The Christian’s Weapons for Spiritual Warfare Essay Example for Free

The Christian’s Weapons for Spiritual Warfare Essay Christianity presupposes the existence of the supernatural. After all, God is invisible and so are the angels and demons documented in the Bible as spirits that are present in the world inhabited by humans. Too often, however, because they are not seen, most people do not believe in the reality of the spiritual world. The Christian worldview takes into account the different unseen beings present and active in the world. This is well documented in the Bible and can be attested to by a lot of people who have been involved in one way or another in demonic possession. The church is also not spared in doubting the reality of spiritual beings at work. As such, they can easily fall prey to the wiles of Satan, which is described as â€Å"a prowling lion† in the Bible. Not only that, when they encounter demon possession or any spiritual activity involving demons. In fact, even Christians sometimes are not spared from demon activities, especially if they place themselves in places and circumstances where demons can work in their lives. Spiritual Warfare The world in which Christians live is full of circumstances where the spirit of light and darkness struggle against each other. Dr. Ed Murphy said that there is a kingdom of Christ where believers belong to and the kingdom of Satan where the powers in the air and in the world reign and influence the lives of people who choose to live outside the fold of Christ’s grace and love. This statement was presented in page 5 and I agree because this dichotomy is reflected in the different activities of people in the world. Part One of Dr. Murphy’s book talks about worldviews and how such worldviews affect the thinking of people in the world. Those who belong to the two different kingdoms necessarily espouse different kinds of viewpoints. Those who have become believers in Christ have been transformed and redeemed. They no longer belong to the sinful ways of the world, where the influence of Satan is very much at work. The saving grace of Christ enables a person to change his views and his outward expressions. As such, spiritual warfare is truly a clash of worldviews between that of the Kingdom of Heaven and that of the world. The Bible also supports the worldview that spiritual beings are very much at work in the world then and now and it is the source of authority of God’s work. Dr. Murphy also expounded on a kind of history of spiritual warfare. Satan used to be one of God’s top angels but was transformed by his desire for power and because of his pride. By relying on what the Bible says, the author traced the source of the cosmic conflict and how such conflict affects the world that we inhabit now. When Satan and his horde of fallen angels were cast down from heaven, the battleground has shifted to the earth. The fall of man in the Garden of Eden became a reality and has become the source of the rift between God and man. Dr. Murphy expounded this history in page 41. Through his explanation, I understood how humans are being influenced by demons and spirits. Christ became the centerpiece of history because He is God’s ultimate way to redeem fallen mankind from sin and shame. The battle is not complete, however, with one’s coming to Christ. It may be difficult to accept, yet, even Christians are not exempt from demon activities such as implanting thoughts and even demon-possession. Encountering such claim has taken me aback at first. However, as Dr. Murphy went on to explain the dynamics and levels of God’s protection towards His children, and the way that Christians put themselves in a position where demons may influence them, it dawned on me that he was right. He even related several real life experiences that he had. Christians therefore had a battle to fight. Such battle occurs in their minds, which is the battlefield for control. In addition, the battle also occurs at a higher level when culture collides with the claims of the gospel. Part III surveys the biblical view on spiritual warfare with a focus on the Old Testament. In the Old Testament, warfare in a lot of instances took on physical war and bloodshed. More importantly, however, is the spiritual nature of this war. The warfare between good and evil has been going on since the beginning of time. When man entered the picture, it has just been intensified. The Old Testament contained a number of promises that dealt with the promise that was fulfilled by Christ—the promise that evil and death will be ultimately conquered. Dr. Murphy made it clear that the Old Testament showed the need for an ultimate sacrifice in Christ and the inadequacy of human agency in waging spiritual warfare. Even if God made a covenant with Israel as a chosen nation in the Old Testament, there were kings and prophets who led the nation politically and spiritually. Dr. Murphy stated the role of kings and prophets in page 253. Through the role of kings and prophets, the author masterfully showed the coming ministry of Christ and of Christians. Spiritual warfare then truly involved warfare in the traditional sense—involving physical weapons. The problem, however, is that the spiritual aspect of the warfare has been disregarded and even denied. Worse, the Israelite nation forgot to keep the covenant they have with God, which led to the downfall of both the Northern and the Southern kingdom. The Old Testament was