Pastor Jack Hibbs is warning Christians that spiritual warfare is not a distant theological concept. It is a present battle taking place in homes, churches, communities and individual lives.
The demonic strategy, Hibbs explained, often operates through ordinary temptations, destructive addictions and the dangerous belief that Satan is not real. Pornography, gambling, drugs, materialism, witchcraft and occult practices can become spiritual traps that give darkness greater influence.
“The authority of Jesus Christ is supreme,” Hibbs said, stressing that the battle between good and evil is not a contest between equal powers.
“Jesus is not battling it out with Lucifer,” he said. “Jesus is uncreated. Satan is created.”
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Christians Can Face Demonic Oppression
Hibbs said Satan’s authority over believers is limited because Christians belong to Jesus Christ. Everything permitted to touch our lives, he said, must first be “father filtered.”
Although Christians cannot be demon-possessed, Hibbs said believers can experience demonic oppression and suppression.
“Christians cannot be possessed, but Christians can be oppressed,” he said.
That oppression can involve confusion, temptation, emotional turmoil, unexplained heaviness and spiritual resistance. Suppression, Hibbs explained, occurs when the enemy launches attacks intended to derail Christians from their God-given mission.
Prayer is one of our most powerful weapons in this spiritual battle. Hibbs pointed to Daniel’s prayers and the conflict between angelic and demonic forces described in the book of Daniel.
“There is a war that breaks out in the atmosphere, in the spirit realm,” Hibbs said. “The light realm and the dark realm collide because Daniel’s praying.”
Close Every Door to Darkness
Hibbs warned that occult practices such as clairvoyance, channeling, witchcraft and spiritism expose people to demonic influence. He also described pornography as a “Trojan horse” that Satan uses to capture minds through lust and addiction.
“Pornography, drugs, hallucinogenics, power, authority — all this stuff. It’s just a hook,” Hibbs said. “Satan knows exactly how we work.”
His answer is decisive repentance. Christians battling habitual sin must remove access to temptation, even when doing so requires drastic personal sacrifice.
Spiritual warfare is not reserved for pastors or deliverance ministers. Every believer is already standing on the battlefield.
“The Christian knows that they are constantly engaged in the dark realm,” Hibbs said.
Satan’s methods may be growing more subtle, but his authority remains limited. Jesus Christ has already defeated sin, death and darkness, and Revelation declares the enemy’s final destination. We do not face spiritual warfare with fear. We stand beneath the unmatched authority of Christ.
James Lasher, a seasoned writer and editor at Charisma Media, combines faith and storytelling with a journalism background from Otterbein University and ministry experience in Guatemala and at the LA Dream Center. A Marine Corps and Air Force veteran, he is the author of The Revelation of Jesus: A Common Man’s Commentary and a contributor to Charisma magazine. For interviews and media inquiries, please contact [email protected].
