"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.."
Ephesians 6:12 (NIV)
Ephesians 6:12 (NIV)
One of the
explanations for the existence of evil is that Satan is a fallen angel
and he has taken many angels with him and together they wage war against
the things of God. The
angles who follow satan are sometimes referred to as demons.
This explanation is often based on the passages in Isaiah 14 and
Ezekiel 28. Satan and
his demons are then the "rulers," "authorities,"
"cosmic powers," and "spiritual forces of evil in the
heavenly places" Paul refers to here and in 1:21.
These spiritual
beings have limited power yet seek to coopt human beings into their
vision of how they want the world to be, a world with autonomy from God.
It is very interesting to note verses 5:22-6:9 where Paul gives a
beautiful and uplifting picture of peaceful Christian homes and happy
Christian relationships. One
implication we can take from this is that even these things will not be
achieved without conflict.
It seems that that the victories of the Christian Life are to be
achieved by a relentless and lifelong struggle against evil.
And even then they are realized only to the extent
that we avail ourselves of God’s armor listed in verses 13ff.
God’s plan is to
create a new society with the dividing walls of race and cultures torn
down. Since that’s
God’s plan we can expect the forces of evil to oppose that at every
turn.
It seems to me that
it would be very wise for us to view others as God’s beloved sons and
daughters (potentially or actually) on whose behalf God is constantly at
work. Paul seems to be
warning us. Our enemy
is not first and foremost other people.
For
more:
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