Untitled Sermon (29)
Notes
Transcript
I want to welcome you again this morning.
First, to those joining us online, we are so thankful for our online technology that allows you to be a part of our church family today.
And then for those that are physically present I want to especially welcome you as we enter the second week of our reopening.
As I said last week, 12 weeks was a long time to be apart as a church family, and I’m so thankful those weeks are behind us as we look forward to what God is going to do in the days and weeks to come.
I also want to welcome those who may be joining us for the first time today. I hope your time with us today is encouraging and helpful, and I look forward to meeting you.
I would also say if you are new to our church today, it would be helpful for you to know that we practice a form of preaching called “Expository Preaching”.
What that means, is we believe the Bible is best taught by taking books of the Bible and then breaking them down from beginning to end, chapter by chapter, verse by verse. Our goal, to better understand not only what God’s Word says, but what it means in our lives today.
With that said, we are currently doing that through the NT book of Act. A book written by a First Century disciple named Luke, who wrote it for a couple of reasons:
First, to give us a history of the church. How it started, who was there, and the circumstances that surrounded it.
Second, to give us a template of sorts. A template that teaches us how to accomplish the mission Jesus gave us to take the Gospel into the rest of the world.
So, if you haven’t been with us, I would encourage you to go online to mcf.life where you can listen to all of the messages leading up to today.
Today however, we are back in Acts 16 as the Apostle Paul continues his second missionary journey and takes the gospel into the Greek city of Philippi.
You may recall from last week, Philippi was a city located in the District of Macedonia, which was primarily a Greek region. You can see its location here on the map.
But as we learned last week, Philippi wasn’t just any Greek City. Luke says it was a Roman Colony. Which means it was a city directly tied to the capital city of Rome, making it a city fully committed to Roman practices, customs, and beliefs, especially when it came to religion.
Which means it was a pagan city given to polytheistic worship, which is the worship of many gods. Specifically the 12 deities of the Greek Pantheon. Gods such as Zeus, Poseidon, Apollos, and Aphrodite.
That being the case, Paul is the odd one out as he enters this city. Because unlike the citizens of Philippi, Paul isn’t a Greek, he’s a Jew. And unlike the Greeks, Paul doesn’t worship many gods, he worships one God. The God of the Bible. A God that is only accessible through faith in Jesus.
That begin the case, he’s most definitely the odd one out.
And as a result this will create quite a challenge for Paul has he works to share the Gospel in Philippi. A challenge that will require a strategy. A strategy that consists of three steps.
Last week we looked at the first step in Paul’s strategy. A step that involved Paul finding and gathering people around him who were like minded.
And when I say like-minded, I’m talking about people who believed in the God of the Bible and were open to the Gospel.
It was a step that would lead to the beginning of the church in Philippi. A place where like minded people could gather for teaching, encouragement, and strength. A necessary step if we want to reach a community for Jesus. The writer of Hebrews puts it like this:
24 And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, 25 not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.
And as we said last week, that’s why church attendance is so important. Important because it’s the only place during the week where we aren’t the odd one out. Where we can gather together as believers to encourage, strengthen , and support one another.
So, that’s the first step. We have to continually gather with like-minded Christians in a place called the church.
This now leads us to the second step.
And to be honest, this next step is probably one of the most neglected and misunderstood among most Christians.
And so, before we get to this next step, I want to spend a few minutes setting up where Luke is taking us today. And to do that, I want to go back to the religous culture of Philippi.
As I mentioned a moment ago, the religous culture of Philippi was polytheistic. Which means it consisted of many gods.
As a result, there were shrines and temples to these gods scattered throughout Philippi.
That being the case, as Paul enters this city, the greatest challenge he faces is convincing a polytheistic culture that there is only one true God.
And the reason this will be a challenge, is because this isn’t just going to be a battle of words and wit, but a spiritual battle where Paul will come face to face with the demonic forces that reside within a culture of false gods.
False gods that represent more than shrines and statues. But in
fact represent demonic strongholds that Satan has set up to deceive people and turn them away from the truth and the one true God.
The Apostle Paul puts it like this in Ephesians 6. He writes:
12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.
Paul says the battle we face isn’t physical, it’s spiritual. And it’s a battle against authorities and cosmic powers that reside in heavenly places.
Which means, our battle is against demonic forces and spiritual beings who are bent on turning the heart of man away from God.
The proof of that goes back to Genesis 2 where the devil himself appears in the garden and deceives Adam and Eve.
