Spiritual Archives

October 2, 2023October 2, 2023

Friendly Fire

¹ After this Jesus went about in Galilee. He would not go about in Judea, because the Jews were seeking to kill Him. ²Now the Jews’ Feast of Booths was at hand. ³So His brothers said to Him, “Leave here and go to Judea, that your disciples also may see the works you are doing. ⁴For no one works in secret if he seeks to be known openly. If you do these things, show yourself to the world.” ⁵For not even His brothers believed in Him. ⁶Jesus said to them, “My time has not yet come, but your time is always here. ⁷The world cannot hate you, but it hates me because I testify about it that its works are evil. ⁸You go up to the feast. I am not going up to this feast, for my time has not yet fully come.” ⁹After saying this, He remained in Galilee. ~ John 7:1-9

Jesus never did anything in order to impress others. He never gave in to peer pressure, even when it came from His own brothers. They didn’t even believe in Him, yet they were trying to give Him advice on His call. This is still true today. There are many people who don’t even believe in your call from God or even in God Himself, but they want to try to tell you how to fulfill that call from God. They sound very sincere when they do it, too, but rarely does the enemy send attacks that look like attacks.

When Eve was tempted in the Garden, the Serpent didn’t come at her with anger and aggression. When Jesus was tempted in the wilderness, Satan didn’t come at Him with anger and aggression. They were both asked questions. It probably didn’t even sound malicious when it was said. It probably sounded like enlightenment. If the enemy wants you to drink poison, he’s not going to label the bottle with a skull and cross bones. No. Instead, he’s going to label it healthy and say how it’ll help you and free you.

The enemy will use anyone he can in order to hinder the saints of God because we are the hands and feet of Jesus while on this earth. It’s us that goes out and makes disciples of all nations. We’re to spread the good news. We’re to keep charge over the earth. We’re to protect it and keep it. We’re supposed to keep evil from taking over the entire earth. So, the Devil uses whoever and whatever he can in order to overcome us.

Dear LORD, please help me to follow You regardless of what others do. Help me to always seek Your approval above all else. Help me to follow Your ways and fulfill the call that You have for my life, regardless of how hard or difficult it may be. Please strengthen me so that I may not fall prey to the attacks of the enemy; in Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.

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Afflict Yourselves

²⁹And it shall be a statute to you forever that in the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, you shall afflict yourselves and shall do no work, either the native or the stranger who sojourns among you. ³⁰For on this day shall atonement be made for you to cleanse you. You shall be clean before the Lord from all your sins. ³¹It is a Sabbath of solemn rest to you, and you shall afflict yourselves; it is a statute forever. ~ Leviticus 16:29-31

Today is one of the most holy days in Judaism, for today is the Day of Atonement. When instituting this day, God told the people to afflict themselves because atonement was to be made for them in order to cleanse them. Now, many people will say this is the Law of Moses, and we’re no longer under the Law, so this doesn’t apply to us. I want to point out to all of you that the Law was a shadow of the good things to come. What does that mean?

No. We are not under the Law of Moses anymore; we are now under the Law of Christ. This is true. But the Day of Atonement has yet to have been fulfilled, and therefore, as Paul afflicted himself regularly so that he might never be overcome by his flesh, how much more should we in a day and age closer to the return of Christ than has ever been before, afflict ourselves? We’re living in the last days. They’re getting things ready for the Temple of God to be rebuilt. They’re trying their best to remove freedom of religion from every corner of the earth. We’re living in the perilous times that Paul warned Timothy of. No. Refusing to afflict your body today isn’t going to remove your name from the Lamb’s Book of Life, but choosing to afflict your body today will strengthen your spirit man. It will help put your flesh into subjection. And it will add to your treasures in heaven.

We’re called, by Paul, to present ourselves as a spiritual sacrifice holy and pleasing to God. How can we do that if our flesh rules our bodies and our spirit man has no room to grow? Therefore, give up something, even if it’s just for a few hours, at least until sundown, that you might have an offering to give to God as we await that day when we are changed in a twinkling of an eye, and our sins are completely removed from us never to cling to us again.

Dear LORD, help me to afflict myself by putting my flesh into submission. Help me to not give into the sins of this world, but instead, help me to overcome through You. You overcame the whole world. You were tempted in every way, just as I am, but You remained without sin. So, dear LORD, please help me to overcome through You. Help me to fast so that I might build up my spirit man within me and crucify my flesh. Help me to be a light in this dark world so that others might see You in me. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.

