An Introduction To Spiritual Warfare (Part 2) All Team Training 10.11.16 Recap From Part 1 Two Ditches Two Avoid: (1) Obsessive Preoccupation (2) Complacent Indifference Four Realities Of Spiritual Warfare: (1) We Live In A Spiritual World (2) We Are In A Spiritual War (3) Our Spiritual Enemy Is Powerful NOT DUALISM (4) Our Spiritual Enemy Has Been Defeated & Will Be Destroyed Understanding Our Spiritual Enemy: Satan The Creation Of Satan He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities all things were created through him and for him. Colossians 1:15-16 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. John 1:1-3 The Fall Of Satan Traditionally, people point to two different Old Testament passages that they assume describe Satan s original fall > Isaiah 14:12-15 and Ezekiel 28:12-19 However, Isaiah 14 is referring strictly to the king of Babylon (most likely Sennacherib) and Ezekiel 28 is referring to the earthly king of Tyre When did Satan fall? The Bible gives us no clear answer to this question. It could have either occurred before Genesis 1:1 or right before he approached Eve in the garden The Characteristics Of Satan He is powerful, but not OMNIPOTENT He is intelligent, but not OMNISCIENT He is active, but not OMNIPRESENT
The Activities Of Satan (1) Satan Works In Active Opposition To The Gospel And even 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, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. 2 Corinthians 4:3-4 Sinful Rejection Of God Has Two Factors: Sinful Self-Resistance Of Jesus Satanic Hardening / Blinding Before we ever arrive on the scene with the gospel, Satan is exerting a stupefying influence on the mind of the unbeliever. In other words, we face more than merely intellectual obstacles. We face supernatural opposition. Sam Storms (2) Satan s Attacks Are Often The Source Of Sickness you yourselves know what happened throughout all Judea, beginning from Galilee after the baptism that John proclaimed: how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him. Acts 10:37-38 That evening they brought to him many who were oppressed by demons, and he cast out the spirits with a word and healed all who were sick. Matthew 8:16 And someone from the crowd answered him, Teacher, I brought my son to you, for he has a spirit that makes him mute. And whenever it seizes him, it throws him down, and he foams and grinds his teeth and becomes rigid Mark 9:17-18 Now he was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath. And behold, there was a woman who had had a disabling spirit for eighteen years. She was bent over and could not fully straighten herself. When Jesus saw her, he called her over and said to her, Woman, you are freed from your disability. And he laid his hands on her, and immediately she was made straight, and she glorified God. But the ruler of the synagogue, indignant because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath, said to the people, There are six days in which work ought to be done. Come on those days and be healed, and not on the Sabbath day. Then the Lord answered him, You hypocrites! Does not each of you on the Sabbath untie his ox or his donkey from the manger and lead it away to water it? And ought not this woman, a daughter of Abraham whom Satan bound for eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath day? As he said these things, all his adversaries were put to shame, and all the people rejoiced at all the glorious things that were done by him. Luke 13:10-17 (3) He Can Bring About Death & The Paralyzing Fear Of Death See Job 1:6-19 (4) Satan Plants Sinful Plans & Purposes In The Hearts Of People
During supper, when the devil had already put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, to betray him, Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he had come from God and was going back to God, rose from supper John 13:2-4 But a man named Ananias, with his wife Sapphira, sold a piece of property, and with his wife's knowledge he kept back for himself some of the proceeds and brought only a part of it and laid it at the apostles' feet. But Peter said, Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to keep back for yourself part of the proceeds of the land? Acts 5:1-3 (5) Satan Plants His Own People In The Church Then he left the crowds and went into the house. And his disciples came to him, saying, Explain to us the parable of the weeds of the field. He answered, The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man. The field is the world, and the good seed is the sons of the kingdom. The weeds are the sons of the evil one, and the enemy who sowed them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are angels. Matthew 13:36-39 (6) Satan Incites Persecution, Imprisonment, & The Political Oppression Of Christians Do not fear what you are about to suffer. Behold, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and for ten days you will have tribulation. Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. The one who conquers will not be hurt by the second death. Revelation 2:10-11 (7) Satan Accuses Christians Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the LORD, and Satan standing at his right hand to accuse him. And the LORD said to Satan, The LORD rebuke you, O Satan! The LORD who has chosen Jerusalem rebuke you! Is not this a brand plucked from the fire? Zechariah 3:1-2 And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come, for the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our God. Revelation 12:10 (8) Satan Performs Signs & Wonders To Deceive The Nations The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders, and with all wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. Therefore God sends them a strong delusion, so that they may believe what is false, in order that all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness. 2 Thessalonians 2:9-12 (9) Satan Promotes False Teaching Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons, through the insincerity of liars whose consciences are seared, who forbid marriage and require abstinence from foods that God
