Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.(Ephesians 6:10-12)
It is becoming increasingly obvious to many of us who observe the steady assault against everything “Judeo” or “Christian” about our once great civilization, that the opposition to all that is good, transcends mere political, legal, media, cultural or financial interests. The disintegration of our moral and spiritual world is obviously being overseen by something more than human. We are currently struggling against principalities and powers, just as Paul warned us we would.
What is scripture referring to when the expression “Principalities and Powers” is used?
I used to have a simplistic understanding of this expression. I thought that “Principalities and Powers” were merely demonic entities. I was partially right, because Daniel 10 reveals that fallen Angel “Princes” are set over nations,
Then said he unto me, Fear not, Daniel: for from the first day that thou didst set thine heart to understand, and to chasten thyself before thy God, thy words were heard, and I am come for thy words.but the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me one and twenty days: but, lo, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me; and I remained there with the kings of Persia….Then said he, Knowest thou wherefore I come unto thee? and now will I return to fight with the prince of Persia: and when I am gone forth, lo, the prince of Grecia shall come.(Daniel 10:12-13,20)
Note that the “Prince of Persia” withstood the Angel Gabriel, who brought the answer to Daniel’s prayer. But the Prince of Grecia was soon to come. In history, The chosen people were under bondage to the Persians, until the Greek empire conquered them.
There are others who believe that “Principalities and powers” are human institutions, and even political rulers, such as Pilate and Herod. For example, Paul tells us, of the Princes of this world,
Howbeit we speak wisdom among them that are perfect: yet not the wisdom of this world, nor of the princes of this world, that come to nought: But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory: Which none of the princes of this world knew: for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.( I Corinthians 2:6-8)
God himself has ordained fundamental human institutions, such as Government. He refers to it as “the powers that be” in Romans and outlines their God appointed function.
Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God. Whosoever therefore resisteth the power, resisteth the ordinance of God: and they that resist shall receive to themselves damnation.(Romans 13:1-2)
I am beginning to think from my study of scripture that “Principalities and Powers” is actually a reference to both the demonic and the various human institutions such as Government, Medicine, Law, Media, Education, etc. in some kind of amalgamation.
In short, in this fallen world, as a culture degenerates, it’s very institutions become, “… the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird”(Revelation 18:2) . What happens when Government or law or education are put into the service of Satan himself?
As we come closer to the end we realize that even seemingly ‘good’ institutions such as education, law, medicine are turning increasingly hostile to the former Christian consensus that they were once nurtured in the west. Watchman Nee warned of this in his book, “Love Not The World”,
Politics, education, literature, science, art, law, commerce, music-such are the things that constitute the cosmos, and these are things that we meet daily. Subtract them and the world as a coherent system ceases to be. In studying the history of mankind we have to acknowledge marked progress in each of these departments. The question however is: In what direction is this “progress” tending? What is the ultimate goal of all this development? At the end, John tells us, antichrist will arise and will set up his own kingdom in this world (1 John 2:18, 22; 4:3; 2 John 7; Rev. 13). That is the direction of this world’s advance. Satan is utilizing the material world, the men of the world, the things that are in the world, to head everything up eventually in the kingdom of antichrist. At that hour the world system will have reached its zenith; and at that hour every unit of it will be revealed to be antiChristian.( Love Not The World, Watchman Nee)
I believe that the secularization of our society, has literally fulfilled the Words of Jesus about the danger of Israel’s “House” being empty and swept clean. (The “house” for Israel was the temple, the “Holy House” of God). When the sin of Israel caused the Holy God to desolate the Temple, it didn’t remain “empty,swept and garnished”. The vacuum is soon filled with evil spirits, which put the formerly valid institution to the service of evil. The Temple itself thus became put to the service of evil!
In that way it is possible for primal institutions such as Government, law enforcement, Education, Banking, and even religion to literally become Demon Possessed and put to the service of evil.
This is the only explanation possible for the phenomenon of the radical homosexualization of our military, the utter and open pillage and corruption in our economic system (Banking,Wall Street), the openness to Islam, and consecutive hostility to Evangelical Christianity, by Government and even main stream Christianity. How else could we explain the nationally suicidal policies of our leaders?
The self-destructive , perverse, and even malignant rulings of liberal judges, such as the recent decision in California to open the restrooms of the schools to either sex, for the sake of any “transgender students and teachers” could only be categorized as ‘demonic’. Another example from California, is the recent requirement that millions and perhaps billions be spent on textbooks, which by law, must teach the ‘contributions’ of gay,lesbian,bisexual and transgender citizens in our history.
This is sheer madness! Our nation is rapidly becoming demon possessed, our institutions which formerly were for the protection of life, and the dissemination of light, are become “Powers…rulers of the darkness of this world, spiritual wickedness in high places”(Ephesians 6) , put to the service of the god of this evil age.