All that to say, Satan and his demonic forces are real. And they will do anything and everything they can to prevent us from knowing and having a relationship with the true God.
And so if we want to effectively reach people, then we have to be aware of the demonic. Because it’s there and it’s not going away.
Now the truth is, this is topic that is not only uncomfortable to talk about, but it’s a vast topic with a lot of unknowns.
That being the case, when it comes to this topic this morning, there’s no way we can cover it in its entirety, and more than likely, it’s going to leave you with more questions than answers.
So, up front, I want you to know that my goal isn’t to cover this topic extensively, but instead to introduce us to it so we can have an awareness of it and begin to have an understanding of what it takes to deal with it.
That being said, I have three goals today as we approach our passage today:
Goal #1 - First, we’re going to read through the passage and find what this demonic force was and why it came against Paul.
Goal #3 - Second, we’re going to look at how what happened to Paul applies in our life.
So, with that as our basis, let’s pick back up in Acts 16 as Paul begins to share the gospel in Philippi. Beginning in verse 16 Luke writes:
16 As we were going to the place of prayer, we were met by a slave girl who had a spirit of divination and brought her owners much gain by fortune-telling.
In this passage Luke picks up sometime after Paul’s arrival in Philippi. How long he’s been there we don’t know.
But apparently he’s been there long enough to attract the attention of a demonic spirit that is working through a slave girl.
And right off, there’s a few things I want you to notice that give us some insight into how demonic forces work:
First, Luke says this demonic incident took place as Paul was on his way to the place of prayer. Which as we learned last week means Paul was on his way back down to the river where he would meet with other believers for a weekly church service.
So, a great first question would be, “Why is this detail important?”
It’s important for a couple of reasons:
#1 - It highlights the ongoing faithfulness of Paul.
In other words, despite the difficulty of reaching a pagan culture, Paul continues to faithfully build the church in Philippi. A faithfulness that is seen as he continues to meet week by week with the growing church. A faithfulness that as we said is necessary if we want to reach people for Jesus.
#2 - It highlights the effectiveness of Paul’s ministry.
Notice again what Luke says. He says, “As we were going to the place of prayer, we were met by a slave girl who had a spirit of divination...” Acts 16:16a (ESV)
Here’s what I want you to see. As Paul goes to church that day, he’s not looking for a demonic spirit, instead, the demonic spirt was looking for him. Because Luke says on their way to church, “…we were met...”
Let me ask you something, “How many of you have ever met the devil on your way to church?”
For example, you were on your way to church, and all of a sudden you and your spouse got in a stupid argument that wrecked your morning. That ever happen to anybody?
Or you were getting ready to leave for church, and you realized your car had a flat tire or your car wouldn’t start.
Or maybe on Saturday night you had plans to go to church, but for some reason your alarm didn’t go off.
Anybody ever have something like that happen on your way to church? I know I have.
I remember a couple years ago, I got up to come to church. It was a special Sunday because were doing baptisms. We had about 10 people signed up, and I’ll never forget walking in the sanctuary and realizing the baptismal had backed up and the entire front portion of the sanctuary was soaked in water.
To be honest it really threw me for a loop. I remember telling the worship team to pray for me because it had gotten me all out of sorts.
So we prayed. And then something miraculous happened. As I preached that morning the Holy Spirit moved in such a powerful way that nearly 40 people came forward to get baptized. It was unbelievable as people were standing and clapping as people came forward. It was awesome!
Looking back on that Sunday I know the devil met me as I came to church that day. Why? Because he knew God was up to something. He knew God had big plans that day. And he wanted to disrupt it.
It’s the same with Paul. His ministry is taking off, people are getting saved, God has big plans for Philippi, and the devil is trying to disrupt it as he sends a demonic force to confront Paul.
Here’s what this tells us, and it represents a spiritual principle:
If you’re doing something great for Jesus, the enemy is going to take notice.
That’s comforting, right? I love how Martin Luther puts it. He writes this:
“Do not be disturbed by people to whom Christ is just a joke and a laughingstock…they live on, certain of everything and untroubled by the devil. Why should he bother them? They already belong to him.” Martin Luther
What Luter is implying here is that the devil doesn’t mess with people who aren’t serious about Jesus. Why would he? But who he messes with are people who are serious about Jesus.
All that to say, when an individual or a church get’s serious about reaching people for Jesus, the enemy takes notice. And in this passage, he’s taken notice of Paul. Why? Because Paul is being effective.
