Sermon Tone Analysis

Chapter 12 Reclaiming followers Of Jezebel

Reclaiming followers Of Jezebel

There Seemed to Be Nothing to do but return to what he knew-fishing.

For three years Peter had ministered beside Jesus.

He had been included in his inner circle of disciples and been on the Mount of Transfiguration.

In the End, however, Peter denied his Lord when it counted the most.

Even though Peter was thrilled to see Jesus after the resurrection, he felt a sense of shame because of his denial.

As Peter began to return to his old way of life, Jesus knew that Peter needed encouragement to embrace his calling.

After breakfast by the seashore, Jesus asked Peter a series of questions designed to mend his broken spirit and restore him in the Church.

John 21L15-17

Similarly, Individuals who have been truly freed of a Jezebel spirit need to be encouraged and restored.

They will need to be reminded that if we are faithful to confess our sins, the Lord is faithful to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from the effects of unrighteousness.

Similarly, Individuals who have been truly freed of a Jezebel spirit need to be encouraged and restored.

They will need to be reminded that if we are faithful to confess our sins, the Lord is faithful to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from the effects of unrighteousness.

Besides, what sin could be worse than Peter’s three denials of Jesus at the most crucial moment in Jesus’ life?

Although He felt the sting of the betrayal from the one of his closest friends, Jesus forgave and restored Peter.

1

Tearing Down Strong Holds

Ministry to a Jezebelite’s followers will involve tearing down mental strongholds.

In His book, Healing of Nations, John Sandford defines a mental stronghold as a practiced way of thinking that has become ingrained and automatic.

It has a life and will of its own.

Strongholds are areas of the mind in which are held captive and our perceptions are completely distorted.

Perception: • a way of regarding, understanding, or interpreting something, the ability to see, hear, or become aware of something through the senses

For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he.

() Sin has its origin in the thought life.

Jesus said, ... From within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornication, murders, thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness: All these evil things come from within, and defile the man.

() It is in the thought life that sin is conceived.

When Peter said, gird up the loins of your mind, he is telling us to gather up the loose ends of our thought life lest it trip us up.

Paul put it this way, Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ.

() This is military language.

The term casting down speaks of a struggle to defeat the enemy.

If you are going to defeat sin there must be an all out war launched against your thought life.

You must fight like a soldier, to bring your imaginations under control.

Paul says, bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ.

what are some thoughts you need to bring under control

Expository Pulpit Series - Expository Pulpit Series – First Peter: A Holy Walk in a Hostile World.

Strongholds can distort our perception of actual situations.

In a similar way, we can interpret what happens through lenses that are tainted and distorted by our wounds..

As you walk-out your healing, you will need to bravely take a ruthless, personal assessment.

It may be a shock to face reality and abandon your delusions.

If we are to open the door to self discovery and self-disclosure, we will need Gods grace..

The Following areas may have allowed the enemy easy access to our lives and fueled the drive to follow someone with a jezebel spirit.

1.

An Emotional Dependency Toward Others :

People who follow someone with a Jezebel spirit tend to be emotionally dependent.

They have a great inner drive to be connected with someone or have a special relationship with a particular person in order to heal their wounded self-esteem.

God has placed deep within every human spirit a heart cry.

He designed us to be relational people with a longing for fellowship.

But unless we allow our heavenly father to fill that core need, our identity will become like that of an orphan.

we drift along, desperately looking to others to meet our needs and adopt us..

Our Misplaced longings can only find true rest in God the Father..

2. An Attitude Of Fearfulness

Fear usually begins through unholy imagination.

The mental aspect of our soul begins to focus on things that can potentially harm us.

A spirit of fear then takes root in our soul.

Often those who follow someone with a jezebel spirit have a history of enslaving fears of neglect, of rejection, of being punished, of loneliness, and perhaps of missing the will of God.

These fears arise from our past experiences and are projected onto todays circumstances.

A spirit of Fear is a sign of Spiritual enslavement.

It leads someone into being subservient to the control of others.

To begin our healing we must ask God to show us the circumstances that led to opening our soul to fear.

We must through faith cast down what the Bible calls vain imaginations.”

By faith, we need to cleanse ourselves of fear and ask other Christians who are free from fear to stand with us in agreement.

We also need to ask God to fill us with Love.

;18

When Our mind is ruled by our Spirit, we will focus on the virtues that spring forth from the Lord..

3. A fear Of Decision Making

god

God gives us our ability to exercise free will- the freedom to make choices and decisions.

Without a will, we would be like data, the android on Star trek who only did whatever he was told.

By giving us a free will, God empowers us to follow through and complete the decisions we have made.

Therefore, when we yield our will to another person, we have given that one the right to make decisions on our behalf.

We then forfeit our ability to receive insight and revelation directly from God.

In doing so we have made jezebel our idol, who now takes place of God.

To overcome a fear of failure, we will need to change how we think.

We will need to learn how to envision success, not failure.

The healthier we become, the more we will be able to practice good decisions.

4. A Deep Sense Of Shame

Shame is the sense of feeling fundamentally bad, inadequate, defective, unworthy, or not measuring up to standards.

Many need healing from a deep sense of shame.

At some point in our life, all of us feel shame.

But for those who have followed jezebel, shame will be a constant painful memory.

condemnation 1 the expression of very strong disapproval; 2 the action of condemning someone to a punishment; sentencing.

Grace is Contrary to Shame.

While shame brings depression, grace brings hope and light heartedness.

Grace refers to Gods undeserved kindness directed toward us.

It is unearned and unre-payable.

Through God’s grace, we are able to bond with our loving heavenly father who longs to lavish His great love upon us.

As we embrace His Son Jesus, who is the atoning sacrifice for our sins.. ( No Condemnation to those who are innnn Christ)

He calls us His sons and daughters.

When we journey through the dark night of the soul we may be able to hear God whisper to us, I Love and accept you.

1 Cor 5:17

5.

A Fear Of Trusting Again

Whenever we appeal to another person for our spiritual strength, our heart turns away from the Lord.

We have allowed the other person to be our source of Strength..

psalm

is

God calls us to live our faith by trusting him.

Prayer helps to wait on God for his direction instead of acting impulsively in our own self interests.

When we put our trust in God, he enables us to trust the spiritual authority that he has placed in our lives.

1 Peter 2:

1 peter 3

Bonding with God is the basis for rebuilding relationships with others.

The stronger our bond with God, the greater our ability to form healthy relationships with others.