“For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.”
(Ephesians 6:12)
Introduction
We are living in times of great conflict! Many people are aware of the wars and acts of political unrest that are taking place around the world, but most people overlook the invisible spiritual conflict that takes place daily between the kingdom of light and the kingdom of darkness. Each person on earth, without exception, is aligned with either one kingdom or the other, whether he realizes it or not. There is no neutrality. Simply put, obedience to God and His delegated authority aligns us with the kingdom of God, while disobedience to God aligns us with the kingdom of darkness.
To truly fathom this conflict between the kingdom of God and the kingdom of Satan, we must have a thorough understanding of how these two kingdoms are diametrically opposed to one another. In this study, we will learn how God’s kingdom rules and then contrast it with how the kingdom of darkness functions. We will also further examine how Jesus thoroughly defeated Satan through His death and His
resurrection.
Study Questions
From Last Lesson…
Part III: Four Results of Jesus’ Victory Over Satan at the Cross
Satan Was Defeated
12. Since Christ Jesus has defeated Satan, what has He enabled us to be amid “tribulation, or distress, or persecution” (Romans 8:35), or any other adverse situation in life? Complete the following:
Romans 8:37: “In all these things we are _____________ ______________ ___________________________
through Him who loved us.”
Satan Was Dethroned
13. Satan, as the “strong man,” maintained the security of his kingdom of darkness for a time. (See Luke
11:21.) However, what did Jesus, the One who was “stronger than he,” do to dismantle Satan’s kingdom after He invaded his “palace” and overcame him? (Verse 22)
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By way of the cross, Jesus inflicted on Satan a total, permanent, eternal, and irrevocable defeat.
Satan Was Disarmed
14. While Jesus “disarmed principalities and powers” (Colossians 2:15), He equipped believers with the “whole armour of God” (Ephesians 6:11), among other spiritual resources, so that we could resist the devil’s attacks and drive out the kingdom of darkness from the “territories” it has taken. List the pieces
of our spiritual armour. (Ephesians 6:14–17 NIV)
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The Kingdom of Power!
Satan Was Destroyed
15. (a) When Jesus destroyed Satan, He also nullified all the enemy’s power. What power did the writer of Hebrews mention in this regard? (Hebrews 2:14b)
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(b) What did Jesus accomplish for human beings, who had been subject to bondage because of a fear of this power? (Verse 15a)
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16. What did Jesus say was clear evidence that the kingdom of God had arrived? (Matthew 12:28a)
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Casting out demons is a manifestation of the dominion and rule of God’s kingdom.
Conclusion
The moment we were born again, we were immediately transferred into God’s kingdom of light. At that instant, we entered into spiritual warfare with Satan’s kingdom of darkness. When we begin to remove Satan’s kingdom from various territories he has taken, he fights for his life. He doesn’t want to be forced out of any territory he has gained in people and places. He likes to challenge the authority we have been given in Christ. Therefore, we must stand on our God-given authority and resist him.
Even though we have been delivered from Satan’s power, the final sentence against the enemy has yet to be carried out by Christ. While Satan no longer has dominion over us, he will continue trying either to bring us back into his kingdom or to undermine our spiritual effectiveness. Until his final defeat at the end of the age, Satan has still been given the legal right by God to fight against us using three methods— temptation (see, for example, Matthew 6:13), persecution (see, for example, 2 Timothy 3:12), and accusation (see, for example, Revelation 12:10). But we have the power and authority in Christ to overcome him!
For you to present a real threat to the kingdom of darkness, you must be ready to protect yourself from, and resist, satanic attacks. God’s kingdom is not about theology or doctrine but about resurrection power that can defeat the enemy. Let’s remember that the only authority the devil can have over us is the authority we give him through our disobedience. (See, for example, Ephesians 4:27.) Even though believers cannot be physically possessed by demons, they can still be influenced by them; there may be areas in our lives that are being held captive by Satan due to unforgiveness or generational curses. This is why deliverance is something we must practice regularly. When we are free of sin and are obeying God, the enemy cannot prevail against us. He might have some power, but he no longer has authority, and he cannot defeat us unless we allow it. In the power of Christ’s resurrection, we can force Satan to submit, and we can destroy all of his works!