a foreshadowing of the new one. With the coming of Christ, the New Testament was put in place. Christ and the New Testament The first covenant failed to fulfill the terms of the covenant. In fact, the chosen people have failed to do their duty in becoming the light in the world. Yet, God has put in place a plan for redemption, which, incidentally, was also a part of God’s strategy against the Kingdom of Satan. Jesus Christ represented God’s ultimate plan for the redemption and restoration of creation from the clutches of Satan. Through Jesus Christ, man was no longer in the clutches of demons. Rather, a choice has been given to them so that they can be free. After all, Jesus came to set the captives free. Dr. Murphy also chronicles the encounters of Jesus with the demons. Before he started his public ministry, he was tested in the wilderness and tempted by Satan himself. It was a reenactment of the temptation that Satan presented to Adam and Eve but only this time, he did not succeed. Hence, his dominion and authority was about to be wrested away from him. He did not want to be deprived of such power, however, and so he gave a fight. In other passages in the gospels, Jesus encountered demons in the synagogue and in the tombs. In cases where he encountered demons, they recognized him for who he is—the Son of God. Jesus silenced these demons so that he can proceed with his ministry unabated. It was as if he wanted people to listen to Him instead of having to cast out demons. As the ministry of Jesus progressed, he managed to train his disciples in asserting His authority. When the disciples came back and reported that even the demons were obedient to them, he gave them occasion to celebrate while at the same time asked them to focus on building the kingdom of heaven instead of casting demons out. With the training of his disciples, Jesus passed on his authority to them. Throughout Part Four, Dr. Murphy looked at the development of the training of disciples and the way in which they encountered demons in their ministries. The Book of Acts, particularly, contains a lot of stories of demon encounters that followed the disciples wherever they go. In page 342, Dr. Murphy explained that there were times that the power encounters with demons led to conversions. There are also instances that they did not. Nonetheless, what is important is that, the early disciples knew that demons are real and that they are subject to the authority of believers given to them by Christ. The New Testament chronicles the development of the church from being a simple band of believers to a growing church in different areas of the known world then. As believers were preaching to people about Christ, no doubt the demons were also at work. That is why the believers saw the need to assert the weapons that Christ gave them for spiritual warfare. On the whole such encounters pointed out to the authority of Christ in the spiritual world as much as in the material world. Dr. Murphy also takes a look at different biblical passages dealing with spiritual warfare and the weapons that believers can use regarding against the powers in the air. The author also takes a look at some instances that even believers were besieged by demons in their efforts to live out the gospel given by Christ. Power encounters were also frequent as the church was growing. He said that power encounters were necessary in some places but not in others. This is because the people listening to the gospel of Christ should be able to make the decision of whether or not to accept Him. When the demons interfere, therefore, the Christians can assert their authority in Christ and ask these demons to get away. Christians can also be demonized. Although this may come as a shock to others, Dr. Murphy elaborates why in Part Five, particularly in page 440, where he discussed the different entry points of demons in the lives of Christians. There are sin areas that a Christian may wallow in. These areas then become the entry points for demons to establish their strongholds. I agree with Dr. Murphy’s assertion that demons can assail Christians. It is very similar to the captain of a ship who possesses the authority but refuses to assert it but instead gives the authority to somebody without rank in the ship. Demon possession of Christians works in the same way. There are a lot of manifestations of demonization. A lot of these can be easily spotted when one reads the newspaper—child abuse! The act of abusing a child can both be the cause and the result of demonization. A lot of social issues arise from demonization even though few people would accede to that. Even the mental health of people can be severely affected by demons—they lose their wits and logical judgment but instead rely on the voices telling them what to do. Dr. Murphy draws from psychology to explain that in some instances demonization leads to the alienation of the individual and leads to losing his mind. In closing, he also discusses the way in which people, Christians included can be free from demonization. The section dealing with finding freedom, however, appears to be inadequate given the number of chapters he dedicated to explore the causes of demonization. He also recognized the dangers of spiritual warfare and the way that people may shirk from taking responsibility for their action because of spiritual warfare. Nonetheless, Dr. Murphy’s book derives biblical insight and is a practical guide for all.