the watchman's call

June 01, 2012

the doctrines of demons..

You might have noticed something lately. All around us there are signs of evil but lately there has been a particularly heinous type of evil that has come to light. One only has to read the news stories to know that the work of the devil is rampant and that, “these are days of vengeance, to fulfill all things that have been written” (Luke 21:22 YLT). There are mothers killing their families and then killing themselves. There are so-called “zombies” killing and eating the flesh of their victims – or even themselves. There is infanticide, alarming suicides and terrible stories wherever we turn. It is almost so depressing that Christians can be tempted to despair.

I want to remind all of us of this verse:

1 Timothy 4:1 (NASB)

But the Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons,

We have known for some time that many have fallen away from the faith in Jesus Christ. The reason is because they get disenchanted with the legalism that is taught in the church. The truth is that Jesus doesn’t have anything to do with legalism. He fought against it. However, when people are separated from Jesus Himself, they are left to fend for themselves all alone. This is how they come under the influence of deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons. When we fail to learn from Jesus, we invariably learn from someone – and that someone is the devil.

If God has a plan for us, the devil has one for us too. God’s plan for us is good. The devil’s plan is evil. It is as simple as that. This is the plan of the devil: to erode the love of Jesus in the eyes of man. This is what it says in Matthew 24:12 (YLT): and because of the abounding of the lawlessness, the love of the many shall become cold. As Christians, we know that is impossible so he has to go to the unbelievers and make them think that it is true.

Once the devil deceives a person into letting their love for God grow cold, this is what happens next:

- For years – in some cases 2-3 generations in a family – a large segment of people have not been raised in a Christian belief system.

- Their “faith system” becomes a mixture of different religions or personal beliefs but not based on the truth of Jesus Christ.

- Because there is no covering from Jesus, there is no spiritual protection from demons.

- Because there has been no teaching on prayer, no leaning on God in faith in hard times, no leaning on the fellowship of like-minded Christians, no teaching on the love of Jesus and how to accept and share it, there are no coping skills to deal with the outside world.

Instead they fall prey to a belief system – a doctrine – that was instituted by demons for the sole purpose to spiritually and physically destroy and enslave the human race.

2 Timothy 3:13
But evil men and impostors will proceed from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived.

We know full well that right now things are going from bad to worse. Evil men are getting worse and those being deceived are getting worse. None of this is a surprise. It just confirms that the days of prophecy are upon us. The Tribulation is right around the corner. There is no reason for Christians to despair though. Jesus is coming soon for us in the Rapture. That is good news for us and it helps us to remember to focus on what is important right now, in this moment: Saving souls. If the time is short, unbelievers are caught in this evil, like a spider in a web. They are in desperate need of saving.

The devil knows that his time is short too. So this is the word that the LORD has given me:

Since the beginning of March, the devil has sent his demons into the world out “of vengeance” to wreck havoc in particularly heinous ways within these specific areas:

Murder/Suicides

Breakdown of marriage and or family

Accidents

Mental issues

Repeated Illnesses

Financial breakdown

This is a specific, planned attack by the enemy, particularly on the weekends - a "special" evil anointing from the devil - sent out throughout the world.

We have to recognize it for what it is, know how to deal with it, pray against it before hand and neutralize it with the power of JESUS. If Christians claim that no weapon that is formed against our cities, children, police forces, churches, families, etc shall prosper in the name of JESUS, we will see breakthrough. We will see the devil defeated and we will take back our territories for Jesus.

How to overcome

2 Timothy 3:14-15

14 You, however, continue in the things you have learned and become convinced of, knowing from whom you have learned them, 15 and that from childhood you have known the sacred writings which are able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.

You, however, continue in the things you have learned. How important that is! We have been taught the truth. We have what is pure and what is right inside of us in the form of Jesus Christ. What a comfort that is!

When we hold to the truth of Christ, and when we hold onto the One from which we’ve learned it, we are safe. We will see more and more hideous, heartbreaking things but God is so good that He never gives a warning without giving us the tools to overcome. Verse 14 says to continue on in what we have learned which will bring us the supernatural wisdom that we will need during this time. Keep doing the right things and that foundation of faith and power will continue to hold firm.

