The Unseen World Chapter 10

How do they Fight? While it is common to see angelic depictions wielding swords and shields, the exact nature of the battle they fight is not as their human counterparts. Swords are symbolic to the realm of the angel. To find a scriptural clue as to the type of warfare that angels engage in, we need to look no further that to the visions of Jesus that are described in the scripture. Out of his mouth goes a two-edged sword. The writer of Hebrews declares that the word of God is sharper that any double-edged sword and that it is a divider. However grotesque a thought, the purpose of the sword is to divide. In a spiritual sense (as in many other applications) division is the prerequisite to order. Division brings order. The sword, which is the word of God, brings order… the order of the one who commissioned the sword. Order is the business of Governments. Governmental order must be backed with some kind of force… the sword represents that force… it represents the authority of the government for which it is wielded. Ultimately, the sword is for the upholding of the authority of any government… this authority is defined by words. The word of God defines his kingdom’s order and it is this order that is challenged by the spiritual forces that have their own design of order. The New World Order is a challenge to God’s order of the kingdom. We will see this in greater depth later. Order is put in place by a declaration of words; these words are the expression of ideas, concepts, and principles of the authority, which has given forth its word. According to the Psalm, “Forever, O Lord, thy word is established in heaven.” Order stems from the authority in power through the medium of words. The word of God came to Adam, who had been placed in the Garden of Eden, to dress it and keep it. Adam was to order the garden and God gave him direction in that order. Challenge came to God’s order when the enemy approached Eve and deceived her into changing the established order of Eden. She ate the fruit and the order of this earth was given to Satan, thus Paul calls him the “god of this world” and Jesus affirmed that he was the “prince of the power of the air”. Simply, the war that wages in the spirit world is a war of ideas and it is fought with the sword called “words”. This manner of warfare is seen in the contention between Michael and the devil over the body of Moses as we observe that they disputed over the body. They discussed, or argued, over the body of Moses… it was war. While we are aware of the term “war of words”, it may be that we relegate a “word war” to a lesser form of conflict than that of physical combat. Be not deceived, the powers that wage the word war are powerful beings that are committed to victory at any cost. The terrible carnage occurring as a result of the wars of humanity is in actuality the result of ideas, concepts, and principles… the very ones that the spirit world contends over. Conflict in the natural world is the result of spiritual ideas, attitudes, and ambitions. Spiritual powers must put these into a society’s psychology before physical forces enter into combat. As seen then, it is in the world of the spirit that all war begins, and what we observe in the natural world is definitely a reflection of ideological battles that have already taken place in the heavens. Single humans can be the instrument of great spiritual and societal changes, both for good and evil. It is highly unlikely that any human who was able to effect great societal change was not connected in some manner to the spiritual world… whether for good or evil. It is documented that Adolph Hitler was involved in various occult practices. Jesus was able to bring the hope of eternal life to the world because of his spiritual connection. The apostles turned their world upside-down when they were filled with the Holy Ghost. False prophets have deceived and are deceiving many and they are associates of the antichrist spirit. Alexander the Great conquered his world by the age of 32, but Daniel gives a glimpse into the world of the spirit just prior to Alexander’s great feats, showing that before Alexander marched his armies Gabriel wrestled with the Prince of Greece to make way for the coming armies.

The Unseen World Chapter 9

The warrior is a fighting angel. As such he is also a protector and defender. Perhaps the much mentioned “guardian” is an angel of this type. Questions might arise concerning this group of angels as they are considered… let us ask and explore the possibilities. In the beginning there appeared to be no conflict in the spirit realm so why would there be a class of angels designated as ‘warriors’? It seems as if there are several possible answers. First, God anticipated the coming fight and he made the groups from the beginning because he knew there would be a need for the divisions later. Or, the angel groups were formed out of a common host that had no classification as to purpose, except to worship. If the second answer is true then a question coul9d be asked concerning the messenger category of angel, “Were they assigned messenger duties due to the fall of Lucifer as a part of the battle against him?” While these questions may not be answered with absolute authority it seems as if they were assigned their classifications after the need arose for those classes of angels. Since Satan was a watcher angel, did all the angels that fell belong to that class of angel? The answer would appear to be “no” in as much as the “watchers” of Daniel chapter four seem to be angels working on behalf of God’s kingdom and not against it. It is interesting that in the angelic war of Revelation twelve, one third of the angels fell with Satan. However, the third of the angels that fell seem to be a mixture of the various categories of angels, and not and entire category (such as the watchers of whom Satan was archangel).

