Title: *Spiritual Warfare - Series 2

Title:*REVERSER*Light Orb 5 /Spiritual Gift Box Painted by Rev.Bola

Spiritual Warfare  - is the Christian version of the concept of taking a stand against supernatural evil forces. The foundation for this ideology is having a belief in evil spirits which are able to intervene in human affairs. Various Christian groups have adopted practices to repel such forces, as based on their doctrine of Christian demonology. The most common form of spiritual warfare among Christians is prayer. Other practices include exorcisms, laying-on of hands, fasting, or anointing with oil.

Mainstream Christianity acknowledges a belief in the reality of demons, fallen angels, the Devil and/or Satan, in that dealing with spirits was a customary activity of Jesus' ministry. The Bible states that "he travelled throughout Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and driving out demons" (Mark 1:39).

The Bible elaborates on demonic hierarchy in Ephesians 6 where it also mentions, those qualities needed for defence against them.  Two of those articles, the helmet of Salvation and the breastplate of Righteousness, were lifted from the Book of Isaiah.

Christian practices of spiritual warfare vary throughout Christianity.  The development of specific spiritual warfare techniques has also  generated many discussions in the Christian community.

The practice of exorcism was also known among the first generation  of teachers and pastors in the Lutheran Reformation. Johannes Bugenhagen Pomeranus was the pastor of the Wittenberg  town church and officiated at Martin Luther's wedding. In a letter addressed to Luther and Melanchthon dated November 1530, Pomeranus recounted his experience of dealing with a young girl  who showed signs of demon possession. Pomeranus' method involved counselling the girl concerning her previous baptismal vows, he invoked the name of Christ and prayed with her.

In the American revival tradition among evangelicals, prominent preachers  such as D. L. Moody, Billy Sunday, R. A. Torrey and Billy Graham  have all affirmed their belief in the existence of the demonic and had occasions  to recount some of their own spiritual warfare encounters. In the nineteenth century, one of the major evangelical authorities on demon possession  was the missionary to China, John Livingstone Nevius.

Spiritual warfare has become a prominent feature in Pentecostal traditions. The concept is well embedded in Pentecostal history, particularly through  Jessie Penn-Lewis's book; War on the Saints, arising from the Welsh Revival  in the early twentieth century. However, Jessie Penn-Lewis preaches a very different kind of spiritual warfare than that preached by the third-wave Charismatic movement of today -  notably C. Peter Wagner and Cindy Jacobs.  Other Pentecostal and charismatic pastors include Don Basham and Derek Prince, who have emphasized claiming the power of the blood of Christ.

Spiritual warfare has been applied to spiritual growth in holiness,  or what is technically called sanctification. A preacher may discern that parishioners are experiencing obstacles  in their faith, prayer life and general spiritual well-being. That process of discernment may yield an awareness of spiritual oppression caused by a combination of personal sin and  demonic influence. The obstacles are then removed through prayer, delivering a parishioner  from demonic possession, and breaking down false beliefs about God. Dr. Ed Murphy is the author of a modern 600-page tome on the subject from the point of view of deliverance ministry entitled The Handbook of  Spiritual Warfare. This teaching will give you an idea of how spiritual warfare works. There are other teachings that will go into more detail on certain  areas of spiritual warfare. Spiritual warfare comes in two main ways:  offensive and defensive. Offensive warfare is tearing down the strongholds the enemy has formed  in your mind through deception and accusations, and defensive warfare is guarding yourself against the tactics or schemes of the devil

The difference between deliverance and spiritual warfare is that with demonic bondages, deliverance is dealing and getting a person set free, whereas spiritual warfare is resisting, overcoming and defeating the enemy's lies (in the form of deception, temptations and accusations) that he sends our way. Deliverance involves the breaking up of legal grounds, the tearing down of strongholds (offensive spiritual warfare), and the casting out of demons.  Spiritual warfare on the other hand, is dealing with three key things  the enemy sends at us: temptations, deception and accusations. We will now address the first 2 of these.

