Am I Faithless and Perverse?

Have you ever wondered why Jesus said, when told about a boy with a demon, "O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you and bear with you?"  Luke 9:41  I used to think that He was rebuking His disciples for not being able to cast the unclean spirit out.  But He was addressing a whole generation of the nation of Israel, not just a few guys.  What do you think was bothering Him?  I got an insight on that today from our Old Testament passage in the OYB.

When I was pondering what to write today, the Holy Spirit said "Start with Jesus and go back."  So I did.  This is a good principle - I highly recommend it!

I'm quite certain that Jesus was disturbed because this was God's chosen people and they had become completely victimized by Satan.  If they had obeyed God's directions back when they were given the Promised Land, the ones we read today and have been reading, they would not have been in this predicament.  They were as bad off as the rest of the world, at least in the demonic oppression arena, when they should have been free from the evil one's torment.  But they did exactly what God had told them not to do: imitate the nations around them, especially when it came to spiritual practices.

“When you come into the land which the LORD your God is giving you, you shall not learn to follow the abominations of those nations. There shall not be found among you anyone who makes his son or his daughter pass through the fire, or one who practices witchcraft, or a soothsayer, or one who interprets omens, or a sorcerer, or one who conjures spells, or a medium, or a spiritist, or one who calls up the dead. For all who do these things are an abomination to the LORD, and because of these abominations the LORD your God drives them out from before you. You shall be blameless before the LORD your God. For these nations which you will dispossess listened to soothsayers and diviners; but as for you, the LORD your God has not appointed such for you."  Deuteronomy 18: 9-14

When I was in college (long, long ago "in a faraway land"), I got caught up in the occult.  I promise you, when you do this stuff, or even dabble in it, you open up doors to demonic influence.  My salvation included a lot of necessary deliverance from evil spirits.  Some people go way too far in condemning every little thing, and they become as tormenting as the demons they're afraid of!  I'm not talking about witch-hunting or "finding a demon under every rock".  I'm serious, though, about not grieving the Spirit and not giving place to the abominations that God clearly hates. 

Unfortunately, our culture is full of evil practices, idol worship, and occult fascination and involvement.  "Pagan" is big these days.  I run into it a lot in the artistic circles I associate in (this is my mission field).  The Lord reminds me often not to let it influence me.  We are so surrounded by it that I think we (the Church in general) are becoming callous to it.  Be open to the correction of the Holy Spirit, and also of those who watch over you spiritually, such as your pastor, when they warn you of these things.  I'm not one of these, I am just a messenger (but if you hear His voice through me, listen).  As such, I'll name a couple of things as examples of what I feel are infiltrating influences that I know for a fact that some Christians are allowing in: vampire stuff and Harry Potter.  Sorry to meddle, but these images and ideas are from the devil; they should not be fun to a believer because they grieve the Holy Spirit.  This stuff is contamination; I think at best it is lowering your spiritual immune system, but probably much worse.  Please consider dealing with it! 

When our spirit is no longer grieved by what grieves the Holy Spirit (or we continue to ignore the grief) we are in great spiritual danger.  This troubles me because we are to be overcomers, and this means "conquerors".  Should we be conquered by the evil that Jesus died and rose again to conquer?  He delivered us from evil; we even pray "deliver us from evil".  Why do we play with it then?  We call it "entertainment"!  Wouldn't Jesus call it "faithless and perverse?"  This hurts, I know, but it needs to be said.  Believe me, I've heard it from Him more than once myself.

It is prophetic types, like me, who are most attracted (when not yielding to the Holy Spirit) to darkness, evil practices and occult spiritual power.  Even though they are called to be especially tuned-in to God's communications and purposes and to help train others this way, it is this type of person that is most likely to be influenced by satanic and occult things.  [This is why God gave instructions as to how to know a prophetic word was from Him or not. Deut. 18: 21-22, and many others]  This may seem strange and unbelievable to many, but if you are this type of person, or you are near someone who is, you will easily be able to observe what I am talking about.  Sadly, I have known people who are amazingly gifted prophetically who have gotten far too interested in what the devil is doing, so much so that they ended up following him instead of Christ Jesus.  Don't you be one of these!  And if you are a parent, and you have a child who is generally drawn to these things, pay attention, because you probably have a prophetically motivated/gifted child, and you will need to understand these things and learn how to raise them up in the Lord according to their gifts.

I praise God because Jesus conquered!  He completely trampled down the devil.  Jesus is Lord!! It is up to each of us individually to allow Jesus to be Lord in our own life.  When He is, He will increase His kingdom in us, and through us where He gives us authority.  These are dark and perilous times, and deceptions are rampant.  Since we are the Children of  Light, let us all live in the Light and shine His Light into the world.

