If I asked the question, “Have you ever heard of spiritual warfare and if so, what do you think about it?” I have the potential of hearing all kinds of responses from evangelicals. As David Powlison says, “A great deal of fiction, superstition, fantasy, nonsense, nuttiness and downright heresy flourishes in the church under the guise of ‘spiritual warfare’ in our time.” It is because of these responses that I write with a sense of urgency on this topic. Therefore, I want to give you seven reasons from David Powlison’s book, Power Encounters; Reclaiming Spiritual Warfare, for the urgent need to study this important topic. I also want to suggest three books to assist you in your study.
1. “We live in a society where the modern agenda has largely failed.” The modern agenda, which grew out of the Enlightment teachings of the 18th and 19th centuries, sought to elevate man and create a better world through reason, science, technology and man’s own moral goodness. In this vision God is replaced by man and a spiritual reality is replaced by a reasonable natural universe. The modern vision sought to create through the enlightened man the true, good and beautiful. But it has produced a postmodern vision that believes in nothing, and where goodness and beauty are relative. In this age the church must reassert a proper worldview which began in the garden where spiritual warfare entered and was promised to continue until that garden is remade into a garden – city where all warfare will cease.
2. “We live in a society that has become increasingly pagan.” The average person in the modern world today would consider themselves “spiritual”. Science and her god, man, did not solve all problems. Therefore all kinds of spiritual ideology and lifestyles have arisen from the depths of the earth. These ideologies affect all realms of peoples lives from their work to their relationships. The practices of these ideologies are often corrupt and of the occult as is seen in their products in the culture. To God these are detestable beliefs and practices. Therefore spiritual warfare must be understood and lived.
3. “Missions, anthropology, and modern communications make us increasingly aware of the practices and beliefs of animistic cultures.” Multiculturalism and the global village are veins through which the world’s religions and occult may flow. The church must know how to minister the Scriptures into such a world and this is better done where spiritual warfare is understood and lived.
4. “We live in a society of high-profile bondage to “addictions”, such as alcohol, drugs, cigarettes, immoral sex, violence, food, work, television, exercise, money, pleasure, sports and so on.” Man living to the bondage of his flesh can walk into an immensity of options through technology, instant gratification and shallow relationships and find a downward spiral into a destructive life. At the bottom of this pit there are no answers to lead them out of the mire and they will continue either in the glitz and glitter or the muck and filth of their slavery. Reclamation of biblical spiritual warfare allows people to see that slavery and slave masters are a reality.
5. “Bizarre or troubled behavior, often related to experiences of extreme abuse, seems to be appearing more frequently.” People are living in extreme distress, confusion, self deception, chaos, disparity, fear and anxiety. What are the components that factor into this devastation of life? Spiritual warfare properly understood will assist us in these times of seemingly hopeless situations.
6. “Many people have sometimes experienced an uncanny, heightened sense of the presence of evil.” Often you may hear people explain a certain place, a work of art or a personal experience with someone as being “dark”. How are we to understand these dark places, people, things we see at work in the culture? In this darkness there may be destruction or chaos, deception or violent manipulation of the truth, or coldness and deadness in things living. Reclaiming spiritual warfare will allow the church to better understand and act.
7. “A growing number of Christians teach and practice “deliverance” ministry in the quest to cast our inhabiting demons.” You may find yourself in a prayer gathering where someone “binding” or “loosing” demons or certain powers. There are churches that will host prayer walks to do warfare against “territorial spirits” around a certain neighborhood or church property. There are those who teach that a Christian can be possessed by a demon. Or you may hear people calling certain demons the cause of certain sins. We need to reclaim a proper biblical view of spiritual warfare in the church.
These seven reasons presented by David Powlison should give the church an urgency concerning reclaiming a biblical view of spiritual warfare so that we may live as the church in the knowledge and enjoyment of God and to our neighbors for the same. It is with this urgency in mind that I would suggest the following books for study.
Power Encounters, Reclaiming Spiritual Warfare. David Powlison. The aim of this book is to assist the Christian church in exploring what the Scriptures say about spiritual warfare to correct her imbalance and error and lead her down a path of truth that will prove helpful to her maturity. It neither minimizes the Enemy nor elevates the demonic spiritual realm to a fantasy plot of good versus evil. It is sound Biblical teaching on this important subject.
The Christian in Complete Armour. William Gurnall. John Newton said, “If I might read only one book beside the Bible, I would choose The Christian in Complete Armour.” This book written by the 17th century English Puritan is available in a shortened modern English version, the original is 1200 pages, through Banner of Truth Trust. This work is a call to the Christian to live a life of warfare in his union with Christ.
Precious Remedies Against Satan’s Devices. Thomas Brooks. This English Puritan who lived in the 17th century penned this work to strengthen the church in her spiritual warfare. He says, “We are not ignorant of Satan's devices, or plots, or machinations, or stratagems. He is but a Christian in title only, who has not personal experience of Satan's stratagems, his set and composed machinations, his artificially molded methods, his plots, darts, depths, whereby he outwitted our first parents.” To Brooks it is not enough to understand spiritual warfare but he must engage himself in it for his own life and the life of his neighbor. This work is available free online as a pdf file.
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