A House Made Of Thoughts
The Three BATTLEGROUNDS • Sermon • Submitted
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The Three Battle Grounds Week 4
The Three Battle Grounds Week 4
43 But when the unclean spirit has gone out of a man, it roams through dry [arid] places in search of rest, but it does not find any.
44 Then it says, I will go back to my house from which I came out. And when it arrives, it finds the place unoccupied, swept, put in order, and decorated.
45 Then it goes and brings with it seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and they go in and make their home there. And the last condition of that man becomes worse than the first. So also shall it be with this wicked generation.
43 When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places, seeking rest, and findeth none.
44 Then he saith, I will return into my house from whence I came out; and when he is come, he findeth it empty, swept, and garnished.
45 Then goeth he, and taketh with himself seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter in and dwell there: and the last state of that man is worse than the first. Even so shall it be also unto this wicked generation.
14 One day there was a crowd gathered around Jesus, and among them was a man who was mute. Jesus drove out of the man the spirit that made him unable to speak. Once the demon left him, the mute man’s tongue was loosed and he was able to speak again. The stunned crowd saw it all and marveled in amazement over this miracle!
15 But there were some in the crowd who protested, saying, “He casts out demons by the power of Satan, the demon king.”
16 Others were skeptical and tried to persuade Jesus to perform a spectacular display of power to prove that he was the Messiah.
17 Jesus, well aware of their every thought, said to them, “Every kingdom that is split against itself is doomed to fail and will eventually collapse.
18 If it is true that Satan casts out his own demons through me, how could his kingdom remain intact?
19 If Satan gives me the power to cast out his demons, who is it that gives your exorcists their power? Let them become your judges! Go and ask them and they will tell you.
20 Yet if I am casting out demons by God’s mighty power, God’s kingdom realm is now released upon you—but you still reject it!
21 “Satan’s belongings are undisturbed as he stands guard over his fortress kingdom, strong and fully armed with an arsenal of many weapons.
22 But when one stronger than he comes to attack and overpower him, the stronger one will empty the arsenal in which he trusted. The conqueror will ransack his kingdom and distribute all the spoils of victory.
23 This is a war, and whoever is not on my side is against me, and whoever does not gather the spoils with me will be forever scattered.
24 “When a demon is cast out of a person, it goes to wander in the waterless realm, searching for rest. But finding no place to rest it says, ‘I will go back to the body of the one I left.’
25 When it returns, it finds the person like a house that has been swept clean and made tidy but is empty.
26 Then it goes and enlists seven demons more evil than itself, and they all enter and possess the person, leaving that one with a much worse fate than before.”
There are satanic strongholds over countries and communities, and there are strongholds which influence churches and individuals.
Wherever a stronghold exists, it is a demonically induced pattern of thinking.
Specifically, it is a
Specifically, it is a
"house made of thoughts"
which has become a dwelling place for satanic activity.
Francis Frangipane. The Three Battlegrounds
A WARNING BEFORE DELIVERANCE!
43 When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places, seeking rest, and findeth none.
44 Then he saith, I will return into my house from whence I came out; and when he is come, he findeth it empty, swept, and garnished.
Although the nature of an unclean spirit is, by definition, spiritual and not physical, it still seeks a dwelling place,
a "house" where it may "rest." Jesus revealed that there is a dimension to human nature that actually can host an evil spirit and provide it a type of rest.
If that is so, let us expose the nature of man and uncover that aspect in us which can become the "construction material" within which a spirit might lodge.
First let us realize that a demon cannot dwell in a true Christian's spirit.
Through regeneration, the human spirit becomes the home of the Holy Spirit.
Indeed, it is because the Holy Spirit is within us that we have discernment concerning the enemy's inroads.
The aspect of human nature which is most similar in substance and disposition to the nature of the evil one is the carnal thought-life, which is a dimension of the soul, or personality, of man.
It is uniquely in our un-crucified thoughts and un-sanctified attitudes that unclean spirits, masking themselves as our thoughts and hiding themselves in our attitudes, find access into our Lives.
Jesus Continued,
44 Then it says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came.’ And when it comes, it finds it empty, swept, and put in order.
45 Then it goes and brings with itself seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they enter and dwell there. And the last state of that man is worse than the first. So shall it be also with this evil generation.”
If we are going to be successful in spiritual battle, your warfare must be waged according too scriptures.
For if you are ignorant of the necessity of bringing Christ into the delivered soul, there is the danger
that the last state of “that man” might become “worse than the first”
20 And when people escape from the wickedness of the world by knowing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and then get tangled up and enslaved by sin again, they are worse off than before.
Christ must enter and be allowed to build his house of righteousness in the very area where Satan once dwelt.
1. Removing Satan’s Armor
1. Removing Satan’s Armor
21 “Satan’s belongings are undisturbed as he stands guard over his fortress kingdom, strong and fully armed with an arsenal of many weapons.
22 But when one stronger than he comes to attack and overpower him, the stronger one will empty the arsenal in which he trusted. The conqueror will ransack his kingdom and distribute all the spoils of victory.
Before we are saved, you and I were the undisturbed possessions of the devil
Satan was like a fully armed “Strong man” guarding the homestead of our souls.
On the day of our salvation, however, a glorious “someone Stronger,” The Lord Jesus Christ, attacked and overpowered Satan and stripped away his armor.
Could you imagine being kidnapped since you where an infant.
