II. Major Strongholds (Principalities) of Satan – Part 2A:
A. There are seven (7) major strongholds (principalities) that the devil uses against us: bitterness, self-bitterness, jealousy and envy, rejection, fear, unbelief, and the occult. In this message, I will be discussing the principalities of bitterness and self-bitterness since these has to do with unforgiveness the most. The devil takes these seven strongholds and builds principalities; each principality is made up of so many demons. You might ask, “What is bitterness?” Bitterness is satan’s wild card. A wild card is a card that can be substituted for any other card in the deck. Even though it has no power of its own, it assumes the power of the card for which it is substituting. So it is with bitterness. It can bring any number of troubles, depending on which one it uses to accomplish its purpose. Its purpose is to ultimately destroy faith, ours and that of others around us.
Bitterness drives divorce, heart disease and digestive problems. Bitterness is an extreme form of anxiety and stress which affects every organ in our bodies. Most organic diseases are tied to bitterness, including cancer. All of the auto-immune diseases are tied to self- bitterness.
B. Hierarchy of Satan – Part 2B: There are differing levels of authority and power in satan's realm. Each specific evil spirit answers to another spirit higher up the line of authority. Just below satan in this pecking order are his principalities. It is through this hierarchy of evil spirits and principalities that Satan continually seeks to draw us into captivity, taking control of our lives. The evil spirit who presides at each step up in the hierarchy of a principality is more evil than the ones below him. Let’s look at Luke 11:24-26: 24 “When an unclean spirit goes out of a man, he goes through dry places, seeking rest; and finding none, he says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came.’ 25 And when he comes, he finds it swept and put in order. 26 Then he goes and takes with him seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter and dwell there; and the last state of that man is worse than the first.”
The original house refers to mankind — us. Even if we are "empty and swept clean,” the evil spirits try to come back, and bring along seven more who are even more evil than the one who left. To prevent these spirits from moving in, we must be continually filled up with God's Word, and the knowledge of God, "precept upon precept, line upon line" (Isaiah 28:10). Being filled with God's Spirit is the antidote to Satan’s ploys. When that evil spirit comes knocking on the door of our minds with a feeling, a thought, or a mental picture - seeking to lead us back into captivity we need to rebuke him.
Now, let’s look at Luke 11:21-22: 21 “When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own palace, his goods are in peace. 22 But when a stronger than he comes upon him and overcomes him, he takes from him all his armor in which he trusted, and divides his spoils.” The strong man referred to here is one of Satan's principalities. He is armed. What does this mean? The Greek word means to fully equip with armor. The strong man is fully equipped, and this brings him peace. The one stronger is Jesus. Since we have been granted Christ's power and authority, we also are the one stronger. As the one stronger, through Jesus, we will strip the strong man (the principality) of all his armor; once that happens, that principality must flee because he will be left standing naked and weak, unable to war against us.
May the peace of God guard your hearts and minds ALWAYS!!!
Dr. Dorothy E. Hooks
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