Spiritual Warfare

Christian's we are in a battle - but it is not with our neighbour. Ephesians 6:12 we wrestle ......'against the spiritual forces'. Are you ready for battle? Do you know how to wage a 'spiritual war'?

Spiritual Warfare Assignment - upgrade for Tabor College South Australia by Jacqueline Hancock

According to the New Testament, which of the following is the primary factor in spiritual warfare? Prayer, Preaching the Gospel, Christian character, Deliverance ministry, Baptism of the Holy Spirit, The name of Jesus.

You should use the first of the paper to show briefly how each factor is involved and then devote the second half to establishing why you have chosen one factor above the others.

Spiritual warfare is not just a ‘Christian doctrine’ it is not really a part of the Christian life, in essence ‘it is the Christian life’. As Ed. Murphy states in his preface.. “Spiritual warfare touches every dimension of human life”(1992:vii) In all parts of our walk with God we face temptation, we face flesh and its sin. We also face opposition to our message and even our persons which come not only from the people and culture around us, but also from ‘demonic entities’. Because it is part and parcel of the life we lead, we find that the tools, methods and factors of spiritual warfare to be more than just a way to overcome the enemy they are the very things we need to do to live victoriously as Christ’s disciples.

Because spiritual warfare then is a factor in our whole Christian life we need to see that all things pertaining to the victorious Christian life are necessary for warfare, and not just the abbreviated list as proposed in the question above. From knowing the Word (scripture) to knowing (personally and intimately) the Messiah, from resisting temptation to loving our neighbor, from casting out demons to forgiving one another, all are important and really have no life without the others to support them.

Having said though we must look to the task before us, which is to discuss the place of the factors given above in the realm of spiritual warfare and then to discern if any one has a role of predominance over the other.

Prayer - contact with HQ.

What is prayer and how is it to be viewed as ‘a factor’ in spiritual warfare? Simply put “Prayer is the contact of a living soul with God. In prayer, God stoops to kiss man, to bless man, and to aid in everything that God can devise, or man can need”. (D. Eastman :1978 - p11). In other words prayer is humanities spiritual communication with God and this communication is a two way process where both sides listen and speak.

Prayer within the arena of spiritual warfare can be viewed in the military sense as our place of briefing where we receive our instructions, standing orders ¹, and strategies for our battle. It is here where we meet with the supreme commanders- the ‘Triune Godhead’ and get His counsel on how we are to engage in the battle. We know this to be the right way because it was how Jesus went about His ministry on earth: He only did what he saw the Father doing (John 3:19-21, 12:49) and likewise we know what to do because we receive instructions through prayer.

We also know from Jesus that our prayer communication is not just a one sided affair, but includes us bringing our petitions, reports, needs and desires to God because Jesus taught His disciples to pray (Luke 11:1ff) and said to them that “ I will do whatever you ask in my name” (John 14:12ff). Thus we come to see that God has an expectation for our input and our receptiveness.

We also understand that prayer is to be an important part of our spiritual warfare because the disciples and Apostles used prayer, encouraged and exhorted others to do likewise. Prayer was a ‘way of Christian life to them’. They prayed to discover what to do, they prayed for courage, they prayed for God’s intervention and assistance and Paul includes prayer as a part of his exhortation in the armour of God dialogue. We also find that the scriptures give us rules (standing orders) for praying, some are explicit and others are implied. (See appendix A for scriptural references for above claims)

Preaching the Gospel. - Overcoming the enemy with a ‘Word”

Why is preaching viewed as a factor in spiritual warfare?
Firstly preaching the word of God is a way of overcoming the devil’s strategy of lies and deception. Satan is a liar and he keeps people captive by disseminating deceitful propaganda. The only way to defeat a lie is with the truth. John 8:32 Knowing the truth we are set free. This freedom is from sin and Satan.
In second Corinthians 10:4ff this idea is further developed when we find Paul dealing with these ‘lies’ of Satan’s in the context of warfare. Paul is talking about the logismos (strategies and arguments) that are set up against the truth of God. He states that we have divine powerful weapons that can tear them down. Paul here is referring to not only his actions among them but also his ministry of preaching the gospel.
Secondly preaching is a part of warfare simply because it is a command directly from our commander Jesus (Mat 28:18-20). The act of preaching can be viewed in the military sense of ‘standing orders’. We are ordered to do it always; it is a part of our ‘job description’ as Disciples of Christ. It is the strategy of God to set the world free. As we find in Romans 10:14-15 people need to hear the word of God preached so that they may come to faith in God.
This idea of the place of preaching can clearly be seen in the Life of Martin Luther.
“Martin Luther liked to picture Scripture as a great tree. In preparing to preach, he said, we are to shake its branches to get at the fruit. That is how dramatic Luther considered preaching to be. He himself preached as if that part of the worship service was not a classroom, but a battleground: the opportunity to slay the devils of unbelief and to parade the victory of God's grace in Christ.” (Matzat, 1996)
As Barry Chant so aptly puts it “proclamation of the Word of God was always the primary thrust of the apostles” (Spiritual Warfare 1208 45) . It is often their place of first engagement, it is where the truth filled kingdom of God confronts the deceptive kingdom of Satan.

