The biblical story, from Old Testament to New Testament, presents an unbroken narrative about spiritual warfare.
Namely, warfare between human beings (“man/woman”) and celestial beings (“angels”).
When the garden scene closes, we have a man obeying an angel. When the wilderness scene closes, we have a Man ordering an angel.
I grew up in a movement that was obsessed with spiritual warfare.
That movement still exists, and various elements of it have descended into wacky practices and warped theology, even glorifying the devil without realizing it.
(Satan and demons love attention, so when Christians talk about these malevolent spirits constantly, they are in effect giving them honor they don’t deserve.)
In this article — which is a brief introduction to the topic — I want to identify three different kinds of wicked spirits.
To go deeper into this subject, you can listen to Michael Heiser and I discuss the topic in three different episodes of the Insurgence podcast, episodes 30-32.
Three Kinds of Malevolent Spirits
- Satan (a.k.a., the devil). He is a fallen celestial being known as Lucifer. [1]
- Demons (a.k.a., evil spirits). These are NOT fallen angels as tradition holds. They are disembodied spirits, the offspring of angelic beings who mated with the daughters of men before the Great Flood. [2]
- Spiritual principalities and powers. These are celestial beings who outrank angels. They fell from God during the tower of Babel and joined the dark side. They are territorial spirits over nations. [3]
While each of these evil spirits are different in kind and authority, they all belong to the same kingdom which is governed by Satan.
This is demonstrated by the fact that Satan is called “the prince of demons” in the Gospels. It also appears that Satan is bound in some measure when demons are cast out of people (Matthew 12:25-29; Luke 10:17-19).
Engaging in Spiritual Warfare
What does Scripture teach us about how we are to engage with these three kinds of malevolent spirits?
Let’s answer that briefly.
SATAN (a.k.a, THE DEVIL) – WHAT HE DOES
incites – 1 Chron. 21:1
blinds people’s minds to the truth – 2 Cor. 4:4
accuses – Zech. 3:1
tempts – Matt. 4:1; Mark 1:13; Luke 4:2; 1 Cor. 7:5
takes away God’s word from the heart – Mark 4:15; Luke 8:12
bounds people with sickness – Luke 13:16
enters people – John 13:27; Luke 22:3
fills people’s hearts to lie or do evil – Acts 5:3; John 13:2
destroys the physical body – 1 Cor. 5:5
outwits – 2 Cor. 2:11; Eph. 6:11
harasses – 2 Cor. 12:7
hinders (through human governments) – 1 Thess. 2:18 with Acts 17
performs false signs – 2 Thess. 2:9
disguises himself as an angel of light – 2 Cor. 11:14
deceives – Rev. 12:9; 20:10; 2 Cor. 11:1
condemns – 1 Tim. 3:6
snares people – 1 Tim. 3:7; 2 Tim. 2:26
has the power of death – Heb. 2:14
devours people – 1 Pet. 5:8
throws people in prison – Rev. 2:10
lies – John 8:44
OUR RESPONSE TO SATAN
resist him: Jam. 4:7; Matt. 4:10
refuse to give him any ground: John 14:30; Eph. 4:27
DEMONS (a.k.a, EVIL SPIRITS) – WHAT THEY DO
oppress people – Matt. 4:24; 8:16; 9:32; 12:12; Mark 1:32; John 10:21
possess people – Matt. 8:28; 15:22; Mark 5:15; Luke 8:36
make people mute – Matt. 9:33
make people unclean – Luke 4:33
throw the possessed to the ground – Luke 4:35
make people paranoid – John 7:20
make people insane – John 10:20
deliver false teachings – 1 Tim. 4:1
perform signs – Rev. 16:4
deceive people – 1 Tim. 4:1
overpower people – Acts 19:16
forecast the future – Acts 16:16
OUR RESPONSE TO DEMONS
demons are to be resisted (for they seek to enslave, possess, deceive, and harass humans).
Jesus followers who are walking in the Spirit can cast demons out of those they possess and/or oppress (Mark 16:17-18; Acts 16:16-18).
PRINCIPALITIES AND POWERS – WHAT THEY DO
Principalities and powers (also translated rulers and authorities) are higher level spirits that rule over nations. As I explained in Insurgence, they were the heavenly host that were once on God’s side, but they rebelled and became corrupt. They:
lead nations and wage spiritual warfare in the heavenlies – Dan. 10:13-20
war against God’s people – Eph. 6:12
crucified Jesus by influencing wicked men – 1 Cor. 2:8
OUR RESPONSE TO PRINCIPALITIES AND POWERS
We aren’t to confront principalities and powers directly. Jude and 2 Peter warn us against speaking to “the glorious ones” (that is, the fallen principalities and powers). But we “wrestle” with them through the following:
- Living according to the gospel of the kingdom and sharing it. As this gospel takes root in people’s hearts, it counts toward the fullness of the Gentiles and the reclaiming of the nations under Christ. This is one of the reasons why reclaiming the gospel of the kingdom is so important.
