Freedom in Christ - Part 13
Recognising the Devils Wrecking Crew

Ephesians 6:12
For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world rulers of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavens.

1. Adam Forfeited his Authority to Rule on Earth - to Satan,
when he Sinned.

Matthew 28:18
Then Jesus came up and said to them, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.

Christ secured all power and authority through the cross.

2. Satan is No Longer our Ruler, Christ is

Colossians 1:13
He delivered us from the power of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of the Son he loves

Philippians 3:20
But our citizenship is in heaven-and we also await a saviour from there, the Lord Jesus Christ

We were transferred from Satan's rule to Christ's by faith.

Our soul is safe because the king holds us

3. When a Person Gets Angry, it Damages their Body.

The more we draw closer to God, the more Satan has a go at us, because we are becoming more of a serious threat to him.

Galatians 5:1
For freedom Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not be subject again to the yoke of slavery.

As long as were living on earth, we are vulnerable to Satan's arrows.

Satan will take control of our lives if we allow him to. For example if we continually get angry - Satan will come in and use it as a foothold.

4. How Demons Work

Romans 8:38
For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor heavenly rulers, nor things that are present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in creation will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Colossians 1:16
for all things in heaven and on earth were created by him-all things, whether visible or invisible, whether thrones or dominions, whether principalities or powers-all things were created through him and for him.

Luke 11:24-26
"When an unclean spirit goes out of a person, it passes through waterless places looking for rest but not finding any. Then it says, 'I will return to the home I left.' When it returns, it finds the house swept clean and put in order. Then it goes and brings seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they go in and live there, so the last state of that person is worse than the first."

From scripture we know that demons can exist in and out of humans, including animals. They prefer to be in something rather than nothing.

• They can be territorial
• They are able to travel at will
• They sit in churches in the back row.
• They have separate identities.
• They have thinking personalities.
• We must not ask their names, if we come across them.
• They can speak to humans through a human subject.
• They can control our nervous system.
• They can remember and make plans - remember their former state and come back with friends.
• They can evaluate and make decisions.
• They gain access to us through our points of vulnerability. I.e. through anger.
• They can combine forces.
• They vary in degrees of wickedness.

If we meditate, it must not be with open mind - but focused on God

We Must Not Focus on Them but God

As a Christian we are moving closer to God. But the demons try to turn our attention away and distract us.

They do this by:

1. Temptation to other things.

We must take the first thought captive or we'll be down the wrong path

2. Accusation

E.g. "How can you call yourself a Christian when you act like that?"

Demons are very good at accusation. They love it when we are grovelling before God in sorrow.

We are children of God, He delights in us and runs to us!

3. Deception

E.g. You don't need to pray, go to church, read the bible.

When we feel like this, we should check where is this thought coming from?

Satan's goal is to slow us down, stop us in our journey to God.

ASK GOD TO HELP US KEEP OUR EYES ON HIM

Most Spiritually deceived Christians are those paying attention to demons.
I.e. those who give into temptation easily.

If we fall into temptation, we must just get back up and walk again.

If we sin, confess straight away and then forget it, don't continue to think about it. Move on, otherwise were entertaining negative thoughts and Satan wants us to waste time doing this.

Don't entertain negative thoughts, dismiss them straight away and walk / move forward.

We overcome the world and the flesh and Satan, by the truth

Take every thought captive and move on. Ignore the lie and choose the truth.

Scripture quoted by permission. NET Bible® copyright © 1996-005 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. www.bible.org . All rights reserved.