When Angels Stomp: The Warfare Behind Unity

The vision was beautiful until it became terrifying.

A woman in our church saw two groups of believers locked in tug-of-war, fighting over who was right while people desperately needing living water couldn't reach the well because of all the conflict. Then Jesus stepped in, grabbed the rope, and lifted it up, bringing everyone together around the source of life.

I loved that part. It perfectly captured what I've been seeing God do across denominational lines, racial divisions, and theological differences. The Church is beginning to remember that we're called to unity, not uniformity.

But then came the disturbing part: an angel descended through the church ceiling with intense authority, stomped his foot, and declared, "Listen! The enemy is trying to divide you!"

For days, this bothered me. If Jesus had already solved the problem by lifting the rope, why the dramatic warning about spiritual warfare?

The Stakes Are Rising

Then it hit me: the more we move toward genuine unity, the more desperate the enemy becomes.

Division has been Satan's primary strategy for neutralizing the Church's effectiveness for centuries. As long as we're fighting each other, we're not advancing God's Kingdom. As long as we're competing instead of collaborating, we're not fulfilling the Great Commission. As long as we're focused on our differences instead of our shared mission, we're not being the answer to Jesus's prayer in John 17.

But something is shifting. Across the globe, believers are beginning to recognize that our call to unity is greater than our denominational distinctives. People are choosing relationship over being right. Churches are partnering instead of competing.

And heck is not happy about it.

The Pattern of Resistance

Here's what I've learned: every time God moves toward breakthrough, the enemy intensifies his assault. When revival is coming, spiritual warfare increases. When healing is near, attacks become more vicious. When unity is emerging, division tactics become more sophisticated.

The angel wasn't contradicting Jesus's work of bringing unity—he was preparing us for the enemy's response to that work.

Think about it historically: every major move of God has been met with intense opposition. The Reformation brought centuries of religious wars. The Great Awakening provoked fierce resistance from established religious authorities. The Civil Rights Movement faced violent opposition. The Jesus Movement of the 1960s was met with cultural backlash.

Breakthrough always comes with a price.

The Enemy's Playbook

Over the years, I've observed how the enemy works to destroy unity, especially when God is doing something significant. His tactics are surprisingly predictable:

He amplifies minor disagreements into major conflicts. Small differences in opinion become denominational splits. Personality conflicts become organizational wars. Stylistic preferences become theological battles.

He twists good desires into destructive competition. The desire to see people saved becomes church growth rivalry. The call to biblical faithfulness becomes legalistic judgment. The passion for justice becomes self-righteous anger.

He uses pride to prevent reconciliation. "I was right." "They started it." "They need to apologize first." Pride keeps us from taking the first step toward healing broken relationships.

He exploits our wounds to create offense. Past hurts make us hypersensitive to perceived slights. Old betrayals make us suspicious of new relationships. Unhealed trauma becomes the lens through which we interpret every interaction.

He uses fear to prevent risk-taking. Fear of being hurt again keeps us from vulnerability. Fear of losing control prevents us from trusting others. Fear of being wrong stops us from admitting mistakes.

The Weapons of Our Warfare

But here's the good news: we're not defenseless against these attacks. In fact, we've been given everything we need to not just survive but thrive in the midst of spiritual warfare.

The weapon of truth. When the enemy whispers lies about other believers, we counter with truth. "They're different from us" becomes "They're fellow image-bearers." "They're our competition" becomes "They're our partners." "They're the problem" becomes "We're all broken people in need of grace."

The weapon of love. First Corinthians 13 isn't just a nice wedding passage—it's a warfare manual. Love believes the best about others. Love doesn't keep a record of wrongs. Love covers a multitude of sins. When we choose love over suspicion, we disarm the enemy's primary strategy.

The weapon of humility. Pride is the enemy's playground, but humility creates an environment where God can work. When we're quick to admit our mistakes, slow to point out others' failures, and willing to take the lower position, we create space for reconciliation.

The weapon of forgiveness. Unforgiveness is like drinking poison and expecting the other person to die. When we choose to forgive—not because people deserve it, but because Jesus commanded it—we free ourselves from the enemy's trap and open the door for restoration.

Personal Warfare Stories

I've experienced this warfare personally. When Gregory and I first began building our marriage on principles of mutual submission rather than hierarchical authority, we faced intense opposition.

Some of it came from well-meaning people who genuinely believed traditional gender roles were biblical mandates. But some of it felt more sinister—accusations that twisted our words, attacks on our character, attempts to divide us from people we loved.

