(photo credit)
This past Lord’s Day, we meditated on God’s truth from Mark 5, that Jesus has authority even over the demons. For many of us, questions swirl regarding demons and the kingdom of darkness. What about spiritual warfare? Are there demon possessions today? How do I stand firm as a Christian?
A helpful place to start has been provided by David Powlison’s book, Power Encounters: Reclaiming Spiritual Warfare. This book written by one of Pastor Brian’s former professors looks at what Christians should believe about spiritual warfare based on Scripture, after cutting through popular ideas and fictional takes. The book is helpful, but for those who don’t have time to go out and get the book, Justin Taylor has provided a helpful summary of some of the key ideas. They are listed below. This article was handed out in worship yesterday, but if you didn’t pick it up then, here it is for you now! May Jesus’ finished work on the Cross and His continuing work in us through His Spirit equip us to stand firm in the faith, always ready to give Him the glory against our ancient Foe!
Reclaiming: Spiritual Warfare
“A great deal of fiction, superstition, fantasy, nonsense, nuttiness, and downright heresy flourishes in the church under the guise of ‘spiritual warfare’ in our time…. But the warfare we need to wage engages and implicates our humanity, rather than bypassing it for a superspiritual, demonic realm.”
Reasons for the Urgency
- We live in a society where the modern agenda has largely failed.
- We live in a society that has become increasingly pagan.
- Missions, anthropology, and modern communications make us aware of the practices and beliefs of animistic cultures.
- We live in a society of high-profile bondage to “addictions.”
- Bizarre or troubled behavior, often related to experiences of extreme abuse, seems to be appearing more frequently.
- Many people have sometimes experienced an uncanny, heightened sense of the presence of evil.
- A growing number of Christians teach and practice “deliverance” ministry in the quest to cast out inhabiting demons.
Powlison’s Intentions
Truly all Christians believe in spiritual warfare; we all believe that Christ delivers us from evil. Powlison seeks to answer two crucial points of confrontation regarding spiritual warfare.
The first question engages how we understand the Christian life. What are we fighting? How does the evil one actually work? How does he exert—or attempt to exert—his dominion?
The second question engages our practice of the Christian life. How should we fight? What is the way God delivers us—and tells us to deliver ourselves and each other—from bondage to the devil? What is the mode of warfare? Continue reading
