Know Your Enemy / From Followers to Fighters

Big Idea of Message:

The goal is to walk worthily of God — but is beyond simply putting forth effort or overcoming human obstacles. There are extremely powerful spiritual beings that strategize and carry out plans to derail the best intentions of Christians to live out God’s call in their lives. So rest in your relationship with God, pray, and depend on His strength.

Ephesians 6:10–12 ESV

10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. 11 Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. 12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.

Commentary Notes (Click to View)

Source: Ephesians: Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament, Clinton E. Arnold

Literary Context

Paul concludes the moral exhortation he began in 4:1, where he appealed to believers to “walk worthily of the calling to which you were called.” They ought to give careful attention to how they walk, and is repeated throughout the letter (4:17, 5:2, 8, 15). Paul now reveals that it may be more difficult to obey God and advance his kingdom purposes than many believers realize.

The goal is to walk worthily of God — but is beyond simply putting forth effort or overcoming human obstacles. There are extremely powerful spiritual beings that strategize and carry out plans to derail the best intentions of Christians to live out God’s call in their lives. Throughout the letter are references to supernatural opposition. These are the powers who held humanity in bondage before the redemptive work of Christ (2:2) and now threaten to find an inroad and set up a base of operations in the lives of people who have come to know Christ (4:27).

Union with Christ and the new identity of believers come to a climax in 6:10-20 because it is through this relationship and all that it entails that believers are strengthened to resist the powerful attacks from the evil one and his emissaries.

The readers are admonished to be strong “in the Lord,” that is, through growing deeper in a present, dynamic relationship of dependence on the one who is powerful enough to do more than they could ask or imagine (see 3:20). They are called to grow into a self-awareness of their new identity. They need to become profoundly aware of the changes that have occurred in their lives now that they have come to a knowledge of the truth, received righteousness, experienced salvation, been endowed with the gift of the Spirit, and can now exercise increasing faith in God.

Yet, consistent with his calls to ethical purity throughout this half of the letter, Paul calls his readers to exhibit this new identity in their day-to-day life, by practicing truthfulness, becoming more righteous in their behavior, and essentially becoming increasingly pure in thought and action. The danger of not doing so is that this neglect leaves open a window of vulnerability that the devil and his powers will try to exploit (4:27).

The use of military metaphors in this section convey the idea of spiritual power, such as complete armor, breastplate, shield, helmet, sword, strapping a weapon around one’s waist, and putting on shoes. The metaphor shifts when he uses the term “struggle” in 6:12, a term from the sport of wrestling, but could refer to the wrestling a soldier may engage in.

Commentators sometimes refer to the armor and weaponry of a Roman soldier as the background and inspiration for the metaphor, but the metaphor falls short. Roman historian, Polybius, gives the most complete description of the equipment of a legionnaire (Polybius, Hist. 6.23.2-5). Paul leaves out important parts of the “complete armor” of the Roman soldier, such as two pila (javelins) and the greaves (leg armor). Most of Paul’s imagery comes directly from Isa. 11:4-5 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] ; 59:17 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] , cf. 1 Thess. 5:8 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] ). Paul may have had some inspiration due to the pervasive phenomenon of Roman Soldiers in his world, as well as writing this letter while living under Roman custody, but the primary background and impetus for it is the OT, especially Isaiah and the image of God as the Divine Warrior.

Isaiah 11:4–5 ESV

4 but with righteousness he shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the earth; and he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked. 5 Righteousness shall be the belt of his waist, and faithfulness the belt of his loins.

1 Thessalonians 5:8 ESV

8 But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, having put on the breastplate of faith and love, and for a helmet the hope of salvation.

The repetition in this section is used to stress certain ideas. On four occasions, he uses the verb “stand” (ἵσταμαι) to point to the need for divine enablement and the goal of the struggle (6:11b, 13d, 14a; 6:13b). There are also a variety of terms used for power to stress the availability of divine power for believers in the midst of the battle.

Because prayer is foundational to drawing on God’s power and successfully resisting demonic assaults, Paul uses an array of terms to highlight the importance of prayer.

(προσευχόμενοι in 6:18a; προσευχή in 6:18a; δεήσεως in 6:18a and 18f; and ἀγρυπνοῦντες in 6:18e). Prayer receives further stress with the fourfold repetition of the word “all” (πάς) in connection with it (see 6:18c, d, f, g).

Paul builds the responsibility of believers to grow in their knowledge of their new identity in Christ and to appropriate it by using the variety of terms conveying the notion of “putting on.”

6:10-20: Appropriating the Power of God to Stand against the Powers of Darkness

Introductory Exhortation (6:10)

Exhortation to Appropriate God’s Power because of the Supernatural Nature of the Battle (6:11-13)

Resisting the Powers of Darkness by Appropriating Armor from God (6:14-17)

Prayer as the Foundation and Essence of Spiritual Warfare (6:18-20)

Big Idea for 6:10-20:

Living a life pleasing to the Lord and engaging in the mission of the church is not easy because there are powerful supernatural beings that strategize and attack. Because of this, God makes available his power and divine resources to believers, so they can resist the assaults of these hostile spirits and advance God’s kingdom into the world. Believers are called to appropriate these gifts, cultivate their corresponding virtues, and above all, pray in the Spirit as an expression of their dependence on the Lord to receive God’s enabling power.

Translation: (16:10) Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty strength. (11a) Put on the complete armor of God (b) so that you are strengthened to stand against the strategies of the devil (12a) because our struggle is not against blood and flesh, but (b) against the rulers, (c) the authorities, (d) the world powers of this darkness, (e) the evil spiritual beings in the heavenly places.

Structure: Finally – Paul transitions to the final set of exhortations in the letter. Vs 10 – “be strong in the Lord,” as a summary exhortation that stands over the entire passage and gets at the heart for what readers are supposed to do. Vs 11 parallels and introduces the metaphor of the armor of God that gives expression to the idea of divine enablement and protection throughout the rest of the passage.

The passage has three sections following the introductory appeal: (1) vv. 10-13 (this sermon), which emphasize the need for dependence on God because of hostile principalities and powers, (2) vv. 14-17, which delineate the range of spiritual weapons needed to engage the enemy successfully, and (3) vv. 18-20, which emphasize prayer in accordance with the work of the Spirit as the foundation to preparing and engaging in spiritual struggle.

In the first section, Paul enjoins believers to put on the armor (6:11), he gives reason for their need of it with an infinitive purpose phrase stating that the goal is “to stand.” This is surprisingly difficult because the struggle is not against human opponents, but spiritual beings. The preposition “against” (pros) is used six times to delineate the range of spirit beings that believers must contend with. In 6:13, he reiterates the importance of taking up the armor and repeats the goal of standing.

Introductory Exhortation (6:10)

Exhortation to Appropriate God’s Power because of the Supernatural Nature of the Battle (6:11-13)

The comparison of God’s power to weaponry (6:11a)

The supernatural nature of the battle (6:11b-12)

The strategies of the devil (6:11b)

The nonphysical nature of the struggle (6:12a)

The range of spirits opposing the church (6:12b-e)

The need for God’s power to resist the supernatural enemies (6:13)

Reiteration of the need for God’s power (6:13a)

The time of the battle (6:13b)

The preparation for battle (6:13c)

The goal of the battle: to stand (6:13d)

6:10 — Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty strength. | (CSB) Finally, be strengthened by the Lord and by his vast strength. | (ESV) Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might.

