Principalities and Powers - part 1

Now that we have learned that there will come a time when people will actually take up arms against the Creator of the universe, let's look at how humanity will get to that point. There are many things taking place today that I believe are impossible to understand without the knowledge of the supernatural and how the spiritual affects the natural. And of course our guide to supernatural things is the Bible.

This passage should be familiar to every Christian:

Ephesians 6:10-12 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. (11) Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. (12) For 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.

Here is a similar passage:

2 Corinthians 10:3-5 For 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...

It's important to realize that although we are seeing our politicians supporting immoral policies and our society becoming increasingly pagan, the flesh and blood people themselves are not the enemy. They need to be pulled "out of the fire" (Jude 23) through the preaching of the Gospel. Our true enemies are fallen angels and demon spirits.

Most of the time we do not see what is happening supernaturally; we just see the natural results. Take Job for example. One day some messengers came to him and told him that his livestock, his servants, and his sons and daughters had all been destroyed. What Job did not see was that Satan was the cause of these disasters. Later Satan also caused boils to appear on Job's body. Even things that are not directly caused by evil spirits are nevertheless a result of sin. When Adam and Eve sinned, the whole of creation was cursed. It was subjected to "the bondage of corruption" and "the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain" (Rom. 8:21-22).

But it is possible to get a glimpse of what's "running in the background," so to speak. We know because there are accounts in the Bible. In 2 Kings chapter 6, we are told that the king of Syria sent a large company of soldiers to Dothan to take Elisha the prophet. We'll pick up the account in verse 15:

2 Kings 6:15-17 And when the servant of the man of God was risen early, and gone forth, behold, an host compassed the city both with horses and chariots. And his servant said unto him, Alas, my master! how shall we do? (16) And he answered, Fear not: for they that be with us are more than they that be with them. (17) And Elisha prayed, and said, LORD, I pray thee, open his eyes, that he may see. And the LORD opened the eyes of the young man; and he saw: and, behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire round about Elisha.

So this is just one example of supernatural beings that are among us that we normally do not perceive. In this case, they are there to protect Elisha and his servant. But as we noted earlier, there is "spiritual wickedness in high places" that also usually operates without our direct observation. We'll take a closer look at this type in the next post. But for now here's one last example. In 2 Sam. 24, there is an account of king David requiring a census to be taken. This display of pride displeased the Lord, and David realized he had sinned. The Lord then sent a message to David:

2 Samuel 24:11-13 For when David was up in the morning, the word of the LORD came unto the prophet Gad, David's seer, saying, (12) Go and say unto David, Thus saith the LORD, I offer thee three things; choose thee one of them, that I may do it unto thee. (13) So Gad came to David, and told him, and said unto him, Shall seven years of famine come unto thee in thy land? or wilt thou flee three months before thine enemies, while they pursue thee? or that there be three days' pestilence in thy land? now advise, and see what answer I shall return to him that sent me.

David decided to fall into the hands of the Lord because of His great mercies. We are then told that the Lord sent a pestilence upon Israel, and 70,000 men died. At this point 1 Chron. 21 adds a detail not found in 2 Sam.:

1 Chronicles 21:15-16 And God sent an angel unto Jerusalem to destroy it: and as he was destroying, the LORD beheld, and he repented him of the evil, and said to the angel that destroyed, It is enough, stay now thine hand. And the angel of the LORD stood by the threshingfloor of Ornan the Jebusite. (16) And David lifted up his eyes, and saw the angel of the LORD stand between the earth and the heaven, having a drawn sword in his hand stretched out over Jerusalem. Then David and the elders of Israel, who were clothed in sackcloth, fell upon their faces.

Obviously there are many dynamics at work here, and one detail can be easily overlooked. In the first verse of 1 Chron. chapter 21 we read:

And Satan stood up against Israel, and provoked David to number Israel.

Next post

Enmity Against God

Isaiah 14:12-14  How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! (13) For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: (14) I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.

The Bible has much to say about future events. We (especially Christians) would do well to carefully consider the warnings God has graciously given us ahead of time. So what does the Bible say about the end of the age and this so-called war against God Himself? It has far more to say than what I can fit in this post alone; for now, I want to focus on Psalm 2 and Revelation 19.

Psalm 2 talks about the nations of the earth and their desire to rebel against the Almighty God.

Psalms 2:1-3 Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing? (2) The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD, and against his anointed, saying, (3) Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us.

"Heathen" here is another word for peoples, Gentiles, or foreign nations. The word "rage" can mean "to be tumultuous" or "to conspire or plot." "People" in verse 1 is used in the sense of a community. "Imagine" has the sense of murmuring in anger. The phrase "set themselves" uses the same word as Jeremiah 46:14 which says, "...Stand fast, and prepare thee; for the sword shall devour round about thee." The phrase "take counsel" is used in Scripture literally for laying a foundation. Here in Psalm 2, it appears to be used figuratively, perhaps in the sense of digging in their heels and refusing to budge in the course of their rebellion against God. This can be seen throughout the book of Revelation when the people who are dwelling on the earth are continually struck with plague and disaster, yet they still refuse to repent of their wicked deeds.

