What Is Spiritual Warfare in the Bible?

Spiritual Warfare, What Is It?

Spiritual warfare in the bible is the process of engaging in a spiritual war against the unseen forces of darkness including demons, satanic agents, and evil forces. The battle is spiritual because, unlike physical wars, you may not see your opponents with your naked eyes. But that doesn’t mean they don’t exist or that they are not contending with you. As a matter of fact, the effects of their actions will be felt in the physical realm.

For though we walk in the flesh, we are not waging war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds. (2Corinthians 10:3-4)

Spiritual war is the reason why some people sleep and never wake up again. They encountered some wicked forces in their sleep and they were overpowered and died as a result.

The Origin of Spiritual Warfare

The origin of spiritual warfare is satan’s pride and rebellion against God.

¹² “How you are fallen from heaven, O Day Star, son of Dawn! How you are cut down to the ground, you who laid the nations low!
¹³ You said in your heart, I will ascend to heaven; above the stars of God I will set my throne on high; I will sit on the mount of assembly in the far reaches of the north;
¹⁴ I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.’
¹⁵ But you are brought down to Sheol, to the far reaches of the pit. (Isaiah 14:12-15 ESV)

He revolted against God because he wanted to be like God, and that was the beginning of his fall. Pride brought him low and this resulted in a war.

⁷ Now war arose in heaven, Michael and his angels fighting against the dragon. And the dragon and his angels fought back, ⁸ but he was defeated, and there was no longer any place for them in heaven. ⁹ And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world—he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him. (Revelation 12:7-9 ESV)

From the above scripture, we see that the devil was defeated and there was no more place for him and his angels in heaven. This led to him being angry and so there is a war.

God and His angels prevailed against the devil and his angels. Therefore, we also will prevail against him because he was defeated long ago.

But we need to learn how to appropriate the victory that the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ won for us.

Difference Between Spiritual War and Spiritual Battle

Just as in the physical there is a difference between war and battle, so it is in the spiritual. War is between countries or nations, while the battle is where the soldiers or armies slug it out. The battle is the combat between armies.

For us as Christians, it is important to be aware that there is a war between the kingdom of God and the kingdom of Satan.

Although Christ has prevailed and won the war (Revelation 12:7-9), this is still vital information that we must keep at our fingertips.

Related Post: Bible Verses for Spiritual warfare

Why Christians Need to Be Aware of Spiritual Warfare

We christians need to be aware of spiritual warfare so that we can be on guard. Let’s look at it in the physical when two countries are at war, do their citizens commingle? Even if they do, the percentage of those that do so will be in the minority. And even then, they know clearly that they are putting themselves at risk.

Risk of betrayal by the citizens of the enemy country and risk of fatal judgment even by their fellow citizens. Rarely will you see citizens of enemy countries and nations befriending one another while the war lasts.

When the war is over, and the dust is settled, citizens of both countries may come together to rebuild the broken bridges of communication. But not before a peace pact has been enacted.

Just as it is in the physical realm, so it is in the spiritual, it is deadly to form an alliance with the enemy.

The Loss of a Spiritual Battle Does Not Signify the Loss of the War

The loss of a spiritual battle does not signify the loss of the war. It is important to understand this fact as well. That is why I took the time to explain the difference between a spiritual battle and a spiritual war.

Just as in the physical, soldiers win some battles and lose some, so it is in the spiritual.

As Christians, we may lose some battles. And we know that life is a battlefield and like all battles, there are winners and losers. But overall, Christ has won the war.

8 Rejoice not over me, O my enemy; when I fall, I shall rise; when I sit in darkness, the Lord will be a light to me (Micah 7:8 ESV).”

This is the Crux of this post, to explain spiritual warfare and encourage someone that it’s not over yet. Christ has won the war. Therefore, as soldiers of Christ, we are to stand strong and fight valiantly, putting on the whole armor of God and using every weapon at our disposal.

It also means we cannot afford to follow the crowd or do things because others are doing it. We’re in an army and the chief commander is the Lord of hosts Himself. That is why we must live a disciplined life.

In my previous post, I mentioned sanctification as one of the criteria for winning.

We must be sanctified and deliberately set ourselves apart to be used by God.

Example of Spiritual Warfare in My Personal Life

This brings to my remembrance an incident that happened to me in the year I gave my life to Christ. And I give this testimony to the glory of God alone and to the shame of the devil.

It was in the year 1997, I had just accepted Jesus into my heart as my Lord and Savior. And was eagerly learning the way of the Lord, studying my bible, reading Christian books, fasting, and praying.

On this fateful night, I went to bed and while asleep, I had a dream.

In that dream, I saw myself in the middle of a field, and some armed men were coming towards me. About seven (7) of them, each with a machete, approached. Meanwhile, I was singing praises to God in that dream as I was in the field. And I didn’t stop singing as they approached me. Somehow, they couldn’t come near me, all they did was motion for me to move in the direction they pointed.

I moved and continued singing and praising God with a loud voice till we got to the end of the field. And saw their leader all dressed in black waiting for me. It was at this point, I stopped singing to hear what he had to say. Guess what he said?

He ordered his team members to go and cut off my head with the machete. And as they made a move towards me, these exact words came out of my mouth. “But I can’t die!” immediately, they stepped back from me as if struck by an unseen force and that’s how I woke up. I want to believe my utterance was the result of God’s word that I had hidden in my heart.

The scripture that came to my heart when I woke up was;

¹⁷ I shall not die, but I shall live, and recount the deeds of the LORD. Psalms 118:17

That was 22 years ago, and God has kept me by His power till now and He will continue to keep me in Jesus name. Amen. He will keep you too in Jesus name.

Here is a personal experience about spiritual warfare and how I overcame. Do you believe in spiritual warfare? #godsword #spiritualwarfare Click To Tweet

Conclusion – Spiritual Warfare, Origin and Nature

In this post, we have examined what spiritual warfare is, and the origin and nature of the war we are fighting. We also established that God has defeated Satan and his fallen angels. This means that no matter what we’re going through, we will emerge victorious if we faint not.

Finally, take note that sin separates us from God and diminishes God’s power in our lives. Therefore, we should strive to live a holy and blameless life.

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And always remember, you are a Royal Diadem, Beautiful in God’s Hands.

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