In his concluding admonition, Paul urges his readers to a greater dependance on the Lord for the divine empowerment needed to face their enemies and live the kind of lives God has called them to live. The Greek word, “finally” could be interpreted as “from now on,” as it is used in Gal. 6:17 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] , the only other place it is used in the NT or LXX. Yet, this future use does not fit the context, since readers are already engaged in battle. The more natural understanding is to understand the adverb as introducing the last exhortation of the second half of the letter, as the NLT translates as “a final word.”

“Be strong” should be interpreted as a passive voice, stressing the idea that the strength is received from an outside source. It is also an imperative and implies volition and action on the part of the hearers to seek God and present themselves to him for filling with his power. The same word was used by Paul to appeal to Timothy to “be strong” (2 Tim 2:1 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] ). The language should evoke memory of God’s repeatedly calling Joshua to “be strong” (Josh 1:6 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] , 7 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] , 9 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] , Deut. 31:6-7 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] ) as he was to lead God’s people into the land of Canaan, where they would face many enemies and fight many battles. The difference, now, is that God’s people face more powerful enemies than mere human opponents.

Joshua 1:6-9

Be strong and courageous, for you shall cause this people to inherit the land that I swore to their fathers to give them. 7 Only be strong and very courageous, being careful to do according to all the law that Moses my servant commanded you. Do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may have good success wherever you go. 8 This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. 9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.”

Deuteronomy 31:6-8

31 So Moses continued to speak these words to all Israel. 2 And he said to them, “I am 120 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] years old today. I am no longer able to go out and come in. The LORD has said to me, ‘You shall not go over this Jordan.’ 3 The LORD your God himself will go over before you. He will destroy these nations before you, so that you shall dispossess them, and Joshua will go over at your head, as the LORD has spoken. 4 And the LORD will do to them as he did to Sihon and Og, the kings of the Amorites, and to their land, when he destroyed them. 5 And the LORD will give them over to you, and you shall do to them according to the whole commandment that I have commanded you. 6 Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the LORD your God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you.”

7 Then Moses summoned Joshua and said to him in the sight of all Israel, “Be strong and courageous, for you shall go with this people into the land that the LORD has sworn to their fathers to give them, and you shall put them in possession of it. 8 It is the LORD who goes before you. He will be with you; he will not leave you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed.”

We may be conditioned to miss the fact that Paul is calling his readers to a relationship of dependence, not urging them to draw on their own internal fortitude and strength. “In the Lord” clarifies that believers need to draw on divine power. There is some ambiguity here, when Paul uses the expression “Lord” since it could refer to either the Father or the Son. As it does elsewhere, it refers to the Lord Jesus Christ, through their relationship with resurrected and ascended Christ that believers find empowerment. Paul repeatedly prays that they gain a heightened awareness of the vastness of God’s power that is presently available to them through Christ for them (1:19). This is only available through union with Christ and participation in his resurrection and exaltation (2:6). This power is not mediated through incantations, formulas, or shamanistic or magical rituals. It would have been sufficient to just say “be strong in the Lord,” but he expands on the magnitude of God’s power by adding the phrase “and his mighty strength.”

6:11a – Put on the complete armor of God. | (CSB) Put on the full armor of God. | (ESV) Put on the whole armor of God.

Paul now explains how they are to gain the strength and power from the Lord. In addition to drawing from their existing dynamic relationship to the risen Christ, they are to appropriate a set of divine gifts and cultivate some important virtues that will assist them in their conflict with the hostile spiritual forces. Paul uses a set of military metaphors that he epitomizes as the armor of God. The lack of any conjunction connecting this imperative with the previous probably suggests that the latter is providing an elaboration on the divine strength that he is commending to his readers. There is also a certain assonance between the two imperatives that may suggest a close connection. Paul expands on the nature of the divine provisions by delineating a full set of armor they should put on.

The phrase “put-on” is used commonly, referring both the clothing and armor. Paul frequently uses it in a metaphorical sense for appropriating the essential virtues associated with the new identity in Christ (“clothe yourself with compassion, kindness, humility…”; Col. 3:10 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] , 12 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] ). Sometimes, he conveys these virtues with the image of armor (Rom 13:12 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] , armor of light, 1 Thess 5:8 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] ). Earlier, he used this verb to “put on the new self that was created in the likeness of God in righteousness and holiness of truth” (4:24).

As we look at the “armor” that believers are to appropriate and use — truth, righteousness, the gospel, faith, salvation, the word of God, and prayer — we conclude there is a significant correspondence between 4:24 and 6:10-17.

“Essentially, then, to ‘put on the new self’ is the same as donning the armor of God.” — O’Brien

Knowing the truth of who we are in union with Christ, cultivating the virtues of this new identity and using the resources available through this relationship are at the heart of what it means to put on the armor of God.

Complete Armor (πανοπλία) implies a full set of armor that a soldier would wear into battle. Think of a fully equipped soldier rather than a simple image of a person who takes hold of a few weapons. The emphasis falls on God’s supplying all the power and strength believers need to stand against the enemy.

6:11b — …so that you are strengthened to stand against the strategies of the devil. | (CSB) …so that you can stand against the schemes of the devil. | (ESV) …that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil.

Believers need God’s strength because they will face a variety of well-planned attacks by a supernatural opponent. The purpose of the armor is because of the enemy. The armor enables, strengthens, and powers. The goal for believers is “to stand”. This term is important to the overall context, since Paul uses it four different times. Sometimes understood to mean that the purpose of the armor is only defensive. In other words, Paul knows that believers are under attack, they simply need to stand their ground and not fall or retreat. This understanding is too restrictive and needs to be expanded. The Greek used here does not only imply a defensive resistance to attack, but can speak of an aggressive stance against one’s opponents. (Psalm 21:11 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] describes enemies who devise a wicked scheme, but are not able to stand, or carry out their hostile plan against David. I Chr. 21:1 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] notes that the devil “stood” in Israel to incite David to sin by taking a census. In Ephesians, believers are summoned to take both offensive and defensive postures against their supernatural enemies.

Believers need God’s power so they can stand against the strategies of the devil. Strategies can be thought as cunning or scheming. The idea in Ephesians is that the devil is an intelligent being that carefully strategies plans against the church, God’s plan on redemption, and individual believers. What Paul does not say is how these schemes, which he will later refer to as “flaming arrows” are discerned and felt. It would seem prudent to see an expansive variety of ways that the devil hatches his attacks. This could come through people who teach things contrary to one’s faith, through temptation, difficult physical trials, or overt manifestations, or any of a limitless array of intelligently designed plots.

6:12a — Because our struggle is not against blood and flesh. | (CSB) For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, | (ESV) For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood

The warfare believers experience can be likened to wrestling, but not engagement with human enemies. Because of the reference to armor and weapons in this passage, it’s inconsistent that Paul uses the word “struggle” – an athletic image – to characterize a battle when “warfare” might have been more appropriate. Wrestling was common in the Graeco-Roman world and was found in inscriptions in Asia Minor and Ephesus. Paul likely took the image from the sport of wrestling. Most of the inscriptions of the word appears honorific and bestow public recognition on wrestlers who won their events.

Why Paul mixes metaphors is not clear, but he does so frequently. There was a tradition in the ancient world of the advantage a fully armed soldier had if he was also trained as a wrestler (Plutarch, Mor. 2.5.639F-640A). If this is not what Paul had in mind, then both images combine to express the notion of close, difficult, tiring, hand-to-hand combat.

