Thursday, 3/15/18
- Ephesians 6:11-12, The Angelic Conflict, Pt. 28. The Enemy, Pt. 25. Our
Struggle, Pt 2. Lesson # 18-029
Grace Fellowship Church
Pastor/Teacher, Jim Rickard
Stand in Warfare –
Eph 6:10-20.
2. The Enemy, vs. 11-12
Eph 6:11-12;
1:3; 2:6; Rom 12:1; 1 Cor 2:13-15; 3:1; 9:24-27; Col 1:19
Eph 6:12, “For
our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against
the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces
of wickedness in the heavenly places.”
Now, in Eph 6:12, we
have OUK PROS, which first tells us what our struggle “is not against.” This is followed by the words, “flesh and blood.” In the Greek, it is
reversed, HAIMA KAI SARX, “blood and flesh.” It indicates the literal, but also
the figurative of natural life, human life, mortal nature, or physical life. In
other words, our warfare is not against the people of this world. In fact, we
are told to love our neighbors many times in Scripture, Lev 19:18; Mat 5:43; 19:19; 22:39; Rom 13:8-10; Gal 5:14; James 2:8,
etc. Therefore, regardless of religious, ethnic, or socio-economic status, we
are to express love to all of mankind, even our enemies, Prov 25:24; Mat 5:44; Rom 12:20.
Unfortunately, too many people, including too many
Christians, make other members of the human race as the objects of their hatred,
and we fight against each other. But God says our enemy is not man but Satan
and his fallen angelic forces in the rest of this verse.
Yet, you might have wondered,
“Paul, what do you mean, we do not wrestle with flesh and blood? You have been
beaten with rods, imprisoned, left for dead, shipwrecked, endangered countless
times, and more. What do you mean our battle is not physical?”
Yes, we might suffer at the hands
of man, but we always have to keep in mind the true battle that is going on
behind the scenes. We have to keep in mind the spiritual warfare that we are
engaged in. That is what allowed Jesus to say, while He was hanging on the
Cross with insults being hurled at Him, “Father,
forgive them, for they know not what they do,” Luke 23:34.
Therefore, we know from the
apostle Paul that behind our daily battles is another battle. There is an unseen,
cosmic, and spiritual battle in which we are engaged.
Paul tells us this with the contrasting Conjunction ALLA
that means, “but, yet, or rather”
and the Preposition PROS, “against,”
used four times in the description of our true enemy we are wrestling with
every day. It is broken down in to four categories: “the rulers, against the powers, against the
world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of
wickedness...” The enemy
includes: 1) Rulers, 2) Powers, 3) World forces of this darkness, and 4)
Spiritual forces of wickedness.
The number four in Scripture represents God’s creative
works, creation, material things, and material completeness. It is the world
number and especially the city number. This tells us that these are created beings
who rule the world and its individual cities. The number 4 = 2 + 2, and the
number 2 has the context of “division,” as these four scopes of demonic
authorities are divided from God and are trying to divide man from having a
relationship with God.
The number four is also made up of three plus one. As we see
the listing in Eph 6:12, we have
three titles for the leaders of the fallen angelic forces and one for the
general population of fallen angels. Three meaning “divine perfection” and one
“unity,” tells us that this is a perfect order of demonic angelic forces that
are in an evil unity conspiring against God and His family.
As such, our “wrestling opponents” are spiritual and
supernatural foes of evil, as we see in the last phrase, “in the heavenly places,”
EN HO EPOURANIOS in the
Dative case. The Adjective EPOURANIOS, ἐπουράνιος
comes from the root Noun HOURANOS that means, “heaven.” So, EPOURANIOS means,
“heavenly or celestial.” If used as a substantive, it can mean, “the
gods above.” But here it is used to emphasize the location of our opponent,
their abode or dwelling place which currently includes the first, second, and
third heaven; our atmosphere, the stellar universe, and God’s throne room
outside of our universe, respectfully, cf. 2
Cor 12:2.
Jesus also used EPOURANIOS in John 3:12, to contrast “heavenly things” with
“earthly things,” “If I told you
earthly things and you do not believe, how shall you believe if I tell you
heavenly things?”
This raises a question, if we are “flesh and blood,” how do
we fight an enemy that is spiritual and supernatural? Well, we certainly cannot
fight it, nor win it, by using our flesh and blood, i.e., earthly things. In
other words, we cannot fight this battle with our human strength, our human
intellect, our human resources like money and wealth, or guns and military
weapons. Even the atom bomb cannot defeat this enemy!
Yet, there is a way we can defeat them and be victorious.
Because of our salvation won in Christ, we have been elevated from the earthly
to the heavenly, and therefore are first qualified to be entered into this
battle, Eph 2:6; 2 Tim 4:18; cf. Eph
6:12. That means we are “fair game” in this spiritual warfare and are fair
competition. In other words, we are capable of competing in this match, because
we have something in common, spiritual assets and resources, 1 Cor 2:13, 15; 15:44; Gal 6:1; Eph 1:3;
Col 1:9; 3:16; 1 Tim 4:14; 1 Peter 2:5. And our assets and resources are
far superior to our enemies.
Eph 1:3, “Blessed
be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with
every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ.”
Col 1:9, “For
this reason also, since the day we heard of it, we have not ceased to
pray for you and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will
in all spiritual wisdom and understanding.”
At the same time, God has made available to the believer all
the spiritual assets necessary to be victorious experientially in this
wrestling match. That is why we must put on the “full armor of God,” 1 Cor
2:13-15; Rom 12:1.
1 Cor 2:13, “Which
things we also speak, not in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught
by the Spirit, combining spiritual thoughts with spiritual words.”
1 Cor 2:15, “He who
is spiritual appraises all things, yet he himself is appraised by no one.”
Rom 12:1, “I
urge you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a
living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual
service of worship.”
Yet, if we do not put on the armor of God, we will remain as
if we were unsaved and do not have the spiritual assets necessary to be
victorious, with the result of being perpetually spiritually blinded by Satan, 1 Cor 2:14; 3:1.
1 Cor 3:1, “And
I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual men, but as to men of
flesh, as to infants in Christ.”
1 Cor 2:14, “But
a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are
foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually
appraised.”
Therefore, we are fighting against a spiritual and supernatural
foe: The rulers, powers, world forces of this darkness, and spiritual forces of
wickedness in the heavenlies. To fight, we have to be equipped with spiritual
and supernatural power that only God and His Word through the filling of the
Holy “Spirit” can supply.
And remember, we are not just shadowboxing in this spiritual
warfare. The enemies are real. That is why Paul stated in 1 Cor 9:24-27, “Do you not know that those who run in a race all run,
but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may win. 25Everyone who competes in the games exercises
self-control in all things. They then do it to receive a perishable
wreath, but we an imperishable. 26Therefore
I run in such a way, as not without aim; I box in such a way, as not beating
the air; 27but I discipline my body
and make it my slave, so that, after I have preached to others, I myself will
not be disqualified.”
And thanks be to God that He has qualified us to fight on a
level playing field, and provided for us the necessary spiritual power to not
just compete, but to win and overcome by His grace.
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