It’s like there’s a virus in the system that we just can’t seem to shake.
The scripture’s understanding of the battle between good and evil began to explain a good deal of what I was feeling inside of me as a leader, but also around me in relationships, in culture, and even, sometimes, in the church.Īgain… please don’t hear extremism in what I am saying. But even if you’re skeptical about evil, you might also have noticed that we do live in a strange world, with headlines that depress, good leaders that get derailed, people that struggle against each other and against themselves.
Suddenly passages that seemed arcane (like for example, the references in Ephesians to evil, or Jesus’ very real struggle to stay faithful to his Father) began to pop off the page. My time in ministry has changed my perspective. I just had no idea how any of that worked nor did I feel I had any experience with it. But reading passages about evil felt like I was reading about some other time or place. Before I entered ministry I believed what the scriptures taught about evil and Satan because, well, I had confidence in the authority of scripture.