It’s possible that Paul was evoking the readers’ recollection of a widely attested tradition in Asia Minor regarding an Ephesian wrestler who used magic to help him defeat his opponents. The Suda relates this proverbial story as part of its entry on the “Ephesian Letters” six magical names laden with spiritual power that were associated with the Ephesian Artemis and the local magical traditions.

And at Olympia when a Milesian and an Ephesian were wrestling, the Milesian was not able to wrestle, because the other was holding the Ephesian letters around his ankle. When it was clear and they were taken off him, the Ephesian failed thirty [times] in a row.

The allusion may have been an effective way to communicate to converts that they should no longer use magical amulets (like the Ephesian Letters) but should now put on the complete armor of God. Although people living in this region thought that magic was effective and that the loss of it could prove devastating, Paul prevents a different perspective on spiritual power that vilifies the functionaries of magic as evil “rulers” and “authorities” under the leadership of the devil and points to the Lord as the only source of spiritual power for believers.

The fact that the struggle is not against blood and flesh underlines the spiritual nature of the warfare. The order is reversed from Paul’s normal “flesh and blood,” perhaps to prevent the potential confusion of some readers thinking that they were no longer urged to struggle against “the flesh” (Gal 5:17 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] ). This expression highlights the fact that readers should not only consider their fight as one against Roman rule, or any local civic ruler. Paul is unmasking the ultimate source of many of the evils they experience — the influencers behind the Roman Imperium.

6:12b-e — But against the rulers, the authorities, the world powers of this darkness, the evil spiritual beings in the heavenly places. | (CSB) but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this darkness, against evil, spiritual forces in the heavens. | (ESV) but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.

Paul clarifies here that the opposition is not one powerful supernatural being, but a whole range of spiritual forces of varying rank, authority, and capabilities. The strong adversative conjunction “but” heightens the contrast between the physical and spiritual realms. The first two categories of spiritual powers — the rulers and the authorities — are Paul’s most common expression for demonic spirits, which he used twice earlier in the letter (1:21; 3:10) (see comments there). The third expression, “world powers” is unique, never appearing anywhere else in the NT or LXX and is the earliest appearance of the term in Greek writings. Although it’s possible that Paul coined the term, it is far more likely that Paul drew on a word for spirits that was current both in Graeco-Roman and Jewish folk belief and astrology. The word appears in the second Century AD Anthologies of Vettius Valens, which is a compilation of more ancient works. This text gives evidence of its use by Pseudo-Petorsis in the second-century BC in reference to the planets, thought of as animated by spirits. The same term was used to magnify the omnipotence and universal power of various deities. An inscription found in a bath house in Rome read, “One Zeus, Serapis, Helios, world power, unconquerable.” In pagan folk belief, the word appears seven times in the corpus of Greek magical papyri as an epithet for various deities invoked in magical incantations. An example of the title used in a set of instructions for ritual empowerment of a magical amulet:

Spell to Helios: I invoke you, the greatest god, eternal lord, world ruler, who are over the world and under the world, mighty ruler of the sea… Come to me… I call upon your holy and great and hidden names, which you rejoice to hear… Give glory and honor and favor and fortune and power to this stone, which I consecrate today for [insert name]. I invoke you, the greatest heaven [three dozen magical names follow], the shining Helios, giving light throughout the whole world. You are the great Serpent, leader of all the gods… Give glory and favor to this phylactery. (PGM IV.1599-1650).

In Jewish folk belief, the term is found twice in the Testament of Solomon where it is used of demonic spirits associated with planets and with 36 demonic rulers of the heavenly sphere. These texts also represent the spirits as directly attacking and influencing people on earth, as illustrated by T. Sol. 8:1-3:

I commanded another demon to appear before me. There came seven spirits bound up together hand and foot… when I, Solomon, saw them, I was amazed and asked them, “Who are you?” They replied, “We are heavenly bodies, rulers of this world of darkness. The first said, “I am Deception.” the second said, “I am Strife…”

The text demonstrates the interchangeability of the language for the powers within folk Judaism, where the expressions “demons”, “spirits” and “world powers” could be used of the same phenomena. It is likely that Paul’s use of the term here is reflective of the language of Jewish demonology, although Gentile readers would be familiar with the term as an epithet for their gods. Paul would not understand the term referring to an actual deity, but he may have seen the term as expressive of the spiritual realities that stood behind the gods. In other words, this could be an expression for the spirits that animated Artemis, Cybele, Isis, Serpis, and the fifty other gods and goddesses worshiped in Ephesus and western Asia Minor. In line with Jewish tradition, Paul saw pagan idolatry animated by demonic spirits.

The possessive genitive “of this darkness” casts these so-called “world powers” as thoroughly evil, for they belong to the realm of darkness. “Darkness” is the sphere in which these believers formally belonged (5:8) — a realm that constituted a dominion of authority over their lives and from which they were rescued by the Lord (Col. 1:13 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] ). Insofar as “world powers of this darkness” alludes to the local deities, Paul presents a serious warning about the danger of the syncretistic impulse many believers faced of dividing their loyalties between Christ and their traditional deities. These “world powers” were in league with the devil and presented a serious threat to their growth and development as Christians.

The fourth and final expression in this series, “evil spiritual beings” should be understood as a comprehensive designation for all classes of hostile spirits. The phrase can be translated “the spirit-forces of evil.” The attributive genitive “of evil” characterizes these spirits as harmful. This expression “evil spiritual beings” is best seen as summarizing all of these previously mentioned spirits (“the rulers, the authorities, the world powers”) and encompassing all other forms of wicked spirits and denouncing them as evil. Dwelling in “the heavenly places”, these spirits inhabit the unseen world of spiritual reality.

Theology in Application

Paul’s teaching here is well known and often cited by Christians throughout the centuries. His glimpse into the realm of darkness and the elaborate image of a well-armed soldier, and the practical insights for how to overcome spiritual opposition, has made this a popular passage. A question that is not often asked of this text is, “Why?” Why has Paul chosen this readership and occasion to communicate his thoughts about the church’s warfare with the dominion of the devil and his forces? Nowhere else does Paul give so much attention to this issue. Why here? Ephesians should be seen as a genuine letter addressing real-life issues in the extensive network of house churches in Ephesus and the outlying villages and cities. Acts 19:8-41 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] record that many people became Christians from a background of devotion to the famed goddess of the city (Artemis/Diana) and there were numerous people who had engaged in various forms of magical practices. Idolatry was widely perceived by Jews to be animated by evil spirits and the magic explicitly represented a form of trafficking in the work of spirits, and so there is every reason to see why Paul would feel the need to address spiritual warfare in an intensive way in this letter. The readers came from backgrounds of involvement with spirits. They could benefit from additional perspectives from the apostle on how to live in a way pleasing to the one living and true God, to whom they now give their allegiance. This passage affirms that spirit powers are real, but they are aligned with the devil in opposition to God’s people. This is why readers need to depend on God to withstand their attacks and be able to advance.

If you have not come from a background of worshiping other gods and goddesses or an involvement in some form of shamanistic practices, which is true for most Western Christians – this passage is no less relevant, but it might take on even more relevance because it strongly affirms that there is a uniquely spiritual dimension of life that needs to be taken seriously if you want to “walk worthily of God” and share the gospel of peace with nonbelievers.

