Thursday, October 4, 2012

Path of Despair

Eph 6:12  For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.

Yes, this verse again. Because we just don't GET IT!

WE don't understand this as a reality!

Why don't we make the SPIRITUAL real?

Why can't the spiritual be reality?

Did Jesus live a spiritual life?

After Jesus was tempted in the wilderness at the start of His ministry...

Mat 4:11  Then the devil leaveth him, and, behold, angels came and ministered unto him.
Mat 4:12  Now when Jesus had heard that John was cast into prison, he departed into Galilee;
Mat 4:13  And leaving Nazareth, he came and dwelt in Capernaum, which is upon the sea coast, in the borders of Zabulon and Nephthalim:
Mat 4:14  That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying,
Mat 4:15  The land of Zabulon, and the land of Nephthalim, by the way of the sea, beyond Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles;
Mat 4:16  The people which sat in darkness saw great light; and to them which sat in the region and shadow of death light is sprung up.
Mat 4:17  From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

Jesus began to preach-
Jesus began to say-

REPENT

for the KINGDOM of HEAVEN is AT HAND.

His entire ministry was based upon this message of salvation.

Is salvation spiritual?  It is as spiritual as it gets.  There is NOTHING more spiritual than Salvation through Jesus Christ our LORD.

Our Savior BEGAN to preach.
Our Savior began a life of PREACHING and through His preaching He was teaching us.  Our Savior was teaching us to be SPIRITUAL, to LIVE SPIRITUAL LIVES.

Our Savior said this to His first chosen apostles-

Mat 4:19  And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.

Follow me and I will make you fishers of men.

Think about that? Was Jesus making men fishers of other men in any literal sense? Did Jesus want people to go about gathering people to themselves? When you catch fish for a living why are you catching them? To fed people, yes? To sell them to people, right? You are catching them not with the intention of keeping them all, not with the intention of being able to possess them as though they were actually yours to keep forever. Fish don't last forever, they rot. You can dry them out, you can stuff and mount them, but as living, breathing fish they don't last forever. Being fishers of men was NEVER with the intention of throwing a net around men and bringing them in as a hull that would then become slaves to a master. Those apostles did not become leaders to an army of men meant to do their bidding.

The apostles gathered a SPIRITUAL following, just as Jesus gathered a SPIRITUAL following!

People were given SPIRITUAL instructions, teachings.

We were NOT given a special recipe by our Lord to have the perfect life here on earth. We were NOT given special instructions on how to guarantee an easy, pain free, emotionally care free life HERE ON EARTH.

The message of the KINGDOM is what our SAVIOR preached- in the beginning, middle, and end of His ministering here on earth.

That spiritual message is our HOPE in a future without the horrors sin has corrupted this world with. Christ is our SPIRITUAL HOPE! 

Is it any wonder that Satan would destroy the reality of our Spiritual life?

Jesus taught-

Mat 5:3  Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Mat 5:4  Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.
Mat 5:5  Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.
Mat 5:6  Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.
Mat 5:7  Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.
Mat 5:8  Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.
Mat 5:9  Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.
Mat 5:10  Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Mat 5:11  Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.
Mat 5:12  Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.

Jesus KNEW here and now that our lives in all aspects would be tested and tried and He told us where our HOPE should be.

For theirs is the KINGDOM OF HEAVEN.
For they shall be…
For they shall inherit…
For they shall be…
For they shall obtain…
For they shall see…
For they shall be…
For theirs is the KINGDOM OF HEAVEN.
For great is your REWARD IN HEAVEN.

If we do NOT count our HOPE as being in the FUTURE with our SAVIOR- SAVED BY HIM- then we will forever feel the heavy weight of disappointment and yes…despair! 

Satan would have us despair and HE'LL do EVERYTHING in his power to achieve that. In the smallest things to the biggest he will do ALL he can to take our eyes off the PRIZE at the end of our SPIRITUAL RACE. 

When he has our focus on us being poor in spirit, mourning, hungering, thirsting, on our being persecuted, spoken evil of falsely,  when we are focused on those things and NOT on the HOPE then he has us walking on the path of despair and that's a very dangerous place!

The path of despair is a very spiritual place, as is the PATH OF HOPE.

We need to stay on the PATH OF HOPE, and NOT give into the despair Satan will fill our lives with at EVERY single opportunity he gets.

This is REALITY!

This isn't us being someone wrong, this isn't us being losers in life, this isn't us being hopeless people, this IS SATAN driving us to believe in all those things because without SATAN pushing all that onto us, it wouldn't be there. 

We have to CHOOSE to grasp HOPE, the HOPE we can only find in our SAVIOR, and not let satan turn our feet to the path of despair.

We have the choice.

We have to cut through all the spiritual darkness shrouding us by asking for the Spiritual LIGHT to shine down upon us and remind us where our HOPE needs to be and it's not here on earth.  Our hope isn't supposed to be on having a good day, or having a fun time, or enjoying ourselves, or being pain free, or having happy thoughts- it's Satan who wants us to place our hope in those things so he can bring us to our knees in a paralyzing despair at EVERY opportunity!

Please LORD let YOUR LIGHT, the LIGHT OF YOU and YOUR SALVATION SHINE DOWN UPON US AND BREAK THROUGH THE DARKNESS, THAT DEEP DARKNESS OF DESPAIR THAT SATAN WOULD KEEP US SHROUDED IN.  This is a battle we are in, this is a REAL war, and we are REALLY attacked by ogres, and creatures, and all manner of evil beings that are SPIRITUAL evil angels attacking us daily, hourly, minutely! This is REALITY, the reality that SATAN would have us not even begin to acknowledge exists.

PLEASE LORD BLESS US! WE NEED YOU MORE THAN EVER BEFORE!

All in YOUR LOVE, by YOUR GRACE and MERCY ALWAYS!!!!!!!


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