The Unseen War : Pastor Greg Mitchell

Good morning. I appreciate all of you being here the very first Sunday of 2022, and we are believing God He's going to help us this year. Thank God.

Turn in your Bibles to the book of Daniel chapter 10. Daniel chapter 10.

During the last months of World War II, the British conducted nightly bombing raids over Berlin. And one night, a group of bombers, they were attacked by a large group of German fighter planes. During this, a bomber saw a German fighter coming straight for him, shot its cannons, and the shells slammed into their plane right near the gas tank. The crew were waiting for the explosions. That would typically be what happened, but no explosion came. They were able to reach their home base and land. And a mechanic who was checking out the plane came, and with him, he had five shells that had hit the plane. These are cannon shells. Should have blown up. When they opened them up, there was no explosive charge inside, but there were notes. And the notes said this, "We are Polish prisoners of war, forced to make shells for the Germans. When the guards don't look, we don't fill them with powder. It's not much, but it's the best that we can do."

So the point of the story is that sometimes in war, there is an unseen element of help. We're going to begin on the very first Sunday of 2022, as we have seen, nationally, no doubt. We've seen as a congregation, you have, I'm certain, seen in your own life that life has battles. And we're going to look on this very first day at the truth about the unseen war, and we're going to prepare our hearts to seek the Lord.

I want to read from Daniel, starting at verse one of chapter 10, then we'll skip down to verse 10. 1-3. "In the third year of Cyrus, king of Persia, a message was revealed to Daniel, whose name was called Belteshazzar. The message was true, but the appointed time was long. And he understood the message and had understanding of the vision. In those days, I, Daniel, was mourning three full weeks. I ate no pleasant food, no meat, no wine came into my mouth, nor did I anoint myself at all until three whole weeks were fulfilled."

Skip down to verse 10. "Suddenly, a hand touched me, which made me tremble on my knees and the palms of my hands. And he said to me, 'O Daniel, man greatly beloved, understand the words that I speak to you and stand upright, for I now have been sent to you.' While he was speaking this word to me, I stood trembling. Then he said to me, 'Do not fear, Daniel, for from the first day 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. 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.'"

The unseen war. In this text, it shows us one of the most common frustrations of serving God. And that is when things we know are God's will do not seem to be happening. Verse one, "The message was revealed. The message was true, but the appointed time was long." This passage, Daniel is praying. He is talking to God about God's purposes in the earth. And so this forms a pattern. But the passage is very honest. Sometimes in prayer, people know that they should pray, but just like this verse, the answer is long. Nothing seems to be happening. And the conclusion that they reach is, "Prayer doesn't work."

Lisa and I were first pioneering. We had a, our very first, or one of our first converts. Her husband was a biker in a motorcycle gang called Satan's Riders. She had gotten powerfully saved. Where I'm teaching and preaching about prayer, you can pray and God can do miracles. And I'll never forget in a Bible study or new convert class, she asked why, when we pray, does nothing seem to be happening? There's nothing happening. She was excited to think that God could touch her biker husband and somehow their marriage could be restored. That was on the rock. So she is doing what God said to do. God said He wants to save. But she says, "But it's not working. Nothing is happening."

And because of the frustration factor, many people have a wrong view of prayer. And they think prayer is only between you and God. Prayer is only you asking for God's help. And so, if that's what you think, like Daniel, you're going to be asking God. Nothing seems to change. So you can come to wrong conclusions. "Prayer doesn't work." Why would you believe prayer doesn't work? Because I prayed and there is nothing changing, or God is not fair. Have you ever had this? I really, really, really need something to happen in my life. I'm praying. Not only is it not happening in my situation, but then someone says, "Guess what God did for me." And you go, "Oh, great." So God, it's not fair. Not only does it not work. If it does work, it's working for someone else. God isn't fair. And for this reason, many people stop praying.

