Spiritual Warfare – a talk with Jon Thompson
by Westminster
Spiritual warfare. William Gurnall says that all Christians are in the battle whether they realize it or not, and that the war is so serious that it makes the cruelest battle between human armies seem like child’s play.
-But what is spiritual warfare, anyway?
-Why has it been neglected by some branches of Christianity in more recent times?
-Who is our enemy?
-Isn’t the New Testament just “out of date” on some of this stuff?
-Does “possession” still happen?
-How should we think about the “armour of God” in Ephesians 6?
-How do we win the battle?
This episode of The Word at Westminster is a talk Pastor Ruttan had with Jon Thompson. And yes, we talk about all those questions.
Jon’s work and experience in this area isn’t just academic. He has been in hundreds of situations where the demonic has been present.
Let us tell you a bit more about our guest. Jon is the author of Deliverance and the Senior Pastor of Sanctus Church, a multi-site church in the Greater Toronto Area where he has been on staff for more than 20 years. He has a Masters of Theological Studies degree from Tyndale Seminary, Toronto and a Doctorate of Missiology from Fuller Seminary, California. He speaks and teaches globally on the convergence of spiritual gifts, spiritual practices, and spiritual experiences in the life of the believer and the local church.
You can listen to the audio version of our talk here or wherever you listen to podcasts (Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts or Stitcher). You can link to a video of the talk on YouTube here.
Beneath, you will also find links to Jon’s books and the resources he mentioned, as well as a list of more specific topics and quotes from the interview itself.
We hope you benefit from this impactful conversation and that you take the battle seriously. Do not fear.
Resources:
-Book by Jon Thompson: Deliverance: A Journey Toward the Unexpected
-Book by Jon Thompson: Convergence
-Neil T. Anderson: The Bondage Breaker
-Jon’s sermon series on Deliverance
-Jon’s sermon series on spiritual gifts
Topics and quotes:
-What is spiritual warfare?
-The importance of a “worldview.”
-Do I actually believe what the Bible teaches about how the world functions, or do I dismiss it as ancient and stupid?
-The three enemies of human beings, especially Christians: the flesh, the world, and the demonic (with definitions).
-Why spiritual warfare has been downplayed or dismissed in some Western church contexts in more recent times, but not in the global church.
-How the New Testament text shows that the presence of the demonic is different than mental illness.
-“The devil’s not under every bush; he’s probably under every third.” How to find a healthy balance between thinking everything is spiritual warfare and that nothing is.
-“In the Bible, possession is positional.” “You’re either owned by the Lamb or you’re owned by the Dragon.” “Everyone is owned by someone. The question is, Who owns you?”
-“Allegiance, truth and power” (How the battle is won).
-“The only way to win the battle is to actually be in relationship with the one who has the power to set you free… You can never be free if you never switch sides.”
-“Every local church on earth—that is a genuine local church—is the ongoing billboard of Satan’s defeat.”
-The Armor of God in Ephesians 6 (and some essential context).
-How genuine Christians can still have a demonic squatter within them influencing them. “If you do give in to unholiness you could expose yourself to the demonic whether you believe in him or not.”
-To those who are new to all of this: “Do not fear.”
-“Satan’s goal in heaven was to replace God with himself and sit on the throne. The only other place in the universe where there is a throne where God sits is the human heart.”
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