Spiritual Wickedness in High Places

There is a realm beyond this physical world. God is real. Heaven is real. Hell is real. Angels are real. Demons are real. There exists spiritual wickedness in high places. And I want to expose the powers of hell that you might walk in victory and walk in greater levels of discernment. We need discernment now more than ever before. There is a war for souls. There is a spiritual battle taking place beyond the realm that you and I can see with physical eyes. Let he who has an ear hear. Let he who has an eye see. May God give to us discernment, because there are things going on all around our world right now that people are panicking over. They can't quite understand. Things seem to be getting Stranger. And this is because there is an acceleration of supernatural activity in our world. 1 Peter 5:8, stay alert. Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Now, this does not mean that Christians should live with anxiety, but we should live with an awareness of the spiritual battle. We should remain vigilant knowing that there is an enemy that's after your faith. But we recognize ultimate ranking. So let's put this all into proper context because I do wanna talk about these power structures of hell. I do wanna talk about the influence of the demonic on our world today, on the systems of this world, on the systems of media, on the systems of education, on the systems of government. And these things are manifesting in very strange ways. And if we don't have discernment, we will be swept away by either fear or by unbiblical perspective. So let's take a look in context at everything. Ephesians chapter 1. And I want you to let this portion of scripture be the foundation of your understanding of the spiritual battle. Ephesians 1:19 and onward. I also pray that you will understand the incredible greatness of God's power for us who believe in him. This is the same mighty power that raised Christ from the dead and seated him in the place of honor at God's right hand in the heavenly realms. Now he is far above any ruler or authority or power or leader or anything else. Not only in this world, but also in the world to come. God has put all things under the authority of Christ and has made him head over all things for the benefit of the church. Type that in the comment section, all things. And the church is his body. It is made full and complete by Christ, who fills all things everywhere with himself. So as we begin to study the reality of spiritual wickedness in high places, we have to remember who has ultimate authority reigning above it all, high and lifted up, seated in heavenly places, is Christ Jesus the Lord. And he ultimately has ultimate power. Now, this doesn't mean that Satan has no localized authority, for the scripture does also say in Ephesians 2:2, watch this, Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air. Notice that it does not call him, as is often quoted, the prince and the power of the air. He's the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh— this is key— in the children of disobedience. So he has rulership In the power of the air. Now here, the scripture is not literally describing a pocket of air; rather, this is more descriptive of a sphere of influence. Now where does the enemy find that sphere of influence? The scripture tells us plainly. Look at that verse again. So he's the prince of the power of the air. That is his sphere of influence. Watch the verse now. Ephesians two two. The spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience. So overarching umbrella of authority belongs to Christ. He is ruler over all, but there are pockets of influence that the enemy has gained through the disobedience of man. So the enemy still counts on, relies on, needs disobedient wickedness in order to have any influence at all. And that is the limit of his reign, disobedience. This is why you have to be vigilant because these pockets of influence we open when we disobey God, when we compromise, when we neglect truth, we become susceptible to deception. When we neglect righteousness, we become susceptible to temptation. When we neglect unity, we become susceptible to bitterness, on and on and on we could go. So he's the power of the air. Again, not a literal pocket of air, but this is talking about a localized sphere of influence. So Jesus is the ruler over all things, and the enemy finds his pockets of influence working through the disobedience of people. This is why it is perfectly biblical to say that a government system can be demonic. It's perfectly biblical to say that a conglomerate or a business or an organization can be demonic because the enemy can have influence there. Now, Satan may have some rule within the earth, But ultimately, God rules above the earth. So it's like a jurisdiction. If I cross state lines, there are certain state officials who suddenly gain authority over me. If I go into a certain country, now I'm subject to the laws of that country. So these are pockets of influence, like a state or a province or a nation. So the enemy has reign, the enemy has jurisdiction, in the state of disobedience, in the state of compromise, in the state of deception. That's where he finds his jurisdiction. So if we look at the Scripture here, look at Genesis 1:1. In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. The Scripture describes 3 different spheres of heaven. First, the Scripture describes earth's atmosphere or the sky. This is James 5:18. And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain. We know the cosmos don't give rain