Luke 18:8, "When the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?" And the context, the type of faith is the faith that continues to pray in line with God's word. In our text, it reveals the truth about prayer, and that is this: Prayer involves battles. Daniel is on earth. He has been praying for 21 days and sees nothing happening. But now an angel appears and allows Daniel to see into the unseen realm. And in the unseen or the heavenly realm, he says, "Daniel, on earth, you're looking. There's nothing happening. God's not fair. It doesn't work. But what you cannot see is that there has been a battle going on. The kingdom of Persia, or the prince of the kingdom of Persia, withstood me for 21 days. Michael came to help me, for I had been left alone there with the kings of Persia." He says, "Daniel, you need to understand this. Prayer is not just you and God. But there were demon powers." That's what it's describing here. The prince of the king of Persia. This is talking about powerful demonic spirits that were fighting God's will, or fighting the answer to your prayers.

See, prayer is not just you and God. It's not just two players. There are three, if you want to think about it that way: God, who we ask, us, we do the asking, and the enemy, who tries to fight what we are asking. You need to understand that always in prayer, it will give you a healthy perspective. The devil fights answers to prayers. I could illustrate that in many ways. Just think about new converts for a moment. We pray, "God, people need to get saved. They need to be changed. They need to lock into church, become fruitful and productive Christians and do Your will." So we pray, we witness, we evangelize. Someone gets saved, and we say, "Wonderful. Look at that. God answered the prayer." But have you ever seen things like this happen? Before that new convert got saved, they had to beg, borrow, and steal to get alcohol and drugs. But now that they get saved, people are offering it for free. Have you ever seen this? I've seen people who are beauty-challenged. You know, an ugly brother, he gets saved, and after he gets saved, suddenly beautiful women want to date him. And it's like, "Jesus saved your soul. He did not improve his looks." That come on, that has to be from hell, because there are battles. If you don't factor in spiritual warfare in prayer, you're going to be frustrated and angry, and you're probably going to quit praying.

In our text, Daniel gets a perspective in the middle of frustration, and that is the basis of prayer is love. Verse 11. "O Daniel, you are a man greatly beloved." We often interpret God or ourselves by circumstances. "Nothing is happening. God must hate me. God must be punishing me. I must be doing something wrong." Daniel could have said that. "I'm praying, nothing. What's wrong with me? What's wrong with God?" He's in mourning, the Bible says, for three weeks. But when the angel comes, he has a message from God. He says, "Daniel, you are greatly beloved. This is just battle. You're taking it personal, but this is just battle. God loves you." And because God loves you, you can have confidence that God wants to help you. Luke 12:32, "Do not fear, little flock, it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom."

During the series that I did on rejection, I still am getting testimonies from all over, people who are watching this on video, on livestream. And a woman had sent me a testimony. She said she had heard me preach and teach and heard me boldly declare, "My heavenly Father loves me. That's why I know. I don't know how the problem is going to be fixed. I don't know how things are going to change. I don't see that yet. But I have confidence." This message is something you need. You are greatly beloved.

Let's talk secondly about prayer truths. Because in this text, it actually shows us, then once you know that there are battles going on, look at what prayer does. Number one, prayer has influence with God. You need to understand this. God values prayer. You need to pray because you need it. You need to pray because you need your problems to be changed. You need to pray because we corporately work together to seek God's will. But in this text, God is the one who says, "Daniel, you are beloved." And the connection here, he is talking to a man who is praying. And he says, "Listen, I love it that you are praying."

Revelation 5:8, "The four living creatures and twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each having a harp, golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints." It's not an accident that the prayers of the saints, it says it's like incense. This is something that would be burned in order to create a pleasant aroma. Not only is it effective, but this is something that smells good to God. It pleases God. When God finds people who will take His word serious enough to pray, to trust Him in the middle of their situation, to keep on praying even though there have been battles and the answer is coming. This pleases God and it gets God's attention. In verse 12, "From the very first day you set your heart to understand, your words were heard, and I have come because of your words." I don't know about you. There are times I pray, it's like I feel good. I feel God. But have you ever had days where you finished your time of prayer and you wondered, "Did that do any good? Was there any point to that? Does God hear me?" And this text says, "Yes, because prayer has influence with God."

