Moving in God’s Authority

8 Then Amalek came and fought with Israel at Rephidim. 9 So Moses said to Joshua, “Choose for us men, and go out and fight with Amalek. Tomorrow I will stand on the top of the hill with the staff of God in my hand.” 10 So Joshua did as Moses told him, and fought with Amalek, while Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill. 11 Whenever Moses held up his hand, Israel prevailed, and whenever he lowered his hand, Amalek prevailed. 12 But Moses’ hands grew weary, so they took a stone and put it under him, and he sat on it, while Aaron and Hur held up his hands, one on one side, and the other on the other side. So his hands were steady until the going down of the sun. 13 And Joshua overwhelmed Amalek and his people with the sword. 14 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Write this as a memorial in a book and recite it in the ears of Joshua, that I will utterly blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven.” 15 And Moses built an altar and called the name of it, The Lord Is My Banner, 16 saying, “A hand upon the throne of the Lord! The Lord will have war with Amalek from generation to generation.”

Most People know who Josuha was, but who was Hur?

According to Dake’s Bible, [Hur] Hur was the son of Caleb of Judah (1Chr. 2:19–20). He was closely associated with Moses and Aaron (Ex. 17:10–12; 24:14; 31:2; 35:30; 38:22). Josephus (Antiquities, Book 3, 2:4) and the rabbis say he was the brother-in-law of Moses and Aaron, having married Miriam.[1]

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I. To move in God’s AUTHORITY, you must be under his banner

The defeat of the Amalek was only possible by moving in God’s authority. Today, the church must understand how to move with God’s authority when we face todays Amalekites.

Who was Amalek and the Amalekites?

Amalek was a grandson of Esau, the son of Eliphaz and his concubine Timna (Gen. 36:12).

While nothing is known of his own life, his descendants became the clan of the Amalekites, bitter enemies of the Israelites. This traces the origin of the Amalekites to Edom, the land of the descendants of Jacob’s twin brother Esau. They were a fierce nomadic tribe that roamed through southern Palestine and the Sinai Peninsula, surviving by attacking and plundering whomever they met. Because they attacked Moses and the Israelites at Rephidim, God cursed them, saying that he would be their enemy forever (Exod. 17:8ff.).

In many references the clan is referred to as Amalek, the name of their patriarch, rather than as the Amalekites.[2]

The Amalekites represent the enemies of God and his purposes. They are the descendants of Esau. Esau is the grandfather of Edom.

God rejected Edom:

The Edomites did not migrate to Egypt during the famine that sent Jacob there, and after the Hebrews (Jacob’s descendants) returned to Canaan the Edomites remained their enemies for centuries. The Jews considered them barbarian and immoral. Paul cited Esau (and thus the Edomites) as an example of those whom God has rejected[3]

Are there any Amalekites today? Any who reject God and His purposes? Those who stand against God’s Church? We live in a day where many people are rejecting God and his purpose.

The following is from: WND News -- Joseph Farah -- Wed Oct 13, 2021

The current global crisis stems from a rejection of God

we were divided by vaccination status. If we had a card from the authorities indicating we received the shot, then we could get food, we could travel, we could keep our job. Otherwise, we would be canceled.

It reminds me of something I heard about the Antichrist in the end of days.

. . .

But today we’re living amongst a generation doesn’t know Jesus – and things are getting worse.

The great British journalist-theologian G.K. Chesterton had it just about right when he explained what happens when people stop believing in God.

It’s true. They don’t just believe in nothing. They believe in anything and everything – every absurd notion, every myth and the perpetration of every unspeakable horror.

Chesterton was merely echoing biblical truths:

Genesis 6:5: “And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.” Jeremiah 7:24: “But they hearkened not, nor inclined their ear, but walked in the counsels and in the imagination of their evil heart, and went backward, and not forward.” Romans 1:21: “Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.”

. . .

The prophet Jeremiah explains what it looks like when people turn away from God. . .

Jeremiah 18:12: “And they said, There is no hope: but we will walk after our own devices, and we will every one do the imagination of his evil heart.” 2 Timothy 3:13 “But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived.”

Let’s face it, we live in an age of deception unparalleled since the Tower of Babel.The Tower of Googlemay indeed be worse. It’s not just fake news, it’s false prophets and phony gods. It’s idol worship and fake religions. It’s a return to Baal.[4]

A recent article in the Los Angeles Times and Yahoo News is headlined, “Why America’s Record Godlessness is Good News for the Nation.”

In part it reads,

“The secularization of U.S. society—the waning of religious faith, practice and affiliation—is continuing at a dramatic and historically unprecedented pace. While many may consider such a development as a cause for concern, such a worry is not warranted. This increasing godlessness in America is actually a good thing, to be welcomed and embraced.”[5]

Do you realize that the secular media no longer hides the fact that they despise God and the Church.

