III. Principalities and Powers
I left off in the last chapter with the two value systems at war with one another. The first is based upon self. The other is based upon selflessness. After exploring a little deeper, we found that the tree of the knowledge of good and evil is a representation of human ability and ingenuity. The tree of life is a depiction of resurrection. Here I want to explore a little more deeply how these are not simply humanity versus God (and vise versa). They are full representations of two different kingdoms: the kingdom of darkness and the kingdom of God.
We cannot express the kingdom of God rightly without acknowledgement of the kingdom of darkness. This kingdom of darkness is ruled by what are called the principalities and powers. These unseen forces of darkness – demons – are the very foundation for true seeing. One of the paradoxes of following Jesus is that He calls us to a certain perception and way of life that is completely counter to everything that the natural sees, experiences, and thinks that it understands. This very thing makes our walks and coming to a biblical perception both strenuous and difficult.
Paul reminds us that we do not wrestle with flesh and blood in Ephesians 6. “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.” Even in our most Charismatic circles, the Church has mostly ignored these spiritual forces. Because we have overlooked this major topic, our services and activities have been fated to a certain kind of futile and fruitless pursuit.
Notice what Paul says in the rest of Ephesians, though. The whole book is not addressed to individual believers in the Ephesus Church. The whole book is written in a manner that would suggest that Ephesians 6 must also be taken as being addressed to the whole Church. We do not wrestle individually. As individuals, we cannot affect the heavenly realms. The reason for this is because individualism is a promotion of the same wisdom that they push. It comes from selfishness.
The wisdom of God is that we would be one. Unless that is a reality, and not mere words recited as a cliché, our wrestling (whether individual or corporate) will be ignored. As an entire Body, we must display to those powers the wisdom of God. Otherwise, our witness and our authority are cheap and self-centered. It requires selflessness to be one with each other.
To define the word “heavens,” what we’re referring to is an unseen realm that is all around us. It is not necessarily above us. Nor is it necessarily where God dwells. There is an unseen realm – or maybe another dimension – where these powers of darkness brood and influence.
The whole reason that I have put this chapter in the book is because our understanding is insufficient. Many think that demonic activity is strictly the issue of personal deliverance. This is not even close to the big picture of the role that demons play in our world. The conflict between the Church and those demonic forces is the contention for the actual dominion or possession of creation and the nations. We will later address in this chapter how we combat them on this kind of level.
For this introductory statement, I want to also make known that our evangelical endeavors will be shallow attempts without the recognition of these powers. We must be able to wrestle against them and break their power over our communities, cities, states, and ultimately, our nation. If we are to have an effective evangelism, we must first engage those powers that manipulate and influence the society around us.
This is why I hold to the view that an evangelist is one that wrestles with the principalities and powers to free the souls from their bondage and blindness before he is one that “evangelizes,” or witness, to those souls. The questions are asked about Philip and the eunuch in Acts 8. Philip was called an evangelist, and the only reference seems to be about him winning that soul. But what is not mentioned directly is that the Spirit led Philip there. This is an indirect reference. God’s Spirit sent Philip southward, where he then met the Ethiopian eunuch. So the argument can at best then be made that an evangelist is one that follows the Spirit to the souls that God is gathering.
If the Church is only an institution where isolated individuals meet together once a week to hear a message and sing a few songs, then it is not equipped for this kind of struggle. This takes an engaging in those powers before it is evangelical. Any church that is not willing to take up that call is not the Church. Social issues like gay marriage and extreme grotesque sexuality in public are only answered when considering that the culture is influenced by these demonic powers. If we do not deal with them, then we cannot be a force to speak against the rampant immorality in our culture.
I spoke in the last chapter how everything in the faith is based upon resurrection. If that is true for the individual, it is true for the corporate Body. The whole Body must be resurrected and unified as one. The principalities and powers will do (and do) everything they can to keep us separated and isolated. Denominations are a spiritual issue – not doctrinal.
Demonic Power
Maybe the first thing to ask is by what power do demons operate? The angels of God are recorded as having massive power to destroy cities and armies. If the demonic powers had that same authority, we would possibly all be dead. There are a couple things to consider. First, there is a war in the heavenly places. Whether Satan could destroy cities and people needs to be weighed with that understanding. Also, God is sovereign. Ultimately, however, I don’t believe that they do have that kind of authority, because that kind of authority can only come from glory. When Lucifer left God’s presence, he left his glory behind. He has been stripped of all ability. Any possible power that Satan might have had has been stripped by the Christ Jesus through His death and resurrection.
