The warriors come back from battle with the spoils of war. They are to give a tribute, a portion to the Lord, which means those things will go to the Levites. The Levites, as the priests, don’t go into battle.

That got me thinking. If we’re considered priests unto God now, does that mean we don’t go into battle but get to divide the spoils?

At first glance, the answer is no. We can’t compare the two. We know we are in a battle. Timothy fought the good fight. The church in Ephesus is reminded that they don’t fight flesh and blood but spiritual beings, and the battlefield is in the heavenly places.

But with another look, I think we can say yes. Our battle is not with flesh and blood. God fights our battles. I consider Exodus 14:14 to be my favorite verse whenever I am asked: The Lord will fight for you. You need only to be still. Or, “only to be silent” in other translations.

The battle is the Lord’s. We fight by resting. We rest in Him. We pray in faith because we know Him. We trust in Him. We obey Him. We praise Him.

The devil flees not because of our warfare, but because we submitted to God. God fights for us. We rejoice in the spoils of the war. We receive an abundant life from Christ, the Victor, the Overcomer.

If you aren’t living life to the full and feel overwhelmed instead of feeling like an overcomer, then consider that you may be trying to fight battles that aren’t yours.

Warfare is an ugly affair. People die. People are wounded. People are taken captive. Wouldn’t it be better to separate yourself out from all that? Wouldn’t it be better to walk “on hinds’ feet on high places” and be above it all? Wouldn’t it be nice to be able to say and believe, “The evil one will not touch or harm me”?

We know that anyone born of God does not continue to sin; the One who was born of God keeps them safe, and the evil one cannot harm them. (1 John 5:18 NIV)

… and the evil one cannot touch them. (NLT)

We just submit to God. Give your life over to Him. He will defend it. He will fill it to the full with all His goodness. Let Him fight. This includes the battle over sin. You’ll have the victory, and you’ll leave with the spoils of war instead of the hurt and pain.