Spiritual Warfare, Spiritual Health and Repentance

Mystery of Repentance

Intro:

It’s hard for western peoples/cultures to think in terms of a spirit realm because we are so natural minded. Spiritism is the greatest religion in the world and it involves seeking guidance from spirits. Any missiology just will tell you that this is how people interact with the uncertainty of their lives by seeking spirit solutions.

We are inclined to believe that we are more advanced as a culture than to believe in such superstitious ways however America is distributor of pornography in the world. We have more drug use them anywhere in the world whether illegal or legal! Pharmacopoeia is common in our culture and it is actually sorcery. High risk alcohol rates are increasing and are up by 30% in the past 20 years.

Reason: no mental peace. Addiction is a response to fear, anxiety and stress.

Our lives are existing in 2 realms. The creation is made up of 2 elements, the Heavens and the earth. We currently live in both. If we are not born again, then our spiritual lives are fallen from the high place of communion with God. and we are subject to the realm of the natural heavens and the activity of the second heaven where angels and demons have their activity. The third heaven is also part of creation and exists in creation. (Not as some suppose in a “timeless” realm. God has chosen to enter time with His Creation.)

Spirit realm is real. We must engage in warfare to be whole. The enemies mode of operation is deception. But lest you think deception is just push over, and no match for your discernment. I will remind you of a warning that Jesus gave to the disciples about the coming transition of Israel from law to grace, from Moses to Christ.

INTRO

The New International Version Chapter 24

24 For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect.

Spiritual Warfare: Satan is the god of this world and the whole world lies in the power of the evil one.

My message is not about spiritual warfare in a broad sense but in a limited sense. Important. Maybe of greatest importance in warfare but not discussing broadly.

My message is not about emotional health, though I will speak of an emotional aspect of our lives being impacted by that which is my message.

- Relatable - spiritual warfare in your personal life

TOOLS

My message is not about personal inner healing, though this relates to one of the greatest protections we can have for our soul.

Personal story of challenge to my life since commissioning.

- Take every thought captive

My message is not about personal inner healing, though this relates to one of the greatest protections we can have for our soul.

Spiritual Health: Anxiety- painful or apprehensive uneasiness of mind usually over an impending or anticipated ill

Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology Anxiety

Freedom from anxiety begins with confession that it is not God’s will. In fact, anxiety is a subtle insinuation that God is either unable or disinclined to see to our welfare.

Our protection from the damaging effects of a dislocated imagination is to come into alignment with the truth. That alignment is requiring and “adjustment” for our understanding that must be given place over the thoughts that torment us.

The New International Version Chapter 12

2 Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.

This requires us to sacrifice to God our minds in order that they might be transformed.

The New International Version Chapter 12

I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.

What Paul is actually calling us to is repentance.

The New International Version Chapter 1

The time has come,” he said. “The kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news!”

The Greek word for “repentance” derives from a verb meaning “to radically change one’s thinking.

Our thinking impacts our soul on all levels and so repentance requires a shift, adjustment or change to enable our thinking, emotions and will to become aligned with Gods.

The Lord has highlighted for me 2 different kinds of repentance He is calling us to in the present time.

God is calling the church to embrace a new wineskin and to allow Him to restore the church to the divine order He originally had for His church.

This reality is NOT just for leaders but is for each and every member of His chruch. You have the ability to decide, will you live in the light of what God is revealing to you or will you simply look for religion to be a salve to your soul.

You are called to be a son/daughter and as such you are called to build the house of the Lord.

Our repentance then is as one who has seen the light of what God is presently revealing about apostolic christianity, 5 fold ministry and Holy Spirit empowered ministry. This includes prophetic ministry that has the power to radically influence the recipient to experience encounter with God and to be influenced to see the glorious light of what God is revealing.

God is calling us to embrace personal repentance for sins that wound us and keep us from expressing the fullness of what God has called us to in His destiny for us.

2 examples of these kinds of repentance we see in scripture are what I want to talk about today.

