How Spiritual Warfare Can Hinder Our Prayers Daniel 10,1 Thessalonians 2:18

In this article I want to share with you how spiritual warfare from your spiritual enemy can block the answer to your prayers. Have you ever felt like something was blocking your prayers?  It feels as if there is something or someone that is between us and God and our prayers don’t get to him or our answers don’t get to us. There is some truth to that feeling. It is not that your prayers don’t get to God, it is that your enemy attempts to block the answer getting to you!

Daniel 10:12-14 “Then he said to me, “Do not fear, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart to understand, and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard; and I have come because of your words.  But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me twenty-one days; and behold, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, for I had been left alone there with the kings of Persia.  Now I have come to make you understand what will happen to your people in the latter days, for the vision refers to many days yet to come.”

 This passage has been for many years a primer to get God’s people to understand the spiritual world.  It is a powerful lesson that is given to us that teaches us about prayer and what happens as a result of it. It teaches us about the spiritual world.

Daniel had seen a vision having to do with his people in the latter days.  And Daniel prayed and asked God to give him spiritual understanding.  He set his heart to understand. But Daniel did not receive any answer for 21 days. For 21 days he waited on the answer. For 21 days he fasted and prayed. He was unaware of what was going on in the spiritual world, until God revealed it to him through this spiritual messenger that was sent to Daniel.

Here is what was happening while Daniel was waiting: The angelic being who brought to Daniel this message from God had been in a powerful battle or fight with another spiritual being. The scripture identifies that demonic principality as the prince of the king of Persia.  This was not a human being or natural prince or king, this was a spiritual being. The description of the being before him was supernatural. The end result was that the prince of Persia was powerful enough to withstand this angelic messenger sent by God to Daniel with the answer to his prayers.  But by Daniel not giving up in seeking God, he was able to see God bring him the answer.  In fact, this Word says that Michael (an archangel) had come to help the angelic being bringing him the answer and that they had prevailed. But it took 21 days to get his prayer answered.

Daniel is an example to us to pray and to never give up so that we also can see victory in spiritual warfare!

So here is what we learn from this passage.

• God immediately hears our prayers and dispatches the answer.
• Spiritual beings will attempt to block those prayers.
• It is possible for us to prevail in prayer if we will not give up but fast and pray until the answer came.

I am interested in equipping you with spiritual understanding from the Word that will allow you to get your prayers answered.

We have to understand the reality of the spiritual world and spiritual warfare.

There are many Christians who would prefer to live their lives without thinking about demons, and spiritual powers and these types of things. They are unaware that the subtle pull toward sin is caused be demonic forces that are tempting them. They are unaware that angels are present on our planet.

Most modern-day believers don’t want to think that there is a real spiritual being by the name of Lucifer who heads up a demonic army. He is called the devil, your adversary, a dragon, and he is real.

The truth is that a battle is being fought in the heavenlies and you a part of it as you pray.

This article is a call to every intercessor who believes God answers prayer to pray to a place of complete victory.  This article is a call to arms. Pick up your sword soldier of God! Pick up your shield! Get ready to fight. Put your armor on! And as we do so we understand that God will bring victory.

We are assured of that because the Word says, “Greater is He that is in you than he  that is in the world.” The Word says, “no weapon formed against you shall prosper.”  The Word says, “Christ always  leads us in triumphal procession.”

Ephesians 6 reiterates everything I have been saying: We live in a spiritual world and are in a battle. Ephesians 6:12  “or we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.”  This verse tells us plainly that our enemy is not people.  Our enemy has to do with the fallen angels who have become demonic forces in our world.  Our enemy is the spirit of antichrist in the world today. Our enemy is the powers of darkness, spiritual wickedness in heavenly places. We wrestle against them. I don’t fight against the adulterer, the homosexual, or the drug pusher.  The devil who has lied to them, deceived them is my enemy.

As we study all of the Word, we are going to gain an accurate picture of what the true spiritual world is like.  Way back in the book of Genesis 28:12-13 Jacob had a dream. It was more than a dream.  It was a divine revelation into the supernatural world that reveals to us how that world works.  Genesis 28:12-13  “Then he dreamed, and behold, a ladder was set up on the earth, and its top reached to heaven; and there the angels of God were ascending and descending on it. And behold, the Lord stood above it and said: “I am the Lord God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac; the land on which you lie I will give to you and your descendants.”

