BIBLICAL DEMONOLOGY EPH 6:17-18 ADDS I BELIEVE TWO IMPORTANT LESSONS TO OUR GOAL OF DEFENDING OUSELVES FROM THE SCHEMES OF SATAN. THE TEXT SAYS TO TAKE THE SWORD OF THE SPIRIT, WHICH IS THE WORD OF GOD. AND PRAY IN THE SPIRIT ON ALL OCCASIONS WITH ALL KINDS OF PRAYER AND REQUEST. WE CAN UNDERSTAND QUITE EASILY PAULS EMPHASIS ON PRAYER. OUR SAFETY DEPENDS ON GODS MIGHTY POWER. WE MUST RELY ON HIM AND LOOK TO HIM AT ALL TIMES, EXPRESSING ALL OUR NEEDS AND CONCERNS. BUT THERE IS SOMETHUNG UNUSUAL ABOUT PAULS REFERENCE TO THE SWORD. FOR THE FIRST TIME IN HIS LISTING OF PIECES OF ARMOR, PAUL CLARIFIES ONE OF HIS METAPHORS. TAKE THE SWORD OF THE SPIRIT, HE SAYS, AND THEN HE REVEALS THAT THE SWORD OF THE SPIRIT IS THE WORD OF GOD. SO, WHY AN EXPLANATION OF THE SWORD WHEN THERE IS NO PARALLEL EXPLANATION OF ANY OTHER PIECE OF EQUIPMENT? THE REASON IS THAT EACH PIECE OF ARMOR HAS ALREADY BEEN THROUGHLY DISCUSSED IN HIS LETTER. SO IN THESE LAST FEW MESSAGES YOU ALL HAVE HEARD, YOU ALREADY KNOW NOW WHAT THE HELMET, SHIELD, SANDALS, BREATPLATE AND BELT REPRESENT. ALSO NOTE THAT THE PIECES OF ARMOR PAUL FOCUSES ON THROUGHOUT HIS BOOK ARE DEFENSIVE. EPHESIANS IS ABOUT EQUIPPING BELIEVERS TO DEFEND OURSELVES AGAINST THE STRATEGIES DEMONS USE TO OPPRESS US. THE SWORD, BY CONTRAST, IS AN OFFENSIVE WEAPON. SO, WE GATHER FROM THIS EMPASIS ON DEFENSIVE WEAPONRY THAT IT WAS NOT PAULS PRIMARY PURPOSE IN THIS LETTER TO GO INTO THE QUESTION OF HOW TO ATTACK DEMONS. IT IS LIKELY THAT THIS WAS SOMETHING THE EPHESIANS ALREADY UNDERSTOOD, FOR HEY HAD WITNESSED PAUL CASTING OUT EVIL SPIRITS...LOOK AT ACTS 19:11-12. PAULS AUTHORITY OVER EVIL SPIRITS WAS A MAJOR FACTOR IN THE CONVERSION OF MANY IN EPHESUS AND IN THEIR PRACTICE OF MAGIC AND SORCERY...LOOK AT ACTS 19:14-20. CERTAINLY, TOO, THE WRITINGS OF THE EARLIEST CHURCH FATHERS TREAT CASTING BY BELIEVERS AS A COMMONPLACE OCCURRENCE. IN THE LIGHT OF THE EVIDENCE OF SCRIPTURE AND PAULS OWN SERIOUS ATTENTION TO DEMONS, THEN, WE SIMPLY CANNOT AFFORD TO IGNORE THEM. DEMONS AE COMMITTED TO TRAPPING HUMANS IN AS MUCH PAIN AND SUFFERING AS POSSIBLE. ALL CULTURES REFLECT A BELIEF IN EVIL SPIRITS. THESE ARE EXPLAINED IN VARIOUS WAYS: AS SPIRITS OF THE DEAD, AS FRIGHTENING SUPERNATURAL ANIMALS, AS GODS OR GODDESSES, OR AS DEMONS. LIKEWISE, EVERY CULTURE SEEMS AWARE OF SUPERNATURAL ENTITIES, THAT CAN AND DO HARM HUMANS. THE BIBLE CONFIRMS THE REALITY OF EVIL SPIRITS, AND OFFERS A UNIQUE EXPLANATIONS. DEMONS WERE ORIGINALLY ANGELS, FASHIONED BY THE CREATOR. BUT THE NUMBER OF THE ANGELS, LED BY A POWERFUL ANGEL NAMED LUCIFER, REBELLED AGAINST THE CREATOR. IN THE REBELLION LUCIFER