· As recently as 1976, nearly 40% of Americans said they believed that the Bible was the actual word of God—to be taken literally. Today, only about 20%of Americans believe that. More believe the Bible is a collection of fables, history and tales written by men.[6]

· The percentage of Americans who confidently believe in God’s existence, without a doubt, has declined from 63% in 1990 to 53% today.[7]

· Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-NY) recently proclaimed that God’s will was of no concern to this Congress.

· First, the liberals kicked God out of the Pledge of Allegiance and then out of their Democrat National Conventions since 2012. Until recently, they did not make an effort to force the rest of the nation to also abandon God.[8]

A. To be under His banner comes from your total identification and surrender to Jesus

You are only prepared for the coming days of conflict when you have totally given your life over to His purpose and will. Are you willing to be identified with Jesus?

Psalm 60:1–5 (ESV)

1 O God, you have rejected us, broken our defenses; you have been angry; oh, restore us. 2You have made the land to quake; you have torn it open; repair its breaches, for it totters. 3You have made your people see hard things; you have given us wine to drink that made us stagger. 4You have set up a banner for those who fear you, that they may flee to it from the bow. Selah 5 That your beloved ones may be delivered, give salvation by your right hand and answer us!

Psalm 60:3–5 (The Message)

3–5 You made your people look doom in the face, then gave us cheap wine to drown our troubles. Then you planted a flag to rally your people, an unfurled flag to look to for courage.Now do something quickly, answer right now, so the one you love best is saved.

The-LORD-Is-My-Banner (Hebrew YAHWEH NISSI): A banner is the polelike standard beneath which armies or communities rallied. When lifted up, it called the people together for battle, for meeting, or for instruction. This phrase also could have been a battle cry. Erecting an altar was Moses’ recognition of the presence of God. At this altar, he was honoring God as the giver of victory over the Amalekites.[9]

B. Our only hope is An Appeal to Heaven

An Appeal to Heaven. Moses lifting up his hands is an appeal to heaven.We also see this in Washington's Battle Flag:

The Tree Flag, featuring a pine tree with the motto “An Appeal to Heaven” or sometimes “An Appeal to God” was used originally by a squadron of six cruiser ships commissioned under George Washington’s authority as commander in chief of the Continental Army in October 1775.

The design of the flag came from General Washington’s secretary, Colonel Joseph Reed. The pine tree had long been a New England symbol being depicted on the Flag of New England flown by colonial merchant ships dating back to 1686. Leading up to the Revolutionary War it became a symbol of Colonial ire and resistance.

The colonists resented the restrictions on the timber used for their needs and livelihoods. Prohibitions were disregarded and they practiced “Swamp Law,” where the pines were harvested according to their needs regardless of statutes.

In New Hampshire enforcement led to the Pine Tree Riot in 1772, one of the first acts of forceful protest against British policies. It occurred almost two years prior to the more well-known Boston Tea Party protest and three years before open hostilities began at the Battles of Lexington and Concord. The pine tree was also used on the flag that the Colonists flew at the Battle of Bunker Hill in June 1775.

The phrase “Appeal to Heaven” is a particular expression of the right of revolution used by British philosopher John Locke in Second Treatise on Civil Government which was published in 1690 as part of Two Treatises of Government refuting the theory of the divine right of kings.

Locke’s works were well-known and frequently quoted by colonial leaders, being the most quoted authority on government in the 1760-1776 period prior to American independence.

Prior to Colonel Reed’s suggestion, “an appeal to Heaven” had been invoked by the Patrick Henry in his Liberty or Death speech, and the Second Continental Congress in the Declaration of the Causes and Necessity of Taking Up Arms. Subsequently, the phrase was used again by the Second Continental Congress in the Declaration of Independence.[10]

APPEAL TO HEAVEN - HISTORY

John Lockeused the Appeal to Heaven phrase in his work, Two Treatises of Government.: "What is my Remedyagainst a Robber, that so broke into my House? Appeal to the Law for Justice. But perhaps Justice is denied, or I am crippled and cannot stir, robbed and have not the means to do it. If God has taken away all means of seeking remedy, there is nothing left but patience. But my Son, when able, may seek the Relief of the Law, which I am denied: He or his Son may renew his Appeal, till he recover his Right. But the Conquered, or their Children, have no Court, no Arbitrator on Earth to appeal to. Then they may appeal, as Jephtha did, to Heaven, and repeat their Appeal, till they have recovered the native Right of their Ancestors, which was to have such a Legislative over them, as the Majority should approve, and freely acquiesce in."

Appeal to Heaven Flag

· After all other alternatives of seeking justice have been exhausted, only an "appeal to heaven" remains.

· Colonists who saw it were reminded to be wholly reliant upon heaven and the God Who reigns supreme.

