by lighthouse | Sep 30, 2019 | Fasting & Prayers, News & Announcements
Scriptures For Meditation — 1John 3:8; Eph 6:10-18
Prevailing Over The Powers of Darkness
From our meditation of the past two days, we have seen that biblically speaking, the word “darkness” does not just refer to the absence of visible, physical light, but can often also figuratively or symbolically speak about—
• The Consequence of Satan’s dominion and power over a person, place or thing; or
• The Manifestations of The Works of Satan —
The Good News – 1 John 3:8; In Christ Jesus, we have the victory!
Not Just Against, But Also In and Through…
However, it is very important for us to realise that the consequence of Satan’s dominion and power, and the manifestations of his work, are not just talking about what he does against believers, but also what he works in and through believers, as he manipulates us to sin or walk in disobedience against God!
As the bible infers in the first part of 1John 3:8; the primary work of the devil that Christ came to destroy is the sin that holds us bound and separates us from God and makes us liable to the judgement and damnation of hell!
Rulers of Darkness
The second scripture Eph 6:10-19, tells us what our battle is, who our battle really is against, and what we must do to prevail over these evil forces — The Rulers of the darkness Of This World!
For our struggle is not against flesh and blood [contending only with physical opponents], but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this [present] darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly (supernatural) places. (Eph 6:23 AMP)
Ruler: Someone with authority, influence or power over a person, place or thing.
As we read in yesterday’s devotional, darkness is a usurper and can only exist or prevail whenever or wherever light is absent!
Jesus tells us in Matt 28:18, that all authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Him; that also includes authority over the rulers or powers of darkness and all their works!
The bible enjoins us to — Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil. [Eph 6:11 NLT]
The Strategy of the devil against believers is to Hinder, Oppress, Obstruct, Intimidate, Discourage, Entice, Harass or Destroy.
Eph 6:13 Therefore, put on the complete armor of God, so that you will be able to [successfully] resist and stand your ground in the evil day [of danger], and having done everything [that the crisis demands], to stand firm [in your place, fully prepared, immovable, victorious].
Eph 6:14 So stand firm and hold your ground, HAVING TIGHTENED THE WIDE BAND OF TRUTH (personal integrity, moral courage) AROUND YOUR WAIST and HAVING PUT ON THE BREASTPLATE OF RIGHTEOUSNESS (an upright heart),
Eph 6:15 and having strapped on YOUR FEET THE GOSPEL OF PEACE IN PREPARATION [to face the enemy with firm-footed stability and the readiness produced by the good news].
Eph 6:16 Above all, lift up the [protective] shield of faith with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.
Eph 6:17 And take THE HELMET OF SALVATION, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God.
Eph 6:18 With all prayer and petition pray [with specific requests] at all times [on every occasion and in every season] in the Spirit, and with this in view, stay alert with all perseverance and petition [interceding in prayer] for all God’s people.
PRAYER FOCUS
Ask the Holy Spirit to turn the searchlight of the truth of the word of God upon your life and let Him expose the areas where the works of Satan have held sway.
Let Him reveal the manifestations of the enemy’s work in his wiles against you; pray that the victory of Jesus Christ on the cross of Calvary and the power in His Name and in His shed blood will avail and prevail on your behalf in those areas.
Pray especially also, for the Holy Spirit to reveal to you, the areas where you may have been giving room for the works of the enemy to manifest in or through your life.
Pray as David did in Ps 19:12-14 —
Who can understand his errors or omissions? Acquit me of hidden (unconscious, unintended) faults.
Also keep back Your servant from presumptuous (deliberate, willful) sins; Let them not rule and have control over me. Then I will be blameless (complete), And I shall be acquitted of great transgression.
Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart Be acceptable and pleasing in Your sight, O LORD, my [firm, immovable] rock and my Redeemer.
Amen.
Shalom,
Pastor Wale Ola
by lighthouse | Sep 29, 2019 | Fasting & Prayers, News & Announcements
Scripture For Meditation — John 1:1-5
The Victory of Light Over Darkness
In yesterday’s scripture text (Gen 1:1-5), we read how darkness covered the whole earth at the beginning of creation, before God spoke into the darkness and created the light.
Darkness can be symbolic of:
• The Consequence of Satan’s dominion and power over a person, place or thing.
Luke 22:53; Eph 6:12; or
• The Manifestations of The Work of Satan — David had an experience of this when he cried out in Psalm 143:3-4 —
“For the enemy hath persecuted my soul; he hath smitten my life down to the ground; he hath made me to dwell in darkness, as those that have been long dead.
Therefore is my spirit overwhelmed within me; my heart within me is desolate.”
Darkness has a wide ranging connotation, and can also be a figurative representation of many undesirable things —
• Misery – Psalm 88:6
• Adversity
• Destruction – Isa 50:10
• Ignorance
• Wickedness
• Evil
• Mystery or Confusion
• Attacks and persecution
• Death,
• Sorrow,
• Obscurity- Isa 29:18
• Pestilence – Ps 91:1-7
• Night
When Darkness Lost It’s Power
The bible goes on to tell us that God at the beginning of creation, separated the light from the darkness and brought forth Day out of Night.
