C.S. Lewis was one of the great thinkers of the twentieth century and had a lot of insight into Spiritual Warfare. He wrote several books about the subject. One was called the Screwtape Letters and the most popular was called The Chronicles of Narnia which was made into a well known movie.
The books are fictional depictions of the spiritual battle we encounter in this present age. He was quoted as saying, there are two equal and opposite errors into which people make about demons. One is to disbelieve in their existence. The other is to believe and to feel an excessive and unhealthy interest in them.
I find these two extremes to be where much of the church lives. One is to not even acknowledge that there is a spiritual world. The other one is to over emphasize the place of spiritual darkness causing you to live in a mystical world of make believe blaming everything on the devil. It’s both of these extreme positions that cause great harm to people's lives.
The Bible is our guide and lens by which we view the world, but we have to understand this one truth. The Bible does not tell us everything about world history nor does it tell us everything about how to live life. The Bible is history, but it’s telling us the story of God’s redemptive history in time. It’s God’s love story to humanity showing us His redemptive hand through the Hebrew people, his chosen vehicle to redeem a fallen humanity bringing us back to Himself.
The Bible is also a very spiritual book because the redemptive story is a story of spiritual warfare.
It starts in the garden with the serpent. Intertwined throughout the redemptive story is the story of a struggle between good and evil. It’s a story that finds its climax in the book of Revelation where we see the final spiritual battle of this age. John the author of the book of Revelation, shows us that the serpent who sowed discord, corruption and chaos throughout this age will finally be crushed.
Oscar Cullman in his book, 'Christ and Time' compares the spiritual battle of this age with the end of World War II. The decisive battle of the war was fought and won by the Allies on D-day which is June 6, 1944. However, the war continued and was not over until V-E Day which was May 8, 1945 some eleven months later! Christ's death, burial and resurrection was our D-Day. However, we will not see the consummation of that victory or our V-E Day until Christ Second Corning.
I encourage you to listen to Part I and Part II of this introduction called kingdom ministry through the church. In those lessons I clearly explain how Christ's second coming consummates the ‘day of the Lord’ and wrap’s up this current age. We are assured of the final victory, but before Jesus comes and enforces His victory we are at war with the powers of darkness who rule this present world order.
The cross was a fatal blow to the power of the devil, but the final victory is not yet complete.
There are now two kingdoms on earth - of God and Satan, good and evil, light and darkness. Paul called this the mystery of the church in Ephesians chapter 3. The mystery is that God became man. It’s the Incarnation when Christ took the humble position of a slave and was born as the Last Adam into this fallen created order, to recreate heaven on earth. The creative Word that made all things became flesh appearing in human form.
It was through Christ humility in obedience to the Father and dying a criminal’s death on the cross that crushed the serpent's authority over mankind. The mystery is that through Christ death, burial, resurrection and ascension to the right hand of the Father He has dealt with sin once and for all. Subsequently through the outpouring of His Spirit, the God who created all things by the power of his word: has now taken up residence in those who identify with his blood, water and Spirit.
It’s not just a cliche, we are literally the body of Christ, the new temple, the place where God dwells upon the earth connecting us to the heavenly Christ our Head, our High Priest and coming King.
God is working through his body to bring redemption to a world living in darkness. We live in what Paul called this present evil age. We live between the two mountains of Christ first coming: opening up the 'day of the Lord' and Christ second coming: consummating the 'day of the Lord'. Satan is still the prince of this world. He is called the ruler of the kingdom of the air and the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. The walk of faith is not a rosy stroll in your favorite park, but it's a lifelong call to discipleship. The race that we have been called to run will take us through enemy territory.
During this age there will be obstacles, temptations and persecutions from without and a battle of appetites and emotions from within our own hearts.
The apostle John, who is the author of the gospel named after him also wrote I, II, III John and the book of Revelation. He was a man with great insight into the very heart of God and was very familiar with the enemy's territory. In his first epistle he says, the whole world lies in the power of the evil one.
