by | Spiritual Warfare
Isn’t it interesting how one simple word can mean so much? For the last several years I’ve chosen one word to live by for the year. In the past I’ve chosen trust, intentional, productive, radical, rest, grace.
Last year I chose grace. I’m great at showing others grace, but not so much myself. I needed a reminder to give myself grace. To let myself fail. To let myself get back up. To treat myself better. To love myself the way Christ loves me. To remember who I am in Christ again. I lost that for a while.
I’ve been asking the Lord for the last month or so what word He wanted me to choose and I just kept hearing Warfare. I asked Him again multiple times just in case He’d made a mistake, but it just keeps coming back. I guess I will embrace it.
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by | Spiritual Warfare
I’ve heard this a few different times from different people: “If Jesus didn’t talk about specific demons in the Bible, then how do we know casting them out is Biblical?” That’s a legitimate question.
I answer it this way. When a scientist creates a new form of medication to combat a specific struggle, using diabetes for example, he spends an adequate amount of time researching how to find the right formula to treat the disease. God gave him the gift of science and wisdom to understand. As he continues to research, he finds more and more evidence to move his progress forward. And because of that, diabetics are able to use insulin to regulate their blood sugar.
God does the same for us when it comes to deliverance ministry. He provides wisdom through prayer, revealing the darkness to those seeking the truth. Just because He doesn’t name every demon in the Bible, doesn’t mean they aren’t real. Satan would love us to think that.
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by | Spiritual Warfare
Let’s talk about hard stuff, shall we? Hard stuff like demons and whether or not a Christian can be possessed.
Let’s talk first about why we need to address this topic. Why I’m choosing to bring light to it. Because it’s past time for the church to start talking about spiritual warfare. It’s time for the church to stop pretending like warfare is simply something Jesus experienced when he was alive. We must stop pretending warfare only happens in the movies.
Why do so many people get freaked out when we start talking about Satan, demons, deliverance, etc? Because we’re afraid of something we haven’t been taught. Maybe we get scared because others have taught us to be scared. Not one single time in Scripture that I’ve found does it tell us to be scared of the dark forces of evil in this world.
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by | Faith Lived Out, Spiritual Warfare
No, deliverance isn’t just a movie about banjos and Burt Reynolds. It’s also not Linda Blair’s head spinning. It is a gift that reaches beyond Hollywood – something we should ALL be grasping onto like our lives depend on it – because our lives depend on it.
If you look up the definition of deliverance, it is the action of being rescued or set free. Set free from what? Ah… that’s where the controversy comes in and opinions scatter.
My friend, deliverance isn’t just another opinion. It’s not just another Christianese word. It’s a gift to the world from God – a gift that we accept few and far between. I hope during my short life here on earth I play a role in changing that. My prayer is for all of us to receive this gift.
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