Spiritual Warfare
Rev Charlie (August 2021)
Many today refuse to acknowledge the existence of God or any kind of spiritual reality, let alone the existence of spiritual forces of evil. That said, I come across a great many agnostics, people who say that they believe in “something”, without necessarily being able to articulate what that something is.
Human beings have an innate, though often supressed, awareness that there is more to this world than that which we can see and touch.
The Bible asserts that there are both spiritual forces of good and evil at work in the world. Just as there is a God, so too there is a devil. However, they should not be viewed as two equal and opposite forces, such as the ‘yin and yang’ of ancient Chinese philosophy. God is infinitely more powerful than the devil, a created being who rejected God in the same way that humans did.
The story of the Bible could be framed in terms of evil’s defeat and eventual demise. Jesus has won a decisive victory over evil, but the battle rages on and will do until Jesus returns at the end of the age. Whether we realise it or not, every human being is a protagonist in this spiritual battle.
Being aware of this reality is important, not so that we can attribute every misfortune or personal failing to sinister forces of evil, but so we can counter the attacks of the enemy.
Ephesians 6: 10-18 describes spiritual warfare and the weapons at our disposal to fight it. It is therefore worth reading in full:
10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armour of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13 Therefore put on the full armour of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the
