He Can Overcome the Struggle with Demons

One of my  precious readers posted this comment in response to  Dangers of Astral Travel 

“look! umm… i beleive in god, christ, and the holy spirit and the bible with all my heart! i do keep having this astral travels thing but i cant help it! it just happens! i tried to avoid it like sleeping in crisscross jaja or to the side but it still happens!

my first experience was when i stayed paralize my second when an evil spirit was trying to choke me but in that second i called for jesus help by saying in the name of jesus christ ur gone! and he left the third is when i saw a grey cloud! and in the same way i made it go away by mentioning jesus to him!

BUT REMEMBER that this keeps happening to me! even if i dont want to! i fight by moving my body! but i read that if it keeps happening to you! this is a msg that something is suppose to be shared with me! but before that i go! i should pray first for the angels to protect me and that let the light of the holy spirit protect me form all evil! should i let myself go with god or i just dont do it at all”

Read my response at Dangers of Astral Travel if you have a similar problem. You will  find the answers that you need.

Blessings!

 

What is the railing accusation that Archangel Michael did not bring against the devil?

1. Introduction

I wrote  yesterday’s post in response to a reader who said that Christians should not rebuke the devil. One of the issues that I addressed was taken from Jude 1: 9 which should be interpreted in light of the  context and Archangel Michael’s position of authority in heaven. I said therefore that the Archangel did not lower himself to the kind of  contention that the devil was involved in. If you read the previous verses, you will understand that the devil was totally disrespectful and spoke evil against the Lord during the contention:

“Likewise also, these filthy dreamers defile the flesh, despise dominion and speak evil of dignities

Yet Michael the Archangel, when  contending with the devil about  the body of Moses; durst not bring against him a railing accusation; but said, the Lord rebuke thee” (Jude 1 :8,9)

 

2. What is the meaning of the railing accusation?

I looked up the Greek word for railing when I wrote yesterday’s post and found that it meant blasphemy. I was puzzled and asked why would the Lord refuse to blaspheme against the devil?  I got the answer at midnight on Monday 12th January as I read the book of Jude. I was reminded about the understanding that I had gained about blasphemy against the Holy Ghost on 26th December 2009. I had just  read Mark 3: 22-30 in which the scribes had offended Jesus to such a degree that He said that this sin will never be forgiven and that they were in danger of hell’s fire.

Jesus called the sin “blasphemy against the Holy Ghost”. Why? The scribes had said that Jesus had been casting out devils by the power of satan. Jesus’ response was that the devil would never destroy his kingdom by fighting against himself.  He explained that He cast out demons by binding the strong man.   Mark 1: 23 & 24 showed that an unclean spirit in a man spoke for more than one. This ruling demon was the strong man.  There are other scriptural examples. We know about His authority because Mark, who was fascinated by Jesus’ power over the kingdom of darkness, reported that the demons were crying out:

“Let us alone. What have we to do with thee, thou Jesus of  Nazareth? Art thou come to destroy us before us. I know thee who thou art, the Holy One of  God” (Mk 1: 24)

” And unclean spirits, when they saw Him, fell down before Him and cried saying, “Thou art the Son of  God” (Mk 3: 11).

Here is the irony. Demons, which are unclean spirits, were crying out in fear and awe, even falling down before Lord Jesus while the scribes or so called religious experts were saying that He was part of that kingdom! In other words, the scribes were saying that Jesus was an unclean spirit or even had an unclean spirit. This is why He became so highly  offended to the point of unforgiveness.  This is the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost. God is Holy and His holiness is demonstrated in scriptures to the point of the destruction of the entire earth in a flood, the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah etc.  Here is an excerpt from the text of Mark 3: 22-30:

“but he that shall blaspheme against the Holy Ghost hath never forgiveness, but is in danger of eternal damnation, because they said, he hath an unclean spirit”

To blaspheme is to say that someone has an unclean spirit. Do not say it against any member of the God family or you are in serious trouble. This could be the equivalent of saying that the top security officials of a nation fighting terrorism are affiliated with terrorist groups, for example. Note that people also blaspheme by commiting sins in the name of the  Lord. For example, certain religious organizations perform wedding rites for  homosexuals and even ordain homosexual ministers. This is also saying that God is an unclean spirit. May God have mercy on them.

3. Why did Apostle Jude then say that Archangel Michael did not bring a railing accusation or blaspheme against satan?

We need to be reminded again that to blaspheme is to refer to someone as an unclean spirit or to even say that they have an unclean spirit. Apostle Jude had written in the context of apostasy and urged the believers to “earnestly contend for the faith” (Jude 1: 3). This was because of false teachers teaching uncleanness and denying that Jesus is God.  Furthermore, he warned the believers that they would be destroyed if they turn away from the truth like the people who came out of Egypt and  were killed in the wilderness because of unbelief.

