A Modern Woman's Perspective On The Kingdom of God on Earth


Showing posts with label Heavenly Host. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Heavenly Host. Show all posts

September 16, 2022

The Heavenly Realms Are Waging A Spiritual War! Are the Saints Ready to Engage?


Sometimes I honestly wonder if the Body of Christ understands the concept of the spiritual war that we are engaged in. Do we comprehend that Satan has an angelic force of battle-hardened warriors with thousands of years of experience? Do we grasp that he actually knows he's been defeated by the birth and death of Christ, but he also knows he's got nothing left to lose by waging all-out war against the saints until the time of his ultimate defeat? And what gives him that confidence that he can prolong this war across the heavenly realms?

All it takes to appreciate his arrogance is for us to look at the state of the world, and our own country, to know that the devil has no fear that the saints are a match for his evil and wicked purposes. He has struck at the foundations of God's holy principles and met very little resistance. He has been able to attack the sanctity of life; destroy the rule of law in an ordered society; and replace the worship of God, Himself, with idols of money, power and privilege. He's well aware that the saints have been given instructions to fight against him, and have even been given a suit of spiritual armor with which to battle. But how many Christians can tell you what that armor consists of, how to use it to fight, or even attempt to put it on? Until we stand up in our identity and our power, we will have an enemy who will continue to rage against the followers of Christ. 

If you have been following my blog since I began in 2011, then you have seen the direction the Lord has taken me and my various transitions ... from developing my Biblical worldview; to understanding that I am not to be a passive Christian waiting to go to Heaven, but rather am responsible for taking care of my physical and spiritual needs; through my awakening to my power, authority, and the Gospel of the Kingdom of God; to becoming a true disciple of Christ and doing what He did... fighting back against the kingdom of darkness and it's oppression [in both the physical and spiritual realms].

This concept that there is interaction between the spiritual and physical realms is a difficult position for Christians to accept. Most modern Christians don't see the unseen world from the same point of view as the ancient Biblical writers. Early Christians were familiar with the invisible world of the spiritual realm. They interacted with it! The prophets in the Old Testament continually gave witness as intermediaries between the spiritual and physical worlds for people who could not see. God opened the eyes of His prophets so they could see into the spiritual realm and explain what they saw to the people.  

Ezekiel saw wheels moving in unison. Isaiah saw "the Lord, high and exalted seated on a throne; and the train of his robe filled the temple." He also saw the angels that surrounded that majestic throne. Elisha was able to assist his servant to see into the spiritual realm during a frightening episode when their city was surrounded by an army of horses and chariots.  Elisha prayed, "Open his eyes, LORD, so that he may see." Then the LORD opened the servant's eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha (2 Kings 6:17). He actually saw the spiritual war taking place on the earth!

But it wasn't only the Old Testament Prophets and Patriarchs who had knowledge and experience of this interaction. Stephen described what he saw in the spiritual realm, just as he was about to be stoned to death: "Look," he said, "I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God" (Acts 7:54-56). Peter was released from prison by a spiritual intervention:  "Suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared and a light shone in the cell. He struck Peter on the side and woke him up. "Quick, get up!" he said, and the chains fell off Peter's wrists" (Acts 12:7). There was a spiritual battle going on over both Stephen and Peter in each of these instances, just as there was when Daniel prayed for 21 days during the reign of King Cyrus. As he prayed and fasted, he had a vision in which a messenger angel [assumed to be Gabriel] told him that God had heard his prayers, but he [the angel] had been held up because he was battling with "the prince of the kingdom of Persia" until, Michael, the archangel, had come to his rescue to help him defeat Satan's angelic army.

It must be understood that "the prince of the kingdom of Persia" denotes a high-ranking demonic angel who has been assigned by Satan to battle in the spiritual realm on behalf of Satan's interests in the nation of Persia. Michael is a "great captain" in the Lord's angelic army, assigned to protect the children of Israel. He is a warrior angel, fighting in the spiritual realms on behalf of all who belong to Christ. So, it is imperative, if we are to serve our Lord as He has purposed us to do, then we must recognize and acknowledge that there is an invisible world just as real as this physical one, and it comprises the spiritual realm. It was created just as certainly as this rock we live on. 

These two realms overlap and the fallen angels that aligned with Satan at their fall from Heaven have access to our realm [along with their forces], but we are not powerless to withstand them! We need to understand that we have access to Jesus and the power of God -- the same power that He used in His ministry on earth to deal with those collaborators with the Enemy. And He has given us His permission to call upon those powers (it is His Name that activates them!) to resist the devil and his schemes to oppress us. That is our Authority! And there is a Heavenly army consisting of legions of angels just waiting for us to engage in this war and ask the Lord to activate them!

