Like a lot of youngsters, I went through a phase of seeking out scary situations. I drove too fast around winding roads, climbed too high on spindly trees, and mouthed off at the class bullies till they responded. There was a certain thrill in pushing the limits, going just a bit too far, terrifying myself. This phase corresponded to an obsession with horror films—for a period of time I sought out every opportunity to frighten myself silly. Largely through scary movies, I was introduced to “the spirit world.”
In lots of horror flicks, “the spirit world” factors in somehow—a demon, ghost, or some kind of otherly-world creature lies at the heart of our fear. The material world creates enough spooky moments for us, but toss in something “spirit-ish-y” and things can get really creepy. It is easy for us to associate the spirit world with something unfamiliar, kind of “off,” odd, and more than a bit scary.
But, of course, that is not the biblical picture. Hollywood might find the spirit world to be a freaky place, but, according to the Bible, the spirit world is God’s world, as much as a part of creation as the earth around us. “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth” (Genesis 1:1). What did God create? Both earth AND heaven—the material world AND the spiritual world. It is natural, I think, for most of us to think of God’s act of creation as making the physical world, and just assuming that the spiritual world, the heavens, were already around. But, before creation there was God and God alone—nothing but Him, including no other spiritual beings. When God began to create, He made both physical and spiritual beings. Where do angels come from? God made them. What about the “heavenly creatures”? From God’s creative power.
And the demons? The devil? Yes, they too exist only because of God’s creation. Taking that which was a gift from the Lord—their existence—the demons rejected God’s love, care, and plan, and they turned against their Creator. In some ways, fear is a good response to these spiritual beings—they represent all that which is so common to us all: rebellion. We should be scared of demons… but, not for fear of what they might do to us, but for fear that we might become like them! The spirit world has its fair share of wickedness, sin, and evil… just like our physical world. In the spiritual world, these wicked beings are demons, following after the pattern of Satan. In the physical world, all too often we are the ones betraying our Creator. Demons are a danger to us, not because they exercise excessive power to make us do evil, but because we are so prone to follow in their footsteps, embracing teachings, actions, and attitudes that lead us away from the love of the Lord.
The Bible is not shy at talking about the existence, the rebellion, or the deceitful work of the evil beings in the spirit world. Demons exist, and they really are out there, working against God’s Kingdom. Of course, that is the point so often missed—the target of demonic activity is God and His plan, we are merely tools that Satan and crowd use to try and undermine God’s redemptive work. In our passage this week, we get some insight into how the demons attack God’s plan, how they strive against us, and the consequences for us who follow Christ. It is a sad, sad picture. But, (and this is a big BUT), but, Paul’s teaching here is not to scare us, his goal is not to make us afraid of the demons. His goal is to encourage us to fight off the demonic influence. And, how are we to do that—through the teaching, the preservation, and the promulgation of the truth! What is true? The Gospel of our Lord. What is real? The goodness of our God. What do we hold to? The love of our Savior. No fear, but steadfast faith, hope, and love. This is how we respond to the temptations of the devil.
For worship this week, read 1 Timothy 4:1-10.
1. What do you think Paul might be referring to in verse 1 with “the Spirit expressly saying…”? Where does the Spirit say that?
2. How do some depart from the faith? Paul lists three or
four different steps. Can you identify with any?
3. Verse 3 details the false teachings that the demons put
forward. Verse 4 provides a counterpoint. Where might there be similar
teachings today? How does the response of verse 4 still provide a good answer
to those false teachings?
4. How should a “good servant of Christ Jesus” respond to
these teachings? What is most important here would you say?
5. What is the danger of “irreverent, silly myths”?
6. Paul provides a contrast between physical training and
godliness training in verses 7-8. How does this parallel reflect on the process
of growing in grace?
