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Wagner
on Strategic-level Spiritual Warfare
“Strategic-level spiritual warfare (SLSW) describes
confrontation with high-ranking principalities and powers such as
Paul writes about in Ephesians 6:12. These enemy forces are
frequently called ‘territorial spirits’ because they attempt to
keep large numbers of humans networked through cities, nations,
neighborhoods, people groups, religious allegiance, industries or
any other form of human society in spiritual captivity. This level
of warfare, also called ‘cosmic-level spiritual warfare,’ has
precipitated most of the current controversy. Some believe that we
overstep our divinely appointed boundaries if we engage the enemy on
this level (22) ...
“A key difference of opinion lies in the
question of how much authority Jesus has given us as His disciples.
Some believe that all the authority we have been given for certain
is to confront demonic powers attaches to individual persons, and
that we overstep our boundaries when we suggest doing spiritual
warfare against territorial spirits. I … take a more literal view
of Jesus’ statement in Luke 10:19: ‘Behold I give you the
authority … over all power of the enemy.’ (36) ...
“Some
critics of SLSW argue
that Jesus set boundaries to the power He offered the disciples
thought the Holy Spirit. They suggest that we may not have authority
over all the powers of darkness, just over the lower-level demons
that may be demonizing human beings. Therefore we should stay away
from SLSW, lest we overstep our legitimate authority. As I reread
the passages of the Gospels in which Jesus equips and sends out His
disciples, I find no suggestions of limitations … (see Mark 5:9,
4:39) (135)
“In
the Lausanne Covenant, Article 12, ‘Spiritual Conflict,’ states
in part: ‘We believe that we are engaged in constant spiritual
warfare with the principalities and powers of evil who are seeking
to overthrow the Church and to frustrate its task of
evangelization.’
...
In the work of Spiritual Warfare a useful
distinction has surfaced between three levels of spiritual warfare:
(1) ground-level spiritual warfare dealing with demonic deliverance
of individuals; 2(2) occult-level spiritual warfare dealing with the
powers of darkness ,,,(3) SLSW (which some prefer to call
‘cosmic-level’ spiritual warfare) in which territorial
principalities and powers are confronted.
(257-8)
From Confronting
The Powers by C. Peter Wagner, Regal, 1996
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