It’s important that we understand the enemy's territory, because it’s here where we will find the hindrances that will try to keep us from fulfilling our purpose. There are three main enemies we will encounter in this present evil age which are constantly present to harass us, create conflict for us and put obstacles in our pathway. It’s impossible to escape any of them completely as long as we live in this body.
The three main enemies that we will face are: Satan, the world and the flesh. We live in this world surrounded by enemies to the cross of Christ.
Our goal in this life is being transformed by the Spirit of God from the inside out, growing up into Christ and fulfilling His will. It’s the enemy of our souls that will try to keep us from fulfilling our journey. Satan attempts to carry out his diabolical plan of world domination through an organized scheme of deceit. Like a spider, he is always weaving a new web trying to catch unsuspecting souls in his traps.
Paul exhorts us in Ephesians chapter 6 verse 11 to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. The Greek word for schemes is methodia from which we get the English word method. Satan is the sly serpent of old who understands man’s innate need to worship. Like a lion on the hunt, he along with the evil spirits under his command, continually works on new methods to capture their prey. If they are successful in capturing your attention and distracting you then they can gain some level of control over your life.
The spiritual warfare of our time is the battlefield of the mind and it’s what we call information warfare. Unless you throw your cell phone in the river or don’t ever get on a computer: it’s hard to escape the onslaught of information warfare that we experience today. The phone you have in your hand is not the enemy, but it has the potential to immanent great darkness depending on what you allow on it. Satan’s desire is to blind the minds of people, keeping them captive under his deceptive power through moral transgression or to define it simply as sin.
When people are living under the bondage of sin their minds become blinded to the glory of God that’s what Paul taught us in Romans chapters 1 and 2.
Satan rebelled against God and when he did he was placed under eternal judgment in what the Bible calls pits or bonds of darkness. This darkness does not simply mean lightless or areas void of light. The eternal darkness to which scripture refers is essentially a moral darkness, but its cause is not simply the absence of light it’s the absence of God: who is light. Paul the apostle spoke of this in II Corinthians chapter 4 verse 3 and 4 when saying if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers.
It’s Satan’s desire to blind the minds of humanity so that they will worship him, whether knowingly or through ignorance.
As we have seen according to the word of God the world around us is under the power and control of the evil one. Drug abuse, sexual immorality, murder, wars, sex trafficking and perversion has saturated this world while godliness is under tremendous assault. Millions of unborn babies are eradicated in America and around the world. I can mention the rise of occult activity, increase of false religions and an onslaught of informational deception aimed at captivating the human soul.
Satan is called the god of this present age and he takes advantage of man’s innate need to worship.
Satan always makes himself and sin look attractive. He comes as an angel of light to lead us into his dungeon of moral darkness. Satan’s main weapons have always been and still are deception and temptation. Satan was able to convince Eve through his subtle and cunning speech that what was forbidden by God would be good for her. It’s the postmodern lie of relativism which says truth is whatever you make it. Satan was the first post modernist who destroyed morality through relativism where there are no absolutes, but just the mushy grayness of man being his own god. We see here that just as Lucifer’s original choice to do his own thing had drastic results, so did the choices of the original man and woman.
Adam was originally given authority over the earth, but he delivered it into Satan’s hands when he disobeyed God’s commandment.
This left a spiritual vacuum into which Satan could set up his own authority and continue to deceive. That’s when Satan became the god of this age and it’s been an age long battle which continues up to the present time. As believers we live in this world, but we are not of this world. We have been bought with the blood of Christ, washed with baptismal waters and filled with the Holy Spirit. As covenant partners with God we have been delivered from Satan’s power and separated from this world system. However, as we walk along our journey this side of the second coming of Christ we are in a spiritual struggle against the god of this age.
The second enemy that we must confront is what the Bible calls the world. The world is the ungodly system built by unregenerate man.
