Pastor Wayne Cordeiro
June 1, 2014 - W1422

There’s a fight that goes on within all of us, a tension that we struggle with on the inside.  Is tension wrong?  I’ll let you decide.  There is what the Bible calls a “good fight,” and there are also bad fights and unnecessary fights.  We are already involved with them.   Can you recognize the differences?  We need to know which fight we’re in.

The greatest battlefield is not on foreign lands; the greatest battlefield is in the human heart and the victory will be what you gain from the battle.  The Bible tells us in I Timothy 6:12 “Fight the good fight of faith; take hold of eternal life to which you were called…”  A good fight can be misunderstood and can be misapplied.  We are not fighting “against flesh and blood [people] but against the evil rulers of the unseen world, against the mighty powers of darkness, against wicked spirits in the heavenly realms.” (Ephesians 6:12)

Professional boxers train very hard and their workouts are long, grueling, tiring, and unending. Everything they have done up to this point when the bell rings and the match ends is to gain the confidence that they will be the champion in the end.

Fighting doesn’t only happen in arenas, it happens everyday all around the world.  Civilizations for centuries have fought with one another in battlefields as well as in the courts, in coliseums, and on the streets.  Everyday we read about terrorism taking lives indiscriminately; unresolved anger rages until somebody is dead.  There are also domestic abuses in our own backyards with families breaking apart, crimes and fighting on the streets, and bullying in schools—it’s all around us. 

The reason for this fighting is found in the Bible; James 4:1-2 sums it up best.  He said, “Isn’t it the evil desires that war within you?  You want what you don’t have so you scheme and kill to get it, and you’re jealous of what others have that you don’t possess so you fight and quarrel to take it away from them.”  He was right, wasn’t he? 

Fighting has become a way of life.  Wouldn’t it be wonderful if all the fighting and resistance would suddenly end?  Before we come to that conclusion, let’s pause because there’s a twist to it.  Not all fighting is bad because there is something that God calls a Good Fight.  You don’t want to drop out—You must win this fight!

However, some fights are unnecessary and we need to abandon them as soon as we can. On the other hand, there are some fights that are absolutely vital.  We need to understand the difference between the two because sometimes we fight battles we shouldn’t and sometimes we don’t fight battles we should.

WHAT IS A GOOD FIGHT?

Let’s talk about what the Bible calls a good fight.  Paul wrote to his young protégé and said, “This command I entrust to you, my son, Timothy, that you fight the good fight, keeping the faith in good conscience ....”  (1 Timothy 1:18-19)

Life’s greatest battles are not fought on the combat zones of the Middle East—it’s fought in the middle of our hearts.  Yes, the battlefield is within us.  We are engaged in a struggle that tugs at us every single day. 

Listen to what Paul the apostle said in Romans 7:22-24, “I love God’s law with all my heart but there is another law working within me that’s at war with my mind.  This law wins the fight and makes me a slave to the sin that is still within me.  Oh, what a miserable person I am.  Who will free me from this life?”  Paul is talking about a battle we cannot afford to lose. It’s called a “good fight.” 

For example, it is necessary to fight to keep your faith intact, fight to keep your integrity and purity, and the commitment to loyalty.  With each of these if you throw in the towel and give up the fight, that could mean the end of your marriage, home, a friendship, faith, and commitment from a life that could have been an example to many. 

These sterling character qualities will always be challenged.  No matter how often you want to give up, you must not! 

MEDIOCRITY

There is a verse from the book of Mark that Jesus said that has always baffled me.  “Everyone will be salted with fire.  Salt is good but if the salt becomes unsalty what will make it salty again?”  (Mark 9:49-50)

I didn’t know what God was saying but as I looked at it and mused over it, I understood that God is saying everyone will face struggles.  We can’t preprogram our lives to circumvent them.  O.K. I understood that but then Jesus said, “Salt is good but if the salt becomes unsalty what will you do?”  How can salt become unsalty? 

He is saying that salt becomes unsalty when I stop struggling with things that I should struggle over and I give up and toss aside an important relationship, when I throw in the towel on my marriage, or I stop wrestling with a sexual attraction and just give in to it, that’s when salt has lost its saltiness.