The Unseen World Chapter 8

In looking at Satan we discovered that he is part of the category of angel referred to as “watcher”… in fact he is the archangel of the category. The next named angel is also an Archangel, yet he is of a different category than of Satan. Gabriel is a messenger angel. This is not difficult to see as we observe the appearances of this mighty angel in the scriptures. This archangel appeared twice to Daniel and brought messages of understanding to him. Gabriel appeared to Zechariah the father of John the Baptist to announce that John would be born to him and Elizabeth. The famous words given to Mary, “Thou shalt call his name Jesus” were delivered to the mother of the Lord by this bearer of good news… Gabriel. This archangel has been the messenger who delivered these and, no doubt, many more historical and spiritually significant announcements. While the messenger category of angel is primarily the deliverer of God’s words to various circumstances, these angels are not without resistance from the enemy. There are times when messenger angels must do battle with the opposition. It has been said that spiritual battle is a war of words. This seems to be very likely as words are the vehicles that carry about the varying ideologies that strive to control the cosmos. Words are ideas in transit. Those that engage the task of bearing words of spiritual importance will find themselves in a violent occupation… for it is the spiritual concept of a people that form their political, social, and religious points of view. These points of view become the essence of all conflicts. These differences can take the form of debates and elections or bloodshed and war, but nonetheless spiritual messengers are, by the nature of their duties, cast into violent atmospheres that are home to the unrelenting clash of ideas. Angels are not strangers to this violent kingdom work in as much as the very word “angel” means messenger. We see this is the case as Gabriel attempts to bring the word of understanding to Daniel after the prophet prays to God for that answer in Chapter Ten of his writings. This account of Daniel’s prayer and Gabriel’s battle to deliver the prayer’s answer is an intriguing and yet very revealing look into the world of spiritual conflict. While this event will be examined more in depth later, let it be known that the messenger, Gabriel, could not deliver the message without help… spiritual help. It seems as if Daniel was a source of help to Gabriel as he continued to pray and fast while the angel wrestled with the “Prince of Persia”. This demon spirit tried to withstand the work of the messenger and was effective, until a third (if you count the fallen demon as an angel) angel arrived on the scene. This third angel is representative of the next category of angel… the warrior.

Other books available

http://www.amazon.com/Sterling-Dean-Davidson/e/B00AX4M4MU The link is to my Amazon page. There are four Kindle books available and one of which can be purchased as a paper back. Hope to have Unseen World for sale within the month. Thanks to all who have read the posts of the first few chapters. The subjects of my first three books are: Walking in the Spirit. How to receive revelation. Overcoming Fear (How our survival nature works against our spirituality). The fourth book is a collection of 5 short stories. Again thanks for your interest and may you be blessed! You can also go to Amazon.com and type "Sterling Dean Davidson" and it will bring up my page.