In the original Greek language the word for world is kosmos from which we get the word cosmopolitan. Kosmos can mean the physical earth. However, in the context that I am using the word I am using it as the present condition of human affairs in alienation or separation from and in opposition to God and his kingdom. It’s a system that is governed by demonic powers which tries to dictate the way man thinks and acts attempting to control humanity. Yes it can look very appealing and it can even do good, but ultimately it’s a system built on the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
The center of worldly systems is man who can do good and evil, but ultimately this worldly system is corrupt and will come to an end being superseded by the last Adam and his eternal kingdom. When Satan rebelled against God he was cast out of heaven and down to the earth. It doesn't mean that he became limited to the physical earth because he is not a material being, but rather a spiritual being. In the Bible the word heavenlies includes three levels. In II Corinthians chapter 12 verse 2 Paul speaks of the third heaven.
The third heaven is beyond our physical reality and it’s the eternal dwelling place of God where His throne is located. It’s not a physical location, but a spiritual realm that can only be accessed spiritually.
No one can tell you where heaven and the throne of God is located. It’s my belief that heaven is not somewhere out in space past the universe where time keeps expanding at the speed of light, but in a different dimension. It’s a dimension that the Bible calls heaven and is more real than this physical dimension that we live in. It’s connected to this dimension because we know Jesus after his resurrection and ascension came into our dimension even walking through walls. He sat down and had a meal with his disciples and they were even able to touch him. We know that angels come into our dimension so there are pathways from our dimension into the heavenly dimension and vice versa.
Paul talked of these mysteries and he experienced it, but could not fully explain it. Jesus told us to pray that God's will be done on earth as it is in his dimension which is called heaven. It’s His ultimate desire to transform this present creation and eventually bring a new heavens and a new earth, in which righteousness dwells which is called the restoration of all things.
The second heaven is what we call outer space, the region where the stars, sun, moon and planets abide. It is part of this physical creation. Then we have the first heaven, which is the consciousness that surrounds the earth and mankind.
It’s from the first heavenly realm that Satan has set himself up as god of this age attempting to dictate to the consciousness of mankind. It’s my opinion that UFO’s are simply manifestations of spiritual demonic activity in this realm. I can’t prove it, but if aliens ever bring a message that denies Christ and claim they are our saviors then remember I warned you.
Ephesians chapter 2 verse 2 says that Satan is the prince of the power of the air. Jesus said in John chapter 3 verse 8 that the wind blows where it wishes and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit. In this text it’s talking about us who have received the Spirit and how we are moved by what you can’t see with your natural eye. We are spiritual beings who live in a body.
Satan and demons are spiritual beings and they are looking for a body or an interface to carry out their deeds. Some people get really hung up on this and see demons under every bush.
Now if you look at the gospels you can see that Jesus did cast demons out of people and the book of Acts you see the followers of Christ casting out evil spirits that attached themselves to people. It’s part of the gospel, but let’s not over emphasize something and make it central to our mission. Our central mission is the Great Commission which is making faithful followers of Christ.
Satan is called the prince of the power of the air. He operates in the realm that immediately surrounds the consciousness of mankind, which the Bible calls the heavenlies.
His goal is to corrupt and control the mind of man through a masterfully woven scheme of deceit. It doesn't matter if you are in New York City or Wichita Kansas, Satan has set up a blanket of deception to try and blind your understanding to the liberating truth of the gospel. It’s evident that since the time of the early church and especially with our modern flood of information warfare, the battle has increased tremendously. The main battlefield is for the soul of man. It’s a battle against your mind to control what you think, affecting your emotions and trying to mold your determination.
The real action is not what you can see with your physical eyes, but spiritual forces all around us. In the dimension beyond what we can physically see with our natural eyes is where the real action originates.
Do you see radio waves or Wi-Fi running through your house? No you don’t. How about 5g transmissions? No, because it moves by the power of the air beyond what we see with our physical eyes. We live in a spiritual world, but trapped in a physical body. The continuous stream of information in our society since the introduction of the Internet makes the scope of the battle much more intense for the affections of man.
If you don’t understand the spiritual warfare that is going on in your head then you will be overcome by it.