technically. We know that the heavenly place gives a spiritual rain, but here we see the physical rain being given. And the earth brought forth her fruit. Then after that atmosphere in the earth, that sky, then we have outside of this, the cosmos as described in Scripture, Psalm 8:3-8. When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars which thou hast ordained, what is man that thou art mindful of him, and the son of man that thou visitest him? And then again in Jeremiah chapter 8, verse 2, we read something similar. And they shall spread them before the sun, the moon, and all the hosts of heaven, whom they have loved and whom they have served and after whom they have walked. Let's go down now to Deuteronomy 10:14, where we see the description of God's dwelling place. Look, the highest heavens and the earth and everything in it all belong to the Lord your God. So he's talking there about the highest heavens. There's a highest realm. Well, we see great insight into this highest realm in 2 Corinthians 12:1-4, where Paul the Apostle writes, The boasting will do no good, but I must go on. I will reluctantly tell about visions and revelations from the Lord. I was caught up to the 3rd heaven 14 years ago. Whether I was in my body or out of my body, I don't know. Only God knows. Yes, only God knows whether I was in my body or outside my body. But I do know that I was caught up to paradise. So he's describing God's dwelling place. And heard things so astounding that they cannot be expressed in words, things no human is allowed to tell. So what he heard in paradise, what he heard in God's dwelling place, he shouldn't even be able to speak of in this realm. So again, we know that God dwells everywhere, but this is referring to that heavenly realm, not God with us, but now us going to his world, his dimension. So those are the 3 different heavens, the sky, the cosmos, and God's dwelling place. So Christ has reign over all heavens. Amen. Christ is seated high above in God's dwelling place. He reigns over the highest heaven. He reigns over the cosmos. He reigns over the sky and the earth below it. But again, there are these pockets of influence that the enemy finds. So let's look now at Ephesians 6:12, a very popular portion of scripture. Watch this now. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, But against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Now, this does not mean that people in flesh and blood cannot advance demonic agendas. This doesn't mean that there aren't wicked people. This doesn't mean that wicked people won't try to oppose us. This simply means that ultimately the power working behind that disobedience is the devil and his minions. But against principalities, powers, rulers of darkness in this world. And here we see that key phrase, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Now I'm gonna break down each one of these 4 for you: principalities, powers, rulers of darkness, and spiritual wickedness. I'm gonna break those 4 down for you in just a moment. But first, if this message is blessing you and you think the church needs to hear teaching like this, then go ahead and leave a like on this stream right now, whether you're watching live or on the replay. And if you want to continue to receive biblically grounded teaching on the spiritual realm, then make sure you subscribe to my channel. Click the notification when you do subscribe so that you don't miss any of the content coming out from this channel. So do that now and be a part of what God is doing through this ministry. So now let's look at these 4 structures, if you will, that I described: principalities, powers, rulers of the darkness of this world, spiritual wickedness in high places. Now first, let's look at that word principality. Now in the original language, what's being described here, or what can be described here, is a beginning, an origin, a ruler, authority, or a principality. So it's very important here to note that this is not just a powerful demon, as is commonly spoken about in what we shall call charismatic church lore. Yes, there's some truth to that, and I don't wanna in any way take away from that reality. There are such things as very high-ranked demons. There are such things as principalities or demons with an excessive amount of power, but it's not just a strong demon. A principality speaks to not just that prince demon, but also that prince demon's sphere of influence. What do I mean by that? Well, if somebody says the government is attacking Christians, or that that system is attacking God's people, or the organization is working toward a demonic agenda, we don't just mean that some faceless entity is at work, what we are actually describing is the totality of that organization, that government, that structure, not just as a whole, but the individuals who are working within that organization or that government power or that structure. And so a principality can be similar in that it is both a demonic entity as well as the power structure itself, meaning A principality is not just a strong demon. Please hear this. A principality is also a region that is heavily bound by demonic activity. I'll never forget, I went to— I won't say the city or the state, but I remember landing in a certain city or state and I step off the plane. As soon as I stepped off that plane, I felt this heavy oppression in the atmosphere. And I turned to somebody next to me, I said, I feel like this area is so, it's like teeming with demonic activity, much, much more active than from where we came. Come to find out, that