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Lesson Series
Introduction
to Spiritual Warfare
As we begin this series of
lessons on spiritual warfare let me begin by saying this is not
designed for a brand new Christian. It is designed for the person
who is filled with the baptism of the Holy Ghost and full of the
power of God. It is written in such a way that one who receives this
can learn effectively what spiritual warfare entails and fully
understands that by becoming actively involved in such will only
make you a larger target for Satan’s persecution. It is designed so
that one who is a strong Christian can become an active soldier on
the front lines. Taking this into consideration ask yourself if this
is something you really are certain about entering into.
Many of the lessons will have
references to military tactics as this is a spiritual war and many
tactics used in the natural army are effective when used in the
spiritual battles as well. Please be aware that Satan has used these
tactics for years and it is important we understand why he does the
things he does. Remember this is no rookie commander you are dealing
with. He is a veteran when it comes to warfare and while we know in
the end he will be defeated and cast into the lake of fire, it is up
to us to fight to save as many as possible from his clutches.
If you are certain this is
something you are interested in learning then follow with us as we
begin the first lesson on “Knowing Your Enemy”.
Knowing Your Enemy
Before engaging in any battle
it is wise to know who your enemy is and what he is capable of. If
you do not know this then you cannot possibly know how to begin to
fight that enemy. You should not run blindly out onto a field to
fight a battle not knowing what the conditions are or whether you
are fighting soldiers out in the open or guerilla type warfare. It
is always wise to know as much as possible about your enemy and the
commander of the enemy army so as to prepare properly for fighting
Let us begin with looking at
what we know of Satan’s tactics from what the Bible tells us in I
Peter 5:8
“Be
sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring
lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:”
Here Satan is compared to a
lion. A lion is proud and fears nothing, it goes where it pleases,
when it pleases and looks for the weak to prey upon. Satan does the
same thing. He looks for people who are weak in their spiritual walk
so he can tear them down. He is constantly looking for those he can
make use of.
In John 8:43-44 we see Jesus’
own words being used to describe Satan.
“Why
do ye not understand my speech? [even] because ye cannot hear my
word.
Ye
are of [your] father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will
do. He was a murderer from the beginning and abode not in the truth
because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he
speaketh of his own; for he is a liar and the father of it.”
Here it is very plain to see
that Satan is a liar. He is behind every lie and can be very
convincing in the lies that he tells or uses others to tell. This is
one way that he attacks and brings down Christians. Because of lies
told there have been many Christians who simply gave up.
In John 12:31, 14:30 and 16:11
we see Jesus calling Satan the “prince of this world”. Think about
who a prince is. A prince is one with authority that others will
obey and that he has control over. A prince is one who is
recognized and influences the direction of a country etc. Jesus
himself acknowledges Satan’s authority OF THIS WORLD. Now when we
are saved we are no longer “of this world” and as such are loosed
from Satan’s authority here.
In Ephesians 2:2 we see where
it refers to Satan as the “prince of the air” so not only is he the
prince of this world but also of the air. This is no little thing we
are battling here. This is a ruler with authority, with power and we
are in a battle for the souls of those here on the earth.
Satan is not as many picture
him with a pitchfork, horns and tail. He is far from this. Remember
he was the most beautiful of angels and pride entered into him. God
did not make him an ugly disgusting creature. In 2 Corinthians
11:13-15 we see warnings from Paul about being deceived by Satan.
“For
such are false apostles, deceitful workers. Transforming themselves
into the apostles of Christ and no marvel; for Satan himself is
transformed into an angel of light. There fore it is no great thing
if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers or
righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works.”
Paul is warning of people who
appear to be something they are not. Not all followers of Satan
attend the “church of Satan” and are obvious. Many are standing in
pulpits in Christian churches today even preaching the gospel of
salvation but preaching it in such a way that when the battles come
their way the people in their congregations begin to doubt God and
fall away. Many preach the gospel of “Jesus loves you and if you’re
truly a Christian then bad things won’t happen to you”. Then when
the trials of growth come, the doubts enter in “if Jesus really
loved me these things wouldn’t be happening, he really must not care
about me” and before you know it these people have turned away from
God. When that happens guess what? Satan has him another one and
there is one less Christian on God’s battlefield that Satan has to
worry about. Here we see a bit of infiltration going on by the
enemy.
In Matthew 4:3 the Bible reads
“and
when the tempter came to him he said if thou be the son of God
command these stones to be made bread”
Satan himself came to tempt
Jesus. He tempted him in such a way as to say “prove yourself, if
you’re who you are that you say you are”. Jesus however recognized
this for what it was and rebuked Satan, not once but 3 times in
total each time answering with the scriptures. Satan had even taken
scripture out of context for his next temptation to use on Jesus but
he did not fall for it.
2 Corinthians 4:4 reads in
part “in whom the god of this world hath
blinded the minds of them that believe not”. This is in
reference to Satan blinding the minds of people who are not
believers so they do not come to know the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Yes Satan has the power to blind people to God’s word. He will do
whatever is necessary to see that people don’t learn of God’s grace
or will do whatever he can to bring deceive the believers into
thinking otherwise.
In conclusion we have seen
just how powerful Satan really is as a commander and this is not
something one can enter into half heartedly. It takes careful
preparation before a battle and that includes knowing your enemies
strengths and weaknesses.