Category: Religion Publisher: Create Space
ISBN-10: 1725161168
Type: Non-Fiction
Pages: 54
Copyright: August 10, 2018
ISBN-13: 9781725161160
Price: $3.00 (eBook)
This book is about everyday trials and how they work to our good to produce character and maturity in the believer.
This book captures the reader as the trials and temptations of everyday life come in to clear focus on how they are used by our Creator to condition and prepare us for the destiny that was chosen for us before we were born on this planet.
There is a price to pay for the anointing!
Excerpt
Life under Pressure
Matthew 5: 10
4Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness sake; for theirs is the kingdom of God”.
I have lived long enough in this world to know that some people cannot be pleased. They're never satisfied unless they are complaining, and they are not willing to help find a solution.
They want to control the money but never give to the fund. I, for one, would rather be criticized for doing the right thing than for doing the wrong thing.
Matthew 5:11-12
“Blessed are ye when men shall revile you and persecute you, and say all manner of evil against you falsely for my name's sake. “Rejoice and be exceeding glad for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.
To begin, we need to realize that two things in this world cause conflict: war and divorce. You can trace every ministry, marriage, and even businesses that have failed to these two things, and I will list them for you.
1. Pride (God says he hates a proud look)
2. Greed (love for money)
There is much here we do not understand, but what is very obvious is that a spiritual war is taking place between evil spirits and angels of God. This reveals that in the world unseen by us, there is a conflict of the ages between good and evil, light and darkness, God and Satan. The Holy Bible reveals that there are satanic forces and heavenly forces engaged in warfare. The Holy Bible also reveals that we are smack dab in the middle of the whole thing.
The US has been involved in many conflicts, including the Revolutionary War, the Civil War, World Wars I and II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, the Gulf Wars, and literally hundreds of others throughout our history as a nation. Some of you have fought for your country and know war firsthand. Those who engage in military conflict have no doubt who their enemies are and develop a plan to defeat them.
Dear reader, another battle is being waged all around us in the spiritual realm. Unfortunately, those engaged in spiritual warfare most often do not know who their enemies are, have no plan for victory, and have little, if any, training to confront their enemy.
There has been a war going on since before the fall of Satan that many are not even aware of. Paul gives us this instruction about spiritual warfare that we need to take to heart.
Ephesians 6:10-12 Be strong with the Lord’s mighty power. Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies and tricks of the Devil. For we are not fighting against people made of flesh and blood, but against the evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against those mighty powers of darkness who rule this world, and against wicked spirits in the heavenly realms.
1. There Is An Invisible World That Is Just As Real As The Visible World
Paul ended his life, stating that he had fought a good fight, and he was not talking about the church down the street.
For we are not fighting against people made of flesh and blood, but against the evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against those mighty powers of darkness who rule this world, and against wicked spirits in the heavenly realms.
While we exist in this present visible world, we also exist simultaneously in the unseen world that Paul describes. The unseen world is described as the place where evil beings exist, but it is also the place where Christ and all believers exist.
We Are Involved in an Invisible War, a Cosmic Conflict That Has Eternal Implications. The Bible tells us that once Daniel had been praying to God and not receiving an answer to his prayer, suddenly an angel came to him and explained the delay in terms of spiritual warfare: Then he said, "Don’t be afraid, Daniel. Since the first day you began to pray for understanding and to humble yourself before your God, your request has been heard in heaven. I have come in answer to your prayer.
Satan, the god of this evil world, has blinded the minds of those who don’t believe, so they are unable to see the glorious light of the Good News that is shining upon them. We are human beings, but in this war, we don’t wage war with human plans and methods. We use God’s mighty weapons that are mighty to tear down the strongholds of the devil. With these weapons, we break down every proud argument that keeps people from knowing God and conquer their rebellious ideas and forms of worship.
I want to sound the message loud and clear that God is calling His church to engage Satan in warfare so that we will be strong in the Lord and will be able to break satanic strongholds.
Our weapons are not of this world, nor are they visible, but are mighty unseen weapons like prayer, the Word of God, and other things that Satan is terrified of. Our foe is formidable, and his goal is to destroy us and discredit the cause of Christ. Not everyone who says they are a Christian is a Christian.
Jesus said we can know those who are because of their fruit. Their fruit is embedded in their character. He said we will know that we have passed from death unto life because we love the brethren. Dear reader, we can find in the history of the church that persecution always brought revival.
When Paul was in Ephesus, which was in Asia, it seemed as if he had gained nothing from the mission but defeat and shame. Paul gave us no details, except that some trouble had erupted in this city. He had just escaped death, and now this journey seemed hopeless.
Paul spoke of being under such intense pressure that he and the men with him despaired even of their own lives. It could have been an illness or mob violence. Paul informed the people with him that they needed to trust God, who could raise the dead.
Paul stated that they were pressed beyond their human strength, and the only hope they had was God. This is what pressure will accomplish in us. It will press us out of ourselves.
The pressure must be great enough to press us beyond our human strength and any outside source of hope we may be hanging on to. It needs to be powerful enough till we see no hope, and if God does not intervene, we will surely suffer defeat. This is how we grow in the walk of faith. We must come to the end of ourselves until we have no hope but the living God. When we come to the end of ourselves and sink until we have no hope in human strength, this is when the victory of the cross comes into shining view.
God never promised any of us that after becoming a Christian, our lives would be without discomfort, discouragement, or even depression. Everyone one of us will experience one or the other and sometimes all at once! It’s through these times of difficulty that Jesus becomes more real to us all, even if you feel like the ship you are on is sinking, God is there! God offers faith to us all through the example of the life Jesus Himself lived. In the verses listed, we discover that Paul describes the persecution and suffering one can expect for being a follower of Jesus Christ.
1 Peter 4-12 “Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you; 13But rejoice, insomuch as ye are partakers of Christ’s sufferings; that when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy.14 If ye be reproached for the name of Christ, happy are ye; for the spirit of glory and of God resteth upon you: on their part he is evil spoken of, but on your part he is glorified. (kjv)
1 Corinthians. 10:13 “There hath no temptation taken you, but such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way of escape, that ye may be able to bear it.
Because of God’s grace, we can take comfort in knowing that he is in complete control. When we feel there is no way out and seem tempted to an incredible extreme, we can take comfort in knowing that we are not alone. God trusts us to be overcomers because he that lives within is greater than he that is in the world.
We are not ignorant of the enemy’s devices, and we have all of the resources we need to be winners. Let’s be on the alert and be quick to recognize the enemy’s tactics and fight on the side of the victory that has already been won. Let’s exercise our faith in resisting all attacks and draw support from our fellow Christians and the God of all Grace.
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