#1 Deception: To deceive somebody means to make another person believe a lie or something that is not true. When the enemy sends deception your way, it is an attempt to deceive you into believing something that is not true,  so you will fall into error. Strongholds are built through deception. A stronghold is formed when deception takes hold in a person's mind. A stronghold is an incorrect thinking pattern that stems from believing something that is not true.

#2 Temptation: Temptation often follows deception.  "You won't surely die!", First the enemy tells us,th en he makes the fruit on the forbidden tree look  good to us. Since Eve accepted Satan's deception (his lie), now the tree that she was not supposed to touch looked good to her.  She was tempted (enticed) to sin, because she allowed herself to first be deceived. Temptation is when we are enticed or encouraged to sin in one way or another.

In Matthew 4, Jesus was led out in the desert to be tempted by the devil. The devil tried to convince Jesus that it would be harmless to jump off a building.  Often people will be so drawn to sex with their boyfriend/girlfriend when the enemy tries to convince them that it is all harmless and fun, when it's not harmless at all, tries to convince them that it is all harmless and fun, when it's not harmless at all, but an open door to the devil. Jesus saw through Satan's deception, and resisted the temptation by  speaking God's Word. King David said in Psalms 119:11, "Thy word have I hid in mine heart,  that I might not sin against thee."

In James 4:7, we are told to resist the devil and he will flee from us. But it's not that simple; in the same verse, we are also told to draw near to God. Dealing with temptation is a two fold process of resisting the devil and drawing near to God.

James 4:7, "Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you." (The context of that verse is clearly speaking of temptation).

A stronghold is deception that's taken hold in a person's mind. It's an incorrect thinking pattern based on a believed lie. People can get incorrect perceptions of God by listening to Satan as he tells them how God doesn't love them, etc. Which is the third trick the devil uses, accusation. People can feel like dirty old sinners when they believe Satan's accusations as he continually reminds them of their past (which has been washed away!). Strongholds are based on lies from the devil. They can come in the form of deception or accusations. #3. Accusation always leads to guilt and the feeling of unworthiness, which weighs you down and tears you apart spiritually. First Satan deceives, then he tempts, and finally after one has acted upon his temptation he then turns around and accuses.  And the whole cycle of sin begins again, and continues until the individual soul is redeemed by God.

Spiritual Cleansing - clears negative energy, energetic blockages, dark spirits and Spiritual disturbances that can be easily picked up from our daily lives.

Spiritual cleansings can be done for yourself, a loved one or your environment.

Spiritual cleansing's can be used for many different reasons and can balance you in mind, body and Spirit.

Spiritual cleansing can clear negative energy that causes emotional

mental and spiritual issues. If you feel blocked, stuck repeating the same negative patterns, a Spiritual cleansing maybe able to help.

Spiritual Cleaning's can revitalize the mind and give you a fresh start 
on a new path. Spiritual Cleansing can also be used to clear negative
forces and negative influences.  Spiritual cleansing have been known
to clear curses, spell work and witchcraft. Spiritual cleansing techniques
have been used for over thousands of years and there are many different methods to choose from.

There are certain things we can expect from the devil

The Bible tells us that we struggle not against flesh and blood,
 but against demonic forces.

To deceive somebody means to make another person believe a lie
 or something that is not true.

When the enemy sends deception your way, it is an attempt to deceive 
you into believing something that is not true, so you will fall into error.

A stronghold is formed when deception takes hold in a person's mind.

A stronghold is an incorrect thinking pattern that stems from believing something that is not true.

The fruit on the forbidden tree look good to us. 
Since Eve accepted Satan's deception his lie,

now the tree that she was not supposed to touch looked good to her. 

She was tempted enticed to sin, because she allowed herself to first be deceived. Temptation is when we are enticed or encouraged to sin
in one way or another.

The devil tried to convince Jesus that it would be harmless to jump
 off a building.

Often people will be so drawn to sex with their boyfriend/girlfriend 
when the enemy tries to convince them that it is all harmless and fun,

when it's not harmless at all, but an open door to the devil.

Jesus saw through Satan's deception, and resisted the temptation
 by speaking God's Word.

When the enemy tempts you, he's showing you the worm but behind
 that worm is a hook .

The third trick of the devil as mentioned earlier is by means of accusations.