Unseen World Chapter 7

Chapter 7 Satan’s Ambition So Isaiah writes, “How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How art thou cut down to the ground, which did weaken the nations! For thou has said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most high”. Thus Satan’s ambition is born and thus, by Isaiah the Prophet, this ambition is stated. Lucifer, Satan, or the devil wants to be like God because he is insatiably desirous of the worship that belongs to God. This ambition is the driving force of satanic strategy. To have a correct understanding of spiritual dynamics it is imperative that to know this. His main objective is not to be a mean spirit or a scary monster or what ever else he has purported himself to be… he just wants to be like God, or more precisely, he wants to be God. However, it is essential that we know this motivation will bring about the most diabolical schemes and heartless attacks on any who oppose him or even hinder him. Understand that he has a plan, and if he fulfills that plan it will bring him to the seat of God himself. Paul in the book of II Thessalonians writes that a man who is called the “son of perdition” will oppose and exalt “himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God.” This “son of perdition” holds a special place in Satan’s ambitious plan. More will be discovered about this later. It is seen that the first of the three archangels is the fallen one… Satan (enemy) or the Devil (accuser) or Lucifer (son of the morning or light bearer). It is this fallen archangel and his ambitious pride that has become the cause for spiritual struggle, to look elsewhere for the origin of the struggle with evil is to be misled. It must be recognized that our battle and its cause is to be understood in these truths. Then and only then will we become effective in our spiritual warfare... for indeed our enemy is aware of these things and he is effective. The Watcher One last aspect of this fallen beauty is that of his nature of observance… Satan apparently belongs to the category of angels called “watchers” (see Daniel 4:13&17). Scripture gives indication of this as the writing of Peter declares that he seeketh whom (as a lion) he may devour and the Book of Job tells us that he was going “… to and fro” in the earth and “walking up and down in it”. This fallen angel is a moving spirit that seems to constantly watch for opportunity. Satan, in his diabolical role as “attacker”, is a master watchman in the affairs and natures of humanity. He is a student of individuals and smells human weakness like a lion smells fear in its soon to be victim. The book of Revelation calls him a dragon… it is the eyes of the giant winged reptile that strike fear into the heart of any who encounter the beast… for the word “dragon” literally means, “to look”. Satan is a Watcher… and so must you be if you are to escape his deadly assault. This is Lucifer the anointed cherub, the son of the morning, musical worship leader, the gem covered beauty full of wisdom, the prince of the power of the air, the accuser, the enemy, the serpent, the dragon, the devil, this is Satan. He is an archangel… He is a watcher.

Unseen World Chapter 6

Chapter 6 Rationale It is logical. It makes sense. It makes us feel better about our wrong choices. It is thinking that justifies. The problem with rational is that it is wrong. It probably helped the devil along his path of rebellion, deception, and destruction. Lucifer was so close to the worship of God that he could almost feel it coming his way and finally he opened the doors to unhealthy thinking… thinking that made false assumptions and strengthened his position of pride and rebellion. Maybe he began to think he deserved at least some of the worship that was being given to God. After all (rationale) he was doing all the work in this worship thing. God was receiving the praise, but he was making the music, keeping the angelic order, causing the focus of the host to be given to God. It was his stones of jewels that caused the appearance of a brightly illuminated aura, which maintained the host of heaven’s focus on God in dynamic worship. After all (rationale) what would happen to the worship if it weren’t for him? It seems as if this whole heaven thing was dependant upon his direction. After all (rationale) he was an archangel… he was the anointed cherub… he was the covering angel. Maybe (rationale) God needed him more than the “Ancient of Days” was letting on. Maybe (rationale) God was feeling threaten by his beauty and brightness and was just keeping him distracted with this worship leader stuff. Maybe (rationale) it was really him that deserved… really deserved… the worship of the host. “Maybe (rationale) I should be like God…” the devilish thought finally entered and was vocalized. The accuser had obtained his nature… and his name… Devil (accuser). Lucifer had become the devil by traveling the road of rationale.

