Bible Study Notes

Praise the Lord. God has blessed me so in doing this study on spiritual warfare. When we first began studying the armor of God, I thought maybe we'd spend 2 or 3 weeks on it. But God keeps opening my understanding and as long as He tells me to continue on the topic, I will!

OK, we've been discussing Spiritual Warfare for some weeks, and last time we started discussing our spiritual weapons. The Christian has an awesome arsenal, and every time I think I've completed the list, the Lord reveals more to me! First I had 5, then 7, then 10, and who knows when it will end?

Now having all this information may overwhelm you at first, but keep in mind that the notes will be posted on my web site, and as the Lord leads you, put them into practice.

Part of the training of any soldier is learning how to use the weapons available to him/her. So ask we go over these, ask the Lord to train you how to use them effectively.

Pete - by reading it first, then receiving it..!!! The Word is awesome ain't it.....

Right Pete, you have to read or hear the Word first, then receive it and put it into effect in your life. You use the Word of God as a defensive weapon when you pray scriptures that concern your specific situation.

OlePappy - By using the Word to bind, rebuke and remove satan from your midst as Jesus did

For example, if you have a problem with anxiety about your life - how are you going to obtain food, clothing and shelter - then check out Matthew 6:25-34 to defend yourself against anxiety and worry. This is the passage where Jesus tells us to have no anxiety about your needs, because God will take care of you like He cares for the flowers and the birds.

You might pray: Father I confess that my life is more important than food and clothes, and I believe according to Your Word that you will take care of me as You do the birds of the air and the flowers in the field. I believe that You know what I need BEFORE I even ask for them, and have made preparations for me and my family. I WILL seek first your kingdom and righteousness, and believe that all the things I need will be given to me as well. Therefore, I set my heart against worry and anxiety, and trust you to take care of me today and tomorrow. In Jesus Name, AMEN.

The Word is forever settled in the heavens. There is no prayer more powerful than praying the Word back to God! OK, now how about using the Word as an OFFENSIVE weapon?

k - The Word of god is sharper than any to edged sword
Servant - all his promises are yea and amen

Galatians 5:19-21 The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.

I also had a similar experience concerning a fortune teller/palm reader whose home was on the highway near our church. Not only did she have "Palm Reader", etc in neon lights on the home, she had a greenhouse type bay window with a large idol of some kind in it. Every time we went to church, we rebuked satan and cursed that evil establishment. It wasn't too long after that the owner was arrested and convicted of fraud and sent to prison, and the evil establishment was turned into something else.

OlePappy - Back in the early 80's, a Muslim woman decided that she was going to construct a mosque and school here in Christiansburg. They were going to bring Islam here and was going to run the "Christian" out of Christiansburg. The churches got together and started having prayer vigils during the construction process to stop the construction and to keep it from coming here.

When the mosque was completed and they brought over a cleric from Mecca to bless the mosque for use. And it was found to be a couple of degrees off facing Mecca, so he wouldn't bless it! So the whole deal fell through. This woman went bankrupt, her husband died, she was disgraced in Pakistan because of her failure. AND it is now a CHRISTIAN college - equipping CHRISTIANS for ministry! New Life Bible College!
Pete - Whoa!, mess with Christians ay? Sounds like those Christians had their armor on...

This is what we call victory! How about you???

"Have faith in God," Jesus answered. "I tell you the truth, if anyone says to this mountain, `Go, throw yourself into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done for him.

Understand what I am saying. We are not to curse PEOPLE, but the evil establishments and the demonic powers behind them that are causing our cities and towns to become filthy. The people will come under the Lord's curse if they do not repent. For the people, we do spiritual warfare against the spirits that are blinding them, and ask the Holy Spirit to convict them of their sin.

k - Prayer of faith of the righteous availeth much
Pete - by just doing it......
prodigal son - OT I think you already answered that with the story of the islams coming to Christiansburg

Mark 11:24 Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.

Remember when we talked about prayer, we discussed intercession at some length. This is going to the Lord on behalf of another.

prodigal son - Its the power of the God almighty. It is awesome
OlePappy - It is our POWER
peanut - isn't prayer umm an expression of an intimate relationship with the Father who makes his own love and resources available to us
OlePappy - Prayers are always answered....Yes; no or later

Right peanut, and using it as a spiritual weapon involves interceding on the behalf of another, for their salvation, deliverance, healing, and so on. Why aren't prayers always answered?

Luke 11:4 Forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who sins against us. And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from the evil one

Being double-minded is believing some times, then changing your mind and doubting. The Christian soldier needs to be single-minded and trust the Lord totally.

So beware of the things that can hinder prayer: unforgiveness, doubt, unconfessed offenses, being worldly and double minded. It's like trying to use a RUSTY or broken weapon when you pray without dealing with those things.

Prayer and fasting are called the "Power twins". If you are engaged in warfare, but feel your prayer is not being effective, ask the Lord if you need to fast to overcome that situation. Now if you are diabetic or have low blood sugar, use wisdom. The Lord will honor even giving up one favorite food to honor him. Other times he may call you to a total fast for a period of time. Seek His guidance in the matter of fasting. And remember if you do fast, "keep it to yourself". If you are doing it to brag about how spiritual you are, you've missed the whole point.