The Apostle further showed the fate of the rebellious angels (Jude 1: 6) whose example was followed by the bisexual inhabitants of Sodom, Gomorrah and the surrounding cities of the plains. Like the rebellious angels, they were burned in physical flames and now suffer the “vengeance of eternal fire” (Jude 1: 7).  Apostle Jude referred to these fallen angels and sinful people as unclean spirits, calling them “filthy dreamers” who “defile the flesh, despise dominion and speak evil of dignities”.

Apostle Jude used the contention between Archangel Michael and satan to show that the contention for the faith also takes place in the invisible realm. Here is the ruler of the kingdom of darkness, also a filthy dreamer, despising the dominion of the Lord and speaking evil of Him.  Unlike the demons in his domain, the devil is not as fearful, thinking that he is a great ruler of sorts. Facing this onslaught and knowing full well the filthiness and worthlessness of the devil, Archangel Michael did not even rail against the devil about his filthiness, but simply said to him, “the Lord rebuke you”. 

Archangel Michael shows us how to respond to onslaughts from the kingdom of darkness.  He responded to the devil from His position of authority.  Authority  simply speaks the word and the subject must obey. We do not need to get into name calling etc but use the word of the Lord to rebuke demons. Satan had to flee from the Archangel. He knows that he is a subject of the kingdom of Light, albiet a prodigal and a mutineer.

We learn from Apostle Jude that the devil himself is extremely filthy and disrespectful. He must have appeared as an angel of light to Adam and Eve, but we see how he mocked and disrespected the word of the Lord. This is still his strategy in the earth realm.  

Why do I refer to Archangel Michael as the Lord. This is the Law of Equivalency and Prominence as I explained in other posts at http://thelordsangels.wordpress.com. A search of the word archangel will reveal that it is only used one other time in scripture and means “chief of the angels”:

“for the coming of the Lord will not prevent them which are asleep, for the Lord Himself (Jesus and no one else) shall descend from heaven with a shout; with the voice of the archangel (Daniel 10: 6; Rev 1:15) and with the trump of God and the dead in  Christ shall rise first” (1 Thessalonians 5: 15 & 16).

Jesus is also called archangel in addition to all the elements of His name. On the resurrection day, Archangel Jesus will descend from heaven with a shout., whose sound, volume is the one that  only the archangels give.

Blessings and have a great day!

 

God subdues the devil by passing judgements on him and his demons

God subdues the devil and his angels by passing sentences and judgments that cannot change. The devil and the demons are gangs of criminals whose one goal in the earth is to “steal, kill and destroy” (Jn 10:10). Some of them are bound in chains in the bottomless pit called hell, but others roam the earth. They are extremely dangerous and violent criminals whose activity must be stopped by the Police Force comprising of the saints in the earth in collaboration with God and His angels.

Here are some of the decrees that God has passed and that the saints must use when pursuing and arresting these dangerous criminals:

There is no other God beside Him

Every knee must bow to God’s authority

The saints are in authority over the forces of hell

The saints must arrest these dangerous criminals and stop their activity

  “whatsoever you shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven… “ (Mt 18: 18).

“Behold I give you power to tread on serpents and scorpions and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you” (Lk 10: 19).

“I have sworn by myself, the word is gone out of mouth in righteousness and shall not return – that unto me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear” (Isa 45: 23).

God says of Himself – “…there is no God with me…for I lift my hand to heaven , and say, I live forever” (Deut 32: 39-40).

The devil knows his place and submits to God’s authority.

 

How does God triumph over the devil and his demons?

I started by writing about the ways in which God triumphs over the devil and his demons. Pharoah was used as an example to show how  God humiliates the gods or demons that people worship. Psalm 106: 36-38 clearly teaches us that those who worship false gods are actually worshipping demons:

“And they served their idols: which were a snare unto them

Yea, they sacrificed their sons and their daughters unto devils

And shed innocent blood, [even] the blood of their sons and of their daughters, whom they sacrificed unto the idols of Canaan: and the land was polluted with blood”.

Here are some other ways in which God triumphs over the devil and his demons:

• the members of the God family combines forces to fight the devil, in the way in which Michael and Gabriel did (Dan 10).
• Show them no mercy in warfare in the same way that Joshua showed the 31 heathen kings no mercy. Jesus made a public spectacle of the kingdom of darkness
• God releases them from assignments:

And, behold, there was a woman which had a spirit of infirmity eighteen years, and was bowed together, and could in no wise lift up [herself].

And when Jesus saw her, he called [her to him], and said unto her, Woman, thou art loosed from thine infirmity (Lk 13: 11-12).

