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Spiritual Warfare - Lesson 3

Spiritual Beings

In this lesson, you will gain insight into the existence of powerful spiritual beings or gods associated with different nations, as described in the Bible. The text begins with the story of Moses and Pharaoh's magicians, who used secret arts connected to the demonic gods of Egypt. It explores various biblical passages, including Deuteronomy 7 and 12, which warn against intermarriage with other nations and worshiping their gods. The Book of Daniel is discussed, with a focus on a spiritual battle between an angelic being and the Prince of Persia, aided by the archangel Michael. This concept of a heavenly war is also found in Revelation 12, where Michael battles the dragon. The text concludes by highlighting the dangers of intermarriage and adopting foreign gods, as seen in King Solomon's actions. Overall, this lesson underscores the existence of powerful spiritual beings associated with different nations and the importance of not worshiping them.

Gerry Breshears
Spiritual Warfare
Lesson 3
Watching Now
Spiritual Beings

I. Examination of Biblical Accounts Regarding Spiritual Beings

A. The event of Moses, Aaron, and Pharaoh

1. Moses and Aaron's encounter with Pharaoh

2. Egyptian magicians using secret arts

B. Passover and the gods of Egypt

1. God's judgment on the gods (Elohim) of Egypt

II. Warnings against Worshiping Foreign Gods

A. Intermarrying with foreign nations and its consequences

1. Turning away from God

2. Serving other gods

B. Commands to destroy worship places of other nations

1. Breaking altars and smashing sacred stones

2. Importance of representing the spiritual world correctly

III. Heavenly Wars and Spiritual Hierarchies

A. Daniel's vision and the celestial conflict

1. Daniel's encounter with a powerful being

2. The Prince of Persia and the involvement of Archangel Michael

B. Revelation's account of the war in heaven

1. Michael and his angels versus the dragon

2. The dragon's defeat and its implications on Earth

IV. Solomon's Straying and Worship of Foreign Gods

A. Solomon's marriage to foreign women

1. The influence of foreign wives on Solomon

2. Worship of Astrid and Moloch

B. Association of spiritual beings with tribes and regions

1. Ammonites and the god Moloch

2. The concept of tribes and their associated spiritual beings


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Transcript
  • Dr. Gerry Breshears discusses some of the main teachings of the Bible on Spiritual Warfare and then participates in a live question and answer.