Pre-deliverance Preparation
Deliverance will not come if we are passive and do nothing, or if we just cite Scripture. It will come when we act and rebuke demonic entities in the authority of Jesus’ name. We must first lead people to carry out certain conditions for their deliverance. This helps them to be free of all demonic oppression operating in their minds, wills, and emotions. To receive deliverance—and to stay free—we must:
Have a personal revelation of Jesus as Lord and Saviour.
Humble ourselves before God (those who refuse to humble themselves should not continue with the
deliverance).
Confess all sins, whether of commission or omission.
Repent wholeheartedly.
Choose to forgive everyone who has offended us.
Desperately desire our deliverance from the enemy’s oppression.The Kingdom of Power!
Break any pacts we have made with the occult through witchcraft, Santeria, or any other false religion
or sect.
Believe, confess, and receive, by faith, the divine exchange that took place at the cross of Christ.
Exhale, so that every evil spirit can leave our bodies.
We will use the following prayer as a guide. It will keep us from omitting any important aspects of deliverance. Remember that as you pray this prayer, you should exhale, as an act of faith, so that every evil spirit will leave you.
Prayer of Activation
Dear Lord, we believe that You are the Son of God and that You died on the cross for our sins; that You were raised from the dead so we could be forgiven and receive eternal life. Right now, we take hold of Your work and renounce all religious self-righteousness and any other sense of pride that does not come from You. We ask for Your mercy and grace, knowing that we have nothing to boast about. We confess and wholeheartedly repent of all the sins we have committed, as well as everything we should have done but failed to do. We choose to end our sinful lifestyle so that we may have new life in You. Of our own free will, we decide to follow You. We forgive everyone who has hurt us and has wished us harm.
We renounce and let go of all unforgiveness, bitterness, hatred, and resentment. We specifically forgive [mention the names of those who have hurt you], and we ask for Your supernatural grace to forgive them.
We renounce every pact we have made with the occult, whether through witchcraft, divination, or false doctrines or religions. We also commit ourselves to destroying every object in our homes or offices that is associated with the occult and idolatry.
Lord Jesus, thank You for taking our curse on the cross so we could receive Your blessing. We are redeemed and free in Your name. We stand with You against Satan and his demons. We renounce the curses we have seen in operation in our lives [mention all the generational curses you may have identified: sickness, depression, alcoholism, adultery, suicide, premature death, and anything else]. Now, we receive Your blessings. We resist the devil and submit to You. We order every demon that has control over our lives, health, finances, and family to leave, right now! We cast every demon out, now, in the name of Jesus. We are free!
Action Steps
Are you struggling with an issue you cannot identify? Maybe you can tangibly sense the hatred of demons toward you and God. If so, ask the Lord for the discernment to identify and deal with any evil entities that are working against you. Cast them out of your life, your home, your church, your business, and any other place connected to you.
Satan will use our carnal nature, or “flesh,” in his attempts to defeat us, because the carnal nature is the area in which temptation takes place. However, the flesh is not the same thing as the devil, so we have to deal with it differently than we deal with him. When we accept Jesus, our spirit is born again, but our soul is merely “rescued”—it is now capable of being renewed, but it is not yet fully transformed. From the moment of our salvation, we must continually work on the transformation of our souls. The carnal nature is the combination of our ungodly passions, perverted emotions, bad thoughts, stubbornness, and evil desires. Many believers today seem to be trying to “cast out” the flesh and “crucify” the devil. They have it backward. Jesus defeated the devil and sin at the cross, but it is our responsibility to crucify the flesh, no one else can do this for us. When we crucify the flesh, we submit to the lordship of Jesus Christ and no longer live a sinful lifestyle. We live by the faith of the Son of God. Therefore, submit yourself to God fully, right now, and turn away from any sin you have been holding on to. Do this daily. Then, after you have learned to live in this way, if you still fail to experience spiritual victory in a particular area, you must suspect Satan and his demons as the The Kingdom of Power!
cause of your problem and rebuke them. Carry out the conditions listed before the “Prayer of Activation,” above, and then pray the prayer. Remember, when you order demons to leave, they will not obey you unless you have first crucified your flesh in the area from which you want to expel them—regardless of whether you are expelling them from yourself or another person.
Rebuke the enemy, pull down his strongholds, and cast out demons from people in the name of Jesus, as you receive revelation and discernment from the Holy Spirit.
