Spiritual Warfare: Obvious or Oblivious?

What comes to mind when you hear the phrase “spiritual warfare?”

The reality is that many people (and churches) simply aren’t comfortable with the idea of an unseen, spiritual realm that lies just beneath the surface of our tangible landscape. Our approach to spiritual warfare usually falls into one of two extremes – either we place an undue emphasis on Satan and his powers or we completely ignore the existence of a personal enemy.

Despite these extremes within the Christian community the Bible is very clear: if you are a Christian, you are at war.

We tend to think demonic activity has to do with weird, paranormal phenomena. That assumption is dangerous because it allows us to ignore the invisible war. Creepy demonic manifestations are rare and bizarre, and most of us will never encounter them.

When we explore what the Bible says about Satan’s activity, however, it’s clear that his tactics are much more insidious. Satan wants to get an unnoticeable foothold in our lives by triggering relational conflicts and weighing us down with fear, anxiety, depression, or insecurity. Our enemy is cunning and tries to increase our selfishness; tempting us with escape mechanisms like drugs and alcohol. These deeply ingrained, culturally accepted attitudes and behaviors give him all the platform he needs destroy marriages and families, split churches, cause depression, turn people inward and destroy our health.

These are not rare manifestations  – most of us encounter them every day.

That makes our knowledge of the invisible war a necessary and practical requirement for getting through normal life situations. How can we make sure we are not ignorant of Satan’s schemes? That is the vital question. Many of us just don’t have a clue what Satan is doing or how he operates. But if the stakes of this invisible war are as high as the Bible tells us they are, we HAVE to know. We cannot afford to be indifferent. In this case, ignorance is not bliss, it is devastating.

This month we’ll begin a series called “The Invisible War.” In it, we’ll examine what the Bible has to say about Satan, demons and spiritual warfare as well as how God has prepared us to for war (and victory!) with the enemy of our soul.

Hang onto your seat! We’re going to take a close look at the essence and schemes of a very real enemy and learn how to be “battle ready.” I hope you’ll join us as God reveals an unseen world of cosmic conflict with eternal implications.

Keep Pressin’ Ahead,

Chip Ingram