Spiritual Warfare for every Christian

I. Spiritual warfare - Spiritual warfare is not just a prayer prayed or a demon rebuked - it is a life lived. We commit ourselves to actively sit in our rightful place in the heavenly realms with Christ Jesus, walk daily in the power of the Holy Spirit and stand strong in the Lord’s mighty power, with His armor fully in place, resisting the enemy in the time of evil. We actively resist, overcome and defeat the enemy's lies (in the form of deception, temptations, accusations, bondage) that he sends our way. As the Spirit directs, we go on the offensive attack and posses the land that the devil has stolen in order for the captives (unbelievers) to be set free.

A. God’s purpose for us - to bring Him glory.

B. God’s priorities for us (our business) 1. Reconcile the lost to Himself - through fulfilling the Great Commission - Mark 16:15-19, Matthew 28:18-20, (evangelism) 2. Bringing His body to unity, maturity and wholeness - (Living a life of Christlikeness) Ephesians 4:1, Hebrews 12:1-2, Luke 6:43-45 (discipleship)

C. Understanding Who God is, What Jesus did on the Cross and the Role of the Spirit in our lives

GOD - We need a firm revelation of who God is, what Jesus did on the cross and the role of Holy Spirit in our lives in order to effectively engage in any level of spiritual warfare. Without a clear experiential knowledge of God’s love and character we will not be able to walk in faith and power. We are asked to walk into unknown territory and fight a battle that is not visible to the human eye. Practically exercising trust in God is the only way we can do this. God is our “Abba - Daddy” Father, He is our Forgiver, our Healer, our Deliverer, our Sustainer, our Sanctifier, our Victory, our Defender, our Provider, our Protector... Deuteronomy 20:4, Psalm 18, Isaiah 54:17, James 4:7, 1 John 3:8, Revelation 12:11. As we engage in spiritual warfare we need to continually give God control and create space for Him to be who He wants to be to us. We praise God our Father in all things!

JESUS - Jesus defeated Satan, his power and principalities on the cross. Jesus in us is greater than any evil spirit that is oppressing us (1 John 4:4). Satan needs our permission in order to operate in our lives. We can allow him entrance either willfully or subconsciously. Jesus also needs our permission to set us free. We must first choose to be free and then humbly allow Him to lead us out of bondage and into freedom.

Because of Jesus’ death, there was a divine exchange at the cross. This is absolute truth!

! Jesus was punished that we might be forgiven. ! Jesus was wounded that we might be healed. ! Jesus was made sin with our sinfulness so that we might be righteous with His righteousness. ! Jesus died our death so we might receive the blessing. ! Jesus endured our poverty that we might share His abundance. ! Jesus endured our rejection that we might share His acceptance. ! Jesus endured our shame that we might share His glory. ! Our old man (sinful nature) died in Jesus that the new man (life in the Holy Spirit) might live in us.

Jesus’ blood redeemed us, forgave us, cleansed us, justified us and is sanctifying us. We praise Jesus because He did it all and now we simply need to appropriate all He of His finished work!

1 HOLY SPIRIT - Holy Spirit’s job is to lead us into all truth (John 14-16) and empower us to live godly lives that are free from the effects of sin (Philippians 2:13, Ephesians 1:19-23, Galatians 5:16-25). As we learn to yield to His desires minute by minute He will show us exactly what we need when we need it to wage effectively against the devil. If there are open doors in our lives which allow the enemy access, if there are lies that need to be exposed that we are embracing, if there is hidden sin that we need to be convicted of, Holy Spirit will let us know if we ask Him. He releases God’s strategies for warfare to us as we submit to Him. We praise Holy Spirit! II. Positioning ourselves for spiritual warfare

A. Sitting: (Ephesians 2:4-10) Sitting is a position of rest, resting in what Christ has finished through the cross and who we are based on what Christ has done (Colossians 2:10). Christ completed the work of atonement, having defeated Satan and all powers and principalities and established Himself as Ruler and King. He has absolute authority and power over all!

We need to be secure in our identity in Christ. Why is this so important in Spiritual Warfare? Because no person can consistently behave in a way that is inconsistent with how they perceive themselves. It is not what you do that determines who you are; it is who you are that determines what you do.

Daily Application - Praise God from the verses listed on the bookmark, “Who you are in Christ.” Mediate on these truths. Believe what Christ says about you. Practice the truth.

B. Walking: (Ephesians 4:6) Walking in the power of the Holy Spirit requires daily dependence on Him, with our eyes fixed on Jesus. The Holy Spirit is our teacher and our guide and will lead us into truth, clarity, light and deliverance. We walk according to how the Word instructs us, not walking in the flesh (Galatians 5:8), walking in the light (Ephesians 5:8), walking by faith not by sight (2 Corinthians 5:7), walking free from sin (Galatians 5:15), walking in the fruits of the Holy Spirit when our flesh has been crucified (Galatians 5:22-24), walking in love (Ephesians 5:2), walking by following the Word (Psalm 119:105), walking intentionally with Gods’ wisdom - paying close attention with purpose because the days are short Ephesians 5:15-16), walking in a manner worthy of our calling - in humility, gentleness, patience, love, forgiveness, unity peace (Ephesians 4:1-32).”

Daily Application - Praying daily for the empowerment of the Holy Spirit. Praise, submission, repentance, asking and yielding to the Holy Spirit is our pattern of living if we desire to be effective in spiritual warfare.

C. Standing: (Ephesians 6:10-18) We are strong in God’s mighty power (not our own). We stand fully protected with the armor of God in place. We stand so that we can do the work of the Lord at all times. However, we can only stand if we are seated and relaxed in what Christ has accomplished on the cross, are confident in our salvation and as a result are walking in the power of the Spirit with a clear conscience.

“For we (Believers) are not fighting (Wrestling - a sport that demands continual concentration 24/7) against flesh- and-blood enemies (humans), but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.” Ephesians 6:12

This wrestling doesn’t mean that we are to struggle to maintain what God has done, we stand because what Christ has already done but we are called to cultivate a continual awareness of what God is calling us to and what the devil might be wanting to distract or deceive us with. We can never take a vacation from Christianity! Every thought 2 we think on, every feeling we nurture, ever choice we make, every thing we do matters in the physical realm and the spiritual realm. Nothing is neutral.

Daily Application - Put on defensive weapons and then get to work with our offensive weapons as the Spirit directs. The following prayer should become very natural for us as we apply it daily. We stand so we can PRAY! III. Defensive and Offensive warfare

A. Defensive warfare is guarding ourselves against the tactics or schemes of the devil. We defend ourselves from the enemy deception, temptations, accusations and bondages. (Ephesians 4:27, 1 Timothy 5:14 James 4:6) We defend ourselves by putting on continually “the armor of God”. (Ephesians 6)

B. Offensive warfare is when we launch an offensive attack against the enemy. We break down strongholds which have formed in our minds through deception and accusations, we renounce curses that have been spoken, we break bondages that generational sin and unholy covenants inflict us with and we take back things that the enemy has killed, stolen or destroyed. This world is the territory of Satan (Luke 4:6, 2 Corinthians 4:4). Jesus launched a huge offensive attack on Satan, by setting foot on his territory when He came to earth. We are called to do the same. Any part of our lives that the enemy has stolen or destroyed through pre or post conversion sin needs to be taken back in order for the Lord to begin to redeem it. We have been set free from evil and set apart unto God. Preparing ourselves for Spiritual Warfare - Putting on the Armor of God – Eph. 6:10-19

When dressing for spiritual warfare (or for dressing everyday for life), there are six basic items that God provides for us. With these, we can develop a victorious attitude and face whatever challenges or temptations the devil may throw at us. We put them on so that we can stand firm for the purpose of praying in the power of the Holy Spirit at all times and on every occasion.

A final word: Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil. Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere. (Ephesians 6:10-11,18)

Praying on the Armor of God—Ephesians 6:13-18

“Lord, this day I choose to put on Your full armor so that I can stand against the devil’s schemes. I recognize that I do not struggle against people but against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realm.

1. Sturdy Belt of Truth a. Believe and practice all God’s truths and especially truth around your identity. b. Purpose to live a life of honesty and integrity in all areas.

“I stand firm with the belt of truth around my waist I thank You for who I am in Christ today. I am… I choose a lifestyle of honesty and integrity... Show me Your truth so that I can follow Your ways in every path You lead me to take….”

3 2. Breastplate of God's Approval -

a. Affirm God’s righteousness that covers you completely. b. Purpose to live righteously/according to God’s holy standards. “I put on the body armor of righteousness Lord, as I wear Your righteousness today against all corruption and condemnation. Because of Jesus, I am in right standing with You ... I purpose to live according to Your holy standards in every area of life ...”

3. Shoes of Peace - a. Reconcile people to God – through word and deed b. Be reconciled with others– no bitterness or offenses and love unconditionally

“On my feet I place the shoes of peace I want to be a bold, Spirit filled messenger of reconciliation today. Fill me with power to share the Good News with those who don’t know You as Lord… I desire to be reconciled with others as well. Keep me free from the spirit of bitterness and offense... Point out to me anyone I still need to forgive ...”

4. Shield of Faith - When demonic arrows come through lies and temptations, deflect them with claiming and believing in God’s names/character/attributes and Word.

“I need faith as my shield to stop the fiery arrows aimed at me by Satan Help me to be alert and recognize the lies and temptations when they come and then give me the strength to flee from them… No sin can overcome me for I trust in Christ… I trust in Your name of ...... today! Empower me to claim Your name and Your faithful promises, especially against the arrows of ...”

5.Helmet of Salvation - Let your salvation bring renewal to your thought process. Exercise the mind of Christ.

“I put over my mind the helmet of salvation Thank you for Your saving work in me. Enable me to walk in the fullness of my salvation today… I want You to renew my mind. Uncover any lies I am believing, so that I can renounce them and replace them with the truth of Your Word…”

6. Sword of the Spirit - Proclaim, declare and claim the Word of God over yourself, over your situation and over other people. Speak it out loud so the whole spiritual realm can hear you!

“Pray at all times and on all occasions in the power of the Holy Spirit. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all Christians everywhere.”

God I praise You for the offensive weapons of warfare that are used to advance Your Kingdom through me. Help me to use them to knock down the devil’s strongholds and dismantle lies and worldly ideologies in my life and my Church body. I take up the Sword of the Spirit, the Word of God. Holy Spirit, show me specifically today the truths in the Word of God that I will need, to counter the assaults and the snares of Satan. Bring them to mind so that I can speak them out loud over my life and the lives of others. I commit myself to pray at all times and on every occasion in the power of the Holy Spirit. Help me to stay alert and be persistent in my prayers.

4 Enable me to destroy the devil’s work in my life through my continual conversation with You, dependence on You at all times, and the surrendering of my whole life to Your Lordship… I will silence the voice of Satan through my praise for You. I praise You now… I will push back the kingdom of darkness through using the weapon of preaching the Good News. Your message will not return without accomplishing its purposes, rather, it will produce a rich harvest as I proclaim it to those You have prepared … I will see Satan defeated as I give verbal testimony of what You have done in my life. I will boast in You… I will enforce Satan’s defeat by taking the Lord’s Supper and remembering the blood of the Lamb with my Church family… I will speak well of the body of Christ and never take offense against her. I will allow unity and unconditional love for all members of Christ's body, defeat prideful and rebellious spirits… I will defeat the spirits of greed, cheating and covetousness by stewarding all my resources under Your principles. I will obediently return the tithe and then steward the 90% well, so that I can learn to be generous as You are generous. I purpose to walk in freedom from sin by practicing rapid repentance when I fall into temptation…. I will confess my sin to others so that I will be healed ... I will see the Kingdom of God advanced through my Church as I walk in the fullness of the Holy Spirit and serve my Church body by ... Faith in You, God will defeat the spirit of fear as I learn to exercise the Spirits special abilities so I can effectively minister to others ... I will verbally oppose the devil with authoritative rebuke when he seeks to oppress me and others. I will practice radical obedience and commit myself to a holy lifestyle. Then the devil will have no in roads in my life. My actions will be a testimony of Your work in me. Thank you Lord for the victory that You graciously provide for me each day. AMEN!”

