Sounds spooky, doesn’t it? Well, it is something to be concerned about. Just as a kid who is afraid of the dark, he may feel more comfortable with his head covered by a pillow, but it adds no protection. We too, prefer to put these invisible forces out of our minds, but that does nothing to protect us. There are real unseen forces of evil set on destruction and chaos.
One of the most revealing scriptures that paints a picture of these invisible forces is found in the Bible, in the Book of Daniel.
To give some background and context to this subject you need to understand that Daniel was an Israelite who had been taken captive and carried off to a foreign land by a Babylonian king when he was a young man. He was trained and educated by the Babylonians to be a governmental counselor. The Babylonians were later conquered by the Persians (present day Iranians). It appears Daniel remained in some position even with the Persians. He had entered a twenty-one day fast and at the end of the fast he saw this angelic being who spoke the following words (Read the entire 10th chapter to get a full account.):
Daniel 10:12-14 NKJV
(12) Then he said to me, “Do not fear, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart to understand, and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard; and I have come because of your words.
(13) But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me twenty-one days; and behold, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, for I had been left alone there with the kings of Persia.
(14) Now I have come to make you understand what will happen to your people in the latter days, for the vision refers to many days yet to come.”
It is apparent that this angelic messenger began to journey to Daniel when Daniel had begun his fast. The angel was hindered by the “prince of the kingdom of Persia”. This prince was not an earthly prince but a demonic principality that held sway over Persia. Michael is a named archangel who came to the assistance of this messenger angel. The “kings of Persia” are other demonic beings who battled with the angel in the spiritual realm.
A few principles we need to understand:
1) God has enemies but He does not have a rival. God is above all and He will have the last word.
2) There is a real correlation with evil earthly authorities and evil spiritual principalities.
3) There are also positive correlations with benevolent earthly entities and angelic beings aligned with Yahweh.
4) Do not confuse the biblical words “heavenly (high) places and Heaven. Heaven is the abode of Almighty God. Heavenly or high places often speak to the unseen spiritual realm.
5) There are battles in the spiritual realm between these two diametric forces.
6) Battles won or lost in the heavenlies reflect the happenings on earth.
Our responsibility is to put on the armor of God, stand against these invisible powers, and battle through prayer as Paul directed us in Ephesians.
Ephesians 6:10-13 NKJV
(10) Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.
(11) Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.
(12) For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.
(13) 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.
Spiritual warfare is not to be taken lightly or engaged in a haphazard way.
Precautions about spiritual warfare:
1) Don’t look for a demon under every rock. If you do, the devil will be sure to put one there.
2) Do spiritual warfare in the area where you have authority. When you go beyond your bounds of authority, you open yourself to problems you are not prepared to face.
3) Whose you are is more important than who you are.
4) There are spiritual realm boundaries just as they are natural boundaries. The demonic world is not just random demonic entities bouncing around—they are organized with specific agendas and goals.
5) In spiritual warfare there are high level strategic elements and lower level tactical elements of warfare.
Final thought: We are victorious in the name of Jesus Christ. We are empowered by Jesus and the Holy Spirit to overcome evil.
Romans 8:37-39 NKJV
(37) Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.
(38) For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come,
(39) nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
1 John 4:4 NKJV
(4) You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.
Put on your armor, stand, and fight the good fight of faith.
Yours on the Journey,
Harry L. Whitt
Pathway Journey 