Power Encounter in Spiritual Warfare

by Charles H. Kraft

Overview

Acceptance of Christianity in Southern Polynesia during the eighteenth century proceeded rapidly without missionary activity. This fact attracted the attention of Alan Tippett, who served for twenty years as an Australian missionary to the Fiji Islands. What he found was that the key to their conversion lay in the fact that, without missionary presence, the south sea islanders responded to demonstrations of what Tippett learned to call "power encounters." These were contests, some staged, some not staged, in which there was a power encounter between the true God and the gods of the islanders in which the traditional gods were defeated. Kraft here discusses the fact that this power principle applies much more widely.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781498241601
Publisher:	Wipf & Stock Publishers
Publication date:	05/18/2017
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	124
File size:	2 MB

About the Author

Charles H. Kraft taught anthropology, intercultural communication, spiritual dynamics, and spiritual warfare for forty-three years in the School of Intercultural Studies (formerly School of World Mission) at Fuller Seminary. He has published thirty-two books in various fields, among them Christianity With Power and Anthropology for Christian Witness, and is active in retirement in prayer ministry. He was a field missionary in Nigeria from 1957-1960 and learned, taught, and published on the Hausa language of Northern Nigeria.
Charles H. Kraft is Professor Emeritus at Fuller Seminary after forty-one years as Professor of Intercultural Communication. He has taught anthropology, communication, contextualization, and spiritual warfare to missionaries and prospective missionaries, in addition to serving as a missionary in Nigeria. He holds degrees from Wheaton College (BA), Ashland Theological Seminary (BD), and Hartford Seminary Foundation (PhD) and is the author of thirty-two books and numerous articles in his fields of expertise.

Table of Contents

Chapter 1 1

The Concept of Power Encounter 1

Key Point 3

A Wider Use of the Concept 3

A Passage from Tippett 5

Kinds of Power Encounters 10

Results of Power Encounters 10

How Are Power Encounters Understood? 12

Process Leading to Power Encounter 13

The Message for Us 14

Chapter 2 17

Power Encounters in Scripture 17

The Woman and Her Seed: A Power Encounter Lost 17

Birth of Moses Foreshadowing Jesus 18

Summarizing the Encounter 19

Power Encounters between Moses and Pharaoh 21

Power Encounters as Israel Moves into the Land 22

Gideon 24

King Saul Loses an Encounter 25

David: An Encounter Is Won 25

David: A Failed Power Encounter 26

Elijah, the Prophets and Jezebel 26

Daniel: A Power Encounter in the Air 27

Jesus and Satan 28

Three Power Encounters in Paul's Ministry 29

Chapter 3 31

Rules and Principles for Spiritual Power 31

Human Perception of Spiritual Power 32

A Biblical Perspective on Spiritual Power 34

Forms, Meanings and Empowerment 37

Chapter 4 40

Spiritual Principles and Rules: The Backdrop of the Battle 40

God's Plan: Man's Dominion 40

Satan's Plan: Dominion by Deceit 41

Satan's Kingdom: The Rule of Evil 42

God's Kingdom: The Rule of Love 43

Two Kingdoms in Conflict: The Ongoing Power Encounter 44

Our Battle Strategy: Offensive and Defensive 46

Chapter 5 47

Spiritual Principles 47

Principle 1 God Has Built Rules into the Spiritual Sphere 47

Principle 2 There Are Two Sources of Spiritual Power 48

Principle 3 There Is a Close Relationship between the Spiritual and the Human Realms 51

Principle 4 There Are Authority and Empowerment Rules Based on Relationship with God or Satan 56

Principle 5 Cultural Forms Can Be Empowered 65

Principle 6 Territories and Organizations Can Be Subject to Spirit Power 68

Conclusion 73

Chapter 6 74

Spiritual Power Inventory 74

God, Gods & Idols 74

Witchcraft & Sorcery 76

Curses & Blessings 78

Divination 79

Ordeal 80

Dedication 81

Ancestors 83

Reincarnation 85

Shrines and Dedicated Places 86

Condemn or Contextualize? 87

Chapter 7 88

Applying the Insights 88

Prayer and Obedience in Spiritual Warfare 90

Animism vs. God-Given Authority 92

Three Crucial Dimensions 95

Levels of Spiritual Warfare 97

Ground-Level Warfare 99

The Primary Focuses at Ground Level 103

Cosmic-Level Warfare 105

Spiritual Mapping 107

Conclusion 109

Bibliography 111

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

"With a love for God and a pastor's heart, Dr. Charles Kraft equips us with an understanding of the authority and scope of the Spiritual battle in both the physical and spiritual realms. The application of the biblical accounts of power encounters, illustrated by actual testimony, along with the call to relationship with—and obedient love for—our Lord and His Word are extremely timely and important for Christ followers today. I found myself challenged and empowered for the facing of these days." 
—Tom Schiefer, Senior Pastor, Nappanee, Indiana, First Brethren Church

"Combining years of missionary experience, expertise in cultural anthropology, and decades of practical involvement in spiritual warfare, Kraft convincingly demonstrates the significance and value of Power Encounter—an aspect of evangelism mission common in Scripture and the ancient church, but scarcely understood or emphasized in the West today. His book . . . will make a significant contribution in the recovery of this crucial lost dimension."
—Stephen A. Seamands, Asbury Theological Seminary

"No one understands power encounter better than Charles Kraft! Who else can write about spiritual regularities with the same acumen as an anthropologist writes about cross-cultural regularities? In short, this book gives the reader a window into the rules that govern the spiritual realm, offers practical insights that every Christian should know, and tells the reader how to work with God to win the war against Satan." 
—W. P. Payne, Ashland Theological Seminary

"In Power Encounter in Spiritual Warfare I once again find myself stretched in ways I would not have considered apart from [Kraft's] wise and thorough scholarship. This book is must-reading on the topic of spiritual warfare."  
—Terry Wardle, Ashland Theological Seminary; author of Identity Matters: Discovering Who You Are in Christ

Editorial Reviews

"With a love for God and a pastor's heart, Dr. Charles Kraft equips us with an understanding of the authority and scope of the Spiritual battle in both the physical and spiritual realms. The application of the biblical accounts of power encounters, illustrated by actual testimony, along with the call to relationship with—and obedient love for—our Lord and His Word are extremely timely and important for Christ followers today. I found myself challenged and empowered for the facing of these days." 
—Tom Schiefer, Senior Pastor, Nappanee, Indiana, First Brethren Church

"Combining years of missionary experience, expertise in cultural anthropology, and decades of practical involvement in spiritual warfare, Kraft convincingly demonstrates the significance and value of Power Encounter—an aspect of evangelism mission common in Scripture and the ancient church, but scarcely understood or emphasized in the West today. His book . . . will make a significant contribution in the recovery of this crucial lost dimension."
—Stephen A. Seamands, Asbury Theological Seminary

"No one understands power encounter better than Charles Kraft! Who else can write about spiritual regularities with the same acumen as an anthropologist writes about cross-cultural regularities? In short, this book gives the reader a window into the rules that govern the spiritual realm, offers practical insights that every Christian should know, and tells the reader how to work with God to win the war against Satan." 
—W. P. Payne, Ashland Theological Seminary

"In Power Encounter in Spiritual Warfare I once again find myself stretched in ways I would not have considered apart from [Kraft's] wise and thorough scholarship. This book is must-reading on the topic of spiritual warfare."  
—Terry Wardle, Ashland Theological Seminary; author of Identity Matters: Discovering Who You Are in Christ

From the Publisher