· Their focus was Jesus Christ, and their concern was living by conviction without fear of a worldly cost.

Considering the warfare of our generation, it defies logic for a soldier to enter battle carrying a flag rather than a sword or a gun. When the man carrying the flag was wounded or killed in battle, another man dropped his weapon to pick up the flag. The flying of the flag established the identity not only of the soldiers, but of those they fought to defend. Leaving their identity on the ground was never an option.

Some flags are flown and emblems are worn to show what a person is — status symbols. The Appeal to Heaven flag is flown or worn to show who a person is — a man or woman who does not look to men or government for approval, but lives by the principle of their convictions and appeals to the Almighty for protection, provision, and justice. [11]

· Here is a picture of the Appeal to Heaven Flag

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· This is a picture of my house. We fly the Appeal to Heaven everyday

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C. The Tallit is a reminder of being under God’s presence

Numbers 15:37–41 (ESV)

Tassels on Garments

37 The Lordsaid to Moses, 38 “Speak to the people of Israel, and tell them to make tassels on the corners of their garments throughout their generations, and to put a cord of blue on the tassel of each corner. 39 And it shall be a tassel for you to look at and remember all the commandments of the Lord, to do them, not to follow after your own heart and your own eyes, which you are inclined to whore after. 40 So you shall remember and do all my commandments, and be holy to your God. 41 I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt to be your God: I am the Lordyour God.”

The Tallit, meaning fringes, has come to be known as the prayer shawl that is worn during prayer by Jews.

You can think of it as praying under God’s covering.

When I attended Messianic Shabbat services, there was a point in the service where the head of the family would take the tallit and cover their family, asking for God’s blessing and presence over the family.

By covering yourself with the Tallit you are declaring God’s righteousness over your life. You are submitting to His will. You are declaring that you are under His banner.

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1) God commanded that a cord of blue be put in the tassel

This color blue is called tekhelet. This blue comes from a snail or mollusk found only in ancient Israel called Murex trunculus. It is known to Jews as chilazon. It has been extinct since a little after Jesus’ time.

The unique blue dye was made from a byproduct of a sea creature known as the chilazon, which lives in the Mediterranean Sea.[12]

Since the Jews returned to Israel and the movement of Messianic Jews(Believing in Yeshua) has sprung up, this snail has re-emerged.

So why is it not so common today to have a tekhelet fringe on the tallit or tzitzit?

At a certain point in history, approximately 1000 years ago, the chilazon, which was always hard to come by—to the extent that the Talmud tells us that it surfaced only once every seventy years—became unavailable altogether. After a while, its exact identity became unknown.[13]

The bluedye coming from this snail was the only blue dye that could be used. It did not fade or run. Since it represents God’s righteousness (and our righteousness in Him)

A century ago, Isaac Herzog,[He is the grandfather of the current president of Israel] who would later become Israel’s first chief rabbi, researched tekhelet for his dissertation. He concluded that blue in the Bible was a bright sky-bluederived from the secretions of a sea snail, Murex trunculus.*This species was known to produce a murex dye the color of dark purple. Decades after Herzog’s death, chemist Otto Elsner proved that murex dye could in fact produce a sky-blue color by exposing the snail secretions to ultraviolet rays during the dyeing process. Sky-blue tzitzit, then, could be made with murex dye.[14]

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You have to hold it up to the sky during the dying process for it to turn blue!

God’s chosen color for the ancient Israelites. Tekhelet drapes adorned Solomon’s Temple, and tekhelet robes were worn by Israel’s high priests.

· God reveals his presence standing on sapphire (blue)

Exodus 24:9–10 (ESV)

9 Then Moses and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel went up, 10 and they saw the God of Israel. There was under his feet as it were a pavement of sapphire stone,like the very heaven for clearness.

· God’s Throne was sapphire (blue)

Ezekiel 1:26 (ESV)

26 And above the expanse over their heads there was the likeness of a throne, in appearance like sapphire; and seated above the likeness of a throne was a likeness with a human appearance.

· Blue and white are the colors of royalty

Esther 8:15 (ESV)

15 Then Mordecai went out from the presence of the king in royal robes of blue and white, with a great golden crown and a robe of fine linen and purple, and the city of Susa shouted and rejoiced.

2) What does all this mean?

The Tallit is a symbol of being under God’s covering. It was used to cover your family at shabbat. It was used to cover a marriage ceremony.

It is like a banner. Our authority comes when we are under His authority. Submitting to Him first.

