Spirit versus Flesh

by Maurice Pujol
Published August 4, 2006

For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. (Ephesians 6:12)

One of the sad byproducts of postmodern culture is the loss of wonder and awe over spiritual matters.

On the one hand, there is a strong cultural presupposition that the material universe is all there is and that science will eventually be able to unravel all of its alleged mysteries. Evolution is not considered a theory, but a “proven scientific fact.” The mind-body connection, generally recognized in the field of medicine, can supposedly be explained in terms of biochemistry and physiology. In this view, each individual is no more than a random collection of molecules, no more and no less important than any other individual or, for that matter, any other living organism.

On the other hand, postmodern man cannot suppress his innate spiritual nature. Rejecting all the spiritual wisdom of the past as mere superstition, this “spiritual self” in each individual is easy prey for all sorts of charlatans in pop culture – and there are many of these. There are psychics, both for humans and their pets, and people who otherwise claim to communicate with the dead. There are people who believe in friendly spirits who accompany us everywhere we go, and there are those who use “magic” crystals to harness the spiritual energy of the universe.

People who fall into either of these two groups are missing out. Materialists have nothing to look forward to, for life on this earth is short and its pleasures fleeting. People who fall for the lies of all the spiritual pretenders out there are also getting shortchanged, but at least they acknowledge there is a spiritual dimension to human experience.

According to the Bible, both of these groups have one thing in common – they are lost. They are actually being misled by deceiving spirits or by people who are under the influence of deceiving spirits. Moreover, for all of our postmodern sophistication and knowledge, they are heading down the same paths to destruction that lost people have always traveled. As the writer of Ecclesiastes (probably King Solomon) once noted, there really is nothing new under the sun.

There have always been materialists who believed that reality consisted of only what we can see, hear, taste, touch and feel. There have always been people who, believing this, have surrendered themselves to seeking only the physical pleasures of this life.

God issued a lot of stern warnings through his prophets about this mistaken lifestyle. The Israelites were reminded again and again that trusting in their wealth and their possessions and giving their lives over to immorality and drunkenness would lead to their ultimate destruction. Jesus also taught His followers that they should lay up treasure for themselves in heaven, for that which can be acquired in this life is only temporary.

There also have always been people who sought to express their spirituality in their own way, rather than God’s way. Israel’s first king, Saul, hastened his decline by consulting mediums and looking to the stars for his answers, rather than God’s Word. In his spiritual pride, he ignored the warnings handed down from God to Moses about avoiding these spiritual dangers. God’s people were told specifically not to consult with “spirit guides,” soothsayers and astrologers.

So, “new age” philosophies are really nothing new at all. This form of deception has always haunted the human race, and many have fallen to the false promise of being able to “control” the spiritual realm in some way.

The Bible has a simple explanation for this. In every age, across every culture, the deceptions have been the same because they all emanate from the same source. According to the Apostle Paul, there are spiritual forces of evil that sometimes direct, and often influence, the affairs of men.

In every era, a spirit has arisen in various men, a spirit bent on destruction of the Jews. Whether it was Antiochus Epiphanes in the second century BC or Adolph Hitler in the 20th century, the goal was the same and the methods very bloody. The men were very different, the spirit influencing them the same.

Failure to recognize this spiritual dimension is a fatal error. The greatest weapon Satan has in his arsenal is human unbelief and skepticism. If a person doesn’t recognize that every day is a spiritual battle, it’s a whole lot easier to lose that day’s skirmish. For these struggles occur not just among people and nations, but also within every human heart.

The bad news is that, on our own, we are no match for the spiritual forces of this “dark world.” They’re wiser than us, but not all-knowing. They’re very crafty, but they can’t be everywhere at once. They’re also doomed to an eternal captivity that they know is coming, but not exactly when. They can, however, sense that their time is short.

The good news, the really good news, is this. Jesus came to give us the victory, and His mission was a success. Through His atoning death and glorious resurrection, believers have all they need to defeat the forces of evil. They have God with them and within them, a God who is all-knowing and who can be everywhere at once.

Believers have Jesus on our side, and that’s all we really need.

Viewed 317 times