IV. The Invisible terrain

Western cultures deny the spiritual world that we cannot see, however, non western cultures live by it. One major western ideology is the worship of the logic. We will not do anything or believe anything that we do not understand with our minds. Consequently we don’t acknowledge the spiritual battle we are in. Satan thrives on this deception.

Definitions

Angels - Angels are created (Nehemiah 9:6, Psalm 148:2,5), spiritual beings with moral judgement and high intelligence, but without physical bodies. Sometimes God can give us the abilities to see them. (Numbers 22:31, 2 Kings 6:17, Luke 2:13) Sometimes they take on a bodily form. (Matthew 28:5) Their ordinary activities are guarding and protecting us (Psalm 34:7; 91:11; Hebrews 1:14) and joining with us in worship to God (Hebrews 12:22). They are called names like “sons of God ( Job 1:6; 2:1) “holy ones” (Psalm 89:5,7) “spirits” (Hebrews 1:14), “watchers” (Daniel 4:13,17,23), “thrones”, “dominions”, “principalities” and “authorities” (Colossians 1:16). (Wayne Grudem)

5 Kinds of angels

1. Warrior Angels - Angels who fight (Daniel 10, Revelation 12) Our prayers are heard on the first day, our prayers move God to deploy angels on our behalf and then angels fight. “Cherubim” - given the task of guarding the entrance of the garden of Eden (Genesis 3:24) God frequently says that He is enthroned on them or travels with them in His chariot (Psalm 18:10, Ezekiel 10:1-22) They stretch over the ark of the covenant (Exodus 25:22)

2. Messenger Angels - Angels that communicate. Angels are sent to inform, warn or bring revelation. We are not to seek or worship angels. (Galatians 1:8; Colossians 2:18) If God wants us to talk to or see angels that is His business our job is to cultivate an awareness that they are all around us protecting us.

3. Worshipping angels - They worship 24/7 (Revelation 5:11,12)

“Seraphim” - Isaiah 6:2-7 Continually worship and call to one another “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of host; the whole earth is full of his glory”.

“Living Creatures” - Are around God’s throne (Ezekiel 1:5-14; Revelation 4:6-8) With their appearances like a lion, an ox, a man and an eagle they are the mightiest representatives of various parts of God’s entire creation ( wild beast, domesticated animal, human beings, and birds) They worship God continually. “Day and night they never cease to sing, “holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is an dis to come!”

Ranking and order among the angels

"Michael is an archangel (Jude 9) a title that indicated rule and authority over other angels.

"Angels can only be in one place at one time - they are created beings. They are not omnipresent.

"Guardian angel? Yes certain angels are assigned to certain people for certain assignments but that doesn’t mean that they only attend to them.

"It’s important that we don’t get caught up in cultures superstition around the worships of angels and think that we need to keep them happy or that they protect us out of their own wisdom and power. Their power to protect and their assignments are given to them by God. They are servants of God that do His will - God’s will is to protect and guide us. For now angels are much more powerful and mightier then people (Hebrews 2:7) but when Christ returns we will be higher then angels. (1 Corinthians 6:3)

"The “Angel of the Lord” talked about in the Old Testament was God Himself taking on a human form to appear briefly to various people in the Old Testament (Genesis 16:10,13;22:12; 31:11; Exodus 3:2,6)

"Angels were created by the 6th day of creation (Genesis 2:1) They might have been created on the first day (Genesis 1:2) since the earth was void but there is no mention of the detail related to the creation of the heavens. Perhaps the heavens where in order by then (Job 38:6-7). Some time before Satan tempted Eve in the garden (Genesis 3:1) a number of angels sinned and rebelled against God (2 Peter 2:4; Jude 6) They would have fallen after the 6th day of creation because God said after the 6th day “God saw everything that He had made, and behold, it was very good (Genesis 1:31).

6 The place of angels in God’s purpose

"Angels show the greatness of God’s love and plan for us - angels are not made in “God’s image” and fallen angels are condemned to hell (no salvation of them), angels can’t bear children, God chose only people to redeem. (Matthew 22:30; Hebrews 2:7; 2 Peter 2:4)

"Angels remind us that the unseen world is real. (Acts 23:8, 2 Kings 6:17)

"Angels are examples for us - in both their obedience and their worship (Matthew 6:10). God’s will in heaven is done by angels, immediately, joyfully and without question.

"Angels carry out some of God’s plans.

"Angels directly glorify God.

Our relationship with angels

"We should be aware of angels in our daily lives and thank God for the ministry of angels that He employs 24/7 for us (Psalm 91:11,12). We often reflect back and see and appreciate the ministry of angels so why not acknowledge God’s kindness today in providing protection for us through angels.

"Psalm 34:7 - There is such safety when we are in the center of God’s will, hating what is evil and loving what is good (the fear of the Lord). There is no stray bullet for the Christian when the Christian is acting in a way that honors the Lord. When Christians stray away from the Lord, that can result in entering into a danger zone. Willful sin will always leads to death. (Psalm 91)

"We are cautioned not to receive false doctrine from angels (Galatians:8).

"We are not to worship angels, pray to them or seek them. Prayers of the Church caused angels to be employed and release Peter from prison (Acts 12:13-15). God initiated this specific plan in response to the prayers of the Church.

Demons - are invisible spiritual entities with minds, emotions and wills of their own, in league with and under the control of Satan. They are out to do his bidding and to torment the people of God. They can’t multiply, can only be in one place at one time and are limited in knowledge” (Derek Prince) They speak to us in our minds, they hear what we say, watch our reactions, and make plans and strategies. When we are confronted with demons we are told to resist them - Christ doesn’t do this for us. Sin is a weakening and destructive influence so it can be assumed that Satan and demons are weaker then angels. Demons “pressure” us to get us to sin, to keep us involved in sin, to blind us to God’s truth and/or to keep us bound in limitations. Usually demons have an open door to gain access to us. (Beth Moore)

Satan is not another ‘god’ or the ‘god of evil’. He is not in an equal battle with ‘God’ rather he is simply a fallen archangel that wants to be ‘god’. Lucifer was created by God, along with all the other angels, he is finite, extremely limited in knowledge, ability and space and can only be in one place at one time. He was the originator of sin. The pride of Satan was to be god. When we try to live without God, we are also trying to be like God.

7 V. Satan’s hierarchy - Evil Rulers, Evil Principalities, Evil Powers

A. Evil Rulers - Satan infiltrates existing human authority structures, seeking to rule through them. God has established authority structures, to protect us and when they are functioning how God intended, Satan can’t rule through them. Authority structures are within government, civil government, schools, employment, churches, families and marriages. Walls of authority have been established by God to protect us. When we are rebelling against God’s authority structure, our rebellion creates holes in our walls thus giving evil rulers access to us.

Make a list of all the authority structures in your life.

Godless leaders, neglect of responsibilities and rebellion leads people to invite Satan to rule through authority structures. It’s not about if the authority that we are under is godly or ungodly, our protection by God is determined by how we are responding to the authority He has placed over us. We are called to respect, submit to and pray for all our authorities (1 Timothy 2:1-2, Romans 13). When we don’t do this, we allow evil rulers access into our lives, families, marriages, jobs, churches and government. We need to ask God, “Do I help Satan rule by undermining authority and acting rebelliously with a heart attitude that says ‘I don’t need rules or authority, I don’t need leaders or anyone telling me what to do’ or do we intercede for godless or godly authorities and respect them regardless of their action?” The only time we are called to act against leadership is when they ask us to sin.

How can the walls of authority be destroyed in my life?

How do I respond to what God has revealed to me regarding authority structures?

Who is under my authority and how am I providing a protective covering against evil rulers?

B. Evil Principalities - Princes that work different areas. Satan has a global plan of destruction and deploys different strategies in different places.

We have the privilege of praying for all the nations. Practically we can sign up to pray for a country (during our ‘Live the mission’ weekends twice a year) We can find out what Satan’s plans are for a country. Ex. Eritrea has been at war for 30 years and is trying to rebuild, it’s in conflict with Ethiopia, it is governed by evil dictators, there is persecution of Christians, no free press, they suffer from famine, Islamist extremest rule the local people ...

C. Evil Powers - Community Strongholds - concentrated evil that builds up evil patterns. Patterns of bondage for generations.

Satan is eternally defeated and but now while their is time, he is seeking the hearts of men. He is active in our society to the degree that people are sinning and living selfishly. He has precisely the amount of authority that we give him when we live in opposition to God.

1. How are evil powers at work within our city? What kinds of strongholds have they built into our society?

8 2. How are evil powers at work within my place of work? What kinds of strongholds have they built into my job?

3. How are evil powers at work within my Church? What kinds of strongholds have they built into our corporate ways of living in community and doing life together?

4. How are evil powers at work within my family? What kinds of strongholds have they built into our habits, traditions and living together?

5. How are evil powers at work within my marriage? What kinds of strongholds have they built into our everyday behavior and thought patterns?

Action Plan

!Acknowledge and name the power - bring it out of the darkness into the light. !Identify the specific lies, attitudes and behaviors associated with the stronghold. !Repent of and renounce the specific lies, attitudes and behaviors (individually and corporately) !Authoritatively renounce the specific powers and break the power in Jesus’ Name. (this is not a prayer) !Pray, act and live in the opposite spirit developing a divine stronghold (godly patterns of thinking) in its place.

D. Forces of darkness - World deception through lying spirits.

Action Plan - Practice humility and go out an effectively evangelize the nations under the empowerment of Holy Spirit.

What demonic system of lies keeps me from evangelizing?

How are my attitudes, activities, and words affecting the unseen world today?

How is the unseen world affecting me at this moment?”

How can I go about my day with a greater awareness of the real spirit realm? Act like the Bible is true. Do the Word. Practice the truth.

VI. Levels of Spiritual Warfare - Understanding the battle

A. The Cosmic Conflict—Angels and demons in conflict (Daniel 10). God allows Satan a sanctioned latitude to do the work of deceiving men but he is held on a sovereign string, serving as a tempter and moral tester of men.

B. The Conflict against the Redeemed—warfare between the demonic realm and the true followers of Jesus Christ.

Direct warfare 9 #1 Deception: To deceive somebody means to make another person believe a lie or something that is not true. When the enemy sends deception (can be like an arrow) our way, it is an attempt to deceive us into believing something that is not true, so we will fall into error. Strongholds are built through deception. A stronghold is formed when deception takes hold in a person's mind. A demonic stronghold is an incorrect thinking pattern that stems from believing something that is not true. This wrong thinking pattern leads to wrong attitudes, feelings and actions. Over time it creates a barrier that inhibits us from being able to think truth, see truth, feel truth and act on truth.

From the very beginning, Satan deceived Eve into believing that God's Word was not true. In Genesis 3:4, the devil told her that she will not surely die as God said she would in Genesis 2:17.

Action - We are called to put on the belt of truth and we use the Word of truth to expose lies and tear down existing strongholds. Romans 12:1-2 . We are to put out flaming arrows with shield of faith. Ephesians 6:13-18

#2 Temptation: Temptation often follows deception. First the enemy tells us, "You won't surely die!", then 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 snot 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.