It’s why John told us to test the spirits. I John chapter 4 verse 1 says do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God. We must develop spiritual discernment if we want to be victorious over the enemy. One of the 9 manifestations of the Spirit spoken of 1 Corinthians chapter 12 is the ability to distinguish between spirits or some translations called it the discerning of spirits.
This brings us to the third enemy in regards to spiritual warfare and that is the flesh.
Satan and the world can be termed enemies from without, who come against us through the avenue of persecution, deception, temptation and all types of assaults. However, the flesh is where the rubber meets the road. The flesh could be termed the enemy within if we allow it to dominate our spiritual lives.
Discipleship is a pathway of learning how to deal with the flesh, but we have to first get an understanding of what is the flesh from a Biblical perspective?
As we look at the Bible we will soon discover that many times in scripture the word flesh is not necessarily referring to our physical body. You have to look at the context in which the word is being used to determine if it is referring merely to our human body as in II Corinthians chapter 7 verse 1, the outward ordinances of the Mosaic Law as in Galatians chapter 3 verse 3 or man living independent of the redeeming work of Christ as in Romans chapter 8 verse 8.
The Gnostics were a heretical group during the first century, which taught a false concept concerning the makeup of man and the material world. John in his gospel and epistle confronted the false doctrine that the material world is evil. Gnosticism had many variations, but it basically taught that anything that was material or of this physical world was evil, yet everything of the spirit was good, therefore Jesus could not have come in a human body. It’s why John said in I John chapter 4 verse 2 that by this you know the Spirit of God, every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God.
The practical result of the gnostic doctrine in the early church and today is that people teach that your physical body is evil.
The result leads you to either give in to the unrestrained cravings of our unredeemed bodies, since we are powerless to overcome or to live as an ascetic monk brutalizing the body bringing it into subjection through self effort, since to enjoy the material world is evil.
I want us to take a holistic approach which recognizes that although this present evil age has been corrupted by sin and is under satanic control we are not to live lives detached from creation. Jesus came to redeem not just mankind, but eventually even the created order itself.
We are to live in this world, which means we can enjoy ourselves without being subject to its idolizing pleasures and corrupting practices.
Jesus himself as the pattern son gave us an example to follow. Jesus demonstrated that spirituality is not detaching ourselves from life's experiences or withdrawing from our communities. We don’t have to withdraw into our own communities having no contact with the corrupt outside world to live godly lives. We are to affirm creation by finding a sense of holiness in the here and now without having divisions between the sacred and secular in our lives.
The makeup of man is debated in modern Psychology, but it really is an ancient debate. In Hebraic thought, the soul refers to the whole person or individual as a living being.
I Thessalonians chapter 5 verse 23 teaches that man is a triune being made up of spirit, soul and body. I’ve heard it said that I am a spirit, who has a soul that lives in body. Looking at the tri-unity of man helps us to understand that we are a spiritual being that lives in a body. Paul called our body a temple or a clay jar that houses our true self made in the image of God. Man is one whole unit and we are to function as a person living wholly to God.
Paul likened the Christian to a soldier, but the war is not against people made of flesh and blood. Colossians chapter 2 verse 15 says, Jesus disarmed the rulers and authorities of spiritual darkness triumphing over them through the cross. In the Moffat's Translation of the Bible, in I Corinthians chapter 2 verse 6 it says that Satan and all of his demon forces have been dethroned. The decisive victory against Satan and his demons has been won. Satan has no authority over the believer, unless the believer gives him access through disobedience, ignorance or a failure to exercise the authority of Christ.
It’s in the book of Ephesians that Paul lays out a blueprint for the ekklesia to operate during this age.
The Holy Spirit wants the eyes of our hearts opened to understand Jesus' complete victory over Satan in the triumph of the cross. The Last Adam, Christ has been given all authority in heaven and on earth commissioning the church to make disciples and has given us the keys to unlock the prisoners. God created man to rule the earth under His heavenly rule. It’s the reason God became man because if God or Satan wants to carry out their plans in this earthly realm they need a human body.
