God Speaks to His Prophets Through Dreams
The Word of God tells us that one of the ways God speaks to His prophets is through dreams.
“Hear now My words: If there is a prophet among you, I, the Lord, make Myself known to him in a vision; I speak to him in a dream”.
(Numbers 12:6)
The Word of God also tells us, that though men may not perceive that it is the voice of God speaking to them, through a dream God opens the ears of men to seal their instruction; to turn men back from their deeds; to keep men from pride; to keep their souls from the Pit and their lives from perishing by the sword.
“For God may speak in one way, or in another, yet man does not perceive it. In a dream, in a vision of the night, when deep sleep falls upon men, while slumbering on their beds, then He opens the ears of men, and seals their instruction. In order to turn man from his deed, and conceal pride from man, He keeps back his soul from the Pit, and his life from perishing by the sword”.
(Job 33:14-18)
The word used here for “seal” in the Hebrew is “chatham” meaning: “to close up” “to seal” “to make an end” “to mark” “seal up” or “stop” (Strong’s Concordance). In summary, “To seal their instruction” means: “To close up; seal; mark; stop; or make an end to instruction!” On the 8th of May 2018, God gave me such a dream.
In this dream I was standing in an upstairs hallway in part of a wooden building. The hallway was next to a lounge room filled with young people in their twenties who belonged to a particular church. I also recognized one of the young women who was there who belonged to that church (First witness). This building contained no ground floor but had an open wooden stair structure underneath. God showed me that the lower floor was missing, symbolizing that this place had “no foundational truth.” I felt an extreme urgency to leave that place as something bad was about to happen. I took a scroll of rolled up paper in one hand containing “the evidence of Christ” and a jacket in the other hand. This jacket represented a “cloak of attraction or attention.”
I then grabbed the hand of an old woman who was also there and together we ran, but this woman could not run well. God showed me she represented the “dated history of this particular church,” and that she was “ill–equipped to run the race.” This old woman had a certain characteristic I recognized (Second witness) that confirmed the particular church that she symbolized. As we left the building, I continued to pull her as we ran across a large open field. I kept saying to her over and over, “Don’t look back! Don’t look back!” We did not look back and did not stop running until we had crossed a wide road, reaching a large group of people on the other side.
Although I did not look back, I knew that the building had been engulfed in flames behind us. I knew beforehand that this was about to occur and that there were what appeared to be men below it, who had set this building alight. God told me this building went up in flames “like dry tinder” because the structure of it had been “man-made.” Although God showed me this dream clearly related to a specifically known church, He also showed me He was using it as “a type” and that this church could represent many churches in the world today. This was a significant warning dream; a sign of the times. God then instructed me to “release My Word to the nations” and He then took me to the story of Lot.
Lot and the Destruction of Sodom
Lot in the Book of Genesis of the Bible, was the nephew of a man named Abram. Abram was a man, chosen by God, and with whom God had established an everlasting covenant. God promised Abram that from his seed would come a great nation (the nation of Israel) and that through him all the nations of the earth would be blessed (through the birth of the Messiah). And God said to Abram:
“Get out of your country, from your family and from your father’s house, to a land that I will show you. I will make you a great nation; I will bless you and make your name great; and you shall be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and I will curse him who curses you; and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed”.
(Genesis 12:1–3)
Abram obeyed God, departing his home as the Lord had said, taking his nephew Lot, with him. Abram became rich in livestock, in silver and gold. Lot also had flocks, herds and tents, so that the land was not able to support them both. Parting on good terms, Lot journeyed to the east, choosing all the well-watered plains of Jordan, pitching his tent as far as Sodom, but Abram stayed in the land of Canaan. After confirming His covenant with Abram, God changed Abram’s name to Abraham, meaning “father of a multitude”. God promised to Abraham and to his seed, that as an everlasting possession, He would give them all of the land of Canaan. After visiting Abraham by the terebinth trees of Mamre the Lord said:
“And the Lord said, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am doing, since Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him? For I have known him, in order that he may command his children and his household after him, that they keep the way of the Lord, to do righteousness and justice, that the Lord may bring to Abraham what He has spoken to him”.
(Genesis 18:17-19)
The Lord Warns of Judgment
“And the Lord said, “Because the outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and because their sin is very grave, I will go down now and see whether they have done altogether according to the outcry against it that has come to Me; and if not, I will know”.