II. To move in God’s Authority you must use his name

Acts 4:13–22 (ESV)

13 Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated, common men, they were astonished. And they recognized that they had been with Jesus. 14 But seeing the man who was healed standing beside them, they had nothing to say in opposition. 15 But when they had commanded them to leave the council, they conferred with one another, 16 saying, “What shall we do with these men? For that a notable sign has been performed through them is evident to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and we cannot deny it. 17 But in order that it may spread no further among the people, let us warn them to speak no more to anyone in this name.” 18 So they called them and charged them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. 19 But Peter and John answered them, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, you must judge, 20 for we cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard.” 21 And when they had further threatened them, they let them go, finding no way to punish them, because of the people, for all were praising God for what had happened. 22 For the man on whom this sign of healing was performed was more than forty years old.

Notes from the ESV study Bible on the above verse:

Though the leaders of the council charged them not to speak or teach … in the name of Jesus, Peter realized the impossibility of abiding by this prohibition, thus demonstrating that believers have the responsibility not to obey authorities when such authorities prohibit preaching the gospel or otherwise require Christians to disobey God’s explicit commandments[15]

John 14:12–14 (ESV)

12 “Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do, because I am going to the Father. 13 Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. 14 If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it.

E.M. Bounds, who authored several powerful books on prayer, said of the above verse:

How wonderful are these statements of what God will do in answer to prayer! Of how great importance these ringing words, prefaced, as they are, with the most solemn verity! Faith in Christ is the basis of all working, and of all praying. All wonderful works depend on wonderful praying, and all praying is done in the Name of Jesus Christ. Amazing lesson, of wondrous simplicity, is this praying in the name of the Lord Jesus! All other conditions are depreciated, everything else is renounced, save Jesus only. The name of Christ—the Person of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ—must be supremely sovereign, in the hour and article of prayer.[16]

God’s Authority comes by being under His banner and under His Authority. It is only expressed In the Name of Jesus!

III. Will you take up God’s authority?

Will you be one to confront the Amalek spirit that rages in our world today by moving in the Spirit and taking up God’s authority to cast down the strongholds that are confronting us today?

A. Speak the word in Jesus’ name

John 1:1–5 (ESV)

1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. 4 In him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

B. Speak to the mountain

Mark 11:22–25 (ESV)

22 And Jesus answered them, “Have faith in God. 23 Truly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says will come to pass, it will be done for him. 24 Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. 25 And 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.”

Jesus on “Faith’s Confession,” FAITH’S CONFESSION. From Jesus’ own lips we receive the most direct and practical instruction concerning our exercise of faith. Consider three points: 1) It is to be “in God.” Faith that speaks is first faith that seeks. The Almighty One is the Source and Grounds of our faith and being. Faith only flows to Him because of the faithfulness that flows fromHim. 2) Faith is not a trick performed with our lips, but a spoken expression that springs from the conviction of our hearts. The idea that faith’s confession is a “formula” for getting things from God is unbiblical. But the fact that the faith in our hearts is to be spoken, and thereby becomes active and effective toward specific results, is taught here by the Lord Jesus. 3) Jesus’ words “whatever things” apply this principle to every aspect of our lives. The only restrictions are (a) that our faith be “in God” our living Father and in alignment with His will and word; and (b) that we “believe”—not doubting in our hearts. Thus, “speaking to the mountain” is not a vain or superstitious exercise or indulgence in humanistic mind-science, but instead becomes an applied release of God’s creative word of promise.[17]

John 14:12–14 (ESV)

[1]Dake, Finis Jennings. The Dake Annotated Reference Bible. Dake Publishing, 1997. [2] Richard R. Losch, All the People in the Bible: An A–Z Guide to the Saints, Scoundrels, and Other Characters in Scripture (Grand Rapids, MI; Cambridge, U.K.: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2008), 28. [3] Richard R. Losch, All the People in the Bible: An A–Z Guide to the Saints, Scoundrels, and Other Characters in Scripture (Grand Rapids, MI; Cambridge, U.K.: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2008), 109. [4]The current global crisis stems from a rejection of God - LifeSite (lifesitenews.com) [5]Phil Zuckerman, April 2, 2021The Los Angelas Times [6]ibid [7]ibid [8]The current global crisis stems from a rejection of God - LifeSite (lifesitenews.com) [9] Jack W. Hayford, ed., Spirit Filled Life Study Bible, electronic ed. (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 1997), Ex 17:15. [10](From: https://repcmiller.com/2019/04/04/george-washington-appeal-to-heaven-flag-helps-focus-attention-on-national-day-of-prayer-on-may-2nd/) [11]From: www.appealtoheaven.org [12]Tekhelet: The Mystery of the Long-Lost Biblical Blue Thread [13]ibid [14]biblicalarchaeology.org [15]Crossway Bibles, The ESV Study Bible (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2008), 2088. [16]Edward Bounds, Complete Works of E. M. Bounds(WORDsearch, 2003). [17]Jack W. Hayford, ed., Spirit Filled Life Study Bible, electronic ed. (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 1997), Mk 11:20.

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