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Set It On The Altar

¹⁴Hezekiah received the letter from the messengers and read it. Then he went up to the temple of the Lord and spread it out before the Lord. ~ Isaiah 37:14

Hezekiah received a letter from the messengers of the King of Assyria. Assyria had just taken Israel, the Northern Kingdom, and now was threatening Judah, the Southern Kingdom. Not only were they trying to strike fear into the hearts of the people, they went straight to the king of Judah, Hezekiah, and told him through a letter that he might as well surrender because no one could save him. This is how the enemy works. He tries to speak into our lives. He’ll speak fear and intimidation and wait to see if you accept it, giving him a footing into your life.

See, we, the Church, have to allow the enemy into our lives. Why? Because we’ve been redeemed. We’re the blood-bought. We don’t belong to the enemy anymore. Our souls now belong to Christ. Therefore, when the enemy wants to try to take us back or wreak havoc in our lives, he needs our permission. Sometimes, it just takes accepting the fear that he sent our way.

I remember hearing stories of my great-great-grandfather when he was younger. An Obeah Man came to him and told him that he would die in three days, but he didn’t accept it. Instead, he told him, “No. You will die in three days.” Three days later, he got word that that same man had died. People will try to speak all kinds of things over your life: death, failure, fear, addiction, etc., but it’s up to us to accept it. We have to be like Hezekiah, take that word straight to God, and lay it before Him. We can’t just accept everything that others speak over us, but only what God has spoken over us. That we are chosen. That we are His. That we are redeemed. That we may be struck down, but we are never destroyed. That we are more than conquerors through Him. These are what we hold to; everything else we lay on the altar and allow God to deal with as He sees fit.

Dear LORD, please help me not to just accept everything that people speak over me. Help me not to let their words dictate my life. Help me to lay it all down on the altar before You. Teach me to set up a spiritual boundary around my life that the enemy cannot penetrate nor destroy with threats, words, fiery darts, or any weapon. Help me to stand strong on Your Truth and run this race with endurance that You’ve set before me. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.

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Unforgiveness Debt

¹²Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, ¹³bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. ~ Colossians 3:12-13

We are each required to forgive one another without being asked. It says if you have a complaint against another person. In other words, they don’t even need to ask. You just need to forgive. Jesus Himself said that we need to forgive as His Heavenly Father has forgiven us. This isn’t a new revelation from Brother Paul. No, Paul was only echoing what Jesus had already taught.

²⁵And whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone, so that your Father also who is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.
Mark 11:25

From the way it’s translated, it seems to me that God is patiently waiting for us to forgive others so that He can now forgive us. Jesus said forgive so that our Father in heaven may forgive you.

What is hindering our forgiveness? Our lack of forgiveness to others.

Now watch this. Jesus is inferring that unforgiveness is not only a precursor to your own forgiveness, but it seems to be a hindrance to answered prayers.

See what Jesus said?

WHEN YOU STAND PRAYING …

That word stand is a strong word meaning: Continue to be.

In other words, when you continue to be in prayer, not just some 3-minute prayer, but a continuous petition, and nothing is happening, check your forgiveness gauge. The Holy Spirit will bring it to your mind. Why? Because God is not going to answer your prayers if you are harboring unforgiveness in your heart. To whom much is given, much is required.

Dear LORD, please help to forgive those who have wronged me. Help me to let go of the pain and hurt that have gripped my heart. I know that I have been forgiven much, so help me to also forgive much. Help me to never hold someone accountable to their debt when You haven’t held me accountable to mine. As You have canceled my debt on the cross, help me to also cancel their debt on my cross, for I died with You in baptism, and I will rise with You on that Last Day. Thank You, LORD, for Your forgiveness, LORD God. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.

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Seeking Holiness

³ God’s will is for you to be holy, so stay away from all sexual sin. ⁴ Then each of you will control his own body and live in holiness and honor— ⁵ not in lustful passion like the pagans who do not know God and his ways. ⁶ Never harm or cheat a fellow believer in this matter by violating his wife, for the Lord avenges all such sins, as we have solemnly warned you before. ~ 1 Thessalonians 4:3-6^NLT

Paul tells us that God has an overall will for each and every one of us, and it’s not just to believe and be saved. It’s that we change and set off our filthy rags and seek Holiness. How do we do this?

By keeping away from sexual sin. Remember that every other sin is committed outside the body, but the sin of sexual immorality is a sin against the offender’s own body. So, keep away from it.

God wants us to be in control of our own bodies. Therefore, any addiction that you may have, from pornography to alcohol to cigarettes, are to be avoided at all cost if you want your relationship with God to grow and produce fruit.