Number two, prayer has influence over the enemy. In this text, Daniel's prayers are determining the spiritual battle and the outcome of it. Verse 21, "The prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me for twenty-one days. Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me." Says, "There was a battle going on, but Daniel, you were praying. We won because you were praying. The enemy could not ultimately keep the answer from coming." We read this in the Bible. Elijah prays, and the enemy is blinded and not able to attack. Luke 9:1, "He called his twelve disciples and gave them power and authority over all demons and to cure diseases." Listen, demon powers listen to you when you pray. The devil messes with your head. "This is doing nothing. It's pointless. Nothing's changing. It's not working. God's not fair." But the powers of hell are listening and they must respond because of the authority given to believers when they pray.

I was reading a story of a missionary who was in Africa. He was home on his furlough, speaking at his home church in Michigan. And he was telling, standing up in front of the church, just telling stories about what it was like for him to be a missionary in Africa. He said he often had to travel by bicycle through the jungle to a nearby city for supplies. He'd go to the city, go to the bank, get money, buy medicine and supplies, and then ride his bicycle back. On one trip, he saw two men fighting. One was badly injured. So he treated the man's wounds. He had medical training, and he told him about Jesus. The next time he was in town, that man that he helped came up to him and he said, "On one of your trips, we knew you were carrying money and supplies. Me and some of my friends followed you into the jungle. When you camped for the night, we were going to kill you and take your money and your drugs. But just as we were moving into your campsite, we saw that your tent was surrounded by 26 armed guards." The missionary laughed and he said, "No, I was here all by myself." The man insisted. He said, "It wasn't just me that saw it. All five of my friends, we specifically counted, and there were 26." He's in church just telling this story to encourage the people. A man jumped to his feet in the back and said, "What day was that? Tell me the exact day." And he thought for a moment, was able to tell him the day that he did it. And the man said, "When it's night in Africa, it's morning here. On that day, I was headed to play golf. And as I put my bags in the car, I just felt an urging from God to pray for you. It was so strong that I called some of the men in the church to meet me at church. We had to pray for you." He said, "Would all of the men who came to pray stand to their feet?" And when they counted, there were 26 of them. Listen, in the unseen realm, the enemy is listening to your prayers.

The third thing our text says prayer releases strength into us at times. Let's be honest, there are times in which we feel, "I don't even think I can go on." Elijah was discouraged, ran away, said, "God, you might as well kill me. I can't do this anymore." But then people encounter the supernatural presence of God, and that brings strength. This is what happens to Daniel. Verse 10, "Suddenly, a hand touched me, made me tremble on my knees and my hands. He said to me, 'O man, greatly beloved, understand the words I speak to you. Stand upright, for now I have been sent to you.'" Here is Daniel in the struggle to comprehend God's will versus what is happening. But as he is praying, the angel speaks words. Something supernatural comes. "Stand on your feet." That is what happens. Sometimes we come into the presence of God, and God strengthens us so that we're able to go on.

The final thing that happens in prayer is prayer gives insight into the spiritual realm. In this text, Daniel is praying, and the angel comes and says in verse 14, "I have come to make you understand what will happen." God was able to show him things that were coming. Therefore, what should he do in response to what God had said? This is a very practical part of prayer. There are people right now in your mind, you are completely at a standstill. "What do I do? What do I do with my unsaved family? What do I do with this situation? What do I do in my marriage or any area of life?" And the Bible records one of the things that happens when people pray over and over again is God gives them practical direction. David, when fighting the Philistines, he prays, "Shall I fight them?" God says, "Yes." "Another battle. Shall I attack?" And God says, "No, not yet. But I'll give you the strategy of how and when you are to fight." That is a practical thing that can happen. That is partly why we set aside times of fasting and prayer. I don't know about you, but I have situations that I am saying, "God, You have to speak to me." I'm not sure. It's, have you ever had problems that are not in the manual? I have problems that are just not in the manual. This is the joke between me and some of my pastor leader friends is we'll face a situation. I say, "There's another thing that Pastor Mitchell left out of the manual. It's just not, what do we do?" But I serve a God who knows, and He is able to speak and give very practical direction.

