I once held a single grain of sand in my hand, so tiny it was almost indistinguishable. Then came a thought: What about all the sand in the world?
Every beach, every ocean floor, every desert dune – trillions upon trillions of grains, beyond counting.
That image stretched my imagination. But it also opened my eyes. If something as ordinary as sand could exist in such a staggering scale, what about things we can’t see? What about the supernatural realm of the spirit world?
Most people dismiss talk about the supernatural world instantly. After all, we can’t measure the spiritual world in a lab, post it on Instagram, or prove it with data. And in a culture that prizes proof, what can’t be seen is quickly labelled as fantasy or superstitious gibberish.
There was a time when I thought about it in the same way. But life and faith have taught me otherwise.
The unseen may be invisible. But it’s anything but unreal.
A War That Doesn’t Make the Headlines
Like it or not, every one of us is caught in a battle we didn’t sign up for. It’s not necessarily fought with bullets or bombs but with lies, fear, deception and manipulation.
It’s a war between good and evil. And whether you realise it or not, your soul is the battleground and so is the soul of a city and a nation.
The Bible is blunt about it:
“For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.”
Ephesians 6:12
This isn’t just poetic metaphor. It’s a stark yet unsettling description of the reality that exists in a different realm. Think of the wind. You can’t see it, yet its effects are undeniable. One moment it’s a gentle breeze, the next a cyclone tearing through everything in its path. The spiritual realm operates in much the same way: in it are forces of good and evil. The evil forces are hellbent on reshaping the visible world we live in to the detriment and destruction of humanity. But it’s orchestrated in ways most of us either don’t understand or we conveniently dismiss and deny simply because we can’t put our finger on why everything seems to be going pear shaped around us. So as a human survival mechanism many prefer to be safely cocooned in blissful ignorance.
Why We Miss It
We like neat boxes: science here, religion there, politics somewhere else. But the supernatural doesn’t fit into any of them. What’s more, the forces of darkness do not play by human rules. Stepping into a battle with supernatural forces of evil unprepared is like wandering into a war zone blindfolded, without weapons or protection. It’s human folly as the sons of Sceva found out trying to evict evil spirits from a demonically possessed person.
“Seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish High Priest, were doing this. One day the evil spirit answered them, Jesus I know, and Paul (Apostle) I know. But who are you?” Then the man who had the evil spirit jumped on them and overpowered them all. Acts 19: 14-17
The seven brothers were badly beaten and wounded and nearly killed because they pretended that they had the authority and power of Jesus to conduct an exorcism. But they weren’t true believers and paid the price for their ignorance.
That’s why it’s vitally important having the right teacher and guide in matters relating to the supernatural realm. And for believers, that guide is the Holy Spirit – not an energy, not a “good vibe,” but the living presence of God who equips us mere mortals to discern, to stand and to fight the good fight where the battle is really taking place for the souls of mankind.
Deluded men might be seen to be using their position and power to create conflict and chaos on this planet. But more often than not, there are other sinister forces at play behind the scenes who’re controlling the affairs of evil men. And those forces are besieging us with their diabolical and darkly twisted and evil agenda.
My Own Encounter With the Unseen
I didn’t always believe in stuff like this. In fact, for years I laughed off the very idea as nonsensical mumbo jumbo, perfectly suited for hysterical religious fanatics. So I conveniently distanced myself from all of it. Because to be honest, I didn’t want to be tarred with the same brush.
To put things into a little context, I’ll take you back to the 1970s, when I went to watch The Exorcist at a local cinema. After the movie I walked out paranoid, and began suffering from sleepless nights with a very unsettling fear of the dark. That fear played out far longer than I expected.
Then, in the early 1990s, everything shifted. In a moment of experiencing a divine encounter, I accepted Jesus Christ as my Lord and Saviour. What followed was nothing short of a spiritual boot camp of intense training and development specifically in the art of spiritual warfare. I began a journey of discovery where learning about the unseen spiritual world became a passionate pursuit. I experienced it firsthand in ways that were mind blowing, eye opening and at times, deeply disturbing and distressing. Let me assure you with every ounce of integrity and confidence in me – the spiritual world exists. And it’s frighteningly real. But understanding how to embrace this reality was at times, overwhelming for me. However it was also profoundly enlightening and deeply satisfying and rewarding seeing so many people set free from the demonic stranglehold over their lives. I would eventually come to learn that it was not only essential in my walk as a believer, it was vital also for my own spiritual wellbeing and development.
The question on your lips right now might be this: “Is spiritual warfare real or even necessary?”