Now pay attention to who the kings and rulers are against. They are angry with and contending against the Lord and His Anointed. "Anointed" is the Hebrew word Mashiyach or Messiah, i.e. Christ Himself. So the passage seems to communicate the fact that people, led by the kings and rulers of the world, will conspire together against God Himself and against the true Messiah, Jesus Christ. They will take a stand against God and attempt to throw off their perceived shackles. Everyone involved in this Great Uprising seems to be saying with William Henley, "I am the master of my fate: I am the captain of my soul."

Now couple this with Revelation 19:11-13, 19.

And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war. (12) His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself. (13) And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God... (19) And I saw the beast, and the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against him that sat on the horse, and against his army.

The rider on the white horse in verse 11 is none other than Jesus Christ, God's Anointed. (Notice that verse 13 says his name is "The Word of God" which points back to the title given to Jesus in John's Gospel.) Then verse 19 tells us that a character known as "the beast" together with the kings of the earth (from Psalm 2) and their armies actually gather to make war against Jesus Christ and His army.

The Bible makes it clear that unregenerate people are totally depraved and do not accept "the things of the Spirit of God" (1 Cor. 2:14), but how is it possible that people will actually attempt to wage war against Almighty God? Revelation 16 gives us the answer.

Revelation 16:13-14  And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet. (14) For they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty.

These are a few of the many passages that speak of man's "enmity against God" (Rom 8:7) and the reality that there is a coming war on God, however futile it may be. I hope to explore the evidence that Satan is in the process of building his kingdom which will be led by the kings of the earth and the beast of Revelation.

I also want to emphasize that each one of us is involved in this cosmic war in one way or another. There is no such thing as a neutral position. We are all born in sin. Before a person becomes a born-again believer in the Lord Jesus Christ, the Bible says we "were in bondage under the elements of the world" (Gal. 4:3); we were caught in "the snare of the devil" and "taken captive by him at his will" (2 Tim. 2:26). In this state we were totally depraved and as long as we continue in our unbelief, the wrath of God abides on us (John 3:36).

But the good news is that God, in His infinite mercy, became a man of flesh and blood so that "through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil; And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage" (Heb. 2:14-15). I hope that you have been delivered from your sins and are now a new creation in Christ Jesus. If you are, please realize that you and I are involved in a supernatural battle, whether we like it or not. In the next post, I hope to discuss what the Bible says about the nature of this battle.

If you are not saved from your sins, my prayer is that God will work through the scripture I have included here and draw you to Himself. Realize that He has spoken to all men in these last days by His Son Jesus Christ (Heb. 1:2) and "now commandeth all men every where to repent" (Acts 17:30). We must repent (turn from our sinful life and turn to God and His way of salvation) because "all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God" (Rom. 3:23). Because God is perfect in all His ways, He is also a perfect judge and cannot overlook the fact that we have broken His law. "For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all." (James 2:10) The good news is that God loves us so much that He made a way for us to be declared innocent of our sins. "...God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh: That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit." (Rom. 8:3-4) The work of salvation was finished on the cross when the soul of the Messiah Jesus was made an offering for sin (Isaiah 53:10). All you must do is repent and "believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved" (Acts 16:31).

Romans 8:2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.

Next post

What on Earth is Happening?

I think most people will agree our world is rapidly changing right now. Some of the events we are witnessing are upsetting and even shocking. There seems to be a collective sense of dread among many people, but we often have a difficult time of pin-pointing the problem. And it's no wonder when there are dozens of media personalities constantly bombarding us with their opinions of why things are the way they are. Although there are times when we are deliberately misled, I think more often it's what we are not told that misdirects us the most.

Most people never discuss the supernatural realm as it relates to the natural. Even most Christians, I would guess, tend to compartmentalize, placing politics and spirituality on separate planes. I used to do the same thing, but I now believe this is a mistake, and it clouds our view of the world. In fact I would assert that we cannot truly understand what is happening without an accurate knowledge of the supernatural.

Also I want to emphasize the importance of a love for the truth no matter how uncomfortable. Christians should have an overwhelming desire to know the truth about something as much as it is possible. Priority here should be given to knowing Jesus Christ Himself first of all. After all, He did say, "I am the way, the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but by Me." And, if we truly know the absolute personification of truth, Jesus Christ, why would we want to hide our eyes from the truth about what is really happening in the areas of politics or economics or education?

John 8:31-32 Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; (32) And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.

Next post

War on God?

Yes it sounds shocking, but my purpose here is to demonstrate at least two things.

1. The Bible has predicted a time when Satan will deceive the nations of the world in order to complete the construction of his kingdom and wage a war against God, and

2. Numerous events throughout history (especially recent history) and statements by prominent leaders in the fields of politics, religion, education, and business support this claim and demonstrate that we are very close to its completion.

I plan to include many links to websites, articles, and videos that help communicate this message. Much of this material will be surprising, shocking, and even unbelievable to most people. All I ask is that you don't dismiss it immediately. But also don't accept it outright. Please carefully consider the information, check the facts for yourself, and always compare it with what the Bible says. And if you agree and feel the same urgency to get this out, please email a link to as many people as you can. Thank you.

Acts 17:11 [The Bereans] were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so.

Use the "next post" link in each post to navigate through the inroductory section of this blog or go to the site contents page to view brief summaries of individual posts.

Next post