• God casts them back to the pits of hell – “And they besought him that he would not command them to go out into the deep“ (Lk 8: 31)
• Arrests them  stops their activity – Verily I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven (Mt 18: 18).

Have a great day and follow God’s example. Blessings!

 

The debacle of the Red Sea

You would have thought that Pharaoh had had enough disaster. All the firstborn, including his son, were dead. He called for Moses and told him to leave and leave Egypt NOW! Yet hours or days later, after maybe burying his son, he  decided to take his army and pursue  Moses and the Israelites. He needed vengeance.

Pharaoh smelled success. The Jews were ahead of them. He came up on them as they walked through a highway. He was too ibtent on the pursuit  to notice the walls of water. His Chief General tried to get his attention: “Boss, there’s water on each side of us”. Pharaoh shook off his hand, shouting furiously, ” get the men moving. There will be a reward of one thousand gold coins for the heads of Moses and Aaron”.

He whipped up his horses. His chariots appeared to be gaining on the multitude ahead. Some of his men  quietly deserted, remembering the atrocities committed by Moses’ God.  Eyes glazed, breath steaming, Pharaoh advanced rapidly. He heard a strange rumbling noise and felt his chariot wobbling strangely. He cursed and called his gods for help.

His Chief General appeared- “Boss, the walls are falling in”. As if in a dream, Pharaoh heard him repeating the words. “Get some of the men to form a barrier,” he commanded. “But Boss, it’s water!” For the first time, Pharaoh realized his predicament and turned his chariot.  Rather, he tried to turn it around. Too late, the wheels had just fallen off. Looking around, he saw the pile up of chariots, men and horses – the sweating, wailing horses sensing their destruction.

Looking up to the sky, he cursed Moses’ God and shot his fist upward in defiance, then the waters of the Red Sea swiftly advanced and covered him and his army.

On the other side, there was dancing and celebration as the Jews rejoiced in  their mighty deliverance from their enemy.

 

God spanks the gods of Egypt

Following the plague of lice, God protected the Israelites so that none of the plagues of Egypt came on them.  He continued to publicly humiliate the gods of Egypt with eight other plagues:

1. swarms of flies (Ex 8: 23-24)
2. murrain on humans and beasts (Ex 9: 1-7). This was  a cattle plague
3. boils  (Ex 9: 8). Humorously, the magicians Jannes and Jambres could not stand before Moses because they were overcome with this plague
4. Hail accompanied by thunder and fire, killing people, animals and vegetation (Ex 9: 18-20)
5. Locusts that ate up  crops and covered the land (Ex 10: 12-15)
6. Thick darkness for three days and nights (Ex 10: 21-22)
7. Death of the firstborn in the land, from Pharaoh’s home to the firstborn of prisoners. This also included the firstborn of animals (Ex 12: 29-30). Ex  13: 30 says that   this event  caused a great cry in all of Egypt and Pharaoh let God’s people go.

This was the ultimate  challenge. God had executed  judgement “against all the gods of Egypt”   (Ex 12: 12)  to show that He indeed was the only true and living God and no other

 

The plague of lice

There were frogs everywhere – frogs in the bed, frogs in the tea, frogs in the soup. Pharoah and his people cried out for mercy and begged Moses to stop it please!  However, he hardened his  heart  after the break and once again refused to let the Israelites go free. So God said:

Say unto Aaron, Stretch out thy rod, and smite the dust of the land, that it may become lice throughout all the land of Egypt. And they did so; for Aaron stretched out his hand with his rod, and smote the dust of the earth, and it became lice in man, and in beast; all the dust of the land became lice throughout all the land of Egypt.

And the magicians did so with their enchantments to bring forth lice, but they could not: so there were lice upon man, and upon beast.

Then the magicians said unto Pharaoh, This [is] the finger of God: and Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, and he hearkened not unto them; as the LORD had said (Ex 8: 16-19). Here is an explanation about how God used the plague of lice to embarrass the gods of Egypt: 1. “This plague struck at the heart of all Egyptian worship, especially at their priests. The Egyptian priesthood was extremely scrupulous about hygiene and ritual cleansing and an infestation of lice made them unable to worship their gods. The plague of lice was also upon every beast. The gods of Egypt would not receive the sacrifice of lice-infested animals, so this stopped their sacrificial system”  (http://www.blueletterbible.org/commentaries/comm_view.cfm?AuthorID=2&contentID=7378&commInfo=31&topic=Exodus). Those lice stung and bit Pharoah, his magicians and the citizens of Egypt. Could you imagine the slapping of body parts that took place? God laughed at their calamity (Prov 1: 26). What’s about to happen next? More next time!

