“For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.” (Eph. 6:12)
What comes to mind when you think about spiritual warfare? Perhaps pictures of Linda Blair’s distorted visage or whirling head from The Exorcist film. Those who are more religiously inclined might recall Jesus casting out a legion of demons and sending them into a herd of pigs to plunge over a precipice. Or perhaps you can’t think of any other reason for some terrible oppression, so you begin to suspect something demonic.
However, The Exorcist was a work of fiction, and Jesus casting out demons occurred at a certain time period. Your perception of malevolent oppression could equally well be the result of an overworked imagination.
Basic to Christian discipleship and mission
Why bother with spiritual warfare? The rationale is twofold. One, it is clear throughout the Bible. Two, God has called us to spiritual battle. Spiritual antagonism is a component of the biblical worldview. Believers must be prepared for spiritual warfare, as it is essential to Christian discipleship.
Spiritual resistance is the focus of both our Lord’s priestly ministry and his priestly prayer. He came “to destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil” (Heb. 2:14). His prayer on the eve of the cross was that His lambs would be protected from the evil one (John 17:15).
Every New Testament writer recognizes the concept of spiritual warfare. Peter’s first epistle to the afflicted and scattered exiles addresses a wide range of practical topics relating to suffering. He closes the epistle with a discussion of spiritual battle, which he describes as normal and inherent to the topic, rather than abnormal or irrelevant. Peter says, “Be sober-minded; be watchful.” Your opponent, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour (1 Peter 5:8).
However, the Apostle Paul’s writings provide extensive teaching on the subject of spiritual warfare, which is a key component of the Christian discipleship curriculum. The division, disorder, depravity, and dysfunction outlined in Paul’s first epistle to the Corinthian church are shown to involve spiritual resistance in his second letter (2 Cor. 2:11; 10:3-6; 11:14; 12:7).
However, in his epistle to the Ephesians, the Apostle builds a center for studying spiritual warfare. Every chapter touches on the issue, as Paul discusses Christ’s redemption, the Christian call, and the dark world in which we dwell as children of light, struggling with spiritual forces of evil.
Although Ephesians 6 provides the letter’s most focused examination of spiritual warfare, the Apostle does not begin the discussion there. We can follow the stream of thinking from the beginning in chapter 1 to its end in chapter 6.
Spiritual antagonism is a component of the biblical worldview
Ephesians 1:3-14 contains a single line in the original language that declares deliverance. This magisterial proclamation unfolds in Trinitarian shape, like the unfurling of the banner of our salvation, the triumph flag raised to herald God’s reign and His Christ. The Father’s predestinating love determines salvation. The Son achieves salvation via His work on the cross. The Spirit implements that finished redemption by uniting us to Christ in our effectual calling and sealing us to God.
Christ’s victory for His church over Satan’s control exemplifies this salvation based on our triune God. The statement in verses 3-14 serves as the foundation for the prayer in verses 15-23, which highlights Christ’s kingdom authority.
That he worked in Christ by raising him from the dead and seating him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far beyond all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the next. And he laid all things under his feet and appointed him head of the church (Eph. 1:20-22; also Col. 1:11-14).
From the start, Paul introduces a key principle for understanding spiritual warfare. Deliverance from the bonds of sin and the tyranny of the devil is a result of Christ’s victory over Satan, not ours. Jesus is the strongman who binds the adversary. The victory is His, and the prizes are ours. We battle with His strength and live out His victory. This explains why Paul will later highlight “standing firm in Christ” as a strategy for conducting spiritual warfare.
Ephesians 2:1-3 shifts from the universal to the personal, with Paul speaking of God’s grace reaching into our personal experience. “And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience” (Eph. 2:2–2).
In our fallen state, we were dead in sin, worshiping the god of this age (2 Cor. 4:4) and our father, the devil (John 8:44; 1 John 3:10). We were born into the fallen realm as sons of disobedience and children of wrath, along with the rest of humanity, bearing the blame of Adam’s first transgression.
The prayer reveals the strength required to live in this world in the face of ongoing spiritual adversity. That ability will be discovered only in Christ’s strength, not in our own. That power is ours through the Spirit, who links us with Christ. This prayer directs us in trust to know God’s love, from which no demons or forces can separate us (Romans 8:38-39).
Now, as individuals who are alive in Christ and free from the bonds of sin, we must walk in a manner worthy of Christ’s name (Eph. 4:1). We are no longer to walk as the gentiles, who are still under Satan’s influence (Eph. 4:17-19). Though we are no longer of this earth, we are nonetheless here, on alert, and working. The church’s job is to instruct us in true doctrine (Eph. 4:12-16) so that we can defend ourselves against our spiritual foe and progress against the kingdom of darkness, while Christ develops His church through us as His instruments.
Ephesians 5 continues God’s appeal for us to live our lives in accordance with Christ’s release from the power of sin and Satan’s hold over us. Sexual immorality and impurity, which characterized us under the dominion of darkness, will no longer define us. We are no longer “sons of disobedience” on whom God’s wrath will fall, but rather “beloved children of God” from whom God’s wrath has been turned away.
The church’s role is to instruct us in good doctrine so that we can defend ourselves against our spiritual foes and progress against the reign of darkness
Paul reminds us of our identity in Christ. We are children of the light. He explains what that entails. “For you were once in darkness, but now you are light in the Lord.” Walk like children of light (because the fruit of light is found in all that is good, right, and true), and attempt to understand what the Lord desires (Eph. 5:8-10). Instead of participating in the works of darkness, we are to resist and expose them (Eph. 5:11).
