In this post I’d like to recommend a fiction novel for your studies. “Fiction, you say? How can a fiction novel teach biblical truth?”
I know. It’s weird and, as a general rule, I would not advocate using a fiction novel to study the bible. However, in this case, I believe it’s extremely relevant. This one teaches about spiritual warfare.
One of my favorite books related to spiritual warfare is a fiction novel by Mr. Frank Peretti, entitled, This Present Darkness. Mr. Peretti wrote this novel from the viewpoint of individuals living in a small town. Nothing unusual there. However, the novel is also written from the viewpoint of the angels and demons behind the spiritual battle. This is what makes the book so special.
Again, it’s fiction, but the concept behind the story is very, very real. It depicts what both sides go through during a battle. Angels assist believers and demons assist unbelievers. Demons also hinder the efforts of believers. There is a strategy used by both sides. The Bible commands that we be vigilant at all times.
1 Peter 5:8 states, “Be sober [well balanced and self-disciplined], be alert and cautious at all times. That enemy of yours, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion [fiercely hungry], seeking someone to devour.” (Amplified version)
Mr. Peretti’s book teaches these concepts in a way that truth is provided in a somewhat benign way. Since it’s fiction, it’s less threatening. A friend of mine used this very story to begin the process of telling his kids about his former life in the occult. He would read the story to his kids to get them acclimated to spiritual truths regarding spiritual warfare. After he finished the book, he transitioned into telling his own story using different names, so as not to scare his kids. After all was said and done, he explained who the characters in his story represented in real life. He finally put his story in written form using the fictional verbal version he first told his kids. You can read about it here.
Three things are necessary to win a spiritual battle. I’m sure there are more, but I feel that these are the most important and are depicted throughout the book.
1) We need to know what the Bible says about it.
There are many verses that provide insight into spiritual warfare, but one of the most common passages is Ephesians 6:10-17. Verses 10 and 11 encourage the believer to be strong in the Lord and to put on the full armor of God in order to successfully stand up to the wiles (schemes) of the devil. Verses 13 through 17 provide the believer with the weaponry that compiles the armor of God. In between these two sets of orders, the Word of God tells the believer who we’re fighting.
Ephesians 6:12 states, “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood (contending only with physical opponents), but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this (present) darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly (supernatural) places.” (Amplified)
All of the verses are important, but this verse shows us that we have a real enemy, even though they’re invisible. It also indicates there is a hierarchy within the spiritual realm. The hierarchy is confirmed through Colossians 1:16 and Isaiah 47:4. Scripture confirms scripture.
Colossians 1:16 states, “For by Him all things were created in heaven and on earth, [things] visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities; all things were created and exist through Him [that is, by His activity] and for Him.” (Amplified version)
Isaiah 47:4 states, “Our Redeemer, whose name is the LORD of Heaven’s Armies, is the Holy One of Israel.” (New Living Translation)
Within the demons in the novel, there is a hierarchy. I’ve tried to list it below in ascending order, up to the head honcho demon. Not all of the terms are used in the book, but I needed something to describe their characters, so please forgive me if my terms are not precise.
- Little Guys “Gnats” (term not used in book) – These demons are pesky little demons with a minimal amount of power. Don’t get me wrong, they’re still powerful compared to us, but they’re pretty low on the totem pole in the grand scheme of things. These guys are typically depicted as individual emotions, such as fear, anger, complacency, lust, despair, etc. They strengthen normal emotions by clinging to believers and unbelievers alike. They fly around and when they see an opening, they pounce. These are the equivalent of foot soldiers, down in the trenches, conducting the day to day operations.
- Soldiers (term not used in book) – These demons are a step (or two) up from the Gnats. They have some power, but it’s more like they’ve climbed the ranks so they’re not newbies anymore. They hang around some top dog demon and do his bidding. Oftentimes going to attack a believer in a group-like fashion at a specific time. In my mind, these demons would be the equivalent of special forces.