Now about praying for someone's salvation. First of all, ask for the Spirit to draw them to Christ and convict them of their sin.

Servant - you can ask Jesus to draw them by his spirit
Pete - like Jesus prays for ours.....
OlePappy - You pray the Lord will bind satan in their lives and open their eyes to the truth of Jesus.

Most sinners are blinded by satan and we have to pray away the blinding spirits so that they can receive the Gospel of Christ. We also need to come against the strongholds that satan has erected in their minds against the knowledge of Christ. One example of a stronghold is intellectualism, another is fear, another is doubt, and so on. You need to pray for wisdom in this area. God will show you how to pray.

Then ask God to bring people across their path that will lead them to Christ. Particularly if the one you are interceding for is a family member, because sometimes they will not listen to YOU.

Athie - Amen OT

Rebecca Brown, MD has written a series of books about spiritual warfare and in "Prepare for War", pages 142-146 , she gives four steps for spiritual warfare on behalf of another, particularly a member of your household. Dr. Brown has had a deliverance ministry for about 15 years and has done warfare on behalf of witches, warlocks, wiccans, etc.

If you have an idol in your home, say a Buddha that you bow down to, can you see how a demon would cling to that?? Since Buddha is a false god? And there are some objects that have been used in demon worship or that have been dedicated to satan that you might have even if you don't yourself worship demons?

peanut - what if they object means nothing to you-- it is just there

Also there are symbols used in devil worship that people wear as jewelry - such as pentagrams - or crystal balls, tarot cards, etc, to which demons cling. What it means to you doesn't matter, nut, it's what that object means to satan or the demons. They will take any opportunity to harass/oppress you and use any excuse to gain access.

Dr. Brown continues:

"These two scriptures show that the idols represent demons. The passage in Deuteronomy clearly shows that all such things used in the service of Satan are an abomination unto the Lord, even the gold and silver on them cannot he used- it must be destroyed."

(Note: abomination = disgusting, reprehensible, unclean, contaminated)

"God has a purpose for every command. He did not want the Israelites bringing such "demonically contaminated" objects into their homes because of the effect they would have on them. God warned them that they would also become "a cursed thing." Why? Because the powerful influence exerted by the demons would cause them to fall into demon worship themselves."

OlePappy - The point is that we have to be involved in spiritual warfare ourselves. second only to winning souls for Jesus, we have to fight satan and his evil followers each and every minute.

Continuing with Dr. Brown:

"In the case of Christian parents dealing with their rebellious teenagers, I would warn you that you cannot just go into your child's room and make a clean sweep of everything that you feel is a familiar object. You must communicate with them first. Bind the demons in them, then sit down and talk with them. Listen to their rock records with them, carefully examining the lyrics. I guarantee your kids will be embarrassed because they know in their hearts that rock music is rotten."

"If they are into occultic games, sit down and look at the manuals and study the game with them so that you gain an understanding of what they are doing and can then point out to them scripturally why it is wrong. After you have done all this, then destroy all the records, tapes, posters, game materials, etc."

Are you guys familiar with Dungeons & Dragons?

k - I've heard of it but some games they are coming out with now are even worse

These are the types of games that will lead kids (and older folk too) into demonic territory. D&D is only the tip of the iceberg. See the devil doesn't care about HOW he gets at ya, just THAT he gets at ya. I'm talking about ROCK - Metallica, Black Sabbath, Marilyn Manson, etc.

Dr Brown: "As mentioned above, Christian children who are minors can, in faith, ask the Lord to seal such objects so that the demons can no longer operate through them. Minors cannot go throwing out their parent's things."

"2. You must realize that your loved ones are demonically bound and blinded. You can talk to them for years telling them of their need for Jesus, but they just won't understand you. They can even repeat back to you what you are saying, but it is as if there is a "scrambler" between what you are saying and their brain so that they cannot really understand the concepts. The "scrambler" is a demon. Also, their wills are bound so that even if they do understand their need for Jesus' salvation, they cannot will to ask Him to become their Savior and Lord."

"If they are living in the same house as you, each day, out loud, take the aggressive against the demons in them. You can do this in another room where they cannot hear you. Don't forget, demons have very sharp ears. Say something like this:"

"You demons binding [person's name], I take authority over you in the name of Jesus Christ my Lord I bind you in the name of Jesus, you may not afflict [person's name], today My house is committed to the Lord and is holy ground You are trespassers and may not function here I bind you and command you to leave in the name of Jesus."

"This battle will be a daily thing. I cannot tell you how long the battle will take, only the Lord knows in each case. Be alert to the fact that the demons can speak through the other person, often being very rude and insulting to you to try to drive you away. In many cases it becomes necessary to rebuke the demon directly as he is speaking through the other person and command him to be silent. The Lord will guide you."