Spirit Beings are Real

There are powerful, invisible, spirit beings that attack believers with the intent of hurting them, causing them to lapse into sin, or making them ineffectual for God’s kingdom purposes. The terms “the devil,” “the evil one,” “rulers,” “authorities,” “world powers of this darkness,” and “evil spiritual beings” represent the language Paul uses in this passage to describe this reality. The first two terms are alternative ways the Jews and the early Christians referred to Satan, a being Paul described as “the ruler of the realm of the air (2:2).” Satan appears to be the leader of a vast army of spirits that are part of a stratified command and control structure. The terminology here for these spirits is suggestive of hierarchy in the demonic realm, since some of these terms were commonly used to refer to various ranks of human leaders in governmental positions of authority. There does not appear to be any way for us to determine what the relative rank and abilities of these spirits are, but it’s probably not essential for us to know, either.

The language Paul uses for powers would have been understandable, especially to Jews, since the words were part of an extensive collection of terms they used for demonic spirits. Many of the terms also would have been familiar to Gentiles. The new idea for many Gentiles would have been that the spiritual phenomena in their local religion was animated by demonic spirits under the leadership of the devil, and that there were no so-called gods or goddesses that in any way rivaled the one true God. None of this is relevant to us if Paul was simply reflecting a primitive, prescientific worldview, as many contemporary scholars believe.

A belief in the devil or in spirits has never lost its plausibility outside the West, however, where such beliefs have persisted despite Western influences. The belief in evil spirits continue to be in integral part of the worldview of many people groups throughout Asia, Africa, and the Pacific Islands. This alone should cause westerners to question their skepticism in the existence of spirits.

There’s a widespread misconception that modern science has disproven the existence of spirits. This is a question that science is incapable of judging. Like questions pertaining to morality, the existence of the soul, or even of God, modern science cannot make determination on these kinds of issues. It is not irrational or scientific to believe in the reality of evil spirits. The field of medicine and psychology has helped us see that when someone complains of hearing voices, this is not necessarily a spirit manifestation. Schizophrenia, various organic brain disorders, or the psychological phenomena of dissociation could be at the root. Nevertheless, science cannot rule out the possibility of spirit manifestation. This is what the community of mental health professionals recognize as a disorder, they label as “Trance and Possession Disorder” — a common diagnosis in non-Western cultures. (The ICD-10, classification of Mental Behavioral Disorders, described as “a temporary loss of both the sense of personal identity and full awareness of the surroundings.” The afflicted individual “acts as if taken over by another personality, spirit, deity, or ‘force.’”) There is a danger for Western Christians to discount or minimize the reality of supernatural opponents. To do so make us more vulnerable to their attacks, causing us to be less vigilant and less reliant on prayer, less dependent on God, less dependent on spiritually gifted fellow believers. If a homeowner somehow found out a burglar was planning a break in on a specific night, he would lock and bolt doors, shut and secure windows, have a security system in place and activated, and call police for help. But if the homeowner did not believe in burglars, he would wake up in the morning with valuables missing.

Paul does not attribute all forms of evil to demons, as earlier, he spoke of the role played by “the flesh” as well as “this present evil age” or “the world” (2:1-3). Believers need to keep in mind all three forms of evil for understanding the constraints to spiritual growth.

Dependence on God’s Power

The goal of depending on the power of God is to resist the varied attacks of the evil one and to advance the Kingdom of God into the world. Paul’s emphasis is “standing” — a metaphor that he repeats four times. He twice expresses it as a purpose for receiving God’s enabling power, and once as the purpose behind preparation. Then he uses it to govern the entire section of 6:14-20. Paul uses the metaphor on a variety of occasions (1 Cor. 16:13 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] ; Phil 4:1 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] ; 1 Thess. 3:8 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] ; 2 Thess 2:15 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] ). Both James and Peter likewise speak of resisting in a connection with the struggle against the devil (James 4:7 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] ; 1 Peter 5:8-9 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] ).

Satan’s strategies with his demonic cohorts to identify effective ways to hurt believers or cause them to fall into sin. How?

Interjecting an image into our minds of something enticing but sinful (Matt 4:8-10 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] ; Luke 4:5-8 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] ).

Exploiting a sinful tendency, such as anger, and causing it to flare out of control (Eph. 4:27 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] ).

Inspiring others to create a principle, teaching, or idea that sounds plausible, but is wrong and dangerous to our souls (2 Cor. 11:3 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] , 15 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] ).

Afflicting us with a physical illness or condition (2 Cor. 12:7 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] ).

Sending a horrible dream or demonic manifestation during the night that produces fear (Job 4:13-16 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] ; Ps. 91:5 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] ).

Enticing us to lie (Acts 5:3 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] ).

Instigating a series of horrible “natural” calamities, e.g., the death of a loved one, loss of home, or destruction or loss of property (Job 1-2 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] ).

Any of these kinds of assaults or combination of them can create fear, hopelessness, depression, or a heart that turns hard toward God. The good news is that despite what happens, God is near and willing to impart his power to help us and protect us.

Believers are not in a holding pattern until Christ returns. We have a mission to engage in. Christ is the head of the body so that the church he might “fill everything in all places (1:23)” Similarly, the ascended Christ has gifted the church so that through it, “he might fill all things” (4:10). “Standing” should not be understood as passively standing still, but standing up against the kingdom of darkness in an offensive manner. A depiction of the offensive aspect of warfare is in Jesus’ parable of the strong man (Mark 3:27 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] ). On the cross, Jesus defeated the “strong man” (Satan), and now the church can rob his house when they enter it and carry off his possessions.

God’s Power Available

God’s power is available to his people. Paul says to, “be strong in the Lord and in his mighty strength.” God “powerfully works everything out on the basis of the counsel of his will” (1:11). Paul prays his readers gain expanded awareness of the vastness of God’s power that is available for them (1:19-23). He prays that believers will be “strengthened with the power through his Spirit” in their innermost beings (3:16). God is the one who “has the power to do exceedingly more than all we ask or think, according to the power which mightily works in us” (3:20). Believers need the power of God because we cannot live the Christian life on our own. We struggle with the influence of sin as felt through the flesh and the world, but we also remember that Satan is real and makes plans to attack and to bring about our fall. Many of the original readers would have been tempted to rely on traditional means to protect from the spirit attacks by reverting to shamanistic practices, folk medicine rituals, helper spirits, and applying an assortment of magical practices. The fact that Christians (those who believed, Acts 19:18 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] ) were the ones who burned the magical texts in the early history of the church demonstrates the attraction of this syncretistic impulse. Many believers in the non-Western world understand this, while those from the West are tempted to rely on our own fortitude and efforts to live according to God’s calling. Dependence eon the Lord and receiving his power is, ironically, sometimes difficult.

The emphasis here is that spiritual power comes through relationship, not through techniques or invocations. The source of power is solely through the true and living God. Paul describes how all three persons of the trinity are involved in this process. God as the Divine Warrior makes his weaponry available to believers. It is armor from God (6:11, 13, 14-18). Christ has been exalted to a position of power and authority and the right hand of God. Believers are to be strengthened in the Lord, draw strength from their dynamic relationship to Christ as the head of the church as the Lord of all. The Spirit is God’s agent for strengthening. Believers are to pray in the Spirit and to know and use the Word of God through which the Spirit mightily works.

The Role of Prayer

Prayer is the essence of spiritual warfare and the most important means by which believers are strengthened by God. Paul concludes his presentation of the armor of God by commending prayer as foundational to the entire passage. Praying in the Spirit (6:18) — praying in a way that is led, guided, and empowered by the Spirit — is one of the most important ways that we maintain a present, dynamic relationship with the living God. Prayer also represents a manifestation of faith because it involves a recognition of our helplessness and need for God to fight for us. One should pray at all times, with every kind of prayer and request (6:18). This means a regular time of private devotional prayer with God on a daily basis, and a readiness to pray for and with others at any time.

