day no. 15,107: worship is warfare

"Policy is a rational subcomponent of politics, the reasoned purposes and actions of individuals in the political struggle. Hence, to describe war as an 'instrument of policy' is entirely correct. (War) is an act of force to compel our opponent to do our will."
-- MCDP 1-1: Strategy

Worship is warfare.

Genesis 3:15
I will put enmity between you and the woman,
and between your offspring and her offspring;
He shall bruise your head,
and you shall bruise His heel.

Because we are sinners, we are born wearing the wrong uniform. We are enemies of God and His Kingdom. In order for anyone to go to be saved, God must first conquer them. His will must be imposed upon them by His loving force. He defeats His enemies by making them His allies. But while made new, our old selves have been through years of basic training in enemy camps and it takes a lifetime to work out the bad habits we picked up in those barracks. 

Romans 7:21-25
So I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at hand. For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being, but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself serve the law of God with my mind, but with my flesh I serve the law of sin.

In order to justify us, God declares war on who we were in order to make us who we are in Christ.

In order to sanctify us, God declares war on who we've been and expects us to go to battle against what we've been up to. Our sin wants to do something other than worship God. The Holy Spirit helps us impose our will upon ourselves.

Romans 5:6-11
For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die— but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.