(Genesis 18:20 & 21)
As the men turned from there toward Sodom, Abraham knew that if the place was found as the outcry against it proclaimed, that God would indeed destroy it. Abraham would have known that Lot had settled near Sodom and he began to plead with God.
“Would You also destroy the righteous with the wicked? Suppose there were fifty righteous within the city; would You also destroy the place and not spare it for the fifty righteous that were in it?”.
(Genesis 18: 23&24)
God promised Abraham:
“If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare all the place for their sakes”.
(Genesis 18:26)
Abraham’s pleading before the Lord continued until the Lord finally said:
“I will not destroy it for the sake of ten”.
(Genesis 18:32)
Sadly, the two angels who went to Sodom did not find even ten righteous men there. When sheltering for the night in the home of Lot, the book of Genesis tells us:
“The men of the city, the men of Sodom, both old and young, all the people from every quarter, surrounded the house. And they called to Lot and said to him, “Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us that we may know them carnally”.
(Genesis 19:4 & 5)
Or, “so that we can have sex with them” (NIV).
The Righteous Voice as a Judge
It is quite a revelation to note, that when Lot stepped out to prevent these men acting out their wicked desires, their complaint against Lot was that: “he keeps acting as a judge.”
“This one came in to stay here, and he keeps acting as a judge”.
They did not consider Lot as one of them, but rather an outside(Genesis 19:9)r “who came in to stay here” and who obviously made them feel uncomfortable about their sin. Was Lot outspoken regarding their sin? The Bible does not tell us. What it does tell us is that when the angels arrived, Lot was “sitting in the gate of Sodom” (Genesis 19:1).
The gate of a city in Old Testament times was the place where legal transactions were carried out (Ruth 4:1 & 9), where the Elders of the city sat and matters of importance were discussed (Proverbs 31:23) and where judgments were made and carried out. (Deuteronomy 21:19-21; Joshua 20:4). But it was also the place where prophets cried out. The Prophet Amos declared:
“They hate the one who rebukes in the gate, and they abhor the one who speaks uprightly”.
(Amos 5:10)
How Spiritual Strongholds Strengthen Their Territory
The Bible clearly tells us that in the Kingdom of Heaven (or in the heavenly realms) a violent battle is raging and that the violent “take it by force.”
“And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force”.
(Matthew 11:12)
Therefore, if a demonic stronghold is continuing to increase in influence over a particular place, then it is clear by this Scripture that Christians are not doing their job! All it takes for the enemy to take hold of a territory is for Christians to sit back and do nothing. We are not called to simply “protect” that which is ours:
We are called to use the keys of the Kingdom that Christ has given us, to storm the gates of the enemy and to take that territory by force.
Jesus said to Peter:
“and I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock (the revelation Peter had received from God that Jesus was “the Christ, the Son of the living God”) I will build my church, and the gates of hades shall not prevail against it. And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven”.
(Matthew 16:18 & 19)
Christian believers must use their weapons of warfare to advance. They must pray, using the powerful name of Jesus Christ and operate in spiritual gifts, demonstrating the power of God.
The Consequence of Unrestrained Sin
When a demonic stronghold resides over a particular place, God will continue to raise up righteous prophets who will not keep silent but continue to expose and confront it. Without this intervention, like Sodom, demonic strongholds that have not been exposed and cast down from over that place, will continue to grow in strength. Again, when a demonic stronghold resides over a particular place, the people present in that place will display certain characteristics connected to that spirit’s operation. Sodom was such a place and is the word from which the word sodomy originates. The word “sodomy” is defined as “anal intercourse” and sometimes refers to “homosexual rape.”We do not know how many people the lord sent to Sodom to confront their sin, or how many times his correction through others was ignored, but we can guess that Sodom did not become such an evil place overnight. At some point their sin was left unchecked, became unrestrained, and sodomizing demonic forces took hold over that place.
This is something that as Christians we need to clearly understand:
- Demonic spirits are here on assignment!
- Their mandate is to lie and to steal, and to kill and destroy, and eventually to take as many people as they can to hell!
- They will not stop until someone stands against them, binds their power in the name of Jesus Christ and casts them out!