Paul opens up the book of Ephesians with this apostolic prayer of wisdom and revelation to know our place joined to the throne of grace. Paul ends the book of Ephesians with a detailed message about spiritual warfare.
Ephesians chapter 6 verses 11 Paul instructs us to put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. As I said earlier, the Greek word for schemes is methodia from which we get the English word method. Paul then said in verse 12 thru 13 that we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day and having done all, to stand firm.
If you study many spiritual warfare teachings today then you hear all kinds of things like spiritual mapping, identifying principalities by name and what I consider a mystical over emphasis focusing on spiritual darkness. Paul doesn’t tell us to do any of those things and as we’ll look in the next lesson that the disciples throughout the 30 years of the book of Acts didn’t mention any of those things, but focused on the main mission which is prayer and proclaiming the crucified Christ, who was raised from the dead. The mission of Satan with the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places is to steal, kill and destroy. Their schemes are deceit, strife, immorality, lying, accusations, division, addiction, pride and every other evil work. Let’s take a look at what Paul calls the armor of God and how it relates to spiritual warfare.
Paul wrote the book of Ephesians in prison guarded by Roman soldiers. As he stared at their armor and weaponry each day, the Holy Spirit presented him with a living illustration of the spiritual warfare we are engaged in daily.
Remember repetition is one of the keys to learning. The spiritual truth that Paul explains using the Roman Soldiers armor was him reminding us of things he had already taught.
If you have been actually going through this school then I’ve covered all of this information in detail. Ephesians chapter 6 verses 14 thru 18 describes the spiritual armor we have been provided to fight in the spiritual battle of this present evil age. I want to go through each piece; because it’s our responsibility to use the spiritual protection God has provided.
Paul tells us first of all to stand firm and not give ground to the enemy. Historians believe that Roman Soldiers wore shoes with spikes on the soles and sides, allowing them to stand really firm and keep their balance – even on ground that was uneven or difficult to navigate. The focus of the cruciform life is the only thing that will keep us rooted, balanced and standing firm. Only when we’re standing in Christ, can we stay steady in the storms of this life and fulfill the will of God. It’s why I’ve focused this school on being grounded in Christ our foundation, because as we look at the armor, Paul is reiterating our need to focus on the basics.
Paul tells us to first fasten on the belt of truth. The American Standard version says having girded your loins with truth. We don't use the word loins anymore, but it’s one of the strongest parts of your body. It’s why strengthening the core or center of the body is important for athletes. The Roman soldiers belt wasn’t a little two or three-inch belt, it was a four to six-inch wide leather belt. Strapped on his belt were little tassels hanging down in front of the groin which were weighted so it gave him some protection from the low blows. Think about if you are in a fight and you get a cheap shot hit below the belt, it’ll take you down. Remember spiritual darkness doesn’t fight fair.
The loins are where the seat of emotions dwell.
I want to remember a time when you got really angry. The emotions come from deep inside. How about lust? Paul called it burning with passion and it’s directly tied to our emotions. Peter said the passions of the flesh wage war against your soul. Just like a belt holds much of the clothing of a man together, so did the belt of a soldier. Much of his armor was held firmly in place with that belt.
We are told to wrap our emotions with the truth because our emotions will lie to us.
If you allow the enemy to penetrate your emotions then it’ll affect every other area of your life. Truth is more than just knowing the Bible. It’s allowing the Holy Spirit to fill us and yielding our inner man in complete surrender so that we are true to God and true to ourselves. If you want more details on this subject go to Lesson 10: A Lifestyle of Repentance Part I and Part II.
Paul then tells us to put on the breastplate of righteousness. The breastplate served as protection for some of the most important parts of the body. Underneath the breastplate is the heart, lungs and other organs necessary for life. Righteousness is about identifying with the blood of Christ. Condemnation and guilt are two deadly weapons Satan uses to try to bring us down. It’s the first foundational doctrine which is repentance from dead works. It’s about applying the blood of Christ, knowing that it’s all about what Christ has done for us and how it’s only because of him working in us that we are righteous. It’s knowing our forgiveness and casting down any false accusations that come against our hearts. If you want more details on this subject go to Lesson 9: Saving Faith.