When the enemy tempts you, he's showing you the worm, but behind that worm is a hook. The Word of God helps you see the hook behind the worm. Psalms 119:11, "I have hidden Your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you." James 4:7, "Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you." (The context of those verse is clearly speaking of temptation).

Action - we resist temptation by humbling ourselves before God, we resist the temptation and draw close to God (James 4:7).

#3 Accusations: The devil is known as the accuser of the brethren (Revelation 12:10). 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.

Action - We practice the Word. Faith is what we use to put out the fiery darts of the enemy (Ephesians 6:16). We are not to meditate about our pasts, because they have passed away (2 Corinthians 5:17), and our sins have been forgotten (Hebrews 10:17).

#4 Demonization/ Oppression - This bondage happens when there is an alien pressure that makes the normal challenges of life more difficult than they should be. Oppression usually has a door of entrance. Oppression by a demonic power may come through pre or post conversion sin, generational sin, victimization or an eroded conscience. Demons must have a legal right to oppress and to remain in us. Christians cannot be possessed by demons but they can be oppressed, influenced and freed. When Paul tells us that when we sin, anger in this passage (Ephesians 4:27) that we give a foothold to the devil it is clear that Christians can be oppressed. However, when we repent freedom is available.

Action plan: We ask God to reveal to us the legal ground for the oppression. Then we repent of the sin, renounce the evil and release the Holy Spirit to work to transform us. If we are oppressed by demons we need to be delivered (Acts 10:38). We need to cultivate an awareness and understanding of the direct assault - Spiritual disciplines of silence, solitude, meditation of the Word, fasting, and listening prayer help us in this.

II. Indirect warfare: Satan is the god of this world and influences our values and believe systems and he works his godless ideologies (thinking that exalt themselves above God) and moral decay into our lives through the world. 10 This tactic of defeating the Christian works very well for Satan. Christians minds and wills can be polluted by secular ways of thinking—these come through media, political and religious bodies, education, secular government, trends, social media, movies, books, false teachers… These are subtle and often form our ways of thinking and behaviors.

Action plan: Listening prayer, corporate prayer, daily bible meditation and reading, operating in the gifts of the Holy Spirit, fasting and prayer, interconnectedness and submission to a local Church and accountability can help us in identifying demonic strongholds in society. Actively allowing the Spirit to renew or minds allows us to grow in truth and keeps us from falling into the worldly values.

C. The Conflict against the Un-redeemed: There is warfare to deceive and bind non-Christians (2 Corinthians 4:4). This is the greatest battle and it is for the souls of men and women. Because Satan is the author and initiator of original sin, and because he is the “god of this world,” spiritual warfare involves a constant multidimensional battle against the world (system of ungodly values), the flesh (sin inherent to our humanity), and the devil (supernatural personification of evil). Non-Christians can be demonized. They can be possessed, oppressed and influenced by Satan but they cannot be freed till the become Christians and Jesus comes in and frees them. He binds the strong man and sets them freed (Matthew 12:25-30).

Warfare implies the likelihood of losses: eternal separation from God for the nonbeliever, and diminished effectiveness and suffering for the believer.mmmm

VII. Three Battlefields - the mind, the heart and the mouth

A. The mind - Spiritual warfare is a reality of the Christian life. But remember, we know the ending – our side wins. Since the devil has already lost, he has nothing to lose in trying to take as many people with him in defeat. So we are not trying to defeat evil, rather enforce their defeat. Our battle ground is the mind. Thoughts are alive and active. They come from either God, self or Satan. There is no “random” thought.

The following quote is by Dr. Caroline Leaf who is a christian brain scientist “87% to 95% of the illnesses that plague us today are a direct result of our thought life. What we think about affects us physically and emotionally. It's an epidemic of toxic emotions.

The average person has over 30,000 thoughts a day. Through an uncontrolled thought life, we create the conditions for illness; we make ourselves sick! Research shows that fear, all on its own, triggers more than 1,400 known physical and chemical responses and activates more than 30 different hormones. There are INTELLECTUAL and MEDICAL reasons to FORGIVE! Toxic waste generated by toxic thoughts causes the following illnesses: diabetes, cancer, asthma, skin problems and allergies to name just a few. Consciously control your thought life and start to detox your brain!

Medical research increasingly points to the fact that thinking and consciously controlling your thought life is one of the best ways, if not the best way of detoxing your brain. It allows you to get rid of those toxic thoughts and emotions that can consume and control your mind.Change in your thinking is essential to detox the brain. Consciously controlling your thought life means not letting thoughts rampage through your mind. It means learning to engage interactively with every single thought that you have, and to analyze it before you decide either to accept or reject it.

How do you go about doing that? By "looking" at your mental processes. That may sound like a strange, if not impossible thing to do. After all, it's not as if you can just crack open your skull like an egg and have a look at what is going on inside your brain.

11 It is possible, however, to look at your mental processes. In fact, it is not just possible, it is essential. For example consider the following:

1. How many "could-have", "would-have", "should-have" statements have you made today? 2. How many "if only" were part of your inner vocabulary today? 3. How many times have you replayed in your head a conversation or situation that pained you, or one that hasn't even occurred yet? 4. How many scenarios have you created of the unpredictable future? 5. How much is speculation taking out of your day? 6. How passive is your mind? 7. How honest are you with yourself? 8. Are you at cross-purposes with yourself - going through the motions, but not really committed to the goal, saying one thing but meaning another? 9. How distorted is your thinking? Are you forming a personal identity around for example, a disease? Do you speak about "my arthritis", "my multiple sclerosis", "my heart problem"? 10. Do you ever make comments like "nothing ever goes right for me"; "everything I touch fails"; "I always mess up"? If you answered yes even to just one of these, your thought life needs detoxing right now.

A potential pitfall on the path towards detoxing your brain is the fact that toxic thoughts come in many guises. On the surface, a thought like "I must do well" seems positive enough. It is only when you look at it closely, and check out the feelings it generates and their effects on your body and mind, that you will be able to judge fairly and squarely if this is a thought that serves you well.

If you base your thought life on assumptions like the above the foundations will be shaky and the edifice (your body mind) that you create thereafter will be highly unstable. As you think more toxic thoughts and generate more toxic emotions, that edifice will show cracks, cave in and eventually collapse altogether as burgeoning illness and disease takes hold.

Right off, you need to ditch unrealistic thinking and keep in mind some key principles to kick-start the process of controlling toxic thoughts: Thoughts create your moods When you experience a fear-based emotion you will feel depressed and your thoughts will be characterized by negativity A negative thought linked to emotional turmoil will be distorted "...bringing all thoughts into captivity to Christ Jesus" (2 Corinthians 10:5) becomes the golden rule of safe thinking

The process of "bringing all thoughts into captivity" There are four simple techniques involved:

1. Understanding that thoughts are real and have an actual anatomy Thoughts are real things: they have a structure in your brain and occupy space. Thoughts are the same as memories. Thoughts and memories look like trees and are called neurons or nerve cells. You build a double memory of everything as a mirror image of each other. This means that the memory on the left side of the brain builds from the detail to the big picture; and the memory on the right side builds from the big picture to the detail. When you put these two perspectives of thought together, you get intelligent understanding taking place. As information comes in from the five senses, you process it in certain structures of your brain, then you grow branches on the "trees" to hold this information in long term memory. In fact, as you reading this, you are growing thoughts, because, thoughts are the result of what we hear and read and see and feel and experience. This means that whatever you grow is part of you, actual branches in your brain that create your attitude and influence your decisions. 2. Increasing conscious awareness of your thoughts and how you are feeling. Knowledge of the anatomy of thought naturally leads into the process of actively analyzing incoming information and 12 thoughts constantly. You should never let a thought or thoughts roam chaotically and unchecked through your head. Examine every thought you have and ask yourself: is this good for me? Is it from God or the devil or my own confused thinking? Conscious awareness of your thinking should become like a habit. A habit takes twenty-one days to create. Today is the first day of that twenty-one... 3. Doing something once you have analyzed the thought. So technique two is developing a conscious awareness of what you are thinking about. Now technique three is doing something about the thought. This means making a conscious decision to actively accept the thought (if it is good for you) or reject it (if it is bad for you). This means you use your God-given ability of free will (this also has actual structural position in the brain) to do something about the thought you are consciously aware of. Thoughts have as much control as we give them. 4. Building new memories over the old. This is the really exciting part in dealing with our thought life because, accepting or rejecting the thought is changing the neural circuitry of your brain: you brain is growing while you think and you have control over the process. Technique four happens when the brain steps in and creates a structural representation of what you have chosen to accept (adds more branches on the tree) and converts what you have chosen to reject into hot air! a. Lets see how these four techniques work if you have an unforgiveness in your memory trees towards someone: b. Technique one: this unforgiveness looks like a thorn tree and will hurt you - visualize the twisted bitter thorn tree. c. Technique two: be consciously aware of this thought of unforgiveness - where it comes from, how long it has been there, and so on. d. Technique three: ask the Holy Spirit to help you use your free will to make the wisdom decision to reject unforgiveness and forgive. Picture the unforgiveness disappearing as hot air. e. Technique four: now build a new dethroned memory to replace the thorny unforgiveness with for example, quoting scriptures, singing a worship song, praying for the person, and so on.”

God has called us to the process of thought renewal. We need to be about tearing down any demonic strongholds and building divine strongholds. Replacing lies with truth until truth becomes our way of thinking. Proverbs 23:7 says that “as we think we are”. Imaginations - We need to allow God to redeem our imaginations if we have allowed evil to control them. We have been given our imaginations for faith. Faith is imagining what God has spoken as though it were already complete. Hebrews 11:1 Any time we want to see God transform us - God will always start with our thinking. Romans 12:1-2 B. The Heart: (attitudes and emotions) Proverbs 4:23 Toxic thinking will lead to toxic attitudes and emotions. These cannot remain unchecked or accepted. Daily we are responsible to do an “attitude check”. Ex. If you are in a difficult marriage, ask God daily to reveal to you your attitudes which you might be consciously aware or not. “What is my attitude towards my husband today? What is my attitude towards God calling me to remain in this marriage? What is my attitude towards other people that are influencing our relationship?” Just as we need to walk in rapid repentance related to sinful behavior we need to walk in rapid repentance around wrong attitudes. Wrong attitudes are bitterness, rebellion, independence, pride, unbelief, envy, jealousy, discontentment, anger, criticalness, apathy, indifference, worry.” Action - we walk in rapid repentance - humility, asking person to forgive us, vulnerability and letting others know our sin. Three kingpins that hold the demonic structure together are pride, fear and unbelief. (We come against pride through humility. We come against fear through casting our anxieties on God. We come against unbelief by asking God for faith. All three are dealt with together as we read the Bible and are washed and cleansed in the

13 Word of God Ephesians 5:26, Romans 12:2). When we make decisions we can ask ourselves, “Is my decision motivated by pride, fear or unbelief?” C. The Mouth - Words have power. They either give life or they destroy. Proverbs 18:21 The words that come out of our mouth come from our heart. (Matthew 15:18) Evil words, evil heart. Condemning words, condemning heart, judging words, judging heart. Curses are made active by a spoken word

1. A declaration is spoken that seeks to steal, kill and destroy a person.

2. When curses are spoken and doorways are open, the demonic is welcome to become involved and begin to activate the curse.

3. Self cursing always brings anguish and destruction upon our lives (the doorway for the demonic is now open)

4. Cursing another person brings anguish and destruction if there is an open doorway that has allowed entry to the curse and demonic activity. If there is no open doorway the curse will not take root.