We will always have the grace covering and the protection over us as Christians throughout any kind of end-times situation. God will provide wisdom and discernment in all types of challenges. Good news!

~Anne

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April 11, 2012

the image of the finished work..

Here in Revelation 1, we will see the perfect depiction of the finished Christ. We will see what the completed work of the cross looks like.

Revelation 1:9-11 NASB

I, John, your brother and fellow partaker in the tribulation and kingdom and perseverance which are in Jesus, was on the island called Patmos because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. 10 I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day, and I heard behind me a loud voice like the sound of a trumpet, 11 saying, “Write in a book what you see, and send it to the seven churches: to Ephesus and to Smyrna and to Pergamum and to Thyatira and to Sardis and to Philadelphia and to Laodicea.”

When John saw Jesus as he was given the Revelation on the island of Patmos, he saw the completed, perfected, supernatural Jesus.

The last time John had seen Jesus, He was a man, resurrected, triumphant, but still human because He hadn’t ascended to the Father. John hadn’t yet seen the end of the story. He hadn’t known the spiritual side until Jesus appeared to him on Patmos.

In Revelation 1:9-20, we are given a glimpse into the completed cross of Jesus Christ. This passage explains the spiritual, triumphant side of the cross – the other side of the cross. By looking at the complete, perfected Jesus, we will also see the complete, perfected life of the Christian.

No more sin

Revelation 1:12 NASB

Then I turned to see the voice that was speaking with me. And having turned I saw seven golden lampstands

The lampstands are the church. Gold is the color of perfection. Having come through the fiery trial at the cross, Jesus, Who is the center of the Church came forth pure as gold. This gives us the expectation that we, as a unified Church, will do the same, when trials come.

Revelation 1:13 NASB

and in the middle of the lampstands I saw one like a son of man, clothed in a robe reaching to the feet..

Naturally the completed work of the cross includes Jesus standing at the center of the lampstands. He is the center of the Christian Church.

He is permanently clothed. The devil stole the clothes of Jesus at the cross. As sin overtook Jesus and the earth, mankind cast lots for the only possessions Jesus still owned. This robe is the replacement and the first glimpse we have of the finished work and the spiritual side of Jesus’ death. Sin may take away but grace always gives back greater and more permanently. These clothes never wear out.

The death of mortality

Revelation 1:13 NASB

..and girded across His chest with a golden sash.

At the cross, His side was pierced because of our transgressions. The golden sash replaces the hole in His side. It permanently binds up the wound and the transgression.

Gold represents the divine nature of God. It represents immortality. So even though Jesus’ body was pierced by a fatal wound here on the earth and even though the transgression of our sins was a fatal spiritual wound, the golden sash represents the immortality of Jesus and His conquering of both physical and spiritual death.

Jesus, the ultimate authority

Revelation 1:14 NASB

His head and His hair were white like white wool, like snow

At the cross, the crown of thorns was placed on His head as an affront to His authority. It was an effort to mock and injure the Head. White is the color of purity. The Head was never bruised. He was never sullied. Jesus’ authority came forth as pure as snow. There is no way anyone or anything can harm or defile the Head of Jesus, our Authority on earth and in heaven.

The devil has no power

Revelation 1:14 NASB

and His eyes were like a flame of fire

At the cross, when sin was in full season and Satan was prowling around thinking he had won the battle, Jesus saw God turn His back on Him: “My God, my God why have you forsaken me?” That searing image would never leave but after He saw God turn away, Jesus also saw God turn toward us. His eyes and His heart blaze with a fiery love for us. That will never change. That is the difference between Jesus and the devil. Jesus’ love for us is what kept Him focused throughout this whole ordeal and His eyes forever continue to flame with the fire of love for us.

The devil has no power over Christians. He can only lie to us and hope we believe him. We have no part in the darkness of the devil and this world. It is the complete opposite of the blazing love that Jesus possesses for us.

