Standing Against the Schemes of the Devil (Ephesians 6.11)

I wonder if Fyodor Dostoevsky’s tale about Jesus’ return might have been inspired by an actual story of Jesus in the synagogue of Capernaum.  In The Brothers Karamazov, the character Ivan Karamazov tells the tale of a Grand Inquisitor who puts Jesus on trial upon His return to earth.  The Inquisitor claims that the Church has improved upon Jesus’ work and no longer needs Him.  This Church, whatever it is, does not need Jesus, does not want Him.  The shocking story Ivan tells is shocking mostly for how true it is in so many contexts, denominations, and local churches.

In Mark’s Gospel, Jesus attends the synagogue of His adopted home in Capernaum and immediately encounters a man possessed by an unclean spirit.  The man—or the unclean spirit in him—cries out, ‘What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth?  Have you come to destroy us?  I know who you are—the Holy One of God’ (Mark 1.23-24).

Beyond the connection in these stories of a religious establishment that not only has no need for Jesus but also sees Him to be the opposition to it is the additional piece in Mark that, immediately in the synagogue Jesus encounters the man with an unclean spirit.  Jesus did not only encounter unclean spirits outside religious establishments but also inside them.  Let’s put it this way, just because someone is in a church, perhaps even regularly attending a church, even the minister of a church, does not mean that he or she cannot be demon possessed.  Of course, anyone demon possessed is not a Christian, but that does not mean he or she cannot be in the church, even lead it.  One might think that demons would not ‘attend church’.  I am of the opinion that unclean spirits have a fondness for church, rather like the cynical person who enjoys heckling a speaker.

I remember after speaking in an Evangelical church in Ethiopia one Sunday encountering a man after most people had departed who was eager to speak with me.  His English was very good—on reflection, troublingly so—and he spoke very fast.  Yet what truly surprised me was his knowledge of Scripture.  He quoted passage after passage, weaving them together, but twisting their meanings and attempting to make some argument against the faith.  A more seasoned missionary managed to bring the encounter to an end, but I left feeling that I may well have encountered someone demon-possessed. 

Some years later, I was asked to teach a series at a Methodist church in the United States.  I had a good-sized class of eager adults, but one man with, I should add, a very dark demeanor, regularly attempted to debate with me.  His concern did not seem to be this or that point so much as to cause disruption and doubt.  I thought that here, too, was a man with an unclean spirit in the church.

My parents’ stories of encountering evil spirits in South Africa sixty or more years ago also included encountering them in church services (cf. Stewards of Grace: A Reflective, Mission Biography of Eugene and Phyllis Grams in South Africa, 1951-1962).  These were often evangelistic services, and those with unclean spirits were not regular ‘church attenders’.  The persons were wonderfully and powerfully delivered from demon possession.  Such encounters were more frenzied.  We have Biblical examples of the same.  Yet the demonic is not always so and is sometimes encountered even as though Satan were a gentleman.  As Paul says,

For such men are false apostles, deceitful workmen, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ. ¹⁴ And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. ¹⁵ So it is no surprise if his servants, also, disguise themselves as servants of righteousness. Their end will correspond to their deeds (2 Corinthians 11.13-15).

I go back to Jesus’ immediate encounter in the Capernaum synagogue with a man who was demon possessed.  In fact, in Mark 1.39, we read, ‘And he went throughout all Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and casting out demons.’  I think it would be safe to say that those demons were regulars in the local synagogues. 

Jesus also warned of false prophets.  Here again we have people presenting themselves as religious—even having religious authority as prophets—who were false.  Jesus said, ‘Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves’ (Matthew 7.15).  The Old Testament, too, speaks of many a false prophet.  The prophets we read mostly about in the Old Testament are true prophets of God, but they seem to be a minority. 

Jesus warns, ‘And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray’ (Matthew 24.11) and ‘For false christs and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect’ (Matthew 24.24).  Peter, looking back at the Old Testament narratives, draws a warning for the Church: ‘But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing upon themselves swift destruction’ (2 Peter 2.1).  John corroborates this view: ‘Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world’ (1 John 4.1).

The warning of false teaching and prophets also extends to individuals making false claims to be Christians.  Jesus says, ‘Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven’ (Matthew 7.21).  Of course, one of Jesus’ close followers—one of the Twelve—was the one who betrayed Him.