Here’s the second thing I want you to notice. Luke says the demonic spirit that confronts Paul is a specific type of spirit. Look again at what Luke tells us:
16 As we were going to the place of prayer, we were met by a slave girl who had a spirit of divination and brought her owners much gain by fortune-telling.
Luke says it was a spirit of divination that manifested itself through fortune-telling.
In other words, it was a spirit of prediction, knowledge, and revelation.
So, what does that tell us?
What that tells us is that this was a demonic spirit connected to a certain false god in Philippi. Specifically the Roman god Apollo who was known as the god of prophecy and prediction.
Why is it important we know this? It’s important because if you’re going to overcome the demonic, it’s helpful to know what kind of spirit you are dealing with. Because the fact is, when the demonic shows ups, it comes with a specific agenda.
So, a great question would be, “Why does this particular spirit come after Paul?
Luke tells us, because listen to what the spirit does when it confronts Paul:
17 She followed Paul and us, crying out, “These men are servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to you the way of salvation.”
Luke says as the the slave girl with the demonic spirit confronts Paul it does two things.
First, it begins to follow him, and second, through this girl, it makes a declaration concerning Paul. A prophetic utterance of sorts. So what is she proclaiming? Luke says the girl is crying out:
“These men are servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to yo the way of salvation.”
So, what’s that all about? Why is this spirit making this statement about Paul?
To be honest, there are a couple different views on this.
Some scholars believe the spirit is trying to bring unwanted attention to Paul. Because the fact is, Paul’s not polytheistic, he’s monotheistic. Which means, he believes in one god, not many.
And that kind of teaching wouldn’t have gone over well in Philippi.
So the thought is, maybe this demonic spirit is trying to expose Paul's monotheistic beliefs and get him in trouble with the local authorities.
And the truth is, there may be some legitimacy to that idea. Because that kind of exposure would have worked against Paul.
However, if we dig a little deeper, there’s actually more going on with this statement.
Let me show you what I’m talking about. Let’s look again at verse 17.
Luke says as she follows them she’s crying out, “These men are servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to you the way of salvation.”
Now, let me ask you this. When we read that, what do we as NT Christians automatically assume this spirit is proclaiming?
Well, we as Christians, we assume when this evil spirit says, “These men are servants of the Most High God”, that the evil spirit is referring to the God of the Bible, right? Makes sense.
And that when the evil spirit says, “who proclaim the way of salvation”, that it’s referring the message of Jesus, right?
That being the case, when we read it, what we are basically hearing this evil spirit say is, “These men are servants of the God of the Bible and they are proclaiming that Jesus is the way to salvation.” That would make sense, right?
But what if I told you that’s not what the demonic spirit is actually saying. What if I told you that what the spirit is actually proclaiming is something compeltely different. What if I told you the spirit is actually proclaiming something like this:
“These men are servants of Zeus, who proclaim to you the way to receive health, safety, and wellness.”
Now, you might be thinking, “Pastor, where you getting that? Because I’m not seeing that in this passage.”
Here’s what we need to understand. The people this evil spirit is proclaiming this too are not Jews who know the Bible. They’re not Christians who know about Jesus. They’re Roman citizens. And as Roman citizens they would have interpreted this statement based on their context.
Because in Greek mythology and Roman culture, guess who was referred to as God Most High? Want to take a guess? Zeus was. The chief god they worshiped. The god of all the gods.
In addition to that, within the context of pagan religion, the word salvation didn’t refer to an exclusive way of reaching God, but referred to one’s health, safety, or wellness.
That being the case, this demonic spirit isn’t trying to expose Paul’s belief that Jesus is the only way to salvation, but instead is proclaiming to the people that Paul is simply a servant of Zeus. And the salvation he’s referring to are the temporal needs that Zeus can provide.
In other words, what this demonic spirit is saying is, “Folks, there’s nothing new to see here. These men are just teaching what you already believe. They are just servants of Zeus and are here to verify what we already know to be true.”
Now, some might say, “So, that’s good, right? Because isn't’ that keeping Paul out of trouble?”
Well, yes, it’s keeping him out of trouble, but it’s not good. And it’s not good because if the people start believing Paul represents Zeus, then anything Paul does is going to be attributed to Zeus.
For example, if Paul heals somebody, it’s going to be attributed to Zeus.
If somebody has a transformational experience through faith in Jesus, it’s going to be attributed to Zeus.
