Paul the first century apostle, for some unknown reason, appears on a university campus, befriends a professor named Don, learns English and much of our modern culture and then holds forums at the university.
Don: Alright, we have a number of hands raised. Rachel, would you like to be next?
Rachel: Thank you, Professor. Paul, I was wondering what you thought about the current thinking about the historical Jesus.
Paul: Well, Jesus is just as historical as I was. Am. I don’t know what else I can say about that.
Rachel: Perhaps you haven’t done the reading…
Don: Would you like to summarize, briefly, the argument of the historic Jesus?
Rachel: (Blushing) I’m not sure I can… Well, I’ll take a stab at it…
Paul: You are attacking it, then?
Don: No, Paul, that’s a figure of speech…
Paul: I understand. Just a little levity, that’s all.
Rachel: Okay. Anyway, the basic idea behind the historic Jesus is not a questioning of Jesus himself, but of discovering who Jesus really was. I’m sure that you understand that the four or five gospels we have—the oldest existing accounts about Jesus—were written with theological and cultural biases and so historians have been trying to strip away those biases to get to who Jesus really was, what he really said and what he really did. I was wondering if you, who saw Jesus in real life, could throw some light on the subject.
Paul: Well, there are many things I could talk about that. Let me say, first, that I am as in the dark about Jesus as you are in this century.
Rachel: But, you saw Jesus…
Paul: Yes, I did. For but a few moments going up to Damascus. Jesus didn’t say all that much to me. Enough for me to change the whole direction of my life, but still, very little.
Rachel: But that was just a vision…
Paul: I don’t believe it was. He stood before me as plainly as you do right now. In fact, he was closer to me. This was no vision—I’ve had those, too, and being in the presence of Jesus was very different.
Rachel: But, surely, you have some insights on the process of trying to discover the real Jesus.
Paul: The real Jesus? The only way to experience the real Jesus is through the spirit, not primarily through books.
Rachel: So… you deny the gospels as being a primary source of Jesus?
Paul: No. They are a primary source of what Jesus said and did while he was living on earth, ministering among his disciples. But I do not consider that to be the real Jesus.
Rachel: So you are saying that the historic Jesus…
Paul: Is different from the Jesus who lives right now in the heavens, ruling the earth beside the Father.
Rachel: So, you think that there is no point in us knowing that Jesus of old?
Paul: Just the opposite. I think that it is essential to know that Jesus.
Rachel: I’m really confused…
Paul: I’m sorry. Let me explain. To know Jesus is to have a relationship with Jesus. Jesus is—he exists. And to have a relationship with someone is to know who that one IS, not was. But the only way to know Jesus is through the Spirit, in an unseen relationship. But there is more than one spirit, and so more than one potential relationship. And just because a spirit claims to be of Jesus, this does not mean that it is the “real Jesus” as you say. Thus, we need to know the Jesus that lived and breathed and spoke as a man, so we can know the spiritual “Jesus” as being an accurate one. It is a litmus test, so to speak.
Rachel: So the reason we want to know the Jesus of the past is to affirm that the present Jesus we are connecting with is the real one?
Paul: Right.
Rachel: So what is the best way to know the historic Jesus today?
Paul: The same way it was for me: through eyewitnesses.
Rachel: But witnesses are so biased…
Paul: Yes, of course. So are we all. But does that make them any less reliable than us?
Rachel: Well, they had such theological prejudices…
Paul: As if your scholars don’t have their prejudices as well! We ALL have our biases and prejudices and all. The real question is: are we willing to recognize our prejudices when they are pointed out to us by Jesus and to set them aside?
Rachel: Our scholars are trained in objectivity…
Don: Could I make a point here? As a professor in a university, I need to say, Rachel, that every scholar is enormously biased and if they are trained in objectivity as students, that objectivity is almost universally set aside when they become a scholar in their own right.
Rachel: So you’re saying that even historical scholarship aren’t really dealing with facts?
Don: Oh, no. Historians very much deal with facts. But the job of historians is not primarily in discovering facts, but in sifting through the massive amount of true material to find what is significant and to draw conclusions about those relatively few significant facts. So the “truth” of historians is automatically different from the “truth” of, let’s say, chemistry. In chemistry, you set up a repeatable experiment and only one set of facts “works”, meaning fulfills the terms of the experiment. But in history, a number of sets of facts can “work”, or create a plausible theory to account for historical events. Thus, history is actually LESS objective than many other kinds of study.
Rachel: So what is history about, then?
Don: In my opinion? To uphold a cultural consensus of how human society works and what is important in society.
Paul: Which is to the point of what I was trying to say. It seems to me that the “historic Jesus” you were speaking about has little to do with finding the “real Jesus” and more to do with finding a Jesus that is acceptable and communicable to the cultural standards of your present society. You are not looking for the “real” Jesus. You are looking for the Jesus that meets your needs.
Rachel: I don’t think so. Otherwise, the scholars would have a consensus of what Jesus would be like, and that consensus would reflect our cultural standards. But it seems that we have as many Jesus’ as we do scholars.
Paul: Is that so? Don was telling me the other day about this… Jesus Seminar? Is that part of this movement you speak of?
Rachel: It is a populist form of it, I admit, but they were just disguising democracy as scholarship and then publicizing it.
Paul: Did they not reach some kind of consensus?
Rachel: Well, of course, but it wasn’t accurate scholarship.
Paul: Do not the scholars who participated in it uphold it as accurate? And generally reflecting their view of Jesus?
Rachel: I suppose.
Paul: And what conclusions did they come to?
Rachel: That most of the sayings in the gospel could not be attributed to Jesus.
Paul: Were there any surprising findings?
Rachel: Well, they did affirm the saying “love your enemies” saying, even though it was attested to only one source.
Paul: And did they affirm this because they approved of this concept, whether Jesus historically said it or not?
Rachel: I’m sure I wouldn’t know.
Paul: I think you do know. Let me tell you, Jesus was his own man. I know pretty much all the sayings of Jesus by heart. Every disciple needed to. That was our job: to memorize and repeat the sayings and life of Jesus. And these written forms of the teachings of the disciples, which you call “gospels”, are fairly representative. While the text you call “John” is certainly different, I have heard such teachings in my former life. And while I might wish that some of these traditions passed to you were written differently, nevertheless, I cannot dispute the basic content of a single one. This is what, fundamentally, I taught to every church I ever started.
Rachel: YOU used the gospels?
Paul: Not the gospels as you know them, per se. But the teachings that they contain. Don’t you realize that the ideas found in those gospels were the foundation of every church. When we had disputes, we disputed what the sayings and actions MEANT, but not about what they SAID. These sayings were Jesus in a distilled form. No, they did not, nor do not, represent the whole Jesus. Jesus was so more complex and multifaceted than could be described in a single book. But these sayings formed a foundation upon which we could build our understanding of who Jesus IS.
Rachel: So wouldn’t you support an accurate history of Jesus?
Paul: Absolutely. It sounds like your scholars desperately need it. But if they saw an accurate, historical account of Jesus, they would reject it. Because if Jesus broke all of our expectations, hopes and theologies, he would certainly break yours, built up over two thousand years of misunderstandings and wanderings.
Rachel: But if Jesus is real and speaks to people today, like you say, then wouldn’t he lead his people to the truth about him?
Paul: Certainly—at least the truth that was significant for them to know at the time, anyway. But only those who were his. I have read enough of the history of the church to know that the majority of the people who claim to follow Jesus are not following the real Jesus at all. They have long set aside any semblance of the historic Jesus—the foundation of the real Jesus—and instead have pursued an acceptable Jesus for them. Like I said, there are any number of spirits that claim to be Jesus or to represent him. And they have led the church astray in so many ways they are innumerable. But there are those few, those poor, those persecuted, those outcast by the carnal church, who truly follow Jesus—the real Jesus—with all their heart. But they are either rejected as crackpots by those who gain the publicity of seeking the “real Jesus” or they are exalted to “saint” status and so ignored for real life possibilities. Which fate is worse, I’m sure I don’t know.
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
Relating to God the Son
Close To You
God wants to relate to humanity, to be intimate with humans, as He once was with Adam. But humanity has again and again rejected His calls to relationship. Finally, God has placed himself at a distance from humanity, simply because of humanity’s rejection of Him. God, just like all of us, can only deal with so much rejection before He realizes that the relationship is just meant to be distant.
But God realized that it was the whole of humanity that wanted to keep God at arms’ length. Even though it was the majority, it was not everyone. Some humans longed to be in intimate relationship with God, to connect with Him, to love Him, to daily commune with Him. Not everyone was asking God to be quiet, allowing other humans to speak for Him. So God made a plan—He would send His Son, His perfect representative, God himself, to live with us and to commune with us. (John 1:14)
Jesus died to end the old, distant means of relating to God and to initiate the new kingdom of God, which one communes with God in spirit and truth, not in a physical place and a physical presence (John 4:20-24). We decide ourselves to enter God’s kingdom, and if we do, then we can boldly approach God’s throne, being purified by Jesus, given a new chance to make up with God as a new nation of people who want to love God intimately as no people ever had before. (Hebrews 4:14-16)
Going Through The Middleman
But if we are going to relate to God through Jesus, how is this done? How is our relationship with God through Jesus better than if we just relate to God directly? The key to our intimacy with God through Jesus has to do with the power of the incarnation. Jesus being God, became a human. This means that he is the perfect bridge, the perfect mediator between God and humanity, for he understands both sides of the dark veil that blocks true intimacy.
Submit to the authority of Jesus
Only a human could be king of the world—emperor of God’s people who want to be intimate with Him. God promised the rule of the earth to humanity (Psalm 8) and God is faithful to keep his promise, no matter what humanity has done (II Timothy 2:13). So Jesus became a human so he could be king over God’s people. And we have a ruler who understands our weaknesses and temptations, as well as understanding God’s holiness and power.
If we were to sum the whole of the Christian faith into three words it would be these: Jesus is Lord (I Corinthians 12:13). Jesus is the King of Heaven and Earth, sitting at the right hand of the Father, ruling over the nations of the earth (Hebrews 2:6-8). Jesus has not yet taken up the entire rule, for his enemies are still ruling huge portions of the earth. But Jesus is taking control over the world one person at a time.
So if we are to take advantage of the intimacy that God is offering us through Jesus, we have to submit to Jesus. To have faith in Jesus is not just to believe in Jesus, but to put our faith in Jesus’ lordship. Jesus isn’t our buddy, our friend or our comrade. Nor is Jesus just a philosopher, one of many teachers who has a number of good ideas that we should listen to besides others. Nor is Jesus just a Savior, a healer who wants to help our needs and pat us on the head and let us go.
