A Quick Primer on Spiritual Warfare

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A Quick Primer On Spiritual Warfare

Copyright John Edmiston 2003 but may be copied & distributed for non-profit use.

Introduction
The following short handbook covers the basics of spiritual warfare in the Filipino context. It is designed to be a handy reference work for pastors, elders, and missionaries and lay preachers. It covers most of the main topics in a concise form and is an assembling of various articles I have written over the years massaged into book form. It is from a bible-believing, born-again, charismatic Christian perspective but most Christians should find it helpful and it does not push any particularly divisive doctrines. The first section deals with the nature of the spiritual realms and the place of Christians in them and the nature of religions versus Christianity. Then we examine issues such as astrology, the occult, curses, hexes and spells, deliverance ministry. We then look at how to acquire and exert spiritual authority and do spiritual battle and cover a spiritual armory and how to use our weapons and the blood of Christ and be baptized in the Holy Spirit. Lastly we move into the topics of deliverance ministry and some of the “weird stuff” such as the nature and types of angels and demons.. There is an index at the end to help you find your way around.

The Battle

Spiritual warfare is a battle between the kingdom of darkness ruled by Satan and the kingdom of light ruled by God and His Son Jesus Christ. The weapons of this warfare are not fleshly human weapons but spiritual weapons such as truth and righteousness, blessings and curses, forgiveness and repentance. The battle involves an intense wrestling with powers and principalities “in the heavenly realms” from which Christians need protection. (Ephesians 6:10-18, 2 Corinthians 10:3-5, Colossians 1:13, Revelations 12:1-17)

THE THREE HEAVENS AND THE EIGHT SPIRITUAL REALMS

The word Heaven is plural “shamayim” or “ouranoi” (Gk). There are three heavens or “shamayim” mentioned in Scripture.

The first heaven is where “the birds of the heavens” fly. (Genesis 1:20, Psalm 104:12, Daniel 2:38)

The mid-heaven or second heaven is where the angels fly and do battle. (Revelation 12:4-12, 14:6,7)

The third heaven is where Paul or the person He knew was “caught up to” heard “inexpressible things” (2 Corinthians 12:2 NKJV) and is probably where Satan was first dwelling before he fell.

The Bible describes eight main spiritual realms:

Above the Heavens – where God’s glory dwells and where Satan once aimed to be. (Psalm 8:1, 108:4,5, Ephesians 1:20, 4:10, Isaiah 14:12-14)

Third Heaven (2 Corinthians 12:2) – the Throne, where Paul went and heard holy things.

Second Heaven (Revelation 12:4-12, 14:6,7) –Where Satan and fallen angels first fell to and demons are fighting for now.
First Heaven (Genesis 1:20, Psalm 104:12, Daniel 2:38) – birds dwell, Satan dwells as prince of the power of the air since the cross.
Earth esp. “The Face Of The Earth” (Genesis 6:1, Acts 17:26Job 1:7,2:2, 1 Peter 5:8) – the place of human habitation, also where Satan prowls, and will be cast down to in the end times.
The Grave/Under The Earth /In The Sea/The Deep (Genesis 1:2, Exodus 20:4, Deuteronomy 5:8, Job 28:14, Philippians 2:10, Revelation 5:3) – the place human bodies, some righteous souls before the cross, and the strange creatures of the deep dwell. In 1 Samuel 28:15 the prophet is “brought up” by the witch of Endor. In Matthew 27:52,53 there is a partial resurrection of the righteous OT saints “from the graves”.
Abyss/the Bottomless Pit/Hell (Isaiah 14:11-15; Numbers 16:33, Ezekiel 32:15-18 Luke 8:31, 10:7, Revelation 9:1,2; 20:1-3) – presently where the souls of the disgraced dead and confined demons dwell
The Lake of Fire (Revelation 19;20, 20:10-15) – a future place of eternal punishment prepared for the Devil and his angels and those who accept the mark of the Beast.

