“A malignant tumor of potentially unlimited growth that expands locally by invasion; something evil that spreads destructively.”

I just read my nephew’s post on CaringBridge about his dad who has been battling a brain tumor for the past year. This man is a man of faith; God is very present in his life and in the life of his family. The prognosis for this kind of inoperable tumor isn’t great, but to those who dwell in the shadow of the Most High God, nothing is impossible!

I believe that cancer is evil and that it wasn’t present in the Garden of Eden, nor will it be present when we are united with our Father in Heaven. We are assured that heaven will be a gated place, and evil will not be allowed to enter. For some who face the diagnosis, cancer devastates families, drains people of their finances, of their hopes and their dreams. But others see the cancer for what it is: another of Satan’s schemes to try to steal our joy. D. and his family have shared Christ and the news of what belief in Him has done for them all throughout this trial. Several people, even strangers, have stumbled across their story and have become new Christians from D.’s testimony. What Satan had intended for evil, God has used for much good!

Today, I pray Ephesians 6 over our family and over families all over the world who are in hand-to-hand combat with this form of the enemy:

11Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 18And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.

“To stand” is used three times in verses 13 and 14. The first instance is actually translated “withstand” in Greek as anthistemi, and it means:
…to oppose
…to resist

The other two uses of the word “stand” is from the Greek word histemi. It can be translated in these ways:
…to be kept intact
…to escape in safety
…to sustain the force of anything
…to stand immovable
…to stand unharmed
…to be one who does not hesitate and does not waiver.

In light of those definitions, let’s revisit that part of the verses in Ephesians 6:

13Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place,

There is no lying down and letting this foe take D. down, Praise God! D. has been living out this verse — he’s been resisting, standing his ground against this evil with every ounce of his strength. After he’s done everything the doctors have told him to do, he soaks in the word of God and is standing immovable in his faith, even in the face of the Goliath-sized tumor in his head.

For the battle is the Lord’s, and He goes before us. Remember David and the nine-foot Goliath? This story never fails to remind me of the supernatural power of faith. Today I read it and replace ‘Philistine’ with the word ‘cancer.’

45 David said to the Philistine (cancer), “You come against me with sword and spear and javelin (malignancy and fear), but I come against you in the name of the LORD Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. 46 This day the LORD will hand you over to me, and I’ll strike you down and cut off your head. Today I will give the carcasses of the Philistine army (cancer) to the birds of the air and the beasts of the earth, and the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel. 47 All those gathered here will know that it is not by sword or spear that the LORD saves; for the battle is the LORD’s, and he will give all of you into our hands.”

The Lord has already given death (Goliath, cancer) over into our hands, through the resurrection of Christ. Jesus is the same today as He was 2000 years ago; He Is Victorious! For the battle is the LORD’s, and he will smite this cancer by His very own words and in His own power, for the sake of His glory!

In the name of Jesus,

Amen.