Rather, Jesus is our Lord, our Sovereign, our Emperor, our King. We need to treat Jesus as our superior in every way, and give him every honor and praise. And most of all, we should put no other human—no matter how great—beside Jesus. Jesus is the great God, the great Lord and even though there are many other great women and men, Jesus is above them all (See Revelation 2-3).
Learn the teaching of Jesus
Through Moses, God gave Israel a number of very specific laws. God was very particular, giving 618 laws about how one ought to live one’s live. Unfortunately, it became impossible to continue to live according to those laws. Not only was the place of sacrifice—the Temple in Jerusalem—destroyed, but many of the laws about cattle and roofs didn’t really apply to those who lived in an urban, Gentile context. Having specific laws became problematic, for cultures change.
When Jesus came, he didn’t see life through a single culture, but he saw a variety of many cultures and ideals all working together. Despite this, He knew that God’s principles still applied to all people. But instead of just updating the laws, Jesus spoke of the general principles of God’s law so that it could be applied to anyone, anywhere.
Instead of talking about returning an enemy’s ox, Jesus said we are to love our enemy.
Instead of talking about just murder, Jesus spoke of hateful acts and speech.
Instead of talking about adultery, Jesus spoke of lustful looks
Instead of talking about not working on the Sabbath, Jesus spoke of doing works of mercy on the Sabbath.
Instead of talking about killing the sinful, Jesus spoke of not judging, but coaxing the sinner to return to God. (Matt. 5:15-17)
Instead of talking about just not slandering one’s neighbor, Jesus spoke of loving one’s neighbor.
Jesus changed the whole face of the law, so that it was something that applied to every human being, no matter where they lived or who they were.
Our manner of relating to the incarnate God, then, is to obey his commands. Jesus said that if we are to love him, then we are to keep his commands. If we ignore Jesus commands, then we are not really loving Him, nor the Father. (John 15)
To obey Jesus’ commands, we must first learn them. The early disciples memorized Jesus’ sayings so that they could know how to live. If we could memorize even a summary of Jesus’ teaching, we would have a step ahead in obedience.
Live the life of Jesus
Jesus is God in the flesh, but not just God. Jesus’ life is the life of God, God as a human being. Jesus was holy as God is holy, but tempted as a human is tempted. Jesus had great power as God is powerful, but he was dependent on the Father as a human is dependant. Jesus is merciful as God is merciful, yet he was also angry as a human is angry.
It is easy to look at Jesus and say that He was the epitome of God, and that He is so far above us that we can never attain His standard of life. If we say this, then we have again distanced ourselves from God. Jesus became human so that he could show us a human life that is divine. A human life that anyone could live, should they be dependent on God.
Some people say that we couldn’t be as ethically pure as Jesus because we are basically sinful. But Jesus was weak even as we are weak, but without sin. Why is that? Because He knew the truth that God wanted Him to live up to, and He had the power to live out that truth. If we are in Jesus, then we too could know the truth of God’s life through Jesus’ teaching. And if we are in Jesus, then the Holy Spirit empowers us to live the life we should live.
Others say that we do not have the power of Jesus because we are not God. But Jesus had no more power than we do. Jesus was fully human, and limited to human strength. Jesus instead relied on the authority of God. Jesus used the authority and the Father used His power. This is the same as us, if we command, in Jesus’ name, then we can use Jesus’ authority. We could walk on water, we could command demons, we could raise the dead, we could heal the sick. Not because we have power, but because we can use that power in Jesus’ name.
Jesus’ life is not just an option for us. It is a source of being intimate with God. To live God’s life is not to be God, but it is to live in God and for God in a way we could not otherwise. Imitation of God is the sincerest form of worship.
God wants to relate to humanity, to be intimate with humans, as He once was with Adam. But humanity has again and again rejected His calls to relationship. Finally, God has placed himself at a distance from humanity, simply because of humanity’s rejection of Him. God, just like all of us, can only deal with so much rejection before He realizes that the relationship is just meant to be distant.
But God realized that it was the whole of humanity that wanted to keep God at arms’ length. Even though it was the majority, it was not everyone. Some humans longed to be in intimate relationship with God, to connect with Him, to love Him, to daily commune with Him. Not everyone was asking God to be quiet, allowing other humans to speak for Him. So God made a plan—He would send His Son, His perfect representative, God himself, to live with us and to commune with us. (John 1:14)
Jesus died to end the old, distant means of relating to God and to initiate the new kingdom of God, which one communes with God in spirit and truth, not in a physical place and a physical presence (John 4:20-24). We decide ourselves to enter God’s kingdom, and if we do, then we can boldly approach God’s throne, being purified by Jesus, given a new chance to make up with God as a new nation of people who want to love God intimately as no people ever had before. (Hebrews 4:14-16)
Going Through The Middleman
But if we are going to relate to God through Jesus, how is this done? How is our relationship with God through Jesus better than if we just relate to God directly? The key to our intimacy with God through Jesus has to do with the power of the incarnation. Jesus being God, became a human. This means that he is the perfect bridge, the perfect mediator between God and humanity, for he understands both sides of the dark veil that blocks true intimacy.
Submit to the authority of Jesus
Only a human could be king of the world—emperor of God’s people who want to be intimate with Him. God promised the rule of the earth to humanity (Psalm 8) and God is faithful to keep his promise, no matter what humanity has done (II Timothy 2:13). So Jesus became a human so he could be king over God’s people. And we have a ruler who understands our weaknesses and temptations, as well as understanding God’s holiness and power.
If we were to sum the whole of the Christian faith into three words it would be these: Jesus is Lord (I Corinthians 12:13). Jesus is the King of Heaven and Earth, sitting at the right hand of the Father, ruling over the nations of the earth (Hebrews 2:6-8). Jesus has not yet taken up the entire rule, for his enemies are still ruling huge portions of the earth. But Jesus is taking control over the world one person at a time.
So if we are to take advantage of the intimacy that God is offering us through Jesus, we have to submit to Jesus. To have faith in Jesus is not just to believe in Jesus, but to put our faith in Jesus’ lordship. Jesus isn’t our buddy, our friend or our comrade. Nor is Jesus just a philosopher, one of many teachers who has a number of good ideas that we should listen to besides others. Nor is Jesus just a Savior, a healer who wants to help our needs and pat us on the head and let us go.
Rather, Jesus is our Lord, our Sovereign, our Emperor, our King. We need to treat Jesus as our superior in every way, and give him every honor and praise. And most of all, we should put no other human—no matter how great—beside Jesus. Jesus is the great God, the great Lord and even though there are many other great women and men, Jesus is above them all (See Revelation 2-3).
Learn the teaching of Jesus
Through Moses, God gave Israel a number of very specific laws. God was very particular, giving 618 laws about how one ought to live one’s live. Unfortunately, it became impossible to continue to live according to those laws. Not only was the place of sacrifice—the Temple in Jerusalem—destroyed, but many of the laws about cattle and roofs didn’t really apply to those who lived in an urban, Gentile context. Having specific laws became problematic, for cultures change.
When Jesus came, he didn’t see life through a single culture, but he saw a variety of many cultures and ideals all working together. Despite this, He knew that God’s principles still applied to all people. But instead of just updating the laws, Jesus spoke of the general principles of God’s law so that it could be applied to anyone, anywhere.
Instead of talking about returning an enemy’s ox, Jesus said we are to love our enemy.
Instead of talking about just murder, Jesus spoke of hateful acts and speech.
Instead of talking about adultery, Jesus spoke of lustful looks
Instead of talking about not working on the Sabbath, Jesus spoke of doing works of mercy on the Sabbath.
Instead of talking about killing the sinful, Jesus spoke of not judging, but coaxing the sinner to return to God. (Matt. 5:15-17)
Instead of talking about just not slandering one’s neighbor, Jesus spoke of loving one’s neighbor.
Jesus changed the whole face of the law, so that it was something that applied to every human being, no matter where they lived or who they were.
Our manner of relating to the incarnate God, then, is to obey his commands. Jesus said that if we are to love him, then we are to keep his commands. If we ignore Jesus commands, then we are not really loving Him, nor the Father. (John 15)
To obey Jesus’ commands, we must first learn them. The early disciples memorized Jesus’ sayings so that they could know how to live. If we could memorize even a summary of Jesus’ teaching, we would have a step ahead in obedience.
Live the life of Jesus
Jesus is God in the flesh, but not just God. Jesus’ life is the life of God, God as a human being. Jesus was holy as God is holy, but tempted as a human is tempted. Jesus had great power as God is powerful, but he was dependent on the Father as a human is dependant. Jesus is merciful as God is merciful, yet he was also angry as a human is angry.
It is easy to look at Jesus and say that He was the epitome of God, and that He is so far above us that we can never attain His standard of life. If we say this, then we have again distanced ourselves from God. Jesus became human so that he could show us a human life that is divine. A human life that anyone could live, should they be dependent on God.
Some people say that we couldn’t be as ethically pure as Jesus because we are basically sinful. But Jesus was weak even as we are weak, but without sin. Why is that? Because He knew the truth that God wanted Him to live up to, and He had the power to live out that truth. If we are in Jesus, then we too could know the truth of God’s life through Jesus’ teaching. And if we are in Jesus, then the Holy Spirit empowers us to live the life we should live.
Others say that we do not have the power of Jesus because we are not God. But Jesus had no more power than we do. Jesus was fully human, and limited to human strength. Jesus instead relied on the authority of God. Jesus used the authority and the Father used His power. This is the same as us, if we command, in Jesus’ name, then we can use Jesus’ authority. We could walk on water, we could command demons, we could raise the dead, we could heal the sick. Not because we have power, but because we can use that power in Jesus’ name.
Jesus’ life is not just an option for us. It is a source of being intimate with God. To live God’s life is not to be God, but it is to live in God and for God in a way we could not otherwise. Imitation of God is the sincerest form of worship.
Relating To God The Father
Bless Yahweh, O my soul
And all that is within me, bless His holy name
Bless Yahweh, O my soul
And forget none of His benefits
He who forgives your iniquities
Who heals all your diseases
Who redeems your life from the pit
Who crowns you with lovingkindness and compassion
Who satisfies your years with good things
So your youth is renewed like the eagle.
Yahweh does righteous acts
And judgments supporting the oppressed.
He has made his ways known to Moses
His deeds to the sons of Israel
Yahweh is compassionate and gracious
Slow to anger and abounding in faithful love.