Paul then tells us to put on our feet the readiness given by the gospel of peace. Satan loves to cause strife and to divide. We are called to be peacemakers because we are grounded in the forgiveness of Christ. We don’t fight against flesh and blood so that means we are to live at peace with other people as much as possible.
Our ministry is one of reconciliation, showing mercy and bringing peace wherever we can.
The gospel is about reconciling men to God and one another. Jesus said blessed are the peacemakers. Romans chapter 16 verse 20 says the God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. We must let the peace of God rule in our hearts. If you want more details on this subject go to Lesson 37: A Life Of Mercy.
Paul then tells us to take up the shield of faith. The Roman battle shield was shaped like a door, long and wide and completely covered the soldier. The massive shield of the Roman soldier rested on a small clip on his belt when it was not in use.
That little clip where the shield rested is symbolic of the word of God because your faith is attached to the word of God.
If you fail to give the Word of God a place of priority in your life then it’s only a matter of time before your faith will begin to dwindle. The presence or absence of faith is determined by the presence or absence of God's word dwelling in your heart. It’s an amazing reality that everything that we can see, hear, smell, touch and taste with our five senses was made out of what you can’t see.
Faith is the channel by which we pull the unseen into the seen and it’s the unseen hand of God that is a shield of protection.
You can’t see it with your eyes, but you see its effect in the heart of man. When we live out our faith in this world the kingdom of darkness is exposed, peoples eyes are opened, chains of addiction and darkness are destroyed as we live and speak the word of God. Faith is the means by which the spiritual man operates. Faith could be called the mouth, hands and feet of the spiritual man releasing the life of God from the inside out. It’s through faith that the unseen realm of the kingdom is quenching every fiery dart the enemy throws in our direction. If you want more details on this subject go to Lesson 12: The Victory Of Faith.
Now the last piece of armor Paul mentions is the helmet of salvation. The greatest battle the enemy brings against us is in our minds. As I said earlier, one of our greatest battles is the battlefield of the mind and it’s what we call information warfare. What you consume is what you become and if you continuously 'consume bad news' then you will become fearful and angry. If you 'consume pornography' then you will struggle with lust. It’s why we have to continually remind ourselves of who we are in Christ and the authority he has given us over the enemy. If you want more details on this subject go to Lesson 13: Baptism Into The Body.
The only offensive weapon Paul listed is the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. The word is to be upon our lips. The instruction to take the sword of the Spirit which is the word of God is not a reference to the whole Bible, but to the individual scripture which the Spirit brings to our remembrance for use in a time of need. The Holy Spirit will breathe upon our hearts to bring the word alive to us, so that it becomes not just a word, but our own personal word.
The sword of the Spirit is a specific word for a specific situation we are facing in life.
It’s what Jesus was saying when he said that man does not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God. It’s by the sword of the Spirit that faith is released so needs will be met, bodies will be healed, lives will be changed and God’s divine direction will be given. Christ is more than a book He is alive. Jesus said that: the words which I speak they are spirit and they are life. We must move beyond a mere intellectual study of the word, which is important to the word of God working in and through us.
Paul then tells us to pray at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. In the next lesson we are going to get into the offensive weapons of spiritual warfare for the advancing ekklesia which is penetrating the enemy's territory.
The offensive weapons are prayer and proclamation of the gospel.
The full armor of God is about being joined to the heavenly victory of Christ. It’s simply our foundation which is the joining together of God's space and man’s space. The intersection of the heavenly and the earthly. It’s coming up to the higher ground of the heavenly realm where all authority in heaven and on earth has been given. It’s about putting off the old man and taking up the cruciform life of Christ in you. It’s only from this place of union that you can be victorious and as disciples of Christ going forth setting captives free.
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Next Lesson: Lesson 41 - Part II Spiritual Warfare
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