The kingdom,

The power

& the glory:

 -5-

The believer’s

Connection Mission

commission

 

(based on conversations I have had with professing christians)

 

Almost everyone with whom I speak along these lines, will take me to Ephesians 6 as proof positive of the believer’s battle with demonic forces. ‘See’, they say, ‘..it’s right there in black & white’. Really? Folk have often told me that they make sure they put their armour on every day, which begs the question; why do you take it off? Because you’re saved, you have the helmet. Because you possess a Bible, you have the sword. Because you’re born again, you have imputed righteousness. Because you’ve believed The Gospel, you have the truth. Because you’re a witness, your feet are shod. Is Paul telling The Church that it needs to use these things to engage satan, or is he pointing to something that has been missed or completely ignored by purveyors of the lore of spiritual warfare? It’s quite a thing. So in conclusion, finally my brethren.

¹⁰Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. ¹¹Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. ¹²For 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. ¹³Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. ¹⁴Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; ¹⁵And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; ¹⁶Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. ¹⁷And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: ¹⁸ Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints; (Ephesians 6:10-18).

I would recommend reading the entire book of Ephesians before diving into the end of chapter 6, because Paul is drawing a conclusion here. The epistle is about Christ & what He has done. The Apostle’s final words to The Church here, concern living our lives in a manner that reflects Christ & what He has done. This life cannot be lived without The Gospel & the armour of God represents the same. To put it on is to put on Christ. However, Paul’s words are not written in isolation & he takes his inspiration from The Holy Spirit, not the soldier standing over him. Paul knew The Scriptures; ‘And he saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor: therefore his arm brought salvation unto him; and his righteousness, it sustained him. ¹⁷For he put on righteousness as a breastplate, and an helmet of salvation upon his head; and he put on the garments of vengeance for clothing, and was clad with zeal as a cloak’ (Isaiah 59:16-17).

We too must know The Scriptures; ‘Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness. Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober. For they that sleep, sleep in the night; and they that be drunken are drunken in the night. But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation. For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ’ (1^st Thessalonians 5:5-9).

³Giving no offence in anything, that the ministry be not blamed: ⁴But in all things approving ourselves as the ministers of God, in much patience, in afflictions, in necessities, in distresses,..⁷By the word of truth, by the power of God, by the armour of righteousness on the right hand and on the left, (2^nd Corinthians 6:3-4 & 7).

These Scriptures highlight the importance of the believer’s walk. What do these verses have to do with screaming in tongues, binding demons, pulling satan down from the heavenlies or rolling around on the floor, cackling like strangled Geese? Nothing. I’m sure that the devil laughed too. While The Church was distracted, doctrine was neglected. The broad apostolic admonition to live our lives before God & the world was largely ignored & in its place there was an addiction to experiences. In a very short period of time, The Lord was no longer at the centre of The Church’s attention; satan was.

¹²The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light. (Romans 13:12).

Again, I saw people in meetings pretending to dress themselves in armour under the direction of certain teachers. To my shame, I did it too. However, that annoying voice that whispered in the back of my head, steadily made its way forward & increased its volume; what were we doing? The answer that filtered through was a logical one.

We are in Christ & seated with Him in heavenly places. We are members of His body. The feet are in the body. Therefore the powers of darkness are under our feet.

This positional truth has been over realised by some & the tentative connection to the life we live now, here on earth has been exploited from the sublime to the ridiculous. Didn’t Paul say that ‘…the God of peace shall bruise satan under your feet shortly.’? (Romans 16:20). Yes he said that, but notice that it is God who will do it. In securing redemption for mankind, The Lord Jesus has already bruised satan’s head (Genesis 3:15). Why is The Church attempting to give him a further kicking? Jesus Christ broke him. When we preach The Gospel & make disciples, we advance The Kingdom of God.

Modern teaching on spiritual warfare has nothing to do with christian living & everything to do with making a show of exercising power. It’s great at the time, within the four walls of a building. However, out on the street, on the job or at home, it is a different story altogether. It’s as if witnessing is boring. It’s old hat. It has to be spiced up somehow. What’s important is what Scripture says, what Jesus said & what the Apostles taught.

In their zeal to push their agenda, those who teach spiritual warfare forget that the instance in Daniel 10 is the only recorded example of such an event in either testament. These same people also fail to explain Daniel 7:11. I’m just saying. Jude speaks of Michael disputing with satan concerning the body of Moses (Jude 9), but this interaction isn’t recorded in Scripture. Am I saying that there is no structured hierarchy of the powers of darkness? No. I’m saying that our emphasis ought to align with God’s Word; the incident is descriptive, not prescriptive. Angels engaged dark forces (Revelation 12:7-9). Jesus defeated them. Now we The Church must warn every man & persuade every man (Colossians 1:28). Preach. The. Gospel! (2^nd Timothy 4:1-4)

However, this did not stop teachers building the doctrine of strategic level warfare. Suddenly, every nation, city, town, tree & bush had a demon assigned to it. Why stop there; why not houses, businesses,  churches, pulpits & pews? Suddenly there was binding & loosing in B&Q, warfare in Waitrose & pulling down strongholds in Poundland. All this while ignoring whole swathes of Scripture.

So many are busy attempting to do something that The Lord Jesus Christ has already done & very little, if anything of what He has actually asked them to do. Preach The Gospel!

³For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: ⁴ (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) ⁵ Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ; (2^nd Corinthians 10:3-5).

There is no mention of satan, his influence, his power or his kingdom. It is the battlefield of the mind & the supremacy of the subjugating authority of God’s word that are presented here. Again, this is  a matter of us living out our christian lives before God & before the world. How much we underestimate the power this carries. Satan has blinded the minds of those who do not believe & we carry the light of the glorious Gospel (2^nd Corinthians 4:4). In our mission of witness we swoop in & rescue those who turn to Christ. Preach The Gospel!

Am I saying that there is no power in the practises that we’ve looked at. Yes, that’s exactly what I’m saying. Again, What’s important is what Scripture says, what Jesus said & what the Apostles taught. The Bible tells us what to do. The Lord Jesus tells us what to do. Apostolic doctrine tells us what to do. Anything beyond that is both useless & harmful.

¹¹Lest Satan should get an advantage of us: for we are not ignorant of his devices (2^nd Corinthians 2:11).

²⁷Neither give place to the devil (Ephesians 4:27).

⁸Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: ⁹Whom resist stedfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world (1^st Peter 5:8-9).

⁷Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you (James 4:7).

¹⁴Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil (Hebrews 2:14)

⁸He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil (1^st John 3:8).

¹¹ And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death (Revelation 12:11).

The Church has been sold a duff bill of goods. It is a fantasy. It’s escapism. Why deal with real life when you can pretend you’re a stormtrooper? Stuff & nonsense. Repent. ‘..but Dave, the devil is holding onto my money, I’m sick & I don’t like what the government is doing!’. Get off your blessed assurance. Get a job. Do the overtime. Go and see your GP. Get out & vote. Submit yourself to godly leadership. Read your Bible. Wake up & walk in the light. C’mon now. As I have said before in another place; if you want dominion over something, consider conquering your sinful flesh. If you want power, opt to exercise godly self-control. If you want to be mighty, then humble yourselves under the hand of God. Deal with the issues in your heart & those between your ears. Preach The Gospel & do your part in fulfilling The Great Commission. His is The Kingdom. His is the Power. His is the Glory.

 

 

copyright © by David Samuel Parkins mmxxv all rights reserved.

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