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Satan has one objective in mind...to keep us from understanding that we are one Spirit with the Lord, filled up to all the fulness of God. [2 Corinthians 1:20, Ephesians 3:19] He does not want us to know that we are called to reign in life and that the Father has gladly given us the kingdom. [Romans 5:17, Luke 12:32]
He wants us to feel afraid—helpless and alone. To feel separate from God, separate from Jesus. And he really loves to make us feel guilty and unworthy—to keep us beating ourselves up over and over again over some sin. He does not want us to know that we've been forgiven, once for all time, past, present and future, and that God doesn't even remember our sin! [Jeremiah 31:34]
And he really doesn't want us to know we've been strengthened with ALL POWER in our inner man! [Colossians 1:11, Ephesians 3:16]
He will throw everything at us—any circumstance, any weapon—to keep us from finding out who we really are in Christ. His worst nightmare is that we just might find out that Jesus is the Word and we're the Word multiplied! [Acts 12:24] That by believing, we're freed from all things, from which we could not be freed through the Law of Moses! [Acts 13:39]
He knows that He [the Father] Who did not spare His own Son but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him FREELY GIVE US ALL THINGS. [Romans 8:32]
He also knows that we have the power to overcome him by the Blood of the Lamb and the word of our testimony. He was watching, I'm sure, when Jesus explained that the physical, natural world obeys us! He will do anything to keep us from finding out the truth!
He'll keep preachers preaching all sorts of error and keep us singing songs like 'He gives and takes away'...he'll keep us in Old Covenant thinking as much as possible, where we are 'down here' and God is 'up there.'
Because he knows the truth. He knows exactly who we are in Christ, how powerful we really are and that we are joint heirs with the Heir of all things. [Hebrews 1:2, Romans 8:17]
He knows that we are from God, an that greater is He Who is in us than he [Satan] who is in the world. [1 John 4:4]
He just can't afford for us to find out.
How It’s Supposed to Work
I think this is how it's really supposed to work.
Let's say we are standing in faith for protection from harm [no harm befalls the righteous—Proverbs 12:21 and all of Psalm 91]. But if the destroyer managed to get through, say with sickness or accident aimed at a loved one, we would simply lay hands on them and they would be healed. If he still managed to break through and kill them, we would simply raise them up. Failing that, we would understand that we are already seated with them in heavenly places in Christ anyway. [Ephesians 2:6]
Now that's walking in absolute power and victory! 2 Corinthians says 'But thanks be to God, Who ALWAYS LEADS US IN TRIUMPH IN CHRIST, and manifests through us the sweet aroma of the knowledge of Him in every place.' Satan is a spirit—he sees and knows exactly who we are in the Spirit.
And I do mean all believers walking in this kind of power and victory, not just a few famous preachers on TV! Proving what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God! [Romans 12:2]
Why Did Jesus Come?
Did you know that Jesus already had authority over all the power of the enemy? He came to give that authority back to us...the authority usurped in the Garden of Eden!
In Luke 10, He gave that authority to His disciples—unregenerate men! How much more do we who are one Spirit with the Lord have such authority?
1 John 3:8 tell us plainly that 'The Son of God appeared for this purpose, TO DESTROY THE WORKS OF THE DEVIL.' And John 14:12 says that we are to do greater works than He did...how? Because instead of one Son of God, working in one place at one time, now there are many sons and daughters, filled with His power, in many places and in many times!
So what's a devil to do? Stop it any way he can! Kill, steal, destroy, deceive...lie, lie, lie. Keep us so confused by sermons like 'sometimes the answer is no...' and funeral messages like 'we don't know why God took this 12 year old...' that we spend all our time in doubt and despair. Attack our bodies, steal our wealth and blame it all on God. What good is a tissue paper helmet of salvation anyway? If we don't think our salvation is anything more than fire insurance, it's not going to protect us from anything!
Ephesians 6 teaches that we struggle with powerful spiritual enemies. Now, if God says that He always leads us in triumph and we overwhelmingly conquer through Him Who loved us [Romans 8:37] than our armor and weapons are designed to work! If it is His will for us to win (and it is), we must be able to!
1 Corinthians 15:57 says
'...but thanks be to God, Who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
Or 2 Corinthians 2:14…
‘But thanks be to God, Who ALWAYS leads us in TRIUMPH in Christ, and manifests through us the sweet aroma of the knowledge of Him in every place.
