The snake in our house was certainly an unexpected intrusion. We have scratches on our DOOR... I have since anointed our home and commanded any evil spirits to FLEE in Jesus' mighty name. This is biblical- and spiritual warfare!
The incident reminded me of spiritual warfare: those times times Satan sneaks into our homes. As with our dogs barking uncontrollably and the loud rattle of the snake, warning signs alert us when the Enemy threatens our lives. What we do with those signs determines how victorious we will be in fighting the Devil’s schemes.
The Bible says Satan comes to kill, steal and destroy. The apostle Paul urged the church at Corinth not to be ignorant of Satan’s schemes (2 Corinthians 2:11) because when we are aware of the tactics of the Enemy, we will be better equipped to stand against his devices.
Let’s look at steps you can take the next time you encounter spiritual warfare – those times the Serpent of old attempts to attack your marriage:
First Peter 5:8 warns, “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour” (NKJV). At any moment Satan could slither through your front door. Be watchful for the first sign of spiritual warfare and be ready to act fast. Just as Steve immediately called out to me to watch over the snake in our house, at the first sign of trouble you, too, should respond with the same urgency and intensity.
In the same way, if you don’t move swiftly at the first feelings of resentment or unforgiveness toward your spouse, you may find contention hiding in your home. Hebrews 12:15 warns how roots of bitterness cause trouble and defile many relationships — beginning with your marriage and spilling over into your connections with your children.
Here is the how to recognize three common demons behind spiritual attacks in marriage.
- When you are in a season in your marriage where there is constant arguing, fighting, confusion, discord, anger, bitterness, unforgiveness, or hatred, it is no longer, bad communication or dealing with hurts, it may be a spiritual attack from a demon named strife. When couples find themselves in this season of strife, spiritual tools are required to fix this. The bible states, “For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work” (James 3:16).
- When you are in a season in your marriage where there is unfaithfulness, infidelity, lying, or deception you may be dealing with a sexual immoral demon, which works with the Jezebel spirit (Revelation 2:20). This demon sets out to bring dishonor, shame and destruction to the marriage. When couples find themselves in this season of sexual immorality, spiritual tools are required to fix this.
- When you are in a season in your marriage where you feel the need to control your spouse through deception, deceit or lying, you may be dealing with a spirit of manipulation. This demon may creep into a marriage unawares through communication as couples attempt to resolve conflicts.
You may be experiencing spiritual attacks right now and the question you may be asking right now is, “How do I defeat these demons?” The first thing you need to understand is that you cannot be victorious in the natural realm of your marriage, unless you are victorious in the spiritual realm for your marriage. In other words, if you do not learn how to fight in the spiritual realm, you will not be able to win in the natural realm.
To defeat the demons, a husband and a wife must learn how to “stand and fight.” The only way to do this is put on the whole armor of God. The bible declares in Eph 6:11-12 “Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.”
I have found that many couples remain stuck in their situations when they try to win a spiritual battle with natural weapons. The bible declares in 1 Cor 10:3-5, “For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;” To get unstuck, you need someone who can help you to assess and replace if necessary, the weapons or tools you are currently using. My goal is to help assess and equip couples like you, with the right tools to fight spiritually, so you can see the results naturally in your marriage.
Works of the Spirit of Seduction:
To remain unmarried in order to “discover oneself”.
To believe it is better to stay unmarried.
To find any excuse to divorce.
To abandon commitment to spouse for personal fulfillment (loving pleasure more than God)...”I need time apart for my happiness and wellbeing”. “Lovers of themselves”.
2 Timothy 3:1-4 This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. 2For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, 3Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, 4Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God;
To be Disobedient to Parents.
To be Ungrateful to family members
To be against the opposite gender. Treat the opposite gender as evil.
To dismiss the importance of marriage.
The other gender is evil (misogynistic, patriarchal, toxic maxcuinity)
Rejection of Gender roles and roles of husband and wife
What to do:
Reject all such popular doctrines and trends
Build yourself up on what the Bible says about marriage
Build yourself up and what the Bible says on how to treat your spouse.
Rebuke the spirit of seduction in Jesus Name (James 4:7).
Spirit of Whoredoms
Hosea 4:12-13 My people ask counsel at their stocks, and their staff declareth unto them: for the spirit of whoredoms hath caused them to err, and they have gone a whoring from under their God.13They sacrifice upon the tops of the mountains, and burn incense upon the hills, under oaks and poplars and elms, because the shadow thereof is good: therefore your daughters shall commit whoredom, and your spouses shall commit adultery.
