Blog In Audio:
Greetings,
Today I am in Portugal and will be heading home tomorrow after more than three weeks on the road. God has been wonderful in South Africa, Angola, and Portugal. I am blessed with the many lives that have been touched by our Father’s love. I am looking forward to going home to my family now.
A key to living in the presence of God in our lives is to allow Him to transform the dry places of our hearts to a watered garden of God’s presence.
The first curse of the fall was that of spiritual warfare for mankind in the earth. The enemy has been bound to the realm of natural dust. As a result, we are in a continual conflict of spiritual warfare with the Devil and spiritual powers of darkness. Spiritual warfare can be defined as a temptation of other life sources. Life is a journey. Without the reality of a relationship with God, we are bound to a journey going from one thing to another thing in search of life. In this perpetual process of searching, we soon find that everything we cling to for life fails to provide us true life. It quickly proves to be a false source of life that cannot satisfy the cry of eternity within our hearts (Eccl. 3:11).
Genesis 3:14 So the LORD God said to the serpent: “Because you have done this, you are cursed more than all cattle, and more than every beast of the field; on your belly you shall go, and you shall eat dust all the days of your life. 15 And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel.”
Wherever there is dust, a spiritual power of Satan must be there. That spirit is one of deception, conflict, and destruction. Dust is a dry place in our lives. What does a dry place look like? A dry place is a place that seeks to fill eternity in our hearts with something less than God. It is bitter and self-seeking in its desire.
James 3:14 But if you have bitter envy and self-seeking in your hearts, do not boast and lie against the truth. 15 This wisdom does not descend from above, but is earthly, sensual, demonic. 16 For where envy and self-seeking exist, confusion and every evil thing are there.
When we seek the fulfillment of our hearts in something other than God it proves to be earthly, sensual, and even a place of demonic inspiration. The apostle Paul was aware of this when he wrote to the church of Corinth that was looking for life in other sources than Christ.
Is it possible to be a Christian yet be influenced by the deceptions of the enemy? Christ in us is the hope of glory. The life of God comes from within us. The Holy Spirit empowers our spirit to bring life to our soul. To avail the life of the Spirit we must draw upon that life to our soul. It comes by our spirit made one with Holy Spirit. Holy Spirit sanctifies our spirit that we might be holy as our Father is holy.
2 Corinthians 11:3 But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. 4 For if he who comes preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or if you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted—you may well put up with it!
In these verses Paul was writing that the believes should be in relationship with Jesus and not other things. He was concerned that they could be deceived as Eve was deceived. The context was one of being deceived, not sin unto death. Does one know how they have been deceived? They don’t! It is deceptive! That is why it is called ‘deception’. The criteria for being deceived is receiving a different Jesus, a different spirit than the life-giving Spirit of God, and a different good news. Preaching another Jesus is another God saves – another salvation. It is receiving another means by which to be saved or receiving a different spirit which we did not receive that brought us the life of God. Deception involves a different means of salvation, a different spirit, and a different good news. If something other than a relationship with God through the Holy Spirit becomes a source of salvation, a motivation of our hearts, and a testimony of good news to our lives – it will result in deception. We will end up with a demonic influence that we find ourselves having to put up with.
The victory in spiritual warfare is to be a resting place of dwelling for the Spirit of God. Our primary responsibility in life is to be a dwelling place for God by His Spirit. This is the power over deceptions, conflicts, and the devouring agendas of every enemy.
Blessings,
Ted J. Hanson
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House of Bread Ministry
3210 Meridian St.
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