How about 1 John 5:4?
'For whatever is born of God overcomes the world; and this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith.'
The Bottom Line
The bottom line is John 10:10. "The thief comes ONLY to STEAL and KILL and DESTROY. I [Jesus] came that they may have LIFE, and have it abundantly." [John 10:10]
This is Jesus speaking, giving us a cheat sheet to who's doing what to whom. An interesting aside—this verse can also be translated '...and have abundance.'
If you can keep this always in mind, it will help when the deceiver strikes, whispering that [fill in the problem] is really from God.
Especially when it involves death, either of a loved one, or death in any area of life. God has PLAINLY stated that death is the last ENEMY [1 Corinthian 15:26] and that His will is that His [Jesus] enemies be made a FOOTSTOOL for His feet. [Psalm 110:1, Luke 20:43, Acts 2:35, Hebrews 1:13, Hebrews 10:13]
And this will blow your mind…He’s WAITING for death to be made a footstool! God says in Psalms 110:
“Sit at My [The Father] right hand until I make Your enemies a footstool for Your feet.” The Lord will stretch forth Your [Jesus] STRONG SCEPTER from ZION [we’ve already come to Mt. Zion, seated in Him in heavenly places] SAYING “Rule in the midst of Your enemies.” YOUR people will volunteer freely in the day of YOUR POWER, in holy array, from the womb of the dawn, Your youth are to you as the dew.” [Psalm 110:5-7]
HALLELUJAH! Ephesians and Colossians tell us in several place that we are filled with DUNAMIS [gr]—miracle-working power—and we are to release that power to allow God to make His enemies His footstool now by SAYING. It’s all about Him working more than we can ask or think according the POWER that works WITHIN—in, by, with—us! We don’t do it, He does it through us.
That’s why we’re supposed to be reigning in life—Romans 5:17 and healing the sick, raising the dead, cleansing lepers, casting out demons [Matthew 10:7, 8]
So NEVER let anyone, especially a preacher, tell you that God has taken—Christian speak for killed—your loved one because it’s just not true. He considers death an enemy [1 Corinthians 15:26] and so should you!
Job may have said ‘The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away’ but it does NOT apply to us. We are ONE Spirit with the Lord, His Body in the earth. When we FINALLY realize the we died at Calvary with Jesus [Romans 6:6, Galatians 2:20] and it is He alone that lives in us through the Holy Spirit, we will start to walk in the power, love and dominion that is our birthright. We are heirs of God and fellow or joint heirs with Christ! [Romans 8:17]
One more thing…
‘For in Him ALL THE FULLNESS OF DEITY dwells in bodily form, and IN HIM YOU HAVE BEEN MADE COMPLETE…’ [Colossians 2:9,10]
And…
‘…that He would grant YOU, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with power [DUNAMIS] through His Spirit in the inner man, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; and that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that YOU may be filled up to ALL THE FULLNESS OF GOD.
‘Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power [DUNAMIS] that works within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen—SO BE IT.’ [Ephesians 3:16-21]
Finally…
‘By this, love is PERFECTED in us, so that we may have confidence in the day of judgment; because AS HE IS, SO ALSO ARE WE IN THIS WORLD.’ [John 4:17]
Yes, that’s the Holy Spirit praying for you, and me, and all the saints…no one left out. Hallelujah!
Okay, I’m back…
It’s A Fact
It's a fact. We've been lied to and those lies have rendered us powerless and defeated.
But now is the time to shake off defeat and rise up in triumph! Think about words like triumph, victory, conquer...these are strong words of successful warfare, and God—GOD—spoke them over us. The same God Who spoke the world into existence has spoken words like triumph, victory and conquer ABOUT US!
But How…
Someone online has called them the 'cursed hows.' I love that! Because if we continually focus on the natural 'hows' we can never fully walk in the triumphs of faith.
What does 1 John 5:4 says is the VICTORY that has OVERCOME the world? OUR FAITH! The real how—how God prepared the worlds [Hebrews 11:3]—is faith!
Faith is the assurance—the SUBSTANCE [existence, foundation, substructure]—of THINGS hoped for, the conviction [proof or evidence] of THINGS not seen. The Greek word for things in this scripture is pragma—that which has been done, a deed, and ACCOMPLISHED FACT; what is being done or accomplished, THAT WHICH IS OR EXISTS, a thing.