“Sheol” is a general Hebrew term covering the entire world of the dead. Luke 16 indicates that Abraham’s bosom is a place of comfort in the OT world of the dead. Job indicates that some of the dead experienced rest and reunion with relatives hence the term ‘gathered to one’s people”. (Job 3:17-22, Genesis 15:15, 25:8,17; Deut 32:50).

Abbadon or Destruction (Gk Apollyon) is the name of the angel that guards the Pit (Revelation 9:11) and thus Hell is given the name Abaddon in Job 26:6, 28:22, Proverbs 15;11. It is seen as a place of silence, loss of identity and oblivion as well as of torment. There is no knowledge of God just active torment and judgment. (Pslam 6:5, 88:12, Deut 32:22) God’s Presence is till there – as wrath. (Psalm 139;8)

Tartarus was the legendary Greek place of extreme torment. 2 Peter 2:4 indicates that the rebellious demons were confined here. It seems equivalent to the Pit.

What Happens When Christians Die
Christians are already “seated in heavenly realms with Christ” (Ephesians 2:6) who have already come to the heavenly Zion (Hebrews 12:22-24) whose citizen ship is in Heaven (Philippians 3:20) and whose treasure is stored up for them in heaven (1 Peter 1:4) and who have died and whose life is hidden with Christ in God. (Colossians 3:1-4). When Christians leave this earthly tent behind they go to where they already are – with Christ, in God (Philippians 1:23) for them death has no sting (1 Corinthians 15:51-55). The resurrection of the dead when Christ returns shall complete our redemption and we will be given immortal resurrection bodies. (1 Corinthians 15:1-58)

THE FALL OF SATAN

Satan falls from third heaven where he was an anointed cherub (Ezekiel 28:1-19, Isaiah 14:12-20), to second heaven in the OT, after the cross he falls from second heaven to become “the prince of the power of the air” in Ephesians (Ephesians 2:1-4). After a battle in Rev 12 where Satan tries to retake the second heaven he is cast out of the heavens entirely. He is forced to Earth and incarnates as the Anti-Christ. (Revelation 13) He wars with God and is cast to the Pit. (Revelation 19,20:1-3) After 1000 years Satan tries to retake Earth and loses yet again and his final place of punishment in the lake of fire. (Revelation 20) Satan can go “down a level” any time he likes – say from first heaven to earth, but he cannot go up a level unless God calls him up temporarily. Satan constantly fights to go up a level, loses, then is cast down even further. During the OT period Satan had some access to the courts of Heaven as we see in Zechariah 3 and Job 1 & 2 and evil spirits were part of those standing before the Lord as the “host of heaven” (1 Kings 22:19-23). Since the cross and the spoiling of Satan during the ascension (Ephesians 4) they have been cast out and there is no indication in the NT that evil spirits are now part of the heavenly court in any way. The Church is now above the angels ( 1Corinthians 6:2,3, Matthew 11:11-13, Hebrews 1:14) and the true citizens of heaven (Phil 3:20)

ANGELS AND THE LAW, DEMONS AND THE GENTILE RELIGIONS

We can see from Acts 7:53 and Galatians 3:19 that the Law was given through and enforced by angels. 1 Corinthians 10:20 also tells us that the Gentile religions were the work of demons and that the worshippers worshipped demons and not God. So we see that before Christ both Jewish and Gentile religion was under the direct control of the angelic realm. The good angels mediated the Jewish religion and the demons mediated the innumerable Gentile religions. Both systems were somewhat similar (though the Law was vastly superior) and listed in the middle of the diagram are some of the similarities. Both Jewish and Gentile religions had temples and priests and sacrifices and tithes and offerings and dietary restrictions and special days and festivals and various taboos and categories of clean and unclean things.

THE CHURCH

In these two diagrams, the Church is the “big change” in the heavenly realms. Mankind is now divided into two: a) the a redeemed humanity which is seated in heavenly realms with Christ and b) an unredeemed humanity which is under the power of angels and demons. In Acts 19 the ineffectiveness of Jewish exorcism compared with Christian exorcism is made very obvious in the dramatic accounts of the sons of Sceva.