Held hostage until you became an adult.
Someone stronger than your kidnapper finds you overpowers him and breaks you free from a life long bondage.
And after a few months you decide you liked it better with your kidnapers and you return to the house you where kept and walk-in lock yourself up back in the cage.
sounds crazy right ( thats kinda what happens to a lot of believers)
If we could have seen the invisible world, we would have observed the Holy Spirit working with the angels of God to destroy the enemy’s first line of defense, his “armor.”
What exactly was this armor that protected the devil and kept us from salvation?
The armor upon which demons rely consists of our own thoughts, attitudes, and opinions which are in agreement with evil.
What Jesus describes as “armor,” the apostle Paul classified as “strongholds”
4 For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds,
It’s Important to recognize that, in speaking of strongholds, the Aposlte is addressing the Church!
It is foolish to assume that our salvation experience has eliminated all the wrong ideas and attitudes-the strongholds-which are still influencing our perceptions and behavior
The foundation of our continued success in warfare comes from yielding to the Lord as He reveals these strongholds holds and agreeing with Him through repentance in pulling them down.
It is important to recognize that, when we speak of strongholds, we are not talking about random thoughts or occasional sins. Rather, the strongholds that affect us most are those which are so hidden in our thinking patterns that we do not recognize them nor identify them as evil. Remember, in our initial text,
Jesus revealed that unclean spirits are seeking “REST”
The sense of rest they seek originates from being in harmony with their environment
In other words, when our thought-life is in agreement with unbelief, fear, or habitual sin, the enemy has rest.
It is significant that the process of deliverance quite often involves a season of inner conflict and turmoil.
This is a good sign, signifying the individual’s will desires to be free
9 Resist him firmly in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world.
9 Stand firm against him, and be strong in your faith. Remember that your family of believers all over the world is going through the same kind of suffering you are.
Paul speaks of the struggle of the church against principalities and powers.
There will be a period of fighting involved in the process of pulling down strongholds, for you are breaking your agreement with a foe who will fight to remain in your life.
2. TAKING EVERY THOUGHT CAPTIVE TO CHRIST
2. TAKING EVERY THOUGHT CAPTIVE TO CHRIST
While we find comfort in being christians, being a Christian has not made us perfect.
There are many strongholds within us. Therefore, let us identify some of these spiritual fortresses.
Rare is the Christian who is not limited by at least one of the following strongholds:
unbelief, cold love, fear, pride, un-forgiveness, lust, greed, or any combination of theses, as well as the possibility of many others.
Today I wanted everyone in the house to write down the stronghold they are battling on the sticky note so we can place them on the boxes behind me. And we declare that every stronghold that has held us strong in the past must let us go as we surrender to the thoughts and Opinions of Jesus Christ and his word.
7 for as he thinks in his heart, so is he. “Eat and drink!” he says to you, but his heart is not with you.
In other words, the essence of who you are is in your thought life. Therefore, before deliverance can truly be accomplished, we, must honestly recognize and confess our need. We must stop pretending everything is “all right”
Who are you fooling?
In order to recognize what is wrong in us, we must perceive God’s standard of what is right .
9 But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels to suffer death, crowned with glory and honor, so that He, by the grace of God, should experience death for everyone.
23 and be renewed in the spirit of your mind;
24 and that you put on the new nature, which was created according to God in righteousness and true holiness.
He’s just not our savior, He is the Indwelling one who conforms us to his image, the first born of a family of glorious sons
10 For it was fitting for Him, for whom and by whom all things exist, in bringing many sons to glory, to make the Author of their salvation perfect through suffering.
28 We know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.
29 For those whom He foreknew, He predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, so that He might be the firstborn among many brothers.
Home Work: Study these 3 words:
Foreknew, Predestined & Conformed
5 Let this mind be in you all, which was also in Christ Jesus,
Therefore, we must learn to look objectively at any thoughts or attitudes that fail to conform to the likeness and teachings of Jesus.
Those thoughts must be captured and wrong attitudes crucified. We must make way in us for the coming of the Lord.
We must allow the “increase of His government” to expand until we are so absorbed into his spirit that we not only believe in Him, We believe like him. His love, thoughts, and desires flow out from within us.
Consequently, when we seek to identify and destroy demonic strongholds, the second fortress that must be annihilated is the
stronghold of unbelief. It is this scheme of thinking-that tell us Christlikeness is impossible-which holds all further spiritual growth hostage. This lie and the chains it places upon our hearts must be stripped from our lives.
Take This moment and begin to Worship the Lord in Spirit & In Truth. Let the Holy Spirit rise and flood your heart.
Come Sister Shablis lead us into a worship moment..
If you suffer from the stronghold which says you will never be like christ, that stronghold can begin to come down right now
Let Us Pray: Lord Jesus, I submit to you. I declare, according to the Word of God, that because of your power to subject all things Yourself,
the weapons of my warfare are mighty to the pulling down of strongholds.
I repent for using the lie, “i will never be like Jesus,”
As an excuse to sin and compromise my convictions
In Jesus name, I renounce my flawed, sinful old nature and, by the grace of God and the power of Your Spirit, I pull down the Stronghold of unbelief that exists in my mind.
Because of perfect sacrifice of Jesus Christ, I am a new creation.
And I believe that I will go from glory to glory, being continually transformed into Christ’s image as i walk with God.