BECAME SATAN, AND THE ANGELS WHO JOINED HIS REVOLT BECAME DEMONS. LIKE ANGELS, DEMONS DO NOT REPRODUCE OR DIE. THROUGH THE AGES THEY HAVE REMAINED THE ENEMIES OF GOD AND, SINCE GOD LOVES HUMAN BEINGS, DEMONS ARE ALSO THE ENEMIES O HUMANKIND. WHILE THE BIBLE DOES NOT PROVIDE EXPLANATION OF THE ACTIVITIES OF DEMONS, THERE ARE CLUES AS TO HOW THEY GO ABOUT OPPOSING GODS PURPOSES AND OPPRESSING HUMAN BEINGS. THE OT SAYS LITTLE DIRECTLY ABOUT DEMONS, BUT IT DOES MAKE REFERENCE TO THREE MAJOR ACTIVITIES OF EVIL SPIRITS. THE FIRST IS FOUND IN DEUT 31:16-17, WHICH SPEAKS OF MAKING OFFERINGS TO DEMONS DISGUISED AS PAGAN DEITIES...LOOK AT 1 COR 10:18-20. FALSE RELIGION IS ENERGIZED BY DEMONS, AND ANY SUPERNATURAL ACCOMPLISHMENT OF PAGAN GODS IS THE WORK OF EVIL SPIRITS. THE SECOND IS FOUND IN DEUT 18: 9-13, WHICH BANS ALL FORMS OF THE OCCULT. THE ONLY SUPERNATURAL CONTACT MADE BY THOSE WHO PRACTICE WITCHCRAFT, SORCERY, DIVINATION, SPIRITISM, ECT. IS WITH DEMONS. A PERSON MAY GAIN TEMPORAL BENEFITS FROM THE WORSHIP OF FALSE GODS OR THROUGH OCCULT MEANS, BUT THESE DEMONS INTENT IS TO KEEP HUMANS FROM KNOWING THE ONE TRUE GOD, TO THEIR ULTIMATE DESTUCTION. THE THIRD INSIGHT INTO THE ACTIVITIES OF DEMONS IS FOUND IN DAN 10, WHERE A POWERFUL DEMON CALLED THE PRINCE OF PERSIA IS MENTIONED. THE PASSAGE SUGGESTS THAT JUST AS GOD ASSIGNED THE ANGEL MICHAEL TO LOOK OUT FOR THAT JUST AS GOD ASSIGNED THE ANGEL MICHEAL TO LOOK OUT FOR THE INTERESTS OF ISRAEL, SO SATAN ASSIGNS DEMONS TO TEND TO HIS INTERESTS IN THE ACTIVITIES. THE FOUR GOSPELS PORTRAY THE IMPACT OF DEMONS ON INDIVIDUALS AGAIN AND AGAIN JESUS MEETS DEMONIZED INDIVIDUALS WHO SUFFER FROM SERIOUS DISABILITIES, RANGING FROM CHROMIC BACK PAIN TO MENTAL ILLNESS. IN EACH CASE JESUS HEALS THE INDIVIDUAL BY CASTING OUT THE DEMON OR DEMONS. THERE IS NO SUGGESTION IN THE GOSPELS THAT ALL ILLNESS IS DEMONIC IN ORIGIN, AS MANY REPORTS OF HEALINGS MAKE NO REFERENCE TO DEMONS. BUT IT IS CLEAR FROM THIS ERA OF INTENSIFIED DEMONIC ACTIVITY, AS SATAN MARSHALS HIS FORCES TO OPPOSE THE SON OF GOD, THAT PHYSICAL AND MENTAL ILLNESS MAY BE CAUSED BY DEMONS. JESUS HIMSELF NOT ONLY CAST OUT DEMONS, BUT ALSO GIVES THAT AUTHORITY TO HIS FOLLOWERS...LOOK AT LUKE 9: 1-2. AFTER JESUS RETURNS TO HEAVEN, HIS FOLLOWERS, INCLUDING PAUL, EXERCISE THIS AUTHORITY. AND THE EARLY CHURCH FATHERS MENTION CASTING OUT DEMONS AS A CONTINUING PHENOMENON. INCIDENTS RECORDED IN THE BOOK OF ACTS, SUCH AS PAULS CASTING A DEMON OUT OF A SLAVE GIRL IN PHILIPPI WHO WAS TELLING FORTUNES..LOOK AT ACTS 16:16, SUGGEST THAT SOME PARANORMAL ACTIVITIES MAY BE DEMONIC IN ORIGIN. THE EPISTLES AFFIRM THAT SATAN AND