- Princes (term used in book) – The prince is the demon in charge of the town – it’s his official domain and what he says is law. That is until he is usurped by a more powerful prince. It’s his job to lead the forces in corrupting the town and thwarting the Christians who are effective for Christ. This demon would be the equivalent of a General.
- Strongman (term used in book) – Leader of the battle. Top Dog. He is protected at all times by numerous, powerful demons. On a side note, these demons aren’t just hanging around doing nothing. Each major demon is associated with a specific unbeliever, i.e. a bad guy. This person has welcomed the demon into his life. They don’t just get there by accident. Volition is always involved. The Strongman is associated with the lead antagonist and ultimately, it’s his agenda that matters. This would be the equivalent of the Commander in Chief.
This is a simplified list, but you get the picture. There’s always a plan in motion that involves multiple players. If you knock down one, another one just takes its place. They’re relentless. So how are you supposed to fight them? Most of the time, you can’t even see them. The answer lies in prayer.
2) We need to pray.
Prayer is our most powerful weapon, aside from knowledge of Scripture. Sometimes all we can pray is, “God help me.” Other times, our prayers are more specific to the situation at hand.
1 Thessalonians 5:17 says, “Pray without ceasing.” This doesn’t mean to pray 24/7. That’s not possible. However, it does mean we should keep our focus on the Lord Jesus Christ and realize that He’s in charge of everything. We should be in constant communication with Him. Prayer has many components: intercession, thanksgiving, worship, supplication (asking), etc.
Sometimes, prayer is simply talking to God about our day. He wants to hear from us and He wants to lead us and guide us. If we’re not in communication with Him, it’s hard to hear what He’s trying to tell us. How can we know what kind of prayer is needed if we’re too busy during the day to bother talking to Him about what’s going on in our lives?
There’s a scene in the novel that has stuck with me over the years from the very first time I read this book. An older woman, Edith Duster, is awakened in the middle of the night by two angels. They gave her a message related to the upcoming battle in the town of Ashton. They charged her to pray and to get others to pray – “the victory rests on the prayers of the saints.” Ms. Duster took their message to heart and started praying in the middle of the night, kneeling by the side of her bed. She prayed for victory over the Enemy, to bind the evil forces. She interceded for people of the town by name as they came to her mind. She prayed throughout the rest of the night.
From the world’s view, it seemed like not much happened as a result of her prayers. However, in the spiritual realm, as her prayers ascended to the throne of God, a chain reaction was started. Angelic warriors were able to sneak into the town and hide themselves for the upcoming battle. At first it was just one, but then a couple more arrived, then half a dozen more, and so on. As Ms. Duster prayed and others began to join her, the prayer cover for the town grew and more of the good guys were able to strategically hide throughout the town. The Enemy was none the wiser.
That’s the mark of a good general, but more important, it shows the impact our prayers have in a spiritual battle. We can’t always see the good our prayers do so it’s easy to become discouraged and stop praying, thinking our prayers are useless. When in fact, prayer is a powerful weapon in the hands of the believer. It allows the tides to turn.
3) We need to know the tactics of the enemy.
This one may be the hardest to comprehend. Anyone can study their bible and pray, but how can you know if a situation is the result of people being carnal or if it’s the result of Satanic influences? Sometimes it’s a fine line; sometimes there is a combination of the two. However, if you learn some of the tactics of the Enemy, you can learn to identify when he’s manipulating a situation.
Some examples that are provided in the book are as follows:
- Influence emotions. Demons can project negative emotions onto a person and amplify feelings already present. This hinders the work of God. Emotions are part of being human, but in a believer, they should be checked against the Word of God. If a feeling is extreme for a long period of time, perhaps it’s not from the Lord.
- A demon of complacency and despair is assigned to influence the newspaper editor, Marshall Hogan. It preys on emotions that Mr. Hogan is already experiencing related to his strained relationship with his daughter, Sandy. When the demon interacts with Mr. Hogan, his negative feelings become even more intense and he becomes despondent about fixing his relationship with Sandy. [Chapter 4]
- Attack during sleep or when physically tired. When the physical body is tired, a human being is more susceptible to attack from a demon. The attack could come in the form of dreams, a physical attack during the in between stage of sleep and awake, or even while awake.