The spirit world is always listening to anything negative, unholy, or sinful. The demonic energizes sin. Cursing is a power concept; it releases the demonic powers against people, places or objects. When a curse is pronounced, it has the power within it to accomplish what is stated. Mankind willfully speaks forth a sinful desire and by so doing invites Satan to join in with the sinful human desire.

Scripture has much to say about blessing and cursing: Proverbs 6:17; 13:3; 15:28; 18:21; 26:2; 28:27, James 1:26; 3:8-10, Ephesians 4:29; 5:4, Col. 3:8; 4:6, Matthew 15:11,18-20, Luke 6:28, 2 Timothy 3:2, Malachi 3:9.

Some possibilities of the devil’s schemes; 1. He may slander God to you in order to cast doubt on God’s goodness and shipwreck your faith (Genesis 3:4-5). 2. He may tempt you to deceive others in order to create, or maintain, the impression of being more spiritual (Acts 5:3; John 8:44). 3. He may corrupt your mind and steer you away from the simplicity of Christ and His gospel (2 Corinthians 11:3). 4. He may hinder [cut in on, as in a race] your gospel witness and steal it from unsuspecting hearts (1 Thessalonians 2:18; Matthew 13:19). 5. He may wrestle against you, fighting against your progress in Christ (Ephesians 6:12). 6. He may tempt you with reproaches (express disappointment) - Our sinful behavior is used by Satan to make the body of Jesus look bad. When we are used to accuse our brother and sisters and the world watches, it’s an embarrassment. (I Corinthians 6) 7. He may tempt you through finances. Satan kingdom on earth is a financial kingdom. He influences disobedience around finances and Christians who are subject to his will hinder the release of finances for the funding of Gods’ great commission. As a result the funding of the gospel is hindered. (Matthew 6:19-34) 8. He may tempt you to commit sexual immorality against your spouse as a result of neglecting the intimacy of the marriage bed (1 Corinthians 7:5). 9. He may harass you with some form of fleshly affliction (2 Corinthians 12:7). 10. He may blind the spiritual eyes of your unsaved family, friends, and neighbors so that they may not see the glory of Jesus in the gospel (2 Corinthians 4:4). 11. He may keep your unsaved acquaintances in bondage to sins that hinder them from coming to God (Galatians 4:8). 12. He may smite you with physical disease (Luke 13:16; Job 2:7). 13. He may murder you (Psalm 106:37; John 8:44). 14. He may sow tares [counterfeit Christians, sons of the evil one] within your assembly of believers in order to deceive and create disunity (Matthew 13:38-39; 2 Corinthians 11:13-15). 15. He may lead you toward theological compromise by causing you to be friendly to false doctrine and its teachers (1 Timothy 4:1-3). 16. He may persecute you for your godliness (Revelation 2:10). 17. He may tempt you to do evil (Matthew 4:1; 1 Thessalonians 3:5). 18. He is—at this moment—prowling about seeking to capture and destroy you, chiefly through pride (1 Peter 5:6-8). 14 19. He will most assuredly slander you before God in heaven (Revelation 12:10). 20. He may ask God for permission to sift you out for concentrated attack and temptation (Luke 22:31). 21. He may use the power of suggestion to move you away from the will of God (Matthew 16:21-23). 22. He may try to cripple your effectiveness through confusion, discouragement, and despair (2 Corinthians 4:8-9). P.Trautgus)

VIII. Authority - not a feeling, thought or personality type rather a legal position

Background - when God made man He took a part of His authority/dominion and handed it over to man (in and through his free will). We still have it. God gave man authority over the world, but at the same time God has “ultimate” authority over all. When Satan was kicked out of heaven and he wanted the authority that God gave to Adam and Eve. God gave some authority to man, man, through his free will, gave it to Satan. But Satan can’t rule as he wills, he can only influence the world to the degree that man chooses to sin and live in disobedience to God.

So now Satan is working through mankind to do his business on the planet and God is working through mankind to defeat the enemy. OT is all about God bearing the seed of the woman through Israel to bring Jesus Christ, and Satan’s attempt to corrupt the seed that would bruise his head.

When Jesus died and went to the other side of Hades (the domain of Satan) He stripped Satan of the authority he had stolen from man (Col. 2:15) and established the legal basis for our authority. Jesus now has the keys to death and Hades and Satan is no longer legally in control. (Rev. 1:18)

Jesus came primarily to atone for sin but he came as a man (just like the Adam), resisted all evil for his life time and humbled Himself to the point of death so that as a man, He could qualify to take back what the first man chose to give away.

Now through Christ we have authority to act and we need to use it for God’s purposes. If we don’t rebuke the devil, he will not be rebuked, if we don’t cast our demons, they will not be cast out, if we don’t resist the devil, he will not be resisted. WE MUST EXERCISE OUR AUTHORITY. Our ignorance or indifference is bliss for the enemy. Authority

1. (Dunamis) - the ability, miraculous power, that which manifests God’s power, used 77 times in New Testament • Luke 4:14 “and Jesus returned in the POWER of the Spirit • Luke 8:46 But Jesus said, “someone touched me; I know that POWER has gone out from me.” • Luke 9:1-2 “And He called the twelve together and gave them POWER and authority over all demons and to cure diseases.” • Act 1:8 You shall receive POWER when the Holy Spirit has come upon you and you shall be my witnesses.” • 1 Corinthians 4:20 “For the Kingdom of God does not consist in talk but in POWER.” 2. (Exousia) - authority, the right to act Matthew 7:29 “He taught them as one having AUTHORITY.” Luke 4:36 ...He command the unclean spirits with AUTHORITY and power and they come out.” Luke 9:1-2 “And He called the twelve together and gave them power and AUTHORITY over all demons and to cure diseases.”

15 • Luke 10:19 “I have given you AUTHORITY (the power to act) over all the power of the enemy, and you can walk among snakes and scorpions an crush them, nothing will injure you.” 3. (Kratos) - power, strength, might Hebrews 2:14 “since the children have flesh and blood, He too shared in their humanity so that by His death He might destroy him who hold the POWER of death - that is, the devil.” The devil has kratos (strength, might and power) when we give up our exousia (authority, the right to act) through sin. It is by the dunamis (supernatural) power of the Holy Spirit that we have the exousia over the enemy. Authority has nothing to do with volume! The enemy is not frightened when we yell. He is scared to death of Jesus. Deliverance is about loving people, treating them with dignity and respect and helping them take responsibility for the ares in which they have given away their exousia (authority- right to act) and thereby given the enemy kratos (strength). dewnamis.com

Five ways to exercise authority

1. In the name of Jesus (Mark 16:17) “Spirit of fear, in Jesus’ name, I command you to leave now and don’t return.”

2. Applying the Word of God in warfare - (Ephesians 6:17) It’s not just a book but a sword that needs to be activated - picked up and exercised. We need to know the Word, and do the Word. “I praise you God that you have not given me a spirit of fear but Your Spirit of love, power and a sound mind.” 2 Timothy 1:7

Helpful verses to memorize - 1 John 3:8, 4:4, 5:18; Luke 10:19; 2 Corinthians 10:3-4; Colossians 2:15; James 4:7; 1 Peter 5:8-9, 1 John 1:9, Malachi 3:10-11 ...

3. The power of the Spirit - the supernatural power of the Spirit (dunamis) to carry out authority. Start by putting yourself in situations were you are able to learn to exercise spiritual gifts. Start praying with people and really ministering to them out of what the Lord reveals to you. Learn to pray under the empowerment of the Holy Spirit.

4. The blood of Jesus - (Revelation 12:11) The atoning work of Jesus - Jesus’ blood redeemed us, forgave us, cleansed us, justified us and is sanctifying us. Praise God for it often and apply it to your life. "You evil powers attacking my home and life, I command you to stop in Jesus name. I hold the blood of Jesus against you. The blood of Jesus has defeated you. The blood of Jesus has set me free. The blood of Jesus has redeemed me, justified me, forgave me, cleansed me and is making me holy. I plead the blood of Jesus over my home, my life and my family. I protect them from your attacks. I walk in the freedom that the death and resurrection of Jesus has brought me."

5. Telling the truth - Praise - declaring verbally who God is, witnessing, speaking forth the truth in the Word about ourselves, others and our situations. (Who is in a difficult situation and needs others to speak truth in to it) IX. Why does a loving God allow evil?

We are not fatalists. “Whatever happens, happens.” God has a will for each person and we can either choose to obey it or rebel against it. (Joshua 24:15, Revelation 3:20)

1. Evil is a result of peoples choices. (Romans 5:12) We are living under the consequences of billions of evil choices made by billions of people. We are living under the “curse”. We are also have a “bruised heel”. We don’t walk like we have been originally created for and our physical bodies are all slowly dying. God allows evil to

16 remain in the earth because free will is more valuable than the absence of evil. Free will is what makes us human beings. God wants us to have free will so that we can develop a loving relationship with Him.

“There is a point in your brain called the “free will” and it is a genetic structure, there is genetic code. You can use that free will to accept or reject that incoming information. So if you are controlling your thought life, you don’t have to just receive all of this input that is coming in from the outside world, from the media, from external and also from your internal world; we’ve got a lot of existing toxic memories in our head, everything from birth to death is stored in your brain. So you’re going to have information coming from the outside, information from the inside and it all meets at this point of the free will in the brain. You can make a decision at that point to accept or reject that information. If you decide this is not good for me and you actually analyze that thought and say, this is not good for me, this is not healthy. You can reject that thought and it goes out and becomes heat energy. It actually becomes hot air and it doesn’t become part of you. But if you choose to think about it, if you choose to meditate on that, if you choose to ask, answer, discuss, analyze to give meaning, you push it into these memory trees of the mind, into the memory circuits and once they’re there, they are there for good. Once they’ve moved into what the neuroscientists call the magic trees of the mind, once they’re there, they’re there for good, you can’t get rid of them. Then you’ve got to rebuild, that’s the renewing of the mind. Much more difficult to rebuild than it is to reject.” ~ Dr. Caroline Leaf

2. God is committed to justice. (Isaiah 63:10, Psalm 78:40) He gets involved in the affairs of man but He limits His power to not overstep the freedom He gave man. God’s wisdom has made a way for man to get out of bondage and suffering of the world and into a relationship with Him. This world and it’s suffering is temporary. Evil people can only harm our “earth suits” but they can’t touch our spirits and our souls if we don’t let them. Those two things will last forever. No man, no demon, no devil can take us out of the will of God - the only one who can is ourselves.

Action Plan -

Use the difficulties that come with life as opportunities for growth. Adversity is God’s most effective tool for the advancement of our spiritual lives, The circumstances and events that we see as setbacks are often times the very things that launch us into periods of intense spiritual growth, Once we begin to understand this and accept it as spiritual fact of life , adversity becomes easier to bear. (Charles Stanley) X. Prayer changes things because God answers prayer

We need to accept our responsibility to advance the Kingdom of God. We take on our defensive and offensive weapons. The gates of hell (defensive weapons) will not fall down by themselves. The body of Christ must move against them so that they will not prevail (Matthew 16:18). We must drive out the powers of darkness. We can’t do this without God and God will not do this apart from us. Obedient warriors will never lose a battle. Obedient warriors have to know how to pray. They need to know how to communicate with the Lord of Heavens armies and fight the battle under the direction of the Holy Spirit. Authority has to be exercised for it to defeat the enemy.

Lord teach us to pray... Luke 11, Matthew 6

Our Father in heaven… You are our perfect Father. We come before You confidently because we are the righteousness of Christ. We are Your special adopted children, not left as orphans rather full of Your Spirit so that we can communicate freely with You. We praise Your name of Provider because You have…

May Your name be kept holy…We want to honor Your Name of Righteousness today by living right. We want to Honor Your Name of Truth by turning away from every form of deception. We want to honor Your Name of Sovereign One by praising You in and through every trial...