Christian Character - Armour against temptation.

As stated earlier ‘spiritual warfare touches every dimension of our Christian life and thus our character (mental and moral attributes) are as important as the activities we engage in. Character is about who we are in our hearts. We derive the ‘shape/nature’ of our character from what we believe is good and true. Eg if I believe it is good to share then I would desire to have a generous nature.

Christian character arises out of the beliefs of what we think God wants us to be like. Simply put Christians should be the image of God because God made us in His image (Gen.) Thus our Character should be like God’s. Jerry Bridges states:

To be God-like in our character, then, is first of all to be holy. The practice of godliness involves the pursuit of holiness because God has said, “Be holy, because I am holy (1Peter1:16). Paul tells us that we have been redeemed for that purpose. Any Christian who is not earnestly pursuing holiness in every aspect of his life is flying in the face of God’s purpose for saving them. (1983:148)

I would also add they are supporting the plans of Satan also when they are not pursuing a holy character. For Satan knows he has no weapon that can prosper over holiness.

Holiness really is a loaded term because within the ideal of holiness lies the principles of justice, mercy, forgiveness, love, longsuffering, no sin etc. Against these things especially Love, there is no weapon that can prosper.

How does this fit though with the area of spiritual warfare? The Christian Character is primarily a “defensive tool” or an armour that the enemy cannot penetrate. E.g. A person who practices regularly telling the truth is not readily convinced by a lie or to lie. A person who has the nature of love would not easily be persuaded to do another harm.

In short a persons Christ like Character is very resistant to the devils schemes.

Deliverance Ministry - a direct power encounter.

Perhaps this is one of the most obvious factors belonging to the issue of Spiritual warfare. In deliverance ministry one most clearly sees the truth of God against the power of Satan in a tangible way. Unlike Christian Character which mostly happens inwards and is like a concealed weapon, Deliverance is often very noticeable. Not because demons sometimes make noise when they leave but because people experience real healing, release and the power of God in a moment of time. This does not say that absolutely all deliverances are instantaneous but most usually are.

Deliverance ministry simply put is the casting out of demons from a person. The Gospels have many examples of Jesus casting out demons and we also find Jesus ordering the disciples to do likewise. We even find examples of deliverance in Acts.

Just as the Deliverance ministry is the most obvious for ‘tangible, evidence based reasons, it is also most obvious as a genuine factor because it is a direct power engagement with the spiritual enemy (demons/Satan).

Why do we do deliverance ministry?

1)Because Jesus did. (Mark 5:1ff, mark 9:25)
2)Because he authorized his disciples to, (Mark 6:7, Mat 10:1-7)
3)Because mankind ultimately belongs to God not Satan (God created man to be in his image (Gen 1:27)
4)We are the temple of the Holy Spirit, not a house for demons. (1 corinthians 6:19)

Baptism of the Holy Spirit. - Person and power of God indwelling the believer

How is it a factor? There is no power until we are born from above. If the battle is spiritual then we need a spiritual remedy, or spiritual power source. Baptism of the Holy Spirit or the indwelling of the Holy Spirit in a believer’s life is necessary because we have no power of our own.

The Holy Spirit comes because of Christ’s victory and God’s love. He empowers us for battle and he also teaches us how to wage battle John Chapters 15& 16, Acts chapter 1). He gives the keys to victory because he takes what is of Christ’s and makes it know to us. He does this through our prayer time; he also does it through divine ‘spiritual gifts.’

The Holy Spirit enables us to know that we are dealing with demons or with flesh (gift of discernment). He also enables us to know how to deal with the problem (gift of knowledge) and he furnishes us with Christ’s power to solve the problem be it delivering from a demon or healing from sickness or forgiveness of sins. (1Cor 12:7-11)

Baptism of the Holy Spirit is more than just a initial experience which this term often seems to convey to people. Obviously it has a beginning point in the life of the believer; however it really is more than this. We are called to walk in the spirit and should view ourselves as continually needing filling with the Spirit. (See Romans 8:11ff)

The Name of Jesus. - More than just a word!

The name of Jesus does not work like some magical spell or incantation. It is neither a ‘spiritual principle’ that works because the ‘word’ is correct or applied correctly in a technical sense. The name of Jesus works in matters of Spiritual warfare because it names the only one who has the legal, moral, spiritual authority and right in warfare matters

The name of Jesus defeats Satan and evil because it names the victorious one. When the name of Jesus is used against Satan it is really the person of Jesus who creates the victory, (for the reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devils work 1John 3:8a)Through the victory of life and death of Jesus Satan, sin and death are defeated. When we use His name we are proclaiming of this to our enemies.

The reason this name works in the lives of believers is due to two factors. Firstly what was just mentioned and secondly our faith in Jesus himself. We must believe in the one who won the victory. We must believe that He still works today and we must believe that we have received authority from on high to wield His name against our foe.

