SPIRITUAL WARFARE (is not against people) - PART I

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For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world
Ephesians 6:12



We all remember the story from the book of Matthew, where  Jesus had a discussion with satan when He was fasting for 40 days.


(then) the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him
all the kingdoms of the world and their splendour
(and said) “All this I will give you if you will bow down and worship me.” 
and Jesus said to him,
"Away from me, Satan! For it is written: 'Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only'"
Matthew 4:8-10



We all can agree that Jesus' response was effective in shutting down satan.
However, I wonder, why did Jesus not ridicule satan when he was claiming ownership of this world and its splendour?


Because Jesus knew that satan was right!




This world is ruled by Satan and his rulers, authorities, powers and principalities. Jesus' response to satan was subtle coz He knew that the battle against satan and his powers cannot be won, by arguing with him but with the magnanimous plan the LORD had for the world that He would fulfil with His own death and resurrection.


So In What Ways Did Jesus Achieve Victory over the Devil?

Jesus's victory over the Devil was not in exterminating him (coz there is a time fixed for that). But Jesus's victory was in giving us the spirit to fight the devil till His Second Coming.



So, what comes to your mind, when I say Spiritual warfare?
Do you get images of Angels and satan's minions in armour fighting with swords on a battlefield?

You might be right!






Daniel forbearance

Let's look at Daniel's story and observe what "The Messenger" said in Chapter 10.

A messenger of God appeared to Daniel after his 21 days of fasting and mourning (and prayer) and the messenger says: "Daniel your prayers have been heard from the very beginning:  But the prince of the kingdom of Persia was withstanding me for twenty-one days; then behold, Michael, one of the Arch-Angels, came to help me, for I had been left there with the kings of Persia."
- Daniel 10:13


Who is this prince of Persia? Was he human? How could he stop a messenger of God? How could he be stopped by the Arch Angel Michael alone?

The word prince is translated as “captain” The picture seems to be that a plurality of demonic kings over Persia sent their captain to capture the angelic messenger.


If you go back to Daniel's earlier petitions in Chapter 9 and see how instant the response from the messenger was. In Verse 21 we read: 


“While I was speaking in prayer, the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at first, came to me in swift flight at the time of the evening sacrifice.”
- Daniel‬ ‭9‬:‭21‬


Lessons from Daniel 10:13 

  1. Even a Prophet like Daniel had to wait for an answer from God

  2. Even Messengers of God can be attacked. Not by humans but by the demonic kings, captains and princes

  3. The expressions 'swift flight' reminds us how instant God's answers can be

  4. However, in Chapter 10, even though God heard Daniel's prayers, it took 21 days for the messenger to reach Daniel

  5. The Arch-Angel Michael's intervention in that battle reminds us that there is perennial warfare happening in the spiritual realm

  6. Many of those battles don't even come to us

  7. But when God involves us in some battles, our weapon is "praise and worship and trust and fervent prayers

  8. Daniel's 21 days of fasting and praying made it easy to win the battle

  9. The designation of prince or captain in this story is to remind us of the hierarchical structure in the demonic kingdom; and

  10. That satan is just one 'fallen angel'. However, he has recruited millions of angels who followed him and created an organized network


Understanding Satan's Network


There is spiritual warfare is happening most of the time and in most of our lives.

Many times it happens right before or after a spiritual manifestation of God in your life.

However, we shouldn't call everything spiritual warfare, but recognize that sometimes there might be a spiritual battle behind what you are going through.



Lessons from Ephesians 6:12


"For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places."

Paul's letter to Ephesians Church describes the very network of Satan understood only by a keen observer.

So what are these Principalities, Powers, rulers of darkness, spiritual hosts of wickedness in heavenly places?




This article is already too long, let's talk about this another time.