We are also not concerned with coming home from our jobs to find a demon in our homes desecrating our living rooms. They don’t have that authority. God is sovereign. Because of their inactivity, people have been duped into believing that there is neither God nor Satan. But if the power of the devil is not found in outward manifestations as mentioned, then what exactly is his power? It is darkness: manipulation. He manipulates that which God has made.
The reason that we don’t fear whether Satan can kill us in the sense of calling down fire from heaven (like in Sodom and Gomorrah) is because he can’t create. He cannot create from himself, and therefore he cannot destroy in that sense. He has no authority to call upon the power of heaven. Satan can only manipulate that which heaven has already made. This is why when I speak of the principalities and powers, I will be speaking of Satan’s influence over humanity. He manipulates and jerks people and institutional systems into performing his deeds.
It is true that he seeks to kill, steal, and destroy. But by what power does he do these things? He employs people on his behalf. Demonic possession is real and alive today. And it is true that demons can possess someone to throw them into the fire. Notice, though, that even this young boy was not killed, even after being thrown into fire often (Matthew 17:15). The man possessed by a legion of demons was not killed, even after cutting himself with sharp stones (Mark 5:5).
The most destruction that Satan performs is through manipulating people into being racist, elitist, full of hatred, and bitter toward their fellow man. Through the governmental system called Nazism, the devil was able to influence an entire nation to seek the destruction of an entire people. This is the first time in history that the Jewish people were persecuted simply because of their blood. It did not matter whether they converted or were friends of the state. This is what genocide means.
Ethnic cleansing is a form of demonic activity. You cannot understand most of world history without understanding this. Behind the scenes, where the history books don’t report, is a demonic power that causes mankind to hate each other. School shootings, war, abortion, crime, and every form of violence are first and foremost caused by these powers. They are the culprits. As much as humanity is depraved, it is not the depravity of man that breeds enmity. Depravity must be understood on the basis of these principalities and powers that sway the hearts of men.
Two Value Systems
The only way that we can understand these two kingdoms as opposites and how to engage in that opposing system is to have a cosmic view. So I’ll start there and work into the subject at hand. Ephesians 3:8-12 reads, “Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ; and to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ: to the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God, according to the eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord: in whom we have boldness and access with confidence by the faith of him.”
Notice what is written. Paul writes that from the beginning of the world God has hidden this mystery. The whole of creation is tied into this mystery. The cosmic setting is not rhetoric. I don’t even know how to begin to define the terms. Cosmic would be more than universal. It represents all aspects – seen and unseen – physical and spiritual. Everything that has ever been created is interwoven into this mystery.
And what is that mystery that everything is interwoven into? What is the mystery that has been hidden since the world began? “That now to the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifest wisdom of God, according to the eternal purpose which He purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord.” What kind of a statement is that? How many of us have read this passage time and again and missed what was being communicated?
Did God truly create the whole world to perform this mystery? Is the Church’s ultimate purpose really to display the wisdom of God to the principalities and powers? There isn’t any other reason for the Church to exist?
This goes against almost every teaching that I’ve ever heard given about evangelism. There are so many teachings and dogma that are held to that would say that God made the Church so that we would be the witness to the world. The Kingdom of God is within us, right? Why, then, does Paul seem to indicate that the sole purpose of the Church is to display God’s wisdom (or value system) to the kingdom of darkness?
I think that the implications are quite profound. This calling has little to nothing to do with us. It calls us to something greater than ourselves, and in that it also seems to elude that there is little or no benefit for us. That is the point. This view is cosmic. It is beyond humanity. It gives us something larger than life to pursue. Without this view, we are stuck at the same tree of the knowledge of good and evil. We are stuck with our own ability and intentions and hopes. This kind of view pushes us toward something larger. It forces us to take our attention off of self and give self over to something that will have little or no benefit (and actually quite the opposite) in this life.
Think about this. The world thinks that it can continue to have its commerce, its culture, its great cities, and its international glories. The world thinks that it was created (or wasn’t created…) so that it could be sustained by itself. It is the means and the end. There is nothing more beneficial to humanity than to benefit the world. Much of the Church has fallen for this mentality. God says that the world was created for a different reason. The whole of creation was made so that there would be an entity called the Church, and that entity might display God’s wisdom to the principalities and powers of the air.
How does the Church attain to this? We find the answer in Ephesians 2. As we read through Ephesians 2, we start with Paul saying that we were once dead in transgression and under the power of the ruler of the kingdom of the air. I think that you might better understand now what is being said. We continue, and Paul starts to express in verse 11 or so that we are one in Christ. There is neither Jew nor Gentile in Christ – neither black nor white – slave nor free – male nor female. We are all one in Christ.