The enemy knows that marriages built on Kingdom principles become powerful testimonies to God's design for relationships. So he works overtime to destroy them before they can influence others.

The same thing happened when I began writing about these topics. The pushback wasn't just theological disagreement—it often carried a spirit of accusation and division that felt demonic in origin.

The Community Under Attack

I've also watched entire communities come under spiritual assault when they began pursuing genuine unity. Churches that started reaching across racial lines suddenly faced unprecedented conflict. Organizations that began partnering across denominational boundaries experienced mysterious internal strife.

It's as if the enemy has assigned specific demons to monitor areas where unity is breaking out, with orders to disrupt it by any means necessary.

But here's what I've learned: the very intensity of the attack often confirms that we're on the right track. The enemy doesn't waste ammunition on things that don't threaten him.

Standing Guard

The angel's warning in that vision wasn't meant to discourage us—it was meant to prepare us. When we know the enemy's tactics, we can guard against them.

Guard your heart against offense. When someone says or does something that hurts you, pause before reacting. Ask the Holy Spirit to show you what's really happening. Is this a legitimate concern that needs to be addressed, or is the enemy trying to create division?

Guard your words against accusation. Before speaking negatively about another believer or ministry, ask yourself: "Will these words build unity or create division? Am I speaking from love or from woundedness?"

Guard your relationships against pride. When conflict arises, be quick to examine your own heart before focusing on the other person's failures. Ask yourself: "How might I have contributed to this problem? What can I do to promote healing?"

Guard your mind against fear. When the enemy whispers that unity is impossible, that people can't be trusted, that you should protect yourself by withdrawing, counter those thoughts with truth. Perfect love casts out fear.

The Victory is Already Won

Here's the ultimate truth: the victory is already won. Jesus didn't just pray for our unity in John 17—He purchased it with His blood. He didn't just model reconciliation—He accomplished it on the cross.

The enemy can delay the manifestation of that victory, but he cannot prevent it. He can make the journey difficult, but he cannot change the destination.

Ephesians 2:14-16 (NIV) declares that Jesus "has made the two groups one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility... His purpose was to create in himself one new humanity out of the two, thus making peace, and in one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility."

This isn't just about Jews and Gentiles—it's about every dividing wall that separates God's people. Race, gender, denomination, class, nationality—every barrier that keeps us from experiencing the unity Christ died to create.

Angelic Assistance

The angel in the vision wasn't just warning us about enemy attacks—he was announcing heavenly assistance. When God's people are serious about unity, heaven mobilizes to help.

Angels are being assigned to communities pursuing reconciliation. Supernatural grace is being released over difficult conversations. Divine encounters are being orchestrated to bring unlikely people together.

I've seen this personally. Relationships that seemed impossible have been healed. Racial reconciliation has happened in ways that can only be explained as supernatural. Denominational walls have come down through divine intervention.

The Time is Now

I believe we're living in a kairos moment—a season of divine opportunity when God is releasing a spirit of unity unlike anything we've seen before. But with that opportunity comes increased opposition.

The enemy knows his time is short. He knows that a unified Church will be unstoppable in advancing God's Kingdom. So he's pulling out all the stops to prevent the unity Jesus died to create.

But we have everything we need to stand firm. We have the Word of God, the power of the Holy Spirit, the covering of Jesus's blood, and angelic assistance. Most importantly, we have each other.

The Call to War

This is our moment. This is our call to spiritual war—not against flesh and blood, but against the principalities and powers that seek to keep God's people divided.

We're not fighting for unity—we're fighting from unity. The victory is already won; we're just enforcing what Christ accomplished.

Every time we choose love over offense, we strike a blow against the kingdom of darkness. Every time we build a bridge instead of a wall, we advance God's Kingdom. Every time we forgive instead of holding grudges, we participate in Christ's victory.

The rope is being lifted. The dividing walls are coming down. The Kingdom is advancing.

And while the enemy may stomp and rage and throw everything he has at us, the ultimate outcome is never in doubt.

Love wins. Unity prevails. The Kingdom comes.

The angel stomped his foot not in fear, but in authority, declaring what heaven knows to be true: the enemy's time of division is coming to an end.

The Church is waking up. The body is coming together. And when we do, the world will finally see the full manifestation of Jesus's prayer: "that they may all be one... so that the world may believe."

Let the warfare come. We're ready. We have angelic assistance, divine backing, and the victory of the cross.

The enemy is trying to divide us. But he's already lost.

Blessings,
Susan 😊