I have recently been thinking a lot about the reality that we are in a spiritual battle with forces of evil. This caused me to read and research on the topics of Satan, demons, and spiritual warfare, trying to see what the Bible says (and also what it does not say!) about these topics. This wasn’t just for my own benefit, though, as I also wanted to share it in verbal form at a “Deep Dive” teaching event at Faith Church, Beecher Campus (here’s the video of that night) and to have a series of blog posts on the subject. This first post will offer some general thoughts to introduce the subject and the approach.
Avoiding Extremes
In his book, The Screwtape Letters, C.S. Lewis astutely noted two tendencies Christians have when it comes to the matters of Satan and demons:
“There are two equal and opposite errors into which our race can fall about the devils. One is to disbelieve in their existence. The other is to believe, and to feel an excessive and unhealthy interest in them. They themselves are equally pleased with both errors and hail a materialist or a magician with the same delight.”
While I might differ with his use of the terms “devils” (as I have not found a plural reference to devil in the New Testament and think it is better to say “demons” as it would seem that Satan and the demons all fall into the same category of fallen angels; see Matthew 25:41 and Revelation 12:7), I think his statement holds as true today as it did when he wrote it. Some Christians and churches totally ignore the reality of a spiritual world that influences and impacts our world (with potentially 40% of Christians even denying the reality of a personal being named Satan), while others seem to be so interested in the topic that they talk about it often, thinking every sin or issue goes back to a demon (allowing them at times to draw upon the words of Flip Wilson that “the devil made me do it”!). Scripture affirms the reality of Satan and demons, but also does not go into as much detail as people might like. It tells us that we need to be aware of the reality of the devil (1 Peter 5:8-9 and James 4:7) and the spiritual battle we are in (Ephesians 6:11-12; 2 Corinthians 10:3-5), as well as the methods that the devil and his angels will use (see 2 Corinthians 2:10-11; 11:3-4, 13-15, among other places). However, as we will see, it gives us few details into the origins or organization of these dark spiritual forces or the cause and the cure of those who are under control (often called “demon possession” — we can talk more about why I don’t like that phrase in another post).
In fact, as I spent more time studying the topic, I saw that such polarization on these matters (and many other issues) may very well be the tactic of the evil one. He tries to get us to “throw the baby out with the bathwater” and swing from one extreme to another rather than consider the nuances of God’s design and working and the fact that our finitide may lead to things that are seemingly in contradiction with each other to actually both be true. While Satan tries to prevent us from allowing for subtleties in thoughts, his methodology seems to often be one of subtlety. This means that he can offer two lies that are totally contradictory to each other, as his goal is not to find truth or our well-being, but to do whatever it takes to destroy us as the pinnacle of God’s creation — he has no principles but is a pragmatist when it comes to his tactics.
Normalizing Spiritual Warfare
As I look at various passages, particularly those in the New Testament epistles, I have come to realize that this idea of spiritual warfare and the involvement of spiritual forces in this world is part of the normal, not the extraordinary, Christian life. In his short booklet, What Is Spiritual Warfare?, Stanley Gale makes this statement that I think is true: “Spiritual warfare is constituent of life in a fallen world, ordinary to the Christian life.” We are in this war, whether we like it or not; we did not enlist for it but by virtue of being a human in this world, we are part of this spiritual battle and are moved to the frontlines when we begin following Christ. Even though the term “spiritual warfare” seems to be a recent development (with some tracing it back to the 1970’s), the concept has remained a constant element in discussions of the Christian life. For example, Martin Luther said this, “If Christ is your Lord, you have an enemy; Christian life is clinging to God and resisting the Devil as he assaults you.” There has often been a distinction made between the church “militant” and the church “triumphant”, with those believers who have died and are in God’s presence (and thus no longer fighting the battles) being part of the church “triumphant”, while all believers on this earth are part of the church “militant,” that is, active participants in this war.
Spiritual warfare, thus is part of the “normal Christian life,” and as I studied various passages, I started to see the methods we use in this battle are those “normal” in the Christian life (we’ll discuss that in a later post). We need to turn to God in prayer, keep the truth found in His Word on the forefront of our minds, and help each other as we fight this war. We need to recognize that in many ways, these are the tools for the three “fronts” many have identified that Christians battle. These three fronts are the devil, the flesh, and the world; one sees all three of these present in Ephesians 2:1-3.
We will discuss the devil more in these posts, but thought it would be important for us to make sure we understand the other two forces that cause sin and evil in this world — those that Satan works in conjunction with (and in many ways are there because of his work). The flesh does not refer to our physical bodies, but the sinful nature that exists within us because of the fall of our first parents into sin by the deception of the devil. We now have a tendency to choose things other than God, and this is true in every area of our life and being. We sin sometimes not because “the devil made me do it”, but because our flesh was tempted and we caved in! The other “front” of this battle is called “the world,” which refers to the systems of culture and society that oppose God. These systems lead us to pursue things like pleasure, possessions, and power, convincing us that these things are not just important but most important.
As David Powlison points out in Understanding Spiritual Warfare: Four Views, it is less important that we identify exactly which of these forces is at work because they interact with each other and we draw upon the same elements to combat them:
“We don’t need to sort out where ‘flesh’ ends and ‘world’ begins, where ‘world’ ends and ‘devil’ begins. We don’t need to determine where the devil’s role in moral blinding and in inflicting destruction begins and ends. We can’t see through the fog of war. But Christ’s truth and power address all dimensions simultaneously.”
Believe and Obey What the Bible Reveals, and Remember Some Things Will Remain Unknown by God’s Good Design
A key verse one of the writers brought up in the discussion that I thought was very insightful and offers a key principle in studying this material is Deuteronomy 29:29: “The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but the things that are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law.” While appearing in a different context and thus not applying directly to this topic, this passage is a good reminder that God revealed certain things for us and we should obey them; God’s Word is both authoritative and useful and helps us follow Him (see 2 Timothy 3:16-17). At the same time, there are some things that God chose not to reveal that we should not seek out, instead being content with what God has revealed. We should not ignore what God has said, but we also must not add to it (see Revelation 22:18-19, as well as Jesus’s critiques of the Pharisees and their traditions). In these discussions, I have seen many people draw simply upon experience – which might be true but is not authoritative – or even ideas or concepts from other religions to allow them to flesh out more about various issues related to Satan, demons, and spiritual warfare.
My hope is to explore what the Bible says, be honest about what it does not say, and focus on how we are then called to live in light of what has been revealed, allowing for God to keep secret what He desires. I look forward to explaining more of what I have found in terms of the nature and origins of these spiritual beings, what the Bible says they are doing, and how we then can live in light of these realities. And as always, if there are questions with what is said – or issues that you want me to address – please let me know.
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