He will not always fight with us
Nor will He keep his anger forever. (Psalm 103)
Hooking Up With God
God is the King of the Universe. He is Lord of Heaven and Earth and all that is between. Jesus called Him Father, but He has many other names beside that. His name is Yahweh. He is also called El, Adonai, Lord, Savior, King, the most Holy, the all powerful and more.
At times God seems so distant, so remote from out lives. But God, all throughout history has tried to be intimate with humanity. In the beginning, He would walk with Adam (“the human”) in the garden (Genesis 2-3). He spoke directly to the children of Israel and showed himself to them (Exodus 20, 24). He tried to rule over Israel as their only king (I Samuel 8:6). He offered himself to Israel as her Husband (Hosea 3:10).
But every time God tried to be intimate with a people, they rejected His intimacy. Adam rebelled against God and refused His daily counsel (Genesis 3). Israel begged that God no longer speak to them directly (Exodus 20:19-21). Israel rejected God as their king, but wanted a human king (I Samuel 8). And Israel sought other gods instead of seeking Yahweh alone.
God remained separated from humanity, when what He really wanted was intimacy.
Making Up Is Hard To Do
Through Jesus, we have a new opportunity to be intimate with God in a way that Israel never did. We can individually relate to God through the kingdom of God that Jesus established. We ourselves have an opportunity to connect with God in a way that Israel never did. But how do we do this? How can we relate to God who is the all powerful king of the universe, when we are a part of a race that had rejected Him? How can we do this when we ourselves had rejected God in our actions so many ways, so much of our lives?
God himself gives us the pattern to relate to Him, even though we may be distant from Him, we are still to connect with Him directly in some ways:
1. Remember
“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” Almost all of us remember that passage right at the beginning of the Bible. The majority of the Bible is about just that—remembering what it is that God has done. And this is one of the best beginning ways to relate to God—to remember His great deeds. We need to remember the creation, we need to remember his deliverance of Israel, we need to remember his judgments, but most of all we need to remember his great mercy. (Psalm 103:1-6; Exodus 13:13; Exodus 32:13; Deuteronomy 8:2)
Sometimes it is easy to remember all the things we had without God and how “wonderful” they were, and so we complain to God that we wish our lives would be like before (Numbers 11:5). But instead we need to remember that we were once slaves to our own passions and drives and oppressed by all those around us and that God delivered us from all that (Deuteronomy 5:15). What we remember determines what we desire and what we will hope in.
If we remember the Lord and His great works, we will live our lives in Him and for Him, away from the tyranny we lived in before. And God at times establishes memorials with us to remember what He has done in the past and what He has done for us. Sometimes the memory could be held in a ceremony, a piece of clothing, a song, a tradition of some sort. But the memory has to be real to us, to reflect a reality, not just an empty piece of symbolism. This means that filling our lives with memorials should be significant, but it often isn’t something that we can pass on to others.
2. Have Faith
God is the almighty, the merciful, the great, the holy. And we can remember this, but sometimes it is hard to see it as being significant for our lives. “Sure, God is all-powerful, He created the world, but what does that have to do with me?” Perhaps nothing. We can believe intellectually about God all the right things—the Apostle’s Creed or whatever—but if we just keep it in our head, then it is meaningless. As James said, even demons have right believe, but it doesn’t do anything for their ethical conduct, and so it is meaningless (James 2:17-24)
Abraham was one who had true faith in God. He didn’t just believe the right things about God, but he acted on that faith. He left his father and inheritance, which should have been his security for his future. He trusted that God would give him a son when he was an elderly man. He knew that God had the power to destroy a city and so prayed to Him to deliver it. He knew that God had the power to raise a person from the dead, so he was prepared to kill his son (Genesis 12:1-10; 15:1-8; Genesis 18; Hebrews 11:8-19). It wasn’t that Abraham had received the promises yet and then believed. No, he acted on the promises before they happened.
Even so, if we believe that God is all powerful and that He listens to prayer, how often do we really act on it? Do we trust that God will answer our prayers for deliverance for us and others, or do we neglect our prayers? Do we trust that God will create justice or do we wallow in self-pity? Do we trust that God can overcome our enemies, or do we feel the need to kill in order to be safe?
God doesn’t help those who help themselves. He helps those who depend on Him.
3. Cry Out
When God looked at Israel, slaves to Egypt, he did not see a nation that was a moral nation. Nor a powerful one. Nor particularly impressive in any way. Rather, he saw a nation in need. He had sympathy for them, and wanted to help them. But he waited to help until they were ready to cry out. Once they called out to God, then He was immediately ready to act for them. (Exodus 2:23-25; Deuteronomy 7:6-8)
God is the God of the oppressed and needy. He looks upon peoples who are starving and wants to give them food. He has sympathy on people in prison and wants to free them. He has compassion on those who have no justice and wants to grant them shalom (Psalm 145, Psalm 146, Isaiah 61:1-5). But He holds back, waiting for just one thing—their request.
If God’s people would just cry out to Him for the oppressed, he would act, and quickly. If God’s people would identify with the needy and seek Him about them, He would do something dramatic. If God’s people would look to God instead of armies and missiles and diplomacy and sanctions and human rights and civil disobedience—if only we would see the power in God instead of humanity! Then God’s power would flow out of the heavens and change the earth in such a way that we have never seen it before! (Psalm 107; Luke 11:1-13; Luke 18:1-8;)
But we need to ask. We can’t just expect it to happen. We can’t just hope for it. We can’t just discuss it. We have to cry out, and God will stand with the needy once again.
God is ready to relate to us, right now. All we have to do is put ourselves in a position to receive it. We need to admit our poverty, our loss, our shame, our need and then cry out to God for it. We need to allow God to be our Father, and He will provide for us. But if we separate ourselves from God through our lack of belief, through our self-dependence, through our laziness in not wanting to pray—then we are like the people of old.
God is reaching out to us right now, seeking out our love and connection. But it is up to us as to whether we will receive God’s fatherhood.
And all that is within me, bless His holy name
Bless Yahweh, O my soul
And forget none of His benefits
He who forgives your iniquities
Who heals all your diseases
Who redeems your life from the pit
Who crowns you with lovingkindness and compassion
Who satisfies your years with good things
So your youth is renewed like the eagle.
Yahweh does righteous acts
And judgments supporting the oppressed.
He has made his ways known to Moses
His deeds to the sons of Israel
Yahweh is compassionate and gracious
Slow to anger and abounding in faithful love.
He will not always fight with us
Nor will He keep his anger forever. (Psalm 103)
Hooking Up With God
God is the King of the Universe. He is Lord of Heaven and Earth and all that is between. Jesus called Him Father, but He has many other names beside that. His name is Yahweh. He is also called El, Adonai, Lord, Savior, King, the most Holy, the all powerful and more.
At times God seems so distant, so remote from out lives. But God, all throughout history has tried to be intimate with humanity. In the beginning, He would walk with Adam (“the human”) in the garden (Genesis 2-3). He spoke directly to the children of Israel and showed himself to them (Exodus 20, 24). He tried to rule over Israel as their only king (I Samuel 8:6). He offered himself to Israel as her Husband (Hosea 3:10).
But every time God tried to be intimate with a people, they rejected His intimacy. Adam rebelled against God and refused His daily counsel (Genesis 3). Israel begged that God no longer speak to them directly (Exodus 20:19-21). Israel rejected God as their king, but wanted a human king (I Samuel 8). And Israel sought other gods instead of seeking Yahweh alone.
God remained separated from humanity, when what He really wanted was intimacy.
Making Up Is Hard To Do
Through Jesus, we have a new opportunity to be intimate with God in a way that Israel never did. We can individually relate to God through the kingdom of God that Jesus established. We ourselves have an opportunity to connect with God in a way that Israel never did. But how do we do this? How can we relate to God who is the all powerful king of the universe, when we are a part of a race that had rejected Him? How can we do this when we ourselves had rejected God in our actions so many ways, so much of our lives?
God himself gives us the pattern to relate to Him, even though we may be distant from Him, we are still to connect with Him directly in some ways:
1. Remember
“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” Almost all of us remember that passage right at the beginning of the Bible. The majority of the Bible is about just that—remembering what it is that God has done. And this is one of the best beginning ways to relate to God—to remember His great deeds. We need to remember the creation, we need to remember his deliverance of Israel, we need to remember his judgments, but most of all we need to remember his great mercy. (Psalm 103:1-6; Exodus 13:13; Exodus 32:13; Deuteronomy 8:2)
Sometimes it is easy to remember all the things we had without God and how “wonderful” they were, and so we complain to God that we wish our lives would be like before (Numbers 11:5). But instead we need to remember that we were once slaves to our own passions and drives and oppressed by all those around us and that God delivered us from all that (Deuteronomy 5:15). What we remember determines what we desire and what we will hope in.
If we remember the Lord and His great works, we will live our lives in Him and for Him, away from the tyranny we lived in before. And God at times establishes memorials with us to remember what He has done in the past and what He has done for us. Sometimes the memory could be held in a ceremony, a piece of clothing, a song, a tradition of some sort. But the memory has to be real to us, to reflect a reality, not just an empty piece of symbolism. This means that filling our lives with memorials should be significant, but it often isn’t something that we can pass on to others.
2. Have Faith
God is the almighty, the merciful, the great, the holy. And we can remember this, but sometimes it is hard to see it as being significant for our lives. “Sure, God is all-powerful, He created the world, but what does that have to do with me?” Perhaps nothing. We can believe intellectually about God all the right things—the Apostle’s Creed or whatever—but if we just keep it in our head, then it is meaningless. As James said, even demons have right believe, but it doesn’t do anything for their ethical conduct, and so it is meaningless (James 2:17-24)
Abraham was one who had true faith in God. He didn’t just believe the right things about God, but he acted on that faith. He left his father and inheritance, which should have been his security for his future. He trusted that God would give him a son when he was an elderly man. He knew that God had the power to destroy a city and so prayed to Him to deliver it. He knew that God had the power to raise a person from the dead, so he was prepared to kill his son (Genesis 12:1-10; 15:1-8; Genesis 18; Hebrews 11:8-19). It wasn’t that Abraham had received the promises yet and then believed. No, he acted on the promises before they happened.
Even so, if we believe that God is all powerful and that He listens to prayer, how often do we really act on it? Do we trust that God will answer our prayers for deliverance for us and others, or do we neglect our prayers? Do we trust that God will create justice or do we wallow in self-pity? Do we trust that God can overcome our enemies, or do we feel the need to kill in order to be safe?