Do you see the problem?
This is why it’s important we understand what kind of evil spirit this is. That it’s not a spirit that proclaims prophetic truth, but a lying spirit that proclaims untruth.
And its goal is to point people away from Jesus. Away from the truth.
It’s a Satanic tactic that works to keep people focused on a counterfeit version of God. A version of God that isn’t God.
Which means, if a person has a wrong or unbiblical belief about God, Satan’s goal is to keep them believing the lie.
Now, you might be thinking, “What kind of unbiblical views about God are we talking about here?”
Well, just like in Philippi, there are many, many of which people still worship and hold to today.
Let me give you a few examples of what I’m talking about, and to do that, let’s look at some of these Greek and Roman gods that the city of Philippi worshiped.
The first god I want to look at is the goddess known as Aphrodite, who was the goddess of love, sex, and beauty. I’d show you a picture of her but it would be inappropriate since all of her likenesses portray her as nude.
As you might guess, the worship of this goddess focused on the physical body and involved grotesque acts of sexual immorality as people gave themselves over to their sexual desires.
Now, let me ask you this. Do you think this god is still worshiped today?
I’m going to say yes. How do I know? Well for starters, what about the fact that nearly 100 billion dollars a year is spent on online pornography in the US. I’d say that’s a pretty good indication she’s still worshiped.
So, while we don’t call her Aphrodite, the false god of sex and beauty is still worshiped today.
Another god in Greek and Roman mythology was Plutus, the god of wealth, financial gain, and prosperity. A god who brought financial security.
Now, let me ask you, “Do you think people still worship the god of wealth and prosperity today?” In other words, do you think people today put more trust in the almighty dollar than they do the almighty god?
Again, I’m going to say yes to that one as well.
And unfortunately, it’s a spirit that has even influenced some in the church through a false gospel called the prosperity gospel. A false gospel that teaches that health and wealth in this life is one of God’s greatest desires for us. A gospel that has caused many in the church to make temporal living their focus.
One more example. Another popular god during this time was Athena who was also known as Minerva. And she was the Goddess of poetry, medicine, wisdom, strategic warfare, commerce, weaving, and the crafts. Had her plate full, right?
And as a goddess she was worshiped because she represented human ability, cunning, know how, and reason.
So, let me ask you this, “Do you think the worship of this god still exists today?
You bet it does. In America it’s the god of self achievement. The god of human reason and ability. The god of science. The god of human independency. A god that ironically says, “I’m my own god”.
In fact, we’ve seen this spirit raise its ugly head during the Coronavirus pandemic.
For example, back in April, during a press conference, Governor Andrew Cuomo of New York made this statement as the number of cases began to drop in New York. He said, and I quote:
“The number is down because we brought the number down. God did not do that. Faith did not do that. Destiny did not do that. A lot of pain and suffering did that. That’s how it works. It’s math.”
Wasn’t God he said. It was us. It was our know how. Our ability. It was our trust in Athena.
All that to say, while we don’t worship the Greek and Roman gods by name, we still worship what they stood for.
So you see, not much has changed as people today continue to put their hope in false gods. False gods they think will bring them happiness, fulfillment, and joy. False gods that quite frankly represent demonic spirits of untruth.
And what we have to understand is the enemy will do whatever it takes to keep people serving these gods and keep them from the truth.
How does he do it? He does it in a number ways.
Sometimes the untruth comes from the culture as our culture redefines morality and the truth about God.
We see this happening all around us everyday.
Sometimes it comes from within the church as certain churches and denominations soften the gospel and refuse to tell people the truth. In fact, the Bible predicted this would happen. Listen to what Paul says about it in 2 Timothy 4:
3 For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions,
Paul says that even in the church some will give themselves over to a lying spirit who will tell them what they want to hear.
The fact is, untruth comes from all directions. But what we have to understand is regardless of where it comes from, it is driven by demonic forces.
Demonic forces that are loud and obnoxious as they work to distract people and keep them from the truth.
Because notice what Luke says. He says the girl wasn’t just saying it, but she was “crying it out”.
It’s the idea that she was screaming it at the top of her lungs.
And guess what, she’s still screaming today.
For example:
She screams every-time you turn on your television and a gay couple is introduced into your favorite tv series. As she screams, “It’s ok to be gay!”
She screams every time a woman considers an abortion. As she screams, “It’s your body. You have a right to do what you want!”