HIS DEMONS ARE ACTIVELY ENGAGED IN A WAR AGAINST HUMANITY, BUT ESPECIALLY AGAINST BELIEVERS. THIS WAR SEEMS TO BE CARRIED OUT ON TWO FRONTS. THE FIRST OF SATANS EFFORTS IS DIRECTED AT THE CONTROL OF CULTURE. JOHN TELLS US THAT THE WHOLE WORLD IS UNDER THE CONTROL OF THE EVIL ONE. 1 JOHN 5:19. IN THIS CONTEXT THE WORD TRANSLATED WORLD IS KOSMOS. IN ITS THEOLOGICAL USE, AS HERE, KOSMOS REFERS TO THE STRUCTURE OF SOCIETY: THE WAYS IN WHICH A SOCIETY INCORPORATES AND REFLECTS VALUES, ATTITUDES AND BELIEFS. JOHN DESCRIBES HUMAN CULTURE AS KOSMOS IN THIS WAY: 1 JOHN 2:15-16....Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. BASICALLY, SATAN INFLUENCES CULTURES SO THAT THEY APPEAL TO HUMANKINDS SINFULNESS. BY SHAPING A CULTURES VALUES IN THIS WAY, SATAN DIRECTS HUMAN EFFORTS AWAY FROM GOD AND TOWARD THE TEMPORAL AND MEANINGLESS. AS JOHN SAYS, THE WORLD AND ITS DESIRES PASS AWAY, BUT THE MAN WHO DOES THE WILL OF GOD LIVES FOREVER...1 JOHN 2:17. BY INFLUENCING CULTURE, SATAN AND HIS DEMONS HOLD SWAY OVER THE MAJORITY OF HUMANKIND AND WITHOUT BEING REQUIRED TO INFLUENCE INDIVIDUALS ONE BY ONE. AT THE SAME TIME, THE EPISTLES MAKE IT VERY CLEAR THAT DEMONS PAY ATTENTION TO INDIVIDUALS, AND ESPECIALY TO BELIEVERS. WE HAVE EXPLORED PAULS DIRECTIVE TO THE EPHESIANS TO TAKE YOUR STAND AGAINST THE DEVILS SCHEMES. EPH 6:11-12 Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. AS WE HAVE ALREADY TALKED ABOUT, THE TERMS RULERS, AUTHORITIES AND POWERS WERE APPLIED IN THE FIRST CENTURY TO THE SUPERNATURAL ENTITIES WE KNOW AS DEMONS. ACCORDING TO PAUL, THESE ENTITIES OPERATE SCHEMES THE DEVIL HAS DEVISED. ASWE LOOK THROUGH THE NT EPISTLES WE FIND A NUMBER OF THESE SCHEMES MENTIONED. DEMONS GAIN A HOLD ON BELIEVERS THROUGH BITTERNESS AND ANGER...LOOK AT EPH 4:26-27. AND THROUGH FAILURE TO FORGIVE...2 COR 2:10-11. THOSE WHO ARE ADDICTED TO SIN ARE IN GREAT DANGER OF DEMONIC OPPRESSION..EPH 5:3-5. DEMONS USE THE TRAUMAS WE EXPERIENCE TO BLOCK OUR AWARENESS OF WHO WE ARE IN CHRIST...DEMONS BLIND US TO GODS REVELATION...2 COR 2:4..IN THESE AND MANY OTHER WAYS DEMONS SEEK TO GAIN A HOLD ON BELIEVERS, ON CHURCHES AND CHRISTIAN MINISTERS IN ORDER TO PREVENT A CLOSE WALK WITH JESUS AND TO BLOCK FULFILLMENT OF GODS PURPOSES IN OUR LIVES. THERE IS TEACHINGS ON EVIL SPIRITS IN THE BIBLE, ALERTING CHRISTIANS TO THE REALITY OF DEMONS, THE DANGERS DEMONS POSE AND THE RESOURCES GOD HAS PROVIDED TO ENABLE US TO STAND AGAINST THE SPIRITUAL FORCES OF EVIL IN THE HEAVENLY REALMS..IN ADDITION, WE ARE AUTHORIZED TO CAST THEM OUT.
Posted on: Fri, 15 Nov 2013 14:37:29 +0000
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