- Opting out of the world system, which is the domain of Satan. If you are still part of that system, you are under His domain and he, along with the principalities and powers, have a measure of control over you.
- The living witness of the ekklesia when she is operating as a functioning priesthood under the headship of Jesus Christ. Here is a quote in Reimagining Church about this:
“Consider the analogy of a puzzle. When each puzzle piece is properly positioned in relation to the other pieces, the puzzle is assembled. The net effect? We see the entire picture. It’s the same way with Christ and His church.
The highest purpose of the church meeting, then, is to make the invisible Christ visible through His body. Put another way, we gather together to reassemble the Lord Jesus Christ on the earth. When this happens, not only is Christ glorified in His saints, and not only is each member edified, but something is also registered in unseen realms: Principalities and powers in heavenly places are shamed!
Paul tells us that the manifold wisdom of God is made known through the church to the spiritual forces of evil in heavenly places. Through open-participatory meetings, the church demonstrates to other realms that Jesus Christ—the embodiment of God’s wisdom—is alive enough to lead a fallen race who once belonged to God’s enemy. This brings great glory to God. And it’s a central aspect of His eternal purpose.
Here’s how Paul put it:
Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. (1 Cor. 1:24)
His intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms, according to his eternal purpose which he accomplished [fashioned] in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Eph. 3:10–11)
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. (Eph. 6:12)
The open-participatory gathering has a powerful effect on the celestial realm, and it’s one of the main reasons why the enemy is invested in restricting “church” to a gathering of individuals who sit passively every week to hear someone preach a sermon.
That, in itself, doesn’t pose much of a threat to the kingdom of darkness.”
Going Deeper
To delve deeper into the subject of spiritual warfare and these three players who wage war against the kingdom of God, listen to Michael Heiser and I discuss the topic in three different episodes of the Insurgence podcast, episodes 30-32.
[1] See http://insurgencebook.com/Origins.pdf
[2] See https://blog.logos.com/2015/10/where-do-demons-come-from
[3] See http://insurgencebook.com/Origins.pdf
A Reset for 2020
How does one “opt out of world system”? Can you shed some detailed light or direct me to some study?
This is explained in the book “Insurgence” and further in The Insurgence Podcast. http://Insurgence.org to check out both.
This is a subject I am very interested in, so I have garnered information from various sources.
After reading this, my question to you is how do you respond to Jesus’ specific commands to cast out demons? I am following several ministries who take the the Lord’s command for deliverance and healing very seriously. Their meetings are participatory for all, and the Lordship of Jesus is declared. And…they are very experienced in discerining of spirits and ministering deliverance and healing to those who are oppressed.
I love my house church dearly. We all come together and declare Jesus on a regular basis. We love each other and share Christ with each other. But while there are many inspirational things shared and declared, there is nobody there who could confidently minister specifically to someone who is in desperate need of deliverance and healing. Therefore I would not bring someone with those kinds of needs to this group. I very much want to be more adept in helping people in this way.
For instance, how would you help someone who is a Christian and has demonstrated their love and dedication to the Lord in the past, but due to severe abuse in formative years, has become mentally unstable, and is now listening to demons, believing it is God talking to them? This person attends fellowships and has even asked to be ministered to. Yet they continue to be deceived, behave inappropriately, and life is a struggle for them and their family. Is this something you cover in your podcasts?
We will answer this question in a future episode of The Insurgence Podcast. So you’ll want to subscribe and get caught up: https://www.frankviola.org/2019/01/17/insurgencepodcast/
Great article! I really appreciate how you point out the effect of the bride, the community, the open participatory meeting of the saints, has on the spirit realm. We don’t fully appreciate how important it is!
Btw, I really enjoyed the 3 episodes with Dr Heiser!
Frank – are you familiar with _______ work on this subject in his series of books on “the powers”? If so, what is your take on his exposition of principalities and powers?
Yes. My take is found in my book INSURGENCE and in the podcast episode on the subject. This is stated in the article itself.
Thanks Frank!
Frank, thank you for all you do. I own most of your work, including ‘The Titan’. Nevertheless, I must agree with Gerrie. No one referred to Satan as Lucifer in the Old or New Testament. And many people had the opportunity, including Christ. Just because the meaning ‘Light Bearer’ could refer to Satan, that is not proof it does. This is just my opinion as I have an article on my blog about this.
How can we agree that angels are capable of sex? Disembodied spirits? Not biblical unless we believe in ghosts and that psychics really talk to the dead. According to Mark 12:25, we will be as the angels in the Resurrection. While one may argue that does not mean sex not a part of eternal life, the context does suggest it. What would be the need to reproduce if everyone lives forever? And then why aren’t they still mating with women today? Fantasy, not fact I think.
