope of salvation, the hope of healing, the hope of victory. Christ in you.

Are you saved, and have you turned your life over to Christ and are your relying upon Him? And have you invited Him into your heart? And have you said, "LORD, just baptize me, fill me with your Holy Spirit and with power. Give me that-whatever I need. Lord, so that we can be victorious in this situation, so that I can be a part of your church that's active, and alive and awake, and for the building up of the whole body. Thank you Lord as you've given me all that I need and that I'm not lacking any good thing whatsoever, that I have everything I need through you Lord."

The helmet of salvation. Be saved. Become a new creation in Jesus Christ, born again of his Spirit. We can be just church goers. We can be just religious people, believing God and everything, but we need more than that. We need the helmet of salvation. We need to be born of His Spirit. We need to be that new creation. We need to have salvation. We need His Spirit within us, working strongly and powerfully. That is the helmet of salvation. Not just being religious and going to church. Christ in us the hope of glory. That's the helmet of salvation. And may God help us to understand that.

Then it goes on to say, in verse 17, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. I think it's talking about several different things here, and one of those, and I'm sure that I don't have all the answers; I don't know it all. In fact I think I know very little; but yet I know some. I know a little bit, and I have some faith. And I believe that it's talking about the Scriptures, but not only the Scriptures. It's talking about us knowing and understanding the Bible, reading it, letting the Holy Spirit teach us and show us some wonderful things. This book holds some wonderful things and has some wonderful answers for all of us, and can bring comfort and peace and can do a lot of things for us. It can give us a greater new understanding of God and of the Holy Spirit and what He can do for us. But I think above all, the Bible teaches us and tells us-and I've stated this before many times-if you had to put the message of the bible in just a sentence or two: If you want to live, go to Jesus. If you want to live, go to Jesus. That's the message of the whole Bible. It's pointing us all the time to Jesus Christ. So the Bible is pointing us. You need to understand it. It gives us a lot of principles; it gives us a lot of wonderful things. It teaches, tells us how to pray and all kinds of wonderful things like that. So that is part of what the sword is, a new and deeper understanding of God and of yourself.

But not only that; I believe it's talking about the living word, the sword of the spirit. I think it's also taking about Jesus in us, the sword, the word, the living word, the Holy Spirit. He brings the word to us and He puts the words in our mind and in our heart and in our mouth; and those words are a sword and they're powerful.

It speaks about this some more in Hebrews chapter 4 verse 12: For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, (it's calling it a sword once again there) and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart. (NASB)

It's so important that we have a hold of this understanding about this sword because it is the thing that helps us to see clearly the things that are before us--to give us the discernment to tell between the natural, the fleshly, the spiritual, the Spirit of God, the spirit of the enemy-the devil. It gives us that help that we need-the sword of the spirit divides and separates all this so that we can see clearly.

Piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart. (NASB) And I think that this helps us even with other people around us. When we understand and have taken this to ourselves that we are able to look at other people to see where they're at and able to discern then not only ourselves properly, but we can discern them properly and we can discern the intentions of their hearts and of their minds. And I think it's vitally important in this situation to see that. And we have to see that there are terrorists in every country. There are terrorists all over the world and they come in all different colors and all different nationalities. And they're there. They're in America; they're Americans. They may be Indians; they may be Black; they may be Caucasians. They may be English; they may be French; they may be anything. But yet, they're terrorists and they terrorize people. And it's so important for us to be able to recognize them individually. There may be one in your church that's a terrorist. He isn't going out there bombing buildings, but he's a terrorist just the same. And he brings terror to people. There might even be some of our pastors and ministers and priests across this nation and around the world that are terrorists and they minister terror to people, and they terrorize people.

For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart. (NASB) Maybe it would even reveal if there's a little bit of the terrorist within us-within you or me. And maybe we'll be able to see that more clearly and if we can see it, then we can do something about it and not allow that terrorist spirit to work through us.

It goes on to say in verse 13:(NASB) And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are open and laid bare to the eyes of Him with whom we have to do. Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, (Now look what it's relating here with the word of God and this sword and everything) Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. (Our faith. Hold it right up in front of us firm and steadfast) For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as [we are, yet] without sin. If he was tempted, are we tempted? In all these things, are we tempted to become a terrorist? Are we tempted to do these things? Are we tempted to function in an evil way? Absolutely, we are. But do we have to do it? No, we do not

Verse 16: Let us therefore draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and may find grace to help in time of need. And there's a great time of need right now-tremendous time of need, and so all the more reason for us to draw close to God with faith, and for undeserved favors to come from God. Pray for many undeserved favors--these hundreds of thousands of people that are out there right now that are hurting, suffering. Their loved ones are lost. They have no parents. All kinds of things like this, and they need an abundance of grace. They need an they need an abundance of undeserved favor. And may God help you somehow to become of a part of that favor even, that undeserved favor to them, for their help in their time of need. Or in your time of need, may God give you the grace. And around the world-all the people. This is a worldwide thing; it affects everybody.

I pray that this word will get a hold of your heart. I believe that...I believe with all my being that this is so important maybe. . . It is. It's the most important message I've ever spoke, the most important message I've ever delivered through 32 years of ministry. I believe this is it. This is the most important one of all. Pass it on to somebody else. Get this word in your heart and share it. Speak it out to other people. Speak it in your church. Speak it to the people at work. Speak it to your family. Share it whether your family is believers or not believers. While you're at the table or something, simply share and speak these things of who our enemy is and how we can defeat him. And I pray God, that He will help you and put the words in your mouth to do that.

May God help us and pour out His abundant grace. And I pray for our nation's leaders: for our President, for his cabinet, for the leaders in the armed forces. I pray that they'll have great wisdom from God-not the wisdom of the world which is foolishness-but the wisdom from God. I pray that they'll have great discernment. I pray that God will pour His graces upon them in so many different ways and protect all of our people that are in these armed forces-our young people all across this country that are involved there and whose lives are at risk now as well.

And LORD, I pray for them, and I pray that they will not become terrorists through all of this, that this will not cause them to become the same as what the enemy is. I pray that they'll all be strong in the Lord Jesus Christ. I pray that they will all come to a deep, close walk with God. I pray that the LORD will be lifted up throughout our nation and through our armed services, and prayer will become a common thing everywhere.

And these blind people that have caused God to be thrown out of our schools and have caused God to be thrown out of our government in all these different ways, that their eyes will be open, that they'll see, and they'll hear, and they'll understand, and that some changes will come about. And I thank God for that.

And I pray for all these individuals who lost loved ones, who were injured themselves, who were deeply touched and distressed and in a lot of pain and suffering because of all of what happened. I pray for every last one of them. And I pray, LORD, that your grace will be extended to them, that your healing will be extended, your comfort will touch upon them Father, that their needs will be met, in some way, Lord, their needs will be met. And I thank you Lord Jesus for it. Amen and amen.