Monday, April 9, 2018
Public display
Colossians 2:15
Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it.
The resurrection of Jesus from the dead was a public display, a demonstration in the material world of what had taken place in the spiritual or invisible world, the heavenlies.
There are two things which flow from this, one is that a better understanding of the invisible world is necessary, and two, we need to grasp the implications of this in our day to day life.
We did discuss recently that fact that the invisible (heavenly) realm, which is right here with us, is a spiritual sphere that is inhabited by spiritual beings that have an impact on what is taking place in our natural, visible realm.
In that realm we would find, the powers of darkness, referred to in different places in the New Testament as “principalities and powers” that are arrayed against us.
Principalities and powers, sometimes also referred to as rulers and authorities, seem to have a hierarchy or system of order, and have power over certain things. Those principalities and powers are also always presented as being in opposition to Jesus and His followers.
There is that story in Daniel when he saw the vision after fasting for three weeks. The angel that spoke to Daniel mentioned that he was dispatched, with an answer, since the first day that Daniel started to fast and pray but that he was delayed by other spiritual forces. He indicated that the spiritual forces had a clear jurisdiction over an area, and then he made a reference to the authority structure saying, “the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me twenty-one days; and behold, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, for I had been left alone there with the kings of Persia.” Daniel 10:13
This is now easy to see. There are spiritual forces in the invisible realm that are assigned, by senior spiritual forces, to specific areas (or people, families, whatever) and can sometimes be the cause of delays in the answers to our prayers. This requires a change in perspective for many of us.
The experience of Daniel shows us why we need to persist in prayer because there is every chance the answer to our prayer is delayed by conflict in the heavenly realm.
This should also help us to recognise that sometimes, while we are quick to take up a battle with people and things in the natural, the real culprits and obstacles might be in the spiritual realm.
The Apostle Paul stated it this way in the letter to the Ephesian Christians, “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.
In our churches today, we worship God no doubt, but we have over time come to a place where we are no longer cognizant of the pressing nature of the opposing forces that are actively working against us.
There often seems to be an absence of the tension that exists between the visible and the invisible realms as we press forward against an enemy that has remain relentless in pushing us back. Church has become a very comfortable place and we are very comfortable Christians. Once we get into our church clothes, and put on our church behaviour, our focus goes immediately off of the conflict.
In many places, spiritual experience is made up of doing the religious things, a few well-chosen songs here, a reading or two from our better readers, and we could top that off with a special song before receiving a very good motivational speech. That would make our effort at attending church worth it and set us up for the week.
The only problem is that for many, life gets hard during the week, there are personal problems, family problems, social problems, professional problems, and sometimes we are press in even by the political and national problems. After we have had a nice church service and re-entered the “real world” the principalities and powers that be are waiting to continue the assault on our lives and those of our children and on and on.
Easter, the resurrection of Jesus, should not be an event that passes as quickly as it does on the calendar. We, in places where we have Easter holidays, are back at work and school and the events are quickly fading. But Jesus got up from the grave in a public display of His victory of the principalities and powers. The same principalities and powers that are trying to keep us down. We have to push back because of Jesus’ victory.
The forces against us will fight for as long as they have not yet been taken captive and so the battlefield of our lives remains littered with enemies trying to bring us down. We must take seriously the nature of spiritual warfare. Our prayer and other spiritual activities must not become mere routine empty of the understanding and consciousness of what we are up against.
Jesus made a public display of them, that must give us confidence as we engage in the skirmishes of our own daily lives.
The words of Ron Kenoly’s song, War in the heavenlies, are instructive again, “Making war in the heavenlies / Tearing down principalities / Standing firm / In Jesus’ victory.
Think on these things:
- Do you give any thought to the spiritual forces that might be working against you?
- Are there any personal or family circumstances that cause you to think that there is more going on than is natural?
- What in your church or spiritual experience equips you to take on “war in the heavenlies”?
Prayer focus:
Let us pray today that we would fight a good fight knowing that Jesus, raised from the dead, has secured our ultimate victory.
In His Grace
Pastor Alex