  • Discover Dr. Breshears' journey from science to spiritual warfare, debunking scientific explanations for demons. Unveil a seminary student's anxiety battle, uncover curses, theological misconceptions, and inner demonic voices. Prepare for a course on spiritual warfare and staying loyal to God.
  • Gain insights into worldviews within Christianity, including polytheism, American monotheism, and Christian monotheism. Explore the nature of spiritual beings and idols.
  • Gain insight into powerful spiritual beings tied to nations in the Bible. Warning against intermarriage and foreign gods emphasized.
  • You'll gain insight into spiritual warfare through Genesis 11, where human defiance led to the scattering of nations and involvement of angelic beings.
  • You will gain insight into a distinct biblical interpretation that views the universe's creation as an act of shaping Eden within a pre-existing cosmic war, and the role of humans in this ongoing battle by cultivating goodness and order to combat evil and chaos.
  • In this lesson, the story of Adam and Eve is analyzed within the context of spiritual warfare, highlighting the serpent's strategy to question God's goodness and encourage independence, while God responds with a call to confession and hints at a future Messiah's role in redemption.
  • This lesson offers an insightful interpretation of Genesis 6:1-4, presenting the "Sons of God" as angelic beings who sinned by marrying humans, leading to the Nephilim, linking this perspective to New Testament passages and the symbolism of baptism as a victory declaration against evil forces, deepening your understanding of the nuanced interpretation of these biblical passages and their importance in Christianity.
  • The passages reviewed in this lesson reveal a unique portrayal of God's actions, using unconventional methods. Challenge common interpretations, caution against single-verse doctrines. Embrace the mystery of God's ways, avoiding rigid interpretations when context is unclear.
  • This lesson reviews a passage in Colossians, offering insights into spiritual warfare and the dichotomy between the kingdoms of light and darkness, emphasizing believers' rescue from darkness into the kingdom of the Son of God, forgiveness of sins, and the essential elements of faith, all of which are vital for confronting demonic accusations and oppression.
  • Learn the core of Ephesians: spiritual warfare, dedication to God vs. Satan, moral maturity, and becoming Christ's partner. Emphasizes unity, living in light, using God's Word, and the power of prayer in this battle.
  • Learn to resist the temptations of the world and the devil by humbling yourself, casting anxiety on God, being self-controlled, alert, and standing firm in faith as taught in James and 1 Peter, emphasizing the importance of using your strengths for God's kingdom and opposing pressures and distortions from the enemy to avoid being devoured.
  • This lesson highlights the significance of facing spiritual forces in Jesus' name, stressing that authority alone isn't enough. Faith, confidence, and prayer-driven competence are vital for effective spiritual warfare. It inspires you to confront spiritual battles like Jesus did, with authority and unwavering faith.
  • This lesson delves into a biblical narrative highlighting Jesus' authority over evil spirits. It emphasizes the transformative power of His deliverance and the profound change it can bring to those tormented by demonic influence.
  • This lesson provides deep insights into Satan's fall in the Bible, covering Old Testament passages (Isaiah 14, Ezekiel 28) linked to it, addressing their ambiguity. It also discusses withholding Satan's name due to his evil nature and how Jesus broke his authority in the New Testament, though he remains a threat to believers.
  • This lesson delves into the intricate dynamics between believers, demons, and the world in the biblical context. You'll uncover Satan's mysterious role in Judas's betrayal of Jesus, posing questions about the motivations and divine alignment in this pivotal event.
  • This lesson equips you with the knowledge of how Jesus confronted temptation and spiritual warfare, emphasizing three essential steps: quoting Scripture to the devil, commanding the devil to leave in Jesus' name, and shifting your focus from demonic attack to Jesus' provision.
  • This lesson explores 3 Deliverance Ministry models: 1) Classic - resist Satan's temptations, 2) Power Encounter - deal with sin before casting out demons, 3) Truth Encounter - dispel lies, reclaim identity in Christ. Dr. Breshears prefers the Truth Encounter model while allowing for diverse biblical approaches.
  • This lesson provides comprehensive insights on dealing with the demonic from a biblical perspective, emphasizing the triumph of Jesus over Satan, the ongoing spiritual battles, the importance of faith in the midst of adversity, and the need to follow biblical patterns while avoiding unnecessary fascination with evil and excessive fearfulness.
  • This lesson explores demons and Satan's impact on believers, emphasizing that even righteous individuals can face their influence. It reveals how deception, curses, and accusations can create strongholds in belief systems, perpetuated by Satan. Demons exploit weaknesses, desires, and ignorance, leading to destructive behaviors. The lesson ends with the assurance that believers are never abandoned by the Holy Spirit.
  • From this lesson, you will gain insight into the Dr. Breshear's approach to identifying potential demonic influence in people's lives, focusing on areas like accusing voices, oppressive presence, and occult involvement. He emphasizes the importance of assessing these influences when individuals face issues like anxiety, addiction, or persistent problems. By probing into their experiences and thoughts, the goal is to recognize and address these negative influences, ultimately seeking to remove them from the person's life.
  • This lesson provides insights into assessing potential demonic influence in individuals' lives, offering strategies to distinguish personal issues from demonic influences and empower individuals to confront and overcome such challenges with the authority of Jesus Christ.
  • From this lesson, you will gain insight into the controversial topic of demonic influence and possession within Christianity. The lesson explores the various meanings of "possessed" and the debate surrounding whether a Christian can be dominated or influenced by a demon. It emphasizes that while ownership by a demon is generally denied, the extent of demonic influence remains debated.
  • You will learn a comprehensive approach to address demons in a pastoral setting, emphasizing individual empowerment, cooperation, and the transformative potential of confronting these malevolent forces to achieve freedom and healing.
  • This lesson delves into spiritual warfare, discussing curses, demonic attacks, and their real-life impact. It highlights curses arising from disobedience, similar to God's curse in the Bible. Instances like a cursed object in Africa demonstrate their harm. The lesson promotes rejecting curses and dedicating spaces to God while emphasizing that curses have power only when received, suggesting turning to Jesus for protection and deliverance.
  • This lesson explores demon nature, influence, and approach. It dispels the myth of immunity in the US, highlighting demons' subtle tactics. Demons' origin is unclear, and prayer and fasting aren't mandatory. Living as children of light and invoking Jesus' name is key. Mind-reading by demons is uncertain, but they exploit confessed sin. Whether they can inhabit believers is unanswered, but they influence through deception. Demons may dwell in specific places and require confronting with Jesus' authority. Believers engage in spiritual warfare to deliver the oppressed, empowered by Jesus.

There is an ongoing battle between the kingdom of light and the kingdom of darkness. Followers of Jesus, who are in the kingdom of light, have been given authority by God to command demons. By studying Jesus' life and other passages in scripture, we can gain insights into how to respond to the influence of demons effectively.

