Spiritual Warfare
Who’s against us?
Ephesians 6:12 (CSB), “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this darkness, against evil, spiritual forces in the heavens.”
Colossians 1:15-16 (CSB), “He [Christ] is the image of the invisible God,
the firstborn over all creation. For everything was created by him, in heaven and on earth, the visible and the invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things have been created through him and for him.”
Deuteronomy 32:8-12 (ESV), ”When the Most High gave to the nations their inheritance, when he divided mankind, he fixed the borders of the peoples according to the number of the sons of God. But the Lord's portion is his people, Jacob his allotted heritage. He found him in a desert land…the Lord alone guided him, no foreign god was with him.”
Luke 4:5-6 (CSB), “So he took him [Jesus] up and showed him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. The devil said to him, ‘I will give you their splendor and all this authority, because it has been given over to me, and I can give it to anyone I want.’”
Ephesians 6:11 (CSB), “Put on the full armor of God so that you can stand against the schemes of the devil.”
Revelation 12:9 (CSB), “So the great dragon was thrown out—the ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the one who deceives the whole world. He was thrown to earth, and his angels with him.”
διάβολος - Devil, slanderer
שָׂטָן - Satan, adversary
Why are they against us?
What’s their battle plan?
2 Corinthians 4:3-4 (CSB), “But if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. In their case, the god of this age 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.”
1 Peter 5:6-9 (CSB), “Be sober-minded, be alert. Your adversary the devil is prowling around like a roaring lion, looking for anyone he can devour.”
John 8:44 (CSB), “You are of your father the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he tells a lie, he speaks from his own nature, because he is a liar and the father of lies.”
How do we fight back?
Ephesians 6:10–17 (CSB), “Finally, be strengthened by the Lord and by his vast strength. Put on the full armor of God so that you can stand against the schemes of the devil. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this darkness, against evil, spiritual forces in the heavens. For this reason take up the full armor of God, so that you may be able to resist in the evil day, and having prepared everything, to take your stand. Stand, therefore, with truth like a belt around your waist, righteousness like armor on your chest, and your feet sandaled with readiness for the gospel of peace. In every situation take up the shield of faith with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit—which is the word of God.”
Colossians 2:14-15 (CSB), “He [Christ] erased the certificate of debt, with its obligations, that was against us and opposed to us, and has taken it away by nailing it to the cross. He disarmed the rulers and authorities and disgraced them publicly; he triumphed over them in him.”
Romans 8:37-29 (CSB), “…we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”