In order to live in this deceitful and deceptive world, Christians must be able to interact with it, while not being overtaken by it. In order to minister to others, we need to be strong in the Spirit, but not out of touch with society. We need to be relatable, just not at the expense of our spiritual lives.
In the Apostle Paul’s first writings to the Thessalonians, in Chapter 5 he gives believers one of the best beginning strategies for spiritual warfare. In order to effectively live life in this world as a believer, and not become overtaken by deceptive demons and spirits charged to draw you further away from God. If a Christian puts this into practice, they will be less vulnerable to the enemy and his devices. If your desire is to be a stronger Christian in this world that is released from bondage, live by these strategies.
1 Thessalonians 5:19-22
Do not quench the Spirit. Do not despise prophecies. Test all things; hold fast what is good. Abstain from every form of evil.
Do Not Quench the Spirit
Quenching the Spirit simply means allowing the Holy Spirit to dry up in your life. Making the Holy Spirit of no effect in your life (Mark 7:13). Because of our attachment to this world we may be quenching the Holy Spirit. This will not only block blessings in your life, but also leaves a doorway for spirits and principalities to wreak havoc & cause destruction in your life. The more you quench the Spirit, the less you can trust the things in your life and if they are right for you. Because it may not actually be the Holy Spirit guiding you, but other spirits that are against the things of God.
Do Not Quench The Spirit Any Longer!!
Do not Despise Prophecies
Because we do not pay attention to God’s Word enough, we do not know what He has told us about the future. We know Jesus is coming back, but most of us know nothing past that fact. The Lord told us the future so we do not have to worry, but rest assure and wait on His day. The only problem is that because of our lack of commitment in His understanding we despise prophecies. We despise them mainly because we never feel like we can understand them. Or because we have a lack of faith that makes us feel like it may not be true. Or because we do not understand the prophecies, so we have a spirit of fear, which does not come from The Lord, but from the enemy. We ignore prophecy growing further & further away from them. We take on the course that the world promotes and forget what God says about the future. This practice runs the risk of us missing the blessing of that prophecy. Just like the Jews that missed Jesus when He walked this earth. They were so far away from God, not fully believing what He said He would do on earth, they missed Him when He did it.
Pay Attention To Prophecy! Do Not Ignore It!!
Test All Things
Do you test all things?
Do you test all spirits?
Do you understand the difference between the fruits of the Spirit and the fruits of the flesh?
If you do not test all things, you run the real risk of being deceived. This means testing all the entertainment you consume and seeing if it is right for you or not. This means testing your leaders and understanding if they are really believers in Christ or not. This means testing the schools that you send your children to, knowing for sure if they are leading them to Christ or taking them further away from Him. Testing everything making sure it is right for you. This is a method of Spiritual warfare. Testing all spirits. If you are not testing all things, you can rest assured you have a multitude of deceptions & bondage in your life that needs to be broken and let go of NOW in the name of Jesus!
Test All Things with the Word of God!!
Hold Fast What is Good
After we have tested whatever we were consuming either mentally, physically, emotionally, spiritually, or combination of it all. We then must decide what to keep or get rid of. Holding fast to what is good simply tells us that if it lines up with the Word of God hold on to it. Too many of us discard the good because sometimes it too hard to swallow. Or because it requires too much change for ourselves. Or for a number of reasons. If we continue to hold on to the good that the Holy Spirit connects us with and reject the bad, we are cleansing our minds & souls. Removing demons and giving the Holy Spirit more room to speak clearer.
After Testing, If It Stands True, Hold On To It!!
Abstain from every form of Evil
If we have tested something and it does not line up with the Word of God, we are too abstain from consuming it. We are to stay away from every form of evil. This is a big key to why Christians are not living in the pure happiness & grace that Jesus provides. They do not stay away from all evil. Every time we interact with the things that are against God, we leave ourselves vulnerable to attacks from the enemy. We wind up worshipping false gods, and believing in false teachers & false doctrine. Also following false leaders. We eventually end up away from God. We wrestle against spirits, principalities, and demons in wickedly high places. The only thing that protects us from that is the full Armor of God. If we are not wearing it and not abstaining from every form of evil, we allow our enemy to dwell within us. We quench the Holy Spirit. We build a tolerance for the devil, eventually leading us to not knowing the difference between Our God and the world’s god. Running the risk of being lukewarm (Revelations 3:15) or having Jesus say “I never knew you” (Matthew 7:21-23).
Abstain From Every Form of Evil!!
I encourage you all to live through these scriptures and let go of the love you may have for this world. Let go of the desires you have for yourself, and get back to the desires that God has for you. Use these scriptures as strategies for your life. For those that have not learned about Spiritual Warfare this is a great beginning point. You cannot be a successful Christian without spiritual warfare.