These forces of the Enemy are in operation now at full speed; they know their time is running out and they aim to weaken the saints as they plan their final assault. We desperately need to understand and see the spiritual war we are involved in! We need to know --- I mean really know, deep in our spirit -- that there is a visible and invisible world that intersect, and we are in the middle of a cosmic conflict that has eternal implications. The souls of every man, woman, and child on this earth depends on us knowing that! And we need to know that the Enemy seeks to blind us, and convince us that this is not real, let alone Scriptural. And he has been winning on that front for quite awhile now. The state of misery that so many in the world are experiencing is proof of that.

So I can imagine that Satan is none too happy that more of us are waking up to the Biblical truth that Spiritual Warfare is part of our commission as the Body of Christ. Our eternal Victory has been won on the Cross for those of us who call Jesus our Savior.  But there are millions of lost souls who are in the cross hairs of the Enemy, and it is our calling to not only share our salvation story, but our purpose to advance the Kingdom of God on earth -- to occupy the territory we have been given until Jesus returns. With that, we can expect skirmishes, battles, and sometimes all-out war with the Adversary. And that means that we need to be more vigilant than ever to put on our full spiritual armor, as Paul advises in Ephesians 6. 

We need to understand that the armor is both defensive and offensive. We need not be afraid or timid, or go searching for the fight. We just need to stand firm in the knowledge that there is power in the Name of Jesus, and we have access to it and the authority to use it. If we could see into the spiritual realms, I believe we would see the battle formations in place; we would see the fierce fighting of the forces of Good and Evil. But we must recognize the part we play in this cosmic war; and it's going to take more than worship and praise, although those are mighty weapons for encouragement. But we've got to move beyond religious displays that are devoid of power [and which have no effect on the devil's armies], and we must engage with boldness ... in our speech, in our actions, and in prayer partnership with our personal angels, the angels assigned to our ministries, and the angels that preside over our nation to bring it back into heavenly alignment. And finally, we know that as the Lord of Hosts, Jesus is Commander of the heavenly armies and He will soon ride in judgment of the earth. Let us not sit idle in our spiritual power, but be suited up in our spiritual armor to become conquerors alongside Him in the heavenly realms. With the recognition that this is our reality, we can expect to see the victories that will allow us to fulfill our purpose on earth. And that is what God and Jesus desire for us! 

#spiritualwarfare #spiritualwar #angelichost #warinthespiritualrealms

1 Thessalonians 5:6   So then, let us not be like others, who are asleep, but let us be awake and sober.


 

 

 

February 19, 2022

A Prayer For The World

 I was awakened early this morning with a prompting to write a prayer for those who will find their way to this post. I honestly don't know what words will flow as the Holy Spirit leads me. So, I pray that you hear what you need to hear in your own spirits, just as my spirit cries out to our Father in Heaven... 

Father, I come before your throne this morning humbled and repentant. I ask for forgiveness for all my sins against You, and the sins of my nation. I ask that You extend Your compassion and mercy as I approach You with a heavy heart. Just as so many in the world are experiencing, I received news yesterday of a dear Sister in Christ who has been given a diagnosis that has rocked her world. It came out of nowhere and seems to be connected to a recent bout with Covid. Father, the world has been devastated by far too many of these diagnoses. Lives across the globe have been shattered, and those of us who know You are aware of the unholy roots of this contagion. We cry out for justice!

Father, we believe and trust in Your heavenly government on this earth, and I pray that the true Church will stand in their role as Your Ekklesia -- Your governing body to see Your righteous will done in every circumstance. Rule from on High, King Jesus and give us heavenly strategies! We know we are in a fierce spiritual battle against Evil, and we call on Your Heavenly Host to fight for us and alongside us. Give us the courage to stand our ground, the wisdom to hear only Your voice, and the power of Your mighty arm to defeat every adversary sent by the Enemy. 

And Father, the world seems poised on the brink of a global war. Are we truly at the point that, just like in the days of Noah, "every imagination or intent of the thoughts of man's heart is only evil continually"? Do you recognize any of us as righteous, or are we all tainted by the corruption, greed, and perversion of those who have chosen to follow the Evil One? Father, Your Word has proven over and over that You save a righteous remnant for Your purpose. Let us be among those You use to restore Your Name in the hearts of humanity! Let it not be too late to please You, Father! Show us how to battle in the spirit against the agents of the devil, and how to sow seeds of Justice and Mercy in the lives of those who need to know You. Establish us in our spheres of influence so that others might see You through the ways we do Your work in our daily lives. Let us be beacons of hope for a better world, even as we show them that we never take off our spiritual armor. 

