In the Old Testament we are told that the most magnificent angel God ever created was Lucifer, meaning “son of the morning.”  God placed him in charge of the most beautiful planet in the universe–earth.  He then assigned one-third of His angels to assist Lucifer in caring for the earth.  Then, at some point in time, sin was “found in him.”  Lucifer developed ambition, not to be the most holy of God’s angels, but to replace Him as owner of the earth and the universe that surrounds it.  He convinced his angelic helpers to join him in his attempted takeover of God’s creation.  Lucifer led his angelic army from earth to the highest part of the northern heavens where God’s throne is located.  Lucifer was intent on removing God from His throne and occupying it himself.  The war that ensued created havoc throughout the universe, which explains the barrenness of the planets.  Pictures from man’s space vehicles reveal that they remain in a state of tohu and bohu, meaning barren and waste (Gen. 1:2) to this day.  God did not create the planets and the earth tohu and bohu (Isa. 45:18).  They came to be be empty, barren wastelands as a result of Lucifer’s (Satan’s) rebellion.  As a result of the war the earth came to be covered in water.

As a result of his attempted coup, Satan and his angelic army were cast back down to the earth’s atmosphere, meaning the heaven that extends from ground level to ten thousand feet upward.  In this area of heaven man and other earthly creations can operate without added oxygen.  As Jeremiah tells us, earth’s heaven is where birds fly and build their nests.  Now it is also where man can fly in his open air flying machines.  What Satan and his devils (demonia–demons) have been doing since being cast down to earth’s atmosphere is  directly involved with the subject of this series.

The Apostle Paul writes about these powerful angelic beings and how they interact with mankind in Ephesians 6:12 where he tells us that God’s people are in a life and death struggle with those beings and their powerful influence on those who allow them to control their lives–the vass majority of mankind.  He tells us that in the saint’s struggle against temptation, “We do not war against flesh and blood, but against principalities and powers, against the rulers of the darkness of the world, AGAINST SPIRITUAL WICKEDNESS IN HIGH PLACES.”  In 2:2 he writes that before coming to the Lord we all “walked according to the course of the world, according to THE PRINCE OF THE POWERS OF THE AIR THAT CONTINUE TO WORK IN THE LIVES OF SINNERS.”  This includes church sinners who call themselves “sinners saved by grace.”

In Isaiah 59:2 God is speaking to ancient Israel then and the church–“the Israel of God” (Gal. 6:16)–now.  In this passage He is warning all who call themselves God’s people that sin will separate them from Him and cause Him to hide His face from them so that He can’t hear their prayers.  This explains why most church prayers go unanswered–HE DOES NOT HEAR THEM and, being hated by church sinners (Deut. 5:9)/ Ps. 81:13-15/ Rom. 1:30), He in turn hates them (Ps. 5:5;).  Read Hatred Toward God.  Key word–Hatred.  Note that in every case, the authors are writing about those who claim to be children of the Biblical God.  THE BIBLE WAS WRITTEN TO, FOR AND ABOUT THOSE PEOPLE.  Gentiles (heathen) are mentioned only when they come into contact with either ancient Israel or the modern day church.

The “spiritual wickedness (fallen angels) in high places,” who are led by the “prince of the powers (demons) of the air” are assigned by their prince (Satan): TO TEMP MAN, INCLUDING CHURCHMAN, TO SIN.  Sin is the “great equalizer.”  Sinners, whether churched or unchurched, are all the same in God’s eyes–evil–and have the same spiritual father (Satan).  The Apostle John declares this Truth in no uncertain terms in First John 3:1-10.  Here he is writing to his “dearly beloved” (the church–his “little children” 2:1), telling them about God’s love for them, about their hope of salvation and about keeping themselves pure as Christ is pure in order to receive that eternal blessing.  He reminds them that sin is the breaking of the Law, and that Jesus came to remove sin from His people permanently because “in Him (Jesus) there is no sin.”  True saints are “in Him.”  John tells his converts that those who abide in Christ do not sin, and that those who claim to be in Him but continue to sin “have neither seen Him nor known Him.”  Sinning proves that they are not “in Him” though they claim to be.  John explains that “THOSE WHO DO RIGHTEOUSNESS (OBEY HIM) ARE RIGHTEOUS AS CHRIST IS RIGHTEOUS.”  THEY WHO SIN “ARE OF THE DEVIL.”  WHOSOEVER IS BORN OF GOD DOES NOT SIN FOR HIS “SEED” (WORD–1 Jn. 2:18) REMAINS IN HIM DUE TO CONTINUOUS STUDY OF HIS WORD.  Verse 10 tells us that true children of God are known for DOING RIGHTEOUSNESS (OBEYING GOD’S WORD).  WHOEVER DOES NOT OBEY GOD (DO RIGHTEOUSNESS) IS NOT RIGHTEOUS AND THEREFORE NOT A CHILD OF GOD, NOT IN CHRIST AND NOT CONVERTED.  The Lord warns us that OBEYING HIM WILL CAUSE THE WORLD TO HATE US (1 Jn. 3:13).  Of the people of the world, the worldly church harbors the greatest hatred toward the righteous children of God.

Sinners are those who do not reject the impulses sent to them by “the powers (demons) of the air” whose assignment is to tempt God’s people to sin.  Sin is the result of one spiritually giving in to their temptations.  Sin separates the sinner from God, leaving a spiritual void in the sinner’s heart, resulting in spiritual weakness.  Because of this weakness, sin fills the void in response to demonic attack.  When one gives in to the temptation, one sins, thereby opening him up to more temptation and more sin.  Sin begets sin, which creates a desire for more sin.  Only more sin can satisfy the sinner’s desire.  Like a drug addict, more sin is needed to satisfy his growing desire which sin provides.

Because God does not immediately curse him. the church sinner grows farther and farther away from God without knowing it.  This phenomenon, augmented by the false church’s “Jesus loves you just the way you are.”  This lie, along with the supposed “truth” that Adam’s sin transferal miracle makes sin inevitable, leads the weak church member into a deadly state of being.  Supposedly riding high, the church sinner believes that he is the center of God’s will.  In some cases people have been martyred by those who believe that they are serving the Biblical God.  A perfect example is the Catholic Inquisition in which some 50 million people were murdered in the name of God.  Spurred on by Satan’s demons, those murderers “knew” that they were doing God’s will.

Two statements made by people I know perfectly sum up the church’s “Sin and grin my friend, for in the end you’ll still win” theology.  My mother was talking with a super-religious friend when mom said something about sin.  Our friend’s response was classic church “truth.”  She said, “Don’t worry about sin; God will forgive you.”  In another case the son of a preacher, when confronted about his sinning ways, replied that he was not concerned because, “Daddy will get me in,” meaning into heaven.  These people voiced the classic church mind-set–“Pie in the sky, sin till you die, for in the sweet bye and bye, you’ll still get to fly.”  Revelation 12:9 sums it up: “Satan has deceived the whole world.”

Truly, spiritual powers from on high are working in the world’s people, tempting them to spiritually follow their (the demons’) spiritual lead.  Where one’s spirit leads, one’s body follows.  Sin is spiritual and committed in the mind.  What happens afterward simply adds to the sin.  As I stated in a previous series, Adam and Eve sinned before leaving on their walk to the center of the garden where the forbidden fruit awaited.  Eating the fruit was external proof of a sin that had taken place internally.

How man’s problems are connected to the “powers of the air” will be addressed in the following posting.  L.J.