Our New Identity

It is vital to understand our new identity in Christ at a deep level and to live that identity out as a means of overcoming the impact of various forms of demonic assault. One of Paul’s primary concerns has been to establish these believers as understanding their new identity in Christ. Because of the redemptive work of Christ, our adoption as God’s children, his sealing of us with his Holy Spirit, and our future as God’s inheritance, we are entirely new people. No longer dead in our sin and alienated from God. We are brought up into a new community and form a spiritual temple that God indwells by his Spirit. Each piece of armor unpacks some aspect of this new identity and should be interpreted by what Paul says earlier in the letter on that theme.

Whose Our Enemy? (Armor of God Series)

Whose our God?

Our God is omnipresent. Our God is eternal. Our God is omniscient. Our God can work miracles. We have no reason to be afraid if the omniscient, omnipresent, eternal, all-powerful God is for you, then it doesn’t matter who or what is against you. We don’t have to be afraid, but we do need to be on guard. (Chris Tomlin, If our God is for us, what can be against us?)

Heavenly Places (Vs 12)

Ephesians 1:3 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] – The place of the blessings from Christ

Eph 1:20 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] – The place where Christ has authority (seated at the right hand)

Eph. 3:10 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] – The place of angels

Eph. 2:5-6 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] – Our eternal destination.

This tells us that even though the battle is unavoidable and the enemy is invisible, the location is accessible. Because we have relationship with Jesus, we are seated with Him in heavenly places. We have full rights and privileges to access the heavenly places where all the blessings and tools we need to combat the enemy is stored.

If you refuse to pray, and take it seriously, you’re wasting your time trying to stand firm against the enemy. Prayer activates the armor, so pray consistently and fervently.

1 ME

How DO I STRUGGLE WITH THIS?

One of my favorite memories from childhood is kind of a weird one. I’m the youngest of four kids, and finding time to watch TV and to actually get to choose what I want to watch wasn’t all that common. But at one point – I figured it out. I would sit on my parent’s bed and eat macaroni and cheese and watch Scooby-Doo. It was one of my favorite shows to watch. If you’re not familiar, a group of teenage friends and their Great Dane (Scooby-Doo) travel in a bright-green van, solving strange mysteries. Often the mysteries revolved around the plot line of spirits, ghosts, and monsters, and I remember being scared watching this cartoon, but it didn’t take very long for me to realize something about Scooby-Doo. There was no reason to be afraid because the ghosts, spirits, and monsters, they were always fake. They might seem real, they might be scary, and they might cause havoc wherever they are found – but in the end of the day, they were always fake, nothing to take seriously. And so as a kid, when I was watching my cartoons and it seems like there was something spiritual or demonic going on, I developed a logical response – what seems to be isn’t. Spirits aren’t real. And that is kind of the cultural norm that has developed when it comes to spirits and the supernatural world. We’re all familiar with it, and in times around Halloween, we talk about it more than other times, but at the end of the day, we kind of dismiss the concept of spiritual beings.

But then we have this tension, where we claim to be bible believing Christians, and it talks about spiritual warfare, and so we can’t just dismiss the spiritual realm. So, instead, what we do is that we generalize the spiritual realm. When a series of unfortunate events are back to back, it doesn’t take long for evangelicals to attribute it to spiritual warfare. For example, every fall, I take the youth group on a retreat, and every year, I remind my leaders to be in prayer because of the great potential that retreats have for spiritual transformation makes them particularly vulnerable to spiritual warfare – evil getting in the way from spiritual renewal and revival. And so there’s this tension. We seem to discount the idea of spirits as individual beings that like to mess with us, but at the same time, we recognize that the Bible teaches about spiritual warfare, and so when things in our life become difficult, we wonder what the spiritual realm has to do with it. Today, wherever we land on spirits, we tend to make one of two mistakes as we live out our beliefs about the spiritual realm.

We overestimate the devil’s impact in our lives, living with an inflated, false perspective of the demonic’s actual influence and abilities. As a result, we give in to undue fear and anxiety.

We underestimate the devil and miscalculate the impact of his influence in our lives. We prioritize what we can see over what we can’t. As a result, we discount his influence in our lives and the world.

Reality is, the enemy keeps his activity clearly hidden so that we forget his existence. At best, we recognize his presence in a theoretical, nonthreatening way. We’ve become a culture relatively unaware of the enemy’s presence, unaware of his conspiracies to destroy our lives.

Connecting all of this to our text, as we have been studying Ephesians, Paul is encouraging believers to stand firm and to walk in a way that is worthy to the Lord, in all areas of their lives. Today, in our text, Paul gives a qualification. He says that yes – we are supposed to walk worthy to the Lord, but it’s going to be difficult because our enemy is not flesh and blood, but spiritual.

2 WE

HOW DO WE ALL STRUGGLE WITH THIS?

When Paul wrote his letter to the Ephesian church, he would not have had to convince them of their need for countermeasures against demonic influence. Culturally, they knew that there was demonic influence and a spiritual realm all around them and influencing all parts of life. Because of the widespread belief in the spiritual and demonic, they would find countermeasures to counteract the influence of the spirits in their lives. They knew they needed it desperately and usually looked to magic to assist. The effects of demonic activity were everywhere in that day. And so Paul begins his closing remarks in his letter to the Ephesians.

3 GOD

WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY ABOUT THIS?

Ephesians 6:10-12 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] :

10 Finally, be strengthened by the Lord and by his vast strength. 11 Put on the full armor of God so that you can stand against the schemes of the devil. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this darkness, against evil, spiritual forces in the heavens.

Eph 6:10-12 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)]

Now, normally, if you’re in a conversation with someone, or if you’re reading a letter, and they say finally, it means we’re getting to the end. Ephesians has been packed with content, and it’s been great, but now that we’re nearing the end and Paul is wrapping up in argument, we should remind ourselves of what all has been articulated thus far. Finally, be strengthened, given what? Well, Paul’s entire letter has been a call for Christians to walk and stand in a life pleasing to the Lord. Remember, Ephesians 4:1-3 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] :

Therefore I, the prisoner in the Lord, urge you to walk worthy of the calling you have received, 2 with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, 3 making every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. Eph. 4:1-3 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)]

Paul is urging Christians to walk worthy of the calling they have received. Then much of the rest of the letter is an explanation of what that looks like. What’s the calling, well, they, as Christians, as you, belong to Christ — so act like it! Fathers — lead. Husbands and wives — submit & honor. Children — obey. Slaves & masters, respect, obey, honor. Why? Because God is God and we are not. Here’s the kicker, however. Our passage, today, points out to us that this task is not something that we can just will ourselves into. It’s not something that we can just try hard enough, create the right habits, get accountability partners, and just do it, but that it is actually far more difficult because the enemy we are combating is not flesh and blood. It’s not ourselves. It’s not our neighbors, but something more powerful. The goal is to walk worthily of God — but is beyond simply putting forth effort or overcoming human obstacles. There are extremely powerful spiritual beings that strategize and carry out plans to derail the best intentions of Christians to live out God’s call in their lives.

Like I said previously, no one in the original audience would have needed to be convinced of the spiritual realm. The destination of the letter was the greater region around the city of Ephesus. Ephesus was known as the magic epicenter of the region. The primary god that was worshiped was named Artemis and there were these magical words or names that would be spoken and engraved on amulets, known as the Ephesian Letters — it’s all super fascinating, especially with current archaeological discoveries. Truthfully, I could spend the rest of this sermon talking about the magic beliefs, but it wouldn’t add to the point of the sermon, so we won’t digress.

