As I gather today in Washington, D.C. for the National Prayer Breakfast, I am glad that this event happens and that I can be part of it, but I long for more strategic prayer to emerge. In Mark 16, after instructing the church to preach to all creatures and “make disciples of all nations,” the first criteria that Jesus describes for evaluating the effectiveness in this mission is that signs like “casting out of demons” would be evident. Christians can measure success of the Great Commission by effectively dealing with the spiritual forces of darkness that are oppressing not just individuals, but people groups and cultures. Paul told the Corinthians to tear down strongholds with the weapons that are mighty through God (2 Cor 10). The Apostle Paul wrote in Ephesians 6 that we do not wrestle merely with flesh and blood in a nation” but against “principalities and powers in the heavenly places.” They are the “spiritual forces of darkness.”
When Jesus sent out his disciples to preach His word and heal the sick, they returned rejoicing that the demons were subject to them. Jesus responded by explaining to them that as they proclaimed the truth, Satan fell like lightning. Through this, Jesus was showing the disciples how fasting, praying and declaring a biblical message impacts more than just the individuals they encountered. It changes things in the heavens and in the earth.
When Daniel found himself as a refugee in Persia and his people dealing with persecution and threats under pagan rule, he began to fast and pray. In Chapters 9 & 10 it shows that after three weeks, an angel came to him and told him that although his prayer was heard immediately, the “prince of Persia” (Dan 10:13) stood against the angel and delayed him from coming. This “prince” was not a flesh and blood prince but the spiritual prince assigned to that territory. To complete the break-through that Daniel was asking for his people, the “prince” or demon needed to be defeated.
Daniel made serious investment of his time to study the books of Scripture and analyze the behavior of the Jews before he began prayer. It is also important for us to research the history of our community and culture and discover the areas where greatest destruction is occurring. Armed with this information and the discernment given through the Holy Spirit, we can fight with more focus and effectiveness.
If there was a spiritual prince over Persia, there is likely similar demonic strongmen in every nation that has to be overcome. A church can worship and pray diligently without ever significantly influencing the culture of a nation. To see major results, we must do spiritual reconnaissance, determine the enemy’s strongholds, and pray intelligently against the work of the devil.
Repentance and letting go of our own worldview is often needed to truly understand the areas of darkness in our culture. Many times our own preconceived ideas blind us to the true battleground. For example, many Christians are quick to pray against freemasonry or witchcraft in a nation, but neglect the far more pervasive propagation of sinful and demonic ideas and behavior through our school systems where the vast majority of Christian families send their children! Our kids today are not influenced by Masonry, but certainly by radical sexual and gender ideologies in the schools and in social media!
Furthermore, knowing our adversary is not enough. Christians must fight our opposition in UNITY with other churches in their area or region. Territorial demons are not cast out in the same manner as individual demons. They are more powerful and entrenched in the culture. It takes unified, informed intercession with other churches in a region to see territorial darkness pushed back and breakthroughs come.
There are some outstanding examples of this in church history. (The Celtic Church of Ireland is a great testimony of this. You can read it in the paid subscriber section.)
One preparation for unified worship is reconciliation. Every believer is called to mend damaged or broken relationships. In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus said that if we approach God and remember a breach with a brother, we must leave our offering and go to the person to first be reconciled. As believers we need to be more mindful of how our personal behavior, our personal relationships, our interactions, impact the community. Corporate divisions between churches of different denominations, between races and classes, as well as generational rifts often harm our communities and prevent true transformation.
But this is still not enough. Far too often, Christians identify demons, pray against them in their nation, and stop there, thinking the mission is accomplished. But Jesus said unless something more powerful fills the void, the demons will come back even stronger (Matt 12:43-45). Just as in a battle, to push the enemy off a high ground is a waste if the attacking army does not place a strong detachment of the army on that spot. Likewise, it is not enough to simply focus on demons and evil with our prayers. After we cast out the demons, we need to learn to pray for good to come. And we also must seek to actively fill that vacated area with godly things and better leaders.
A prayer meeting for personal needs and requests is different from prayer gatherings to cast out a nation’s demons. Unless we recognize the strategic essentials for research, repentance, reconciliation, unity and then finally placing different leaders and institutions in that space formerly dominated by darkness, then we will not see the “signs” follow us of casting out the nation’s demons as Jesus expects.
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