If you’re diligent to do these things, God will hear you and answer your prayers.

Dear LORD, please give me self-control that I may overcome all sexual immorality in all of its forms and deceit. Teach me Your ways that I might grow in You. Help me to crucify my flesh daily that I might never be a slave to sin again. Teach me how to overcome through You. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen

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Remain Faithful In The Silence

¹⁵Moses turned and went down the mountain with the two tablets of the covenant law in his hands. They were inscribed on both sides, front and back. ¹⁶The tablets were the work of God; the writing was the writing of God, engraved on the tablets. ¹⁷When Joshua heard the noise of the people shouting, he said to Moses, “There is the sound of war in the camp.” ¹⁸Moses replied: “It is not the sound of victory, it is not the sound of defeat; it is the sound of singing that I hear.” ¹⁹When Moses approached the camp and saw the calf and the dancing, his anger burned and he threw the tablets out of his hands, breaking them to pieces at the foot of the mountain. ~ Exodus 32:17-19^NIV

Joshua was chosen to lead God’s people after Moses. Maybe it was because he hadn’t been defiled by the Golden Calf. Maybe it was because he never lost faith and was waiting outside the camp for Moses, while everyone else allowed their own fears to take over and cause them so that they sinned. Joshua seemed to never lose faith in the LORD regardless of how others around him acted and/or reacted.

It’s so easy to fall into the traps and snares of Fear when you’re going through a season of dwelling in the unknown. See, Joshua knew where Moses was. He was on the mountain. Joshua knew what Moses was doing. He was speaking to God, receiving the commands. Joshua even knew what he was supposed to be doing. He was to remain waiting for Moses to come down from the mountain. Nevertheless, he didn’t know how long that would take. He didn’t know the time Moses would return.

If they all knew the time Moses was going to come down the mountain, then they wouldn’t have been so frightened because they had a set time and place as comfort for them. The thing is, God doesn’t always work in the comfort of the known. Sometimes, He only gives you enough that you’re in a place where you have to whole-heartedly without any reservations trust in Him. Many of us are right here. We know that we have to wait, but what do we do while we wait? We pray.

Moses was a type of Christ. He was a deliverer. If we’re in the same position as Joshua, which we all are because we are all awaiting the return of Christ, whose exact date of His return is unknown, what do we do while we wait? We win souls. We preach and teach the Gospel. We stay awake. We cry out, ‘Come, Jesus, come.’ Some of us are waiting for Moses to come down off the mountain in a specific area of our call. It’s a season of waiting for a response that we don’t know when it will come. What do we do? We teach and preach the Gospel. We make disciples of all nations. We seek the face of God. We fulfill the requirements of the call that is plain to us. We pray for the answer to come.

Dear LORD, when You remain silent during a season of our lives, help me to remain at the foot of the mountain. Help me to remain worshipping in Your presence, or at the very least, as close as I can get to Your presence. Help me to not be defeated or be afraid. Help me to not be overwhelmed or overcome by Fear; instead, help me to be perfected in Your perfect love so that Fear has no hold on me. Help me to remain faithful in the silence. Help me to remain faithful regardless of what season I’m in. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.

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The Time of Trouble

²² In the time of his distress he became yet more faithless to the Lord—this same King Ahaz. ²³ For he sacrificed to the gods of Damascus that had defeated him and said, “Because the gods of the kings of Syria helped them, I will sacrifice to them that they may help me.” But they were the ruin of him and of all Israel. ²⁴ And Ahaz gathered together the vessels of the house of God and cut in pieces the vessels of the house of God, and he shut up the doors of the house of the Lord, and he made himself altars in every corner of Jerusalem. ²⁵ In every city of Judah he made high places to make offerings to other gods, provoking to anger the Lord, the God of his fathers. ~ 2 Chronicles 28:22-25

In his deepest time of distress, King Ahaz didn’t seek help from the LORD his God; he sought out the gods of the nations that defeated him. He forgot the LORD who brought his fathers out of the land of Egypt, the house of slavery. When you’re in trouble, who do you go to? Is it the LORD or another avenue?

Who or what we go to in our time of trouble determines who our god is. It determines who we serve. King Ahaz chose the wrong god, and he died in his sin. Never did it say that he repented. Never did it say he was restored. Never did it say he was saved. Instead, it was the ruin of him and all of Israel. Our actions affect more than just us. It affects those around us, just as King Ahaz’s decision affected all of Israel.

Dear LORD, help me to always turn to You in times of trouble and distress. Help me to always seek Your righteous right hand to uphold me. Teach me to never lean on anyone but You. Teach me to have faith in You and trust You with all that’s within me. Help me to be a light in this dark world by letting my light shine before all who I come into contact with. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.

