It’s Not a Cakewalk; It’s a Conflict

Some Christians are surprised to find that life as a follower of Jesus is not a cakewalk; it’s a conflict. It is not a playground; it’s a battleground.

It isn’t a question of whether you’re going to be in a spiritual war. In this particular battle, you cannot choose to be a pacifist because you’ll die on the battlefield if you do.

The day you committed your life to Jesus Christ was the day the Devil declared war on you. He had you where he wanted you before. He was quite happy with that arrangement. But you weren’t. Neither was I. That’s why we turned to Christ.

Jesus said, “The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly” (John 10:10 NKJV).

The Bible tells us that the god of this age, Satan, blinded our eyes (see 2 Corinthians 4:4). It tells us that we were taken captive by him to do his will (see 2 Timothy 2:6). But we got sick and tired of being ripped off, so we put our faith in Christ.

Of course, the Devil isn’t happy about this. And he isn’t going to take it lying down. In fact, he’ll do everything he can to trip you up or defeat you on this battlefield.

Someone has wisely pointed out that conversion has made our hearts a battlefield. Anyone who chooses to be on the side of the Lord Jesus Christ will face severe opposition from Satan and his followers.

So the question is this: Are you going to win or lose in this spiritual war? Are you going to advance, or are you going to retreat? Will you gain ground, or will you lose ground? There are no other alternatives.