This faith entails us knowing our position in Christ, that we have power and authority here on earth because He won the right and confers un us the privilege of His victory. This believing comes from knowing the Word of God (Bible) and from the inner knowing that the indwelling Holy Spirit brings to us. Luther says on faith:

           “ Faith is a living, bold trust in God's grace, so certain of
       God's favor that it would risk death a thousand times trusting in it.
       Such confidence and knowledge of God's grace makes you happy,
       joyful and bold in your relationship to God and all creatures. The
       Holy Spirit makes this happen through faith. Because of it, you
       freely, willingly and joyfully do good to everyone, serve
       everyone, suffer all kinds of things, love and praise the God who
       has shown you such grace. (Erlangen: 1854)

Part two - Which has predominance?

Firstly it is hard to find a prescriptive piece of scripture which would show us the predominance of any of the above factors in the area of Spiritual Warfare. This is especially so, since the whole idea of spiritual warfare comes to us through metaphorical and allegorical type texts ^. Paul structures his language to show our struggle to live the Christian life in the context of Battle and warfare. As metaphorical as his language may be however, Christian thought over the centuries has concurred that there is indeed a spiritual battle going on, it too however has never given pure predominance to one factor over another.

We must see that each teaching we can derive from scripture on any of the above factors comes from an overall understanding of the scriptures, of God’s character and mission in creation. Thus to ascribe predominance in my view to any one factor is going somewhat outside the bounds of scriptural claims.

It seems that all factors pertaining to spiritual warfare and victorious Christian living are interdependent on each other. Just like the various parts of the body are interpedently working together so to is it with warfare. And this interdependence may at times give predominance to one organ or factor being more expedient at any given time; it does not assign permanent predominance to any all the time.

Each set of circumstances may result in one factor being predominate at the time. You may need to deliver a person of a demon, before you can preach the word, or conversely the preaching of the word may make the demon manifest and then it can be cast out. This applies for all factors above and others we have not had time to explore. Such as the power of praise, the necessity of love, submission, unity etc.

However true it may be that all the factors above are interdependent there is one factor which serves as a foundation for all others. This foundation really is the predominant factor, for without it nothing stands. The foundation is Christ.

All is futile without Christ. Just as G. Bingham used to preach in Evangelism “there is nothing beyond the cross:” (1989:410) it “all centers on the cross and Christ”. We are made through Him, for Him, we live in Him. Without Jesus there is no victory, there is no point. Without the believers life hid in him there is no chance for victory.

In the end analysis Knowing Jesus is the predominant factor. And this is not just knowing about Him, but knowing Him intimately as saviour, Lord, friend, God. When we know Jesus, what He has done, what He wishes still to do, when we know how He would have us be and we live all this out through our life in Him we have the victory. I guess that is kind of what the Name of Jesus means, not the Name I use, but the name I wear and hold in my heart. Ultimately the relationship one has with Jesus is the paramount factor, for as we follow the one we love, we will not stumble but will have victory and everlasting life.

Endnotes.

1 Standing Orders. This is a military protocol where each Defense Force Unit has a list of orders that apply generally in the overall sense of ‘ones duty or role in ordinary military life. Standing orders can be superseded at any time with a direct command from the commanding officer. For example it is a standing order that one always salutes an officer when hats are on. This however is often superseded when military personnel are on the battle ground, so that the enemy may not see directly who the commanding officer is and thus make him a target.

Bibliography - References.

Bridges, Jerry. The Practice of Godliness, Colorado Springs: Navpress, 1983)
Chant, Barry. Module Manual - Spiritual Warfare 1208, (Tabor College, 2000)
Bingham, Geoffrey, For Pastors and the People, (Australia, New Creation Publications, 1989)
Eastman, Dick. The Hour that changes the World, (Baker Book House Company, 1978)
Matzat, Don,(ED) How Martin Luther Dealt with the Devil, (Issues, Etc. Journal - December 1996- Vol.2 No. 2)
Dr.. Ed Murphy, The Handbook for Spiritual Warfare (Tennessee, Thomas Nelson Publishers, Inc, 1992)

The following was taken from the internet - but I have lost the web address.

.” Martin Luther's Definition of Faith:
An excerpt from
"An Introduction to St. Paul's Letter to the Romans,"
Luther's German Bible of 1522
by Martin Luther, 1483-1546
Translated by Rev. Robert E. Smith
from DR. MARTIN LUTHER'S VERMISCHTE DEUTSCHE SCHRIFTEN.
Johann K. Irmischer, ed. Vol. 63
(Erlangen: Heyder and Zimmer, 1854), pp.124-125. [EA 63:124-125]
August 1994

Other Sources.

McClung Floyd, Holiness and the Spirit of the Age (Word Publishing, 1993)
Dawson, John, Taking our cities for God (Florida, Creation House, 1989)
Lewis, C.S., Mere Christianity (Macmillan Publishing Co, Inc. 1952)

All scriptural quotes and references from New International Version, (International Bible Society, 1984)