Revival will not come without a struggle because conversions do not come without a struggle. Indeed, great struggling occurs during times of revival as people are being saved. There are two areas of struggle. First, there is the struggle that goes on in the sinner as he experiences conversion. Second, there is the struggle that goes on outside of human experience. This battle is a spiritual battle between the forces of God and the forces of the Devil.

"For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places" 
      (Ephesians 6:12).

I. First, the Devil is our archenemy in conversion and revival.

The Devil has a highly organized army to fight against God and His people in an attempt to thwart the will of God and advance His own earthly kingdom. Although Satan will ultimately fail and will be bound up during the millennial reign of Christ (Revelation 20:1-2), he will still enjoy successes prior to that time. The Bible says the Devil "deceiveth the whole world" (Revelation 12:9) - the world of those who are not saved. The lost have as their father the Devil (John 8:44) and he will not give them up without a great fight. This possessiveness of the Devil for sinners is certainly not out of love for them, but rather hatred, and especially hatred for God. Indeed, sinners are thoroughly and completely in the possession of Satan, so much so that they also are the enemies of God (Romans 8:7). The Bible says that the Devil is "the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience" (Ephesians 2:2) and that sinners are "taken captive by him at his will" (II Timothy 2:26). Every soul that remains lost without God in this world is a victory for him - a victory that will be complete as each soul dies in his sin and remains eternally lost in Hell.

To understand the great interest of the Devil in preventing conversion we need look no further than the conversion of Joshua:

"And he shewed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the Lord, and Satan standing at his right hand to resist him. And the Lord said unto Satan, The Lord rebuke thee, O Satan; even the Lord that hath chosen Jerusalem rebuke thee: is not this a brand plucked out of the fire? Now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments, and stood before the angel. And he answered and spake unto those that stood before him, saying, Take away the filthy garments from him. And unto him he said, Behold, I have caused thine iniquity to pass from thee, and I will clothe thee with change of raiment" (Zechariah 3:1-4).

This is truly a marvelous picture of salvation by grace where God is active in salvation, provides an atonement for Joshua, and clothes him in the righteousness of Christ. But notice also the attempt of the Devil or Satan to prevent Joshua's conversion as he stands at Joshua's right side to resist him. What was true in Joshua's case is true for everyone who is to be converted - the Devil will seek to prevent it.

II. Second, the Christian must wrestle against the Devil.

We who belong on the Lord's side (Exodus 32:26) must do our best to fight with the Devil and not allow him to be the victor. As was true in David's day as well as Joshua's day "the battle is the Lord's" (I Samuel 17:47) but God has elected that we be recruited as soldiers in His army. We must be at least as disciplined and committed spiritually as the best soldier is physically as we battle the Devil. The Bible says,

"Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier" (II Timothy 2:3-4).

Notice we must have a completely spiritual orientation lest we be "entangled" by the affairs of this life and become ineffective. "Seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness" again applies. In addition, we are motivated primarily to please the captain of our salvation, Jesus Christ (Hebrews 2:10), and what drive we should have to please Him whom our soul loveth!

Beyond our own personal preparedness, what weapons do we have against our enemy? The Bible tell us,

"For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds"
    (II Corinthians 10:4).

We are not told in this passage what our weapons are, but we are told that they are "mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds." All of our strength and effectiveness is through God. For the particular weapons of our warfare, we must turn to the passage toward the end of Ephesians 6. There our weapons are organized into defensive and offensive weapons. Most are described as "armor" or defensive weapons which no doubt are very important in battle but only the "sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God" and prayer can be said to be offensive weapons to be used against our enemies.

We must use the same weapons - the Word of God and prayer - that Jesus did to defeat the Devil (Matthew 4:1-10). Dr. Hymers will preach the Word of God. Let it go out as the sword of the Spirit to defeat the enemy. Let it go out as a two-edged sword to cut to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit of sinners and to be a discerner of the thoughts and intents of their heart. And let us pray that God would send His Spirit in power to convince sinners of their sin and bring them to a saving knowledge of Christ. The Bible describes the condition of lost men: "The god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them" (II Corinthians 4:4). O then let us pray that God would bind the devil from blinding sinners, and give them spiritual eyes to see the glorious light of the gospel of Christ. Let us pray that the gospel light might shine into the darkness of sinners' souls in awakening and that God would then draw them to the Saviour's arms.

The importance of these offensive weapons of preaching the Word of God and prayer cannot be overstated. That is because we must be the aggressors in this battle and invade our enemy the Devil on his "turf" if souls are to be saved.

Although our enemy the Devil is mighty indeed, his kingdom is pictured as being a fortress that is fortified, protecting itself from attack. That's what the former passage is referring to, when our weapons are said to be effective in the pulling down of strong holds. These "strong holds" serve to protect them from the Lord's attack and those on the Lord's side. This defensive posture by the Devil can also be understood in Jesus' words regarding the strength and stability of the local church,

"Upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it" (Matthew 16:18).

The gates of any fortress represent one of its most vulnerable positions of entry by the enemy. The Devil and his kingdom shall not prevail against God and His kingdom.

Our enemy the Devil knows that his days are numbered. He knows that "he hath but a short time" (Revelation 12:12). The apostle Paul said, "And the God of peace shall bruise Satan under your feet shortly" (Romans 16:20). Let us come together to pray for God's Spirit to move and bring about conversions. Let us as the people of God in our local churches claim the promises of Jesus in prayer: "Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven" (Matthew 18:18). Let us pray that the Devil's effectiveness in taking the word out of sinner's hearts (Luke 8:12) and other means of preventing conversions would be bound and be made ineffective. He said, "For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them" (Matthew 18:20).

Let the name of Jesus empower our prayers and make them acceptable to Thee, O God. He said, "That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven" (Matthew 18:19). Our Heavenly Father, because we come together in united prayer, Thou hast said that we can ask Thee for anything. Then we pray that thou wouldst give us conversions in our camp. We pray that thou wouldst give us 4 or 5 conversions among our young people and through this that Thou might be glorified.

"O may Thy Spirit, the preaching of Thy Word, and concerted prayer, function to overwhelm our adversary the Devil! Let these serve to charge the gates of his fortress and, like spiritual 'special forces,' rescue those he holds captive at his own will, that they might then be delivered from Satan to Christ for salvation in His Blood. Let us through Thy grace, O God, be used in a small way to translate some from the kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of Thy dear Son (Colossians 1:12). In Jesus' name, Amen."