She screams when a young person says, “I’m waiting to have sex until marriage”, as she screams through that persons friends, “What’s wrong with you! You’re such a prude! You’re such a loser. Get with the times.”
She screams when a man picks up his phone and is tempted to click on a link. She screams, “You need this! It’s ok to fulfill your sexual desire. Your wife will never find out.”
She screams when a married woman receives needed attention from somebody who is not her husband as she screams, “You deserve to be happy”.
She screams, “Keep believing the lie. Keep putting your hope in the flesh. Keep doing what is best for you. Keep doing what makes you happy.”
You see church, it’s a battle. A battle that isn’t against flesh and blood, but against spiritual forces that are working to deceive people and encourage them to keep serving their false gods.
The false god of sex. The false god of prosperity. The false god of human reason and ability. The false god of temporal pleasure.
False gods that are working to keep them from putting their hope and trust in the truth.
That’s what we are up against. That’s what we face every time we walk out those back doors and back into the world.
The question then is, “How do we battle that? How do we battle something we can’t see and that is supernatural?”
That leads us to the second step. A step that Paul is about to take and model as responds to this lying spirit. Because look at what happens next:
18 And this she kept doing for many days. Paul, having become greatly annoyed, turned and said to the spirit, “I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her.” And it came out that very hour.
Luke says not only was this a loud spirit, it was a persistent spirit. A spirit that wouldn’t leave Paul alone as it worked to disrupt his effectiveness.
But finally, enough is enough, and Paul, in a moment that I wish somebody would have recorded with and iPhone, turns around, faces the girl, and says to the demonic spirit:
“I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her”.
And Luke says, “And it came out that very hour.”
Is that not amazing! I mean can you imagine what that would have been like to witness. To see the Apostle Paul cast this demonic spirit out of this girl. It would have been something to see.
But while it would have been amazing to see, maybe the more important question we need to ask is, “How did Paul do that?” Because that’s not something you see everyday. I mean when’s the last time you saw somebody do that? So, how did he do it?
Here’s how, and it’s our next step:
In order to live for Jesus and effectively lead people to Jesus:
Step #2 - We have to learn to walk in spiritual authority.
What we have to understand is that Paul was able to cast this demon out because he was walking in spiritual authority.
So, a great question would be, “What exactly is spiritual authority?”
Simply put, Spiritual authority is using the name of Jesus through faith to do the task you've been given.
A great example of this is found in Luke 10 as Jesus sends out 72 disciples to minister in his name. And as a result, they have great success, because listen to their report once they return. Luke writes:
17 The seventy-two returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in your name!” 18 And he said to them, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. 19 Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall hurt you.
Luke says after returning the 72 disciples are amazed that even demons were subject to them because of the name of Jesus. Because in that moment they had spiritual authority
Now, you might be thinking, “Ok pastor, you’ve got my attention. So, exactly how does that work and how can I walk in that kind of authority?
Well, hate to tell you this, but you’re going to have to come back next week to find out. I know, that’s not nice, right?
But here’s the deal. This subject matter is too important for us to just rush through it this morning.
And to be honest, before we can talk too much about spiritual authority, based on what we’ve learned this morning, there are some questions we need to be willing to consider when it comes to demonic activity.
So, as we close this morning, and in preparation for our discussion on spiritual authority next week, I’d like you to give you three questions for consideration this week:
Question #1 - Do you believe demons are real and are actively working to deceive mankind?
I ask you that question, because it might surprise you to know not every Christian believes that.
In a survey conducted by Barna, when asked if Satan was a real being, 40% of self-described Christians said they didn’t believe in a literal Satan, but that he represented a symbol of evil.
In addition to that, another 20% said they agree somewhat that Satan might be a real being.
What that means then is, 60% of people who say they are Christians either don’t believe or are unsure if Satan is real.
That’s crazy, right? And here’s a couple of problems with that.
First, from Genesis to Revelation the Bible is beyond clear that there are demonic forces at work in the world, and that at the center of it is a creature named Satan.
So, if you don’t believe there’s a a literal Satan, then maybe you need to consider what the Bible actually says.
The second problem is this. If you don’t believe in a literal Satan and his demonic forces, then learning to walk in spiritual authority isn’t going to be of much benefit to you, because that’s primarily what it’s for.
Because as I said at the beginning of this message, our battle isn’t against flesh and blood, but against the spiritual forces of darkness, of which spiritual authority is necessary in order to do what God has called us to do.
