The Principality of Disobedience

The principality of disobedience is one half of the twelfth principality of Satan; it works in concert with the principality of lying. The objective of this principality, or function, of Satan is to cause mankind to disobey the truth—the Word of God; and its attendant power is the spirit of disobedience. In short, disobedience promotes obedience to the lies of Satan. This prince has at his disposal all lower ranking principalities and powers (devils) like judgment, pride, lust, etc. to use to fulfill his objective. An example of the spirit of disobedience at work is portrayed by Pharaoh in the book of Exodus. Even though Moses and Aaron, and eventually his own magicians, tell him of God's will—command—to let the Israelites go, Pharaoh adheres more to disobedience, pride, lust, and stubbornness, than to God. "And Moses and Aaron went in unto Pharaoh, and they did so as the LORD had commanded ... And the LORD said unto Moses, Pharaoh's heart is hardened, he refuseth to let the people go" (Exodus 7:10, 14). "Then the magicians said unto Pharaoh, This is the finger of God: and Pharaoh's heart was hardened, and he hearkened not unto them; as the LORD had said" (Exodus 8:19).

There is a direct correlation between the spirits in us and what we know and obey. This correlation between a spirit that is in us and what that spirit enables us to know and do is expressed in Ezekiel 36: "And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them" (Ezekiel 36:27). It is also expressed in Paul's writings: "For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God" (1 Corinthians 2:11-12). Thus, just as it is necessary for us to have the Spirit of God in us to obey God and to know the things of God; it is necessary for us to have the spirit of Satan in us to know the things of Satan and to obey him. Of course, obedience to Satan is disobedience to God. Paul expresses this in the book of Ephesians: "And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins; Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others" (Ephesians 2:1-3). And also in the book of Colossians: "Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry: For which things' sake the wrath of God cometh on the children of disobedience: In the which ye also walked some time, when ye lived in them" (Colossians 3:5-7). Due to the curse, we are all born with at least three devils—unclean spirits—in us. The spirit of disobedience inhabits our spirit—spirit of man—and works in opposition to the things of God. As we stated before, sin is defined as disobedience to the Word of God. This spirit undergirds our carnal nature—our sin nature; it pushes us to resist the truth and emboldens us to refuse to obey God. The spirit of disobedience combined with our sin nature—pride and lust—draws us to focus on ourselves—fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind—and not on God. The spirits of pride and of lust both inhabit our mortal bodies. "Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever" (1 John 2:15-17). John Calvin expounds more on this:

That pride was the beginning of all evil, because, had not man's ambition carried him higher than he was permitted, he might have continued in his first estate. A further definition, however, must be derived from the kind of temptation which Moses describes. When, by the subtlety of the devil, the woman faithlessly abandoned the command of God, her fall obviously had its origin in disobedience. This Paul confirms, when he says, that, by the disobedience of one man, all were destroyed. At the same time, it is to be observed, that the first man revolted against the authority of God, not only in allowing himself to be ensnared by the wiles of the devil, but also by despising the truth, and turning aside to lies. Assuredly, when the word of God is despised, all reverence for Him is gone. His majesty cannot be duly honoured among us, nor his worship maintained in its integrity, unless we hang as it were upon his lips. Hence infidelity was at the root of the revolt. From infidelity, again, sprang ambition and pride, together with ingratitude; because Adam, by longing for more than was allotted him, manifested contempt for the great liberality with which God had enriched him. It was surely monstrous impiety that a son of earth should deem it little to have been made in the likeness, unless he were also made the equal of God. If the apostasy by which man withdraws from the authority of his Maker, nay, petulantly shakes off his allegiance to him, is a foul and execrable crime, it is in vain to extenuate the sin of Adam. Nor was it simple apostasy. It was accompanied with foul insult to God, the guilty pair assenting to Satan's calumnies when he charged God with malice, envy, and falsehood. In fine, infidelity opened the door to ambition, and ambition was the parent of rebellion, man casting off the fear of God, and giving free vent to his lust.²

Hence, the need for resurrection: "this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality" (1 Corinthians 15:53). It should be noted that while pride and lust will not be vanquished until death or translation (1 Corinthians 15:51), disobedience is vanquished when a child of disobedience—a heathen—is born again: repents and chooses Jesus Christ as Lord instead of Satan (see "Born Again"). God replaces the corrupt spirit of man in the person with a new spirit: "a new spirit will I put within you" (Ezekiel 36:26) and within this new spirit God puts his Spirit—the Holy Ghost. Unfortunately, Satan doesn't give up; he still has at his disposal the person's corrupt mind and the spirits of pride and lust in their flesh. Therefore, the spirit of disobedience returns and seeks to reenter the new Christian: "When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places, seeking rest, and findeth none. Then he saith, I will return into my house from whence I came out; and when he is come, he findeth it empty, swept, and garnished. Then goeth he, and taketh with himself seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter in and dwell there: and the last state of that man is worse than the first. Even so shall it be also unto this wicked generation" (Matthew 12:43-45). The term "my house" refers not only to the new Christian, but more specifically, the high place and altar that still remains in that Christian. The New Covenant term for high places and altars to devils is "strong holds." Strong holds are mental constructs which create a place for a devil (see "Strong Holds (Idols of the Heart)"): they represent agreements that we have with Satan (Matthew 18:19). These include false knowledge (lies), false thinking, false decisions, false judgments, false beliefs, false practices, and false identities. "For we wrestle ... against spiritual wickedness in high places" (Ephesians 6:12). In the case of the principality of disobedience, the false practice of disobedience remains a strong hold even after its power—the spirit of disobedience—has been cast out by God. The unwary Christian, even though they now have the Holy Ghost, is a babe in Christ—spiritually immature—and is prone to "invite" the unclean spirit of disobedience back into "its house" by falling for temptation: by agreeing with the devil. The babe in Christ has a mind crafted in sin; a mind that believes in lies more than the truth. "Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin. ... Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof" (Romans 6:6, 12). "Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man: But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death" (James 1:13-15). As noted in the scriptures above, the unclean spirit does not come back alone; it brings seven additional unclean spirits more wicked than himself. Any of the higher ranked principalities we are about to discuss are candidates for this infestation; however, we must first discuss the partner to disobedience which is the principality of lying.

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