Josh Howerton tells Shawn Ryan how Satan's brazenness is backfiring

BlazeTV host and Lakepointe Church Pastor Josh Howerton recently discussed with the eponymous host of the "Shawn Ryan Show" the ongoing war against Christianity and what set the stage for America's present "prodigal son" moment.

While he recognized that Christ's church is now, as ever, assailed on all sides, Howerton emphasized that many have awoken in recent years to the reality that there are dark spiritual forces at work in the world and also that there are also prevailing forces of light whose victory was secured at Calvary two millennia ago.

'That light has a name.'

Early in their conversation, Howerton told Ryan — who recently announced that he has resumed going to church — that the war on Christianity is primeval; that after the Fall, Satan declared "war on the offspring that God's going to use to redeem the world. So that's the storyline of the entire Bible. It's Word versus world."

"The Bible says the whole world lies under the power of the evil one. The Bible actually calls Satan the little-g god of this world," said the pastor, who noted also that when tempted in the desert, Jesus Christ did not correct Satan when the dark one claimed dominion over the kingdoms of the world.

Howerton noted that there is "this tacit assumption throughout the entire Bible that Satan is really over all of the world's systems — and that's why everything in the world aligns against one thing in particular, and it's Christianity — Christ and Christians. That's baseline."

Expounding on an observation shared with him by Middle East expert Raymond Ibrahim that this satanic contempt makes sense of otherwise nonsensical political alliances — such as those formed in recent years between LGBT activists, feminists, and Islamists — Howerton noted, "The unifying principle is the enemy of my enemy is my friend: anything but Christianity, and anyone but Christ."

Howerton also detailed the commonalities between the Antichrist referred to in the Bible and Mahdi, the messianic figure in Islamic eschatology who is supposed to defeat Muslims' enemies in the end times, and strongly suggests that the purported angel who spoke to Muhammad was the same demonic entity Saint Paul warned of in 2 Corinthians 11:14.

Ryan had expressed interest in whether Christianity was actually growing, citing statistics highlighting the years-long trend of widespread apostasization in America, which recent polling indicates has actually slowed down.

Although Howerton reassured Ryan that Christianity is "globally growing," he noted that "in my lifetime, Christianity in America has generally been declining. I'm 43; 1983. Feels like the tide's turning."

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Screenshot - Courtesy of "Shawn Ryan Show," YouTube

Ryan observed that widespread disenchantment with and distrust for government and various institutions has prompted people to seek something concrete and true, and this has driven them to Christ.

He also agreed with Howerton's suggestion that the increasing immorality and vile actions exhibited in the West have awakened people to the twofold reality "that there was a non-ignorable dark force in the world" and that "if there's a darkness, there must be a light, and that light has a name, and His name is Jesus Christ."

The pastor likened this particular moment of apparent religious renewal and spiritual awakening to the biblical story of the prodigal son's return.

"He spends all his money on parties and strippers and alcohol and, you know, whatever. And then if you read that, there's this little verse, and everybody skips the verse that I think is most important, where he gets to the spot where he spends all the money and ... everything that he thought was gonna make him happy, and it just didn't," said Howerton.

"It says, 'and then he came to his senses,' and he started running back to his father."

Howerton added, "We got a bit of a prodigal nation."

Like the prodigal son, the pastor suggested that it has finally dawned on America, "Everything else didn't work, but I know I can go home to Dad."

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