region we were in was heavily influenced by witchcraft and the occult. And in fact, as we drove through the town, as we drove through the city, I saw in the windows of all the shops, various different symbols and artifacts of the occult. And so in fact, it was a heavily demonically influenced region, the principality. Daniel 10:13 says this: But for 21 days, this— the spirit prince of the kingdom of Persia— so there is a spirit prince. Spirit prince. Princes rule principalities. The spirit prince of the kingdom of Persia blocked my way. Then Michael, one of the archangels, came to help me, and I left him there with the spirit prince of the kingdom of Persia. So that prince ruled over a principality, that region, or the kingdom of Persia. So the kingdom of Persia here was ruled by a principality and itself was a principality. So again, there's this fluidity with that term. It's not just one entity, it's an entity and its heavily influenced region. Acts 19:35 is another great example of this. At last, the mayor was able to quiet them down enough to speak. Citizens of Ephesus, he said, everyone knows that Ephesus is the official guardian of the temple of the great Artemis, whose image fell down to us from heaven. Now, there is a very interesting portion of Scripture, especially that part about this image falling down to them from heaven. That's a different topic for a different time. But, but do note that this region was heavily influenced by this principality Artemis. So Satan is the prince of princes, but Jesus is the King of Kings. So though demonic regions can have influence, though demonic prince demons can have influence in principalities, ultimately when we go in with the gospel, we can undo the hold that that demonic power has. Now, this is where we as Christians have to remain biblical, because sometimes when we hear these kinds of conversations or we hear these types of truths, our first inclination is to begin to reach for impractical means of defeating that kind of darkness. Well, we have to pray a very specific prayer, or you have to address the principality by name, on and on we go, when in fact the power of the gospel is enough to take hold of of a region. Next we see powers. Powers. Now powers is an authority, a power, a right, a jurisdiction. Here again, just like as with principalities, it's not just an entity. That power is not just an entity, but rather this represents the structure of hell itself. Again, using the government as an analogy, if you say the government is after me, you don't mean just one individual, though it is comprised of several individuals. You're talking about a system, a power structure, a system and a structure of organization that works together for one common goal. So in the same way, these powers can be, yes, demonic entities, but there's something also to be said about the fluidity and the dual meaning behind these words, meaning that also this is describing the power structures of hell in general. Ephesians 2:2 says this, wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air. So now you walked according to that power structure when you weren't saved, before you knew Christ, you walked according to that pattern of thought, you walked according to that demonic agenda. that spirit works in the children of disobedience. So again, this is also not just a personal being. There's a power. This is, this is representative of the chain of command, the structure, the system, the rank and file of hell, if you will. So the power, if we will, is the chain of command. The principality is a region. Now, the power and the principality can be demonic entities, yes, but it's primarily also talking about the chain of command and the region itself. So the power is a system, it's an influence. Now we look at rulers and wickedness. This is what we were talking about in terms of the other 2 terms, or rulers of the darkness of this world and spiritual wickedness in high places. So again, principalities are regions and regional rulers. Powers, that is the system of hell and the ranks of demonic authority. The rulers of darkness of this world— these are the demonic powers and the people that they influence. As Christ was incarnate, so the enemy seeks to perversely mimic this incarnation through deception and possession. Think about that. Just as Christ the Word became flesh, So demonic beings that are of the spirit realm seek to manifest themselves or their influence within this world through grabbing ahold of individuals and structures that are rooted in this material world. Then there is spiritual wickedness in high places. Now, it could be, and I'm gonna give you a couple possible explanations for this. It could be that the rulers of darkness in this world represents, as I said, demons and the people they influence, and spiritual wickedness in high places represents high-ranking demons and the high-ranking individuals that they represent. It could also be that spiritual wickedness in high places refers to fallen angels. Either way, darkness in this world and wickedness in high places represents demonic entities and the people they influence, whether in low positions or high positions. And I truly believe this. I want to say this. I'm not big on sensationalism, but you need to understand as the people of God that spiritual wickedness in high places speaks of the demonic influence over high-ranking, very powerful individuals. And I'll say it like this, not just in the government, Not just in the media, not just in the film industry, not just in the music industry, not just in the systems of