We should not despair, though, for the believer is both to be aware, and to don the God-given armor and the proven weapons provided by God for the “Evil Day”. More to come…
Pastor Bill Randles Blog 
Despair.??. No Way.!!!.
We must understand our Saviour is returning soon and there is still so very much work to be done, so many lost so many dying, separated from The Holy One of Israel. He who has promised IS Faithful, but we must…
We must be about our Father’ business.!!.
Thanks Ali! Good reminder! Pas Bill
Wonderful article Ps Bill. Thrilling is the life lived in Christ Jesus –
as we have the victory over all the powers of the enemy. Thank you for the warning and encouragement.
The mystery of iniquity does prevail ”hidden”. Mystery Babylon as against The Mystery of God which is of course revealed, Christ in you the hope of glory.We are told that in the beginning man was made in the image of God but in that point of time?. We are also told that God cannot be tempted to sin and that is true, yet Adam was tempted and did sin this was not the man that God was talking about was it. The man that God was referring to was of course Jesus Christ who could not be tempted to sin.Time and revelation the revealing of Jesus Christ will be seen by all one day for some it maybe too late. Jesus said ”let no man deceive you”deception is all around us, ”Fear not, let not your heart be troubled, for I have overcome the world”The evening shadows are long over the earth and the day will soon be closing but….. thank God His voice will be heard like thunder and revelation will be seen like lightning and earthquakes will shake the false foundations.
Partly in response to well known recent developments, I went on a prayer walk to on a blazing hot 12th July 2013. A circular route was taken along a certain Moor during the seven and a half hours I was on it consumed four pints of fluid (and still suffered from a little dehydration). At various stopping points I managed to cover every area of my life in prayer and use some bulletins to intercede for persecuted Christians and Israel. Great care was taken to ask the Lord to have mercy on the children and other vulnerable groups in this country. I also went into deep consultation mode with the Jesus. As a result, the following points emerged with great clarity. The biblical references used will show that great care was taken to assess them in the light of God’s Word.
Points to Emerge
1) God is giving the Western Nations (and most of the Churches within them) over to a Spirit of militant homosexuality. He has given Satan express permission to unleash it in order to judge sin, expose corruption and test those who claim to follow him, (Job 1:6-12 & 2:1-6). Repeated here is the same kind of judgement that the Northern Kingdom of Israel suffered at the hands of the Assyrians and Judah at the hands of the Babylonians. This judgement is not going to be prayed away. Western Civilization is at the same stage as Greco-Roman Civilization was in Romans 1:18f. In particular, we’re not to pray for those Church leaders and activists who’ve propagated this Spirit in the name of God, Christ or even social justice. It’s no longer possible for them to be restored to repentance, (Hebrews 6:4-8).
2) This ‘unleashing’ represents a fulfilment of bible prophecy, in which the social and moral conditions that faced Lot will be repeated in the run up to Christ’s return, (Luke 17:28-30). These conditions are going to get much worse with near compulsory euthanasia likely to be next domino to fall. We are heading for a mass extermination society which will persecute those who profess to follow Christ. At present the Western World is drinking the cup of divine wrath, (Revelation 14:10). When a judgement comes for current sins, it’s likely to be sudden and drastic. Whether these will be the final judgements mentioned in Revelation remains to be seen.
3) For Christians this calls for an alert endurance (Luke 12:35-40, Revelation 13; 13:10 & 14:12) and realistic expectations about what can be achieved through prayer (and in any revival resulting from prayer). To hope or pray for any major pro-biblical transformation in our society is a sheer waste of time and could even run counter to God’s will. Western Society has sunk beyond the point of no return. Even the prayers of all the most godly Reformers, Puritans and Revivalists put together would not now reverse the situation, (Jeremiah 15:1-2 & Ezekiel 14:14).
4) Consequently, any revival will be given with a view to increasing the endurance of the Saints in a context of growing persecution and providing them with the ability to faithfully witness to the Gospel amidst very dark times. These times will cause some to be receptive to its message of salvation. Unexpected doors to witness will open, but their position will still be akin to Noah who could only able bring a handful of people onto the ark despite preaching righteousness over a long time period, (Genesis 7:1-7, Matthew 24:37 & Hebrews 11:7).
5) Beyond witnessing to the Gospel, faithful Christians could have a constructive role praying for some measure of divine protection on vulnerable groups like children or the mentally disabled who are not responsible for today’s current decadence, (Matthew 19:14). They could also pray that God will further expose the corruption of those militantly pushing a Same Sex Marriage Agenda, (Luke 12:3). What they are not to do is entertain unrealistic expectations concerning a restoration of a ’Christian Britain’ or ‘Christian America’ for that isn’t going to happen. Those entities are now past history, (Jeremiah 29:20-23). It’s R.I.P. in capital letters! Moreover, Christians who entertain such expectations will end up being sadly disillusioned and could risk losing their faith. Their position is akin to the false prophet Hananiah who only believed in a very limited chastisement (Jeremiah 28:1-10). A comparison can also be made with late nineteenth century American Indians who indulged in ‘Ghost dancing’ in order to try and magically restore the old Buffalo hunting grounds. No matter whether they like it or not, Christians in the West are now facing a whole set of new realities that can’t be masked by distracting events like the birth of a Royal baby.