(Acts 19:11-17 NKJV) Now God worked unusual miracles by the hands of Paul, {12} so that even handkerchiefs or aprons were brought from his body to the sick, and the diseases left them and the evil spirits went out of them. {13} Then some of the itinerant Jewish exorcists took it upon themselves to call the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits, saying, "We exorcise you by the Jesus whom Paul preaches." {14} Also there were seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, who did so. {15} And the evil spirit answered and said, "Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are you?" {16} Then the man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them, overpowered them, and prevailed against them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded. {17} This became known both to all Jews and Greeks dwelling in Ephesus; and fear fell on them all, and the name of the Lord Jesus was magnified.

Thus the Jews though superior to the Gentiles, did not possess the power that Christians possess. That is because they are still under the old order, they are not a new creation and have not been seated in heavenly realms with Christ. Thus non-Christians cannot cast out demons effectively, nor do they possess the (often unused) authority that Christians possess.

The Church is thus not just a building, nor is it just a group of people or even an organization or a community. The Church is a powerful spiritual mystery, a new reality, a spiritually empowered and mightily blessed group of eternal beings seated in heaven with Christ. Here is a rather complicated passage that spells this out:

(Ephesians 3:6-10 NIV) This mystery is that through the gospel the Gentiles are heirs together with Israel, members together of one body, and sharers together in the promise in Christ Jesus. {7} I became a servant of this gospel by the gift of God's grace given me through the working of his power. {8} Although I am less than the least of all God's people, this grace was given me: to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, {9} and to make plain to everyone the administration of this mystery, which for ages past was kept hidden in God, who created all things. {10} His intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms,

In verse 10 we see that the church is God’s way of bearing witness to Himself in the heavenly realms. Earlier in Ephesians Paul makes clear that we are a heavenly people: (Ephesians 2:6-7 NIV) And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, {7} in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus.

In verse 6 we see that t he church is God’s “big surprise”, His mystery. No-one expected such a huge alteration in the nature of spiritual reality. It was a surprise for Christ to dwell in human hearts (Colossians 1:25-27) or Gentiles to enter the Kingdom (Ephesians 3:6). The Church not only declares God’s wisdom but is Christ’s body and the “fullness” or completion of Christ! (Ephesians 1:22-23 NIV) And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, {23} which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way. (Colossians 1:18-19 NIV) And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. {19} For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him,

The point for spiritual warfare is this. The Church is POWERFUL, it is Christ’s heavenly body, and wields His authority, wears God’s armor (Ephesians 6:10-18) and is capable of “pulling down strongholds” (2 Corinthians 10:3-5). In the end Satan shall be crushed under our feet (Romans 16:20) and it is the saints, through the word of their testimony and the blood of Jesus that shall cats Satan down to earth (Revelations 12:1-11). The saints will judge angels and the world (1 Corinthians 6:2,3). To grasp this a bit more and to get a handle on our spiritual authority we shall look at the change-over period between the Old and New Tesaments.

THE TIME OF TRANSITION BETWEEN OT & NT – JOHN THE BAPTIST

(Matthew 11:7-15 NKJV) As they departed, Jesus began to say to the multitudes concerning John: "What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken by the wind? {8} "But what did you go out to see? A man clothed in soft garments? Indeed, those who wear soft clothing are in kings' houses. {9} "But what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I say to you, and more than a prophet. {10} "For this is he of whom it is written: 'Behold, I send My messenger before Your face, Who will prepare Your way before You.' {11} "Assuredly, I say to you, among those born of women there has not risen one greater than John the Baptist; but he who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. {12} "And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force. {13} "For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John. {14} "And if you are willing to receive it, he is Elijah who is to come. {15} "He who has ears to hear, let him hear!

John the Baptist was the prophetic forerunner of the Kingdom of Heaven, and the last prophet based in "Moses" and the Torah, the last and the greatest of the Old Testament saints. (Matthew 11:11-13)