Let's talk finally about the breakthrough dimension. There is a human dimension in spiritual warfare, and that is this: Daniel made the difference. The whole idea of prayer is, "I cannot, I cannot save my family. But some of you, I can't fix my marriage. I can't, you know, change my finances. I can't be fruitful." I don't know what it is that you're frustrated at. So we pray. The whole idea of prayer is you are speaking to someone higher, someone more powerful. And yet, that is true. But this text says Daniel made the difference. Verse 12 and 13, "Daniel, from the first day you humbled yourself, your words were heard and I have come in response to them. But the prince of the king of Persia resisted me twenty-one days, that Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me." So, number one, why did the angel come at all? Because Daniel prayed. Number two, there was a battle going on. Why did the battle ultimately get won? Because Daniel prayed. You need to understand this in all of spiritual warfare. This is true. What people do determines what God does. This seems to be counterintuitive, doesn't it? "I can't. Okay. But I pray to the One, and then when I pray, what I do makes all the determining difference in what God does."

Think about Moses. They're battling the people of Amalek. The people are fighting down in the valley. He stands on the mountain with the staff of authority. This is the symbol of God's power that he used in a supernatural way in Egypt. He lifts it up above his head. And the Bible says these words, "When he lifted the staff of authority above his head." This is on the mountain. In the valley, God's people are winning. When his hands went down, God's people were losing. Moses made the difference. So if that is true, our text says in the battle, there is an attitude that is required, and that is, you have to be committed to victory, committed to breakthrough. Many people are excited about winning. They look, "God could answer your prayer." They go, "Oh, goody goody. I have some problems now. I lay me down to sleep. Rub it up, dub, three bed in a tub. Let it all be." It's not working. They can be discouraged to quit. But Daniel had made a commitment that is, "I am going to do whatever it takes to get a breakthrough."

You know, in military terms, we call this declaring war. We've seen through the years after World War II, we had then the Korean War, it was called what? A police action, limited intervention, defensive postures. Not one of those has ever ended well. If you want to win, you have to do what we did in World War II. That is, we declared war. And when you declare war, you are saying, "Every resource at our disposal is going to defeating the enemy." And World War II is gasoline, rubber, metal, everything went to the war effort. So in our text, it shows part of Daniel's commitment to see a breakthrough in prayer, and that is fasting. Daniel 10:2, "I mourned for three weeks. I ate no choice food, no meat nor wine touched my lips." So he is praying. That's the request part. That's the battle part. But with that, he is not eating. And I want you to understand that's what fasting is. Fasting is going without food while you pray. If you're going without food and you're not praying, that's called a diet, or going hungry. This is not for your health. It may have health benefits. I don't actually care. What I'm concerned about is what does this do in prayer? Why would you fast or go without food? I remember on the job before I was a pastor, one of my co-workers, he said, "Are you on one of those religious diets again?" No, I don't care what the Daniel diet is. That is not what I'm talking about. Fasting, going without food while you pray is, of course, first of all, demonstrating our seriousness, our commitment here. Come on. Anybody who goes without food, you've got to be serious about this, right? Esther, she gets word that God's people are going to be annihilated. This is not minor beans. "Sure, I could say a little prayer for you." She says, "Call a fast." This is serious. Some of you here, you have loved ones right now, their lives are hanging in the balance. Fast. That shows God, I am serious. I'm committed to this.

Number two, fasting makes room in our hearts to hear from God. The Bible says there is a battle inside of every one of us. It is the battle of flesh versus spirit. Spirit, there's a part of you that wants to do right, wants to do the will of God, loves the things of God. But there's a part of you and I that is called the flesh. Unregenerate. Don't care how long you've been saved. It's still in there. Does not want to do the will of God. So fasting is literally, I am putting down, I am killing the flesh. Why? So that I can hear from God. Daniel in this text, one of the most profound things that happened during this fast was he heard from God. Why did he hear from God? Because he was putting away, making room in his life. That's why we set aside time corporately as a church at least twice a year. We set aside time to fast and to pray. Acts 13:2 and 3, "As they ministered to the Lord and fasted, the Holy Spirit said, 'Now separate to me Barnabas and Saul for the work I've called them.' Then having fasted and prayed, they laid hands on them and sent them away." It was while they fasted, they heard from God. I don't know about you. In the next three days, I need to hear from God. There are situations, there are issues that I am asking God to speak to me. Fasting makes room so that we can hear from God.