The New International Version Chapter 17

Jehoshaphat King of Judah

17 Jehoshaphat his son succeeded him as king and strengthened himself against Israel. 2 He stationed troops in all the fortified cities of Judah and put garrisons in Judah and in the towns of Ephraim that his father Asa had captured.

3 The LORD was with Jehoshaphat because he followed the ways of his father David before him. He did not consult the Baals 4 but sought the God of his father and followed his commands rather than the practices of Israel. 5 The LORD established the kingdom under his control; and all Judah brought gifts to Jehoshaphat, so that he had great wealth and honor. 6 His heart was devoted to the ways of the LORD; furthermore, he removed the high places and the Asherah poles from Judah.

7 In the third year of his reign he sent his officials Ben-Hail, Obadiah, Zechariah, Nethanel and Micaiah to teach in the towns of Judah. 8 With them were certain Levites—Shemaiah, Nethaniah, Zebadiah, Asahel, Shemiramoth, Jehonathan, Adonijah, Tobijah and Tob-Adonijah—and the priests Elishama and Jehoram. 9 They taught throughout Judah, taking with them the Book of the Law of the LORD; they went around to all the towns of Judah and taught the people.

10 The fear of the LORD fell on all the kingdoms of the lands surrounding Judah, so that they did not go to war against Jehoshaphat. 11 Some Philistines brought Jehoshaphat gifts and silver as tribute, and the Arabs brought him flocks: seven thousand seven hundred rams and seven thousand seven hundred goats.

12 Jehoshaphat became more and more powerful; he built forts and store cities in Judah 13 and had large supplies in the towns of Judah. He also kept experienced fighting men in Jerusalem. 14 Their enrollment by families was as follows:

Jo

The New International Version Chapter 19

Jehoshaphat Appoints Judges

4 Jehoshaphat lived in Jerusalem, and he went out again among the people from Beersheba to the hill country of Ephraim and turned them back to the LORD, the God of their ancestors. 5 He appointed judges in the land, in each of the fortified cities of Judah. 6 He told them, “Consider carefully what you do, because you are not judging for mere mortals but for the LORD, who is with you whenever you give a verdict. 7 Now let the fear of the LORD be on you. Judge carefully, for with the LORD our God there is no injustice or partiality or bribery.”

8 In Jerusalem also, Jehoshaphat appointed some of the Levites, priests and heads of Israelite families to administer the law of the LORD and to settle disputes. And they lived in Jerusalem. 9 He gave them these orders: “You must serve faithfully and wholeheartedly in the fear of the LORD. 10 In every case that comes before you from your people who live in the cities—whether bloodshed or other concerns of the law, commands, decrees or regulations—you are to warn them not to sin against the LORD; otherwise his wrath will come on you and your people. Do this, and you will not sin.

Take-aways for us...

Jehoshaphat followed the ways of the Lord. He radically rejected the ways of the false ideologies of the time. Baal worship. Baal is the representation of money, sex and power.

Instead of seeking guidance from the powers that be of the culture, he determined to seek the Lord for his way and how he should live and rule.

He became very powerful and wealthy. (Seek first His Kingdom and the other matters that the world seeks will be given you.)

He took the Book of the Law or scriptural teaching into the communities to strengthen the people in the knowledge of God’s ways.

The people of the surrounding cultures did NOT go to war against them because they were walking in Divine protection.

The King went out among the people…(Elul, the King is in the field) and he turned them back to the Lord.

    - Anxiety #1 psychiatric condition, results from double-mindedness

    -depression is the “common cold” of psychological misalignment

He appointed judges to meet out God’s judgment to bring relief to godliness and punishment to evil doers. Judges were to be holy. AND they were to warn the people of the consequences of sin.

- Know the Word, know Gods voice

Application: As we follow the reestablishment of God’s divine order, we will be empowered, made prosperous and given cultural authority to keep evil at bay.

We will be engaging in a movement that will restore the Word of God and the knowledge of the Truth.

