The devil Ain't in Control Part 2

Part 2

Daniel 2:44—KJV—And in the days of these kings shall the God of Heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever.

Isaiah 9:6, 7—KJV—For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon His shoulders: and His name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The Mighty God, The Everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government there shall be no end,

Even though Daniel was a captive, God used him to declare His Almighty purpose to the conquering ruler, Nebuchadnezzer. Through Nebuchadnezzer’s dream, God revealed three other kingdoms that would conquer the same area that the Babylonians now occupied. Those three kingdoms were the Medio-Persians, the Greeks and the Romans.

The real point that God was making was that He was only using those four kingdoms to set up His kingdom that would rule forever. Notice in verse forty-four that God said that this kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever. Isaiah foretold of a child that would be born Who would create a government that would continue to increase and would never end.

There are many other prophecies listed in the Old Testament that describe the same thing but let’s get to the real point. The child Isaiah talked about is Jesus. Through His death on the cross and subsequent resurrection, Jesus defeated….forever…..the devil and all of the devil’s evil forces.

Let’s investigate this point even further. Jesus described His enemy and his evil kingdom like this in John 10:10—KJV—The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. But Jesus further defines the difference between Him and His enemy by continuing to say, “But I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.” More about this in a later blog.

The main point I want to zero in on through this blog is the fact that the devil ain’t in control. Does he steal control? Yes. Remember, ‘The thief’ is what Jesus called him.

Jesus described him again in He was talking to the religious rulers of His day in John 8:44—NIV—You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies.

Out of all the things that Jesus said about the devil, He never said that the devil is in control. Does the devil lie, and steal, and murder? Yes. He has done it since the beginning of time and he’ll continue until he is destroyed in the lake of fire. Which, by the way, he and his angels KNOW that they are destined to go there. Read the demons response to Jesus in Matthew 8:29.

This is further proof that the devil ain’t in control. They CANNOT control the fact that they will be destroyed just like God said they would be. While they are here, they will continue to steal, kill, destroy, murder and lie wherever they can. But they know that their time is limited. AND……now get this…….they also know that their power is limited. As a matter of fact, ALL of their power can be nullified.

Here is the most important point. You will NOT find anywhere in the scripture where ANY power was given to the devil over God’s creation and/or especially mankind. BUT, in Luke 10:19—NIV—Jesus declared, “I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you.” In Mark 16:17, Jesus describes the characteristics of a believer, “And these signs shall follow those that believe; In My name they shall cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues.”

Jesus NEVER said for us to just sit back and let the devil lie to us, steal from us, kill us or destroy us in any way. Yet, that is what is happening to believers and non-believers alike. We see terror, hatred, and wholesale slaughter going on all over the world. People demand that politicians do something about it and they can’t. People take things into their own hands and here goes stealing, killing and destroying again.

Every born again believer has the ability to overthrow the kingdom of the devil. When we received Jesus Christ as our personal Savior, the same Spirit that empowered Jesus to rise from the dead came to reside in us (Romans 8:11). Yet, we haven’t tapped the resources of the Holy Spirit. Why? Because we are too busy believing that what we see can’t be changed or stopped.

Jesus, and those that chose to believe on His name---changed Jesus haters into Jesus lovers and preachers of the gospel, cast demons out of spiritualists and mediums, healed hopeless cripples that were crippled from birth, prayed disciples out of jails, turned towns “upside down” for Jesus. Why? Because they believed that God had empowered them to change the way things were. They were NOT content to live the way that the devil said they had to live. They CHOSE to control the devil and not be controlled by doubt and fear. The CHOSE to rejoice in the Lord always. They CHOSE to pray without ceasing and to pray effectually and fervently.

They CHOSE……NOT……to live life the way that it was handed to them. They CHOSE to live….life and live it abundantly like Jesus said that He came to give them.

There are demonic forces stealing, killing and destroying mankind all over the earth. It is up to the Body of Christ all over the world to rise up out of its slumber and slothfulness and come against the spiritual forces of darkness. The devil doesn’t have power over us. We LET him steal, kill and destroy us. Let’s deny him that right and begin taking back the lives and the abundant life that rightfully belong to us through the blood of Jesus Christ.

Pray with me.

Father, in the name of Jesus, we bind those ungodly powers that are stealing from us and lying to us. We pray for a fresh anointing of the Holy Spirit to rise up inside of your people as we bind together as a mighty prayer army for you. We pray for every corner of the world to be filled with your power to overthrow the lying powers of darkness. Give us wisdom, understanding and courage to fight the good fight of faith to bring your body into the strength and power of the Holy Spirit. Open our eyes to the abilities that are dormant within us that You desire to empower. Help us to lay aside the things that divide us so we can come together in your power. As Jesus taught us, let Your kingdom come and let Your will be done on this earth as it is in Heaven. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

The devil Ain't in Control Part 1

The devil Ain’t in Control

Part 1

Daniel 2:44-45 (KJV)—And in the days of these kings shall the God of Heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever. Forasmuch as thou sawest that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it brake in pieces the iron, the brass, the clay, the silver, and the gold; the great God hath made known to the king what shall come to pass hereafter: and the dream is certain, and the interpretation thereof sure.

Let me lay some foundation for the next several blogs. Israel had refused to obey the God that had brought them out of bondage and gave them their own land. God sent prophet after prophet after prophet to warn them that they would once again be brought into bondage if they didn’t repent. They didn’t so God had no other choice but to do what He said.