One might say that predictions of coming false prophets, teachers, priests, and persons claiming to be religious do not require inspiration so much as observation.  Israel’s canonical history climaxes in the 8^th and 6^th centuries as the northern (‘Israel’) and southern (‘Judah’) kingdom are overrun by invaders as punishment God allowed.  God says,

For the children of Israel and the children of Judah have done nothing but evil in my sight from their youth. The children of Israel have done nothing but provoke me to anger by the work of their hands, declares the LORD. ³¹ This city has aroused my anger and wrath, from the day it was built to this day, so that I will remove it from my sight ³² because of all the evil of the children of Israel and the children of Judah that they did to provoke me to anger—their kings and their officials, their priests and their prophets, the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem. ³³ They have turned to me their back and not their face. And though I have taught them persistently, they have not listened to receive instruction (Jeremiah 32.30-33).

Jeremiah, for that matter, was a true prophet.  For his prophecy, however, ‘the priests and the prophets and all the people laid hold of him, saying, “You shall die!”’ (Jeremiah 26.8).

Again, I am reminded of the Grand Inquisitor.  Israel had come to a point that they—the kings, officials, priests, prophets, and men of Judah—thought that they had things well in hand without God and His instruction.  The government, the religion, and the people found God inconvenient.  The true prophet, the minority of prophets, were rejected.  God did send prophets to warn Israel (Jeremiah 44.4)—we must not imagine a single prophet standing against the whole people.  Yet imagining a minority of people out of a whole religious community as faithful to God is, it seems, one of the major points of Scripture.  Jesus said, ‘Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. ¹⁴ For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few’ (Matthew 7.13-14).

So we come to this summer’s round of ecclesiastical meetings, or ones within the last few years.  The Presbyterian Church (USA)—the failing mainline denomination, not the smaller groups that have broken away—'has passed a measure [441-30] expressing support for body-deforming sex-change surgeries for youth exhibiting gender dysphoria.’

The United Methodist Church, having already removed proscriptions against same-sex marriage and the ordination of LGBT clergy, has this summer rejected Asbury Seminary as a place where clergy may train for ministry.  Asbury’s stated principles on sexuality and marriage affirm historic Christianity and Scripture—marriage is between a man and a woman, and sex is appropriate only in such a marriage. 

The United Church of Christ already declared itself to be ‘open and affirming’ of homosexuality in 1985.  It more recently extended its affirmation to transgenders and nonbinary persons.  Its last General Synod, in 2025, managed to find something else still to say about this topic.  The Synod found a new mission and produced tools to ‘educate themselves and others about how Our Whole Lives and Sexuality and Our Faith’ which are ‘tools for celebrating the sacred embodiment of people of all ages, and how they engage with the intersectional justice issues of reproductive justice, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer/Questioning, Intersex, Asexual, Plus+ (LGBTQIA+) lived experience, racial inequality, and sexual violence’. 

The Church of England continues inexorably toward the same sorry end.  This year’s synod voted on a motion stating 'that it is a legitimate theological perspective to believe that a committed, faithful, intimate same-sex relationship is entirely compatible with Christian discipleship and ministry.’  That such a vote was necessary by an historically orthodox denomination is still troublesome, even after all these years of moral failure.  The closeness of the vote—the motion only just failed—is telling for where the denomination is: bishops: 11 for, 14 against, 4 abstentions; clergy: 93 for, 79 against, 0 abstentions; laity: 101 for, 83 against, 0 abstentions.  The Synod also decided to ‘hear’ a paper alleging that Israel is a colonizer of Palestine and has committed genocide.  The Church of England is an old man on a littered beach trying to surf the waves of culture.

The Evangelical [sic] Lutheran Church in America is another mainline denomination, declining like the rest, that has previously affirmed gender theory and sexuality opposed in Scripture and historic Christianity.  In recent years, it has doubled-down on its commitment to unbiblical ethics.  Its approach to this includes an affirmation of the postmodern values of diversity, equity, and inclusion:

a. Diversity is a reality rooted in the variety found in the body of Christ: the wide range of communities and identities related to race, ethnicity, sex, gender, sexuality, age, background, ability, socio-economic status, culture, and perspective.

b. Equity means fair treatment of people according to their needs. The principle of equity takes into account that due to poverty, sexism, racism, and other factors individuals or groups may require different resources and support to ensure that they have the same rights and abilities to make choices as others do.

c. Inclusion means the proactive and meaningful engagement of diverse individuals in all aspects of church life, especially indecision-making processes and leadership roles, creating a church culture of welcome, respect, and value for unique perspectives and abilities.