education, but demonic powers that have infiltrated the church. Spiritual wickedness in high places. If they can get a man or a woman to compromise, if they can get a man or a woman to, if you will, turn to the demonic side, then they've just gained influence in a place of high authority. And this is why we are seeing shaking, because it's regional, it's structural, it's personal. You see things happening in our world today that just don't make sense. Natural disasters that have all kinds of strange ways about them. certain moves that are being made in political spheres that just don't quite make sense, certain things happening in certain industries that cause you to raise an eyebrow, and you can't help but shake the sense that something very strange is happening in our world. Let me tell you this, church, have your eyes open in Jesus' name. There is spiritual activity. There are demonic beings seeking to gain, keep, and increase their influence in this world. Now, now, now, not, not all of these demonic expressions and realities are immediately obvious. In fact, Some of these things are veiled in what we might call conspiracy theories, what we might call, um, lore. And I, I know this sounds very odd to some, but you need to understand that we as the people of God must recognize that the supernatural realm is very real. Look, I know people like to be logical. I know they like to think of themselves as intellectual. I know people like to be balanced. I do too. But This is balance, calling the reality as it is. These are real demonic powers, spiritual wickedness in high places, and they are influencing many different aspects of society. You think things that people see in the sky are simply government operations? Well, think about this. Even if it is just government operation, the demonic realm has infiltrated many different aspects of our government. So either way you put it, whether it's the government running a psyop trying to terrify people and cause anxiety and fear, or whether it's demonic entities manifesting themselves, it is spiritual wickedness in high places. This is the reality in which we are living. Let's look now at Daniel 10:12-13 again. Then he said, don't be afraid, Daniel. Since the first day you began to pray for understanding and to humble yourself before your God, Your request has been heard in heaven. I have come in answer to your prayer, but for 21 days the spirit prince of the kingdom of Persia blocked my way. Then Michael, one of the archangels, came to help me, and I left him there with the spirit prince of the kingdom of Persia. So here we see an example of that spiritual wickedness in a high place, that this prince demon had a grip over this kingdom of Persia. And we see demonic powers with this grip. And I'll tell you this, people of God, the response that the church needs to have to this is not fighting incantation with incantation or strange methodology or weird spiritual warfare doctrines. The answer to this demonic assault is the gospel, because as the gospel goes forward, the kingdom of God advances. That's why, that's why we're told these are the, the shoes of peace. They, they, they're— it's the message of the gospel, our readiness, our preparedness to share the good news. Those shoes of peace, the sharing of the gospel, that is how we march and take territory. Mark chapter 9, verse 20. I'm going to read onward. So they brought the boy, but when the evil spirit saw Jesus, it threw the child into a violent convulsion and he fell to the ground writhing and foaming at the mouth. How long has this been happening? Jesus asked the boy's father. He replied, since he was a little boy, the spirit often throws him into the fire or into water, trying to kill him. Have mercy on us and help us if you can. I love Jesus's response here. He says, What do you mean, if I can? Jesus asked. Anything is possible if a person believes. The father instantly cried out, I do believe, but help me overcome my unbelief. When Jesus saw that the crowd of onlookers was growing, he rebuked the evil spirit. Listen, you spirit that makes this boy unable to hear and speak, he said. I command you to come out of this child and never enter him again. Now watch this. The spirit screamed, threw the boy into another violent convulsion, and then left him. The boy appeared to be dead. A murmur ran through the crowd as people said, he's dead. But Jesus took him by the hand and helped him to his feet, and as he— and he stood up. Afterward, when Jesus was alone in the house with his disciples, they asked him, Why couldn't we cast out that evil spirit? Jesus said, this kind can only be cast out by prayer. And some translations, rightfully so I believe, say prayer and fasting. Now notice here that Jesus says this kind. In other words, there are different kinds of demonic powers. And there was something about this demonic power's influence that needed that ultimate authority to step in. Now, I'm not saying— and please don't hear what I'm not saying— I am not saying that we as Christians cast out devils by our own merits or by our own rituals. As you know, I've preached very much against a lot of, um, some of these notions, and you've often heard me say many of us need deliverance from our deliverance doctrines. So I'm not in any way advocating for any additional uses or additional applications of authority that the Scripture does not prescribe. What I am saying is that these disciples who could not cast out that devil had not fully stepped into the authority that was theirs in Christ. And so they had done something to misalign