Spiritual Warfare
Reformation Heritage Books
by Brian Borgman and Rob Ventura
“William Gurnall once said that the battle between Satan and the saints makes the most brutal war on earth look like child’s play. Yet so many Christians act like civilians on vacation instead of soldiers on the front lines. Borgman and Ventura, like experienced master sergeants, give us the Bible’s basic training on spiritual warfare. Drawing from the classic text in Ephesians 6, their teaching will both clear away false ideas about the spiritual battle, and equip Christians to stand firm to the end.”
-Dr. Joel R. Beeke, President, Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary, Grand Rapids, Michigan
“I count it a privilege to commend this book characterized by careful exegesis, helpful illustration, and suffused with practical pastoral application. In opening up the meaning of Ephesians 6:10-20 the authors have also given us an extensive and helpful bibliography of other expositions of this passage by means of the many judicious quotations of authors, past and present, who have expounded this crucial portion of the word of God. The structure of the book and the questions given at the end of each chapter should make the book useful for adult Sunday school classes, small-group studies, as well as a helpful tool for personal devotional use and healthy self-examination. Thank you, Brian and Rob, dear friends and fellow laborers in the gospel, for providing the church with this very useful edifying tool.”
– Al Martin
“Standing in a long line of Puritan-style reflection on the nature of spiritual warfare, Borgman and Ventura have produced a brief but remarkably rich book which offers very helpful insights on this subject. The thoughtful reader will find here sobering meditations on the power of evil and sin but also be pointed to the great encouragement to be found in the word of God and supremely in the Lord Jesus Christ. This volume is both a helpful pastoral tool and a fine devotional book.”
– Carl R. Trueman Paul Woolley Professor of Church History, Westminster Theological Seminary, Pa.
“This fine book on the vital issue of spiritual warfare is a clear exposition and application of Ephesians 6:10-20. It challenges believers to realize that the Christian life is a serious spiritual battle. Christ’s victory over the powers of darkness, the nature of the conflict we are engaged in, the provision of God’s armour with all its wonderful weapons, and the need for believers to stand firm in the Lord and be committed to his eternal gospel are all carefully explained and applied. We are indebted to the authors for presenting a ‘Biblical and Balanced Perspective’ as the sub-title claims. Highly recommended.”
-Peter O’Brien, author of Ephesians, The Pillar New Testament Commentary Series
Emeritus Faculty Member, Moore Theological College, Sydney, Australia
“Too many popular evangelical notions about spiritual warfare have been shaped by superstition, bad teaching, and pulp novels about battles with territorial demons. Multitudes of Christians are mystified, terrified, unsure of their role—ignorant of God’s strategy in the warfare against the powers of darkness. Brian Borgman and Rob Ventura turn to the Word of God and skillfully unravel the mystery. I appreciate how they deal with this vital subject in a meticulously biblical, thoroughly enlightening, and wonderfully edifying way.
-Phil Johnson