To the degree that we are able to display that reality, we are fighting against the principalities and powers. When we are able to display more than getting along with one another, we have reached holy ground. To display the manifest wisdom of God is to display God’s value system. This requires being self-sacrificial to the rest of the body – whether Jew or Gentile, male or female – in the same way that Jesus was sacrificial to the Father and the Father was sacrificial to the Son.
It says in Romans 11 that we have been grafted into the root of Israel. If these are not measly words, but explain a reality, then we cannot speak as though we are separate from Israel. God has brought together the two. We are one under the same Head. Even though they do not yet believe in Christ, they are still our brethren. To the degree that we both believe that and treat them as though we believe that, we are fulfilling our mandate.
Jesus has broken down the dividing wall of hostility. Are these words that we believe and practice, or are these just doctrinal words? We read in Romans 11 again that the Jews are the enemies of the Gospel for our sakes. Why is it for our benefit? It forces us to be more than pampered believers. It forces us to take on the love of God. We don’t love Israel simply because they are God’s people. If it is shallow sentiment, then we will find ourselves in the same place Martin Luther found himself – bitter and anti-Semitic. We love Israel because we have the Spirit of God in us.
When we run into contention, we display the heart of God. Sometimes that means we rebuke. Sometimes that means that we give sympathy. To say that we stand with Israel and then neglect the Israel in our own neighborhoods is a mock and a sham. You cannot truly love Israel and then ignore the Jew all around. Something inside compels us to engage with them. The first place that Paul went when entering a city was the synagogues and market places to debate with the devout.
This is more than a view on Israel and the Church. We display to the principalities and powers that we are truly saints by our treatment of Israel. If we are unambiguously real about our faith, then it will lead us to community with the saints and a true standing with Israel. A cheap sign in our yard does not cut it. The reason that the Jew is so important is that they are the ultimate display of humanity. The Stephen Spielberg and Karl Marx and Sigmund Freud and Albert Einstein are trademarks. Like many of the Jewish people, they are the movers and shapers of society and culture.
To go to them is to engage with the Pharaoh of this world. If we desire to go to Pharaoh and demand that he let God’s people go, we will bring upon self all sorts of terrible torments. We will mark self as one to be despised. To stand with God means to stand against everything that the world believes in. If we stand against everything the world believes in, then you are standing against the very spiritual powers of darkness that blind and influence that world.
Understand that to negate self does not lead to life in this present evil age. To negate self leads to the cross. Jesus only did that which the Father purposed, and they crucified Him. We will not get any better treatment when we deny self and take up the eternal purposes of God. Understand that God allows this because it deepens the quality and character of that Church to take on the cosmic purposes. The opposition, if not persecution, from the powers of darkness is used as a catalyst into more devout and holy living. For some reason, the paradox of God is that the more comfortable we are, the less like Him we are.
All of our speaking about and “doing” spiritual warfare without the proper framework is nonsense. Our terminology only reflects our ignorance. We desire to “take cities for Christ” or “take cities through worship.” We claim that we “cast down” strongholds. We shout all the louder and more hysterical when we start to get “serious” and “angry” at the devil. We “command” in the “name of Jesus” that the demons must submit. And the whole thing reeks of flesh over 95% of the time.
The whole issue is life together. The proximity that we are from other believers determines everything. Did you know that you could be sitting two feet away from the believer next to you, and yet be miles apart in spirit? Our corporate character, integrity, and authenticity are what matter. What is the quality of our life together? When we take the communion cup, and we say that we are taking it “together,” how close and personal are we truly being to one another? Are there any among us that are in need? Do you have funds to help those in need that might be sitting less than 20 feet away? Do you know their needs? Do you know their struggles? Do you even know their names?
The fact is that we are not one. Though we might claim it and “practice” it, we are not truly at the place where we are submissive and sacrificial to one another. The demons know it. While the group in the back is praying for the service, the demonic forces are yawning. Where is the Church that has wrestled together to come to an authentic reality of being one with each other? Show me that congregation, and I will show you a Church that can turn the world upside-down.
The forces of darkness only respond when they see the reality of heaven and the wisdom of God as being the effectual foundation for God’s people. Heaven and earth are not two separate entities. The secular and the sacred are not two separate classifications. Time and eternity are not two different views. The person and Church that continues to separate the eternal from the now is the least earthly good. We don’t become irrelevant when we are heavenly minded. Unless we are eternally focused, we cannot be relevant.
Psalm 82
1 God standeth in the congregation of the mighty;
he judgeth among the
gods.
2 How long will ye judge unjustly,
and accept the
persons of the wicked? Selah.