Do these things stay unseen? This is a popular argument against using faith to manipulate the natural world—that our blessings and the promises of God are only on the spiritual plane. Are the worlds still unseen? Or were they just unseen in the physical realm before God spoke them into existence by His faith? Did He see them first, before speaking them into natural form or did He create without any idea of what He was creating? Did He see first and then speak? Are the worlds spinning in order or is the universe just some orderless chaos?
We are told in 2 Corinthians 4:18 to look at the unseen—that which is eternal—because that which is seen is temporary. Didn't Jesus demonstrate this by speaking to all kinds of temporary, physical things and telling them what to do? Telling fig trees to die and fish to scoop up coins, and bodies to heal and dead people to rise up? Telling pots of water to turn into wine or storms to cease?
And didn't He then tell us to do the same?
It is our job—our calling and our privilege—to bring the natural world into alignment with the will of God! Jesus told us to pray "...Your will be done, on earth, as it is in Heaven..." God Himself said "For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea" [Habakkuk 2:14] and "...as I lie, all the earth will be filled with the glory of the Lord." [Numbers 14:21]
Plus, don’t forget [and watch out for villagers with torches]…
“The glory which You have given Me I HAVE given to them, that they may be one, just as We are one…” [John 10]
As the temple of old was filled with His glory, so are we. Jesus said it—it’s in RED— so don’t yell at me.
Now you know why I disabled comments on this site…
Ephesians 1:9,10 says:
'He made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His kind intention which He purposed in Him with a view to an ADMINISTRATION SUITABLE TO THE FULLNESS OF TIMES, that is, the summing up of all things in Christ, things in the heavens and things on the earth.'
We are to administer His kingdom on the earth! To bring His will into physical reality...His will be done on earth as it is in Heaven!
What is the will of God in Heaven? All of His already finished works! [Hebrews 4:3] Every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places! [Ephesians 1:3] Everything pertaining to life and godliness through the true knowledge of Him Who called us by His own glory and excellence—His precious and magnificent promises, by which we become partakers of the diving nature! [2 Peter 1:3,4]
And we are the agents who are to cover the earth with His glory…the very Body of Christ, one Spirit with the Lord, with the Mind of Christ!
Surrounded
Did you know that the Seraphim—majestic beings in Heaven—are continuously calling to each other "Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord of Hosts, the whole earth is full of His glory." [Isaiah 6:3]
Did you also know that we are surrounded by songs or shouts of deliverance? [Psalm 32:7] Surrounded by His favor like a shield? [Psalm 5:12]
Actually, the Bible says we're surrounded by a lot of things, both good and evil! There's a lot of activity going on around us, and we're meant to know and understand it—see the unseen—and reign in life through the One, Christ Jesus!
Live in the seen, work in the unseen. Dominate the enemy and his works by faith, prove what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
"No weapon that is formed against you shall prosper; and EVERY TONGUE that accuses you in judgment you will condemn." [Isaiah 54:17]
Who is the accuser of the brethren? Satan is and he's been thrown down! [Revelations 12:10] His weapons against us are words, just like our weapon against him is the Word—the Sword of the Spirit! [Ephesians 6:17]
2 Corinthians 10:4 says that '...the weapons of our warfare are NOT of the flesh, but DIVINELY POWERFUL for the destruction of fortresses.'
Yes, divinely powerful, for the express purpose of WINNING! In spite of the many, many sermons which have explained over the years that God is glorified in our defeat, we are built to win! To cover the earth with the glory of God! This is His true plan, and Satan knows it.
So Now What?
WAKE UP!! 'Arise, shine; for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you.' [Isaiah 60:1]
Don't listen to lies...resist the devil, and he will flee! The Greek word for flee is pheugo...to flee away, seek safety by flight, to flee something abhorrent, to escape safely out of danger! He knows that when we finally turn our power toward him, he will have to flee to seek safety from that danger!
He knows we're dangerous...time for us to know it, too.
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Read Lies, Lies, Lies; Fear—The Deadly Enemy, Fear, What Are the Giants Saying to You, Wow! [That's all I could think of...], Camping in the Desert, Bound, God Isn't Holding Back 2