And now, through the victory of Jesus Christ on the cross of Calvary, believers already have the victory over darkness in all its ramifications!
Darkness is a usurper –
A usurper is an illegitimate claimant to power; someone who takes a position of power or influence illegally or by force; someone that acts outside the scope of their given authority or jurisdiction.
As the bible records in Colossians 1:13 —
He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love.
Consequently, Jesus tells us in John 8:12 — “I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.”
This is our non-negotiable reality as redeemed children of God!
Darkness can only exist where light is absent –
The Light shines on in the darkness, and the darkness did not understand it or overpower it or appropriate it or absorb it [and is unreceptive to it]. [John 1:5 Amplified Bible]
However, wherever the word or presence of God is absent, darkness prevails.
But we know, that the entrance of His word brings light and understanding [Ps 119:130]
Prayer Focus – Micah 7:7-8, Ps 18:28-29
“But as for me, I will look expectantly for the LORD and with confidence in Him I will keep watch; I will wait [with confident expectation] for the God of my salvation. My God will hear me.
Do not rejoice over me [amid my tragedies], O my enemy! Though I fall, I will rise; Though I sit in the darkness [of distress], the LORD is a light for me.” (Micah 7:7 -8 AMP)
“You light a lamp for me. The LORD, my God, lights up my darkness.
In your strength I can crush an army; with my God I can scale any wall”. (Psa 18:28-29 NLT)
Let’s petition the Lord for these, for the church as well as for ourselves:
• Let not darkness prevail over me; let not the power of darkness nor the works of darkness prosper in their wiles against me.
• Enlighten what’s dark in me,
• Strengthen what’s weak in me,
• Mend what’s broken in me,
• Bind whats bruised in me,
• Heal whats sick in me,
• Revive whatever has died in me that should be alive for your glory.
Amen.
Shalom,
Pastor Wale Ola
by lighthouse | Sep 28, 2019 | Fasting & Prayers, News & Announcements
In The Beginning, God…!
Scripture For Meditation — Gen 1:1-5
For this month’s fasting and prayers, we will turn to the very first few verses on the bible to remind ourselves of the Awesome Wonder that is the God that we serve.
Let’s look at a few key phrases in our scripture text:
1. God Created:
First, the bible affirms categorically, that God pre-existed and was preeminent from the beginning — He created the heavens and the earth!
The word create, means —To bring into existence or to fashion out of nothing, something which did not previously exist.
2. And The Earth Was Without Form
According to Strong’s Bible Concordance , The word form is taken from a root word meaning — to be empty; a vacuity, that is, (superficially) an undistinguishable ruin: – emptiness, void.
3. The Earth Was Void
Again from Strong’s we get the definition of the word void, meaning — to lie waste; a desolation (of surface), that is, desert; figuratively a worthless thing; adverbially in vain: – confusion, empty place, without form, nothing, (thing of) nought, vain, vanity, waste, wilderness.
4. And Deep Darkness Covered The Earth
The word Darkness, is taken from the root word meaning the dark; figuratively misery, destruction, death, ignorance, sorrow, wickedness: – dark (-ness), night, obscurity.
These opening verses of the bible introduce us to a state of being or existence that mirrors the situation that some reading this may be confronted with; the reality of the life that they are experiencing today:
A state of emptiness; an undistinguishable mess, a life that seems to be devoid of real meaning or progress!
Maybe you are experiencing a situation of confusion; a place of loneliness; a desert place where nothing seems to be growing or going right.
A dark place; a place of obscurity and hopelessness or despair?
Hear what the bible says in the middle of all these:
4. The Spirit of God Hovered
The word hovered is the same as the word to brood; He sat on the waters just as a mother hen would do, sitting on her eggs to incubate or hatch her young.
5. And God Said…!
God did not need any raw materials to begin or complete the work of creation
Everything that God created, He brought forth out of nothing but by the power of His spoken word and the breath of His Spirit —
He brought order out of chaos; He brought substance out of nothingness; He spoke into the darkness and created the light. Hallelujah!
Child of God, if that was all that God needed to create the heavens and the earth, it is definitely more than sufficient for Him to sort out your life!
Prayer Focus
Let’s begin this month’s fasting and prayers by doing as God did —
Let’s confront the darkness, void and desert places in our lives; let’s invite the Holy Spirit to come brood over our lives and our situations and let’s declare the word of God over and into them.
Let’s pray for the light of His Shekinah glory to come and illuminate every dark place in our lives so that darkness will give way to His light! (John 1:1-5)
Let’s speak to every chaos and contrary situations in our lives and in this ministry, to begin to conform to the will of God.
Let’s finish by mediating on Psalm 18 — May the Lord perform and establish all His good counsel concerning your life in Jesus’s Name. Amen.