Whoredoms - means being unfaithful in a relationship, especially marriage.
Works Of The Spirit of Whoredoms
To commit adultery
To Fornicate
To be unfaithful toward your spouse and family commitments
Pornography, intimate private conversation online or in text, etc to a person who is not your spouse
To be unfaithful to God and in biblical doctrine
What to Do?
Unmarried to get married instead of getting into the hook-up lifestyle
Married - satisfy each other in bed…do what’s necessary to keep the marriage enjoyable. Don’t deny your spouse.
Rebuke the Spirit of Whoredoms from your life and family in Jesus Name.
Lying Spirit
Proverbs 14:5 A faithful witness will not lie: but a false witness will utter lies.
1 Tim. 4:2 2Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron
Works of the Lying Spirit
False witness against their partner - saying they do things they did not do. Accusing them of things that did not occur.
Brings thoughts that the spouse did things that they did not do
Suspicious of their partner doing wrong they are not even close to doing
False Witness: Finding wrong in a good husband/wife
Not Calling Your Spouse Who they are (that’s not my husband; you are nobody; you are nothing to me, etc) -
Genesis 26:7 And the men of the place asked him of his wife; and he said, She is my sister: for he feared to say, She is my wife; lest, said he, the men of the place should kill me for Rebekah; because she was fair to look upon.
Not calling your children who they are.
Teaching promotes the individual’s ownership instead of the realization that you belong to Another.
What to do?
When doubt comes to mind, rebuke it and speak about who your spouse is to you, and who you are to them
When there is evidence of a true issue, speak to your spouse first, if that fails, go to a minister or Christian counselor
Refrain from engaging in accusing and misnaming
If 60% of the quality of your spouse is good, then thank God for your spouse.
Spirit of Divination
Hosea 4:12-13 My people ask counsel at their stocks, and their staff declareth unto them: for the spirit of whoredoms hath caused them to err, and they have gone a whoring from under their God. 13They sacrifice upon the tops of the mountains, and burn incense upon the hills, under oaks and poplars and elms, because the shadow thereof is good: therefore your daughters shall commit whoredom, and your spouses shall commit adultery.
Leads to whoredoms and adultery.
Seeking other spirits through horoscope, voodoo, obeah, spiritism, psychics, and lucky charms.
Burning incense, special baths, magic gems, etc
Witchcraft, Wicca
Partnering with others based on their zodiac signs.
What to do?
Renounce any connection to this spirit in your family.
Destroy or get rid of any objects, books, or activities associated with that spirit.
Renounce belief in zodiac signs and horoscopes. Free yourself of it’s effect on your life.
Rebuke the spirit of divination from your life in Jesus Name.
Next Step:
Look to see if these spirits are working in your life or marriage.
Take the steps to overcome the works of these spirits.
Rebuke the spirits from your life in Jesus’ Name.
Here are some hallmarks of demonic work:
- Demons can cause suffering and self-harm (e.g., Matt. 17:14-16; Mark 5:1-5)
- Demons can create teachings which deceive people (1 Tim. 4:1)
- Demons can play a part in pagan sacrifices (1 Cor. 10:20; Rev. 9:20)
- Demons can possess people (Mark 5:15; 6:13)
All that may sound scary, and it is, but it’s important to note that, any time a demon saw Jesus, the demon was terrified (Matt. 8:31; Mark 1:24). Hell was created as the final destination for the devil and his angels (Matt. 25:41).
Demons in the Bible: “Anytime a demon saw Jesus, the demon was terrified.”
Demons and the West
As a bicultural person currently living in the world’s most powerful and modern country, I surprisingly sense Satan’s strongholds here too. We tend to think that we are modernized here in the US, whereas demons are more fitting in backward or third world countries, because of prevalent belief in many gods, absurd superstitions, black magic, or evil spirits. But the Bible calls Satan the “ruler of this world” (not of only one part or a quarter). Night and day, he is scheming to steal, kill and destroy God’s people. And interestingly, I see that Satan, as in the East, is remarkably successful and active in Western culture.
For instance, inside the Western church, Satan is affecting us by indoctrinating people in strange kinds of theologies and heresies. Within some churches, abominations are even considered fine. “Deconstructing” good and sound doctrine has become the norm, with biblical writers often denounced as misogynists, backward, or outdated. Believers who feel and voice the pain of seeing false doctrines and philosophies are often boycotted or tagged as radicals, fundamentalists, or intolerant. Some are too afraid to speak the truth and opt for preventing opposition and rejection. Satan is taking full advantage of our pride and fears.
