Suffering and the Kingdom (2) - Defeating the Powers

God intends to defeat the principalities and power through his church.

His intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms,according to his eternal purpose that he accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord (Eph 3:10,11).

The church will defeat the spiritual powers, but the process is not what we expect. Jesus achieved his greatest victory when he suffered and died on the cross. The powers of evil will not be defeated by force, but by suffering. When the church gets serious about suffering, the Holy Spirit is released to drive out the evil powers.

The fruit of the Holy Spirit is peace, so peace can overcome anger and wrath.

A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger (Prov 15:1).

When we respond to evil with anger, we stir up more anger, which grieves the Holy Spirit and releases the powers of evil. When Christians give in to anger and hate, spirits of anger and hatred gain control of the people they are resisting.