"3. You can ask the Lord to let you "stand in the gap" for the unsaved person. ... (See Ezekiel 22:30,31.) Ask the Lord to let you stand in the gap for this person in order that their eyes may be opened and their will set free to accept Jesus."

k - When we forget that there are two forces always at work we allow ourselves to be blind sided

OlePappy - there are Christians that know just enough of the Bible to be dangerous to themselves and others

Dr. Brown continues:

This was before Peter denied Jesus three times. satan had asked God to cause Peter to fall through denying Jesus. BUT Jesus had counter-petitioned for Peter, and although Peter was tested, Jesus' petition was granted in the end.

This shows satan in heaven ACCUSING us day and night before God. In Isaiah, satan was thrown down from heaven as far as being an angel goes. But until the 12th chapter of Revelation, which hasn't happened yet according to most scholars, he still can go to God and make requests.

Dr. Brown again:

"You must understand that Satan stands before the throne of God petitioning our heavenly Father for our unsaved loved ones. Satan points the accusing finger and says, "See, so-and-so is participating in rock music (or whatever), therefore I have legal right to his/her soul and to influence his/her life and to send my demons into him/her."

"Because God is absolutely just, He must grant Satan his petition if it is not contested. But, we, as heirs and joint heirs with Jesus Christ, have more right to petition God the Father than Satan does. We must "boldly" go before the throne and counter-petition Satan. We can pray something like this:"

"God and Father, I counter-petition Satan I come to you in the name of Jesus Christ my Lord and lay claim to this person I claim him/her as my inheritance which you promised to give to me (if the person is your child, or spouse) Satan may not have him/her I ask you to open his/her eyes so that they can see the light of the gospel of Jesus Christ."

"If the person for which you are petitioning is not a relative, you can petition on the basis that Jesus Christ commanded us to make disciples of the whole world and we can claim that person for a disciple of Jesus Christ."

"You must understand that this is a real battle. You will not win over night, but you do have the power and authority in Jesus Christ to win in the end."

And this finishes up the quote from Dr. Rebecca Brown from "Prepare for War".

Intercession means to go to God's throne and plead on their behalf for salvation, deliverance, protection, healing, financial needs, etc. Intercession is on behalf of another - whether it is family, friend, or someone on the other side of the world.

We ask, and God ALWAYS answers - sometimes Yes, sometimes NO, sometimes WAIT. The Wait is the hardest for me. But at least we know God hears us! And that's awesome.

OlePappy - Father, I pray for a revealing spirit to flow over those who do not see satan's lies and ways. Lord show them in their hearts Your truths about rock music. I pray this in the name of Jesus. AMEN
prodigal son - I've been so confused lately. I'm not taking any chances and listen to classical music

OK, let's not get hung up on the term "rock" music, OK? Ask God if what you are listening to promotes fellowship with Him? Or does it promote lust, violence, power, exaltation of self, etc? If it is not of God, don't take a chance with it - rock, country, soul, rap, blues, any of it!

k - Listen to Christian music with a good strong message

OK, think about this: why is the music industry in business? TO MAKE MONEY any which way they can. Do they care what MESSAGE is in the music? NO! Do they care that some rock stars (like Marilyn Manson) have covenanted with the devil to be successful? NO!

So the music industry is trying to SELL records by appealing to your emotions, and they don't care if that emotion is real love or lust or anger or a spirit of suicide, or rage, or violence, or what. They just want to SELL, and don't care if in the process you lose your soul.

So YOU have to be the one to exercise wisdom about what you listen to. Music especially is VERY powerful for good or bad. You must be the one to review the lyrics AND lifestyles of the people you listen to. What you hear will either bring faith into your life or doubt.

It's hard to see that some things that APPEAR good to us really are not good at all. And in music, sweet sounds and honey words are not always beneficial to us. That's why I say look at the lyrics AND lifestyles - if a musician is living an immoral lifestyle, that will be reflected in his/her music no matter what type it is. Jeff Godwin has written several books about this subject, one of which "Dancing with Demons", is recommended by Dr. Brown and I'm reading myself now.

Take these thoughts, test them BY THE WORD, and ask God how to apply them to your life. It may be info you don't need until you have a teenager or two! LOL

So we've talked about using the Word as a defensive weapon when we pray it as a protection for ourselves and/or to come against some problem in our lives, such as anxiety, fear, doubt, sickness, etc. That is, to find a scripture that deals with the problem and pray the Word back to God and believe it.

We also talked about using the Word as an offensive weapon to come against the devil's schemes either in the lives of others, or against principalities and powers trying to gain a foothold in our community. Then we talked about using prayer as a weapon - especially in dealing with those who need salvation and are blinded by satan.

Now as I said when we first began this study, we aren't here to glorify the devil or attribute every bad thing to demons. We do have a will and can do wrong things without any prodding from the devil. There are two extremes: to deny that the devil and demons exist, OR to attribute every problem to them. We take the middle course, acknowledge that there is warfare going on, not cowering in fear, but being trained as a Christian soldier!

k - Striving for balance is what Christ calls us to but we have to stay hot for Christ