It is now no longer something I struggle with because I have surrendered.  What could have been a victory ends up a failure, what could have brought a more stalwart faith only brings regret because I stopped struggling to overcome temptation and just caved in, or I ceased to discipline myself and surrendered to mediocrity, I gave in to grumbling even though I knew it was destructive.  When I don’t want to struggle over compromise and give up the fight, or when I surrender to discouragement and it dilutes my faith, and when giving up becomes my MO, I give in to discouragement and it dilutes my faith and only brings a barrage of doubts.

That’s what he is talking about.  It will be difficult to regain a balance.  I then find it easy or normal to rationalize my actions and give in to it.  Life is no longer a struggle to win.  It becomes a failure and I’ve lost the good fight.  That is one fight you don’t ever want to give up!  How many times have I done something I shouldn’t have, and not done something I should have. 

GOOD NEWS

Here is good news:  God is in your corner.  He will be there to show you the difference between a good fight, an unnecessary fight, and a bad fight.  He will help you see the real opponent and will help you to distinguish from the decoy.  The Good Fight makes you stronger and causes your faith to go up to tremendous levels.  That fight is worth it!

The Bible says in Ephesians 6 that we are not fighting against people (flesh and blood) “but against the evil rulers and authorities in the unseen world, against the evil spirits in the heavenly realms.”  The real opponent is not your spouse, boss, neighbor, parents, or situation; the enemy of your soul is using them to force you to give up on your faith.  Often we find ourselves fighting against the wrong person, someone one who is on our side, the one most committed to us, and the adversary of our souls just cackles with glee as he witnesses our misaligned anger.

How often we fight the wrong opponent.  Acts 5:39 tells us that if we don’t know what the good fight is we may be found fighting even against God.

Let me ask you a question.  Have you been fighting a wrong fight lately?  Can you identify what the good fight and what the bad or wrong fight is?  Peter found himself fighting against God’s very will.  Jesus said to him that Satan has demanded “to sift you as wheat but I have prayed for you that your faith fail you not.”  (Luke 31-32)

It is Satan’s goal to get us to compromise our faith and fight the wrong battle.  He knows that will destroy our soul, relationships, and future.  Peter tells us to stay vigilant and not be lulled to sleep because he knew the difference between a good fight and a bad one; he also knew the consequences when he found himself fighting against God’s very will.  He said to be alert because the adversary prowls around like a roaring lion seeking someone to devour.  There is one thing the adversary is good at—patience.  Like a sniper he waits for the right moment when you are complacent about your faith, smug about your finances, and you allow unresolved hurts to cause you to drop your guard, then he strikes. 

In Luke 4 we find that the devil left for a more opportune moment.  He comes when you least expect him, when you are the most vulnerable, when you are hungry for promotion, attention, companionship, when you cut a few corners and leave a few loose ends, get too busy for devotions, maintaining your marriage or faith because you just don’t have the time.  When you allow wrong desires to run amok and stop fighting the good fight, the devil can smell it a mile away and that’s when he strikes.

Maybe you’ve dropped your guard, you’ve grown weary of resisting the enemy’s attacks and he has worn you down. You are tired of fighting the good fight, you want to throw in the towel.  DON’T DO IT! 

Remember, God is in your corner.  He is praying for you that your faith will not fail.  Let Him encourage you.  Go to Him.  The Bible says it this way, “Come unto me all who are weak and heavy-laden and I will give you rest.” (Matthew 11:28)  Take that rest.  He will strengthen your soul for the good fight and you will win. 

Towards the end of Paul’s life he found what made his life worthwhile, he said, “I have fought a good fight, I have finished the course” and he was assured of the Crown of Righteousness or the Belt of a Champion.

Each of us will be involved in a good fight, a fight that never ends and the same reward awaits us all—the Crown of Righteousness.  What’s the course that God has given to you?  The enemy waits for you to compromise.  Can you say I have kept the faith therefore there is laid up for me a Crown of Righteousness?

STUDY SUGGESTIONS:

1. How are tensions created? Are tensions good or bad?

1. What is a Good Fight? What do they develop?

1. What are Unnecessary fights? How can we recognize and avoid them?

1. How do we become unsalty?

1. What is Satan’s goal in getting us to fight the wrong battles? What are the results?