How do we clearly see if our path is at the center of God’s will?
By the Holy Scriptures.
It is our complete guide to morally upright living and humble obedience to God’s sovereign will. This is further stated in 2 Timothy 3:16-17, “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”
And so we find timeless truths and timely warnings from the divinely inspired words of the Bible. The truths revealed to us must seep into our entire being so that we may “live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God” (Colossians 1:10). The warnings that prepare us for realistic situations must lead us into overcoming anything that attempts to come between us and our God.
One of the warnings in the Bible on which a great deal of attention must be given is in Ephesians 6:12, “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” Like a military general, Paul gives this comprehensive warning to the members of the Church in Ephesus.
A. Skevington Wood, commenting on this particular verse, highlighted this by reminding us that “in a military strategy one must never underestimate the strength of the enemy” (86). In essence, this was what Paul did when he worded this specific admonition to the followers of Christ. Knowing fully well the possible efforts of the demonic forces to attack their prospective targets, Paul included this caveat in his letter to the Ephesians. Recognizing the indispensability of this counsel in living a victorious life, we will deal with the spiritual forces of evil like an equipped soldier.
Before delving into demonic forces, it must be established first that above all powers and principalities, the Almighty God supremely reigns and eternally remains superior over these evil forces. As Revelation 19:6 (NIV) states, “Hallelujah! For our Lord Almighty reigns.” The New King James version uses the words “Lord God Omnipotent” expressing the immovable truth that the Living God is the All-Powerful Supreme Being, and this means nothing and no one can ever empower Him from eternity to eternity. There is nothing too hard or impossible for Him to do (Genesis 18:14; Jeremiah 32:27).
In Daniel 4: 34-35, Nebuchadnezzar makes a confession of who God is by saying with awe and reverence:
His dominion is an eternal dominion;
His kingdom endures from generation to generation.
All the peoples of the earth
are regarded as nothing.
He does as he pleases
with the powers of heaven
and the peoples of the earth.
No one can hold back his hand
or say to him: “What have you done?”
Our Everlasting God is infinitely high above everything that sets itself as an authority in the entire universe. Again, no one and nothing can outwit or overpower Him who is the possessor of immeasurable knowledge and power. Founded on these truths, we must now and forever claim the true impact of the His Word in Romans 8:31b, “…If God is for us, who can be against us?” Thus, we can rest on the truth that no matter how intensive and extensive the efforts of these malign forces in our lives, we can fight against them, and that is to battle with faith in God’s Power as well as the knowledge of our enemies and activities.
Our enemies, the demon spirits, are still in conscious operation like roaring lions looking for someone to devour (1 Peter 5:8b). This reinstates that we are in a continuous battle with our enemies. Heeding Paul’s admonition to be wary, we must know the forces we are dealing with.
The Shepherd’s Staff gives a brief description as to who demon spirits are. First, demon spirits belong to the Devil, as spoken by Jesus Christ in Matthew 25:41, “the devil and his angels.” Second, demon spirits are fallen angels, who chose to disobey God and went away from grace (Jude 6). These two descriptions accurately paint a picture of rebels who decided to leave God’s sovereignty to seek their own selfish pleasure. And up to now, they still are exerting efforts to satisfy themselves by defying God through inflicting His creation with pain, suffering and every evil thing that try to steal people from God’s hands.
Duffield and Van Cleave present the two-fold purpose of demons: “they seek to hinder the purposes of God and extend the power of Satan” (484). The overall purpose is carried out by demonic forces through their wicked activities. Duffield and Van Cleave enumerate the activities of demons (484-485):
1. Opposing the saints (1 Thessalonians 2:18)
2. Inducing departure from the Faith (1 Timothy 4:1)
3. Encouraging formalism and asceticism as the result of false teaching (1 Timothy 4:1-3)
4. Backing all idol worship (1 Corinthians 10:19-21)
5. Causing various physical afflictions (Matthew 9:32-33; 12:22; Luke 8:26-25; Mark 9:22; 9:18; Luke 13:11-17)
6. Accomplishing God’s purposes sometimes, nevertheless. (Psalms 78:49; 1 Kings 22:23; Revelation 16:13-16; Luke 22:31; Job 42:5-6)
When talking about Satan and his demonic forces, one topic that is given considerable attention is demon possession. According to Conner, “Possession is to be under the power and control of a demon that has entered the person and can control their faculties at will” (111).