May Your Kingdom come to earth as it is in heaven… May Your will come to our thought lives as we think on what is true. May Your rule come to our behavior as we seek to do the things You call us to today. May Your Kingdom come to the lives of those we encounter today so that they will come to salvation... 17 Give us today our daily bread… Lord we need Your grace today so that we are able to be patient with everyone. We need to experience Your love so that we can confidently walk in our true identity. We need Your compassion so that we can minister justice to those who need it. We need Your Spirit of Revelation so we know what we are to do...

Forgive us our sins… Lord forgive us for our pride, we want to embrace humility today… Lord forgive us ...

As we forgive those who sin against us… Lord, we choose to release those who have offended us. We want to cancel people’s debts and release them from not giving to us the things we think they owe us...

And don't let us yield to temptation…Lord when we are tempted to complain help us to remember to be thankful. When we are tempted to gossip put a hand over our mouths, when we are tempted to live for ourselves enable us to die to our perceived rights...

We ask You Father for the gift of the Holy Spirit today. We surrender ourselves to Your good and perfect will. We forsake all else and purpose to turn from everything that tries to pull our love away from You. We ask for You to fill us with Your power, as we yield to Your desires every moment of this day…

In the Name of Jesus Christ that we pray, AMEN! The Road to freedom always starts with prayer (conversation with God) A. Praying for yourself

1. Praise God for who He is!

2. Repent of the sin and develop an action plan with God on how to stay out of it. (Seek accountability)

3. Renounce the lies that caused you to sin - replace them with the truth (daily). Break the power of any evil influences over your life as a result of your sin. Resist Satan verbally when you are tempted- draw near to God. If you sense there is a demonic spirit keeping you in bondage then also pray with a friend. Give God the opportunity to show you if there is a demonic spirit keeping you in bondage. If so, have your friend renounce the spirit, cancel it’s plans, stop all it’s activities and send it to the feet of Christ for judgement - cast it out.

4. Release the Holy Spirit to empower you to live, think and act opposite to your confessed sin.

5. Thank God often for how He is setting you free and for the finished work the Jesus did on the cross to purchase your freedom. B. Praying for others who need Freedom

Begin by briefly interviewing person, but not giving a lot of time for unbelief to be nurtured.

Praise God is in light of the need and praise His character and remember His faithfulness.

Listen to how the Spirit would have you pray.

Depending on what is revealed, lead them through repentance, forgiveness, breaking generational sin, rendering curses powerless and void, breaking soul ties, renouncing lies and declaring truth, stripping demons of their schemes, plans and agendas, canceling their effects, influences and activity, and casting out any evil spirits that are at work.

18 “In Jesus’ Name, I command all influences of evil to be bound, I renounce any demonic powers that might be at work of your plans, I cancel your effects and activities and send you to the feet of Jesus for judgement. Be gone in Jesus’ Name.”

“In the name of Jesus, I seal all that Jesus has done here today and forbid the enemy from robbing _____ of the work of freedom that was been accomplished.

End with thanksgiving and prophetic blessings!

XII. Waging war in the spiritual realm with effective weapons

Standing against pride, unbelief & fear through living the Word and engaging in effective prayer

When MVCC was going through a time of intense spiritual warfare as she was trying to build a church building on a piece of property, the Lord gave us these eight weapons as our battle plan. We divided into eight divisions of warriors and marched around the perimeters of the property fighting for the plans and purposes of the Lord to prevail despite intense opposition. We won- His plans succeeded!

1. Praise: The Act of Divine Adoration.

! Adoration is the act of rendering divine honor, esteem, and love. ! We acknowledge God as God. ! Spiritual warfare is not so much about us taking authority over the enemy; rather it’s discovering the majesty, the sovereignty and the supremacy of God. ! True praise is boldly coming before the throne of God with a clear conscience and bowing down before Him. It is genuine contact with God. As a result of connecting with God we are greatly encouraged and strengthened. Our faith is built up and we live in the spiritual battle with authority and clarity. ! True praise drives back the powers of darkness, releases the angels of God to do battle on our behalf, and brings God’s awesome presence into each situation. (2 Chronicles 20:21-22) ! The more we know God, the more we love God; the more we love God, the more we obey God; the more we obey God, and the more in tune we are to what is important to Him. Then the more aware we are of the spiritual battle around us, the stronger we are and the more victorious we are in that battle. ! Praise puts God in His rightful position and so His power is released (2 Chronicles 5: 13-14) and in turn the devil flees. ! Praise executes vengeance on the nations. It brings God’s judgment on the kings of darkness, binding them in chains. (Psalm 149:7-9) ! Adoration is the antidote to the poison of satanic oppression. To develop the “praise-life” is to develop certain immunity to the enemy’s attacks. Satan is allergic to praise, so where there is massive triumphant praise, Satan is paralyzed, bound and banished. ! Speaking in tongues (another form of praise) is a powerful weapon of warfare. It edifies (1 Corinthians 14:4) us and builds us up and strengthens our inner being. A habitual tongue praiser is constantly releasing the power of God and resisting the devil. Releasing our prayer language requires humility, faith and active participation with our vocal cords. God doesn’t move them for us. We need to trust God as we speak forth for we do not know what will come out of us. We can pray in the spirit and we can sing/worship in the spirit. True worship in a known language or an unknown language is coming to God in submission and dependance and esteeming His characteristics.

19 Practical Ways that I can become a praiser

SHOUT out praises Read a Psalm out loud (repeat it until you mean it) Praise out BOLDLY and clearly in tongues for at least 5 minutes Ask the Spirit to interpret your praises as you praise forth in English Count your blessings – name them one by one Sing or dance to a worship CD Lie prostrate and engage in a worship CD – allow faith and vision to flow Meditate on a few praise verses - let them soak in Write a love letter to God Bless the names of God with specific events connected to them Go for a walk and praise loudly Smell the roses and give God praise as the creator Participate actively in corporate praise and worship Keep a record of praise verses and speak them out throughout the day Look to praise in every situation you go through Set a timer for every hour and stop and praise God out loud. Brag about the goodness of God to a friend. ______

2. Humility: Seeing ourselves like God sees us

! Humility says, “Lord, I am empty without Your fullness; I am broken without Your wholeness; I am helpless without Your strength; I am clueless without Your wisdom. Apart from You I am nothing. I need you!” God then dignifies us – with sonship, glory, acceptance, royalty, purpose, significance, wealth, honor, salvation wisdom, revelation, understanding, status, character, holiness, and victories – so then in turn we have the privilege of casting it all back at His feet. And the cycle of dependence/humility continues. (Secrets of the Secret Place – Bob Sorge) ! When we walk in humility we encounter God and blessings. We are honest with ourselves: before God and before people. ! When we walk in pride we encounter Satan and reap destruction. We cannot be victorious in spiritual warfare at any level if we are proud. Satan = pride. Pride is the most destructive spirit that we come against. It is the root source behind all sin. ! If we are proud - God must oppose us. He cannot tolerate our pride and be consistent with His character. He is forced to resist us. God pushes us away and then the devil has the opportunity to grab a hold of us and destroy our lives. ! One way that we demonstrate humility is by making ourselves known. We don’t hide behind a mask or pretend to be someone we are not, rather we choose to be open, honest and vulnerable with people. We allow people to speak into our lives and we invite people into the discernment process with issues we are facing. Heb. 3:13 We work together as a team or an “army division” relying on each other, needing each other, giving to each other, serving each other, and truly loving each other. We can’t love unless we are known and know others.

“When you bow down before the Lord and admit your dependence on Him, He will lift you up and give you honor.” James 4:10 Practical Ways to walk in humility individually

I cultivate a lifestyle of continual surrender 20 Anytime I make a decision I ask myself and God, “How is pride influencing my decision?” I often ask myself and God these questions: (Pride Detectors) ! Do I think primarily about myself when I make decisions? ! Feel like I must have my own way? ! Look down on others? ! Need to prove myself? ! Focus on the mistakes of others? ! Think first about my rights? ! Desire to be served? ! Feel driven to be recognized and appreciated? ! Get wounded when others are recognized and I am not? ! Think God is privileged to have my service? ! Get defensive when criticized? Blame others? ! Work to maintain my image and reputation? ! Find it difficult to say, “I have sinned, will you please forgive me?” ! Justify my sin or excuse my sin? ! Only regret sin when I get caught or suffer the consequences? ! Expect others to be the first to reconcile? ! Constantly compare and compete with others? ! Keep people at a safe distance? ! Live as though I am self-sufficient? ! Disobey God when His will goes against what I want? ! Will not submit to the authority God has placed over me? (“Living in His Presence”, D. Early)

When I detect pride I move straight into repentance. I am aware and educated on what the face of pride specifically looks like in my life. I allow other people to point out my pride from time to time. When I recognize a bad attitude or emotion I quickly bring it before the Lord and ask Him to show me my pride. ______

Practical Ways to walk in humility - corporately

Confession of sin with others: James 5:16 No tolerance for complaints: 1 Timothy 5:19 No tolerance for criticism: James 4:11 Submit to one another: Ephesians 5:21 Obey spiritual leaders: Hebrews 13:17 Humbly accept and respond to the message when it is preached: James 1:21 Saturate every ministry in prayer—constantly declaring our dependence in word and action on God. James 4:10 Refuse the poisonous root of bitterness— (offense is a face of pride). Hebrews 12:15 When making a decision affecting the Church, I ask myself and God, “How is pride influencing my decision?” ______

3. Repentance: Turning from sin to God

!Confessing sin as sin, and turning completely away from it and turning towards God and His righteous ways. 21 !Sin is more than doing wrong. There are also sins of omission –knowing what we ought to do and then not doing it. James 4:17 !Sin doesn't stop God from talking to us. After all, we are all sinners; Jesus is the only one to live a sinless life. So, sin couldn't stop God from talking to us or He wouldn't have talked to anyone in the history of the world. It's our focus on sin and our assumption He can't hear us when we are walking in sin, that stops God in our life. When we focus on our sin we won't go to Him for your deliverance or answer and as a result we can't hear Him if you don't go to Him. It boils down to the fact that sin robs us of faith and without faith we don’t seek God. !The only way to move forward in God (away from Satan) is through repentance. Repentance breaks the powers of darkness. However if I am disobedient I allow the enemy to work. If I obey God, I hold the devil off. !The devil usually works with our sinful nature. He comes along side when our flesh is weak and prone to sin and fuels it with more of his thoughts that we either embrace, (usually by being unaware) or by intentionally speaking against and putting on the attitude of the Holy Spirit. !Turning from obvious sinful actions is a must (lying, cheating, hatred, pornography, not tithing, gossip, drunkenness, malicious behavior, fighting, hoarding our possessions…) !We are also called to repent from our iniquities - the hidden faults that we don’t see; the wicked residue of our fallen nature that discolors the fabric of our thoughts, motives, feelings, responses and desires. This calls for an alertness and eagerness for the Spirit to point out our sin through trying circumstances. (2 Timothy 2:19-21) !Repentance of iniquities defuses Satan’s power in our lives because the underlying/root sins have been exposed to the light. !Defeat the power of an evil spirit first and foremost with repentance. This is our part and then the door is open for God to do His part. Always repent before you renounce. !Satan only has as much power as we give him through our sinning.

Practical ways to walk in repentance

Repentance/Freedom over Sin Get Real, Get Educated, Get Free!

·Get real – Call the sin with the same word the Bible uses. Bring the sin out of the darkness (where it is often hidden amongst guilt and shame in your heart) into the light. Confess it to another person.