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Refuse To Let Go

²⁴So Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him till daybreak. ²⁵When the man saw that he could not overpower him, he touched the socket of Jacob’s hip so that his hip was wrenched as he wrestled with the man. ²⁶Then the man said, “Let me go, for it is daybreak.” But Jacob replied, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.” ²⁷The man asked him, “What is your name?” “Jacob,” he answered. ²⁸Then the man said, “Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with humans and have overcome.” ²⁹Jacob said, “Please tell me your name.” But he replied, “Why do you ask my name?” Then he blessed him there. ³⁰So Jacob called the place Peniel, saying, “It is because I saw God face to face, and yet my life was spared.” ³¹The sun rose above him as he passed Peniel, and he was limping because of his hip. ³²Therefore to this day the Israelites do not eat the tendon attached to the socket of the hip, because the socket of Jacob’s hip was touched near the tendon. ~ Genesis 32:24-30^NIV

Christians want the blessing but don’t wanna wrestle with God for them. Jacob wrestled all night with God and refused to let Him go until God blessed him. Christians today, myself included, are spiritually lazy. We struggle to read our Bibles once a week, let alone once a day. We can’t even pray for an hour without being distracted or falling asleep. Our spirit man is so weak he can’t fight the flesh. See, if our spirit man is too weak to wrestle with God for our blessing, then we’ll not only fall into temptation, but we’ll bring a curse upon ourselves and miss our blessing.

God doesn’t just give us everything He has in store for us. He expects us to fight for it. We have to prove ourselves worthy servants of Christ, unshakeable and unwilling to give up on the promise and/or blessing. The Promised Land was promised to the people of Israel, but those who refused to fight and instilled fear into the others, they didn’t see it. Only those who had faith. Only those who refused to give up. Only those who have held tightly on to the LORD and refused to let go.

Many of us are there. It’s closing in on midnight. The LORD is telling you to let go. Your eyes are seeing the Nephilim. There’s so much going against you, even your certain things seem to fail, but this is the time you hang on even stronger. This is the time you refuse to let go. You have to force your spirit man to fight. You have to feed him daily. You have to exercise him. You have to refuse to give up.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Refuse To Let Go.

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Strive For Excellence

¹⁰Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall: ¹¹For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. ~ 2 Peter 1:10-11^KJV

We are not called to live a mediocre life. We are called to live a life of excellence. The book of Hebrews tells us that there is a great cloud of witnesses surrounding us; some are cheering us on, some are watching, and others are hoping and praying that we stumble and fall.

So, let us throw off all that hinders and fetters us so that we can run this race with strength and endurance. We have all that we need to live a life of excellence by Jesus’ divine power so that we can be sure of where we are going to spend eternity.

In everything you do, always remember eternity is looming large in front of each one of us, and eternity is a long, long time. And during this long time, there is no second chance. Therefore, do all that you need to do today while on this earth.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Strive For Excellence.

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Seek The Hidden Well

¹⁷God heard the boy crying, and the angel of God called to Hagar from heaven and said to her, “What is the matter, Hagar? Do not be afraid; God has heard the boy crying as he lies there. ¹⁸Lift the boy up and take him by the hand, for I will make him into a great nation.” ¹⁹Then God opened her eyes and she saw a well of water. So she went and filled the skin with water and gave the boy a drink. ~ Genesis 21:17-19^NIV

Sometimes, we give up right before we reach our well of renewal. See, Hagar was at the end of her rope. She was so close to dying of thirst that she put her son under a bush and walked away because she couldn’t bear to watch him die. Then she sat down and cried. God heard the cries of the boy and opened Hagar’s eyes so that she could see the well in front of her.

Many of us are currently going through a dry season. A time of trials, tribulation, and lack. It feels like we can’t go any farther. Like the entire weight of the world is on our shoulders, and we have nothing left in the tank to keep going. That’s when you press in. You don’t wait until you can’t take another step; you cry out to God from the moment those thoughts enter your mind.

You pray, and you fast. You seek God and cry out to Him with all that’s within you. You remind Him of His promises and His call on your life. Then you believe. You have faith that He’ll open your eyes to a well of water to refresh you before it’s too late. You hold to the promises and believe with everything inside you that God is good, and He will never leave you nor forsake you. You quote those Scriptures you have memorized and encourage yourself in the LORD. Because when we cry out to God, and we seek Him with what’s within us, He answers.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Seek The Hidden Well.

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Tag: Spiritual

Friendly Fire

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