The Bible contains episodes of demon possession during the times of Jesus as well as the apostles (Duffield & Van Cleave 486-487). During the time of Jesus Christ, demon possessed people were also confronted by our Lord. In fact, He brought about healing in the lives of these people (Matthew 8:26; 9:22-23; Mark 5:12-13). Moreover, in the ministry of the early followers of Christ, demon possession was also dealt with by the early apostles, (Acts 5:16), by Philip the Evangelist (Acts 8:6-7) and by the apostle Paul (Acts 16:16-18; 19:13-16). These biblical citations were evidence of the reality of demon possession and its work on human beings.
Studying on this topic in this century, Violeta Bautista, in her paper “Possession: Where Psychology, Culture and Theology Interface,” sought to illuminate certain aspects of demonic possession/sapi in the Philippine context. In the research paper she did in the 1990s involving evangelical Pastors, she found out that “possession is seen by Pastors as resulting from the entry of either good or bad spirit, the former usually referring to the action of the Holy Spirit and the latter to the work of the devil” (Bautista, 49-50).
In the interviews she conducted, she derived the Pastors’ beliefs on the cause of demon possession (from most frequent to the least frequent): weak mental/physical/psychological faculties, sin/spiritual problems, involvement with occult activities, psychological problems, generational/participation in occult, contracting with the devil and the interplay of several factors (Bautista, 50). Her data showed that the top causes of demon possession are mental/physical/psychological and spiritual weakness and involvement in occult activities – all of which leave us vulnerable to the schemes of the spiritual forces of wickedness. Hence, vigilance like that of a soldier must be put on by every believer who wants to ward off demon possession.
Aside from causes, Bautista also recorded the natural and paranormal symptoms of possession. The top three natural symptoms of sapi are behavorial (violent, curses, shouts, suicidal, rolls on ground, spits at people, frightens/threatens people), spiritual (denies belief in God, afraid of the Bible, cannot pray, can’t say the name of Jesus) and volitional (loss of self-control, somebody dictates action) (51).
The top paranormal symptoms of sapi are the following: eyes roll up, showing just the white part; sees spiritual beings; sudden skin discoloration; abnormal twisting of the body; abnormal lengthening of the tongue; and sudden ability to understand foreign tongue (Bautista, 51).
These are the observations of various evangelical Pastors who have been exposed to demon possessions. We can notice that we still hear a lot of these observations from reports of instances of possession. As expected of the evil forces, the demons have not ceased their operations against God and His beloved people.
We have seen the reality of demon possession even in the context of the Philippines. What then should the knowledge about this cultivate in our minds and hearts? This question must bring us back to what we have established at the outset, and that is the unchanging truth of the Omnipotence of the God we serve and follow. Hence, our knowledge about demon possession must by no means invoke fear in us. On the contrary, the fact of demonic forces juxtaposed with the reality of the Sovereign God must in every way elicit stronger faith in the Almighty God.
Acknowledging that we are in a spiritual arena where battles are fought and won, we heed the apostle Paul’s call to “put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes” (Ephesians 6:11-18). And let us not forget the God-given arsenal for victory: the Word of God, prayer and fasting, and praise and worship. We must see these powerful weapons in light of the counsel and promise in James 4:7 that we must submit ourselves to God and certainly, the devil will flee from us when we resist him.
How can we submit to our God? Following His will through His Word, growing in intimacy with Him through humble and earnest prayer and fasting, and offering ourselves fully to His throne in praise and worship are the keys to submitting to the Living God. In a life of complete submission, we acquire a spiritually stable stance, protected by God’s power and shielded from the enemy.
With our divinely empowered position, we take hold of the power that overcomes every evil thing. Our Lord Jesus Christ assured us in Mark 16:17 of that power that makes these demons flee, “…in my name they will drive out demons…” We have the power of Jesus Christ in us, therefore we skirmish with the demons, always guaranteed of the victory in His Matchless and Powerful Name, the Name that is above all names. For in the Mighty Name of Jesus Christ, we are confident of the Biblical truth that “…having disarmed the powers and authorities, he [Jesus Christ] made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross” (Colossians 2:15).
We are the victors. The demons, no matter how hard they try to reverse it, already have their unalterable state and destiny: defeat.
Works Cited
Bautista, Violeta V. “Possession: Where Psychology, Culture, and Theology Interface.” Principles and Powers: Biblical Reflections in the Asian Context. Mandaluyong: OMF Literature Inc., 2007. 41-65.
Duffield, Guy P. & N. M. Van Cleave. Foundations of Pentecostal Theology. Manila: OMF Literature Inc., 1990).
Mahoney, Ralph, ed. The Shepherd’s Staff. California: World MAP, 1993.
Wood, A. Skevington. “Ephesians.” The Expositor’s Bible Commentary. Vol. 11. Gen. Ed. Frank E. Gæbelein. Michigan: Regency Reference Library, 1978. 3-92