One relevant passage which provides further context, however, is found in the book of Acts, chapter 19.

13 Now some of the itinerant Jewish exorcists also attempted to pronounce the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits, saying, “I command you by the Jesus that Paul preaches!” 14 Seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish high priest, were doing this. 15 The evil spirit answered them, “I know Jesus, and I recognize Paul—but who are you?” 16 Then the man who had the evil spirit jumped on them, overpowered them all, and prevailed against them, so that they ran out of that house naked and wounded. 17 When this became known to everyone who lived in Ephesus, both Jews and Greeks, they became afraid, and the name of the Lord Jesus was held in high esteem.

18 And many who had become believers came confessing and disclosing their practices, 19 while many of those who had practiced magic collected their books and burned them in front of everyone. So they calculated their value and found it to be fifty thousand pieces of silver. 20 In this way the word of the Lord spread and prevailed. Ac 19:13–20 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] .

In this incident recorded in Acts, when Sceva and his sons attempted to add the name of Jesus to their exorcistic formula, the demonized man responded violently, and the group was injured. According to Luke, this prompted a great fear and conviction within the believing community, and they brought out the magical texts they still possessed and burned them. In Luke’s estimation, the texts that went up in flames that day were equivalent to 50,000 days’ wages. This story in fascinating for many reasons, but the main things to take away as it relates to our passage for today in Ephesians is that (1) many people who formerly engaged in magical practices became part of the Ephesian church and (2) the account shows the incredibly strong pull that certain features of the spiritual environment had on believers. Functionally, magic, for the people in Ephesus allowed for them to interact with, and at some level, control, the supernatural, spiritual realm. And, no, this was not just the pagans. In fact, there was a version of Judaism that researchers have found evidence for in the region that we might call “folk Judaism” — where there were Jews who had a strong belief in angels and evil spirits, and used “folk” remedies to deal with these phenomena. A number of magical amulets have been found in Ephesus and the region that had Jewish origin. There was one particular one that was dated to the Roman imperial period and contains an invocation to the “ever living Adonai” on one side, and on the other, eleven letters in a Hebrew cryptographic scheme. The name of Solomon is referred to on several amulets, where he is used against demonic agencies. The historian, Josephus, records the cultural memory of Solomon, where he wrote that “God granted (Solomon) knowledge of the art used against demons for the benefit and healing of men.” An amulet found in Smyrna, for instance, invokes Solomon to protect its wearer from the evil Angel Araaph.

And so, we digress. But the point I want to make really clear was that Paul had significant reason to write to this region regarding the spiritual realm: it was so much part of the culture and belief system that there were spiritual and demonic forces at play in everyday life. Paul, in response, doesn’t condemn the belief of the spiritual realm, but instead clarifies the surrounding nature: primarily that God is God over all, and that he is powerful over all. They knew that they needed countermeasures against the demonic influence, but they normally went to magic to assist. What Paul was teaching them was was that the magic they were invoking was aligned with the devil and his minions and was contrary to YHWH.

It’s Halloween and we’re dealing with Spirits. Let’s get to it and dive into the text:

6:10 — Finally, be strengthened by the Lord and by his vast strength.

Paul says to be “strong in the Lord,” as a kind of summary encouragement that stands over the entire passage and gets at the heart of what readers are supposed to do. The readers are to be strong in the Lord, that is, through growing deeper in a present, dynamic relationship of dependence on the one who is powerful enough to do more than they could ask or imagine. They are to remember their identity, profoundly aware of the change that has occurred in their lives now that they have come to a knowledge of truth, received righteousness, experienced salvation, and been given the gift of the Spirit, now exercising increasing faith in God. To be strong in the Lord means to have a great dependence on the Lord, rather than on one’s self or any other sources of strength. The words “be strong” was the same as what Paul encouraged Timothy in 2 Tim 2:1 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] and really should draw our literary memory back to Joshua, when God repeatedly calls Joshua to “be strong” as he was to lead God’s people into the land of Canaan, where they would face many enemies and fight many battles. The difference, now, is that God’s people face more powerful enemies than mere human opponents.

What I find interesting here is the emphasis. Paul says to be strong in the Lord and in his mighty strength. If I’m a coach, one of my athletes who is running a race, and he’s beginning to become weary, I might tell him “be strong!” And what am I really saying? Dig deep. Find the strength from within, focus and push through, this is what we’ve trained for! But what we see, instead, is that Paul is calling his audience to push into a relationship of dependence, not urging them to draw on their own internal fortitude and strength. Believers need to draw on divine power. This is why Paul has prayed repeatedly that God’s people may gain a heightened awareness of the vastness of God’s power that is presently available to them through Christ.

15 This is why, since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, 16 I never stop giving thanks for you as I remember you in my prayers. 17 I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, would give you the Spirit, of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him. 18 I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened so that you may know what is the hope of his calling, what is the wealth of his glorious inheritance in the saints, 19 and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the mighty working of his strength. 20 He exercised this power in Christ by raising him from the dead and seating him at his right hand in the heavens—21 far above every ruler and authority, power and dominion, and every title given, not only in this age but also in the one to come. 22 And he subjected everything under his feet, and appointed him as head over everything for the church, 23 which is his body, the fullness of the one who fills all things in every way. Eph 1:15–23 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] .

Paul prayed that God’s people would have their eyes opened to the immeasurable greatness of God’s power toward those who believe, the same power that God used to raise Christ from the dead. Paul’s not telling us that, as Christians, we need to be powerless and passive, only waiting for God to work, but he’s saying to be very clear where our strength comes from — God, not from within, not from the spiritual realm — but from him as God. This power is only available through union with Christ and participation with both his resurrection and exaltation. Not through incantations, formulas, or magical rituals, but through relationship with Christ.

Continuing, vs. 11. Put on the full armor of God.

Paul now explains how they are to gain the strength and power from the Lord. Yes, they are to draw from their existing and dynamic relationship with Jesus, but they are also to take a set of divine gifts that will assist them in their conflict with the hostile, spiritual forces. Paul uses a set of military metaphors to elaborate on what it looks like to depend on God’s strength. Next week, we’ll look at in more detail the different components on what that armor of God really looks like, but overall, I want to pause to think about the particulars of the armor. The “Sunday School” method for teaching the armor of God is with a poster of a Roman soldier, which makes sense because there is a good chance that Paul was in prison, around Roman soldiers, as he was writing this. But the metaphor of a Roman soldier falls short. There was a Roman historian, Polybius, who gives us our most complete description of a legionnaire. Paul leaves out some vital parts of the “complete armor” of the Roman soldier, such as the two pila, or javelins, and the greaves, or the leg armor. Instead, Paul pulls from a different image, one that is found in Isaiah 11 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] .

4 but he will judge the poor righteously and execute justice for the oppressed of the land. He will strike the land with a scepter from his mouth,

and he will kill the wicked with a command from his lips. 5 Righteousness will be a belt around his hips; faithfulness will be a belt around his waist. (Is. 11:4-5 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] )

17 He put on righteousness as body armor, and a helmet of salvation on his head; he put on garments of vengeance for clothing, and he wrapped himself in zeal as in a cloak. (Is. 59:17 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] )

This might seem like nitpicking — but think about it. Where does someone, if they are going to battle, get their armor? Either they buy it, or to make it, maybe they inherit it. Where does Paul say our armor is to come from? It’s God’s armor that God gives us. The armor originates with God, it’s not just the armor that God approves. There is a total and utter dependence on God when it comes to this spiritual battle that we are engaged in. It is God who is the Divine warrior.