Unseen World Chapter 5

Thanks for letting me share these posts of the unedited writing of my book in progress on the unseen world. I humbly submit the next chapter. Chapter 5 The nature, personality, and assignment of an angel should be understood if knowledge is to be gained of the workings of the invisible world of spiritual powers. It might seem as if an undue amount of attention is being given to the angelic realm, but if the whole of the unseen dimension is to be understood we must realize what makes up this world. Outside of God himself (and later the spirits of those created in his image) the unseen world is comprised only of these spirit beings of which there are untold millions. Biblical authority does not allow for creatures in the invisible realm of the beginning beside these. Other than God, and later the spirit of man, all of the unseen world’s inhabitants are angelic… the majority are in their original God given state; others have fallen. While the imaginations of men and/or the diabolical apparitions of the fallen angels themselves have produced many a monster, ghost, goblin, werewolf, vampire and many other spirit monsters, in the real world of the unseen they are non-existent. It is important to realize that the deception of the enemy is many faceted and to believe in all manner of monster is to become unfocused on the reality of the battle and whom we wrestle against. Each of the three archangels has a distinct personality, nature and ministry. It is apparent and logical that adjustments had to be made in this high level realm of the archangels. As we consider the placement of these three, their duties, and the fall of one, we will understand more clearly why this adjustment had to be made. The anointed cherub was the covering angel and had the duty of oversight… he was an observer... a watcher. In the position of covering angel he was to be sure that the attention of the heavenly host was given to the “Ancient One” in a celestial worship service of holy praise. The description of this angel in Ezekiel chapter 28 is that of a being covered with musical instruments and jewels… one who was full of beauty and wisdom. It is written of him that he was perfect in his ways. (Ezekiel 28:15) Perfect that is, until iniquity was found in him. Ezekiel continues to declare, “Thine heart was lifted up because of thy beauty, thou hast corrupted thy wisdom by reason of thy brightness.” Lucifer the archangel fell because he was lifted up in his own heart. While we do not have a scriptural account of what transpired in his thinking and in his heart, it could be reasonably concluded that several things could have happened to bring this process of pride and corruption to pass. Was Lucifer heaven’s worship leader? Worship is complemented by music and Lucifer was apparently created with musical abilities. It could be surmised that the purpose of his design was to worship and, as much as he is a covering angel in authority, that he also was given the privilege of leading the host of angels in worship. His brightness was an attention getting attribute, but it was not given to him to bring attention to himself. Rather, he was to divert that attention to the LORD. In a sense Lucifer was in the spotlight… the limelight. Possibly, he was the Master of Ceremonies in heaven’s theater of worship. It could have been that as he continued to be such a high profile angel that he noticed, more and more, all of the praise that God was receiving… and that it came at his direction! Maybe his mind began to think thoughts that no creature had ever thought before. Maybe for the first time, instead of being in the realm of truth and reality (where all praise is rightly given to the Almighty), a tiny bit of fantasy entered in to his thinking. Maybe just a tiny question arose… one that seemed innocent enough… maybe he just wondered what it was like. What was it like to receive all praise from all creation? Curiosity was working a deadly work in such a small way. He may have moved on in his thinking from an apparently harmless curiosity to a world of full-blown fantasy through the double doors called “what if?” and “if only”. Then for perhaps the first time in all of creation a thought entered into the mind of one of God’s own and that thought was named “I”. This deadly development continued with more words… “What if I…?” and “if only I…”. Did Lucifer finally at that point give birth to the lethal language of pride allowing self-centered sentences to be uttered into the universe… a universe shuttering in unbelief when the most visible of all God’s creation spoke the unspeakable? “What if I could receive worship?” Finally, the birth of lust was completed when in the heart of Lucifer it was thought… “If only I could receive the worship that belongs to God.” Justification for his prideful heart, presumptuous mind, and rebellious actions came quickly in the form of the great justifier of all selfishness… RATIONALE. He began to think like a sinner for indeed… he was one. Enter into God’s holy universe… DEATH. For some of my completed writings go to Amazon.com and search "Sterling Dean Davidson" Thanks!

I will put more chapters of this book as I write, but to see other books follow the link posted here.