·Get educated – You can’t repent of sin you do not understand. Sin is made up of many different thoughts, actions and attitudes. Reflect, journal and listen to God about your sin. This takes time and requires a renewal of your thoughts.

·Get free – Daily put on the opposite trait of your confessed sin and commit to walking in rapid repentance. Seek accountability. Name your specific sin with the same words that the Bible uses ______

1. Recognize the character of God that is the opposite of the sin that you are confessing. Praise God’s character. Psalm 9:10 (linger here if you don’t really understand how your sin directly stands in opposition to the character of God)

2. Repent of your sin. (Vertical) Confess known sin and tell God that you desire to turn from the sin and turn towards Him. Humble yourself before Him and ask Him to forgive you and cleanse you from your sin. James 4:6-10

22 3. Renounce your sin. (Horizontal) (Disown, reject or cut off) Speaking aloud, tell the spiritual world what you are doing. You are turning from the bondage, breaking any agreements or connections with it and with the demonic spirit behind it, removing the place of influence in your soul and declaring that you will have nothing more to do with it. Since all sin begins in the mind, take time to allow God to begin to reveal to you some of the lies you have believed related to your sin. Renounce the lie, break the agreement that you have been living in and replace it with the truth that is found in God’s Word. James 4:7, Proverbs 28:13, Romans 12:2 (linger here if you need to understand more fully how your thought process leads you to act out sinful behaviors – as you go through your day write down wrong thinking that assaults you when you are being tempted)

4. Receive God’s forgiveness. 1 John 1:9 (linger here if you deal with condemnation)

5. Release the Holy Spirit to work the opposite of your sin into your life. Continue to seek God for clarity and understanding on why you struggle with this particular sin. Ask Him to reveal to you the root source of the sin. Put on the attitude of the Spirit daily. Galatians 5:24-25

6. Rejoice in faith for who God is and who you are in Him! You are perfect and righteous in God’s sight and you are in the process of being made holy.

Develop a Godly Repentance Strategy

Since the Holy Spirit fills every part that is yielded to Him it is important that we establish the habit of daily surrender and develop godly habits related to the conviction of sin and the confession of sin. It is so easy for us just to ignore the fact that God wants to make us holy. It is so easy for us to rationalize our sin when convicted or to become deceived into thinking that we are always going to be controlled by a certain sin. Developing a godly repentance strategy helps us maintain a current clean heart and helps us deal with our pride by committing ourselves to making tough humble choices in times of conviction. Repentance is a blessing for us, a gift to us, and is God’s tool of grace.

Take some time to work through the worksheet and then look over the sample sheet. Let God develop for you His plan of repentance so that you develop a pure heart and a clean conscience. Share your plan with a friend who can help you stay accountable to it.

1. How do I desire to allow God to develop in me, godly habits related to the conviction of sin?

2. How do I desire to allow God to develop in me, godly habits related to the confession of sin and repentance?

! If God reveals a sin to me while I am waiting upon Him in my quiet time, I will...

! If I sin against another person I will...

! If I am caught in a habitual sin, I will...

! If I am tormented by a sin that is playing itself out in my thoughts, I will… \

! If I am listening to the Word of God being proclaimed and the call is given to repent in a particular way, I ask the Holy Spirit to convict me of any un- confessed sin. Then I will… 23 ! If I am being defeated in a trial that I am going through, I will…

Scriptures to draw from: Psalm 32, Proverbs 28:13,14; Matthew 3:2; 6:14-15; 18:18-20; 2 Chronicles 7:14; 2 Timothy 2:19, 22; 1 John 1:9; Luke 11:36; John 3:31; Acts 3:19-20; Romans 3:22-26; Philippians 2:5-11; 2 Corinthians 10:3-5; Ephesians 6:10-19; James 4:1-10, 17; 5:16; Romans 6

Radical repentance leads to radical freedom - Sample worksheet Developing a godly repentance strategy 1. Develop godly habits related to the conviction of sin.

" I am committed to becoming a person of praise so that I love the character of God more and more and I hate sin more and more. I see my sin in light of who God is and I hate all sin. " I spend time daily waiting upon the Holy Spirit to reveal to me my sin. " I regularly pray for an increased sensitivity to the conviction of the Holy Spirit. " Every time I hear the Word of God taught or preached, I am listening for the conviction of the Holy Spirit and I am ready to respond humbly to the voice of the Holy Spirit. " I am cultivating a continual awareness to the voice of the Holy Spirit in my life and I respond to it promptly. I recognize within my spirit when I am quenching the Spirit and I will stop doing it. " I have given the Holy Spirit permission to convict me of sin no matter where I am or what I am doing. I am constantly seeking His guidance.

2. Develop godly habits related to the confession of sin and repentance.

" If God reveals a sin to me while I am waiting upon Him in my quiet time, I ... recognize who God is in light of my sin, I repent, I renounce my sin, I accept His forgiveness and I ask the Holy Spirit to fill me with the opposite characteristic. I do this all out loud since repentance is also an act of spiritual warfare. " If I sin against another person I ... do the above and then I ask the person that I have sinned against to forgive me as well. I say, “I have ______, and that was wrong, would you please forgive me?” " If I am caught in a habitual sin, I ... continue to confess my sin as outlined above and I don’t give in to defeat or begin to accept my sin as a weakness that I am doomed to live with. I ask God to show me the devastation of my sin and lead me into a season of repentance. I pray, “Lord change me. I confess my sin to a friend and seek accountability. I ask God to make me “sin smart” and to reveal to me the root of my sin so I can understand the lying thoughts related to it. I renounce the lying thoughts and intentionally put on God’s thoughts until my thinking is renewed. " If I am tormented by a sin that is playing itself out in my thoughts I ... bring my sin into the light and engage in vocal spiritual warfare. I resist the thoughts and renew my mind by speaking out loud God’s truth. I confess my temptation to a friend and receive prayer and accountability. " If I am listening to the Word of God being proclaimed and the call is given to repent in a particular way, I ask the Holy Spirit to convict me of any un-confessed sin. Then I ... respond like the Pastor has requested. I stand against my prideful, independent, individualistic nature by humbling myself before my Church family and go and receive prayer from a fellow believer. I purpose to learn and listen to God in community and respond to His convictions in community. " If I am being defeated in a trial that I am going through, I ... constantly ask God to search me for hidden sins and iniquities(heart sins), especially the sins of pride, unbelief and fear. I journal through my trial to try to get God’s perspective. I ask God for understanding, insight, discernment and wisdom. I seek godly counsel, and I don’t settle for defeat. I don’t rationalize my sin or pray for an easy way out.

4. Faith: imagine it within →believe it because you know God’s word and character →speak it out, walk it out and practice it continually.

!Faith believes in who God is and in what He has said. It requires deliberate action. !Genuine faith will always result in obedience. An obedient lifestyle is always effective in hindering the enemies work 24 !Living faith produces results within the spiritual realm – living faith says “God has given me an opportunity to share my faith with my friend right now, so I begin to share the love of Jesus with my friend.” Satan is instantly defeated. Preaching the Gospel places light in the midst of darkness. !Exercised faith defeats the spirit of “unbelief” - one of Satan’s major Kingpins. !Walking in faith means that I am looking for the seeds of worry and fear in my life and putting them to death casting all my cares on Jesus. !When making a decision I ask myself and God, “How is my decision influenced by unbelief and fear?” !Faith is based on the quickening of the Word to us at a particular time; and on the character of God. We have faith in God – not in an outcome or a specific change in our circumstances. !The truth of the Word – applied, prayed forth and embraced brings victory. Faith comes as we learn the scriptures, believe them in our hearts with our attitudes and emotions and boldly speak them out through our lips. !The scripture is alive and full of power, power that is as sharp as a sword and cuts the enemy to pieces. It disarms him, reinforces his defeat, exposes his schemes, and casts him away. !Scriptural prayer resists the enemy. We are aware of the attack that is coming against us so we use the living word to stand against the lies and proclaim victory. !The act of giving in faith defeats the spirits of greed and deception (Malachi 3:10-11). Faith expressed through obedience in giving God back 10% of all He gives us, hinders Satan from robbing us of even more than 10%. Staying out of debt, by not buying things God has not provided for, defeats the spirit of covetousness. Giving generously of the 90% that we are called to steward, through offerings, frustrates Satan’s attempts to make us selfish. Stewarding our money well enables us to fund the great commission, provide for the poor and create a margin for incidentals so we don’t get stressed, which all defeat of the enemy. !The act of serving in faith defeats the spirits of stealing, cheating and destruction (John 10:10). !The act of fasting weakens the demonic. !Faith in action is what enforces Satan’s defeat and defuses his influence in our lives.

!So I can boldly proclaim:

"I believe that I am a new creation so I praise God for being who He is making me. "I believe that God is my provider so I am faithful to return the tithe and be a generous giver. "I believe that God made the marriage covenant so I will remain faithful, no matter what. "I believe that God is in control of my whole life so I praise Him in everything that comes my way. "I believe that the Holy Spirit fills me up with power so I respond in radical obedience to His promptings.

Practical ways to see faith grow in my personal life

Read, study and meditate on the Bible daily. Develop my ability to hear the voice of God. When I have to make a decision I ask myself and God, “How is my decision influenced by my unbelief and fear?” Become a personal worshipper. Proclaim the Word of God boldly. Become a person of prayer (commit to humble yourself and learn to pray in community). Share my faith with the lost as the Lord gives me opportunities Exercise the gifts of the Spirit – especially the gift of prophesy - minister the grace of God to the Church. Step out in radical obedience and begin to serve the body of Jesus. Isaiah 58 25 Test God with my finances. Be obedient to bringing the “whole tithes” into God’s storehouse and steward well and be generous with the remaining 90%.

Practical ways that we can help MVCC become a great house of faith

Proclaim God’s promises over His Church. Desire the special abilities the Spirit gives, especially the gift of prophesy, using it within corporate prayer settings or at other times. (1 Corinthians 14:1) Allow the Holy Spirit to develop His gifts in me so I can be used by God to faithfully build up His Church. Intentionally work at seeing the ministry that I am involved in become prayer saturated. Step out in faith and take risks during corporate prayer. Be faithful with the tithe and with generous gifts. God uses money to teach us true faith and test our faith at the most basic level. (Luke 16:10-13, 2 Corinthians 13:5,6) Be willing to fail publicly as you speak forth the impressions of the Lord. Become an uninhibited corporate worshipper. Go into the neighborhoods and on to the mission field as opportunities come up. Join my Church body in whatever they are doing to reach the lost - Food and clothing distribution, prayer walking, Melody Park, outreach events ... Pray and mobilize the Church for city wide prayer. Fill the prayer room with 24/7 prayer – 365 days of the year. Provide a thick, effective prayer covering over each Pastor.

God says that the first place that He tests our faith is in the area of finances. As we learn faith around money then the God will trust us with true riches “peoples heart”(Luke 16:9-13). The following prayer helps us develop financial faith.

God’s Plan for Living in Financial Freedom

Praise: I praise God daily for being my Provider and my Deliverer. I make my finances a matter of submission and prayer. I praise God for where I find myself today, knowing He will use my situation to bring glory to Himself.

Tithe: I joyfully return to the Lord, through my Church, 10% of my gross income.

Stewardship: I look at the 90% of my income as the Lords. I purpose to steward the resources He has entrusted to me under His direction.

Debt Free: I desire to live a debt-free life and not purchase things that I do not have the money to pay for and that the Lord has not provided for me. If in debt, I will develop a working plan to get out of debt as soon as possible. I will place myself in a godly accountability relationship to see this happen quickly.

Generosity: In addition to my tithe, I actively pursue a plan to give towards: the poor, marginalized, missions, people in need, special offerings ... as the Lord directs.