Lord Jesus, I have had the joy of seeing so many beautiful babies being brought into this confusing world, and for their sake, I pray that we can partner with You to turn this ship around. Help us to stop the perversion of Your design for humanity ... help us to stop the confusion over gender identity; the glorification of racism; and, Lord, stop the trafficking of their innocent bodies and souls! Help us to defeat the Beast System that is trying to infiltrate every aspect of our lives -- from the structure of our families, to our schools, our forms of government, and even our Churches. As a whole, we have lost our way, but You still have an obedient remnant who humble ourselves before You, confessing that we let down our guard, and we ask for forgiveness and another chance to do right!

Deliver us from these Evil times, Father! Turn the hearts of men back to You! We implore You to turn Your righteous anger and wrath upon those who have defiled Your Name and sought only evil and wickedness. We don't deserve it, but we know we have a Savior who has redeemed us, and we glorify the Name of Yeshua Hamashiach! He is the King of Kings and no man is above Him! So, Father, we ask that you cleanse our land and the world. Bring low those who would seek to sit on Your throne, and reveal the battle we are in to the blind and self-centered. We long to see Your glory on the earth and in the lives of our loved ones. Let Your Peace reign in every heart and heal us from all our pain. Give us not a spirit of fear, but give us steadfast faith as we walk in the power and authority of Jesus in us! I thank you for hearing this prayer and all the prayers that will accompany it. We bow before you and declare our love and allegiance. Thank You, Father, and we shout out loud that all the Power and all the Glory and all the Kingdoms of the world are Yours! Amen!

Zephaniah 3:9    Then I will give to the peoples [clear and pure speech from] purified lips [which reflect their purified hearts],
That all of them may call on the name of the Lord, To serve Him shoulder to shoulder (united).

 

October 7, 2020

Understanding The "Hosts" of God

 

I wanted to take a slight detour today to shine a light on a subject that needs some clarification. Unless you're one who delights [as I do] in studying the etymology of the Bible, then what I'm writing about today may have escaped you. I love researching the origin of words in the Bible and the historical understanding of them. As happens quite often, I have found that our 21st Century Greek mindset can sometimes assign a broad definition to a word, when in fact, taken in context, the word can render a completely different awareness of the nature of God. So forgive me if I take you on what is a typical journey for me. 

I started my research while preparing for a Bible study lesson with my mother-in-law. We are in the Book of Matthew, and what I think is probably one of the most fascinating and difficult parables is the Parable of the Wedding [or Marriage] Feast. Jesus begins by saying, “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a wedding feast for his son, and sent his servants to call those who were invited to the wedding feast, but they would not come. Again he sent other servants, saying, ‘Tell those who are invited, “See, I have prepared my dinner, my oxen and my fat calves have been slaughtered, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding feast.”’ But they paid no attention and went off, one to his farm, another to his business, while the rest seized his servants, treated them shamefully, and killed them. The king was angry, and he sent his troops and destroyed those murderers and burned their city.

It is not too difficult to discern that "the king" in the parable is God, the Father, who is giving a wedding feast for His "son" (Jesus), and sends His "servants" (the prophets) to call "those who were invited" (the Jews) to the feast. But when they refused the invitation and then mistreated and killed His prophets, God became angry, and the Bible says "He sent His troops and destroyed those murderers and burned their city". 

Now, I know that is a difficult passage to accept ... God sends His "troops" to murder and burn the city of the Jews, which must rightfully be interpreted as Jerusalem. Can this be true? Does God send "troops" against His own people? We know that the parable goes on to tell us that God then sends more prophets to invite guests who had not been previously invited, which would be the Gentiles [and includes us]. But I want to concentrate on that image of an angry God who sent His "troops" against His own. Is it just a story, or is it found in history? And does God have an army other than the Heavenly Host of angels that we are familiar with?

First of all, I looked at various versions of this parable and found that the word "troops" is used here in the English Standard Version (ESV); "soldiers" is used in the Amplified Version (AMP); and "armies" is used in the King James Version (KJV). So, obviously this is a military image Jesus is painting for us, and He doesn't hide the fact that the Father was angry. And we can't ignore that this picture is being presented in the New Testament, where the usual interpretation of God's army is the "Heavenly Host"; an army of angels. Now, can we also agree that this angelic army [or "host"] does the Father's bidding and is organized for war? But our typical comprehension is that God's host goes to war against Satan and his army. So, again, is this parable of God bringing an army against His own people borne out in history? 