However, not everyone was guilty of the nation of Israel’s sin. The book of Daniel talks about four individuals that, though they were captives, they lived like God had commanded. Because they honored God, God honored His covenant Word that he had spoken to their forefathers when the Hebrew nation was first established. These four men (and I’m sure there were others) found favor with their captors. And, much to the angst of the native Babylonians, the ‘captives’ were made rulers over sections of their ‘captors’. (See Deuteronomy 28:1-14)

In the second year of King Nebuchadnezzer’s reign, God sent a troubling dream to him. He was upset about it but he couldn’t remember it. It unsettled the king so much that he called for all of his magicians, soothsayers and fortune tellers with a most unusual request. He told them to tell him what his dream was and also to tell him the interpretation. They told the king to tell them what the dream was and they would be glad to interpret it for him. The king told them to do it or die. They couldn’t and the king commanded to kill all the wise men in Babylon.

The guards were sent out to arrest all the magicians in the kingdom. When they got to Daniel, he asked why and they told him. He went to the king and asked for time to pray about it. The king gave Daniel what he didn’t give to his own people. He gave to this captive some time. That’s divine favor, folks. That is divine favor from a tyrant.

I’ll get to the rest of the story in subsequent blogs, but I need to stop right here and share something that I hope is ‘Christian-shaking’. That’s kinda like ‘earth-shaking’ only a whole lot more important. As I mentioned earlier, some of the Hebrews that Nebuchadnezzar had taken captive were God-fearing, covenant-trusting men of God. To the Babylonians they were just captured slaves that didn’t deserve to be more than their menial servants.

But, to God, these men were more honorable than the back-slidden Jews. Even though God had to bring judgement on the nation of Israel for their collective sins, He would ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS honor EVERY ONE of those who honored Him and His Word. Please, understand the Godly precept here. Even though these Godly men had lost their freedom along with the other Hebrews, they had NEVER….not even for one day….not even for one fleeting second….lost ANY of the respect that God had for them. They were in a strange land but it didn’t matter to God. He was covenant bound to honor His word. They were surrounded by ungodly people and subjected to ungodly circumstances. But God never forsook them for even the shortest of moments.

AS A MATTER OF FACT, this dream came to King Nebuchadnezzer BECAUSE of the captives. Later on, in Daniel chapter six, we find that it had always been Daniel’s habit to pray towards Jerusalem three times a day. Every day since setting foot in a strange land, Daniel prayed in accordance to God’s promise in 2 Chronicles 7:14 where God promised deliverance if they were ever in bondage. Daniel believed God’s Word to be true and he prayed for deliverance three times every day.

Here’s my point for today. A God-fearing, Bible-believing person made a quality decision concerning the dire conditions that he found his nation to be in. Did his nation deserve it? Yes, God spoke it and there it was. BUT, a God-fearing, Bible-believing, continuously praying person brought about a God-change in several areas.

First of all, his constant prayer and faith in the Word of God worked in his own life. It gave him courage to proclaim to the ungodly ruler and the ungodly captives that the God that he served could answer prayer and reveal the king’s dream. Next, constant prayer and faith gave him covenant standing with a covenant keeping God. God granted his request, gave him the dream and the interpretation.

Second, and this is important, Daniel’s God habits worked on and changed the king. Because of Daniel’s behavior, God was the one who sent the troubling dream to the king and then made him forget it so that He could honor His servant and His Word. When the king heard the dream and the interpretation, THE KING fell on his knees and bowed down to Daniel. The king not only honored Daniel, he promoted him over the vast majority of his captors.

The captured slave became a ruler. How about that for a Godly turn around? This not only happened to Daniel, but it happened to the three Hebrew children also. Although it’s not mentioned, I believe that God honored many others even though they were in captivity.

Here’s the point of today’s blog. A bold God-fearing Bible-believing prayer warrior made the best of his situation by praying and honoring God constantly. Today we are faced with some of the ungodliest of situations any of us have ever heard of in our entire lives. The story of Daniel is only one that proves that the devil ain’t in control. He might have instigated things and ramped up hatred and violence but the devil DOES NOT have the final say in ANY situation.

UNLESS…..God-honoring, Spirit-filled prayer warriors……do nothing. When God’s people refuse to pray, pray improperly, pray without power, pray amiss, cringe and cry, fight each other, refuse to humble themselves and refuse to honor God then the devil is free to do whatever he wants.

Whatever you decide to do is your business. AND whatever I decide to do is my business. I’m going to dare to be a Daniel. I’m praying hard and often. I dare to come boldly to the throne of Grace with a heart full of the promises of God that I lay before him. Just like the poor widow in Luke 18, I don’t have the power to get these things accomplished in my own strength. But, He said He would answer these prayers and I believe He will.

I want to be like Daniel and pray so hard and fervently that the leaders of this land will not be able to succeed with their ungodly plans. I specifically pray for confusion to come into their camps. (Isaiah 19:14) I pray that God would show up in such a way that the ungodly would have to admit that it had to be God.

I believe that bold, fervent prayer could bring peace to troubled lives and troubled areas. I believe that crime, murders, rapes, kidnappings and hatred can be stopped when people continue calling on God. Just like God did with Elisha, (2 Kings 6:8-14) I believe that God can reveal the secrets of our enemies to our security forces. One of the things that I have been praying for is that the Godly men and women that serve in our country would receive “nudgings” or “words of knowledge” from the Holy Spirit that would lead to capturing criminals or stopping crime before it happens.

And I don’t believe in giving the devil any slack. I believe in worshipping and praising God with all of my heart, mind and soul. Psalms 8:2 tells us and Jesus repeated it that praise paralyzes the enemy. C’mon folks let’s not only pray with boldness, let’s praise and worship Him with all that is within us.

Let’s put God in control and let the Jesus Force arise.