- Repent

We, like Jehoshaphat must give ourselves entirely to the Lord.

REPENT

- truly change, shift

Personal sin also must be repented of in order to not be disqualified in fulfilling the destiny we have been invited into by Jesus.

CLOSING PRAYER

The New International Version Chapter 32

if you fail to do this, you will be sinning against the LORD; and you may be sure that your sin will find you out

is the story of David being confronted by the prophet Nathan about his sin of adultery with Bathsheba and the murder of Uriah, her husband.

After Nathan tells a tale of a rich man taking a poor mans sole sheep to sacrifice and did not sacrifice from the many he owned, David in rage said this man must die! This one must repay 4 times for his lack of integrity and showing no pity!

Nathan informs him it is him. Then tells him that he will not die but there will be consequences for despising the Lord of covenant and abusing his authority. The sword will never depart from his household. In his own family, there would be calamity. Others close to you will have sexual relations with your wives or concubines. (All this was fulfilled by the grievous rebellion of his son Absolom.) AND the child you had in your sin with Bathsheba will die. (Solomon conceived to them after the death of the first. His name means “completed peace.”)

“completed peace.”)

Application: Sin can be forgiven but consequences are not necessarily eliminated as to it’s impact in natural life. Let’s recognize that repentance is a return to the values and heart of the One we follow.

Davids response to Nathan’s confrontation is revealed in that he wrote about his sin.

The New International Version Psalm 51

1 Have mercy on me, O God,

according to your unfailing love;

according to your great compassion

blot out my transgressions.

2 Wash away all my iniquity

and cleanse me from my sin.

3 For I know my transgressions,

and my sin is always before me.

4 Against you, you only, have I sinned

and done what is evil in your sight;

so you are right in your verdict

and justified when you judge.

David throws himself upon God and seeks His mercy and forgiveness acknowledging the truth of the propehtic revelation of his sin with Bathsheba and killing Uriah. But he doesn’t stop there. He continues...

The New International Version Psalm 51

10 Create in me a pure heart, O God,

and renew a steadfast spirit within me.

11 Do not cast me from your presence

or take your Holy Spirit from me.

12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation

and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.

13 Then I will teach transgressors your ways,

so that sinners will turn back to you.

The result of David’s repentance is seeking to be revived and comforted by Yahweh’s Holy wind of the Spirit. Asking that he would be restored in the joy of his salvation from sin in the knowledge of God. The result will be that I will teach others who transgress the ways of the Lord how they may know God and his mercy and forgiveness and salvation.

Then he will seek to live in a life of sacrifice to God. Not in an effort to earn righteousness or to pay back for his salvation, but because it is fitting to live a laid down life so that God may raise him up in righteousness and resurrection into eternal life.

The New International Version Psalm 51

15 Open my lips, Lord,

and my mouth will declare your praise.

16 You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it;

you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings.

17 My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit;

a broken and contrite heart

you, God, will not despise.

The mystery of repentance is that a changed way of thinking and believing gives God place to move in our lives so that we may be fashioned for that which is truly life. It will bring healing to souls in distress and will give you divine power to overcome all the schemes of the evil one.

Father I come to seek your face and I come by the blood of Jesus…I desire to be aligned with your ways and according to the covenant of love we have with your Son, Jesus the Son of Man.

I know that sin is a serious thing and I don’t desire to be flippant or glib, I come with the attitude of heart that my sin deserves. Lord whether I knew what I was doing or if I was unaware, Lord I acknowledge my rebellion against you. You say that rebellion is as witchcraft and insubordination and is as iniquity and idolatry.

I ask Your forgiveness for my rebellion and pray that by the shed blood of the Lord Jesus Christ all ground gained by the spirits of darkness because of my rebelliousness would be cancelled. I pray that You will shed light on all my ways that I Amy know the full extent of my rebelliousness and choose to adopt a submissive spirit and servant’s heart. I pray this in the Name of Jesus Christ my Lord. AMEN