God doesn’t help those who help themselves. He helps those who depend on Him.
3. Cry Out
When God looked at Israel, slaves to Egypt, he did not see a nation that was a moral nation. Nor a powerful one. Nor particularly impressive in any way. Rather, he saw a nation in need. He had sympathy for them, and wanted to help them. But he waited to help until they were ready to cry out. Once they called out to God, then He was immediately ready to act for them. (Exodus 2:23-25; Deuteronomy 7:6-8)
God is the God of the oppressed and needy. He looks upon peoples who are starving and wants to give them food. He has sympathy on people in prison and wants to free them. He has compassion on those who have no justice and wants to grant them shalom (Psalm 145, Psalm 146, Isaiah 61:1-5). But He holds back, waiting for just one thing—their request.
If God’s people would just cry out to Him for the oppressed, he would act, and quickly. If God’s people would identify with the needy and seek Him about them, He would do something dramatic. If God’s people would look to God instead of armies and missiles and diplomacy and sanctions and human rights and civil disobedience—if only we would see the power in God instead of humanity! Then God’s power would flow out of the heavens and change the earth in such a way that we have never seen it before! (Psalm 107; Luke 11:1-13; Luke 18:1-8;)
But we need to ask. We can’t just expect it to happen. We can’t just hope for it. We can’t just discuss it. We have to cry out, and God will stand with the needy once again.
God is ready to relate to us, right now. All we have to do is put ourselves in a position to receive it. We need to admit our poverty, our loss, our shame, our need and then cry out to God for it. We need to allow God to be our Father, and He will provide for us. But if we separate ourselves from God through our lack of belief, through our self-dependence, through our laziness in not wanting to pray—then we are like the people of old.
God is reaching out to us right now, seeking out our love and connection. But it is up to us as to whether we will receive God’s fatherhood.
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
Attacking Satan
The Worlds At War
We are at war. Satan is attacking us. Most of the time this Mennonite pastor might recommend doing no harm to one’s enemy. However, there is one huge exception. We should give no place to Satan or his angels, and we should attack them at every side, allowing them no rest. We are at war with Satan, his attacks and his lies. We are soldiers in this war, granted authority from Jesus to attack him. Let us not rest until he is completely defeated. (Ephesians 6:12)
Our Authority Over Satan
Jesus had the authority to attack all of the judgements and attacks of Satan. After he died and rose from the dead by God’s power, Jesus gave every believer the authority to attack Satan and get rid of him out of the lives of every believer in Jesus. Satan has much power—we must admit that. He is allowed to judge everyone who has rebelled against God (which is everyone). But Jesus has granted us authority to attack Satan’s soldiers and to exile them from God’s kingdom. In this way, we must occupy the territory of every person who has committed themselves to Jesus. (Mark 16:17-18; Luke 10:19; I John 4:4)
Three Deliverers
It requires three deliverers to deliver someone from bondage. First, there must be the Spirit of Jesus in power there in the midst. Second, there must be a person who is mature and free from any Satanic attack—all footholds and Satanic lies are cleared from them already. Then there is the person who is attacked themselves. If the one being attacked is a believer, then it is absolutely necessary that they be a part of the deliverance.
It is more than possible—indeed, very likely—that a person, once delivered, will be attacked again by the same spirit. Only this time the spirit will be strengthened with other spirits to attack the person. This means that the one being attacked must be prepared to resist these spirits, ready to attack them as they come. The only way to be prepared for this attempt to regain ground, is to have the Holy Spirit filling one through the deliverance of Jesus. For this reason, I do not recommend delivering an unbeliever or someone who is not ready to commit themselves to Jesus. If one is unprepared for the attack that is bound to come, then it might be better not even to begin. The only exception is if the oppressed one has absolutely no control over themselves (such as in Mark 9:20-22). Then they should be delivered and then it should be strongly recommended that they commit themselves to Jesus.
Assisting an attack
Most of this instruction is for the person who is assisting the one who is oppressed. Usually the one who is oppressed is unable to attack Satan on their own. As you speak to evil spirits remember the following:
Do not ask questions of evil spirits unless absolutely necessary—evil spirits lie like we breathe.
Do not shout unless necessary—authority comes from Jesus, not presentation.
Do all things in the name of Jesus—He is the active authority, not you.
Never doubt God’s authority through Jesus.
If you don’t know what to do, stop and listen to God.
Allow the one you are assisting to enact the authority of Jesus as much as possible.
Never disrespect evil spirits, just get rid of them. (Jude 1:9-11)
Preparation for War
Be in prayer and in submission to God through Jesus
This is usually called “putting on the armor” after Ephesians 6. The one who is prepared to attack Satan is spiritually healthy in all ways. They should be confessed of their sin, filled with the Spirit, prepared to use God’s word, and walking in the righteousness of Christ. The one attacking Satan should probably go through the “Spiritual Health Checklist” to make sure all is right in their spiritual walk. If you are not right with God, prepared through Jesus and ready to have his authority come through you, Satan will only take this opportunity to make you stumble (Acts 19:13-16)
Reliance on God
To attack Satan, we must use the spiritual authority of God—we do not have enough spiritual authority to crush a pea, let alone a powerful demon. It is God who does the work, and we will be speaking words from the Spirit to attack the evil one. Thus, we must be ready to hear God and to rely on his authority and work. If not, we can accomplish nothing. (John 15:4-5)
Bind spirits
The evil spirits attacking the person might be unruly or creating confusion so they might not be cast out. If you see any manifestation of the evil spirits, command them to be quiet, in the name of Jesus. You can use words like this: “In the name of Jesus, I command you to be quiet. I bind you to silence and stillness, in Jesus name. You will no longer distract -” the one oppressed. This need not be done every time, but only if the spirits are being very disturbing. (Mark 1:34)
Undermining the Support
Before our attack, we must first undermine the position of Satan in a person’s life. First, we need to discover where Satan is attacking. Then, in order to resist Satan and his attacks, we must first submit to God through Jesus.
Discover the Manifestation
What is the indication of Satanic attack? In all probability, that is the reason the person is asking for help, but it is good to ask for other indications. Go over the Indications of Satanic Attack.
Discover the source
Satan doesn’t enter a person without a reason. There must be some significant sin in someone’s life or involvement in a false teaching or involvement in some occult activity. Again, look over the Indications of Satanic Attack to see if the one being attacked has opened themselves up to attack sometime in the past.
Take every thought captive
Make sure that the person seeking deliverance knows the truth of the gospel and of God’s purity. If they still are holding to false teaching or to sin that will separate them from God, show them the Scriptures that indicate God’s truth. (II Corinthians 10:2-6)
Commitment to Jesus
The one being attacked by Satan must at this point commit themselves to Jesus. If they have never done so, they should be baptized (Acts 2:38). If they have done so, then a verbal re-commitment is sufficient. “I devote myself, body, heart and soul, to the Lord Jesus Christ. I belong to him alone and will obey him as my Lord. I am the possession of God alone.” (Mark 16:16-17)
The Attack
Anyone who is committed to the Lord Jesus can command spirits to go. If you command in Jesus’ name, they must flee, as long as you are in the Lord. (Mark 16:17; Luke 10:19)
Rejection of spirits
The oppressed one should themselves reject both the manifestations and sources of Satanic attack. It can take this form: “I belong to the Lord Jesus, and I renounce the spirit of – in the name of Jesus.” Do this for every area—present or past—that was shown to be an issue on the Indication sheet.
Spirit commanded to leave
Either the oppressed one or the assistant can command the spirits to leave, but both must be involved in the command. One speaks, while the other verbally agrees. It can take this form: “In the name of Jesus, I command the spirit of – to be gone, and to attack no one else. I command you to go to Jesus and go where he commands you. Leave in the name of Jesus.”
Occupation
After evil spirits leave a person, Jesus describes them like an “empty house”. This house is cleaned, but the spirit will return and attack again, if they are allowed. Only this time the attack will be stronger and more difficult to get rid of (Matthew 12:43-45). The way to avoid this is to not allow the person to be empty. They need to be filled with Jesus’ teaching and with the Holy Spirit.
Request for Holy Spirit to fill
Immediately after the evil spirits are cast away, then we should ask the Holy Spirit to come in and fill the person. The one just released from Satan should be taught to pray for the Spirit daily. (Luke 11:13)
Discipleship and Accountability
Finally, if at all possible, the person should be partnered with a mature brother or sister who will keep them accountable in Jesus, forsaking the ways of Satan, growing in the truth of Jesus and encouraging them to love and good deeds. (Hebrews 10:24-25)
Satan has no right to attack believers in Jesus—
And we have the authority to command him to go.
We are at war. Satan is attacking us. Most of the time this Mennonite pastor might recommend doing no harm to one’s enemy. However, there is one huge exception. We should give no place to Satan or his angels, and we should attack them at every side, allowing them no rest. We are at war with Satan, his attacks and his lies. We are soldiers in this war, granted authority from Jesus to attack him. Let us not rest until he is completely defeated. (Ephesians 6:12)
Our Authority Over Satan
Jesus had the authority to attack all of the judgements and attacks of Satan. After he died and rose from the dead by God’s power, Jesus gave every believer the authority to attack Satan and get rid of him out of the lives of every believer in Jesus. Satan has much power—we must admit that. He is allowed to judge everyone who has rebelled against God (which is everyone). But Jesus has granted us authority to attack Satan’s soldiers and to exile them from God’s kingdom. In this way, we must occupy the territory of every person who has committed themselves to Jesus. (Mark 16:17-18; Luke 10:19; I John 4:4)
Three Deliverers
It requires three deliverers to deliver someone from bondage. First, there must be the Spirit of Jesus in power there in the midst. Second, there must be a person who is mature and free from any Satanic attack—all footholds and Satanic lies are cleared from them already. Then there is the person who is attacked themselves. If the one being attacked is a believer, then it is absolutely necessary that they be a part of the deliverance.
It is more than possible—indeed, very likely—that a person, once delivered, will be attacked again by the same spirit. Only this time the spirit will be strengthened with other spirits to attack the person. This means that the one being attacked must be prepared to resist these spirits, ready to attack them as they come. The only way to be prepared for this attempt to regain ground, is to have the Holy Spirit filling one through the deliverance of Jesus. For this reason, I do not recommend delivering an unbeliever or someone who is not ready to commit themselves to Jesus. If one is unprepared for the attack that is bound to come, then it might be better not even to begin. The only exception is if the oppressed one has absolutely no control over themselves (such as in Mark 9:20-22). Then they should be delivered and then it should be strongly recommended that they commit themselves to Jesus.
