Thanks for the excellent response to my question, what does the term "spiritual warfare" conjure up?
In my earlier years, spiritual warfare conjured up images of demon possession. I grew up as a missionary kid in the West Indies. While I did not experience it, other missionary kids had to live with the sound of voodoo drums beating off in the distance. I vividly remember a picture on the wall at the headquarters of the West Indies Mission. It was a photograph of a witch doctor in a voodoo ceremony. The photograph was blown up to a large size and framed. The witch doctor was holding a torch under his arm as he danced in the center of a hut. Voodoo worshipers were in the background of the photograph. I remember men wielding machetes and other men sitting in front of voodoo drums (large bongo drums). Why this monstrous photograph was on the wall of the headquarters of the missions board is beyond me. I guess it served as a reminder to the folks of the mission field we were called to serve. To me, it was a vivid reminder that Satan is real, demons are real, and satanic forces possess real power. It frightened me to the point that I carry the image of this photograph in my minds eye -- and it has been thirty years since I laid eyes on it.
My views on spiritual warfare have morphed over time.
I no longer lay awake at night quoting and praying 1 John 4:4 over and over and over.
Like many of you, I think that spiritual warfare has become a scape goat for our own sin nature. It is easier to blame our sin on outside spiritual forces than on the sin that lives in our own heart. I agree with Susannah who said, "Most of my problems originate with my lack of 'sanctification.'" Indeed, I have enough idols in my own heart that I need God to demolish.
Secondly, David is right in that we ought to view spiritual battles through the lens of eschatology. We live in the period of history where Christ's victory has been sealed but the final coming of the kingdom is not yet complete. The analogy of D-day works well here. We live in the time of world history that is like the time after D-Day and before VE Day. Satan has been defeated, but he is still putting up a last ditch effort. We know the outcome of the war but there are still battles being fought. We should not view spiritual warfare in dualistic terms of good and evil forces balancing one another. The war has been won. Death has been defeated. The kingdom has come -- for now, the rule and reign of Christ is in the lives of his servants. A time will come, however, where he will truly make all things new and we will dwell on a new earth.
Thirdly, the most insidious type of spiritual warfare is not the spooky demonic type in my opinion. It manifests itself more in the Uncle Screwtape and nephew Wormwood type of warfare. Temptation is spiritual warfare. So is gossip. So is bitterness. So is lack of forgiveness. "Ordinary" kinds of sin, like a sinful thought life, need to be considered as spiritual warfare. Whether the besetting source of the temptation or gossip is a demon or our own sinful nature matters not. In either case, our response is to cry out in prayer for help. We cling to the hope of promises such as 1 Cor 10:13.
My natural bent is to *not* attribute sins or eery coincidences to demonic activity. The Bible teaches that Satan is like a prowling lion; however, it does not teach that Satan is omnipresent. Satan is not everywhere all at once. Let's not grant Lucifer more power than scripture attributes to him. Further, at least in our Western society, more damage is wrought by the spirit of the age. The confusion over objective moral truth and the divide between what is considered knowledge and what is considered belief has done more damage than witch doctors could.
That said, the reality of outside spiritual powers waging against us cannot be dismissed. Just read the book of Job. The good news is that Satan is on a leash. It may be a long leash, at the moment, but it is still a leash.
No promises here, but I hope to interview some family members who I think will have a different perspective than mine own. They have seen and encountered a lot more of the dark side than I have. In the interests of fair and balanced blogging, their side needs to be heard.
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