6) However, Christian Activities like the ‘Coalition for Marriage’ do have a positive role in providing a faithful witness to biblical standards and in helping confused people not to succumb to the dangerous group think emerging around the Same Sex Marriage Issue. Faithfully discharging a watchman’s function means that God will not hold regenerate Christians engaged in such activities accountable for the horrors likely to befall Western Society, (Ezekiel 33:1-9). Like Noah and Jeremiah they have provided a faithful witness even though in worldly terms their mission was a complete failure.
7) To communicate effectively with those having no biblical background it’s essential to adopt a variety of biblical teaching methods including stories and quotations from non-Christian literature in order to encourage thinking along healthy lines, (Matthew 13:10-17, Acts 17:26-28 & Titus 1:12-13a). Distributing tracts full of Christian theological jargon will not hack it nor will Traditional Church services
A subsequent reading of Habakkuk 1:5-11 provided an adequate summary of what’s recent developments. Replace the word ‘Chaldean’ (or ‘Babylonian’) with ‘militant homosexuals’ and you will discern exactly what is happening in Western Society.
Pas Bill…Good stuff! Looking forward to more…be blessed!
Dear Pastor Bill, I hope you and Kris and the family are all doing well. I sure do enjoy reading your blog and listening to your teaching. Here is a question for you regarding this post on principalities and powers. You say that you used to think of them as merely demonic entities, but now you are beginning to think of them as a reference to both the demonic and human institutions as well.
My question is if it does refer also to human institutions, then are we to resist those also, along with resisting the demonic? Ephesians seems to be contrasting our resistance to the demonic spiritual powers with wrestling against flesh and blood. So, what does flesh and blood refer to? Is it only individual people, or does that encompass the human institutions also? Are we to fight (wrestle) against human institutions?
Romans 13:1-2 seems to be saying we should not resist those human institutions because they are ordained by God. I realize that a lot of them are evil, but isn’t that part of the judgment on us as a nation because we have gone so far from God? It reminds me of Judah being taken over by Babylon. Daniel submitted to it and was mightily used by God within it. In time, God sent a new king who made it possible for the Jews to return and rebuild.
I prefer to continue to interpret “principalities and powers” as the demonic spiritual realm. There is too much fighting in the flesh these days, and not enough prayer, which is our way of battling against the forces of evil. Our God will fight the battle for us if we submit to Him. James 4:7 Sincerely, Sue A.
Greetings Sue. Very good question. No I think(with you) that the passage clearly intimates that we are not to resist the “flesh and blood” part of the equation, but rather to realize that in our “Withstanding”; ie holding to the true confession in the face of Caesar, the medical profssion(Abortion), the changing political and legal landscape, that behind the human face of these entities is a far larger spirituality, which requires spiritual weapons to successfully resist, and not carnal.There is no doubt that when Paul said “If the princes of this world had known, they would not have crucified the Lord of Glory” He was reffering to the dual entities, Pilate, Herod etal, as well as to the demonic Princes. Really all I am alling for is rcognition of the true spiritual battle we are in, and realization that in fact our once Christian based institutions are empty houses, rapidly filling with evil Spirits. I do not believe political activism is adequate in any way to resist, we must “Submit ourselvesto God”, that is our true resistance!God bless you Sue, and Bob- Your friend Pas Bill
PS You are right about Romans 13, the ealy church didn’t resist Roman authority…in the flesh…but they certainly resisted spiritually when Roman authority tried to forc upon them the “Civic” loyalty test of a pinch of incense and a once a year confession,Kaiser Kurios!(Caesar is Lord). But they didn’t resist Rome like Spartacus did, the did it spiritually, by adherence to JEsus, the good confession, submission to God Overcoming evil with good, and by martyrdom.
A really great article. Makes one do a lot of serious thinking and a lot more time spent on our knees!
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Pastor Bill, thank you for your ministry. Its much appreciated.
This is an old blog but wow, it’s shaken me up. Isaiah 5:20 came to mind “Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!”
Am I thinking correctly if I say not all of medicine, education etc and the advancements thereof is evil, but it’s like these entities are the “lump” intended for good and nourishment for all of mankind , and the evil (world influence) is the “leaven ” intentionally corrupting each “lump” to bring death and destruction to all of mankind?
This piece is truly inspiring to me and I believe truly is a confirmation from God about the mental issues that I’ve been dealing with that I truly believed we’re spiritual as well. Thank you so much and God bless you and keep up the good work.