Lesson Six: Building Process 3 - Growing in the Life of Intercession

Spiritual Warfare in Intercession

The previous lessons presented the definition, scope, and content of our intercessory prayers according to the Scriptures. It also tackled some of the theological questions that hinder the practice of intercession when not understood properly.

There is yet one aspect of intercession that the Bible teaches, and which we need to consider more closely. It concerns the reality of spiritual warfare that an intercessor will have to face. If intercession involves appropriating God’s blessings for people in need of them, the intercessor can expect the enemy to regularly get in the way, because Satan and his hosts are determined to “kill, steal, and destroy” those to whom Jesus wants to give abundant life. (John 10:10)

The fact that believers are engaged in spiritual battle is explicitly taught in the Bible (Ephesians 6:12,13). This implies that a lot of things a believer undergoes may be influenced by demonic activities. While this is true, it is good to remember at this point that the devil operates in the context of a world that is hostile towards God, and where all men are afflicted with the sinful flesh.

Dr. Ed Murphy, a well-respected authority on the ministry of spiritual warfare, teaches that it is not just Satan’s influence that is involved; the strong influence of worldliness and the sinful flesh are just as present in spiritual warfare. Therefore, the first step in gaining victory against the devil is for the believer to love God rather than the world (I John 2:15-16), and let the Holy Spirit rule his desires rather than the lusts of the flesh (Romans 8:12,13).

This series of lessons will introduce you to the nature of the enemy and the kind of tactics he employs. And in order to deal with the enemy effectively, the intercessor has to learn how to use the resources that God has provided for His child.

Oftentimes, spiritual warfare is presented as though it were something only "special Christians' can do. This is why only very few actually engage in it. Even among those who want to engage, many are confused and fearful because of lack of knowledge and misconceptions. It is the foremost objective of this material to help the intercessor form firm convictions on spiritual warfare that is based on Scriptures’ teachings more than on experience. There is a strong external pressure to adopt certain forms that are supposed to make our warfare effective. This should be overcome by the emphasis on faith as the key to victory – faith in God and His Word.

An intercessor has been defined as one who mediates God’s blessing for others and is committed to do anything that God wants him to do in the process of answering his prayers. Part of the process may be engagement in spiritual warfare. If so, it is only proper to ask: what is the objective of our warfare?

There are all kinds of rebellion in the world against the truths of God. The Devil has been called the father of lies. He has successfully sold his lies to the human race, and encouraged their rebellion and unbelief towards God. The target of our warfare then is to bring all these lies raised against the knowledge of God under Christ’s authority, so that God’s truth will prevail over the enemy’s lies wherever they are keeping people in bondage. These lies are the seeds from which structural evils are formed in society. Examples of structural evils are graft and corruption in government, sexual immorality, gambling, etc. This means we need to continually grow in the knowledge of God’s truths so we can identify the lies and battle with the truth. This happens only by seriously studying the Bible.

The ultimate objective of spiritual warfare is two-fold: 

1. The deliverance of unbelievers from the domain of darkness to become citizens of the kingdom of the Lord Jesus Christ, and 
2. Victory of believers over spiritual bondage and defeat under Satan’s influence and be free to enjoy the life Christ has purchased for them.

 In other words, our objective is salvation of unbelievers and spiritual growth of believers. Many Christians engage in spiritual warfare forgetting this objective thus making them vulnerable to seeking after the supernatural display of power rather than the fulfillment of God’s will in the lives of people.

Understanding the objective of the warfare helps the intercessor have the proper direction in his intercessions. He must be watchful of those areas in the life of his prayer subject which serve as Satan’s playground or stronghold, and direct his intercessions towards them. Using Scriptures as Jesus did in rebuking Satan is very powerful (Matthew 4:1-11). Claiming/declaring by faith the authority of Scriptures over Satan’s unlawful claims in the lives of people is also part of spiritual warfare. Knowing how Satan uses people’s sinful will and desires, the intercessor can pray for the conviction of sin and repentance as the target of intercession.