The final thing is that fasting breaks demonic resistance. Fasting was a key element to the enemy losing and God winning in this text. Matthew 17:21, "Howbeit this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting." I don't know if you've ever heard the term the Great White Fleet. Have you ever heard that in history? The Great White Fleet. What this was in 1906, Japan wanted to be a world power. Japan started making noises and then they started kind of publicly making threats like they could beat the United States in war. President Roosevelt, Teddy Roosevelt, decided to send the fleet to the Pacific. He just wanted them to sail in the Pacific as a show of force in order to show how committed we are if you mess with us. So he called in the admiral of the Navy and he said, "I want you to send the fleet into the Pacific as a show of force." And the admiral asked him, "How many ships do you want to send into the Pacific?" And Roosevelt replied, "All of them." They sent every single warship that we had in the US Navy all at the same time. In other words, they're sending a message. If you mess with us, we're going to do whatever it takes to win. And lo and behold, Japan backed down for another 35 years because they saw someone that was committed. You know what fasting is? It's a show of force. It's not, "Yeah, I could say a few little prayers. As we say grace, I'll throw in a few extra names over the meal." No, no, no. It's a show of force. We're going to do whatever it takes. We need to see a breakthrough. I need to hear from God. Whatever it might be, I'm telling you this is the truth of the unseen war.

Let's bow our heads, if you would, for a moment. Now, there may be people that are here this morning. First of all, you are not right with God. You are involved in a battle, and it's a battle for your soul. There is an enemy of your soul. He hates you. He would love nothing better than to destroy your life right now and for you to wind up being punished in hell forever. He does everything in his power to tempt, to ruin. Bible says the thief comes to steal, kill, and to destroy. There may be people that are here this morning, you are not right with God. If you'd be honest, you are already suffering the consequences of sin in your life as you are not obedient to God. And if you'd be honest, you know, if I was to stand before God this morning, it would not be good because God would not be pleased with the way I'm living. And yet I'm telling you, God loves you. This is what God wants. You are greatly beloved, so much that God was not willing that anyone should perish. God sent His Son down to earth, where we live, to live as a man, the perfect life we have no hope of ever living, to die in our place so we could go free from our sin. If you're here this morning, the first Sunday of 2022, you could get your heart right. You could leave here today right with God. You could turn from the sin that is destroying you and sending you to hell. How many are here this morning, you say, "Pastor Greg, I need Jesus." Lift up your hand right now. I'm not right with God. Thank you. Thank you. I see that hand in the back. Thank you, ma'am. I appreciate that. How many others? Lift up your hand. I'm not right with God. I need to get saved. The very first Sunday of 2022, I want to get right with God. Lift your hand right now. God's dealing with you right now. God can do a miracle. He can save you. He can change you. He can be at work in your life. How many backsliders? You were saved, but you turned your back on God. Went back to sin. Backslider, lift up your hand. I don't want to live like that anymore. Backslider, lift up your hand. You can get right. You can come home. God can do a miracle in you. Thank God, you lifted your hand at the back. Look at me. Did you mean that? Yes. Come here. Out of your seat. I want to have someone pray with you. God bless you. Thank you. I appreciate honest hearts. Amen. Don't be shy. A lady's going to come with you. I appreciate that. Thank God for honest hearts. Amen. Thank you. God bless you. Amen. Becca is going to pray for you. Okay. Thank God.

Then in a moment, first of all, the first thing we're going to do is I'm going to open the altars. Some of you in the unseen war, you have grown discouraged and weary. It doesn't seem to be changing. "It must not work. God is not fair. There must be something wrong with me." Nothing could be further from the truth. There's an unseen war. Some of you need to set your heart, "I am going to pray. I'm going to continue to pray. I'm going to come back to pray." Whatever it might be, wherever situation or attitude you're at at the moment, I am encouraging you. We serve a God, He answers prayer. Let's stand up to our feet. I want you to come and find a place to pray. I want you to tell God, "I'm going to pray. Help me. Give me strength." Ask God, "I need You to put strength on the inside. I need You to enable me to continue to lay hold of Your will for my life in the earth." Let's sing while people are coming right now.