Assisting an attack
Most of this instruction is for the person who is assisting the one who is oppressed. Usually the one who is oppressed is unable to attack Satan on their own. As you speak to evil spirits remember the following:
Do not ask questions of evil spirits unless absolutely necessary—evil spirits lie like we breathe.
Do not shout unless necessary—authority comes from Jesus, not presentation.
Do all things in the name of Jesus—He is the active authority, not you.
Never doubt God’s authority through Jesus.
If you don’t know what to do, stop and listen to God.
Allow the one you are assisting to enact the authority of Jesus as much as possible.
Never disrespect evil spirits, just get rid of them. (Jude 1:9-11)
Preparation for War
Be in prayer and in submission to God through Jesus
This is usually called “putting on the armor” after Ephesians 6. The one who is prepared to attack Satan is spiritually healthy in all ways. They should be confessed of their sin, filled with the Spirit, prepared to use God’s word, and walking in the righteousness of Christ. The one attacking Satan should probably go through the “Spiritual Health Checklist” to make sure all is right in their spiritual walk. If you are not right with God, prepared through Jesus and ready to have his authority come through you, Satan will only take this opportunity to make you stumble (Acts 19:13-16)
Reliance on God
To attack Satan, we must use the spiritual authority of God—we do not have enough spiritual authority to crush a pea, let alone a powerful demon. It is God who does the work, and we will be speaking words from the Spirit to attack the evil one. Thus, we must be ready to hear God and to rely on his authority and work. If not, we can accomplish nothing. (John 15:4-5)
Bind spirits
The evil spirits attacking the person might be unruly or creating confusion so they might not be cast out. If you see any manifestation of the evil spirits, command them to be quiet, in the name of Jesus. You can use words like this: “In the name of Jesus, I command you to be quiet. I bind you to silence and stillness, in Jesus name. You will no longer distract -” the one oppressed. This need not be done every time, but only if the spirits are being very disturbing. (Mark 1:34)
Undermining the Support
Before our attack, we must first undermine the position of Satan in a person’s life. First, we need to discover where Satan is attacking. Then, in order to resist Satan and his attacks, we must first submit to God through Jesus.
Discover the Manifestation
What is the indication of Satanic attack? In all probability, that is the reason the person is asking for help, but it is good to ask for other indications. Go over the Indications of Satanic Attack.
Discover the source
Satan doesn’t enter a person without a reason. There must be some significant sin in someone’s life or involvement in a false teaching or involvement in some occult activity. Again, look over the Indications of Satanic Attack to see if the one being attacked has opened themselves up to attack sometime in the past.
Take every thought captive
Make sure that the person seeking deliverance knows the truth of the gospel and of God’s purity. If they still are holding to false teaching or to sin that will separate them from God, show them the Scriptures that indicate God’s truth. (II Corinthians 10:2-6)
Commitment to Jesus
The one being attacked by Satan must at this point commit themselves to Jesus. If they have never done so, they should be baptized (Acts 2:38). If they have done so, then a verbal re-commitment is sufficient. “I devote myself, body, heart and soul, to the Lord Jesus Christ. I belong to him alone and will obey him as my Lord. I am the possession of God alone.” (Mark 16:16-17)
The Attack
Anyone who is committed to the Lord Jesus can command spirits to go. If you command in Jesus’ name, they must flee, as long as you are in the Lord. (Mark 16:17; Luke 10:19)
Rejection of spirits
The oppressed one should themselves reject both the manifestations and sources of Satanic attack. It can take this form: “I belong to the Lord Jesus, and I renounce the spirit of – in the name of Jesus.” Do this for every area—present or past—that was shown to be an issue on the Indication sheet.
Spirit commanded to leave
Either the oppressed one or the assistant can command the spirits to leave, but both must be involved in the command. One speaks, while the other verbally agrees. It can take this form: “In the name of Jesus, I command the spirit of – to be gone, and to attack no one else. I command you to go to Jesus and go where he commands you. Leave in the name of Jesus.”
Occupation
After evil spirits leave a person, Jesus describes them like an “empty house”. This house is cleaned, but the spirit will return and attack again, if they are allowed. Only this time the attack will be stronger and more difficult to get rid of (Matthew 12:43-45). The way to avoid this is to not allow the person to be empty. They need to be filled with Jesus’ teaching and with the Holy Spirit.
Request for Holy Spirit to fill
Immediately after the evil spirits are cast away, then we should ask the Holy Spirit to come in and fill the person. The one just released from Satan should be taught to pray for the Spirit daily. (Luke 11:13)
Discipleship and Accountability
Finally, if at all possible, the person should be partnered with a mature brother or sister who will keep them accountable in Jesus, forsaking the ways of Satan, growing in the truth of Jesus and encouraging them to love and good deeds. (Hebrews 10:24-25)
Satan has no right to attack believers in Jesus—
And we have the authority to command him to go.
Satanic Attack
They want to kill you. There are people you can’t see, establishing systems and creating plots to take your life away and make you miserable. Okay, this sounds like some paranoid fantasy—but that doesn’t mean it isn’t true. According to the Bible, there is an evil plot to kill every one of us. In the New Testament, the leader of this plot is called Satan, and he will not stop until every human being on the planet is destroyed, or until he himself is destroyed.
Satan has been working on this plot for many thousands of years—almost as long as there have been humans. And he has gotten very good at his work. His personal goal is to have every human destroyed. But he doesn’t take the direct approach—killing them directly himself. Rather, he uses God’s law to condemn people to death for their sin. But how that is done varies from person to person.
Satan and his armies—called “evil spirits” or “demons”—have developed four general strategies to destroy human beings. These strategies are so powerful and effective that Satan hasn’t had to create new ones (although he does revise them from time to time). These strategies are his basic strategies of war—and it is what we need to be careful of.
1. Satanic oppression
This is a prison as a consequence of sin. It is “hell on earth”, where a person’s motives, desires and instincts are under Satan’s control. This is not the same as “possession” (which is not a biblical term), but it is a more subtle control. The person still feels that they make their own decisions, and they do—but based on Satanic principles. To everyone else they look and act insane, but to themselves they are rational (Mark 9:17-23)
Often a person can “invite” Satanic control because it makes their lives easier. Perhaps they are tired of making decisions themselves, or they appreciate what they are offered by an evil spirit. But whatever the case, no matter how strong it is, a person can gain freedom from oppression if they devote themselves to Jesus and reject the spirits controlling them.
Some dramatic examples might be:
Possession, control of one’s body; Multiple personality disorder with an evil personality; Schizophrenia, where one hears voices telling them to do clearly evil things; Drug or alcohol addiction; Epilepsy with no physical cause found; Insanity combined with irrational denial of God or Jesus
Satan often has these people reach death in a violently dramatic way—through suicides, fights, car or plane crashes, drug overdoses, or other kinds of unnatural deaths. Not all of the oppressed ones end this way, but many do.
Signs of Satanic Attack:
Do you have periods where you lose control of your body that cannot be explained medically?
Do you ever have an epileptic attack, but medicine doesn’t help?
Do you often have a compulsion to obey a voice that tells you to do violent, God-hating or evil things?
2. Judgment for sin
For every person who has sinned in rebellion against God, Satan has the right to judge them for their sin. God has given to Satan the authority to attack those who have sinned (and, on occasion, to attack someone who has not sinned—see Job 1). Every sin has consequences—some of them are physical, some are spiritual, some are emotional. Satan wants to gain the most from every sin. Some sins have few or no consequences, while other sin causes misery in our lives.
Some of the misery Satan causes is:
Sickness,
Depression
Unreasonable guilt/self-accusation
Self-reliance
Rejection of God
Isolation
Hatred of others/bitterness.
We can die from these judgements. Sickness can cause death, at times, as can bitterness, depression or guilt. However, Satan often uses these judgements to convince the sinner that one is “separated” from God, with no opportunity for forgiveness. One the ministries Jesus came to perform is the release from these judgements of Satan, offering forgiveness for people through deliverance (Mark 2:1-12).
Signs of Satanic attack:
Do you have a misery which cause cannot be determined?
Are you isolated due to a sickness or mental illness?
Has sin caused misery in you?
3. Satanic “footholds”
Satan only comes in where he is invited. But no one has to hand the authority of themselves to Satan directly. It isn’t like the movies, where we “devote ourselves to Satan” and our “souls are lost.” Early in our lives we learn from our parents or friends that the ways of the world are better than the ways of God, and so we begin to explore. Thus, we quickly hand ourselves over to Satan.
There are some actions that we do, even if we only do them once, then we are in rebellion against God and his ways. There are certain keys that the satanic forces look for to entrap us—and once we are entrapped in a certain area, we are not released. We remain trapped in a sin, and we have no way within ourselves to be released from them. These keys are called in Scripture a “place” or “foothold” (Ephesians 4:27). We do not have the ability to be delivered from these sins ourselves, but God does and if we ask for deliverance, God will grant it.
The footholds we need to especially watch out for are:
Anger without reconciliation; long term anger
Condemnation/bitterness
Lies
Acts of hostility
Occultism
Experimental drug use /alcoholism
Extreme sexual deviance
Rebellion against established authority
This is especially successful against Christians. For every Christian that Satan draws into a foothold, then many more can reject the truth of the gospel, because those outside the church are convinced that “Christians are hypocrites.”
The pattern of sin causes us to be judged by God on judgment. Often, because the pattern of sin is out of our control, we think that we will have no responsibility for our sin. However, we will be judged for our actions, whether we can control them or not. Satan wants us to accept our sins, not ask God for deliverance, so we can be destroyed by God (Jude 1:14-15)
Signs of Satanic attack:
Do you have an area of sin that no matter what you try, you can’t get rid of?
Do your prayers to be rid of temptation seem to be unanswered?
Are you trapped in a cycle of sin?
4. Societal lies
Satan’s most successful strategy has been to lie to whole societies. If a person is told a lie often enough, they soon believe it is the truth, no matter how ridiculous it first seems, or how lacking in common sense. Satan’s workers spread the lies, and then humans build institutions and educational facilities that promote and create human power behind these lies. (I John 2:14-17; II Corinthians 4:4)
Some of the lies Satan perpetuates in our Western societies are:
Practical Atheism: We should act as if God has no power.
Spiritual Segregationism: We should limit ‘religion’ or ‘spirituality’ to a segment of society/personality.
Pluralism: There are many ways to spiritual truth or power.
