“Then he continued, “Do not be afraid, Daniel. Since the first day that you set your mind to gain understanding and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard, and I have come in response to them. But the prince of the Persian kingdom resisted me twenty-one days. Then Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, because I was detained there with the king of Persia.”
Daniel 10:12-13/NIV
Passages in the Bible reflect Satan’s work and the demonic influence imposed upon humanity. Satan has been given dominion and control over the earth and is steadfastly at work seeking to foil God’s plans. Satan is clearly aware of the work God’s faithful souls are involved with while carrying out the work set in place for them to do. As Satan feels threatened, he and his demonic minions are always battling God’s workers seeking to impede their progress. Knowing this, we need to continually be on the lookout and prepared for Satan’s schemes!
In Daniel 10, passages reflect him having a vision that was of concern to him. He humbled himself and started praying to God for understanding about this vision. In earlier passages in Daniel, he prayed to God, seeking understanding regarding a concern, and God’s response arrived immediately. However, in Daniel 10:12-13, we see that it took 21 days for God’s response to reach Daniel. Satan did not want God’s message to get through to Daniel, and an angelic–demonic battle took place. There is more going on around us than we understand!
Looking further in Daniel 10, the messenger angel informs Daniel that he will have to depart to continue the battle against Satan’s demonic forces. That is sobering to learn of the angelic – demonic warfare that is going on around us, which we have no knowledge of. Though the Bible does provide teaching that Satan can influence humanity, and perhaps when bad things are happening, the adversities are a clue! John 13:27 tells us Satan entered into Judas, one of many aspects leading to him betraying Jesus Christ.
Who is our biggest foe? It is easy to view humanity as the biggest adversary considering all the discontent going on around the world. However, according to the Bible, Satan is the greater threat! As Satan entered into Judas, leading to his betrayal of Jesus Christ, Satan and his demonic forces can also adversely influence us. When doing the Lord’s work while faced with demonic resistance, do so with confidence: “God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble” (Psalm 46:1/NIV). When fierce battles are raging around us, what greater support could we have than this? Amen!
Many blessings to you!
Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture is taken from the New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
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