Demons in the Bible: “The Bible calls Satan the “ruler of this world.” Night and day, he is scheming to steal, kill and destroy God’s people.”
He is also at work dividing the churches over distractions as well as attacking the integrity and character of our church pastors or leaders, who are often being caught or accused of sinful behaviors. Today most of our youth are quite reluctant to go to churches and Bible colleges which they perceive as not fun or as too conservative or orthodox for them. In addition, on and off, there have been certain events where people witnessed and reported overt demonic activities.
Furthermore, Satan is also desensitizing us, confusing us, stealing our joy, and giving us so many comforts to move us away from God, our families, our children, and our salvation. Our prosperity, our individualism, and our American dream have become our idols, which have captivated us. He is working to destroy our marriages, our nuclear family systems, our school systems, our political and church leadership, our economy, and our individual selves. Our youth is strongly under attack via pornography, identity crises, abortions, relationships, societal approval, drugs, brokenness, etc.
Similarly, outside the church Satan and his demons are affecting the society through ideologies such as scientism and secular humanism, which deny the presence and existence of the supernatural and worship human intelligence. Thus, where God is rejected, the demons are also taken casually. The result is that people who actually are demon-possessed are treated with medical care or defined by different disorder studies.
Demons in the Bible: “Satan and his demons are affecting the society through ideologies.”
All this to say, when my American friends tell me that demonic stuff is more prominent in countries like Pakistan than America, I’m disappointed that they don’t see what’s happening. Do they see how many Satanic Churches we have here, the thousands of cult practices in the US, the witchcraft, the demonic-themed entertainment (e.g., FX’s Little Demon), and overall obsession with horror and death? There is a source behind this, a real demonic force.
Unfortunately, whereas in the East the belief in the activities of demons is on the extreme, the West takes it too casually. And Satan relishes these divided opinions of our ignorance or fears. Therefore, when we do not study demons and their sinister ways in Scripture, we are not prepared to notice, address, or eradicate these practices from our culture boldly and courageously.
Certainly, these dark forces are stronger than what humans can deal with alone, and that makes us realize how much we rely and depend on God. When we study more about God and experience his power, we find how magnificent, omnipotent, omnipresent, omniscient, powerful, and gracious he is. We find our strength in him and realize how blessed and protected we are. It’s only with our trust securely in God that we can engage in spiritual warfare and expect to emerge victorious.
“These dark forces are stronger than what humans can deal with alone, and that makes us realize how much we rely and depend on God.”
Spiritual Warfare
Whether we know it or not, we are living in a constant state of spiritual warfare. One clue is how we can’t help but notice awful things happening in our lives and in our society which have no explanation other than the existence of evil. Sometimes terrible things are so vibrant that we start losing hope and accidentally start imagining that Satan is winning. But when we come to the gospels, the more we study the status of demons and their interaction with Jesus, we see them scared, timid, and shuddering before him. Demons give us a window into the true nature of spiritual reality whenever Jesus comes around (e.g., Mark 1:21-27).
We also see that the demons believed in Jesus’ divine identity, were respectful to him, and listened to his commands (Matt 8:31; Luke 8:30). No matter how powerful they were and for how long they kept a person’s body in possession, none of them ever tried to stand their ground in front of him or to disobey his command. In certain accounts, when they saw Jesus, they even begged to be expelled. There was even a case when demons were expelled in just hearing Jesus’ name (Luke 9:49-50).
Demons in the Bible: “No matter how powerful they were and for how long they kept a person’s body in possession, none of them ever tried to stand their ground in front of Jesus.”
Throughout these accounts, we learn that demons are neither all-powerful nor do they seem to be very independent. When confronted, they come under Jesus’ authority and even with their rebellious or evil nature, they listen to and obey his commands.
The world that God created at first was perfect, beautiful, and fragrant. But the world in which we live today is full of abnormalities, defects, and diseases because its ruler is Satan, even as Jesus’ kingdom is pushing Satan’s kingdom back and will be victorious. Meanwhile, our world is in a constant state of spiritual attack and war. Thus, it is important for us to realize how real and alarming the demonic world is. Yet through Jesus’ power and authority which are forever and ever, we expose it, defeat it, and conquer it.
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