 

Spiritual Warfare
Dr. Gerry Breshears
th251-03
Spiritual Beings
Lesson Transcript

 

Well, let's look at Bible and see if these guys are real. Okay. Get ahold of your Bible. Go to Exodus 7, and this is after the boys go back to talk to Pharaoh, Aaron and Moses, in verse 8, "The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, when Pharaoh says, 'You perform a miracle,' 'Take your staff and throw it down before Pharaoh and it becomes a snake.'" Now, He'd already done that with Moses in the desert, so they come before Pharaoh and did that. Aaron threw down his staff in front of Pharaoh's officials and it became a snake. And that's pretty amazing change.

But here's the thing, "Pharaoh summoned the wise men and sorcerers, and the Egyptian magicians did the same thing by their secret arts." I've just got to ask you, how many of you have turned a staff into snake recently? How many have friends that have turned a staff, walking stick, into a serpent recently? And my guess answer is like none. This is what happens, is by their secret arts, means they're getting into the power of the demonic gods of Egypt, and that's who they represent. That's how they do it. That's what we're talking about here, is that same kind of power.

So if you go down here in Exodus 12:12, it's talking about the Passover, "On the same night, I'll pass through Egypt and I'll strike down every firstborn of both people and animals. And here's the thing, I'll bring judgment on all the gods, Elohim, of Egypt." And those are the ones that the magicians are using to turn staffs into serpents. They're real. There are a lot of the places we could look at to see that. But just a couple of passages to look at, in Deuteronomy 7, this is Moses leading the next generation into the promised land. He gives a series of speeches and he talks about, "When the Lord your God brings you into the land, there'll be many nations stronger than you are. And he talks about you shall go on, don't intermarry with them." But look down in verse 4, "Don't intermarry for they will turn your children away from following me to serve other gods." Says that's the same as back in Exodus 7, "That you're going to destroy the gods of Egypt."

Now he's warning, "Do not get involved with the gods of that world." That's Deuteronomy 7, Deuteronomy 12, just quick tour here. Deuteronomy 12, decrees and laws, "You must follow in the land of the Lord, the God of your ancestors, giving you to possess as long as you live in the land." And then verse two, "Destroy completely all the places on the high mountains, on the hills, and at every spreading tree where nations you're dispossessing worshiped their gods." So that's verse two. That's the word, "Elohim," They worship their gods. Now we're at verse three, "Break down their altars, smash their sacred stones, burn their Asherah pole in the fire, cut down the idols of their gods." And again, that spot, idol is something in this world that represents something in the spiritual world that is, and that's the demonic powers, it seems to me.

We could do a lot more with it. Let me just look at one other one with you, Daniel 10. If you know your Book of Daniel stuff, you know in Daniel 9, there's been this revelation. In Daniel 7, there's another one. But in Daniel 9, poor Daniel is troubled at what he's seen. So he goes to an angel and says, "Help me understand." The angel gives him a little bit of a help, but not much. But Daniel's vision, now in Daniel 10, "Third year of Cyrus, king of Persia, a revelation came to him," that's the Daniel 9 revelation. And in verse two, "I, Daniel, mourned for three weeks." Didn't eat any choice food. He's just fasting and prey. "On the 24th day of the fourth month, I was standing in the bank of the Great River Tigris. I looked up there before me, was a man dressed in linen." And it goes on, describes him, and it's an incredible description. "I, Daniel," verse seven, "The only one who saw the vision, those with me did not see it, but terror overwhelmed them such that they fled and hid themselves." So is this a man?

No, I don't care who it is. Nobody responds like this. This is something more than a man, but that's what he looks like. "I was left alone gazing at this great vision, had no strength left, my face turned deadly, pale. I was helpless. Than I heard him speaking and I listened to him. I fell into a deep sleep, my face on the ground." This is a powerful being not a human. It's something more than that. So is this a demon? Is this an angel? Is this God. Could be any of those. "The hand touched me, sat down, 'Daniel, highly esteemed, consider the words I'm about to speak to you and stand up for I've now been sent to you.'" And he says this, verse 12, "Don't be afraid, Daniel, since the first day you set your mind to gain understanding," he wants to understand the vision, "And help yourself before God, your words are heard and I've come in response to them."