Nihilism: There is no practical spiritual reality—or we should begin all philosophy or theology on the assumption that there is no spiritual reality.
Idolatry: We need something other than or in addition to Jesus to reach God.
Materialism: Salvation through the world, not God.
Atheism/Agnosticism: God doesn’t exist, or we cannot know if he exists.
Institutionalism: God works only through a particular institution (such as a church or a government).
Satan’s lie works successfully in two ways: First, everyone who lacks faith in God or Jesus cannot gain the salvation of God or Jesus. While disbelief doesn’t necessarily lead to immediate death, it condemns us to death eventually. This method of Satan is most successful because so many people live happy, successful lives believing in Satan’s lies. Secondly, these lies create human institutions that destroys people’s lives, causing them to endure a living hell—which often causes them to reject God as well.
Signs of Satanic attack:
Do you say “yes” where God says “no”?
Do you want to explain away a good portion of the Bible?
Is God’s truth ultimately a lie to you?
Don’t be taken in by Satan’s strategies to kill you!
Satan has been working on this plot for many thousands of years—almost as long as there have been humans. And he has gotten very good at his work. His personal goal is to have every human destroyed. But he doesn’t take the direct approach—killing them directly himself. Rather, he uses God’s law to condemn people to death for their sin. But how that is done varies from person to person.
Satan and his armies—called “evil spirits” or “demons”—have developed four general strategies to destroy human beings. These strategies are so powerful and effective that Satan hasn’t had to create new ones (although he does revise them from time to time). These strategies are his basic strategies of war—and it is what we need to be careful of.
1. Satanic oppression
This is a prison as a consequence of sin. It is “hell on earth”, where a person’s motives, desires and instincts are under Satan’s control. This is not the same as “possession” (which is not a biblical term), but it is a more subtle control. The person still feels that they make their own decisions, and they do—but based on Satanic principles. To everyone else they look and act insane, but to themselves they are rational (Mark 9:17-23)
Often a person can “invite” Satanic control because it makes their lives easier. Perhaps they are tired of making decisions themselves, or they appreciate what they are offered by an evil spirit. But whatever the case, no matter how strong it is, a person can gain freedom from oppression if they devote themselves to Jesus and reject the spirits controlling them.
Some dramatic examples might be:
Possession, control of one’s body; Multiple personality disorder with an evil personality; Schizophrenia, where one hears voices telling them to do clearly evil things; Drug or alcohol addiction; Epilepsy with no physical cause found; Insanity combined with irrational denial of God or Jesus
Satan often has these people reach death in a violently dramatic way—through suicides, fights, car or plane crashes, drug overdoses, or other kinds of unnatural deaths. Not all of the oppressed ones end this way, but many do.
Signs of Satanic Attack:
Do you have periods where you lose control of your body that cannot be explained medically?
Do you ever have an epileptic attack, but medicine doesn’t help?
Do you often have a compulsion to obey a voice that tells you to do violent, God-hating or evil things?
2. Judgment for sin
For every person who has sinned in rebellion against God, Satan has the right to judge them for their sin. God has given to Satan the authority to attack those who have sinned (and, on occasion, to attack someone who has not sinned—see Job 1). Every sin has consequences—some of them are physical, some are spiritual, some are emotional. Satan wants to gain the most from every sin. Some sins have few or no consequences, while other sin causes misery in our lives.
Some of the misery Satan causes is:
Sickness,
Depression
Unreasonable guilt/self-accusation
Self-reliance
Rejection of God
Isolation
Hatred of others/bitterness.
We can die from these judgements. Sickness can cause death, at times, as can bitterness, depression or guilt. However, Satan often uses these judgements to convince the sinner that one is “separated” from God, with no opportunity for forgiveness. One the ministries Jesus came to perform is the release from these judgements of Satan, offering forgiveness for people through deliverance (Mark 2:1-12).
Signs of Satanic attack:
Do you have a misery which cause cannot be determined?
Are you isolated due to a sickness or mental illness?
Has sin caused misery in you?
3. Satanic “footholds”
Satan only comes in where he is invited. But no one has to hand the authority of themselves to Satan directly. It isn’t like the movies, where we “devote ourselves to Satan” and our “souls are lost.” Early in our lives we learn from our parents or friends that the ways of the world are better than the ways of God, and so we begin to explore. Thus, we quickly hand ourselves over to Satan.
There are some actions that we do, even if we only do them once, then we are in rebellion against God and his ways. There are certain keys that the satanic forces look for to entrap us—and once we are entrapped in a certain area, we are not released. We remain trapped in a sin, and we have no way within ourselves to be released from them. These keys are called in Scripture a “place” or “foothold” (Ephesians 4:27). We do not have the ability to be delivered from these sins ourselves, but God does and if we ask for deliverance, God will grant it.
The footholds we need to especially watch out for are:
Anger without reconciliation; long term anger
Condemnation/bitterness
Lies
Acts of hostility
Occultism
Experimental drug use /alcoholism
Extreme sexual deviance
Rebellion against established authority
This is especially successful against Christians. For every Christian that Satan draws into a foothold, then many more can reject the truth of the gospel, because those outside the church are convinced that “Christians are hypocrites.”
The pattern of sin causes us to be judged by God on judgment. Often, because the pattern of sin is out of our control, we think that we will have no responsibility for our sin. However, we will be judged for our actions, whether we can control them or not. Satan wants us to accept our sins, not ask God for deliverance, so we can be destroyed by God (Jude 1:14-15)
Signs of Satanic attack:
Do you have an area of sin that no matter what you try, you can’t get rid of?
Do your prayers to be rid of temptation seem to be unanswered?
Are you trapped in a cycle of sin?
4. Societal lies
Satan’s most successful strategy has been to lie to whole societies. If a person is told a lie often enough, they soon believe it is the truth, no matter how ridiculous it first seems, or how lacking in common sense. Satan’s workers spread the lies, and then humans build institutions and educational facilities that promote and create human power behind these lies. (I John 2:14-17; II Corinthians 4:4)
Some of the lies Satan perpetuates in our Western societies are:
Practical Atheism: We should act as if God has no power.
Spiritual Segregationism: We should limit ‘religion’ or ‘spirituality’ to a segment of society/personality.
Pluralism: There are many ways to spiritual truth or power.
Nihilism: There is no practical spiritual reality—or we should begin all philosophy or theology on the assumption that there is no spiritual reality.
Idolatry: We need something other than or in addition to Jesus to reach God.
Materialism: Salvation through the world, not God.
Atheism/Agnosticism: God doesn’t exist, or we cannot know if he exists.
Institutionalism: God works only through a particular institution (such as a church or a government).
Satan’s lie works successfully in two ways: First, everyone who lacks faith in God or Jesus cannot gain the salvation of God or Jesus. While disbelief doesn’t necessarily lead to immediate death, it condemns us to death eventually. This method of Satan is most successful because so many people live happy, successful lives believing in Satan’s lies. Secondly, these lies create human institutions that destroys people’s lives, causing them to endure a living hell—which often causes them to reject God as well.
Signs of Satanic attack:
Do you say “yes” where God says “no”?
Do you want to explain away a good portion of the Bible?
Is God’s truth ultimately a lie to you?
Don’t be taken in by Satan’s strategies to kill you!
Do You Hear Voices?
I know that I do. Some voices I want to hear, but others I do not. Some voices are for my benefit and the benefit of my relationship with God. But other voices are trying to tear me down, trying to destroy me. Perhaps you might think that I’m schizophrenic. Perhaps you might think that I need to go to a psychiatrist. But Jesus also heard these voices—so did Peter, Elijah, Moses, Abraham and many others. Anyone who has a connection with the spirit world hears voices. A lot of people do. Some of them are on drugs, some of them are very religious, some of them really are crazy. Many of these voices are a way for us to connect with the spirit world.
But we need to understand something important about the spirit world: it is not all good. Some people are impressed just because they have had a connection with the spirit world. They think that they are important because they have had a vision, or because they have seen an angel, or because they hear a voice that claims to be from God. But what many people do not understand is that the spirit world is fraught with danger. It is filled with beings who will deceive humans and attempt to destroy them. In order to make sense of one and another, we need to have clear discernment.
Various voices
We all hear voices everyday. We will often have discussions with ourselves, debating different sides of a decision we need to make, or different moral points of view. Certainly, not all of these voices are from the spirit world. Some are just from our own head, and some are from other people. It requires great wisdom and discernment to distinguish between voices. It also takes time and persistence to figure out who is who. Below are some of the voices that I deal with and they are sometimes difficult to tell them apart from one another. Some guidelines are given that help me to distinguish one voice from another.
The Flesh
The “flesh” is a term in the Bible for the natural human desires we all have. Hunger, sexual desire, anger, insecurity, significance—these are all a part of our lives, and they play a big part of what we want and do not want. However, we need to remember that our desire is just one part of who we are and what we think is ultimately important. There are many other voices that speak to us, trying to convince us to act in their ways. The voice of “the flesh” is interested in self-gratification, and that as quickly as possible. We need to recognize the voice of the Flesh, but also we need to set these desires aside if it is not ultimately in our best interest.
Delusion
Delusion is simple confusion, our minds in chaos. We may try to make sense of things, but our conclusions are not reasonable to anyone else—often not even ourselves. Although people diagnosed as “mentally ill” are commonly seen as deluded, yet everyone deals with a certain amount of delusion sometimes. Often we have to swallow our pride and ask some one else if what we are thinking makes sense. If it does not, then our delusional thoughts we just need to set aside. And if delusion is persistent in our lives, then we will need to ignore it as soon as we recognize it. Ignoring it does not make the delusion go away—but it makes it ineffective in our lives.
The World
The World is society and all the organization of it—governments, corporations, churches, schools, families, peers, etc. All of the “building blocks” of society is what might be called “the World”. The World may seem on the surface to be something outside of you, and yet it has its voices in our heads trying to tell us what to do. Our “mother’s” voice may be telling us what we should do for the family. Our “boss’” voice may tell us what to do for the company. And we may have a “patriotic” voice telling us what to do for our country—and on and on. The World has it’s own idea of morality and significance that may be good for you or may not. But the World is distinguished by telling us what we need to do for the group, the organization, the society. We need to do what is right and proper for the group that we feel a part of—this is what the voices of the World are telling us. However, the Bible tells us that we should separate ourselves from the World. We should recognize that God’s morality and the world’s morality come from a different source, and listening to the World and obeying it will ultimately lead to separation from God and our destruction, though it may seem seductively moral.