themselves, and here Jesus is talking about prayer and fasting, which aligns you with that perfect authority. So no demonic power can resist the authority of Christ in you. The question is, are you trying to cast them out in your authority or in Christ's authority? So there was something about this kind of demon that was, that was, how shall I say, that was more deceptive than the other demonic powers, that had a stronger grip, that had a different power. And Jesus acknowledges this. And so from this portion of Scripture, we can surmise that there are different degrees of strength in demonic beings. There are different kinds of demonic powers. Now look at Matthew 12, Matthew 12:43, watch this. When an unclean spirit goes out of a man, it passes through the desert seeking rest, but finds none. Then it says, I will return to my house from which I came. And when it comes, it finds it empty, swept, and in order. By the way, because it's empty, you see that this is not describing the state of the believer who's filled with the Holy Spirit. Then it goes and brings with itself 7 other spirits more evil than itself, and they enter and dwell there. And the last state of that man is worse than the first. So shall it be also with this evil generation. So we can see that it passes through the desert. It's bound to the earthly realm. It seeks rest. That means it gets tired outside of its host. It says, that means it speaks. I will, it says, that means it has a will. I will return to my house. That means they come back and they strategize. From which I came. And they have memory because it remembers where it came from. And when it comes, it finds it empty, swept, and put in order. They observe. Then it goes and brings with itself 7 other spirits. That means they work together, they communicate with one another, and they strategize together. Then it brings 7 other spirits. Watch this now. More evil than itself. Than itself. So they recognize rank among their rank and file. These were more evil than the other one. So there are kinds and there are different degrees of evil, different degrees of power. And then all the other facts that I gave you concerning demonic powers that we gleaned from Matthew 12. So they have rank, they have kind, there's levels of evil, they cooperate with one another, they strategize. This is a kingdom that we're fighting against. Now, there are different kinds of spirits. There are seducing spirits. We see this in 1 Timothy 4:1. These are demonic spirits that seduce people away from faith in Christ by means of demonic doctrines. For example, Islam, Buddhism, atheism. Hosea calls this kind of demon a spirit of whoredoms in Hosea 5:4. In short, They are spirits of idolatry. Then we have spirits of infirmity. Luke 13:11 says, these are demonic spirits, or excuse me, Luke 13:11 gives us the reference to spirits of infirmity, and these are demonic spirits that attack the body and cause sickness. It's important to note that not all sickness is directly caused by a demonic being. For instance, in 1 Timothy 5:23, the Apostle Paul makes no reference to demonic involvement, when he counsels Timothy to drink a little wine for his stomach problem and frequent infirmities. Then there are miracle-working spirits. We see an example of this in Revelation 16:14. And these are demonic spirits that perform miraculous acts in order to persuade people against the truth. There are spirits of divination. These are demonic spirits that influence through the occult. They are behind psychics, Necromancy, New Age mysticism, manipulation, and bitterness and the like. Now, this last one here, the Devourer, this particular one, it's debatable on whether this is an actual demonic entity or if this is just kind of personification, if you will. So the Devourer in Malachi 3:11. Now, again, this one's debatable. So go study. I personally believe this is demonic activity, but, but I'm not going to be dogmatic about that. So study this one yourself. This is demonic spirit, or possibly spirits, that cause loss of financial or other resources. But remember that as we recognize these spiritual powers at work, yes, we recognize there's a battle. That's what I want to do today. I want to alert you to the spiritual wickedness in high places. But remember ultimately that Jesus has the victory, that Jesus is the highest authority, that Jesus has the name that is above every other name. Remember, Satan may be the prince of princes, but Jesus is the King of Kings, and the gospel is the answer to kingdom expansion and the destruction of the kingdom of hell. Father, in the name of Jesus, I pray you strengthen and bless your people today. Help them to remember that they are in a spiritual battle. But more importantly, Lord, help them to remember that you have the final authority, that you are making plans, that he who sits in the heavens shall laugh when wicked agendas are plotted here upon the earth. Thank you, Lord, that you've given your people authority over these demonic powers. You've given them discernment in this hour. I give you the praise and the glory. May they be empowered today. In the mighty name of Jesus, we pray. Type it real big in the comment section. Type a big amen. Don't turn off the video. I want to invite you to get involved in the spiritual battle in another way. This ministry is spreading the gospel all around the world. It's the Lord's ministry, and he's using this ministry to spread the gospel all around the world. We're seeing people saved, healed, delivered, and empowered. 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