The sons of God in Genesis are not hybrids but sons of Seth. The scriptures call us sons of God in many places, including 1 John 3:2. Are we also descendants of angel/human relations? I think not. Even the context of the Genesis 6 text in Heiser’s article states the Nephilim were spoken of separately from the sons of God. And I would argue that the Nephilim were the product of inbreeding among the children of Cain. I have no proof of this. It’s only a theory.
We must also consider that not everything in Revelation, as in Daniel, is in chronological order. The fall from Heaven might seem to have taken place around the time of Christ because of a few verses like Luke 10:18. But Jesus said he ‘beheld’ Satan, past-tense (he could have said Lucifer right there – sorry). I believe in these cases the text is misunderstood and/or myths from past writings are being quoted as truth.
Not fantasy. Your specific questions are answered in those episodes of the Insurgence podcast. They are also answered in Heiser’s work, which it appears you’re not familiar with as the arguments you’ve raised have been discounted by he and others. The sons of Seth theory doesn’t hold water and it wasn’t believed by the Church for the first 300 years of her existence. The view I put forth was the orthodox position all that time. It has the weight of scholarship and history behind it. I also stand by my comment about Lucifer regarding translations. You can call him what you want, though. It doesn’t change the points made in the article or the podcast episodes. 🙂
The main point of this article is on WHAT these three wicked spirits do and HOW we are to respond to them. Everything else is just theological hair-splitting.
Frank, thank-you for this! I hate the affects of the satanic system and am so confident and excited about the grounds that the Kingdom of God and Christ is bringing! Thank-you for this clarity on spiritual warfare.
I am passionate about the expression of the gathering of Christ’s Bride as she is intended to be, the glorious expression of the power, glory and beauty of Christ Himself! I love the honor and privilege it is to be able to assemble together.
Soon a very small few of us are gathering to practice this function together of open-participation. I AM SO EXCITED!! Pray for us as we trust the Spirit to lead us in all truth in this!!
I was listening to a message yesterday about the Garden of Eden “event”. It is interesting that the devil only spoke one question and two statements. That’s it. Once Eve LISTENED to the devil, and took his lies into her heart, she disobeyed God. If she resisted in listening to him, and instead remembered (re-listened to) God and His goodness in her heart, the devil would have had no choice but to flee – he had NO power but his deception. If we keep the TRUTH in our hearts through daily reinforcement with the written Word and prayer without ceasing, it becomes a defense against any deception. The devil has a lot of agents of deception in the world today. Most everything that comes through other people, TV and music has some form of deception, and that is because the hearts of mankind that are NOT renewed AND actively pursuing on our Lord God, have nothing but evil intentions (Gen 8:21), opening us up to the poisons of rebellion and disobedience. The battle is moment by moment in this fallen world that hates Jesus Christ and those that belong to Him. Praise Jesus that He has given us a Spirit of power, love, and a sound mind – and His peace that sustains us through every battle. Thank you Frank for hearing and sharing the Lord say this is a time of “resetting”. The next decade of soldiers growing in the Lord is essential, as we still have a window of time to build up His army before the war intensifies, and purity is the only choice, if we truly want victory.
Hi Frank,
I just read Pagan Christianity and am currently reading Reimagining Church and Insurgence. As a former ‘tent-making’ missionary who is now outside the traditional system for many reasons, I am finding your work both hopeful and challenging.
Your assertion that the open participatory meeting is offensive to forces of darkness brought to mind ” they were saved by the blood of the lamb and the word of their testimony “. By gathering and continually confessing the ongoing work of Jesus as you describe, this verse becomes a living reality. This has definitely become my desire!
Thank you for your courage to step outside of the box.
Lucifer was a Latin translation error of the fourth century – in other words, not even an accurate translation of the Greek Septuagint. Jerome was asked by Pope Damascus to revise the various different Latin versions. The eventual revised Latin version that came about was used throughout Europe for the next 1000 years. In fact, the word ‘lucifer’ (in lower case) appeared in one place of Jerome’s New Testament version and that was 2 Peter 1:19 where it referred to Christ.
While the name Lucifer was a titrated translation by Jerome who was of the opinion that Isaiah 14 referred to Satan, it eventually and erroneously became the popular name for Satan. Isaiah 14 is a continuation of chapter 13 and it appears in the larger context of prophecies against various nations, e.g. Assyria (14:24-27), the Philistines (14:28-32) and Moab (15 & 16), to mention just a few. Isaiah 13:1 – 14:23 is a prophecy against Babylon and their king, and not a description of Satan and his fall. The prophetic announcements were steeped in sarcasm due to their pride and arrogance
Please read the linked article on the origins of hierarchy and government (footnote 1 and 3). It dismantles the idea that Isaiah 14 is not ALSO a reference to Satan’s fall. It surely is. And it’s not incorrect to call Satan “Lucifer” as this is how it translates in English. Even so, he’s called “the devil” more often so this isn’t ground to argue with any real profit. 😉
I hope you will listen to the 3 episodes Heiser and I did together.
Terrific Frank! This is very helpful, timely and insightful. Thank you very much.
You are welcome! And thanks for the Barnabas lift.