Updated Spiritual Warfare Tactic - Jim Croft
(This article is superior to my sermon of 1/20/14 on the Omega Man Internet Radio Show)
It is my belief that the Scriptures hold what are for us are ever evolving strategies to combat satanic forces. I have been meditating on how to better help believers who have ongoing perplexities in particular areas of life. My customary approach has been to advise repentance from habitual sins; advise wearing down fleshly desires by denial of activation; and to treat exceptionally stubborn issues as demons that need to be expelled.
All of those are legitimate aspects of spiritual warfare, but there is another that could be of great help in some situations. It’s to go after a fallen angel that has been personally assigned to complicate the life of a believer at a particular juncture of life. The premise for this line of reasoning is taken from the hint in Matt 18:10 that God assigns personal guardian angels to people. With this in mind, it is feasible to imagine that the Devil mimics the practice by assigning evil fallen angels that commandeer earth’s demons to harass individuals.
To understand how this might work, let’s envision Satan’s kingdom like an earthly army comprised of enlisted rank demonic infantry and higher ranked officer fallen angels. The evil spirits, the demons live on earth which is within the 1rst heaven.
The evil fallen angels are headquartered in the 2nd heaven immediately above earth’s atmosphere. The 3rd heaven is the dwelling of the Triune God and his multitudes of holy angels. (2Cor 12:2-4) It is also populated by the spirits of the righteous dead who are waiting to be rejoined to their bodies in glorified form at the Coming of the Lord.
Demons are earthbound trench soldiers. They incessantly go wandering about looking for a human personality to inhabit and/or they perch in close proximity to an individual selected for a given type of harassment. Demons obey the warfare directives of officer fallen angles that dwell in the 2nd heaven. It is Satan’s headquarters as the Prince of the Power of the Air. (Eph 2:2-3)
Daniel’s Experience
The 10th Chapter of Daniel depicts that during Daniel’s and Israel’s captivity in Babylon that the prophet entered a period of prayer and fasting to learn about his people’s future. After 21 days, he was visited by an angel who was likely the Arch Angel Gabriel.
This powerful messenger told Daniel that from the first day of his praying that his words had been heard and that he had been sent to bring answers.
However, Gabriel explained that he had been held up for 21 days in making it to Daniel by warfare in the heavens with a fallen angel identified as the prince over Persia. At that time, Babylon was under Persian control.
Gabriel was not able to continue his journey to Daniel until the Arch Angel Michael came to assist him. He distracted the prince of Persia by engaging in battle with him and with the other evil entities that Gabriel had been battling singlehanded. (Dan 10:11-14) While Michael kept the powers of the principality over Babylon busy, Gabriel slipped through to Daniel.
Before Gabriel gave the requested answers to Daniel that are found in Dan 11, he gave him a glimpse into an aspect of the nature of spiritual warfare. He told him that he would again have to battle with the prince of Persia on his return to the 3rd heaven. He also informed Daniel that Babylon was due to come under the control of the Greeks next. (Dan 10:20-21) This happened through the conquering campaigns of Alexander the Great.
Change of Administrations
Babylon was first controlled by Chaldeans; then Persians; and then the Greeks. The entire region of the ancient Babylonian Empire is now under the primary control of Islam. This demonstrates that as years pass and circumstances change, that there are correlating changes of guard with the evil principalities over nations. Eph 6:11-13 admonishes believers that our wrestling match is with these powers in the heavens. But, our battle does not stop there.
We are also responsible to expel demons from the lives of those who have some area of life under demonic control. We are also to do the same for ourselves wherever needed. Previously, I saw battles with evil angels in the heavenlies as a separate issue from expelling evil spirits here on earth.
Spiritual warfare in the heavens was about wresting political control of cities and nations from evil earthly rulers who are manipulated by fallen officer angels in the 2nd heaven. Expelling demons was about delivering God’s people from various types of demonic control. Now, I suspect that there is a connection between assigned evil officer angels in the heavens and the evil spirits that complicate the lives of individuals here on earth.
I have come to the opinion that a reason that many people have to repeatedly fight the same demons again and again is because the evil officer angel that marshal earthbound demonic forces against them have not been dealt with. Therefore, I heavily suggest that it would be best to first discern and shackle the mouth of a particular officer angel in the heavens. This will stop it from issuing commands to demons within the person before the person receives deliverance ministry to expel the demons from their life.
In a similar manner in which there were administration changes of the fallen angels over the Babylonian Empire, there can be changes in the evil officer angel over a person’s life. Most every Christian has had the experience of changes in the nature of his spiritual battles as he advanced in age.
In teen-life it might be fears of rejection and awkward feelings about personal characteristics. In early marriage, it might be temper tantrums and temptation to divorce. In later life, the struggle is commonly with demons of depression fueled by regrets about broken relationships and life’s other tragic happenings.
Howbeit, if an individual has never learned how to effectively wage spiritual warfare, there can be long range consequences. They can carry the excess baggage from every administration of fallen angel assigned to their life and the particular demons that each administration sent into their lives. This need not be so.
The Process
Prayerfully evaluate the current stage of your life and what issues you suspect are of demonic origin. If you have not ever received deliverance ministry and/or have not conducted self deliverance, take your past struggles under consideration also. The chances are that substantial demonic holdouts from previous administrations are still lurking. Name the evil spirits that might be in you or harassing you from a close proximity perch.
Their names are their function such as fear, rejection, laziness, addictions, abusive language, hatred, unforgiveness, and so forth that correlate with most every negative emotion and physical malady.
It could be that you will notice that the categories of demonic troubles changed from one period of your life to the next.
A given category can serve as the name and nature of the fallen officer angel assigned to commandeer that particular category of earthbound demons during a given period of your life. Examples might be that the fallen angel over a teen could be sexual fantasies; over an adult, bitterness; and over a senior, short-term memory loss.
Whatever the case, first command the mouth of the commanding officer angel in the heavenlies to be shut from issuing commands to demons. Then shackle it with chains of confessions about the blood of Jesus’ powers and with the manacles of the high praises of God. According to Psa 149:5-9 and Rev 12:7-11, you have the authority to do so.
Psa 8:2 conveys that praises from a mere spiritual babe can silence the enemy. Afterward, proceed to expelling the demons while calling them by the descriptive name of their function.
I’ll give you a testimony of a dear member of my church who practiced what I have outlined in this article. At one time, he had a boss who was given to irrational emotional outburst at importune times. He identified the evil officer angel over the man’s life as one that commandeered a demon of insanity within the man.
Prior to interaction with his boss, the Christian would first shackle the mouth and function of the evil angel of irrational mood swings in the heavenlies. It worked and the man became far easier to deal with.
Years passed and the boss retired, but he still owned the facility that housed the business of which my church member had become president. In a recent year, the rental agreement had to be renegotiated with the owner.
The negotiations were disrupted by the owner’s bombastic irrational demands. Everyone’s blood pressure became elevated by the agitations. What happened? My friend forgot to deal with the fallen angel over the man before going into the boardroom with him.
My hope is 3-fold. It is that you will try the tactic I’ve outlined in your own circumstances and when dealing with others that need help. Foremost, I hope the advice that I’ve given is an asset in your spiritual weaponry. One way or the other, there is no harm in experimentation as spiritual warfare is not an exact science. We learn by trial and error that has precedent in the Word.
