From the birth of Jesus, we see that His life was immediately confronted by an enemy. The Bible says in Matthew 2:1-2:

“Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, saying, ‘Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him.’”

In this passage, you will notice with me that Jesus Christ was merely a baby born under miserable conditions; there was not even an inn for Him, and He was born during the reign of Herod, who was king over all of Israel.

The prophecy said that Jesus would be the future king of Israel, but the realities or circumstances of His birth did not resemble what the prophets had foretold for Him at all. He didn’t appear to be someone to whom people would aspire. He didn’t look like someone you would fix your gaze upon or rely on. Even when the prophet Isaiah describes His life in Isaiah 53, we get the impression that the life of our Lord Jesus Christ was nothing but a terrible ordeal from His arrival into the world of men, with an unpromising future!

“Who has believed our report? And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed? For He shall grow up before Him as a tender plant, and as a root out of dry ground. He has no form or comeliness; and when we see Him, there is no beauty that we should desire Him. He is despised and rejected by men, a Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him; He was despised, and we did not esteem Him.”

Yet, curiously, we see someone much greater at that time, with a higher social rank than Him—comparable in today’s terms to the position of a president—envying and being jealous of Him! How surprising!

Imagine a president leaving his presidential palace just to find out the birthplace of a baby with the intention of killing him, a baby whose parents aren’t even part of the Israeli government. Yet the president begins to panic and stress on his throne, already fearing a coup d’état. This fierce attitude of Herod teaches us something crucial: the battle of destiny begins as soon as we arrive on earth.

It is important to note that in life, battles or enemies do not emerge only when we reach greatness, nor when we are well-positioned in some important role in society, nor when we experience obvious progress and success in our endeavors. Rather, they arise from the moment we are born.

Have you ever heard the common saying, “Life is a battle”? Many people are not at all aware of the reality of this phrase. They think that success in life will be handed to them like food on a platter! Yet, this phrase means that in life, we will encounter numerous obstacles, difficulties, hindrances, offenses, attacks, and problems that we are called to resolve if we want to succeed or move to a higher stage in our lives. Thus, the Apostle Peter emphasizes this in 1 Peter 4:1:

“Therefore, since Christ suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves also with the same mind.”

Indeed, we must live with this mindset. Some overly spiritual Christians may tell me: “But Brother Joel, didn’t Christ say on the cross that it is finished, and that there is no longer a need for us to fight to succeed in life?”

Yes, of course, but I’m not saying that the work Christ accomplished on the cross is of no value to us! I am merely pointing out that, despite what Jesus Christ did for us on the cross, it does not prevent us from facing obstacles along our journey. It doesn’t stop people from hating or fighting us, or prevent us from sometimes failing in one area or another. Nor does it stop some people from disliking us!

The work of the cross that Christ accomplished for us does not exclude the battles of destiny we will face throughout our time on earth. In fact, by choosing to be on God’s side, we automatically find ourselves in a battle against those from the opposing camp. In Colossians 1:12, the Apostle Paul shows how God has rescued us from the power of darkness and the kingdom of the devil, where we were imprisoned, and transferred us into the Kingdom of His beloved Son.

Do you really think that the devil, the enemy of our souls, and his accomplices are happy to see us thriving and living our lives easily? Do you really think the devil is pleased to see God snatch us from his hand to bring us into His Kingdom so we can fulfill our destiny? He will undoubtedly do everything in his power to harm our destiny and make us miss God’s plan for our lives.

Thus, we must be aware of the battle for our destiny, so that we do not fall into his traps. The enemy is capable of using any deceit or favorable means to make us fall into his snares. Be cautious! But one thing is true: the presence of battles in our lives is proof of the existence of a destiny or a glorious future. I love what the American evangelist Mike Murdock says: “You have no future if you have no enemy.”

By these words, we must understand that, when we are on this earth, whether we want it or not, there will always be people who will fight us to prevent us from fulfilling our destiny. When Jesus wanted to begin His earthly ministry, we see how the devil and the Pharisees tried in every way to stop Him. The devil even came to the desert, where Jesus was fasting and praying, to fight Him.

Note that the enemy is not afraid of the position you occupy to fight you; he’s not even afraid of your solitude to come and challenge you. The presence of an enemy or battle in our lives is not a fatality but a certainty. “There is no destiny without enemies; the presence of an enemy certifies the existence of destiny.”

This text is an excerpt from the book “THE BATTLE OF DESTINY” written by Joël Merveil Mokili.

We invite you to read the following article: “THE 7TH FIGURE OF DESTINY DESTROYER.”

DESTINY WITHOUT ENEMIES. DESTINY WITHOUT ENEMIES.

DESTINY WITHOUT ENEMIES. DESTINY WITHOUT ENEMIES