Spiritual Warfare Prep

Spiritual Warfare Prep
We Are In The Lord's Army

Friday, July 19, 2013

We Live in Two Different Kingdoms-Do Not Be Surprised

   Why are we surprised when things happen like the movie, 'Unstoppable' becomes blocked on Facebook and Youtube? Perhaps we don't really understand that, as long as we are on this earth (this fallen world) we are going to be part of one of two different, opposing kingdoms. They are opposite kingdoms with opposite kings. One is the kingdom of Darkness, which is ruled by the 'god' of this world, Satan, aka Lucifer or the devil, and the other is the kingdom of Light, whose ruler is Jesus Christ.
     First, let's contrast God and Satan. God is all-powerful, all-knowing, omnipotent, omniscient, holy, love, and sovereign while Satan is a created being who is not holy, but deceitful and the Father of lies. Satan's big lie to people is this (actually posed as a question); 'Is God really good?' It will be matched with statements that challenge God's goodness like, 'God doesn't want you to have fun' or ' God really doesn't have your best interests in mind. That's why you are suffering.' The devil always makes God look bad, or untrue.
   When we make God's name known in truth, the devil is angry. He works through people who are in his kingdom. We all are in the devil's realm until we come to Christ in repentance and faith. Jesus actually says that we are children of the devil, despite the fact that everyone generally believes that all people are God's children. The Bible says otherwise.
   The devil will make you think that you are calling the shots in your own life, but really, what is happening is, that you are a puppet for Satan. The devil will try to make you believe that your life is all about you, and everyone else's lives are all about you as well. It is a trick to make you prideful, then cause you to fall and to keep you in the kingdom of Darkness.
   Anyway, back to the original question. Because the kingdom of Darkness covers over the earth right now, we shouldn't be surprised when people yell at us for offering them a tract. We shouldn't be surprised when 'doctors' who perform abortions and get their licenses suspended, turn around and go right back to performing abortions. We shouldn't be surprised when moms and grandmoms angrily bring their pregnant daughters to the abortion clinics. We shouldn't be surprised when we find a girl who is mentally ill because she was a victim of rape all her life. We shouldn't be surprised when a highly esteemed person gets caught in pornography. We shouldn't be surprised when people we trusted steal from us. And we shouldn't be surprised when the word of God is prohibited on Face Book, Youtube and other social media. We shouldn't be surprised, but how should we respond?
   The best thing we can do is to spend time getting to know God ourselves. Spend time in prayer and studying the Scriptures, not just going through a disciplined form of devotions every day. We can only give away what we have received. We really do need to take logs out of our own eyes first, then, when issues come up that are problems caused by those in the kingdom of Darkness, we will be able to bring the light of the Gospel to them. There is no skipping over this step. We cannot tell people what they should and shouldn't do, because all of us are made out of the same clay and live in this kingdom of Darkness until we are rescued. We all have the same seeds of temptation, and only God can give us the strength and desire to stop the temptation from blossoming into sin in our lives. But at the same time, we do hold the standard up high. It is up so high that we all know that no one can reach it. Then we can make known the only One who has ever reached it, and that is how we minister to people.
   But I have to be honest here as well. I struggle to find time to pray. I can see what kind of battle we are in between the two kingdoms. I have so much to get done, and yet, I need to have a vision to be praying. Plus, I am so tired, that I fall asleep while I am praying! I need God's help in this. It is easy to justify why we don't pray, but if we took that same line of reasoning and applied it to literal food, I doubt that most of us would just be too busy to eat a meal. I know I wouldn't. Whenever I set my mind to praying, I remember things I have to do. I reason with myself that I have to do them immediately or I will forget what they are.
   Where are our hearts? Do we love the things of the world (of course we do)? Do those things keep us from loving the things of God that are important to His heart? Can we let go of the things of the world so we can be free to serve joyfully in the kingdom of Light?
   If a person is not born again, he or she will not even see the kingdom of God. Only when we come to Christ and are born again (born spiritually) will we be able to understand the things of God. Here is a url explaining what it means to be born again and in the family of God; http://test4gp.wordpress.com

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