No more death

Revelation 1:15 NASB

His feet were like burnished bronze, when it has been made to glow in a furnace

At the cross, Jesus’ feet were pierced by the nails. Here, His feet are glowing bronze. Bronze speaks of the place in which sacrifice meets the fire of judgment.

Because of His sacrificial act, we are forever reconciled to God. Jesus was tested in the fire and has come forth pure – as our God worthy to be worshipped and praised.

No more humanness

Revelation 1:15 NIV

and his voice was like the sound of rushing waters.

“I thirst” will never again be spoken by one of God’s own. There will always be the nourishment and anointing of the living waters. There will always be an abundance of spiritual and physical nourishment found in Him. The words of truth, spoken out loud, will always bring rushing, living waters – of the anointing, refreshing abundance of every good thing.

No more religion

Revelation 1:16 NASB

In His right hand He held seven stars, and out of His mouth came a sharp two-edged sword

This is the church of believers. Right now Jesus is standing among the churches. His hands were pierced for the church. The hands of Jesus do the work of the church. If Jesus is exalted, allowed to work freely and His Word is proclaimed, the church will move forward. That is the way to tell if a church is free of religiosity. If Jesus is front and center, the church is sharing in the finished work.

His voice was silenced at the cross but now it is a double-edged sword, dividing to the core of what is right and what is not. Grace always brings two-fold. There is no gray area with regard to the churches. He holds in His hand the angels of the churches – the messengers – and He possesses the double-edged sword in His mouth. He is deadly serious. There can be no messing around in the church.

No more sickness

Revelation 1:16 NASB

and His face was like the sun shining in its strength

Jesus is now the Light in the darkness. After facing and overcoming every evil force of darkness at the cross, Jesus’ countenance is forever full of glory.

Because of that, we are full of glory as well. 2 Corinthians 3:18 - And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.

The likeness of Jesus is a strong, healthy, whole body, soul and mind. He is the New Creation. Because He is a new creation, so are we. If Jesus is healthy, we are healthy. If Jesus is strong, we are strong. We do not live in sickness and death. We live in life and vitality. His face shines upon our spirits, minds and our bodies. We are healthy and whole in spirit, mind and body.

To live our lives in deception and impurity or feeling inferior and sinful is to deny the absolute, total, perfect, eternal triumph of Jesus at that defining hour of history.

Make sure that you live in that same victory and power. Because of Jesus, every one of the 8 things that He conquered at the cross is also under the feet of the Christian. Because of Him we are now co-heirs with Him.

Posted at 03:38 PM in Easter, Jesus, New Covenant, overcoming , the cross, victorious living | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)

April 04, 2012

the cup..

When Jesus called His disciples together for what would be their last Passover meal, little did those men know what they were really receiving through the Passover meal - their Last Supper. It all began with the cup..

Matthew 26:27-28

And when He had taken a cup and given thanks, He gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you; 28 for this is My blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for forgiveness of sins.

Jesus was only able to speak those words after taking up the cup. He took the cup thankfully and willingly because He was focused on doing what He came to do. His plan could never be changed because of His deep, deep love for us so He took up the cup of grace and gave thanks for all that it represented. No one in that room knew what that cup represented more than Jesus, yet He willingly picked it up and gave thanks.

Deuteronomy 12:23 NKJV

Only be sure that you do not eat the blood, for the blood is the life; you may not eat the life with the meat.

For their whole lives, the men in that room lived by this rule: You may not eat the blood (or the life) with the meal. It had to be separated because blood from the old way of creation – the way of Adam – was defiled. Jesus came offering the New Creation: new life through His own perfect blood.

Luke 22:15-16 NASB

And He said to them, “I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer; 16 for I say to you, I shall never again eat it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.”

What a beautiful gift to give to His disciples! They didn’t fully realize it at the time but they would never eat another Passover with Jesus again. So at this latest hour, right before He was to die, Jesus told His friends how eager He was to impart this blessing to them. What a man He was: so full of love and blessing that He had eagerly awaited the time when He could give this grace blessing and impart the full New Covenant.

