Derek Prince - Spiritual Forces Determine People's Destiny
Excerpt from "Casting Down Strongholds"
Let me now read the passages that I’ve been quoting very quickly. Daniel 10:2–3: In those days I, Daniel, was mourning three full weeks. I ate no pleasant food, no meat or wine came into my mouth, nor did I anoint myself at all till three whole weeks were fulfilled. The period of three weeks is emphasized. Now, the angel that came to him said various things. And then in verse 12 this is what he said: “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.”
So somewhere on the way from God to Daniel he was opposed by the prince of the kingdom of Persia for twenty-one days. And in the end another angel of God, the archangel Michael, had to come and join in the conflict. If you read further on in Daniel, Michael is called the great prince or angel that stands up for the children of your people, that’s Israel. So, as a matter of biblical interpretation you find this helpful. Wherever Michael is on the scene, Israel is center stage in human history. See, because he’s the particular angel that has the job of looking after Israel. And believe me, that is a pretty tough job. Now, going on, he says in verse 20 of Daniel 10: “Do you know why I’ve come to you? And now I must return to fight with the prince of Persia.” In other words, the battle isn’t over yet. “And when I’ve gone forth, indeed, the prince of Greece will come.”
That’s the next major Gentile empire. And you can understand behind the history of these human empires, there are satanic forces at work that really are the explanation of what happens. You really cannot fully understand human history if you only look on the horizontal human level. Because the real forces that determine the destinies of nations and people are in the heavenlies. And then he says in verse 21 of Daniel 10: “But I will tell you what is noted in the scripture of truth, no one upholds me against these except Michael your prince.” Again, the archangel Michael. Then you go on to the first verse of the next chapter which is part of the same message: “Also in the first year of Darius the Mede, I, even I stood up to confirm and strengthen him.” There’s a clear example of the intervention of angels in human history.
Why did God’s angel stand up for Darius? The answer is because God’s people Israel had been captured and enslaved by the empire of Babylon and Darius was the ruler of the Persian empire that destroyed the empire of Babylon and released God’s people to return to their land, which was God’s purpose. So behind all the human forces and the horizontal plane, there is a vertical plane and there are angelic forces, both angels of God and angels of Satan, that are at work. And human history is to be explained by the interplay of all these forces. Now, why we are significant as Christians is because God has given to us and us alone the weapons by which we can intervene in this spiritual war. Governments have armies and weapons that will deal with other nations. Only the Christian church has the weapons that will intervene in the spiritual realm in the heavenlies.
And you understand, the one who wins in the heavenlies ultimately determines the course of history. So the most significant thing you can do in history, in a sense, is be an intercessor, and pray through the spiritual issues in the heavenlies that will determine the history of nations on earth. See, Daniel is just a perfect example. As I’ve said already, we are involved in this war. That’s not an option. The only decision you can make is whether you’ll be part of the kingdom of God or not. If you’re part of the kingdom of God you are at war with the kingdom of Satan. That’s not something you can decide, you just better get equipped and learn how to fight. Because if you don’t, you’re going to be a casualty.