Oh, hail King Jesus. Oh, hail Emmanuel. King of kings, Lord of lords, bright morning star. And throughout eternity, I'm going to praise Him and forevermore, I will reign with Him. Oh, hail King Jesus. Oh, hail, hail Emmanuel. King of kings, Lord of lords, bright morning star. And throughout eternity, I'm going to praise Him and forever, forevermore, I will reign with Him. All hail King Jesus. All hail King. King Jesus. All hail Emmanuel. King of kings, kings, Lord, Lord of lords, bright morning star. And throughout eternity, I'm going to praise, praise Him. That forever, evermore, I will reign with Him. All hail, all hail King Jesus. Oh, hail, King of kings, Lord of lords, bright morning star. And throughout eternity, I'm going to praise Him and forevermore, I will reign with Him. Amen. Amen.

Let's bow our heads. I want to give a challenge. We, the beginning of the year, and then also in July, twice a year, we set aside time as a church, as a fellowship, for three days of fasting and prayer. We need God. I'm certain that there are people, you need God personally. We need God in our church. We need Him in the nation of America and all over the world. There are situations, we must have God turn things around. So what we're going to do is for the next three days, we're going to have a time of fasting and prayer. Many churches around the world are going to be joining us in this, and we are going to set aside time here in Prescott. The building is going to be open 24 hours a day, that you're able, any time that you can. I am urging you to set aside time for prayer. But with that, we're going to have a time of fasting. I'm calling us to a fast that for the next three days, we're having a time of fasting and prayer. And I'm asking, while our heads are bowed, first of all, I'm asking, how many of you, you will join with me and the staff? We are going to fast for the next three days. We are going to set aside this time and not be eating food, fasting while praying. How many of you say, "Pastor, I'm going to join with you the next three days. I will fast for the next three days." Lift up your hand. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. God bless you. God's dealing with you. Thank God. Amen. You can put your hands down.

There are people here for whatever reason you say, "I don't think that I could make three days, but I'm willing to fast for two days." Lift up your hands. I'll fast for the next two days. And I'm going to be praying, laying hold of God while I'm fasting. Thank you. I appreciate that. How many of you here, you can put your hands down, for I can't make three or two, but I will fast for a day. One day, I'm going to, I'm going to do that. Lift up your hand. Thank you. Amen. I appreciate that. Thank God.

Then I'm going to pray. I'm going to ask God to seal things. I'm going to ask God to put strength in us. I'm going to ask God to give us direction, personally, corporately, as a fellowship. I'm going to ask God that He's going to give us breakthroughs in answers to our prayers. When I finish praying together, we are going to praise the Lord. We're going to thank God in advance before we've even started the fasting and prayer. We're going to thank God for what He is going to do. I want you to lift up your voice and boldly, we're going to thank God. We're going to praise God that He is going to help us. Amen.

God, right now, there are people here, they have made commitments. God, we must hear from heaven. God, we need strength. There are people here that are struggling. I am asking that You would speak supernatural life and strength. Put confidence in them. Oh God, let them believe again. And the downhearted. God, I'm asking for miracle strength in the next three days. God, I'm asking that You're going to give us direction. God, allow us to hear from You. I pray You're going to give us practical strategies in fruitfulness, God, in church planting, in marriage, in healing, in finances, in every situation with children. Oh God, speak to us. Show us what to do, how to do it, when to do it. God, we need clarity and direction. Then God, we must have breakthroughs. God, personally, we're asking You, give us breakthroughs with family and unsaved friends. I'm asking for salvation. Give us breakthroughs as a congregation. Lord God, I'm asking that You're going to break the chains of hell. Our churches around the world that have been affected by COVID. Roll back the powers of hell. You will give us a breakthrough. We are going to see the favor of God at work, Lord God, during this time. Speak to us, guide us, and give us breakthroughs in the Holy Ghost. And we thank You in advance. We know that You love us. We know that You hear our prayers. We know that You're going to give us the victory. And we thank You for that in Jesus' mighty name.

Now, let's praise God together. Let's thank God for His goodness. Oh God, thank You in advance. Lord God, thank You for fruitfulness. Thank You for breakthroughs, Lord God. Thank You for strengthening. Oh God, thank You for direction. All that You're going to do, Lord God, I believe that You are able. Thank You, Jesus. Thank You, Jesus. Praise God. God is.