Vital reading on the spiritual battles we are involved in:
The Bible clearly teaches that God exists, that Satan exists, that angels exist, and that demons exist. There is a spiritual world that is all around us, and it has a massive impact on all that we do, think and say. Given that God and Satan are at war with each other, and given that angels and demons are at war with each other, it should come as no surprise that believers are caught in the crossfire.
But some Christians might be a bit squeamish here, claiming we should not draw attention to the devil, demons, and the like. Well, the Bible draws attention to them, and so should we. Spiritual beings, both good and evil, exist, and the Christian needs to be aware of them.
How we understand how this spiritual war impacts us can be a matter of some debate. Can a Christian be impacted by demons? Maybe even possessed by demons? How do we stand against the forces of darkness? What about things like exorcism? And what do we know about angels and demons?
Plenty of questions arise here. As such, plenty of books have been written on these matters over the years. I cannot mention them all, but I can try to mention some of the ones that I found to be helpful. Here then are 50 volumes that do a good job of covering these various issues:
Anderson, Neil, The Bondage Breaker. Harvest House, 1993.
Anderson, Neil and Timothy Warner, The Beginner’s Guide to Spiritual Warfare. Regal, 2000.
Arnold, Clinton, Three Crucial Questions about Spiritual Warfare. Baker, 1997.
Arnold, Clinton, Powers of Darkness: Principalities and Powers in Paul’s Letters. IVP, 1992.
Beeke, Joel, Fighting Satan. Reformation Heritage, 2015.
Beekmann, Sharon and Peter Bolt, Silencing Satan. Wipf and Stock, 2012.
Beilby James and Paul Rhodes Eddy, Understanding Spiritual Warfare: Four Views. Baker, 2012.
Bolt, Peter, ed., Christ’s Victory Over Evil. IVP, 2009.
Bubeck, Jerry, The Adversary: The Christian Versus Demon Activity. Moody, 2013.
Cole, Graham, Against the Darkness: The Doctrine of Angels, Satan, and Demons. Crossway, 2019.
Cook, William and Chuck Lawless, Spiritual Warfare in the Storyline of Scripture: A Biblical, Theological, and Practical Approach. B&H, 2019.
Dickason, C. Fred, Angels Elect and Evil. Moody, 1975, 1995.
Evans, Tony, Victory in Spiritual Warfare: Outfitting Yourself for the Battle. Harvest House, 2011.
Ferdinando, Keith, The Message of Spiritual Warfare. IVP, 2016.
Gilhooly, John, 40 Questions About Angels, Demons, and Spiritual Warfare. Kregel, 2018.
Graham, Billy, Angels: God’s Secret Agents. Doubleday, 1975.
Green, Michael, I Believe in Satan’s Downfall. Eerdmans, 1981.
Harper, Michael, Spiritual Warfare. Hodder & Stoughton, 1970.
Heiser, Michael, Angels: What the Bible Really Says About God’s Heavenly Host. Lexham Press, 2018.
Heiser, Michael, Demons: What the Bible Really Says About the Powers of Darkness. Lexham Press, 2020.
Heiser, Michael, Supernatural: What the Bible Teaches About the Unseen World – and Why It Matters. Lexham Press, 2015.
Heiser, Michael, The Unseen Realm: Recovering the Supernatural Worldview of the Bible. Lexham Press, 2015.
Ingram, Chip, The Invisible War: What Every Believer Needs to Know about Satan, Demons, and Spiritual Warfare. Baker, 2005, 2015.
Jeremiah, David, The Spiritual Warfare Answer Book. Thomas Nelson, 2016.
Koch, Kurt, Demonology Past and Present. Kregel, 1973.
Koch, Kurt, Satan’s Devices. Kregel, 1978.
Kohl, Ronald, ed., Our Ancient Foe. P&R, 2019.
Kraft, Charles, Defeating Dark Angels: Breaking Demonic Oppression in the Believer’s Life. Regal, 1992.