Margin: I will budget to spend less then I make each month, so that I will have a margin for incidentals.

(If I have previously lived in disobedience to God’s financial principles I start with repentance. I confess my sin to the Lord and ask Him to empower me to turn from a life of financial disobedience to a life of obedience. I renounce the lies that have directed my finances and declare and practice the truths I find in God’s Word.) “For God loves a person who gives cheerfully. And God will generously provide all you need. Then you will always have everything you need and plenty left over to share with others.” 2 Corinthians 9:8

26 5. Intercession: Is prayer on behalf of another

!In the battle between the kingdom of darkness and the kingdom of light are two personalities: The intercessor and the accuser. Hebrews 7:25 describes Jesus as the intercessor. !Jesus’ lifestyle is to intercede for us. !Revelation 12:10 describes Satan as the accuser of brothers, who accuses them before our God day and night. Satan’s lifestyle is accusation against believers. !Accusation comes easily to us. We don’t have to decide to be critical; it is not hard for us to see people’s faults that warrant our criticism. It is very much a part of our sinful nature. !We must realize that accusation is not our job – it is what Satan does. We are to follow the example of Jesus and intercede rather than think it is our calling to criticize. When a critical spirit is rampant in the church – the church has been deceived by Satan in thinking that if someone does something wrong then it is okay to criticize them. This is especially true if it is a spiritual leader. !Satan’s plan is to destroy Christian leaders. He knows that if he strikes down the leader the sheep scatter. Scattered sheep cannot accomplish anything significant in the world. Many Christians allow Satan to use them to achieve his aim of discrediting and discouraging Christian leaders. It seems to be a part of secular culture and has become a part of church culture. If someone fails or does something we don’t like – we criticize them. What if Jesus did that to us? !Instead, Jesus is interceding for us when we fail and wants to redeem us and grow us through our failure. We need to commit to do the same with others. !If you find yourself critical around a certain person – repent, humble yourself (usually involves repentance to another person that you talked to) and begin to diligently pray for the person you criticized. !1 Timothy 2:2 tells us to pray for those in authority over us. If we are not praying for our Pastors we will find ourselves standing in judgment over them. God is not calling us to look for their faults, but to pray for their effectiveness. This is the way to defeat Satan in the life of our Church. !A prayed for shepherd is a loved, respected and protected leader who can lead the flock into great things for God’s kingdom, faults and all. !Intercession defeats the accuser, so when Satan tempts you to accuse – wise up and see it as an opportunity to intercede. This truth alone would transform the Church. !Intercession is engaging in actual battle. We pray with authority when we intercede in the power of the Holy Spirit. We have authority to take from the enemy everything he is holding back. !The chief way of taking is by prayer and by whatever action prayer leads us to. !Intercession often calls for fasting to accompany it. Isaiah 58:6 - Jesus fasted for 40 days and then defeated Satan in a battle without a struggle. !America belongs to God. Satan has staged only a temporary invasion. Intercessors hold the power and authority to claim back what rightfully belongs to God, the control of our Nation and its many lost souls. !Our prayer does not save the sinner, but somehow it serves to prepare his heart for the moment word reaches him of Christ’s love. People come to Christ as a result of intercession.

Practical ways to become an Intercessor

Ask the Holy Spirit for His plan to keep you persistent in praying for others – then just do it! Join a corporate prayer meeting (all corporate prayer meetings are designed to pray for others) Use your freedom in Christ to discipline your body and establish accountability in your prayer life. Ask God to develop in you a real heart of love for people. We tend to pray for those we love.

27 6. Warfare prayer: Using our God given authority to enforce the defeat of Satan

!We must be alert to the spiritual realm and the devil’s schemes and then not be afraid to speak and act against them. !Warfare prayer needs to be cultivated both in our individual lives and in our Church. !We have been commanded in the scriptures to preach the Gospel and to cast out demons. !We need to cast out evil spirits and crucify the flesh. Deliverance should always be linked to repentance and healing. After demons are cast out, the person needs to be healed and encouraged to walk in godliness and be build up through the Word. !We are to directly rebuke/renounce the enemy. (James 4:7) We should aggressively deal with the enemy as Jesus did in the wilderness - verbally opposing the devil and using the Word of God to counter his attacks. !We are to bind the strong man (the predominating demonic influence in any situation) and eliminate that influence. !We also need to be alert to what is happening around the world and battle for other Nations in the heavenly realm. !Just as all prayer needs to be directed and influenced by the Holy Spirit, warfare prayer is the same. It is not a special format of words rather it needs to come from the spontaneous thoughts of the Holy Spirit. !We rely on the spontaneous words, impressions and visions of the Holy Spirit to show us how to battle for people and situations in our immediate circles and across the oceans. !The Holy Spirit most often draws from the living words that we have hidden in our hearts. !We need to be familiar and secure in using the biblical words and ideas related to warfare praying.

In warfare prayer under the direction of the Holy Spirit we are:

A . Binding and loosing / Opening and locking “And I will give you the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven. Whatever you forbid on earth will be forbidden in heaven, and whatever you permit on earth will be permitted in heaven.” (Matthew 16:19) Through the cross we have been given back the keys of authority and power, which were lost to man when Adam sinned. We, who are in Christ, have been given complete authority and power over all sin and the creatures of the unseen world. Ephesians 1:19-23, 3:10-13 We cut off the enemy from the object of our prayer (binding –locking). We bind the demonic forces from working and influencing. We pray down the Kingdom (Christ’s rule and desires) on the object (loosing – opening). We loose conviction, grace, love, revelation, unity, truth…. We bind condemnation, judgment, hatred, deception, rebellion, lies… We can also bind ourselves to God and loose the garments of sin.

B. Commanding evil spirits to leave - Examples of renouncing evil spirits

Before a ministry time “If there are any influences of Satan and the unseen powers of darkness, I bind and forbid you from affecting us now and from interfering with God’s purposes. I command all your lies to come into the light and become subject to God’s truth. You must be stripped away from and release every part of _____ mind. You must be stripped of all your schemes, plans, agendas, and orders, and lay these at the feet of the Lord Jesus now. In Jesus’ Name I command

28 you to go where Jesus tells you and to be subject to His will. I claim the fulfillment of God’s purpose here and in the life of ______.”

End of ministry session “In the name of Jesus, I seal all that Jesus has done here today and forbid the enemy from robbing ______of the work of freedom that was just been accomplished.” Jesus if there are areas that have yet to be fully resolved, I ask that You would care for them and surround _____ with Your loving presence and shield her/him with Your power.

For evil influences to come into the light when they are presently hidden “If there is any evil influence opposed to Christ that is affecting or keeping _____ from his/her freedom and healing in Jesus’ Name, I command you to come into the Light of Christ to be revealed to ____ mind. In Christ’s Name, I restrain you and suspend your influence, and release ______to know the Truth that leads to freedom in Jesus’ Name.” (person will then speak forth what they hear or see - you then follow up on what is revealed)

To cast out an evil spirit “In Jesus’ Name, I command all influences of evil to be bound, I renounce any demonic powers that might be at work in ___ life. I cancel your effects and activities and send you to the feet of Jesus for judgement. Be gone in Jesus’ Name.”

To break ungodly covenant relationship - (have person repeat this after you) “In the Name of Jesus, I now renounce and break the ungodly soul tie formed between myself and ______as a result of my sin of ______. I also renounce and cancel the vow that ______has been spoken. I speak to the forces of darkness, the spirits of ______that have oppressed me through my sin and I break your power and authority over me in the name and by the blood of my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Your plans have been cancelled and your influence over my life have been broken! Leave now in Jesus Name!”

To break off spirits that have energized generational sin - (have person repeat this after you) “In the name of Jesus, and by the power of His blood, I now renounce, break and sever all cords of iniquity and generational sins and curses I have inherited from my parents, grandparents and all other ancestors and break and sever all unholy soul ties formed between myself and my parents, grandparents and all other ancestors.

In the name of Jesus, I now loose myself and my future generations from any bondages passed down to me from my ancestors. I claim the truth in faith: that Jesus Christ, on the cross, took on Himself every curse that could ever come against me and my family. In the name of Jesus Christ, I now command that every curse associated in any way with these generational sins must now be broken, destroyed, and rendered powerless, null, and void. I command any evil spirits which have taken advantage of these cords of iniquity, generational curses and unholy soul ties to leave me now in the name of Jesus. I send you to the feet of Jesus. You will go bound. You will not touch or harm anyone or anything on the way. He will deal with you as He sees fit. You will never come back, you will never send anything in your place!”

To renounce a curse that has been spoken “I break every word that has been spoken against me which is not in accordance with the will and plans or purposes of God in my life. God has called me to (list God’s desires for you). Therefore I render those words of ______that have been spoken over my life, powerless. I renounce the forces of darkness that have oppressed me and I break every manipulating force released against me in the name of my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.”

Canceling environmental influences of evil “If there are any influences of evil and the unseen powers of darkness at work in this situation, then in the Name of 29 the Lord Jesus Christ, I command all your activity to stop right now. I cut you off from your source and command you to leave right now. I cancel every effect of your presence and influence and send you to the feet of Christ for judgment, Leave now, in Jesus’ name.”

Calling for people to come to Church on Sundays “It is written, ‘The Lord really isn’t slow about His promise, as some people think. No, He is being patient for your sake. He does not want anyone to be destroyed, but wants everyone to repent.’” 2 Peter 3:9 “So we say to you, powers and principalities of the (N, S, E, W). Release the sons and daughters of God this morning that you are holding captive. North you have people God wills to become part of Mountain View Community Church. People that God wants here at 3600 N Fowler today. We command you right now, in the name of Jesus Christ, to release every person who God has ordained to be saved, planted, strengthened and established in the body of Mountain View Church. We loose your power over them in Jesus’ Name”. “God we ask for every person that You have ordained to be saved, planted, strengthened and established in the body of Mountain View. God, in Jesus’ name we ask you to dispatch angels to minister to these heirs of salvation. Call them to salvation or to rededication this morning. Place within them a longing for intimacy with Jesus. Awaken their desire to find Your purpose and meaning in life. Guard and protect them as they make their way here. When they get here, we ask that they would sense You and Your great love for them. Bring people around them that will make them feel welcomed and loved. When the call of salvation happens, rise up within them and strengthen their spirits so they can respond in obedience to Your calling. After they have accepted You as Lord, establish them firmly in your body...”

Preparing the environment before the Church gathers Lord Jesus, we worship you and declare that You alone are Lord of MVCC. We invite Your presence and assert Your righteous dominion over the body of Christ, MVCC.” “IF there are any influences of Satan and the unseen powers of darkness we bind and forbid them from affecting anyone and from interfering with God’s purpose. In Jesus’ name, we command you to go where Jesus tells you and to be subject to His will.” “Lord Jesus, we invite Your Holy Presence; be glorified; let Your kingdom come and Your will be done here right now. We claim the fulfillment of God’s purpose now and in the lives of those gathering here today. We claim the peace, protection and unity that You promise and ask You to cleanse our Body and fill this place with Your manifest presence. Shine Your light on what needs to be exposed and resolved so we can come to You with repentant hearts and know and do Your will. Let Your will be done in our Body and let Your Kingdom come to us today as we meet together.

Come Holy Spirit and empower us to follow everyone of Your commands and desires for us. Grant us great boldness so that we will all be faithful to make Your Gospel known to everyone we meet. Strengthen our faith so that we will be faithful to everyone of Your financial commands. We desire to be obedient and generous with all that You have entrusted us with and to fully fund every assignment You have called this body too. Spirit of intercession come and fall upon us so that we will join You in the joy of prayer. We receive from You today every resource we need for life and godliness so that Your Kingdom is advanced through Mountain View. In Christ Jesus’ Name we pray, AMEN!”