The world we live in is fraught with spiritual errors and dangers. We must be vigilant and discerning, our minds sharp and not dulled, for the days are wicked (Eph. 5:15-16). The Word of God must be the light on our path, defining for us how our God wants us to go (Eph. 5:10, 17). We need the fellowship of the Christian community to aid one another and protect one another from spiritual harm (Eph. 5:19-21; also Heb. 3:12-14; 10:23-25).
Each chapter of Paul’s epistle to Ephesus equips us the fundamental knowledge for the practical internship in Ephesians 6.
The Conduct of Spiritual Warfare
At the end of the letter, the stream of idea that has flowed through the epistle becomes available for practical attention. Ephesians 6 discusses the enemy, our battle plan, our weapons, and our techniques.
Paul describes our adversaries as “the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places” (Eph. 6:12). Our attention is drawn to a spiritual adversary (Eph. 6:11), which we combat by being steadfast in Christ and finding strength in the Lord (Eph. 6:10).
Paul goes on to describe the armor of God for us. While the majority of the armor listed is defensive, that does not imply inactivity in spiritual combat. Armor was worn to provide protection throughout the conflict. Knowing Satan’s strategies (cf. Eph. 4:14; 2 Cor. 2:11) allows us to better comprehend the nature of the armor used in warfare.
God’s provision for believers stems from what Christ achieved in the power of God, which is received by grace through faith. Waging spiritual warfare entails walking in the reality of the gospel of the kingdom, which Paul has emphasized throughout his epistle. That is why Paul emphasizes “standing” as a strategy for spiritual warfare in daily life (Ephesians 6:13-14).
How do we stand in Christ? How do we fight with spiritual weapons? If standing is our tactic, how will we battle Satan’s schemes? Satan uses at least three basic tactics: accusation, deception, and temptation. We confront each of these by standing in Christ and exercising the gospel.
Paul warns us against deception and encourages us to use discernment
First, Satan is the accuser of the brethren (Revelation 12:9-10). He is the opposition. In spoken form, his name means “to accuse.” But Jesus bore our sins. They were nailed on the cross. We cannot bear them any longer. Christ triumphed in our stead. He disarmed the devil.
Against Satan’s tactic of accusation, we stand firm in Christ’s righteousness. We preach the gospel to ourselves, reminding ourselves that in Christ there is no condemnation. His righteousness is ours. Satan points out our sin to drive us to despair. The Spirit convicts us of our sin to drive us to the cross.
Second, Satan is deceitful. When he lies, he uses his native language. He rules the planet. His lies are spread by fake religion teachers, pop culture pundits, and secular educational institutions that promote a secular worldview. Satan employs individuals who are still subject to him (2 Thessalonians 3:2-3; 1 Timothy 4:1-2; 1 John 4:1-6).
But God has given us His truth. His Word is true. God has given shepherd-teachers the responsibility to communicate and equip others with this truth. Why? Paul wrote to us in Ephesians 4: “So that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes” (Eph. 4, 14). In Ephesians 5:6-10, Paul warns us of deception and encourages us to use discernment.
Against Satan’s lies, we must remain firm in Christ’s truth. We must follow Christ and the truth of Christ. We are to take every thought captive to Christ’s obedience in order to remove strongholds and arguments that contradict God’s truth (2 Cor. 10:3-5). We are to allow His word to dwell in us deeply (Col. 3:16) so that we might walk in truth against the adversary’s lies (Col. 2:6-8).
Finally, Satan is the tempter. He whispers, “Did God actually say? Is God truly good? “Does He truly love you?” Satan is the seductress in the book of Proverbs. Spiritual adultery is an expression of spiritual warfare. The enemy seduces our hearts. He seeks our worship. He encourages spiritual desertion and attempts to lead us astray on the cliffs of spiritual devastation.
We must resist Satan’s tempting method by relying on Christ’s strength. Paul acquired the lesson of dependence on Christ, through whom we may do everything, through Satan’s instrumentality (2 Cor. 12:7-10). Pride is an ally of the evil one, prompting us to reject God rather than the devil (1 Peter 5:5b-9).
Prayer serves as the foundation for our spiritual combat efforts. Paul’s mention of prayer in Ephesians 6:18 is not a new concept, nor is it another piece of armor. Rather, prayer serves as a fortification. We pray in constant alertness, conscious of our adversary and on watch against his schemes (Matthew 26:41). We pray in the Spirit, who links us with Christ. We pray for ourselves and our brothers and sisters that we may remain in Christ, trusting in Him and the power of His redemptive strength.
Conclusion
I received a call from a buddy who is starting a church in Kentucky. He heard about my interest in spiritual warfare and wanted to tell me a story. His little congregation gathered to worship in a Methodist church structure. Everything had gone smoothly. But then the church hit a wall. Conflict broke out. Members were sliding into sin. My friend spoke with the elderly Methodist pastor, who asked him, “Have you ever thought about spiritual warfare?”
That made my friend ponder, pray, and study. He began teaching and equipping his people. They began to pray not only for but also against, seeking Christ’s powerful intervention. That was when the church began to move ahead again, confident in the Lord and His might.
Spiritual warfare cannot be an optional in the Christian discipleship curriculum, nor can it be overlooked by those called to lead Christ’s church in kingdom mission.
