Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God. (1 Corinthians 2:12)
In this Christian life we face two very different kinds of enemies. I might characterize them as Egyptians & Canaanites. While the Israelites were enslaved by the Egyptians, they were opposed by the Canaanites. The Egyptians wanted to keep them in Egypt; the Canaanites wanted to kick them out of Canaan. The Egyptians represent the power of bondage; the Canaanites represent the power of resistance. When facing the Egyptians, the Israelites were simply to stand stil and see the salvation of the Lord. But when facing the Canaanites they had to pick up swords and shields and go to war. The great problem in the body of Christ is that too many believers are fighting Egyptians and waiting for God to overthrow the Canaanites. But when you face an Egyptian, you don’t fight; God fights for you. And when you face a Canaanite, God will not fight for you; he will only fight with you, and so you’ve got to learn how to wage the good warfare.
If you discover any form of bondage in your life, the greatest mistake you can make is to try to fight your way out of it. Just as the Israelites were completely incapable of fighting their way out of Egypt, so you and I are completely incapable of fighting ourselves free of even the weakest forms of bondage. Freedom from bondage comes by believing, not by striving. It is not by works, it is not by discipline, it is not through diligence. Freedom is a gift that you must simply learn to freely receive, or else it will elude you for the rest of your days.
Lingering forms of bondage are always the result of an over-dependence of self and an under-dependence upon God. Like the Israelites, we simply need to learn how to allow God to walk us to freedom in every area of our lives. How do you get free from an area of bondage in your life? You simply walk away from it. God will send plagues upon it. God will stand as a fire between it and you. God will part the waters of the Red Sea that stand between you and freedom. You only have one responsibility: walk away from it, and keep walking.
Don’t try to fight it; you can’t resist it. You’re not strong enough. Trying to fight it is like trying to fight the under-tow of the ocean. Once you get in deep enough, it is simply going to take you wherever it desires to take you. You cannot swim your way out; you must be carried out. And God will carry you out . . . indeed, he has already carried you out by sending his Son to die for you and his Spirit to indwell you.
But Canaanites are different; they occupy the territory of your promised land, and they will not leave. If you are to occupy the territory of your promised land, you’re going to have to drive out the Canaanites! The Canaanites are the powers and principalities in heavenly places that oppose you every time you try to move forward. Every time you try to write, the Canaanites come to occupy the space that you are supposed to fill with your words. Every time you try to save, the Canaanites come to expand your expenses to extinguish the measure of your financial resources. Every time you try to move your relationships forward, the Canaanites come with conflict, with misunderstanding, with pain or pleasure . . . whatever it takes to fill the space that has been divinely given to you to host the unfolding of your inner greatness.
But you must learn to correctly distinguish between the two. If not, you will spend your life fighting Egyptians, trying to free yourself from things that God has already freed you from. Or you will find yourself waiting for God to overthrow the Canaanites. This inordinate waiting is what I call eschatological procrastination. Your destiny is waiting, but you are so busy saying, “Later,” that you pass it right by and enter into the next wilderness. Your destiny is as close as your pen, or your piano, or your laptop, or your bookshelf . . . You begin to enter into your destiny the moment you begin to drive out the Canaanites that occupy the space of your promised land. You cannot wait! You must begin to possess the land right now!
But you must discern the difference . . .
Sin is Egyptian, Sickness is Canaanite.
Addiction is Egyptian, Poverty is Canaanite.
Shame is Egyptian, Hopelessness is Canaanite.
Greed is Egyptian, Debt is Canaanite.
Its time to stop fighting the Egyptians; God has already taken care of them. And its time to start fighting the Canaanites; God will not overthrow them without your partnership. Brave Heart is not the story of the believer: We are not fighting for freedom. We are fighting for our destiny, for our future, and for the fullness of the promise that we have freely received in God. This and only this is the good fight of faith.
