Enemies Unseen
For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual [forces] of wickedness in the heavenly [places]. (Ephesians 6:12 – NASB)
I am indebted to a friend, Bill Chipman, whom I have not seen for around forty years, for opening my eyes to a cardinal truth.
In essence he said, “Never see another person as your enemy. The enemy may be using them, but they are not the enemy – they are themselves victims being manipulated to cause you harm.” Or words to that effect.
We are not fighting against flesh and blood, the apostle tells us. Our real struggle is against the forces of darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. There is a real battle going on in places unseen, between the powers of darkness and the powers of light.
We need to ally ourselves on the side of the angels, and we can do this by prayer, but we must not align ourselves against those human agents who hurt us. Every one of them is someone for whom Christ died.
The prayer Jesus Christ prayed while suffering on the Cross, is a good prayer to emulate:
But Jesus was saying, “Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing.” (Luke 23:34a – NASB)
(Saturday March 22nd 2002)
“An enemy has done this,”
Said the Master to his men,
When the tares were sewn amongst the wheat
And the crop was threatened — when
The servants found their labour
Would not easily yield their fruit,
And the truth would not prevail soon
Without conflict and dispute.
Joshua, too, discovered
That the battle down below
Was intense and filled with danger
As any mortal man could know.
The swords were real and blood spilled
On the field before his eyes,
And the enemy would never
Give in, or compromise
These are lessons and they’re pictures
Of the conflict you and I
Are engaged in every moment
With forces, low and high.
And though we cannot see them
In the realms of time and space,
The only way to fight them
Is by God’s Amazing Grace.
There are those who think that Satan
Is a myth or folk tale told —
Not real, but well-imagined
By the infirm and the old.
But they’ll find when life is over,
And the sand of time runs out,
That the Liar of all ages
Is no Fiend to Joke about.
Yes, the child of God can triumph
Against the enemy of souls.
He can undermine his tactics
And frustrate all his goals.
And yet the battle rages,
And the saints of God must fight;
Resist the prince of darkness
To come out into the Light.
Please visit My website: www.christophershennan.ca
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Michael Casts Out Rebel Angels (1866) by Gustave Dore. This image is in the public domain. Description: Illustration for John Milton’s “Paradise Lost.”
Gems of Discovery - Nuggets of Truth 