created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth. 1 Timothy 4:1-3 (10) Satan Energizes & Influences The Thoughts & Actions Of Unbelievers And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience Ephesians 2:1-2 (11) Satan Tempts Married Christians In Regards To Their Sexual Relationship Do not deprive one another, except perhaps by agreement for a limited time, that you may devote yourselves to prayer; but then come together again, so that Satan may not tempt you because of your lack of self-control. 1 Corinthians 7:5 (12) Satan Tempts God s People To Sin Then Satan stood against Israel and incited David to number Israel. 1 Chronicles 21:1 For this reason, when I could bear it no longer, I sent to learn about your faith, for fear that somehow the tempter had tempted you and our labor would be in vain. 1 Thessalonians 3:5 Understanding Our Spiritual Enemy: Demons Common Terms For Demons In The New Testament (1) Demons used 63 times, (54 of which are in the gospels) (2) Spirits / Unclean Spirits used 21 times (half of which are in Mark) (3) Evil Spirits used 8 times (4) Angels Then he will say to those on his left, Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. Matthew 25:41 The Characteristics & Activities Of Demons (1) It s Reasonable To Assume That Each Demon Has A Name Demons are rarely named in the New Testament (See Luke 8:30 regarding Legion ) Holy Angels have names (Gabriel, Michael, etc)
(2) Demons Can Communicate To Humans Then some of the itinerant Jewish exorcists undertook to invoke the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits, saying, I adjure you by the Jesus whom Paul proclaims. Seven sons of a Jewish high priest named Sceva were doing this. But the evil spirit answered them, Jesus I know, and Paul I recognize, but who are you? Acts 19:13-15 And in the synagogue there was a man who had the spirit of an unclean demon, and he cried out with a loud voice, Ha! What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are the Holy One of God. Luke 4:33-34 (3) Demons Are Intelligent See Acts 19:13-15 (4) Demons Have Emotions & Experience Feelings When he saw Jesus, he cried out and fell down before him and said with a loud voice, What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg you, do not torment me. Luke 8:28 (5) Like Angels, Demons Can Appear To Humans In A Variety Of Forms, Both Physical & Spiritual (6) Demons Can Provide Their Victims With Super-Human Strength And when Jesus had stepped out of the boat, immediately there met him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit. He lived among the tombs. And no one could bind him anymore, not even with a chain, for he had often been bound with shackles and chains, but he wrenched the chains apart, and he broke the shackles in pieces. No one had the strength to subdue him. Mark 5:2-4 But the evil spirit answered them, Jesus I know, and Paul I recognize, but who are you? And the man in whom was the evil spirit leaped on them, mastered all of them and overpowered them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded. Acts 19:15-16 (7) Demons Can Physically Assault Someone And when they came to the crowd, a man came up to him and, kneeling before him, said, Lord, have mercy on my son, for he has seizures and he suffers terribly. For often he falls into the fire, and often into the water. Matthew 17:14-15 (8) Demons Create & Propagate False Doctrine / Doctrinal Distortions See 1 Timothy 4:1-3 Not all doctrinal distortions are merely the product of human misunderstanding
(9) Demons Are Behind Every Non-Christian Religion Consider the people of Israel: are not those who eat the sacrifices participants in the altar? What do I imply then? That food offered to idols is anything, or that an idol is anything? No, I imply that what pagans sacrifice they offer to demons and not to God. I do not want you to be participants with demons. You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons. You cannot partake of the table of the Lord and the table of demons. Shall we provoke the Lord to jealousy? Are we stronger than he? 1 Corinthians 10:18-22 In the same way we also, when we were children, were enslaved to the elementary principles of the world.formerly, when you did not know God, you were enslaved to those that by nature are not gods. But now that you have come to know God, or rather to be known by God, how can you turn back again to the weak and worthless elementary principles of the world, whose slaves you want to be once more? Galatians 4:3, 8-9 The Idols that Israel worshipped in the Old Testament were, in fact, demons (See Deuteronomy 32:17; Psalm 96:4-5; Psalm 106:36-37) Muhammad Visited by Gabriel in a cave Joseph Smith, Mormonism