Without question. And it matters now more than ever. If we want to reclaim our families, rescue our neighbourhoods and our communities from drug abuse, domestic violence, corruption and crime, we need more than just strategic policies and programs. We need to learn how to engage the unseen forces that fuel the damage and destruction. I sincerely believe that spiritual warfare should be a part of every church’s mission to help equip a congregation in how to engage with the demonic forces that are causing so much suffering, pain and heartache on many fronts here on earth.
For Churches that are interested in going on the offensive, there are many spiritual warfare resources available at good bookstores and from online platforms.
And let me encourage you and assure you that when you learn to use the name of Jesus against the most dark, difficult and oppressive forces and situations, remarkable things will begin to happen:
Darkness will tremble.
Fear will flee.
Captives will be set free.
Or as Scripture puts it:
“The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil.”
1 John 3:8
The Authority Hell Respects
Here’s a sobering yet uncomfortable truth: religion doesn’t scare the forces of darkness nor does religion know how to engage this evil. Rituals don’t make demons flee from the works of the devil that destroy lives and bring untold pain and suffering.
Only the name of Jesus Christ, the risen Warrior King, does. And His name makes all of hell groan and shudder. I’ve seen it with my own eyes and I’ve experienced it firsthand in the most remarkable situations and settings that defy our imagination.
There’s no middle ground. Every soul is claimed or contested for by forces of light or darkness. One side deals in light and truth. The other in darkness, despair, hopelessness and destruction.
Look around: addiction, broken homes, hatred, violence, war, chaos. These aren’t just world wide problems and social issues. They’re symptoms of a deeper, darker more complex war happening in the supernatural realm that manifests in our physical world. But the conundrum is that the weapons we’ve been given are not physical – they’re spiritual missiles and weapons used for tearing down demonic fortresses and strongholds that are holding human beings captive. For breakthroughs we need:
Truth to expose lies.
Prayer to break chains.
Faith to move mountains.
The Word of God to cut through deception.
The presence of Jesus Christ to overthrow darkness and tear down strongholds.
“For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds.”2 Corinthians 10:4
Beyond Religion
People often say, “I’m not religious.”
Good. Neither was Jesus.
Religion can sometimes fall into the category of rules, rituals and reciting a string of rote-like traditional prayers. I apologise if this image may appear to be disrespectful and cause offence. Please know, with absolute certainty, it’s not my intention. Not in the slightest. I respect everyone’s faith, beliefs and feelings about their religious conviction.
However, what I’m alluding to is a truth we cannot deny: Jesus is resurrection life, and He’s given us authority and power to destroy demonic fortresses and strongholds. His power isn’t confined to buildings or traditions. It’s a living authority that transforms lives, families and communities. And unless we’re trained in the art of spiritual warfare and how to engage it by using the power and authority Jesus has given us, we can be making a lot of prayer “noise” without any real impact on tearing down demonic fortresses and strongholds of crime, drugs, trafficking and physical violence and emotional abuse.
As the Gospel records Him saying:
“Behold, I have given you authority… over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall hurt you.”
Luke 10:19
A Wake-Up Call
We don’t get to choose whether we’re in this war. We already are. The only choice is whether we fight or surrender with a “don’t care” mentality and attitude.
Exercising the AUTHORITY Jesus has given us comes down to learning how to use this Authority to engage with the unseen enemy of demonic forces that are holding so many captive to drug trafficking, drug abuse and addictions, domestic violence and abuse, witchcraft and sorcery, aggravated robbery, corruption and so many other crimes.
I’ll give you a very simple example about authority. When you see a Police officer dressed in their police uniform, waving down your vehicle to stop, 99.99% of the time you’ll stop your vehicle. And the reason you’ll stop is because the uniform commands authority and respect.
Similarly, in the spiritual world, when you’re wearing the full armour of God as described in the Bible and you engage the forces of darkness with the power and authority that Jesus talks about, those forces will stop in their rampaging destruction of human life because they recognise your “uniform”. Then the next move is to “bind” them and evict them to the “prison” where they’ve come from. But they’ll only stop when you exercise the authority you’ve been given by Jesus Christ. That’s the only authority they recognise and will bow to.
So the call is clear about using the power and authority Jesus came to give us:
Don’t just live – stand.
Don’t just cope – fight.
Don’t just exist – overcome.
Because while the battle is real, so is the victory.
And victory’s name is Jesus Christ, the risen King, the champion of humanity, the only One in history who offers salvation and eternal life to each and every single soul on planet earth.
The question is not whether the battle is coming to your doorstep. It already has. The question is whether you’ll rise as a Soldier of the Cross, take your position on the front line of the battlefield and begin the fight back using the only power darkness will surrender to.
The power and authority of the Risen Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ!
- COLIN DEOKI lives in Melbourne, Australia and is a regular contributor to this newspaper. The views expressed in this article are his and not necessarily of this newspaper.