Well, in 721 BC, God used the Assyrians to destroy the northern kingdom of Israel and took all the tribes into captivity, except for the southern kingdom of the tribes of Judah and Benjamin. In 586 BC, God used Nebuchadnezzar to destroy the Temple in Jerusalem and take Judah into captivity in Babylon. They are in captivity for 70 years in Babylon until King Cyrus lets them return to Jerusalem and rebuild the Temple. And after the Jews reject Jesus as their Messiah and He is crucified, God sends the Roman troops to Jerusalem, once again destroying and burning the Temple in 70 AD.

 

The parable represents a disobedient and rebellious people who time and again turn their backs on God, and it results in a severe reprimand. God is obviously using nations as His disciplinarian "army". Is this a theme found only in the Old Testament and do we find any evidence that God can [and still will] choose this form of disciplining His sons and daughters? We can certainly find several such warnings in the Old Testament before God sent His Son to deliver us. In Deuteronomy 28:47-48, God shares what the curses for disobedience can look like: Because you did not serve the Lord your God with joyfulness and gladness of heart, because of the abundance of all things [He has given you], therefore you shall serve your enemies whom the Lord will send against you, in hunger and thirst, in nakedness, and lacking everything. And he will put a yoke of iron on your neck until he has destroyed you. 

 

In Jeremiah 30:8, we find God promising restoration from His discipline: And it shall come to pass in that day, declares the Lord of hosts, that I will break his yoke from off your neck, and I will burst your bonds, and foreigners shall no more make a servant of him. Yet, in verse 11, He still makes it clear that disobedience comes with a price: For I am with you to save you, declares the Lord; I will make a full end of all the nations among whom I scattered you, but of you I will not make a full end. I will discipline you in just measure, and I will by no means leave you unpunished.


I don't know about you, but both those passages read as if they could have been spoken over our nation. And here's where it gets really interesting ... Joel, Chapter 2, is well-known as "The Day of the Lord", and it tells of a mighty army who charges and scales walls. They do not swerve from their paths; they burst through the weapons and are not halted. I have heard modern-day Christians described as this "Joel 2 Army", and that they represent a return to the Lord, walking out the lifestyle portrayed in Joel 2:12–17 of fasting and praying. But I believe that is a misunderstanding of the overall context of the entire chapter. I believe this Chapter again portrays the nature of God to destroy [in His sovereignty].

 

Joel 2:11 tells us that He will come with His heavenly army to once and for all destroy the nations loyal to Satan's evil agenda: The Lord utters His voice before His army, for His camp is exceedingly great; He who executes His word is powerful. For the day of the Lord is great and very awesome; who can endure it? And then, in verse 25, He makes a promise to the children of Zion, while letting them know He was the source of their discipline:  "I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten, the hopper, the destroyer, and the cutter, My great army, which I sent among you."

 

So, we have plenty of examples of God using nations as His disciplinary troops against a rebellious member of His family. And lest you think all that discipline is only reserved for the Old Testament or the end of the Great Tribulation, let's take a look at another familiar passage, but from the perspective of the Father's discipline. In Roman's 13:1-4, Paul reminds us that God is still able to send "rulers" and "authorities" to avenge His demand for obedience and righteousness. And, as history shows us, these authorities don't necessarily represent Godliness. They might be set over us to discipline us for our rebellious ways. [That should make every one of us get on our knees and pray!] Here is Paul's warning:  Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment. For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad. Would you have no fear of the one who is in authority? Then do what is good, and you will receive his approval, for he is God's servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword in vain. For he is the servant of God, an avenger who carries out God's wrath on the wrongdoer.

 

We would do well to remind ourselves that God is Immutable; unchanging over time, or unable to change. He is the same God [with the same nature] as presented in the parable of the Wedding Feast; in Deuteronomy; in Jeremiah, and in Joel. Mind you, this is not His full nature, but one that has been "shoved out of sight", if you will, in what the Church likes to call this "Age of Grace". If we are going to see Him in His fullness, then we need to see all that He is ... a God who is jealous of those He has called and is not afraid to discipline them when necessary; and a God who will soon settle scores -- inflicting His wrath on the Evil in the world by telling His Son to "mount up" with all of His Heavenly army and deliver His Justice. As we come ever nearer to our national election, who will God assign to rule over us? Are we deserving of a righteous ruler? Will God's servant be for our good, or to avenge God for our rebelliousness? Will He restore us, or send us into destruction and captivity? Pray like you've never prayed before and join me in crying, "Come, Lord Jesus, Come!"

 

Revelation 3:19    As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.