God revealed to Jacob that God and his angels were active in the earth. As the angels ascend I believe they carry the prayers of Gods people. As the descend they carry the answers, they carry the blessings.

I don’t know what that ladder looks like in the spiritual world, but I do know that but I do know that angels still bring to us the blessings of God.  In the New Testament in the book of Hebrews 1:14 NIV “Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation?”  Complete salvation is our inheritance. Since that is true, hen there are angelic beings, ministering spirits that that are sent to serve us.  You may not even be aware of their presence.

But how in the world did you avoid that accident last week? It wasn’t your superior driving skill, it may have been the angelic forces all around you.  How did you receive spiritual strength? Could it have been that angels ministered to you? Why was it that your neighbors house was broke into and yours wasn’t? Could it be that the Word is true and God has angels encamped around those that fear him?  We must come to the place where we believe in the reality of the spiritual world.

Even Jesus received strength and was ministered to by angelic forces. Luke 22:43 “ Then an angel appeared to Him from heaven, strengthening Him.” If Jesus, the Son of the Living God received strength from angelic beings what makes us think that we do not?

Acts 12:1-11 there is the remarkable story of Peter being delivered from prison.  It is a story of a church that prevailed in prayer.  During those days, Herod was persecuting the church, and so he arrested Peter.  He put four squads of soldiers over him to guard him. His goal was to bring him out before the people during the Passover to have him executed. It is obvious that Satan was behind all of this. Behind the scenes was a demonic principality and power. Satan’s goal was to destroy the early church.  Peter was one of the key leaders. Peter was the one who stood up on Pentecost and powerfully preached the gospel and 3000 were converted. It was Peter and John whom God had used to heal the lame man at the gate beautiful. Satan wanted to stop them.

I am sure that Herod thought that this was his idea. But Herod was really just a giant puppet.  It was satanic forces pulling the strings. You can see the spiritual warfare going on. You can see in this spiritual warfare that the church and prayer had a part in it.  Acts 12:5 says “ Peter was therefore kept in prison, but constant prayer was offered to God for him by the church.”

This passage in the New Testament corresponds to Daniel 10.  Just like Daniel was engaged in prayer, waiting for the answer, even so the church must engage in prayer.  Just like in Daniel the answer wasn’t immediate, but at the right time God sent an angel.

Peter was on the inside of the prison, bound with two chains to different guards, and there were more guards on the outside of the prison. God sent an angel and he said, get up and put your shoes on, get dressed and follow me.  The chains fell off of him.  The prison doors opened by themselves and they walked out.  As soon as he got outside the prison, the angel disappeared. This was Peters testimony:

Acts 12:11 “And when Peter had come to himself, he said, “Now I know for certain that the Lord has sent His angel, and has delivered me from the hand of Herod and from all the expectation of the Jewish people.”

WE AS THE CHURCH HAVE A RESPONSIBILITY TO CONTINUE IN CONSTANT PRAYER AND SPIRITUAL WARFARE!

As we do God will cause that the blockage to the answer will be removed and we will receive the answer to our prayers!

In conclusion, If God sent an angel with a message of understanding to Daniel. If God sent an angel to set Peter free from prison and opened up locked doors. If Jacob saw a ladder that sat on the earth and reached into the heavens and angels ascending and descending. If Jesus was ministered to by angelic beings. If we are in a spiritual battle with demonic forces.  Don’t you think that God has angels ready to defeat the Satanic forces that have been blocking your prayers?

All the way through the book of Genesis you read of angels. All the way through the book of Revelation, you read of angels.  Could it be that angelic being are waiting to be given there assignment to bring you’re the answer and overcome the blockage the enemy has created. Could it be that the spiritual world is waiting for you to pray and for us to engage ourselves like Daniel or the early church.

It says that in the early church constant prayer was offered to God. It says, Daniel waited and fasted and prayed for 21 days.

If you are a believer, you must prevail in prayer. Please leave a comment on this website, and I will join with you in this spiritual warfare.  It is time to engage the enemy! It is time for the church to pick up the authority God has given her and resist the devil. I can assure you he will flee.

Prayer is a powerful weapon. Use it.