The Unseen World Chapter 4

Chapter 4 There is order among the angels… Godly order. God’s order is made clear by the insight given to us concerning the works of God, as well as our observation of the natural world around us. God is very ordered in what he creates and does. One of the greatest illustrations of Godly order is found in the first chapter of Genesis as God creates the earth in six days. Each day had a purpose and each subsequent day was dependant on that which was ordered on the previous day. God could have just spoken the completed project into existence, but chose instead to demonstrate his order in a step-by-step process. Nature itself testifies to the ordered nature of God as we observe the plant and animal kingdoms, the solar system, the atom, and even our own bodies. David marveled and wrote that we are “fearfully and wonderfully made”. It is not surprising then that as the “Ancient One” began his creative work by bringing the angelic realm into existence that he did so in an ordered manner. While there is not a detailed description of the order of the angels there is strong evidence of how the highest echelon of these spirits were arranged. The significance of this arrangement will be clearly seen as we continue our considerations of this world of unseen powers. It is interesting that only three angels in the bible are called by name and these same three represent the highest level of angelic order. Each of these three has been placed in the upper tier and they are designated “archangels”. Scripture does not include any other angels in this group. Archangel #1 Of the three archangels one was placed in the position of “covering angel”. To cover is to place over… in other words this angel was in authority even over the other two in his level of angelic order. To this angel the Lord, by the mouth of Ezekiel the prophet, declared, “Thou art the anointed cherub that covereth…” (Ezekiel 28:14) While Ezekiel does not name this angel he does identify him as the one who was in “Eden the garden of God”. This angelic creation of God who entered the Garden of Eden to tempt Eve came in as a Cherubim and left as a serpent. He is called Lucifer, Satan, and the Devil. He is the first archangel and the highest. Obviously, the subject of the devil is one that to study exhaustively would require a book or volumes of books, so at this point we limit our consideration to simply identifying him as one of the three archangels. There will be further study of this “accuser of the brethren”. Archangel #2 The second archangel to be considered is one of two that are of the same authority. This angel is seen in several instances bringing messages to people concerning the work that God is doing on the earth. These messages can be applicable to the particular time of the visitation or to reveal the work God is going to do at some future time after his visitation. This angel visited: Daniel to reveal future events. He visited Mary, to announce the coming of the Messiah. As well he has the distinct honor of sounding the trump of God at the coming of the Lord. Gabriel is the second archangel. Archangel #3 The third archangel is a mighty angel who is a warrior in and for the kingdom of God. He has special assignments in the affairs of the world and is known as a prince. We will not go further into the work of this third archangel at this time. Suffice it to say that his name is Michael. He is the third archangel. These are the named angels of the bible and they are the highest order of created beings in the dimension of the unseen. We will consider them each in greater depth and as they relate to each other, God, the other angels, and mankind.

The Unseen World: a Biblical Study of Spiritual Dynamics Chapter 3

Chapter 3 The beginning of spiritual insight begins with the most ancient of spirits, referred to in the bible as the “Ancient of Days”. While this term would tend to cause the reader to think of an “old” spirit, it is in reality a means of conveying the sense of eternity to the finite mind of man. Our minds are time oriented so the term Ancient of Days takes us far back in time… even to a place called the beginning. In the first phrase of the bible, this word “beginning” introduces us to God… “In the beginning God…” (Genesis 1:1) We know him as He who was from the beginning. The term “Ancient of Days” alludes to the point at which time began. Time had a starting point and the “Ancient of Days” was there, but that particular point existed in two dimensions… time and eternity. “Time shall be no more” is the cry of the angel in the book of Revelation. The cry at the beginning must have been, “Time shall now begin”. Out of eternity comes one who has seen every moment of time and will see every moment to the end… he is call the “Ancient of Days”. He is God. Jesus declared, “God is a spirit”. The writer of the book of Hebrews referred to God as the father of spirits (Hebrews 12:9). We see then that the world of God is the spirit world; not only is He spirit, but His initial creation was spirit. That creation appeared to be the angelic realm. Although not absolutely provable, it seems angels came before the creation of the physical world. This places the spirit world, which is so mysterious to us, as the first of the creation of God and as such the dominant world. Jesus, in his teaching on prayer, told us to pray that the will of God would be done in earth as it is in heaven. The will of God is done in heaven and prayer is the medium to see the same done on earth. Godly order is present in the heavenly world, but in the earth there is something wrong. To understand what has gone awry a look at the highest order of the angelic realm is needed.