So, before we talk too much about spiritual authority, you need to come to terms with what the Bible says concerning demonic forces. That they are real and present in this world.
Question #2 - Are you aware that we are currently living in a modern day version of Philippi?
I ask you to consider this, because the truth is, America today isn’t much different than first century Philippi, and we see this in a number of ways:
For example, we see it in the fact that we’ve become a polytheistic culture. And what I mean by that, is we are a country that worships many gods.
We looked at some examples of those gods a few moments ago. But here are a few more to consider that might be more relevant.
How about the god of sports. That’s a popular American god. A god that consumes the lives of many families and individuals 365 days out of the year. A god many families will drive a lot of miles and spend a lot of money to serve.
In fact, it’s such a popular god in America, that we’ve actually built multi million dollar temples to worship them in. Temples we refer to as stadiums and coliseums.
Another god is the god of social media. A relatively new god that allows its worshipers to self promote, gossip, attack others, while at the same time filling their minds with useless information. A god that the average worshiper gives 153 minutes a day too worshipping.
Another god is the god of personal rights. Or another name would be, the god of entitlement.
Its’ the god that says, “I have a right to live and believe what I want and do what I want regardless of what anybody says.”
So, when it comes to sexuality, it’s the god that says, “It’s my right to love somebody regardless of their sex.” or “It’s my right to call myself male or female regardless of what my biology says.”
When it comes to abortion, it’s the god that says, “It’s my right to do what I want to my body, regardless of the life it takes”.
When it comes to happiness, it’s the god that says, “It’s my right to be happy, regardless if leaving my spouse is ethically or morally wrong.”
You see, it’s a god that lets you live how you want regardless of what the Bible, the law, or morality would say.
It’s a god that many Americans love, because it’s a god that justifies any lifestyle they would choose.
You see, America is full of gods. Gods of sports. Gods of technology. God’s of ideology. Gods of untruth.
The fact is, we are living in a modern day Philippi.
Now, some of you might say, “Pastor, I think you might be exaggerating a little bit. I’m not sure it’s that bad.”
Really? Then explain to me what’s going on in America right now? Explain why our country is coming apart at the seams.
Could it be because we are just like Philippi? Could it be we are a country of false gods and as a result, we are a country now full of demonic influence and activity.
Could it be that the unrest and division in our country isn’t because of the Democrats, republicans, President Trump or the death of one man, but is actually the result of America pushing the true God out while at the same time embracing a multitude of false gods?
Could it be that we are now experiencing the consequences of removing the true God from our schools, universities, and Government?
Could it be we’ve now become a country where our worship of false gods has opened the door for the devil to do his worst?
I’d like to suggest to you, that maybe, just maybe, that’s the case. And a good reason why we need to understand spiritual authority. Because the reality is, America isn’t facing a race war or a Democrat versus Republican war. That’s just what it looks like on the surface.
What we are facing is a spiritual war. A war beneath the surface. A war for the soul of our country. A war that the church better wake up too because Satan mean business.
Question #3 - Are you guilty of worshipping false gods?
I ask you that question, because in order to walk in Spiritual authority, it starts with some self evaluation. A willingness to step back and evaluate if you’ve been given to untruth.
To ask yourself, “Have I given myself to something that isn’t true when it comes to my belief in God or my faith?
A false god that I’ve put my hope in?
A false god that I’ve given to much time too?
A false god that is consuming too much of my resource?
A false god that is keeping me from the truth.
A false god that has me focused on the temporal versus the eternal?”
I think if we were all honest this morning, we’d have to admit that we all probably have given ourselves to something false. Something that’s not of God. Something that isn’t led by God’s Spirit, but by another spirit. A demonic spirit that has deceived us into buying into a lie.
And the truth is, before you can walk in spiritual authority, you need to be willing to identify the false gods in your life, and get rid of them.
So, how do you do that? It’s simple. You ask God to reveal them. You ask God to open your eyes to the truth. To pray as the Psalmist prays:
23 Search me, O God, and know my heart!
Try me and know my thoughts!
24 And see if there be any grievous way in me,
and lead me in the way everlasting!
And then as God begins pointing out the lie, you start eliminating the untruth from your life and start putting your hope back in the truth.
I’m telling you right now church, the level of spiritual deception in our country is higher than it’s ever been. And unfortunately, some of that deception has crept into the church.
And the fact is, if we want to truly make a difference for Jesus, then we have to start with the untruth in our own lives.
Only then can we begin to operate in spiritual authority.
Let’s Pray