Spiritual Warfare

"We do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against...spiritual wickedness in heavenly places..."

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Ever since The Exorcist, modern society has been intrigued by the prospect of unseen forces wielding power. The eternal fight between Good and Evil.

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But the problem with this fascination is that tends toward the scintillating. Evil is presented as either a dark power with tantalizing possibilities or as a wild force that cannot be contained by anyone. Neither approach is truth.

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The Bible has a great deal to say about the realities of the unseen world and I have dealt personally with it for the past two weeks. Not by choice, but by appointment. And the battle is far from over.

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As the teacher of a Sunday evening spiritual growth class, I felt led by God to delve into the realm of spiritual warfare. I have had frequent dealings with it lately as part of my counseling ministry and am becoming aware of how much demonic forces are involved in holding mankind captive.

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It began the day I decided that the next week I would teach on the person of Satan and how to recognize his tactics. Out of the blue, deep depression hit me like a swarm of bats. For three days I struggled under the weight of thoughts, moods, and suggestions that were not mine. Wave after wave of emotional and psychological darkness flooded me until I could hardly think.

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I'm ashamed to admit that it took me so long to figure out what was going on. Here I was preparing to teach a class on Satan's devices, and I was all but ready to quit my class and the counseling ministry because of one of them. Then the light clicked on.

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"Wait a minute! Wait just one minute..." Clarity hit as forcefully as the depression had done. "I get it! I'm about to teach on spiritual warfare and somebody doesn't like that."

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Once I understood, I knew what to do. By the next morning, it was all gone.

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The next week, things were fine. I wondered if he'd given up until Sunday morning. During services, pain struck my abdomen. An old pain I had not had trouble with in 15 years struck with a force that took my breath away. I was doubled up all day, praying it would leave before 6:00.

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"Lord? Do you want me to cancel class tonight? Is this from you?"

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"No and no."

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"Then, Satan, you're up to your tricks again. God has told me not to postpone the class, so I'm going if I have to prop myself upright. You cannot defeat me. God will be my strength."

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I hurt right up until I stood before the class, then the pain left for the hour and a half that I taught my little flock about spiritual warfare and wearing the Belt of Truth. Three ladies came up to me afterwards to tell how desperately they needed to hear this teaching, as they were struggling with such oppression.

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As I walked to my car after class, the pain hit like a sledgehammer again. All the way home, I debated going to Urgent Care. I took two steps into my house and crumpled to the floor and cried out as twisting pain shot through me. Then it was gone. Completely.

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When I rose, I was fine. Satan had his last kick before taking off.

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When we set our hearts to seek God and serve him, Satan screams with hate. Defensive battle is hard enough, but when we go on the offense, speaking God's truth into the lives of others, he goes crazy. I know for a certainty that there are some in my class who desperately needed this information. Some who are under Satanic oppression and feel helpless to resist. To learn how to stand firm, how to defeat the enemy was like I'd thrown them a life raft. Satan was about to lose them and he was determined to stop it.

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Taking on the enemy can be difficult, painful, and irritating. He is not a gracious loser. How thankful I am to know that "the weapons of our warfare are not fleshly, but spiritual for the destruction of fortresses."

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The enemy may get a few jabs in, but God always wins. New hearts were freed, more shackles fell off, and victory continues to spread like wildfire. Spiritual warfare is worth it, but don't expect it to be easy.

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