Chapter 2 The Unseen World: a Biblical Study of Spiritual Dynamics

The book of Daniel allows us to peek into the spiritual climate of the last three and a half years before the return of Christ, which is actually the second half of a period of time referred to as “Daniel’s seventieth week”. During this time two witnesses (prophets) will be prophesying with incredible power accompanying their words. During this same time it is prophesied that the “saints” will do exploits in the Spirit. It may be thought, upon a casual reading of the prediction of these events, that these things are just going to happen, but as we look at the dynamics of spiritual works it will be easy to understand why these great events will be taking place. Understanding the objectives of the spirit world, the tactics it uses, and the parameters of operation that restrain it gives to us an ability to “see” a dimension that otherwise would remain a mystery. Seeing will give us a tremendous advantage over our enemy for we will understand his motives, movements, and operations. However, it is not just the enemy we need to understand; for there are forces moving on our behalf as well as those that move against us. God has allowed enough insight in the scripture to equip us with knowledge for the battle. When the topic of the unseen world of the spirit is brought up, too often the discussion becomes an anecdotal discourse of details. Some of this is credible but some is suspect to the wildness of imagination. The scripture, rather than reporting story after story of the spirit world for us to be intrigued by, gives to us a glimpse here and there of things that can be useful in erecting an accurate framework of truth concerning this mysterious subject. This is the approach we will take in considering the spirit world… putting the scriptural puzzle together, while keeping the global view as our primary objective. Sorry, this won’t be an assortment of Ghost stories.

The Unseen World: a Biblical Study of Spiritual Dynamics (Chapter One)

The unseen world of spiritual activity has untold influence over the world and its events. In fact, that which is seen is really a physical response to spiritual activities; which cannot be seen. Few people are aware of the dynamic forces working continually in the world we live in and how they affect every aspect of our lives. When politicians promise change they are only able to make good on their promise if the spiritual conditions of a nation move toward that change first. While most people are aware that a spiritual climate does exist, they are not aware of the almost total influence it exerts on an individual, a family, a region, a nation, and even the world itself. It is imperative for people to understand these forces, as well as their objectives, if they are going to be an influence for good in any age. The age we find ourselves is of utmost significance and we should do all that we can to become aware of the dynamics of spiritual powers that are at work. Indeed, there is war in the heavens as we speak and the outcome of the battles of that war is going to shortly be declared to us in the form of events in our lives. While scriptures do not give lengthy exposés on the subject, there are enough pieces of this spiritual puzzle scattered throughout God’s Word to form a fairly complete framework of understanding in regard to the spiritual realm. An examination of these puzzle pieces, as well as of the overall picture that they reveal, is the purpose of this writing. Hopefully, a heightened awareness of these activities and their effects will cause us to become more dynamic ourselves as we move from the passiveness of religion into the “violence of the Kingdom”. For, “the kingdom of God suffereth violence and the violent take it by force”. May this book be a call to battle for the reserve soldiers of God’s army, who may have found themselves somewhat detached from this violent warfare of unseen kingdoms. It is not time to sit fearfully under the pomegranate tree fretting for an answer (as King Saul did when Goliath bellowed his intimidating daily challenge). It is time to go to the brook to pick up five smooth stones and rush to the challenge of the enemy. It is time to smite him between they eyes with the sure shot of a sling… by the hand of a godly warrior. Who will the Lord call to do exploits? What child of God will answer the call to battle? Where is the David of our day? Where is the Paul of our hour? Are there spiritual minutemen ready to take up the weapons of Holy Ghost battle? …Not physical weapons of man’s war… but spiritual weapons of God’s war? Those that answer the call of God in this last day are those who will see the unseen and will prepare as they accept the challenge that the final days of our age will issue. Lord, open our eyes.