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what's your current understanding of spiritual warfare

Comment

I grew up in a church where everything was about Satan tempting people. We therefore had to make spiritual warfare through prayer whenever we thought we found resistance. Prayer was prescribed every step of the day.

Now that I read the Bible with open eyes, I don't see Satan as the center piece of all sin. Man's heart is sinful by nature so we don't need Satan to tempt us. We just need to be "human".

When I do see Satan's involvement, it tends to be major events. Eve, Job and Yeshua being tempted; the events in Revelation, etc.

Yes, there are spiritual powers over countries/territories. Can they be bound indefinitely through prayer? I don't see that happening in Scripture nor nowadays. If that was possible then Satan and demons would be powerless through all the years of prayer "binding" them in every aspect of life.

I know that Kenneth Copeland is not a good example for anything from a Biblical perspective, but his actions reminds me of what I imagine happens in many closed prayer closets. People in earnest are binding Satan through prayer in every possible situation like Kenneth "bound Covid" on TV when it started.

His prayer had no impact at all. Why? Is it because he isn't a true believer? Should he have fasted before he prayed? Was Covid something sent by Father and could therefore not be prayed away?

We are instructed to resist Satan and he will flee. So we have to take action. For some the action is very little, just decide not to do something and move on. For others it might need constant prayer as the temptation to do something is like a drug, so they have to actively resist it.

As example, a person who doesn't like sweet food doesn't get tempted much by a slice of chocolate cake, but that same cake is a major temptation for a person who absolutely loves chocolate cake and is on a "no cake" diet. The one person just turns their head, the other has to change their mind...

In the Lord's Prayer it says "lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil". Hmmm, the prayer is directed to Father and ask for Him not to lead us into temptation... So we acknowledge that our life and ways are in Father's hands and that we are totally reliant on Him. We therefore ask Him to lead us in the correct way.

Then we get to the examples of casting out demons. Was it a spiritual battle at all? No. Yeshua and His disciples told the demon to leave and so it did. No battle at all. The caveat was that some demons needed prayer and fasting ahead of time. We are not told what type of prayer that is. Is it a prayer in battle like boxers psyching themselves up before a boxing match, or is it a prayer of sanctifications in calmness knowing that Father is in control?

Is the prayer in chaos like was done in our church were everyone prayed together, the one louder than the other hoping to be heard. A cacophony of voices in "battle". Or should a group take turns to pray?

The example of binding on earth in Matthew 16 and 18 was used as the test case for what we should do in "spiritual warfare". But is the binding spoken of what we were told binding is? I can't recall where, but read a view that the binding should rather be understood/translated as "permitted". So what we permit on earth should already have been permissible in heaven. Basically, only do on earth what is allowed in heaven.

What cooks my goose is when people say that something Biblical is happening and then even shows from Scripture the exact verse they say is taking place and then "bind the spirit behind the event" or try to "pray it away". What? If it is an event that Father had written up in the Bible and must take place, how can any person stop it from happening at the appointed time?

I believe we have to look at what Scripture shows and reinvestigate our own beliefs and traditions on this matter as we might just have a lot of church doctrine still part of our lives on this subject.

I grew up in a church where everything was about Satan tempting people. We therefore had to make spiritual warfare through prayer whenever we thought we found resistance.  Prayer was prescribed every step of the day. 
 
Now that I read the Bible with open eyes, I don't see Satan as the center piece of all sin.  Man's heart is sinful by nature so we don't need Satan to tempt us.  We just need to be "human".  
 
When I do see Satan's involvement, it tends to be major events. Eve, Job and Yeshua being tempted; the events in Revelation, etc. 
 
Yes, there are spiritual powers over countries/territories.  Can they be bound indefinitely through prayer?  I don't see that happening in Scripture nor nowadays.  If that was possible then Satan and demons would be powerless through all the years of prayer "binding" them in every aspect of life. 
 
I know that Kenneth Copeland is not a good example for anything from a Biblical perspective, but his actions reminds me of what I imagine happens in many closed prayer closets.  People in earnest are binding Satan through prayer in every possible situation like Kenneth "bound Covid" on TV when it started.   
 
His prayer had no impact at all.  Why?  Is it because he isn't a true believer? Should he have fasted before he prayed?  Was Covid something sent by Father and could therefore not be prayed away? 
 
We are instructed to resist Satan and he will flee. So we have to take action.  For some the action is very little, just decide not to do something and move on.  For others it might need constant prayer as the temptation to do something is like a drug, so they have to actively resist it. 
 
As example, a person who doesn't like sweet food doesn't get tempted much by a slice of chocolate cake, but that same cake is a major temptation for a person who absolutely loves chocolate cake and is on a "no cake" diet.  The one person just turns their head, the other has to change their mind... 
 
In the Lord's Prayer it says "lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil".  Hmmm, the prayer is directed to Father and ask for Him not to lead us into temptation...  So we acknowledge that our life and ways are in Father's hands and that we are totally reliant on Him.  We therefore ask Him to lead us in the correct way. 
 
Then we get to the examples of casting out demons.  Was it a spiritual battle at all?  No.  Yeshua and His disciples told the demon to leave and so it did.  No battle at all.  The caveat was that some demons needed prayer and fasting ahead of time.  We are not told what type of prayer that is.  Is it a prayer in battle like boxers psyching themselves up before a boxing match, or is it a prayer of sanctifications in calmness knowing that Father is in control? 
 
Is the prayer in chaos like was done in our church were everyone prayed together, the one louder than the other hoping to be heard.  A cacophony of voices in "battle".  Or should a group take turns to pray? 
 
The example of binding on earth in Matthew 16 and 18 was used as the test case for what we should do in "spiritual warfare".  But is the binding spoken of what we were told binding is?  I can't recall where, but read a view that the binding should rather be understood/translated as "permitted".  So what we permit on earth should already have been permissible in heaven. Basically, only do on earth what is allowed in heaven. 
 
What cooks my goose is when people say that something Biblical is happening and then even shows from Scripture the exact verse they say is taking place and then "bind the spirit behind the event" or try to "pray it away".  What?  If it is an event that Father had written up in the Bible and must take place, how can any person stop it from happening at the appointed time? 
 
I believe we have to look at what Scripture shows and reinvestigate our own beliefs and traditions on this matter as we might just have a lot of church doctrine still part of our lives on this subject.

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