- One night, the preacher, Hank Busche, began to dream and the dreams rapidly turned from silly to terrifying. He wakes with his heart pounding and drenched in sweat, unable to make the terror fade. He hears a noise in the kitchen and when he goes to check it out, he is attacked by unseen adversaries. [Chapter 6]
- Hindering the person through things. Even though a demon does not have a corporeal body, it can manipulate physical things in our dimension. A demon will wreak havoc with our devices causing them to not work properly.
- In order to stall the preacher’s wife, Mary, a demon stuck his sword through the engine of her car, stopping it from starting. Another demon broke the horn so she couldn’t use it properly. These acts were unseen by Mary, all she knew was her car would not start and the horn did not work. [Chapter 14]
- Speaking for the person. A demon will whisper thoughts to the individual and the person will think it was their own. Most individuals don’t realize it wasn’t their own thought – either a believer or unbeliever. However, if the person is an unbeliever and involved in the occult, there’s a good chance the individual knows where the thought came from. He or she just doesn’t choose to fight it.
- The demons inhabiting an unbeliever, Bobby Corsi, speak for him when confronted by men of God. They do not want to be near the believers, nor do they want to hear what is being said to Bobby about the Lord Jesus Christ. They try to hinder the believers from helping Bobby overcome their influence. [Chapter 26]
These are just a few of the examples Mr. Peretti provides. I’m not trying to scare you with this list. I’m trying to help you to be more aware of the schemes of the devil. Please don’t see a demon under every bush.
Every time a person says something negative, it does not mean a demon made them say it. Most times the person is being influenced by his or her Old Sin Nature. [The Old Sin Nature (OSN) is what we inherited from Adam and the sin he committed in the garden. For more information on the OSN and what happened as a result of Adam’s fall, click here.]
Every time a car breaks, it does not mean there’s a demonic sword in the engine. Sometimes cars just break – they get old and wear out. It happens.
However, if something hinky is going on around you, whether in the lives of your family and friends, in your local church, in your town, in your country, etc., at least consider if Satan is at work trying to usurp the Lord’s work in some way.
Here are some points to consider:
- Do you have a family member you’ve been praying for who you wish was saved?
- Do you have a friend who is unable to overcome an addiction?
- Is there a divisive spirit in your local church and things just seem to be a bit off?
- Have the dynamics of your town changed, and not for the better?
- Is there unrest in your country, either with the citizens or at the government level?
These are just a few questions to ask yourself. The answer to each of them could be the result of the OSN or the World – but just as easily the answer to each of them could be Satanic influence.
If you have a scenario like this in your life, I encourage you to pray about it and seek the Lord’s guidance on how and for whom (specifically) you should pray. We never want to overstep the boundaries set by the Lord – meaning, we don’t want to do His job for Him – but we do want to seek His will for our lives and fulfill the plan He has for us. Sometimes, that involves spiritual warfare. It’s not fun but it is necessary, and when done properly, we come out the other side stronger in our faith and in our relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ.
If you would like to purchase this book, here are a few links to try. I am not currently a member of an affiliate program, so I don’t get anything out of it if you buy them. [Full disclosure though, at some point I hope to join an affiliate program or two. If/When that happens, I’ll be sure to update this post.]
Amazon Hardcover (Note: There is also a paperback version and a kindle version. The kindle version also has an audio option.): Click here.
ChristianBook.com: Click here.
Thrift Books: Click here.
One more thing, Mr. Peretti actually wrote two related books, but I only spoke about one in this post (obviously.) If you would like to learn about the companion book, Piercing the Darkness, click here. It’s the same premise but teaches spiritual warfare from a slightly different angle. Quite fascinating actually.
Happy Reading,
Allison
