What is spiritual warfare and how do we fight it?

Question

Sun Myung Moon · Accepted Answer

Understanding spiritual warfare is not merely an interesting theological discussion; it is the fundamental key to comprehending the struggle for human salvation and the suffering evident in the world. By clarifying the true enemy and the true battleground, we gain the essential tools to achieve personal transformation, collective restoration, and ultimately, God's original ideal for humanity. This deepens our appreciation for God's enduring love and unwavering purpose. The Biblical Foundation: External Adversary and Internal Struggle The Bible unequivocally presents an external adversary in Satan and his demonic forces. The Apostle Paul states, "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). This establishes that the conflict transcends human-to-human strife, pointing to a spiritual dimension. Peter warns believers, "Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour" (1 Peter 5:8). Jesus confronts Satan directly in the wilderness (Matthew 4:1-11) and drives out demons (Mark 1:34), depicting Satan as a formidable, external entity. Jesus himself identified Satan as the "ruler of this world." However, the Bible also highlights an internal dimension. Paul laments, "For I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do... For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing" (Romans 7:15, 18b-19). This struggle within the self, between the desire for goodness and the pull towards evil, indicates an internal battlefield. The call to "present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God – this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind" (Romans 12:1-2) emphasizes the internal purification required. This internal conflict is often described as the "flesh" warring against the "spirit" (Galatians 5:17). The "mind of the flesh is death, but the mind of the spirit is life and peace" (Romans 8:6). Divine Principle's Clarification: The Origin of Fallen Nature The internal aspect of spiritual warfare is clarified by understanding the origin and nature of fallen nature. The genesis of evil was not merely an external temptation, but a corrupting event that fundamentally altered human nature, establishing a "legal" spiritual dominion for Satan over humanity. This understanding completes the biblical narrative by providing the underlying cause for the internal struggle Paul describes. The fall was not merely eating a physical fruit. It occurred when Archangel Lucifer, driven by self-centered ambition, engaged in an illicit spiritual and physical relationship with Eve before her maturity. This act, driven by unrighteous desire, corrupted her love and mind. Subsequently, Eve influenced Adam, leading to their collective fall. This event planted fallen nature within the human lineage, characterized by four primary aspects: 1) Failing to take God's viewpoint, 2) Leaving one's proper position, 3) Reversing dominion, with the lower dominating the higher, and 4) Multiplying evil by spreading the sinful act to others. Satan gained a spiritual "claim" over humanity because he, not God, illegally took the position of "parent" to the first humans. Through this perverted parenting, he imprinted his characteristics of self-centeredness and rejection of God's authority onto their lineage. The "roaring lion" (1 Peter 5:8) thus exploits the internal conditions of fallen nature already within us. Our original mind, which longs for goodness, constantly wars with an evil mind or the impulses of fallen nature. This explains why humanity often "knows the good they ought to do but does not do it"—the internal "evil mind" exerts a powerful, inherited influence. The death brought about by the Fall was spiritual death—separation from God and cleaving to Satan (Genesis 2:17, 1 John 3:14, Romans 6:23). God's Providential Purpose: Restoration Through Overcoming Fallen Nature God's entire dispensation of history is a providence of restoration, aimed at helping humanity overcome fallen nature and revert Satan's dominion. Humanity must fulfill conditions to separate from Satan's lineage and return to God's. Jesus Christ came as the Second Adam to restore what was lost at the Fall, modeling a life free from fallen nature, teaching, "If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me" (Luke 9:23). This denial directly challenges the self-centered core of fallen nature. Jesus came as a True Parent, Teacher, and King to give rebirth and restore us to God's children, just as he said to Nicodemus that we must be born anew (John 3). His resurrection, e

What is spiritual warfare and how do we fight it?

The Biblical Foundation: External Adversary and Internal Struggle

Divine Principle's Clarification: The Origin of Fallen Nature

God's Providential Purpose: Restoration Through Overcoming Fallen Nature

Living the Principle

Sources and further reading