Evil Spirits
There are a whole variety of spirits in the spirit world that is interested in only one thing—destroying us. These spirits will talk to us, and they make so much sense and they are so convincing that we could meet our needs (the Flesh) or society’s needs (the World), if only we would make some small compromises with God… We all have some basic notions of what is right and wrong that come from God. The evil spirits want us to destroy ourselves by disobeying God and so making it right for God to destroy us. If we worship any God apart from the true God, or if we deliberately ignore the right God wants us to do, then we are threatening our very life. God destroys the rebellious, and evil spirits want to make us rebellious. So evil spirits will try to convince us to worship untrue gods. They will try to spur us on with fear and judging others. They will accuse us, trying to convince us that we are separated from God and that we can never return to Him. And evil spirits will, if they can, try to convince us to do things that will destroy us—making stupid choices or committing suicide. If an evil spirit is speaking to you and trying to attack you—or if it is trying to seduce you into doing evil—then you must tell the spirits to get lost. Don’t be shy—speak against them and let them know that they are not welcome. Basically, tell them to go away.
God
Finally, we can hear God. God has true messengers, called angels; and he has his perfect representative, called Jesus; and he has his power living within Jesus’ people, called the Holy Spirit. God desires us to live for him, and he wants to give us significance, and life, and security and peace. He alone wants our well being AND knows how to give it to us. Sometimes God tells us what we don’t want to hear—he says difficult things. Sometimes God makes amazing promises that are hard to believe—but he expects us to believe him anyway. And God talks to us. Everyday. He tells us how he loves us. He tells us how to be right with him. He tells us what we need to do. We can recognize God’s voice because it is the same as his Son, Jesus. Jesus is the one who best represents God and the Spirit Jesus sends among us is the voice of God that we hear through Jesus. Thus, if we know Jesus’ voice—the things he would say—then we know what God sounds like. And it is God’s voice alone that we should always obey, and always listen to.
It is not easy to hear God’s voice. We have all these other voices in our heads—all of them telling us what to do. Some of these voices are loud, and some demand our attention. God doesn’t often do that. If we want to hear God, we have to go out of our way to do it. We need to take time to listen to him, and to tell all the other voices to shut up. We need to specifically listen to God and to focus on him. He is not always dramatic, and he doesn’t always speak right when we want him to. But if we are to listen to God, then we must ask Him to reveal Himself. And he will—if we ask, we will receive God.
• The flesh always promotes us, the Spirit often tells us what we don’t want to hear
• Delusion lies, the Spirit always speaks reality
• The world points away from Jesus’ words, the Spirit is always encouraging us to do Jesus’ teaching
• Evil spirits create despair, the Spirit convicts toward forgiveness
But we need to understand something important about the spirit world: it is not all good. Some people are impressed just because they have had a connection with the spirit world. They think that they are important because they have had a vision, or because they have seen an angel, or because they hear a voice that claims to be from God. But what many people do not understand is that the spirit world is fraught with danger. It is filled with beings who will deceive humans and attempt to destroy them. In order to make sense of one and another, we need to have clear discernment.
Various voices
We all hear voices everyday. We will often have discussions with ourselves, debating different sides of a decision we need to make, or different moral points of view. Certainly, not all of these voices are from the spirit world. Some are just from our own head, and some are from other people. It requires great wisdom and discernment to distinguish between voices. It also takes time and persistence to figure out who is who. Below are some of the voices that I deal with and they are sometimes difficult to tell them apart from one another. Some guidelines are given that help me to distinguish one voice from another.
The Flesh
The “flesh” is a term in the Bible for the natural human desires we all have. Hunger, sexual desire, anger, insecurity, significance—these are all a part of our lives, and they play a big part of what we want and do not want. However, we need to remember that our desire is just one part of who we are and what we think is ultimately important. There are many other voices that speak to us, trying to convince us to act in their ways. The voice of “the flesh” is interested in self-gratification, and that as quickly as possible. We need to recognize the voice of the Flesh, but also we need to set these desires aside if it is not ultimately in our best interest.
Delusion
Delusion is simple confusion, our minds in chaos. We may try to make sense of things, but our conclusions are not reasonable to anyone else—often not even ourselves. Although people diagnosed as “mentally ill” are commonly seen as deluded, yet everyone deals with a certain amount of delusion sometimes. Often we have to swallow our pride and ask some one else if what we are thinking makes sense. If it does not, then our delusional thoughts we just need to set aside. And if delusion is persistent in our lives, then we will need to ignore it as soon as we recognize it. Ignoring it does not make the delusion go away—but it makes it ineffective in our lives.
The World
The World is society and all the organization of it—governments, corporations, churches, schools, families, peers, etc. All of the “building blocks” of society is what might be called “the World”. The World may seem on the surface to be something outside of you, and yet it has its voices in our heads trying to tell us what to do. Our “mother’s” voice may be telling us what we should do for the family. Our “boss’” voice may tell us what to do for the company. And we may have a “patriotic” voice telling us what to do for our country—and on and on. The World has it’s own idea of morality and significance that may be good for you or may not. But the World is distinguished by telling us what we need to do for the group, the organization, the society. We need to do what is right and proper for the group that we feel a part of—this is what the voices of the World are telling us. However, the Bible tells us that we should separate ourselves from the World. We should recognize that God’s morality and the world’s morality come from a different source, and listening to the World and obeying it will ultimately lead to separation from God and our destruction, though it may seem seductively moral.
Evil Spirits
There are a whole variety of spirits in the spirit world that is interested in only one thing—destroying us. These spirits will talk to us, and they make so much sense and they are so convincing that we could meet our needs (the Flesh) or society’s needs (the World), if only we would make some small compromises with God… We all have some basic notions of what is right and wrong that come from God. The evil spirits want us to destroy ourselves by disobeying God and so making it right for God to destroy us. If we worship any God apart from the true God, or if we deliberately ignore the right God wants us to do, then we are threatening our very life. God destroys the rebellious, and evil spirits want to make us rebellious. So evil spirits will try to convince us to worship untrue gods. They will try to spur us on with fear and judging others. They will accuse us, trying to convince us that we are separated from God and that we can never return to Him. And evil spirits will, if they can, try to convince us to do things that will destroy us—making stupid choices or committing suicide. If an evil spirit is speaking to you and trying to attack you—or if it is trying to seduce you into doing evil—then you must tell the spirits to get lost. Don’t be shy—speak against them and let them know that they are not welcome. Basically, tell them to go away.
God
Finally, we can hear God. God has true messengers, called angels; and he has his perfect representative, called Jesus; and he has his power living within Jesus’ people, called the Holy Spirit. God desires us to live for him, and he wants to give us significance, and life, and security and peace. He alone wants our well being AND knows how to give it to us. Sometimes God tells us what we don’t want to hear—he says difficult things. Sometimes God makes amazing promises that are hard to believe—but he expects us to believe him anyway. And God talks to us. Everyday. He tells us how he loves us. He tells us how to be right with him. He tells us what we need to do. We can recognize God’s voice because it is the same as his Son, Jesus. Jesus is the one who best represents God and the Spirit Jesus sends among us is the voice of God that we hear through Jesus. Thus, if we know Jesus’ voice—the things he would say—then we know what God sounds like. And it is God’s voice alone that we should always obey, and always listen to.
It is not easy to hear God’s voice. We have all these other voices in our heads—all of them telling us what to do. Some of these voices are loud, and some demand our attention. God doesn’t often do that. If we want to hear God, we have to go out of our way to do it. We need to take time to listen to him, and to tell all the other voices to shut up. We need to specifically listen to God and to focus on him. He is not always dramatic, and he doesn’t always speak right when we want him to. But if we are to listen to God, then we must ask Him to reveal Himself. And he will—if we ask, we will receive God.
• The flesh always promotes us, the Spirit often tells us what we don’t want to hear
• Delusion lies, the Spirit always speaks reality
• The world points away from Jesus’ words, the Spirit is always encouraging us to do Jesus’ teaching
• Evil spirits create despair, the Spirit convicts toward forgiveness
Killing My Old Man: Overcoming Our Own Self Destruction
More often than not, we are our own worst enemies.
Much of our suffering, anguish and pain comes from what we have done to ourselves and our relationships. As the old blues song communicates so well, “ain’t nobody’s fault but mine.” The Bible has different terms for this part of ourselves that destroys our lives from within: the old man, sin within me, and the flesh. If we are a Christian, then we do not just have the flesh leading us and deceiving us—we also have the Holy Spirit that is giving us truth and freedom.
Our life can be seen as a battle between the flesh and the Spirit over every aspect of who we are (Mark 14:38). The Spirit is seeking to have more and more control, while the flesh is attempting to maintain control over us. However, the only thing the flesh is really interested in doing is to keep us in comfort and ease. The flesh wants us to feel good and to be comfortable. Although the flesh often encourages us to sin and to take a good thing and to do it to excess, the flesh might also encourage us to do something the Spirit wants us to do, if it meets its own desires.
1. Maintain a focus on the kingdom of God, not oneself, not this world (Mark 8:34; Matthew 6:33)
Our first and only priority is to do God’s will and to establish God’s rule on earth. In all that we do, we need to focus on God and his ways. If there is anything we do without God as our focus, then the flesh has control over that area in our life.
In order to gain that focus, we have to make a shift in our lives, and change patterns we were once used to. This is difficult—possibly the most difficult thing to do in our lives. We have to change our relationships, our morality, our actions, our motives. And this can only be done through the power of the Spirit. Our flesh must be denied and Christ becomes most important in our lives. But once we are in Christ, even our flesh will want to maintain that relationship. However, it is only the Spirit that wants us to have the kingdom of God as our only priority.
2. Battle Against Sin (Hebrews 12:4; Matthew 5:29-30)
Sin in our lives isn’t just a part of us—it is what wants to destroy us, to tear us apart from the inside out! We need to take sin seriously—as serious as a heart attack, for it, like a heart attack, is the indication of encroaching death.
When we look at the sin in our lives or the sin we might do, we need to look at all the consequences of the sin. We need to recognize all the misery the sin does and how even one seeming small sin can destroy our whole lives. Sin destroys relationships, destroys our bodies, destroys our finances.
Then we need to look at the positive things that would happen to us if we repent and cease to do the sin. The opportunities for forgiveness, the open doors, the freedom from guilt and excess. We need to seek the good we can gain from doing God’s will.
Then when we see the seriousness of sin, we need to take drastic, life-changing steps to get rid of it. Whatever it takes, let’s do it!