3 Defend the poor and fatherless:
do justice to the
afflicted and needy.
4 Deliver the poor and needy:
rid them out of the hand of the wicked.
5 They know not, neither will they understand;
they walk on in
darkness:
all the foundations
of the earth are out of course.
6 I have said, Ye are gods;
and all of you are children of the most High.
7 But ye shall die like men,
and fall like one of
the princes.
8 Arise, O God, judge the earth:
for thou shalt
inherit all nations.
Who are these “gods” that are mentioned in verse one? Whatever they are, they are not gods. The verse is a mockery of their actual authority and title. I think that this Psalm is written about the demonic forces at work throughout the earth. The reason that I don’t believe these are the false gods of other nations is simple. You start to read verses 2-4, and it sounds like God is speaking to actual beings. Yet the prophets mock the other nation’s gods. They claim that man makes these images, and they are nothing. They do not speak, they do not hear, and they do not answer.
So if these are not the false gods of the pagan nations, then couldn’t God be addressing the rulers and judges of the earth? Maybe these are just the kings. Maybe these are simply those in authority over the people of the world. If we think this, then we have misunderstood this Psalm. God calls them more than men in verse six. God does not give that kind of title or honor to any mortal man.
As a punishment of these gods, they are to die as mortal men. Poetic statement is used to explain this. I still see that this is not a poetic statement about kings and rulers. It is a literal statement about the principalities and powers. Though they were made to never die and endure eternity, they will die like mortal men. Though they do not have the physical body that mankind has, God is speaking to them a judgment. They will corrode as though they had mortal flesh.
Somehow these powers are set up in a place of authority and influence over the earth, but they do not rule in righteousness. “Defend the poor, do justice to the afflicted.” They do not understand the wisdom of God – cannot understand – for they walk in darkness and misalign the foundations of the earth. What does that even mean? Somehow their corrupt judgment actually affects the created world. But the fruits of righteous judgment in the heavenly places does the exact opposite. By our righteous judgment and holy lifestyle among brethren, we do bring about a difference in the creation around us.
This is why the Psalm ends with calling the nations God’s inheritance. The focus is taken off of the principalities and powers and placed onto the nations. The principalities that have sway and influence over the nation are removed, and thus the nations are no longer deceived. This is why God judges them and casts them down (they fall): so that the nations will no longer be blinded by their deception. Daniel 10 has an interesting passage about the prince of Persia retaining the angelic forces that were trying to deliver a message to Daniel. Is the prince of Persia here a man, or is it the ruler of darkness over that nation? It makes all the more sense when we open our minds to accepting that these demonic forces are what are at work behind nations and politics.
When those demonic powers are cast down, and righteous rulers are put in their place, the result will be cosmic. It is not enough to have a view of how this affects humanity. The birds and the bees and the flowers and the trees are also affected. Righteousness is like light that pierces the darkness. That darkness all around us is pushed back and set at bay when we rule in righteousness and equity. When the remnant is full of members that don’t have ability or willingness to rule, the result is a universe that plunges into deep darkness where there is no remedy. Thank God that He has established a righteous remnant, and that they will indeed rule. The question for each of us to ask is whether we are a part of that remnant, or whether we will find ourselves outside of that remnant.
Institutions and Systems
Religion is nothing more than something that establishes a status quo, and keeps mankind from the knowledge of the truth. We need to be beyond religion. At its best, it is still an institution and system. There is no effectual power in religion to bring a person to God. The only power to bring someone to God is the power of the Spirit. This is all the more amplified when we explore such a topic as the principalities and powers. Our cosmic struggle for the world as a whole is based upon these two wisdoms.
The wisdom of God is to put our minds beyond the temporal. It focuses upon the eternal. The wisdom of Satan is to put our focus upon the temporal and immediate. He desires to shut our minds off to any view of eternity. The whole world has subscribed to this lie that we can only believe in what we see. It has even affected the Church. Satan rules over institutions and systems. The reason for this is that they are easily manipulated.
We have set up our churches as institutions. Businesses are institutions. Government is an institution. Everything of the world revolves around system. System is not easily defined, but to give a shot at it, I would say it is something that revolves around man’s ability, and leaves no room for any outside possibilities. It is based upon formula and result. Anything that derives its worth and success by the result in which it obtains is a system. Some systems desire results of money, while others desire results in influence. Whatever the goal, a system cannot simply be content. It has to continue to press forward and increase. God, however, calls us to the place where we would be content with simply being – being loved by Him, being of a certain character, and being His witnesses. The world is not so.
The whole world is a system. This is why it is so easy