Spiritual WarfareHow shall we conduct spiritual warfare?

Many Christians suppose they can directly engage the evil one, rebuking him in the name of the Lord. Yet even Michael the archangel did not directly rebuke the devil (Jude 9). Instead of tossing slogans at Satan, which does no good at all, Christians should take their case to the Lord directly. Notice the formula from Eph. 6:10-18:

  1. Be strong in the Lord, fully relying upon His strength and the wisdom of His Word (v. 10).
  2. Adorn the entire armor of God as specified in Scripture (vv. 11, 13)
  3. Understand the nature of our battle: spiritual. Therefore be prepared! (vv. 12, 15).
  4. Take a stand against evil, by cleaving to the truth, relying on the finished work of Christ as your righteousness, and by living a righteous life as modeled by Christ (v. 14, see also 1 John 2:6).
  5. Trust in God and His Word (v. 16).
  6. Rely completely upon your salvation in Christ and God's Word (v. 17)
  7. Pray continually (v. 18).

In addition to Paul's formula above, remember to confess all known sin, maintain a regular quiet time and guard that time, fellowship with God's people in regular worship and service, and humbly seek God's face daily and in time of special need.

Satan and Demons

Origin

Some angels did not keep their first estate (Jude 6; 2 Pet. 2:4) and are called "angels that sinned." We don't know why they fell, but pride may have played a role (at least it appears to be true of Satan).

"He must not be a recent convert, or he may become puffed up with conceit and fall into the condemnation of the devil" (1 Timothy 3:6).

They perform the bidding of "Satan" (or "the adversary") also called the "devil", the great enemy of God.

Sometime between original creation and the fall of man (Gen. 3:1-5), Satan must have rebelled against God, taking with him the host of angels, now fallen.

"For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but cast them into hell and committed them to chains of gloomy darkness to be kept until the judgment..." (2 Peter 2:4).

"And the angels who did not stay within their own position of authority, but left their proper dwelling, he has kept in eternal chains under gloomy darkness until the judgment of the great day" (Jude 6).

"How you are fallen from heaven, O Day Star, son of Dawn! How you are cut down to the ground, you who laid the nations low! You said in your heart, 'I will ascend to heaven; above the stars of God I will set my throne on high; I will sit on the mount of assembly in the far reaches of the north; I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.' But you are brought down to Sheol, to the far reaches of the pit" (Isaiah 14:12-15).

This last reference is a possible allusion to Satan's fall, but that cannot be demonstrated with any degree of certainty. If so, it identifies pride as the motive for his fall. The Bible does not specifically describe the fall of Satan and his demons.

Satan

"Satan" means "adversary" in the Hebrew, a term both testaments use. (1 Chron. 21:1; Zech. 3:1; Matt. 4:10; Luke 10:18). The common term "devil" is only used in the New Testament. He is also known as "Be-elzebub" (Luke 11:15), "the ruler of this world" (John 12:31; 14:30), "the prince of the power of the air" (Eph. 2:2), and the "evil one" (1 John 2:13).

Activity of Satan and Demons

Satan and his demonic emissaries seek to subvert the purposes of God and allure people away from God (Zech 3:1; Eph. 6:16; John 8:44; Rev. 12:9; 2 Cor. 4:4).

Limited Power

  1. God must grant them permission for them to do their evil deeds

    2. "And Micaiah said, 'Therefore hear the word of the LORD: I saw the LORD sitting on his throne, and all the host of heaven standing beside him on his right hand and on his left; and the LORD said, 'Who will entice Ahab, that he may go up and fall at Ramoth-gilead?' And one said one thing, and another said another. Then a spirit came forward and stood before the LORD, saying, 'I will entice him.' And the LORD said to him, 'By what means?' And he said, 'I will go out, and will be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets.' And he said, 'You are to entice him, and you shall succeed; go out and do so.' Now therefore behold, the LORD has put a lying spirit in the mouth of all these your prophets; the LORD has declared disaster for you" (1 Kings 22:19-23).

    "And the LORD said to Satan, 'Behold, all that he has is in your hand. Only against him do not stretch out your hand.' So Satan went out from the presence of the LORD" (Job 1:12).

  2. Demons are "chained"

    3. "And the angels who did not stay within their own position of authority, but left their proper dwelling, he has kept in eternal chains under gloomy darkness until the judgment of the great day" (Jude 6).

  3. Christians can resist Satan and his demons

    4. "For 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. Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints" (Eph. 6:12-18).

    "Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you" (James 4:7).

"We should not think that demons can know the future or that they can read our minds or know our thoughts" (Gruden, Systematic Theology, 415). See 1 Kings 8:39; John 2:25. The Bible never indicates that Satan or his demons can tell the future, something known only to God.

"Remember the former things of old; for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me, declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, 'My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose' " (Isaiah 46:9-10).

We should note that demons do study and observe us, detecting our weaknesses and unique temptations. Because they have been there before we were born, they have had the time and opportunity to examine our lives and those things that trip us up. But they cannot read our minds or know for certain the thoughts and intents of our hearts.

Satan and His Demonic Forces Are Doomed

The universal witness of Scriptures declares Satan as a doomed foe. From the very beginning of man's creation, God predicted Satan's doom by the hands of the seed of the woman, Christ (Gen. 3:15). The following verses also describe or imply the final destruction of Satan:

"Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil" (1 John 3:8).

"And he said to them, 'I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven' " (Luke 10:18).

"Now is the judgment of this world; now will the ruler of this world be cast out" (John 12:31).

"I will no longer talk much with you, for the ruler of this world is coming. He has no claim on me" (John 14:30).

"Concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged" (John 16:11).

"The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you" (Rom. 16:20).

"I am writing to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning. I am writing to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one. I write to you, children, because you know the Father" (1 John 2:13).

"Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil" (1 John 3:8).

"We know that everyone who has been born of God does not keep on sinning, but he who was born of God protects him, and the evil one does not touch him" (1 John 5:18).

"And he seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years,...and the devil who had deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur where the beast and the false prophet were, and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever" (Rev. 20: 2, 10).