The devil as well as being a liar and deceiver, is also an accuse.

He is known to take a believer who has done an embarrassing or gross sin in their past, and continue to rub it in their faces and beat them down with guilt and condemnation over their past.

This is done in an attempt to invalidate the individual’s already established salvation and forgiveness by our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

The devil tries to convince the soul that there is no such thing as salvation, 
or that the individual is somehow beyond being saved. 

The devil will perpetuate the lie that there are some sins too great for
 God to forgive, So the individual might as well continue sinning,

 because God will never completely forgive him or her.

Remember: we fight not against flesh and blood.

We are called to bring the reality of the new heaven and the new earth
 before the bulk of the angelic forces and Jesus arrive.

What are they? The Word, prayer, worship, the Holy Spirit,

but more importantly, our relationship and access to our papa in heaven, 
the Lord of Hosts.

What does this mean in regards to taking down the authority structures
 and power of the enemy?

First, we carry the presence and the power of God wherever we go. 
¶How does this happen?

We can come before God's throne room whenever and wherever.
¶He will manifest his presence as we worship him in Spirit and and in truth.

We have power within and without to battle the enemy's

strongholds of this world. It's a one-two punch against our adversary.

Whenever we worship Him, we proclaim him as King.

We are just proclaiming the obvious to the dark powers over our cities.

Jesus is King! Wherever we go we carry the gate or the authority of God.

When we come to an enemy stronghold and worship, The King of Kings manifests and stands at the demonic fortress and commands entrance.

The weapon of worship unleashes the presence of God on the enemies
 of God's people.

The God of Israel gives power and strength to his people.

There are a lot of things that we need to make it through this life.

Sometimes it is hard to ascertain what exactly to ask for.

First, God is awesome.

We have every right to ask for His miraculous power to intervene
 in our situations.

He is able to heal, change circumstances or to move in the hearts of people .

We need to ask and expect God to be awesome on behalf of His people.

God gives power and strength to His people .

What a magnificent plan, God with His power working with and through
 us to do His will in this world.

Father, I can't live the life You want me to without Your power.

Nor do I want to try I come today and ask You to guide me, direct me,

and fill me with Your power and strength And may You show Yourself strong through all I say and do.

To You be all the Glory! AMEN.

IN SUMMARY

Self-Deliverance And The Ministry of Deliverance.

1. There are three things that we can expect from the devil.
The Bible tells us that we struggle not against flesh and blood, but against demonic forces.
To deceive somebody means to make another person believe a lie or something that is not true.
When the enemy sends deception your way, it is an attempt to deceive you into believing something that is not true, so you will fall into error.

2. A stronghold is formed when deception takes hold in a person's mind.
A stronghold is an incorrect thinking pattern that stems from believing something that is not true From the very beginning, Satan deceived Eve into believing that God's Word was not true.
First the enemy tells us, "You won't surely die!", then he makes the fruit on the forbidden tree look good to us. 

3. Since Eve accepted Satan's deception his lie, now the tree that she was not supposed to touch looked good to her.She was tempted enticed to sin, because she allowed herself to first be deceived. Temptation is when we are enticed or encouraged to sin in one way or another.The devil tried to convince Jesus that it would be harmless to jump off a building.

4. Often people will be so drawn to sex with their boyfriend/girlfriend when the enemy tries to convince them that it is all harmless and fun, when it's not harmless at all, but an open door to the devil.Jesus saw through Satan's deception, and resisted the temptation by speaking God's Word.
When the enemy tempts you, he's showing you the worm but behind that worm is a hook.

5. He is known to take a believer who has done an embarrassing or gross sin in their past, and continue to rub it in their faces and beat them down with guilt and condemnation over their past.Both are truth, which is found in God's Word, so why are they given two different names a sword and a belt ? Because one is meant to be defensive the belt , while the other is meant to be offensive the sword. This means that the Word of God is both an offensive and a defensive weapon.

6. Study the word of God in The Bible thoroughly so as to protect yourself from the attacking thoughts from the devil. A good place to start is Psalm 91. Read it often.

  

- Peace and Love
  Rev.Bola

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