 

God humiliates Heqt, the Egyptian god of frogs

God used Moses and Aaron to bring a second plague on the land of Egypt. This one was against the god of frogs:

And the LORD spake unto Moses, Say unto Aaron, Stretch forth thine hand with thy rod over the streams, over the rivers, and over the ponds, and cause frogs to come up upon the land of Egypt.

And Aaron stretched out his hand over the waters of Egypt; and the frogs came up, and covered the land of Egypt.

And the magicians did so with their enchantments, and brought up frogs upon the land of Egypt (Ex 1: 5-7).

Here is the commentary on this plague:

“God threatened a plague of frogs for a specific reason. The Egyptian goddess Heqt was always pictured with the head of a frog. For this reason frogs were considered sacred and could not be killed. God will show the Egyptians the foolishness of a frog-god!

i. Egyptians worshipped the frog as a female goddess because frogs were common around the Nile, because they reproduced rapidly, and because being amphibians they are part of two worlds, creatures of both land and water.” (http://www.blueletterbible.org/commentaries/comm_view.cfm?AuthorID=2&contentID=7378&commInfo=31&topic=Exodus).

Again, like the plague of bloody waters, the magicians were able to mimic this miracle. Why weren’t they able to reverse it? No magician can stop the hand of God once it is outstretched in judgement. Learn this, hosts of hell.

Blessings to my readers and have a great day!

 

God plagued the rivers of Egypt with bloody waters

The power display between the Lord God and the gods of Egypt continued. The Lord told Moses and Aaron to turn the water in its rivers to blood:

And Moses and Aaron did so, as the LORD commanded; and he lifted up the rod, and smote the waters that [were] in the river, in the sight of Pharaoh, and in the sight of his servants; and all the waters that [were] in the river were turned to blood

And the fish that [was] in the river died; and the river stank, and the Egyptians could not drink of the water of the river; and there was blood throughout all the land of Egypt.

And the magicians of Egypt did so with their enchantments: and Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, neither did he hearken unto them; as the LORD had said (Exodus 7:20-22). 

Here is one commentary showing the significance of the first plague that God brought on Egypt:

“c. All the waters that were in the river were turned to blood:

Specifically, this first plague was directed against the numerous Egyptian river deities. The Nile itself was virtually worshipped as a god by the Egyptians, and the Lord God shows that He has complete power over the Nile, not some river god.

i. The Egyptian god Khnum was said to be the guardian of the Nile, and this showed he was unable to protected his territory. The god Hapi was said to be the spirit of the Nile, and was dealt a defeat. The great god Osiris was thought to have the Nile as his bloodstream – now, he is truly bleeding!

ii. In fact, the Nile itself was worshipped as a god, and we have papyri recording hymns sung in praise of the river.”

(http://www.blueletterbible.org/commentaries/comm_view.cfm?AuthorID=2&contentID=7377&commInfo=31&topic=Exodus).

http://gospelcity.com/radio/player.php#

Keep on giving Him the glory due to His name!

 

God makes a public spectacle of demons

The plagues of Egypt are a formidable example of  the public humiliation of the kingdom of darkness and its followers. The book of Exodus shows that God sent Moses to tell Pharoah to let His people go free to serve Him. Pharoah’s response was arrogant:

“Who [is] the LORD, that I should obey his voice to let Israel go? I know not the LORD, neither will I let Israel go. “

God responded with 10 disastrous plagues. Pharoah’s magicians were only able to reproduce 10%. These statistics are very alarming for the kingdom of darkness, showing that its power is indeed limited.

The first miracle that Moses did was to turn a rod into a serpent (Exodus 7: . Here is a commentary on this miracle:

“11. Then Pharaoh also called the wise men and the sorcerers, &c.–His object in calling them was to ascertain whether this doing of Aaron’s was really a work of divine power or merely a feat of magical art. The magicians of Egypt in modern times have been long celebrated adepts in charming serpents, and particularly by pressing the nape of the neck, they throw them into a kind of catalepsy, which renders them stiff and immovable–thus seeming to change them into a rod. They conceal the serpent about their persons, and by acts of legerdemain produce it from their dress, stiff and straight as a rod. Just the same trick was played off by their ancient predecessors, the most renowned of whom, Jannes and Jambres ( 2Ti 3:8 ), were called in on this occasion. They had time after the summons to make suitable preparations–and so it appears they succeeded by their “enchantments” in practising an illusion on the senses.

12. but Aaron’s rod swallowed up their rods–This was what they could not be prepared for, and the discomfiture appeared in the loss of their rods, which were probably real serpents.” (http://www.blueletterbible.org/commentaries/comm_view.cfm?AuthorID=7&contentID=1938&commInfo=6&topic=Exodus)

Blessings and more next time!