3. Establish disciplines that support your placement in God’s kingdom—taming the flesh
One of the strongest tools of the flesh is inertia—continuing to do the habits that we have been doing in the past. We find it more comfortable to do what we have always done, and to do something we are used to feels better than doing nothing. We can use this for the benefit of the Spirit by developing habits that help us conform to the Spirit of God and drive us away from the excesses of the flesh. These habits that lead us to God are called “disciplines”. Once they become a habit, they are ways in which the flesh can help you stay in the kingdom
We must remember that these disciplines do not make up the life in the Spirit in and of themselves, but they can assist you in overcoming the flesh and to do God’s will.
a. Praying
Interceding for others; blessing others; asking God for justice, the Holy Spirit, healing, etc.
(Luke 11:1-13; Luke 18:1-8; Matthew 5:44; Luke 6:28; Mark 9:28-29; I Thessalonians 5:17.)
b. Listening
To teachers of the word; to the Spirit; to God’s word; to the community of saints.
(Mark 4:24; Luke 10:39-42; Luke 10:16; Luke 18:15-17; Luke 16:31.)
c. Worship/Alignment
Participating in the Lord’s supper; singing hymns and psalms; thanksgiving; saying the Shema.
(John 4:23-24; Mark 14:26; I Corinthians 11:23-26; Mark 12:28-32; Mark 8:6.)
d. Speaking the gospel
Proclaiming the kingdom of God; discipling with Jesus’ teachings; speaking of the death and resurrection of the Lord, fellowshipping with other Christians.
(Matthew 10:32-34; Matthew 28:19-20; Luke 9:60; Matthew 10:27; Luke 24:45-48; Hebrews 10:11-12.)
e. Downward mobility [humility]
Taking the “one down” position; not seeking prestige; serving in ways others don’t want to serve.
(Luke 14:7-11; John 13:12-16; Matthew 20:25-28; Luke 18:10-14.)
f. Giving to the poor
Hospitality; giving food or drink; providing for the needy according to their need.
(Luke 12:33; Matthew 10:40-42; Matthew 25:31-46; Luke 16:9; Luke 10:25-37.)
g. Fasting
Refraining from food or other item for a set amount of time.
(Matthew 6:16-18; Mark 2:20)
Even these disciplines can be used in excess to disobey God—forcing others to do disciplines by using harshness; judging others because they do not do these disciplines in your way, trusting in the disciplines to keep you right with God rather than listening to and doing his will. Any discipline we use must be done in devotion to God, and for the benefit of others around us.
We need to see the disciplines as tools in order to do God’s will. They help keep us focused on God, but they are just a means to an end—remaining right with God.
4. Seeking The Spirit (Ephesians 6:18; Jude 1:20)
To overcome the flesh, we must delve deeper and deeper into the Spirit. To do this, we must pray for the Spirit, be alone with the Spirit and be in groups that have the Spirit manifest. The more the Spirit shows his power in us, the less we are in the flesh. How else can we seek the Spirit? We need to take time regularly to focus on the Lord, apart from the world. We can spend time before the Lord praying for our needs. We need to be open to the Holy Spirit speaking in us and through us in any way He pleases—we need to have an attitude of being here for His service, not Him for ours. And when the Spirit clearly leads us, we need to obey that leading. When we do, the Spirit will lead us some more. If we focus on the Spirit and live in the Spirit, the flesh has no power over us.
5. Taking Up The Cross (Mark 8:32-38)
The way of the cross is the opposite of the flesh. It is better than fasting, for it is following Jesus precisely, acting as He acted, thus being completely acceptable to God. In summary, the way to follow the path of the cross is as follows:
a. Accept the word of the Lord as what is right to do.
b. Accept and prepare for the suffering you will have to endure to do it.
c. Sacrifice yourself for the love of others.
d. Cry out to the Lord for strength through the suffering.
e. Do the will of God, waiting for God’s deliverance from suffering
This way is not easy, nor is it always simple. But there is no better way to overcome the flesh than to follow the way of Jesus. For most people, the previous four steps must happen before we can be ready for the fifth, most drastic, way of overcoming the flesh.
The Flesh destroys us. Don’t just take it. Fight back.
Much of our suffering, anguish and pain comes from what we have done to ourselves and our relationships. As the old blues song communicates so well, “ain’t nobody’s fault but mine.” The Bible has different terms for this part of ourselves that destroys our lives from within: the old man, sin within me, and the flesh. If we are a Christian, then we do not just have the flesh leading us and deceiving us—we also have the Holy Spirit that is giving us truth and freedom.
Our life can be seen as a battle between the flesh and the Spirit over every aspect of who we are (Mark 14:38). The Spirit is seeking to have more and more control, while the flesh is attempting to maintain control over us. However, the only thing the flesh is really interested in doing is to keep us in comfort and ease. The flesh wants us to feel good and to be comfortable. Although the flesh often encourages us to sin and to take a good thing and to do it to excess, the flesh might also encourage us to do something the Spirit wants us to do, if it meets its own desires.
1. Maintain a focus on the kingdom of God, not oneself, not this world (Mark 8:34; Matthew 6:33)
Our first and only priority is to do God’s will and to establish God’s rule on earth. In all that we do, we need to focus on God and his ways. If there is anything we do without God as our focus, then the flesh has control over that area in our life.
In order to gain that focus, we have to make a shift in our lives, and change patterns we were once used to. This is difficult—possibly the most difficult thing to do in our lives. We have to change our relationships, our morality, our actions, our motives. And this can only be done through the power of the Spirit. Our flesh must be denied and Christ becomes most important in our lives. But once we are in Christ, even our flesh will want to maintain that relationship. However, it is only the Spirit that wants us to have the kingdom of God as our only priority.
2. Battle Against Sin (Hebrews 12:4; Matthew 5:29-30)
Sin in our lives isn’t just a part of us—it is what wants to destroy us, to tear us apart from the inside out! We need to take sin seriously—as serious as a heart attack, for it, like a heart attack, is the indication of encroaching death.
When we look at the sin in our lives or the sin we might do, we need to look at all the consequences of the sin. We need to recognize all the misery the sin does and how even one seeming small sin can destroy our whole lives. Sin destroys relationships, destroys our bodies, destroys our finances.
Then we need to look at the positive things that would happen to us if we repent and cease to do the sin. The opportunities for forgiveness, the open doors, the freedom from guilt and excess. We need to seek the good we can gain from doing God’s will.
Then when we see the seriousness of sin, we need to take drastic, life-changing steps to get rid of it. Whatever it takes, let’s do it!
3. Establish disciplines that support your placement in God’s kingdom—taming the flesh
One of the strongest tools of the flesh is inertia—continuing to do the habits that we have been doing in the past. We find it more comfortable to do what we have always done, and to do something we are used to feels better than doing nothing. We can use this for the benefit of the Spirit by developing habits that help us conform to the Spirit of God and drive us away from the excesses of the flesh. These habits that lead us to God are called “disciplines”. Once they become a habit, they are ways in which the flesh can help you stay in the kingdom
We must remember that these disciplines do not make up the life in the Spirit in and of themselves, but they can assist you in overcoming the flesh and to do God’s will.
a. Praying
Interceding for others; blessing others; asking God for justice, the Holy Spirit, healing, etc.
(Luke 11:1-13; Luke 18:1-8; Matthew 5:44; Luke 6:28; Mark 9:28-29; I Thessalonians 5:17.)
b. Listening
To teachers of the word; to the Spirit; to God’s word; to the community of saints.
(Mark 4:24; Luke 10:39-42; Luke 10:16; Luke 18:15-17; Luke 16:31.)
c. Worship/Alignment
Participating in the Lord’s supper; singing hymns and psalms; thanksgiving; saying the Shema.
(John 4:23-24; Mark 14:26; I Corinthians 11:23-26; Mark 12:28-32; Mark 8:6.)
d. Speaking the gospel
Proclaiming the kingdom of God; discipling with Jesus’ teachings; speaking of the death and resurrection of the Lord, fellowshipping with other Christians.
(Matthew 10:32-34; Matthew 28:19-20; Luke 9:60; Matthew 10:27; Luke 24:45-48; Hebrews 10:11-12.)
e. Downward mobility [humility]
Taking the “one down” position; not seeking prestige; serving in ways others don’t want to serve.
(Luke 14:7-11; John 13:12-16; Matthew 20:25-28; Luke 18:10-14.)
f. Giving to the poor
Hospitality; giving food or drink; providing for the needy according to their need.
(Luke 12:33; Matthew 10:40-42; Matthew 25:31-46; Luke 16:9; Luke 10:25-37.)
g. Fasting
Refraining from food or other item for a set amount of time.
(Matthew 6:16-18; Mark 2:20)
Even these disciplines can be used in excess to disobey God—forcing others to do disciplines by using harshness; judging others because they do not do these disciplines in your way, trusting in the disciplines to keep you right with God rather than listening to and doing his will. Any discipline we use must be done in devotion to God, and for the benefit of others around us.
We need to see the disciplines as tools in order to do God’s will. They help keep us focused on God, but they are just a means to an end—remaining right with God.
4. Seeking The Spirit (Ephesians 6:18; Jude 1:20)
To overcome the flesh, we must delve deeper and deeper into the Spirit. To do this, we must pray for the Spirit, be alone with the Spirit and be in groups that have the Spirit manifest. The more the Spirit shows his power in us, the less we are in the flesh. How else can we seek the Spirit? We need to take time regularly to focus on the Lord, apart from the world. We can spend time before the Lord praying for our needs. We need to be open to the Holy Spirit speaking in us and through us in any way He pleases—we need to have an attitude of being here for His service, not Him for ours. And when the Spirit clearly leads us, we need to obey that leading. When we do, the Spirit will lead us some more. If we focus on the Spirit and live in the Spirit, the flesh has no power over us.
5. Taking Up The Cross (Mark 8:32-38)
The way of the cross is the opposite of the flesh. It is better than fasting, for it is following Jesus precisely, acting as He acted, thus being completely acceptable to God. In summary, the way to follow the path of the cross is as follows:
a. Accept the word of the Lord as what is right to do.
b. Accept and prepare for the suffering you will have to endure to do it.
c. Sacrifice yourself for the love of others.
d. Cry out to the Lord for strength through the suffering.
e. Do the will of God, waiting for God’s deliverance from suffering
This way is not easy, nor is it always simple. But there is no better way to overcome the flesh than to follow the way of Jesus. For most people, the previous four steps must happen before we can be ready for the fifth, most drastic, way of overcoming the flesh.
The Flesh destroys us. Don’t just take it. Fight back.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)