C. Corporate authoritative rebuke against evil

After receiving God’s discernment (vertical), reflect on the authority issue. If you/we don’t have the freedom of choice over this situation, pray out and petition God for His divine intervention and ask Him to battle on our behalf or on behalf of those we are praying for.

30 If you/we have authority over the demonic attack because we as a group or as individuals desire to choose to stand against it, then speak forth a direct rebuke. Before you do this let the group know what you have discerned and that you now want to rebuke the enemies of Christ related to this specific situation.

Encourage the group to commune with God related to the area of conflict- recount past victories in Christ. Popcorn praise!

Then tell everyone “eyes open” – initiate authoritative rebuke.

7. Singing: Words of adoration combined with a melody from the heart, leads to praise in its most beautiful form.

!Giving “song offerings” to the Lord during prayer. !When we sing our praises and declare the truth the devil flees. !The weapon of song was used in 2 Chronicles 20 when Israel was led into battle by the Lord. He positioned the singers out in front – to lead the charge. !When they began to sing and praise, the Lord’s power was released into the situation and the enemies began to destroy themselves. The victory began and ended with musical worship.

!The ministry of song when properly used in the devotional habit is a weapon that always leads to blessing.

Practical ways to use song as a weapon

In your devotional hour ask the Holy Spirit to create “new” melodies within your heart.

Focus your songs on these themes

"Songs of praise (Acts 16; Psalm 135:3) "Songs of power and mercy (Psalm 59:16) – shout or sing loudly "Songs of thanksgiving (Psalm 147:7) "Songs of God’s name (Psalm 69:30) "Songs of God’s Word (Psalm 119:54; James. 5:13) "Songs of my heart – new songs (Psalm 144:9)

I cry “Lord, teach me to sing!” And then allow myself to learn by doing.

When facing a giant – I sing against it by releasing a melody of faith-filled words, a victory chant, a rap …

______

8. Unity: the oneness that the Father has with the Son and the Spirit

! Christ’s prayer for the Church, “I’m not asking you to take them out of the world, but to keep them safe from the evil one.” (John. 17:15) ! Unity is a powerful means of warfare and is one of the biggest factors in the unseen realm. (Matthew 18:19) It causes God’s kingdom to come to earth. ! God does not visit a divided Church - Revival only comes in unity. ! The devil hates unity. The Church divided gives the enemy permission to devour the sheep. 31 ! We must stand, live and fight against division at all costs. ! We must humble ourselves, make things right, forgive people, go the extra mile and allow love to cover over a multitude of sins. If we work for unity, we will keep the door shut to the enemy. ! A unified Church flourishes under the power of the Holy Spirit – a divided Church is a playground for the devil. ! Unity means being proactive with the spirit of offense. ! Christ prayed that Mountain View would be a Church that functions with the same level/standard of unity that the Father, Son and Holy Spirit share. (John 17) ! Unity is not instant but needs to be sown, cultivated and nurtured. ! When we are working for unity we DON’T QUIT. We don’t drop out of leadership, we don’t stop serving the body of Christ, we don’t divorce our spouse, we don’t leave the Church, we don’t give in to hurt, discouragement and quit. Unity means that we preserve to the end! ! We all need to be spiritually aware of the devil’s strategies for us personally and for the Church as it relates to disunity. ! We pray for the wolves in sheep’s clothing to be exposed, repent or leave. We don’t hold on to people that God might be directing out of the Church. ! We are very familiar with the strategies of the devil for the Church.

Practical Ways for me to personally walk in unity

keep no record of wrongs quickly forgive anyone who offends me think the best of others - don’t place negative intentions on others practice random acts of kindness to those that you struggle to love unconditionally pray for your enemies serve your family, serve your Church family, serve in the market place ______

Practical Ways of walk in unity with my Church Family

Faithfully come to Church. We can’t be unified to a Body that we are not committed to. (Hebrews 10:25) Attitude of “what can I do for my Body” not “what can the Church do for me”. (Romans 12:11) Serve along side others (don’t be an independent) (1 Peter 3:8) Be gracious to others who do things differently then you like to do them (Romans 12:10) Pray for your Pastors, leaders and fellow brothers and sisters Bless and esteem other life giving Churches within the city (1 Peter 3:8-12) Commit to never leaving your Church family unless the Lord directs you too and with the blessing of your Pastors. (Romans 13:1-3) Your heart will follow your money. Put your finances into the Church and your heart will follow. (Matthew 6:21) Put aside your independence and when the Church is doing something together be a vibrant part of it (ex.response time at the end of each service, live the mission weekends, community outreach events, corporate worship and prayer, special offering, financial campaigns, Church work days...) GET INVOLVED WITH YOUR ACTIONS, THOUGHTS AND PASSIONS) ______

The devil spends more time in Church than many Christians do. He does that because the Church is a real threat. We come to worship, pray, teach and encourage each other to live and proclaim the kingdom of God. – Which 32 proclaims Satan’s defeat. The Church, collectively, is the hope of the world and Jesus said that “The gates of hell will not prevail against the church.”

One major challenge that we all face is apathy or indifference – when it really gets down to it, we just don’t care enough to do something. We live in a gray society which feels normal and comfortable. We are not aware of Satan’s schemes and so we are unprotected from them.

Four primary ways that the Devil desires to destroy the Church (“The devil goes to church” David Butts) Doubt:

! The weapon Satan used against Jesus in the wilderness. ! We doubt the validity of the bible and fall into selective obedience – “You are angry with your wife, she deserves it… God will still answer your prayers, don’t worry.” ! We doubt the power of the Word – we fail to appropriate it for ourselves – “the promise of provision works for others but look, it hasn’t worked for me.” ! We doubt the nature of God - “How can a loving God allow this…?” ! We doubt our identity in Christ – “I am not accepted by God, look what I just did.”

When we nurture and embrace doubt in our individual lives we come into the collective body with faithlessness, a critical spirit, pessimism, joylessness, paranoia when faith-filled vision is set, death- producing words, curses…”

Deception:

! Jesus described Satan as a liar. The father of lies. When we lie or embrace a lie we are identifying ourselves with Satan. We are putting on the garments of the devil. ! Satan delights in twisting the truth, confusing people and leading them into error. ! 2 Timothy 3:7 tells us that people within the Church are “always learning but never able to acknowledge the truth. We are not short on bible studies and sermons, rather we are short on obedience. ! Our disobedience to the Lord results in us opening the gate of our minds to Satan and says “Come on in and talk with me, I like your message rather than God’s. Yours is so much more appealing to my flesh. It makes me feel safe and in control. Yes, I know that I should tithe, be generous to the poor and those in need, get and stay out of debt and live frugally so I have money left over at the end of the month. But I am different, I am the exception. God doesn’t want me to give what I don’t have. I am broke. After all, if He is serious about this He wouldn’t make it so hard for me and have me struggle so much to make ends meet.” (Realistically we doubt God’s ability to provide if we step out and are faithful. We have been deceived into living a lie and robbed God of the opportunity to bless us.) ! Deception within the body causes error to be proclaimed through words and actions. When we embrace deception on any level we embrace defeat and the Church is rendered powerless. ! If there is no visible power in the Church – then we need to ask ourselves, “Where have we been deceived?”

Discouragement:

! A lifestyle of doubt and deception leads us to discouragement and depression. We should not be surprised at the result of this progression. It is a natural sequence to Satan’s plan to destroy our lives. ! Sin always results in death – hopelessness, defeat and destruction. It may be immediate it may take years. ! Great men and women of God in the bible had severe bouts with discouragement and depression.

33 ! Elijah was so depressed he wanted to die. God met him and he looked upward and chose to praise and focus on God. He recognized his only hope of deliverance was God – there was no plan B. He sought deliverance so that God would be given more glory. ! David chose repeatedly to be an intentional loud praiser. He poured out his heart to God and then focused upon all the good things God had done in his life. ! It is not natural for a Spirit-filled child of God to walk around discouraged. Discouragement is the enemy’s attempt to sideline us and keep us from carrying out the mission of the Church. ! Discouragement leads to depression which leads us to give up and accept defeat. ! We can counter discouragement by practically using our weapons of warfare. ! Our most effective weapons to counter discouragement are praise, humility, repentance… okay, all of them. ! One of the functions of the church is to encourage one another. (Hebrews 10:25) This passage is focused on encouraging, not attending. Encouragement defeats discouragement. ! We have gone on the offensive as a church by setting up recovery groups, bible studies, prayer meetings, a prayer room, receiving prayer during the service, after the service – all these avenues serve to encourage and build up the Christian. However, we have to be willing to making these opportunities apart of our lives.

Division:

! Ephesians 6 tells us that we are never to fight against flesh and blood. We are never to fight against another believer. ! When we choose to fight our leaders because they aren’t doing what we want, and we are fighting our brothers because they believe differently, and while we are criticizing others for not doing what we think they should be doing or teaching, Satan is running rampant within our Churches. ! If we do not agree with something or someone, can we trust the Holy Spirit to reveal truth to them? ! Our anger should be directed at sin and the devil and not at people. ! Christ’s prophetic prayer in John 17 was all about the church united and how the unity of the church was a testimony to the world of the love of God. ! When conflict comes within the Church we need to ask “What is Satan trying to do?” Not, “What that brother said or did hurt me deeply, I am offended. How can I put that brother in his place and feel good about myself?” ! We settle matters in prayer meetings, not in board meetings. ! Division always has a spiritual issue at its root and the enemy is always involved. ! Division is usually the end result or visible fruit of underlying sin issues. ! Deep beneath the division is usually rebellion and pride. Only heart-felt, heaven-sent prayers from the body of Christ will bring God’s power to bear, rout the devil and deal with the core issues. Target areas of division that are often seen within the Church in North America:Worship style

"Theology of the Holy Spirit "Manifestations of the Holy Spirit "Focus on reaching outward into the community and the world "Christian’s needs not being met "Style of preaching "Race, social-economic status "Leaders not living up to the unrealistic expectations of the Church attendees "Money – tithes, designated giving, fund raising campaigns "Love for the sinner – hating the sin "Submission to Pastors and leaders "Staff relationships 34 XIII. Where do we go from here?

“Spiritual warfare is not a fragment of Christianity, It is the whole of the Christian experience. It encompasses everything we do. To be a Christian is to be a spiritual warrior. To be a spiritual warrior is to walk consistently and victoriously through life, with Christ at our side.” Dean Sherman

Doubt, deception, discouragement and division are not natural for the Church. They are tactics of Satan to destroy us. Just as God has plans to bless us and multiply us through conversion growth and bring Himself glory through us, Satan also has a plan. He wants to grow doubt and unbelief in our hearts. He wants to deceive us, (mainly through rationalization). He wants us to be discouraged and give up and divide us through people offending us. Knowing this, what are you going to do about it today?

OUR GREATEST WEAPON IN THE SPIRITUAL BATTLE THAT WE FACE IS OBEDIENCE TO GOD

We can be strong, we can be humble, we can be holy ... When the Bible says we can or should do something, we can. With God all things are possible when we are dependent on Him to empower us. If we are developing an intimate conversational relationship with God, we will know deep within us who God is and who we are as His child so we become strong. When we wash ourselves consistently with Word by mediating on it and allowing it to become apart of our souls as we act on it, we become strong. When we submit to and serve one another in love and become interconnected and known in a local Church, we will be in top spiritual form to combat anything that comes against us. We will be victorious. There is no spirit that can come against us that is greater than the Spirit of Christ in us. (1 Jn.4:4)

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