On today’s “Faith and Freedom” radio program, Matt Barber declared that the persecution of Christians is on the rise in America and around the world because secular progressives, gay rights activists, and ISIS are blind to the fact that they are the pawns of Satan.

“We also need to be praying for those who are persecutors, for Islamists, for secular progressives because, as Ephesians 6:12 says, ‘Our struggle is not against flesh and blood but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realm,'” Barber said. “These people don’t even realize that they’re being used as pawns in the spiritual war.”

“Even though they can deny God,” he continued, “Satan loves that they can deny the existence of God, or they’ll even deny his existence. They don’t realize that they’re vulnerable to being used … They don’t even realize that healing is available, that salvation is available, that eternal life is available through Christ and through Christ alone because they are blinded and their hearts are hardened.”