BCSW 001 – INTRODUCTION

Wikipedia defines Spiritual warfare as the Christian concept of fighting against the work of preternatural evil forces. It is based on the biblical belief in evil spirits, demons that are said to intervene in human affairs in various ways.

We will like to add, Intervene and Interfere in human affairs on earth.

The right understanding of spiritual activities of both angels and demons, will help us to grasp our responsibilities in between. Unfortunately, most Christian believers lack this knowledge and we have paid a high cost for this ignorance. For us in this school, spiritual warfare does not only have to do with demon spirits, but includes spiritual laws that govern nature hence affect how things happen in the realms of nature. We have seen and believe that some things we consider as inanimate actually get involved and respond to God, satan and human elements as they are called upon.

Therefore, because of you the heavens have withheld their dew and the earth its crops. I called for a drought on the fields and the mountains, on the grain, the new wine, the oil and whatever the ground produces, on men and cattle, and on the labor of your hands.” Hag 1:10-11NIV

Take note that the heavens and the earth responded in punishment. Somewhere the Lord Jesus Christ addressed the wind to be quiet and it obeyed Him.

A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped. Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, “Teacher, don’t you care if we drown?”  He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm. Mark 4:37-39NIV

A person without this knowledge will think that there is nothing that could be done. One time Moses invited the heavens and the earth to stand in as his witnesses,

This day I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live Deut 30:19NIV

A little study into Israel’s history will reveal how these elements responded when Israel broke the Lord’s covenant with them. Servants of the devil seem to know more about these elements and the powers available with spirit beings. They employ them in the areas of Occult, Witchcraft and invoking curses on people. These are the powers that rainmakers, witches and traditional medicine people exploit.

In the days that the Lord Jesus Christ was physically on the earth, there was a religious sect that did not believe in the existence of angels, demons or any kind of spirits. They were called the Sadducees. It beats any imagination that someone could believe in and worship God but cannot see that there are other spirits. Unfortunately, their failure to accept the existence of spirits and their activities, did not change anything. People still faced the spiritual challenges we face today.

That same day the Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to him with a question. “Teacher,” they said, “Moses told us that if a man dies without having children, his brother must marry the widow and have children for him. Now there were seven brothers among us. The first one married and died, and since he had no children, he left his wife to his brother. The same thing happened to the second and third brother, right on down to the seventh. Finally, the woman died.  Now then, at the resurrection, whose wife will she be of the seven, since all of them were married to her?” Matt 22:23-28NIV

We will be saying a lot about this scripture in this school. Like in some Christian denominations today, the challenge is that when people have problems that needed spiritual intervention from these men, they turn them into theological arguments. They attempt to find academic interpretation to spiritual matters. The Lord Jesus Christ has this to say about them,

Jesus replied, “You are in error because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God. Matt 22:29NIV

In order to avoid the temptation of failing like these religious leaders, that is why we are taking this course. Demons, evil spirits, foul spirits, unclean spirits or spirits from the devil; no matter how you call them, don’t need introduction. At Jesus Christ’s time on earth people knew them and their activities and so we did not read the Lord or His disciples giving a lesson on them. It is important that we state clearly that there is only one devil or satan and he is the head of the kingdom of darkness. Under him are myriad of evil spirits operating from different fronts and territories.

Demons have their functions and claim ownership of territories; they are not a disorganized group of purposeless radicals.

I know where you live — where Satan has his throne. Yet you remain true to my name. You did not renounce your faith in me, even in the days of Antipas, my faithful witness, who was put to death in your city — where Satan lives Rev 2:13NIV

The servant of God, mentioned here, Antipas, was killed possibly by an angry mob over some religious dispute, but the bible clearly states that he died as a result of conflict with the governing spiritual authority. There was a stronghold of satan in that city and it was the powers of that city of evil that drove the people in whatever guise to kill Antipas. We should also understand that satan was bent on keeping his hold on this territory because he has his throne there and holds residency at the same city. It is the same way he intends to keep his hold over men and women in every other city

Another servant of God found himself in a similar spiritual conflict

Now for some time a man named Simon had practiced sorcery in the city and amazed all the people of Samaria. He boasted that he was someone great, and all the people, both high and low, gave him their attention and exclaimed, “This man is the divine power known as the Great Power.” They followed him because he had amazed them for a long time with his magic. But when they believed Philip as he preached the good news of the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women Acts 8:9-12NIV

Observe the fame and special privileges Simon enjoyed before the coming of Philip, also try to view in your mind the efforts Simon would have made in the secret to neutralize Philip and when he could not, he joined Philip’s ministry. But then he had eyes on getting the power with which Philip operated. When he saw an opportunity he asked for it

When Simon saw that the Spirit was given at the laying on of the apostles’ hands, he offered them money and said, “Give me also this ability so that everyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.” Acts 8:18-19NIV

Try to understand the hidden conflict Philip was involved in; if Simon knew how to eliminate Philip to gain back his status, he would have done so. I believe he had tried all he knew before he bowed to a greater power. Perhaps, Philip would have died like Antipas

Remember Apostles Paul and Barnabas.

