“What does the Bible say about spiritual warfare?”……There are two primary errors when it comes to spiritual warfare-over-emphasis and under-emphasis. Some blame every sin, every conflict, and every problem on demons that need to be cast out. Others completely ignore the spiritual realm and the fact that the Bible tells us our battle is against spiritual powers. The key to successful spiritual warfare is finding the biblical balance. Jesus sometimes cast demons out of people and sometimes healed people with no mention of the demonic. The apostle Paul instructs Christians to wage war against the sin in themselves (Romans 6) and to wage war against the evil one.…Ephesians 6:10-18…A final word: Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on all of God's armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil. For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places. Therefore, put on every piece of God's armor so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then after the battle you will still be standing firm. Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth and the body armor of God's righteousness. For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News so that you will be fully prepared.(Or For shoes, put on the readiness to preach the Good News of peace with God.) In addition to all of these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil. Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere.

A powerful example of someone strong in the Lord's power is Michael, the archangel, in Jude 9 Michael, likely the most powerful of all of God's angels, did not rebuke Satan in his own power, but said, "The Lord rebuke you!" …Revelation 12:7-8records that in the end times Michael will defeat Satan. …7 Then there was war in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon and his angels.8 And the dragon lost the battle, and he and his angels were forced out of heaven.…Still, when it came to his conflict with Satan, Michael rebuked Satan in God's name and authority, not his own. It is only through our relationship with Jesus Christ that Christians have any authority over Satan and his demons. It is only in His Name that our rebuke has any power.……With the spiritual armour God gives us. We are to stand firm with …The belt of truth, …The breastplate of righteousness…The gospel of peace…The shield of faith…The helmet of salvation…The sword of the Spirit, and by praying in the Spirit. …What do these pieces of spiritual armor represent in spiritual warfare? We are to speak the truth against Satan's lies.…We are to rest in the fact that we are declared righteous because of Christ's sacrifice for us.…We are to proclaim the gospel no matter how much resistance we receive. …We are not to waver in our faith, no matter how strongly we are attacked. Our ultimate defense is the assurance we have of our salvation, an assurance that no spiritual force can take away. …Our offensive weapon is the Word of God, not our own opinions and feelings. We are to follow Jesus' example in recognizing that some spiritual victories are only possible through prayer.……Jesus is our ultimate example for spiritual warfare. Observe how Jesus handled direct attacks from Satan when He was tempted by him in the wilderness Matthew 4:1-11…The Temptation of Jesus…Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted there by the devil. For forty days and forty nights he fasted and became very hungry. During that time the devil (Greek the tempter) came and said to him, "If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become loaves of bread." But Jesus told him, "No! The Scriptures say, 'People do not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.' (Deut 8:3 )"… Then the devil took him to the holy city, Jerusalem, to the highest point of the Temple, and said, "If you are the Son of God, jump off! For the Scriptures say,'He will order his angels to protect you. And they will hold you up with their hands so you won't even hurt your foot on a stone.'(Ps 91:11-12 )"… Jesus responded, "The Scriptures also say, 'You must not test the Lord your God.( Deut 6:16 )"… Next the devil took him to the peak of a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. "I will give it all to you," he said, "if you will kneel down and worship me." "Get out of here, Satan," Jesus told him. "For the Scriptures say, 'You must worship the Lord your God and serve only him.'(Deut 6:13)" Then the devil went away, and angels came and took care of Jesus.

Each temptation was answered the same way-with the words"It is written." Jesus knew the Word of the living God is the most powerful weapon against the temptations of the devil. If Jesus Himself used the Word to counter the devil, do we dare to use anything less?……The ultimate example of how not to engage in spiritual warfare is the seven sons of Sceva. …13 A group of Jews was travelling from town to town casting out evil spirits. They tried to use the name of the Lord Jesus in their incantation, saying, "I command you in the name of Jesus, whom Paul preaches, to come out!"14 Seven sons of Sceva, a leading priest, were doing this.15 But one time when they tried it, the evil spirit replied, "I know Jesus, and I know Paul, but who are you?"16 Then the man with the evil spirit leaped on them, overpowered them, and attacked them with such violence that they fled from the house, naked and battered.…The seven sons of Sceva were using Jesus' name. …That is not enough. …The seven sons of Sceva did not have a relationship with Jesus; therefore, their words were void of any power or authority. The seven sons of Sceva were relying on a methodology. …They were not relying on Jesus as their Lord and Savior, and they were not employing the Word of God in their spiritual warfare. …As a result, they received a humiliating beating. …May we learn from their bad example and conduct spiritual warfare as the Bible instructs.……In summary, what are the keys to success in spiritual warfare?

First, we rely on God's power, not our own.

Second, we rebuke in Jesus' Name, not our own.

Third, we protect ourselves with the full armor of God.

Fourth, we wage warfare with the sword of the Spirit-the Word of God.

Finally, we remember that while we wage spiritual warfare against Satan and his demons, not every sin or problem is a demon that needs to be rebuked.