You do not need to watch many progammes or films set in the early 1940’s when one of the characters will make the remark - "Don’t you know that there is a war on?". Talk about stating the obvious, but in a very real sense, the war could be forgotten - overlooked, and this was the danger. Indeed that other favourite expression - "Loose lips Sink Ships" is also a reminder that the enemy is never to far away, and the danger is that he looks just like us.

We read in the sixth chapter of the letter to the Ephesians, "Put on the whole armour of God, so that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For our struggle is not against enemies of blood and flesh, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armour of God, so that you may be able to withstand on that evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm"

These are no words of comfort, but of warning - If you like a reminder that there is a war on. In one of the TV promotions for the film that will be shown this evening, there is the quote - ‘All the devil has to do to succeed is to convince the world that he does not exist’. True words for if we assume there is no battle we will not fight and the enemy will have a field day.

This Morning, I would like to take up the topic of Spiritual Warfare, although this is quite unpopular these days. Hymns like ‘Onward Christian Soldiers’ and Stand up, Stand up for Jesus’ are out of favour as they are to militaristic - indeed we no longer speak of the church militant. We would rather see things in terms of Peace and Love - that is the legacy of the sixties. Our gospel reading this morning, is a reminder to us that there is more to the world than just the material things that we see, and that our Lord, on many occasions, engaged the battle in the spiritual realms and won. Indeed in the case of the demonic, our Lord took on the powers of darkness to free the man, who was so tragically enslaved.

Needless to say, this is probably a fair indictment of our Western world view, where to believe in Evil and evil forces has become unfashionable. Evil does not exist as an entity, but rather bad things are the result of either misfortune or misadventure. Somehow, we have replaced the activity of evil, with a world view that says - Hitler is just the victim of his upbringing - his behaviour can all be accounted for in terms of parental mismanagement.

It is in the attitude to the spiritual realm that there is the sharpest contrast between the Western world and the African understanding of the world. We, in all our sophistication have explained away evil in terms of the material, natural world, and act for the most part as if there is no spiritual realm at all. Commentators like William Barclay turn all sorts of mental gymnastics to explain away the super natural and to deny the miracles of Jesus.

By contrast, the African world view is that the earth is the battle ground for spiritual forces, good and evil are in constant battle, and humanity, can become part of the collateral damage, as the kingdom of darkness battles the kingdom of light.

Now it is important to understand that it is the African thinking that pervades Scripture. When Daniel prayed, the Angel explained his delay in these terms -

Similarly, the passages in Revelation describe Battles in Heaven. Even in the prayer which Jesus taught us, we us the petition - Deliver us from Evil.

If we are to believe that Scripture is given to us by the hand of God. It is inspired by the spirit of God, If you like God breathed, then we must assume that that which has been recorded for us in the Gospels, is there for a purpose. In our study of God’s word, then, we are charged with the responsibility of finding out the message in the passage. We must resist the temptation, to accept only those parts which conveniently fit our world view, and dismiss those which challenge the way we look at the world as either irrelevant or in need of interpretation in the light of modern experience.

Many modern interpreters like to avoid this passage, and seek to explain the demoniacs predicament in terms of some type of mental illness. Or perhaps to focus on the parts of the passage that don’t presuppose the belief in evil. Yet if we are to be true to the text, we see portrayed Jesus in a power encounter with the forces of evil. We see the Lord challenging the evil that is binding the man, and with his power and authority, freeing him from it.

Our starting point, in reading this story must be that there is the presence of evil forces - demons to personify them, and that these are working against human freedom.

Now let us start from the beginning that there is a need for a distinction here. In one of his sketches, the comedian Bill Cosby defends his actions as a child with the words that ‘The Devil made me do it" - He of course was not to blame, it was the Devil that was at fault, and sadly he is not able to own up to his own misdeeds.

In as much as it is easy for us to seek to deny the pressure of evil forces in this world, there is another response that is equally in appropriate. We can seek to see all things in term of the spiritual battle. Some Christians have responded, seeing everything in terms of evil forces. Actions are interpreted in terms of ‘the devil made me do it’ rather than recognising the power of human beings to make bad choices. Sin, humanities choice to disobey God is much a part the bad things that happen, as the activity of the evil one. If we fail to recognise the presence of sin and human free choice, then in seeking to deal with sin, we will deny it and seek to drive it out evil. A wise saying to remember is that ‘you cannot exorcise a sin nor repent of a demon’ and it is important to be able to tell the difference. Often we have seen in the past, misguided actions by some Christian groups seeking to exorcise that which was not evil. Often, the result is catastrophic.

But there is something more than just Sin. When we step back and look there is an irrational misbehaviour perhaps best seen in things like compulsive drinking, eating or gambling, where the control is not in the hands of the victim - But also in the cases where the person is prevented from moving forward in the faith by irrational attitudes or blindness to new truth. Not all these things are of the devil, but I am cautious enough now to be aware that the battle is not in the natural, but in the spiritual realm. We must pray that God will give us the discernment to recognise these things and the wisdom of how to handle them.

Perhaps you are thinking, that this has no place in the Anglican church, but do you remember the Prayer that follows the promises of candidates in baptism - Almighty God, deliver you from the powers of darkness and lead you in the light of Christ to his everlasting Kingdom. A simple exorcism, asking God’s hand on peoples to protect those who are taking this step of faith.

We must learn to look at things with Spiritual Eyes. The man and the man Jesus, were not in the encounter as much as was the engagement in the spiritual realm. The demons not only recognised the spirit of Jesus but his authority. Indeed the whole response of the demons who had so much power of the demoniac in the physical world responded: "What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg you, do not torment me" and They begged him not to order them to go back into the abyss. and the demons begged Jesus to let them enter the herd of swine.

The men of village could not subdue the man, but Jesus used the spiritual powers to defeat the demons, and the man was not as much subdued but liberated.

Now this is scary stuff, particularly when we find it difficult to accept the existence of spiritual powers and more so, that there power is nothing against the authority of Jesus. The men of the village were afraid and sought to remove Jesus, lest they themselves were to be drawn it the spiritual battle ground.

Our reading then is a reminder not to dismiss the possibility of spiritual battles but it is not a mandate to see everything in those terms. As Christians then, we must live with a sort of Dualism, seeing things both in the physical world and in the spiritual world as well. We need to be aware that "our struggle is not against enemies of blood and flesh, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places." Our calling as God People is to stand against these things, with the weapons of Prayer, that we might not be defeated. Jesus’ action in Gesarene, shows us that his authority will defeat the forces of evil and liberate the captive. In as much as we wish to proclaim the Gospel we also called to stand against the evil that has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. Indeed, there is our calling to both, that we might hasten coming of the kingdom.

Prayer then is our most powerful weapon, but it seems that we are most reluctant to use it. Prayer meetings are the least popular of church events, and prayer seems to be the thing that is given the time left over, rather than the focus of our activity. Our reading this morning should be a call for us return to prayer, to join in the battle to claim our city for Christ from evil forces. Our calling as Christians is to liberate those are held in bondage that they might be able to hear and respond to God’s liberating love.

Today, let us renew our commitment to join in this battle. I am not talking here of something major, but a small starting point. Let us begin where we are. Let us look around where we live and pray for our neighbours with the authority of Jesus, that they might be liberated from any evil. Let us begin the process of the proclamation of the Gospel with the weapons of prayer. Let us begin the battle on our knees.

Let us pray.

Father God, give us a commitment to stand against the forces of darkness with the weapons of prayer. Protect us in the Battle and help us to make time for prayer in our busy lives, and allow us to recognise when evil is attacking us and others. Father, Deliver us from evil.