- When the righteous voices of others are consistently ignored, the outcry against that place becomes so great, that God’s judgment comes upon it.
When God’s time for Sodom had reached its fulfilment, just as i did in my dream, the angels removed Lot, his wife, and two daughters from that city, moments before his final judgement took place. When lot delayed, the angels took lot by the hand, “the lord being merciful to him” and took them out warning them, “do not look behind you!” (See Genesis 19:16 & 17).
(The word “angel” here is translated “mal’ak” from the root word “malawk” meaning: “to despatch as a deputy” ”a messenger” “specifically, of God”, i.e. an angel (also a prophet, priest or teacher): — “ambassador” “angel” “king” “messenger” (Strong’s).
Be Aware of the Spiritual Climate Around You
Many Christians today are not aware of the spiritual climate around them ~ and even less aware that they are part of a spiritual battle. The Bible warns us:
“For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places”.
(Ephesians 6:12)
This Scripture clearly tells us that there are principalities and powers fighting directly against us. The word “principality” here is translated “arche.” Its meanings include: “chief” – in various applications of order, time, place or rank; “power” “principality” and “rule.” The word “power” here is translated “exousia.” Its meanings include “force” “capacity” “mastery” ~ superhuman, token of control and “delegated influence” (Strong’s).
- Demonic forces have various applications of order, time, place and rank.
- They have a power.
- They have principalities or princes that rule over certain places.
- They have different levels of force or capacity.
- They have different areas of mastery or delegated influence.
- They have a superhuman ability to control certain situations, people or things.
These same principalities and powers are described here as “the rulers of the darkness of this age” and “spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places” (referring to the spiritual realm). These rulers and hosts of wickedness are many. They are demonic forces who hold nothing good. They are constantly at war against the Kingdom of God, the people of God and every principle of truth that God has laid out in His Word. And whether we realize it or not, even before we gave our lives to Christ, we were right in the midst of this spiritual battle.
But Here is Wonderful News!!
As truly born-again christians who genuinely follow Christ, we are on the winning side!
We have been given powerful tools of warfare to defeat every demonic power! Every time!
One of the main weapons therefore, that the enemy yields against us is ignorance! He wants to keep us:
1. Ignorant of the spiritual battle we are in and;
2. Ignorant of the power we have been given through Christ to completely overthrow him!
“For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ, and being ready to punish all disobedience when your obedience is fulfilled”.
(2 Corinthians 10:4-6)
A Personal Testimony of Defeating Witchcraft
There was a time in recent years when I began to have great difficulty in prophesying in a particular church. I began to experience a very sudden and major block to the flow of anointing I had always known, and I was struggling greatly to coherently deliver the prophetic words that God was giving me. This continued to occur for about three weeks. After this time, God revealed to me that there was strong opposition in the spirit realm. He told me that He knew its history and He knew its power, but that He had given me the authority to overthrow it! In obedience and faith to what God had shown me, I began to immediately command all opposition to go in the Name of Jesus Christ. I did not need to know the name of the demonic forces opposing me in order to take authority over them. I knew they had no power against the name of Jesus Christ.
The next day I went back to that church and once again as in the past, a very strong anointing to prophesy came upon me and I prophesied fluently and coherently without inhibition. In fact, I began to prophesy under an anointing that was even stronger than in the past. Many of the prophecies God gave me following this breakthrough predominantly focused on The finished work of the cross; our authority to overthrow the power of the enemy; and the sanctification of the church. After that same service I saw a man look straight at me and then quickly duck behind a screen. The demonic power that had been operating through this man knew it had been exposed and it did not want me to see who it had been operating through.
When I began to ask the Lord about this man’s behaviour after the service, God was able to tell me exactly what this man had been praying against me to try to stop me prophesying. The very things God told me this man had been praying against me, were the very things that had been happening to me over that three-week period, not only in church, but at home as well. I believe God allowed this only for a short time to teach me; then He instructed me to take authority over it. Whether this man had been doing this out of ignorance and was unaware that he had been operating out of a witchcraft spirit, I do not know; God told me it made no difference. The spirit of witchcraft is the spirit of witchcraft, regardless of how it operates, or who it operates through.
Would You Forfeit Your Own Salvation?