Paul tells his audience, and us, to be strengthened by the Lord and his vast strength, by putting on the complete armor of God. If you recall Pastor Matt’s sermons on putting on, Paul uses the phrase “put-on” frequently in a metaphorical sense. Put-on, in the vernacular, was the phrase to use referring to both clothing and armor. But Paul takes that phrase and associates it with identity. In Colossians, he writes that we are to “clothe ourselves with compassion, kindness, humility” (Col. 3:10 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] ,12 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] ) and earlier in this letter, Paul uses this verb to “put on the new self that was created in the likeness of God in righteousness and holiness of truth.” Essentially, then, to ‘put on the new self’ is the same as putting on the armor of God. Do you follow what I’m saying? Paul tells us to walk and stand in a life that is pleasing to God, but then tells us to expect it to be difficult to do so. Ultimately, all of this is about God and who God is, and not about us and our strength. Knowing the truth of who we are, in union with Christ, and cultivating the virtues of this new identity and using the resources available through this relationship is at the heart of what it means to put on the armor of God.

Why do we need strength and armor from God?

6:11b — …so that you can stand against the schemes of the devil.

Believers need God’s strength because they will face a variety of well-planned attacks by a supernatural opponent. The purpose of the armor is because of the enemy. The armor enables, strengthens, and powers believers to “stand against the enemy.” Paul knew that believers are under attack and that they need to stand their ground and not fall or retreat. Believers ought to be strong and not fall or retreat. But at the same time, to consider it to be purely defensive is too restrictive. The Greek here also implies an aggressive stance against one’s opponent.

Finally, be strengthened by the Lord and by his vast strength. Put on the full armor of God so that you can stand against the schemes of the devil.

The idea in Ephesians is that the devil is an intelligent being that carefully strategies plans against the church, God’s plan on redemption, and individual believers. What Paul does not say is how these schemes, which he will later refer to as “flaming arrows” are discerned and felt. It would seem prudent to see an expansive variety of ways that the devil hatches his attacks. This could come through people who teach things contrary to one’s faith, through temptation, difficult physical trials, or overt manifestations, or any of a limitless array of intelligently designed plots.

6:12a — For our struggle is not against flesh and blood.

Our battle, our struggle, is not against flesh and blood. The warfare believers experience can be likened to wrestling, with wrestling and struggle being the same word. Paul briefly pauses in the military imagery and switches to an athletic image. Wrestling was common in the Graeco-Roman world, and inscriptions about wrestling were even found in the runes of Ephesus. One commentator wrote about the mixed metaphors that Paul uses. Instead of being a sloppy argument with mixed metaphors, it’s possible that Paul was causing the audience to remember a traditional story from the region of an Ephesian wrestler who used magic to help him defeat his opponent. The Suda, a massive tenth-century Byzantine encyclopedic dictionary of the Mediterranean world written in Greek, relates this proverbial story as part of its entry on “The Ephesian Letters” that I referred to earlier — those six magic words or names that were associated with the power from their gods and magical traditions.

And at Olympia when a Milesian and an Ephesian were wrestling, the Milesian was not able to wrestle, because the other was holding the Ephesian letters around his ankle. When it was clear, and they were taken off him, the Ephesian failed thirty [times] in a row.

Paul may have been tying the wrestling imagery with this spiritual battle and military armor as a way to communicate to new converts that they should no longer use magical amulets (like the Ephesian Letters) but should now put on the complete armor of God. Although people living in this region thought that magic was effective and that the loss of it could be devastating, Paul presents a different perspective — that spiritual power from magic is ultimately under the leadership of the devil and that believers should instead only point to the Lord for strength.

And so, we point to the Lord for strength, knowing that our enemy is not flesh or blood – but who?

6:12b-e — But against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this darkness, against evil, spiritual forces in the heavens.

Paul expands on who the enemy is. Not flesh or blood, nor just one powerful supernatural being, but a whole range of spiritual forces of varying rank, authority, and capabilities.

The first two terms are alternative ways the Jews and the early Christians referred to Satan, a being Paul described as “the ruler of the realm of the air (2:2).” Satan appears to be the leader of a vast army of spirits that are part of a ranked command and control structure. The terminology here for these spirits is suggestive of hierarchy in the demonic realm, since some of these terms were commonly used to refer to various ranks of human leaders in governmental forms of authority. There does not appear to be any way for us to determine what the relative rank and abilities of these spirits are, but it’s probably not essential for us to know, either. The language Paul uses for powers would have been understandable, especially to Jews, since the words were part of an extensive collection of terms they used for demonic spirits. Many of the terms also would have been familiar to Gentiles. The new idea for many Gentiles would have been that the spiritual phenomena in their local religion was animated by demonic spirits under the leadership of the devil, and that there were no so-called gods or goddesses that in any way rivaled the one true God.

That’s a lot, but what I want you to hear is that our enemy that we are wrestling against is demonic and evil, and Paul was writing regarding specific demonic entities. It would be tempting to take any of the examples of evil from our world today and give them the label of “rulers, or authorities, or cosmic powers” and the effects of what we are seeing very well may be effects of those powers, but Paul is writing of specific, real, spirit beings that are evil and would love to see Christians stumble in their relationship with God. He is not just generalizing evil and personifying it, but pointing out the reality of the spiritual realm.

4 YOU

WHAT SHOULD YOU DO ABOUT THIS?

The fact that it is Halloween and I am preaching on the reality of spiritual evil is, well, interesting, and also something that I don’t want to take lightly. Paul writes:

10 Finally, be strengthened by the Lord and by his vast strength. 11 Put on the full armor of God so that you can stand against the schemes of the devil. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this darkness, against evil, spiritual forces in the heavens. Eph. 6:10-12 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)]

Whenever I’m part of conversations about spiritual warfare and the demonic, the conversation usually gets to the point where it is just weighty and somber, in recognition of the severity of the enemy. It would be easy to spin our wheels in the reality of the surrounding evil — but that’s not a place I want to settle. Paul says to be rooted and strengthened in God’s strength. Can we just pause for a second and reflect on what that strength is? Who is our God and what Strength does he have? We need to remember this, especially when we spend time in the demonic spiritual world. Scripture teaches that (1) God is omnipresent. Psalm 139:7 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] says, “Where can I go to escape your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to heaven, you are there. If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there. If I live at the eastern horizon or settle at the western limits, even there your hand will lead me, your right hand will hold on to me. In Isaiah 43 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] , it says, “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you. I have called you by name; you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you and the rivers will not overwhelm you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be scorched and the flame will not burn you. For I am the LORD your God, the holy one of Israel and your Savior. In other words, God is everywhere, omnipresent, and available to us. (2) God is Omniscient. In Job, it says, “Listen to this, Job. Stop and consider God’s wonders. Do you know how God directs his clouds or makes their lightning flash? Do you understand how the clouds float, those wonderful works of him who has perfect knowledge?” Isaiah 40 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] says, “Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the whole earth. He never becomes faint or weary; there is no limit to his understanding.” Isaiah 55 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] says, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts and your ways are not my ways. This is the LORD’s declaration. For as heaven is higher than earth, so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. In other words — God is omniscient. He knows everything that can be known. (3) God is eternal. Exodus 3 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] records God’s revelation to Moses: Then Moses asked God, “If I go to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your ancestors has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ what should I tell them?” God replied to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM., This is what you are to say to the Israelites: I AM has sent me to you.” God also said to Moses, “Say this to the Israelites: The LORD, the God of your ancestors, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you. This is my name forever; this is how I am to be remembered in every generation.” Psalm 1 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] says that the Lord has been our refuge in every generation. And in Revelation 1 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] , John records this vision: Look, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him. And all the tribes of the earth, will mourn over him., So it is to be. Amen. 8 “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “the one who is, who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.” (4) God can work Miracles. Deuteronomy 10 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] says, “He is your praise, and he is your God, who has done for you these great and awe-inspiring works your eyes have seen. Job 5 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] says, “However, if I were you, I would appeal to God and present my case to him. He does great and unsearchable things, wonders without number.” And Acts 19 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] says, “God was performing extraordinary miracles by Paul’s hands so that even facecloths or aprons that had touched his skin were brought to the sick and diseases left them, and the evil spirits came out of them. God is omnipresent, not limited to space or time. God is omniscient, knows everything that is able to be known. God is eternal, with no beginning or end, and God can work miracles.

