The Rules of Engagement

The Rules of Engagement

F irebrands Firebrands were used as a type of weapon. The tail of an animal, such as a fox, would be set on fire, the animal then set loose usually in a field or through a village setting, alighting anything in its path. A firebrand can be likened to intense opposition and “heated” warfare. He that passeth by, and meddleth with strife belonging not to him, is like one that taketh a dog by the ears. As a mad man who casteth firebrands, arrows, and death, so is the man that deceiveth his neighbour, and saith, Am not I in sport? —Proverbs 26:17–19 F riendly F ire It is a fact that not all casualties of war are caused by the enemy, but some times by those closest to us. This is not to imply that they have malicious intent, that they are motivated to destroy us, or intentionally harm us. But they can be used by the enemy to accidentally hurt or destroy us in spite of their sincere love for us. One of the reasons why this weapon is so powerful is that the actual weapons used are their love and positive regard, rather than their hatred or ill will toward us. Two examples of friendly fire are found in Matthew 16:20–23 and Acts 16:16–23. The first is Peter and Jesus. Sometimes people are misled into believing that Satan requires insidi ously motivated individuals to accomplish his tasks. This is not always the case because his strategy would be too obvious. To accomplish anything in a person’s life, particularly if that person is matured in the things of the Lord and sensitive in the Spirit, Satan will have to take a more clandestine approach in his attack against them. My strong counsel to you today would be to take nothing and no one for granted. The ones we love, and the ones that love us, could very well be used to provoke us into the forfeiture of divine opportunities, ministries, and ulti mately the fulfillment of purpose, maximization of potential, and reaching our destiny. One of the reasons why I believe this particular strategy is so powerful is that we are usually more relaxed around people with whom we are close, so we let our hair down, so to speak. There are four categories of people the

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