Kraft, Charles, The Evangelical’s Guide to Spiritual Warfare. Chosen Books, 2015.
Kreeft, Peter, Angels and Demons. Ignatius, 1995.
Lane, Anthony, ed., The Unseen World: Christian Reflections on Angels, Demons and the Heavenly Realm. Baker, 1996.
Leahy, Frederick, Satan Cast Out. Banner of Truth, 1975.
Lewis, C. S., The Screwtape Letters. Macmillan, 1944.
Logan, Jim, Reclaiming Surrendered Ground: Protecting Your Family from Spiritual Attacks. Moody, 2016.
Lutzer, Erwin, The Serpent of Paradise: The Incredible Story of How Satan’s Rebellion Serves God’s Purposes, republished as God’s Devil. Moody, 1996, 2015.
MacArthur, John, God, Satan and Angels. Word of Grace, 1983.
Mayhue, Richard, Unmasking Satan. Kregel, 1998.
Murphy, Ed, Handbook on Spiritual Warfare. Thomas Nelson, 1992.
Noll, Stephen, Angels of Light, Powers of Darkness. IVP, 1998.
Oropeza, B. J., 99 Answers to Questions about Angels, Demons & Spiritual Warfare. IVP, 1997.
Page, Sydney, Powers of Evil: A Biblical Study of Satan and Demons. Baker, 1995.
Powlison, David, Power Encounters: Reclaiming Spiritual Warfare. Revell, 1994.
Prince, Derek, Victory in Spiritual Warfare: Outfitting Yourself for the Battle. 1987, 2011.
Rhodes, Ron, Spiritual Warfare in the End Times. Harvest Prophecy, 2020.
Spurgeon, C. H., Spurgeon on Prayer & Spiritual Warfare. Whitaker House, 1998.
Storms, Sam, Understanding Spiritual Warfare. Zondervan, 2021.
Unger, Merrill, Biblical Demonology. Scripture Press, 1952.
Unger, Merrill, Demons in the World Today. Tyndale, 1973.
Warner, Timothy, Spiritual Warfare. Crossway, 1991.
Williams, Peter, The Case for Angels. Paternoster, 2006.
As always, when I mention a kazillion titles – or 50 – some folks will be a bit overwhelmed, and might ask me to narrow things down a bit. Well, maybe these authors would be well worth starting with: Anderson, Arnold, Heiser, Murphy and Storms.
Let me finish with just four brief quotes on all this:
“If once the curtain were pulled back, and the spiritual world behind it came to view, it would expose to our spiritual vision a struggle so intense, so convulsive, sweeping everything within its range, that the fiercest battle fought on earth would seem, by comparison, a mere game. Not here, but up there – that is where the real conflict is engaged. Our earthly struggle drones in its backlash.” Abraham Kuyper
“Where are you? You are in enemy country, a stranger and an alien. The world is not your friend. If it is, then you are not God’s friend, for whoever is the friend of the world is the enemy of God. Be certain that you will find enemies everywhere. When you sleep, remember that you are resting on the battlefield; when you travel, suspect an ambush in every hedge.” Charles Spurgeon
“We alone, as Christians, understand what is wrong with the world. We see powers and principalities, the rulers of the darkness of this world, behind the visible and seen phenomena, and we see perplexed politicians trying to deal with the problems, and failing. We know they must fail because they do not see what is at the back of it all. We see it as the conflict between heaven and hell.” Martyn Lloyd-Jones
“The primary battle is a spiritual battle in the heavenlies. But this does not mean, therefore, that the battle we are in is otherworldly or outside of human history. It is a real spiritual battle, but it is equally a battle here on earth in our own country, our own communities, our places of work and our schools, and even our own homes. The spiritual battle has its counterpart in the visible world, in the minds of men and women, and in every area of human culture. In the realm of space and time the heavenly battle is fought on the stage of human history.” Francis Schaeffer
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