Why do I remind us of who our God is? Because as easy as it is to be discouraged by the evil around us, we must remember who it is who gives us strength. We have no need to be afraid because our God is greater. I think of that song – if our God is for us, who can be against us? But as Paul reminds us, although we do not have to be afraid, we need to be on guard. So, how do we be on guard? We put on God’s armor. Come back next week for more on that. Why do we need to be strengthened? Because we have a real enemy that is led by the devil that would love to see us stumble. Who’s the enemy? Led by the devil, the rulers, the authorities, the powers of this darkness, the evil spiritual beings, in the heavenly places.

So, what do we do about this?

We need to know that Spirit Beings are Real.

There are powerful, invisible, spirit beings that attack believers with the intent of hurting them, causing them to lapse into sin, or making them ineffectual for God’s kingdom purposes. A belief in the devil or in spirits has never lost its plausibility, outside the west. The belief in evil spirits remains to be an integral part of the worldview of many people groups throughout Asia, Africa, and the Pacific Islands. This alone should cause westerners to question their skepticism in the existence of spirits.

There’s a widespread misconception that modern science has disproven the existence of spirits. This is a question that science is incapable of judging. Like questions pertaining to morality, the existence of the soul, or even of God, modern science cannot make determination on these kinds of issues. It is not irrational or scientific to believe in the reality of evil spirits. The field of medicine and psychology has helped us see that when someone complains of hearing voices, this is not necessarily a spirit manifestation. Schizophrenia, various organic brain disorders, or the psychological phenomena of dissociation could be at the root. Nevertheless, science cannot rule out the possibility of spirit manifestation.

There is a danger for Western Christians to discount or minimize the reality of supernatural opponents. To do so make us more vulnerable to their attacks, causing us to be less vigilant and less reliant on prayer, less dependent on God, less dependent on spiritually gifted fellow believers. If a homeowner somehow found out a burglar was planning a break in on a specific night, he would lock and bolt doors, shut and secure windows, have a security system in place and activated, and call police for help. But if the homeowner did not believe in burglars, he would wake up in the morning with valuables missing. At the same time, we must be careful in not seeing demons everywhere. One of my professors in college taught extensively on spiritual warfare, and he embedded in me a deep and healthy fear for the spiritual realm, but he also taught that we need to be on guard of getting blinded to the rest of the world because once you start looking for demons, pretty soon that is all you will see. Paul does not attribute all forms of evil to demons, as earlier, he spoke of the role played by “the flesh” as well as “this present evil age” or “the world” (2:1-3). Believers need to keep in mind all three forms of evil for understanding the constraints to spiritual growth. So know, and remember, that spirit beings are real.

We need to depend on God’s power.

The goal of depending on God is to resist the varied attacks of the evil one and to advance the Kingdom of God into the world. Paul emphasizes “standing” as the purpose for receiving God’s power, as well as the purpose behind preparation. Why do we need to depend on God’s power? Because Satan strategizes for effective ways to hurt believers or cause them to fall into sin & separation from God. How?

Interjecting an image into our minds of something enticing but sinful (Matt 4:8-10 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] ; Luke 4:5-8 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] ).

Exploiting a sinful tendency, such as anger, and causing it to flare out of control (Eph. 4:27 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] ).

Inspiring others to create a principle, teaching, or idea that sounds plausible, but is wrong and dangerous to our souls (2 Cor. 11:3 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] , 15 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] ).

Afflicting us with a physical illness or condition (2 Cor. 12:7 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] ).

Sending a horrible dream or demonic manifestation during the night that produces fear (Job 4:13-16 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] ; Ps. 91:5 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] ).

Enticing us to lie (Acts 5:3 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] ).

Instigating a series of horrible “natural” calamities, e.g., the death of a loved one, loss of home, or destruction or loss of property (Job 1-2 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] ).

Any of these kinds of assaults or combination of them can create fear, hopelessness, depression, or a heart that turns hard toward God. The good news is that despite what happens, God is near and willing to impart his power to help us and protect us.

God’s power is available to us.

God’s power is available to his people. Paul says to, “be strong in the Lord and in his mighty strength.” Paul prays his readers gain expanded awareness of the vastness of God’s power that is available for them (1:19-23). He prays that believers will be “strengthened with the power through his Spirit” in their innermost beings (3:16). God is the one who “has the power to do exceedingly more than all we ask or think, according to the power which mightily works in us” (3:20). Believers need the power of God because we cannot live the Christian life on our own.

We struggle with the influence of sin as felt through the flesh and the world, but we also remember that Satan is real and makes plans to attack and to bring about our fall. Many of the original readers would have been tempted to rely on traditional means to protect from the spirit attacks by reverting to shamanistic practices, folk medicine rituals, helper spirits, and applying an assortment of magical practices. The fact that Christians (those who believed, Acts 19:18 [Open in Logos Bible Software (if available)] ) were the ones who burned the magical texts in the early history of the church demonstrates the attraction of this syncretistic impulse, of combining Jesus with popular culture. Many believers in the non-Western world understand this, while those from the West are tempted to rely on our own fortitude and efforts to live according to God’s calling. Dependence on the Lord and receiving his power is, ironically, sometimes difficult.

The emphasis here is that spiritual power comes through relationship, not through techniques or invocations. The source of power is solely through the true and living God.

Be Rooted in Prayer.

At the end of this section, which we’ll get to in the next week or two, Paul concludes the presentation on the armor of God by commending prayer as foundational to the entire passage. Prayer is the essence of spiritual warfare and is the most important means by which believers are strengthened by God. Praying in the Spirit is one of the most important ways that we maintain a present, dynamic relationship with the living God. Prayer shows our faith because it recognizes our helplessness and need for God to fight for us. We ought to pray at all times. At the end of the day, if you refuse to pray, and take it seriously, you’re wasting your time trying to stand firm against the enemy. Prayer activates the armor, so pray consistently and fervently.

So, what do we do today? Know that spiritual beings are real. Depend on God’s power. Know that God’s power is available to us. Be rooted in prayer.

5 WE

HOW CAN WE ALL LIVE THIS OUT TOGETHER?

The goal is to walk worthily of God — but is beyond simply putting forth effort or overcoming human obstacles. There are extremely powerful spiritual beings that strategize and carry out plans to derail the best intentions of Christians to live out God’s call in their lives. So rest in your relationship with God, pray, and depend on His strength. He is greater. He is stronger. He laid upon the cross, resurrected and ascended. Yes, the enemy is there and is fighting for us to stumble, but God has already one, so stand tall, and rest in his strength. As we move to a time of communion, we are remembering that God has won and that we are his. Let’s pray.