“This world is a world of mixed powers. This world is a field of battle on which people must consciously and voluntarily choose: either to follow Christ the Conqueror, or the unclean and conquered demons. Christ came as the Lover of Mankind, in order to show the supremacy of the power of good over the power of evil and to confirm in people faith in the good—and only in the good.” (St. Nikolai Velimirovic)
“The life of a Christian is spiritual warfare which lasts our entire life. It is why we need practice to prepare for this warfare, which is what true asceticism is. Denying the self, forgiving others, fasting, loving enemies, humbling oneself, considering others ahead of one’s self, asking forgiveness, charitably giving to others, confessing one’s sins, always being thankful to God in every circumstance – all of these are ways to overcome the passions which attempt to rule our lives.” (Fr. Ted Bobosh)
“So how do Christians participate in this warfare? We ourselves are called to wrestle “against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places” (Eph. 6: 12), so how do we do that? We do it precisely by doing the works of God, by being faithful, by being true sons and daughters of our Father in heaven…Every good thing we do is a pledge or renewal of allegiance to Yahweh our God. We may therefore understand the life of Christian faithfulness as an extended exorcism, banishing away all that is evil and uniting us with all that is good.” (Fr. Andrew Stephen Damick)
“As years have gone by, the phrase, “Guard your heart,” has come to have increasing importance for me. In the course of any given day, I do not find myself struggling to believe “right things.” I am not tempted by heresies. The great struggle is to maintain the most fundamental meaning of the word, “Orthodoxia,” which is “right worship.” Right worship describes the fullness of the heart’s right disposition towards God. The heart is the true battleground of the spiritual life – it is there that I am tempted to put myself in the place of God and others in the place of objects. Such an image of hell! The self as god ruling over a universe of objects!” (Fr. Stephen Freeman)
“Christ made a spectacle of Satan and defeated him. Yet not everyone has heard the news. Much of the world carries on as normal, while others consciously defy Christ. New creation has burst onto the scene, but it remains small to begin with, even as the Garden of Eden had been a small part of God’s entire creation. Just as God gave Adam and Eve the job of extending Eden into the rest of the earth, so He has now tasked the members of Christ’s body with extending the new Eden throughout the world. Moreover, Christians can pursue this work in hope since Scripture promises that when Jesus returns, He will finish whatever is left, subduing all opposing authorities and powers.” (Robin Phillips)
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