April 23, 2010

As much as I wanted to get into a less weighted topic than yesterday's, I couldn't help honing in on this verse, as it seemed to deserve our focused attention: “But take heed to yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness, and cares of this life, and that Day come on you unexpectedly. For it will come as a snare on all those who dwell on the face of the whole earth. Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man.” Luke 21: 34-38
[It is a very good study to look up the words in this verse in the Greek--I did.]

I was brought up believing in the Rapture (the doctrine that says Christians will be taken off of Earth while the unbelievers suffer through the tribulation and God's wrath).  When I began to see that Jesus' exhortations and prophecies were meant to help us "endure until the end," I then had a big question about the above verse-- Jesus telling us to pray we'd be counted worthy to escape.  I've never heard a Rapture doctrine about being worthy, only about being a Christian, and then, of course, about people getting saved afterward, such as in the "Left Behind" series.  As as good friend of mine used to say, "The only way to get out of here is to die."

I wish that there was such a thing as being Christlike enough to get lifted off the world and out of trouble.  I think of Enoch as an example.  But as that leaves little hope for me, and probably for you either, I'm searching for a better answer.  What does Jesus mean-- counted worthy to escape?  Are people like Enoch and Elijah the only ones who get to escape?  I hope not, because "all these things that will come to pass" don't sound too pretty.  I seriously want to escape!  You?

Jesus was well aware of this desire to escape, and addressed it in the above verses. “But take heed to yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness, and cares of this life."   Most of us avoid the carousing and drunkenness, don't we?  But most of us are certainly weighed down with the cares of this life.  Negative thoughts swirl about our heads, things like "it was sure nice when life was good."  The temptation of escapism is greater than it has ever been.  And the modes of practicing escapism are grand and varied indeed.  It's hard to resist getting lost in whatever form of entertainment appeals to us at the moment. 

It is easy for me to imagine staying lost in some awesome BluRay movie, cool video game, or fantasy novel for the rest of my life.  Then what:  I couldn't stand before the Lord: I'd be covered in shame, with what excuse-- I didn't have the strength to watch and pray, and to get His help in staying mentally, emotionally and spiritually sober.  No difference whatsoever, from when I was lost in drug-land long ago.  The motivation would have been the same:  I couldn't handle life.  (I still enjoy movies, games, and books in moderation, don't get me wrong.  I still have to be careful I don't use them wrongly.  God ministers to our hearts, each on the things we need to deal with.  I use myself as an example.)

I've come a long way from my drug-using days, and yet, I still feel intense pressure to escape.  Things in the world are hard to face-- I can't fix them.  I sometimes feel at a loss to even deal with things in my own firsthand world.  It would be nice not to think about them.  And yet the Lord challenges us to stay awake, watch for Him, live for Him. The Holy Spirit is our constant helper.

There is a great Harvest of souls to come out of the world and into God's Kingdom, and I want to be here to work in that field.  People are frightened and hurting, dazed and confused.  Jesus Christ Himself is what we have to give them, and if we keep our eyes open in the spirit, we will be able to do "whatever I see my Father doing."  We have to live on the Earth in order to do that.  How will we survive in such a dangerous time as this?  I'm so glad you asked.

Psalm 91 showed up right when I needed it!  This Psalm has been such a comfort for me ever since I was first born-again.  It speaks to me of how we can escape the evil and dangers of the last days and keep our wits about us too.  We are to dwell in God:  "Because you have made the LORD, who is my refuge, Even the Most High, your dwelling place, No evil shall befall you, Nor shall any plague come near your dwelling; 11 For He shall give His angels charge over you, To keep you in all your ways." Psalm 91: 9-11  We can dwell in the Secret Place of the Most High! 

Jesus is our secret place, and we know that we are in Him and He is in us-- we are seated in the heavenlies.  We enter into this reality by faith, by spending time with Him and allowing Him to establish this reality in us, so that we can experience it.  It takes focus on heavenly things, laying aside everything that keeps us weighed down.  Once we realize that we can be empowered to overcome, here on Earth, for His purposes, it makes it a lot easier to watch for Him, trust Him and do His will.
If we're listening, we won't be surprised, or ashamed, at His coming!

For further study-- people and situations in Scripture who escaped the judgments of God without leaving Earth:
Israel in Goshen and at Passover
Lot and his family from Sodom [his wife didn't "stand"]
Noah and his family when God flooded the earth
(There are more, I'm sure, but these are what I thought of right away.)

Jesus is the Refuge we run to. 
Jesus is our Hope for our future. 
Jesus is our Safe Home.