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2 Corinthians 10:3-5

³For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. ⁴The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. ⁵We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.

The world wages war against physical locations and troops. Those who belong to Christ fight a different battle. Jesus told Pilate that if His kingdom was of the world, His servants would be physically fighting (John 18:36). The Kingdom of Christ is in the heart, in the spirit. There are territories and enemies in the spiritual realm that must be taken.

Paul tells us that we have divine weapons that are powerful enough to demolish strongholds. He goes on to describe what those strongholds are. Arguments, pretense set against the knowledge of God, and thoughts can all be strongholds in which the enemy takes cover. A stronghold is a defensive position. The children of God are on the offense. Since Jesus conquered death, the enemy has been cowering in these strongholds. How people cling to one sham of an argument after another! When their life is on the line, they drop them all and run to God, but when the Holy Spirit is gently knocking, the argument stronghold keeps Him out.

That is when we come in as servants of Christ and use our divine weapons to break down the strongholds. Our weapons are the same as the fruits of the Spirit. Love conquers all. Faith is the victory that overcomes the world. We attack every thought that rises against the knowledge of God, in another's life or our own.

Conquering our thought life with the fruit of self-discipline results in a major victory. Once our thoughts are made to obey Christ, our actions will follow. All the fruits of the Spirit are from the life of the Holy Spirit who indwells us.

Remember: As we yield to the promptings of the Holy Spirit, the strongholds come tumbling down.