They traveled through the whole island until they came to Paphos. There they met a Jewish sorcerer and false prophet named Bar-Jesus, who was an attendant of the proconsul, Sergius Paulus. The proconsul, an intelligent man, sent for Barnabas and Saul because he wanted to hear the word of God. But Elymas the sorcerer (for that is what his name means) opposed them and tried to turn the proconsul from the faith. Then Saul, who was also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked straight at Elymas and said, “You are a child of the devil and an enemy of everything that is right! You are full of all kinds of deceit and trickery. Will you never stop perverting the right ways of the Lord? Now the hand of the Lord is against you. You are going to be blind, and for a time you will be unable to see the light of the sun.” Acts 13:6-11NIV

Observe the efforts Bar-Jesus made to retain his “meal ticket” and understand that if he had an evil arrow that could put Paul down he would have killed Paul and Barnabas like Antipas was killed. Here again satan was trying to retain his control over the political seat of power. In Nigeria, we hear every day of prophets who claim to know what the future held; even Muslim politicians visit pastors for prayer at the time of election

Daniel was praying to God for the deliverance of his people who were in bondage but little did he know that he was provoking a particular spiritual kingdom who would prefer that Israel remained in bondage

Then he continued, “Do not be afraid, Daniel. Since the first day that you set your mind to gain understanding and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard, and I have come in response to them. But the prince of the Persian kingdom resisted me twenty-one days. Then Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, because I was detained there with the king of Persia. Now I have come to explain to you what will happen to your people in the future, for the vision concerns a time yet to come.” Dan 10:12-14NIV

We can see that all that scheme to make Daniel and his friends to eat food sacrificed to idols were actually from the pit of hell; the focus was to defile them and neutralize their fighting spirit. All that fuse of missing memory of Nebuchadnezzar was instigated by satan to expose them to death through the anger of the king. All that issues of fiery furnace and lion’s den were calculated attempt to take away a prophet that will storm heaven for the release of God’s people. Daniel would have died like Antipas.

Any servant of God who ignored spiritual warfare or demons is taking a fatal risk. The Apostles saw the devil in all the opposition they faced

For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Eph 6:12-13NIV

Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings 1 Peter 5:8-9NIV

All that effort to stone Paul and kill the other Apostles in Jerusalem were sponsored by enemy forces of darkness in their efforts to retain their hold on the territories and the believers fought them with spiritual weapons,

For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ 2 Cor 10:3-5NIV

Let us take it here now –

Homosexuality and lesbianism are direct affront on procreation of the human race through the devil so that mankind will be wiped out of planet earth. It is a battle strategy!

The efforts to force churches to endorse and wed them is devil’s scheme to quench the Holy Spirit’s presence in the church

Islamic extremism, Socialism, atheism, and the entertainment world providing images that arouse lust and greed are not accidents or mistakes but deliberate efforts to put off the light of Christ. Any missionary or pastor who considers the work of the ministry, yet ignores the devil and his agents and how to engage them in spiritual warfare is committing suicide. It does not matter the nation or tribe or how primitive the people are.

C Peter Wagner told a story in his book, “Spiritual Warfare” when a pastor cut down an ancient tree in his zeal to rid the land of idolatry but dropped down and died almost immediately. We have also read of missionaries who suffered great casualty as they attempted to reach some idol worshippers. William Carey’s associate went mad after they baptized their only Indian convert after fifteen years of labor in that country. This is majorly because of inadequate spiritual preparation for the associated spiritual conflict.

My father James Agodi Nwosu and my cousin Rev. Lawrence Nwosu destroyed many shrines and evil altars in South East of Nigeria but they suffered no harm. I have destroyed many too and nothing happened to me. I strongly believe that if we understand the issues involved in spiritual warfare, we all can do the same thing without any consequence.

The Lord Jesus Christ promised,

I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you Luke 10:19NIV

We believe in this school that if we understand our enemies, we are in a better place to serve the Lord better. This course is to give you that broad knowledge.

Understand that these courses are part of Spiritual Warfare; Family Tree, Covenants, Witchcraft and Demonology. So, you should expect to meet them as you travel along.

Welcome on board.