Sadly, for those who do not see the seriousness of their sin; for those who do not repent, or who do not receive deliverance from the spirits that bind them, these things will continue to operate out of their lives. The Bible clearly tells us that those who practice these things will not inherit the Kingdom of God:
“Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God”.
(Galatians 5:19–21)
The Greek word used for “sorcery” here is “pharmakeia” meaning: “magic” “sorcery” or “witchcraft” (Strong’s).
The KJV reads: “They which do such things shall not inherit the Kingdom of God.”
The word “do” used here is translated “prasso” meaning: “to practice” “perform repeatedly or habitually” “to exercise” “practise” “be busy with” or “carry on” (Strong’s).
These definitions differentiate habitual or continued acts of the flesh, including witchcraft, from those that happen once or occasionally. There is a practised, repeated or habitual performance in these things that results in the person involved, forfeiting their inheritance in the Kingdom of God.
Those who habitually and repeatedly engage in works of the flesh as a practice, will not inherit the Kingdom of God.
How important it is, then, for those who are struggling with any of these things, to receive deliverance from the demonic forces that enslave them, so that they can be free from the very things that will rob them of their Salvation.
God is no Respecter of Persons
We know that the Bible tells us that God is no respecter of persons (See Acts 10:34).
Indeed, even His own people to whom He was sent, the nation of Israel, refused to receive Jesus Christ as their Messiah as the only One that could remove the curse of the law and save them from their sins.
“Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us (for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree”)”.
(Galatians 3:13)
“He (Jesus) came to His own, and His own did not receive Him. But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God”.
(John 1:11)
ALL who refuse Christ and the finished work of the cross, including those of the nation of Israel, by forfeit, remain under the curse of the law, because like all men, they are unable to fulfil the law through their own efforts.
“For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse; for it is written, “cursed is everyone who does not continue in all things which are written in the book of the law, to do them. But that no one is justified by the law in the sight of God is evident, for the just shall live by faith”.
(Galatians 3:10 & 11)
All men who refuse to acknowledge the finished work of the cross, remain under the curse of the law.
Run From Sin and Don’t Look Back!
The late Derek Prince had a great love for the nation of Israel. He also remains one of the most respected Biblical teachers and pioneered much of the teaching we have on deliverance today. In a U Tube segment entitled “The Nature of Witchcraft,” the Late Derek Prince stated that “witchcraft’s supreme aim in the church is to hide the reality of Jesus Christ crucified.” That “when this happens, it causes the church to go into CARNALITY and to fall back into Legalism, causing them To come under a curse.Derek Prince says: “It is a satanic power that does this!”
God also gave the late Derek Prince the following definition: “Witchcraft is the attempt to control people and make them do what you want by the use of any spirit that is not the Holy Spirit.” He then went on to say that if any person has a spirit which he or she uses, it is not the Holy Spirit because no one ‘uses’ God. If you are a person who habitually operates out of a spirit of witchcraft, perhaps like the man praying against me as I shared in my testimony above, or as described by the late Derek Prince above, please seek help and deliverance without delay. If you are a person who struggles habitually with any of the works of the flesh listed in Galatians Chapter Five, please seek help and deliverance without delay.
Connect yourself with a bible-believing church or bible-believing group of believers who move in the power of God using the name of Jesus Christ. Seek out those who understand and practice spiritual warfare and who actively teach others to do the same. Connect yourself with people who are not afraid to confront and cast out demons and who pray for the sick and see them healed. You will recognize those who equip others in spiritual warfare, because you will see the ongoing spiritual growth in the lives of those who connect with them and that those same people who connect with them, also begin to demonstrate the power of God.
Prayer:
Heavenly Father I come to You in the matchless Name of Jesus Christ. I ask You to forgive my sins, including those sins of the flesh that are listed in Galatians Chapter Five. I ask You to totally cover me, my family, my church and my nation with the precious blood of Jesus Christ. I ask that You would free us totally and completely from all the works of darkness that the enemy has yielded over our lives, including through every past generation. I ask that You would free myself, my family, my church and my nation from ALL demonic oppression and every agent that the enemy has used against us, including through every past generation. I ask that You bring deliverance to every area of our lives that have not already been delivered by You and if necessary, that You would lead us to such a person or people, equipped in this area to help us.
In the Name of the risen Lord Jesus Christ I pray, Amen.