The ELCA defines diversity as having to do with ‘Persons of diverse gender identities and persons of diverse sexual orientations means individuals who identify beyond the sex and gender binary, individuals whose gender identity may be fluid, and individuals who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, asexual, or other sex, gender, and sexual identities that are more complex than sex, gender’.  To this end, the denomination has a quota system: at least 10% of ‘voting members in the Synod Assembly, Synod Council, committees, and organizational units of this synod’ are to represent ‘historically underrepresented groups’.  Holiness in the Church is not mentioned.  Voting, with representational diversity, establish church governance, even though the Church Council has appointed a ‘task force on interdependence and purpose that will be grounded and rooted in our faith in Jesus Christ and guided by Scripture and our theological discernment as we live into the gospel through the leading of the Spirit’.  The form of Christianity is still present in such a statement even as the ELCA has long since departed from the substance of the faith.  The double-speak of revisionist, mainline denominations, still using Christian language while affirming the culture’s values, might even have confounded the Grand Inquisitor.

Jesus responded to His inquisitors, mocking Him and seeking to kill Him:

Why do you not understand what I say? It is because you cannot bear to hear my word. ⁴⁴ You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies (John 8.43-44).

To be sure, the true people of God, the Church, remains.  It is not the discarded snakeskin of unfaithful denominations that were once alive with the truth.  It is not dead or dying.  It is still a holy people.  It exists where there are faithful followers of Jesus Christ. 

Yet we must also be wary of the concerns stated earlier in this essay: the presence of faithlessness, immorality, and falsity among believers, within the clergy, in Evangelical and orthodox denominations.  Indeed, the warning of this essay is that Satan’s minions do not only wait outside, even at the door, of the church.  They may have their favourite pew.  The lying person, one causing strife, the gossip—possibly using prayer in prayer groups to do so, the immoral man or woman and those ‘affirming’ him or her, the person chasing the latest false teacher or teaching, the minister relaxing truth to gain friends in the church—we have here not only human error but also demonic activity.  Not only does Satan, the Lord of Lies and Twister of Truth, want these to succeed; he also wants their success to weaken the faith of others and shake believers. 

Paul warns the Ephesian elders,

I know that after my departure fierce wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; ³⁰ and from among your own selves will arise men speaking twisted things, to draw away the disciples after them (Acts 20.29-30).

This pertains not only to false teachers in the Church.  It might apply to any in the Church speaking twisted things.  The lying wife, for example, accusing her husband of deplorable but untrue offenses and abuse of all sorts gains sympathy from others in the church.  Believing her, they become partners in falsehood and join in the self-righteous attack of an honourable and righteous man.  She seeks to destroy her husband, not only divorce him, to wrestle the children from him with her lies, to gain sympathy and thereby finally be liked by others.  The minister fails to do his duty, to investigate the truth.  It is always easier to affirm the woman claiming abuse and accuse the man, is it not?  Remember the Judge Kavanaugh hearings, where vague claims, twisted, imagined, and almost certainly false memories from childhood were set forward as evidence?  The minister takes the easy path and seeks only to gain approval from the developing clique in the church.  Believing the madness, he has no pastoral concern for the man’s soul.  The destroyer is prowling through the congregation.  These acts, this Bacchic orchestration of evil, is rightly seen as demonic.  The Father of Lies is pleased. How many similar scenarios present themselves in our churches, not just the heretical denominations? 

Paul, calling for the church to have unity and peace in Christ, warns against corrupting talk that does not build up, bitterness, wrath, anger, clamour, slander, and malice (Ephesians 4.29-31).  He warns, ‘give no opportunity to the devil’ (Ephesians 4.27).  Peter wrote to the churches, ‘Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour’ (1 Peter 5.8).  James, warning against friendship with the world, says,

Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. ⁸ Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. ⁹ Be wretched and mourn and weep (James 4.7-9).

Remember, upon entering the synagogue, Jesus immediately encountered a man with an unclean spirit.

Paul speaks to the Ephesian church, telling them to stand against the schemes of the devil by putting on the whole armor of God (Ephesians 6.11).  He then describes this armor: the belt of truth, he breastplate of righteousness, shoes of readiness given by the Gospel of peace, the shield of faith that extinguishes the flaming darts of the evil one, the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, the Word of God, along with praying at all times in the Spirit (Ephesians 6.14-18).  In Ephesians, Paul talks about cosmic, earthly, human, ecclesiastical, family, and person conflicts as spiritual battles won in Christ.  The battle is not simply the Church versus a sinful world out there but also the schemes of the devil reaching into the Church, our churches, and our families.  It is fought in Church synods, on church councils, in classes, among others claiming to be Christians, and in our closest relationships.  We are therefore to fight the battle of faith in all these battlegrounds with truth, righteousness, the Gospel of peace, faith, salvation, the Spirit-inspired Word of God, and prayer at all times.  We do not fight alone.  Our Lord Jesus Christ is seated in the heavenly places at God's right hand.  He has conquered death itself, having immeasurable power toward us.  And He is 'head over all things to the church'--the true Church (Ephesians 1.19-23).  The Church does indeed need Him, for it is His body, 'the fullness of Him who fills all in all' (v. 23).