Luke 22:17 NASB

17 And when He had taken a cup and given thanks, He said, “Take this and share it among yourselves;

Jesus was telling His closest friends that there would be no more fear involved with the covenant sacrifice. Once and for all, we could drink fully and unashamedly from the wine of blessing. Instead of the transfer of sins onto the animal blood, this time there would be one transfer for all time onto the holy, supernatural, yet perfectly human blood of Jesus Christ. The New Covenant means that His blood permanently atones for our sins: One time for all eternity.

When Jesus took possession of the cup, He was taking up the lifeblood of the New Creation. He grabbed onto the transforming, life-giving grace and power of the New Covenant. When He gave thanks, He received the power and the anointing of the New Covenant. Then when Jesus passed the cup to the rest of the disciples, He imparted the New Creation. As each man took possession of the cup, he was also taking possession of the New Creation, which then became the New Covenant. They literally internalized the new life of the New Creation. They took in the new lifeblood and as they did, they received total transformation of spirit, soul and body.

One very important note: The disciples received their blessing and redemption before Jesus’ death on the cross. They were given grace before the act. When God extends His grace, it is powerful and effective at any time. Of course, at the cross, their sins were forgiven, past, present and future – just like everyone else’s. It’s important to note though that most of those disciples had deserted Him during His crucifixion and death. Why weren’t they punished? It is because grace was already in effect for them. They had already taken up the cup of grace and received it into themselves. Yes, they had done something wrong by deserting Jesus in His time of need but they were already covered by His redemption blood. Each one went on to wholeheartedly serve Jesus in the early Christian church and most of them were martyred because of their dedication to Jesus. There was no punishment – only glory given to Jesus through their lives and even in their martyrdom.

In order for a covenant to come into effect, a death has to occur. In the New Covenant, the death of the Firstborn of Creation and the shedding of His blood satisfied the requirements. This accomplished not only the atonement of all sins but it also permanently sealed into place the terms of the New Covenant. It can no longer be changed. The “Law” of Grace is permanently in effect!

Luke 22:17-18 NASB

18 for I say to you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine from now on until the kingdom of God comes.”

Jesus' prayer of thanks comes from a Jewish marriage ceremony when the groom would pay a price for the bride to her father. When the groom leaves after giving the dowry to the bride's father he would say, "I go to prepare a place for you." Then the bride would wait at home, separated and consecrated, set apart, being bought for a price, until the bridegroom would return for her. Then the celebration could begin and they could all "drink of the fruit of the vine" together.

In this context, Jesus was telling His beloved children - the church - that He would be back for us. It was like a toast to His bride.

Joel 3:21 KJV

For I will cleanse their blood that I have not cleansed: for the Lord dwelleth in Zion.

Joel gives us the promise that blood that was once defiled will be cleansed. Young’s Literal Translation says: I have declared their blood innocent. We can be assured that our blood has been declared innocent by the enacting of the New Covenant.

Blood is life-giving. In the Old Testament, it is called “the life” of the animal. We already have and celebrate life through our own blood. However, the spiritual cleansing and declaring of innocence of our blood gives us a double blessing. That proves it is of grace. Grace always brings a double blessing.

Blood also has properties that attack and fight off every kind of disease. Anything that is foreign to the body is attacked and neutralized. When we receive the cup of the blood of the New Creation, we also receive the supernatural healing properties that Jesus’ body had. If we are given His blood – which has supernatural healing qualities - we are essentially given His body as well. If we believe that Jesus’ resurrected body is forever free of sickness, infirmity and harm, we have to believe that our bodies are as well.

1 Corinthians 10:16

Is not the cup of blessing which we bless a sharing in the blood of Christ?

The cup of blessing was extended from the very hand of the Savior Whose blood would atone for our sins and would impart the grace blessing to all mankind. When the disciples received into themselves, they also received on behalf of all mankind the full restorative powers of the New Creation.

The cup had to be offered and received by man before the cross. Mankind had to consciously receive grace and atonement as it was offered before it was secured. God does not fully give without the secondary act of us receiving. How can we blame a God who offers everything when we don’t receive fully? Our new directive is to fully receive the cup of grace, of blessing, of the New Creation, of healing and restoration – that is the earth-shaking, unmatchable power of the New Covenant.