"But," verse 13, "The prince of the Persian kingdom resisted me for 21 days." Now who is the prince of the Persian kingdom? Who is this? We're a bit confused here. Then it goes on, "Then Michael, one of the chief princes comes to help me because I was detained there with the prince of a king of Persia. Now I've come to explain." What is happening here. Now we know who Michael is, we've met him in other places, and Michael is what we call an archangel. So he's not just angel, he's a higher order angel. And this angel, that scares the liver out of Daniel and his friends is detained by another, seems to be, an angel being. So it's not God, because the prince of Persia can stop him, and he needs help from Michael, an archangel. You see how this all working out? Michael's up here, the powerful angel;s here and the prince of Persia is somewhere in that process.

This is a heavenly war that's going on. This is a heavenly war that's going on, where the prince of Persia, which is a spiritual being associated with Persia, may be Marduk, we know that name from other sources, stops this angel coming from God to explain the vision. And the angel needs help from Michael, a higher order angel. He is then freed, and he comes on and gives the interpretation of the vision. But they're at war in the heavens for like three weeks. Like what in the world is going on here? You get this really strange picture, different levels of good angels, and this bad angel prince of Persia. Then it talks about he's going to go on and fight the prince of Greece. So there's more of these [inaudible 00:07:47]. Confused yet? Well, let's take a little bit more, because we see a picture of the same kind of thing happening in Revelation 12:7.

Revelation 12:7, "A war broke out in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon at his angels fought back." So you've got Michael, we heard about back in Daniel, you've got the dragon, and then other angels below them, "But he, the dragon is not strong enough and they lost their place in heaven." The great dragon is hurled down and then it identifies it, "The ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He's hurled to earth in these angels with him." And we find that this is bad news for the earth, because he's really angry. So there's this heavenly war, same kind of thing we saw back in Daniel 10. Okay, one more passage, 1 Kings 11, as we look at this. Solomon, good guy, bad guy?

Good guy.

You read that King Solomon loved many foreign women besides Pharaoh's daughter. The very first thing he does is go get a wife from Egypt. And you think, "Whoa, wait a minute." Anyway, he's cracked and the foundation falls apart. He marries women from Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonites, Hittites. And here's the thing that in verse two, "You must not intermarry with them," God said, "Because they'll surely turn your heart after their gods." Remember gods, "Elohim," same word is, God, "Yahweh," because, "God," just means spiritual being. And what it says, "He had 700 wives in his wives lead him astray." Now you look at this, "As he grew old," verse five, "He followed Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians." Now, I ask people, if you're were with me live, I'd make you answer, but try it here. If I'm looking for Sidonians today, where would I go?

If I'm looking for Sidonians today, not Solomon's day, but today-day, where would I go to find the Sidonians today? And some of you may know, that's the town, Sidon, we know that from biblical things, Tyre and Sidon, two great port cities. It's 30 miles south of Beirut today. Beirut didn't exist in that day. And there is a god associated with Sidon, the town and tribe. And that's Ashtoreth, like the prince of Persia is a god associated with Persia, this is a god associated with Sidon, and then, "Molek the detestable god of the Ammonites." And again, ask the same question. If you're looking for an Ammonite today, where would you go? And once you've gotten a hint, you often figure it out a little quicker. Where do you go to find Ammonites today? Yeah, Amman, Jordan. That's the same place. If you go back prior to 1917 when the Balfour Declaration was given, when the English and French split up that whole world, Amman was a region and a tribe.

And the God of Ammonites is Molek. And if you know your Bible, you know the Israeli people end up sacrificing their children to Molek at the Valley of Ben Hinnom, which is just south of Jerusalem. "Solomon did evil in the eyes of the Lord. He did not follow the Lord completely. So he built high places to Chemosh," this is verse seven, "The detestable god of Moab." Moab, southeast of the Dead Sea, nothing there today. "And Molek the detestable god of the Ammonites." And we see what's happening here, is there are gods high level spiritual beings associated with different tribes. Now you think of tribe or nation, don't think of the United States with 330 million people. Think of a tribe with several hundred or few thousand people.

That's what we're talking about here. And these spiritual beings are associated with the tribe. And that's where this comes from, is, Don't worship the gods," powerful spiritual beings, who want to steal worship from Yahweh even though they're not Yahweh. So gods, "Elohim," can be Yahweh, because He is a spiritual being. They can be Michael or Gabriel or the unnamed angel of Daniel 10, good guy angels, created beings. Or they can be bad guy angels, devil, Molek, Chemosh, Baal-Asherah, and many others.

And those are high level spiritual beings that want to steal worship from Yahweh, get people to worship them instead of worshiping Yahweh. That's what we're talking about here. Now, there's a couple of the questions we need to explore here a little bit. And one of them is, how did these nations get connected with these angel beings? Well, take a break, refresh your brain and let's look at that.