We Must Live a Life of Holiness
The writer of Hebrews says,
“Pursue peace with all people, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord: looking carefully lest anyone fall short of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up cause trouble, and by this many become defiled.”
Hebrews 12:14 & 15
This word ‘bitterness’ is translated ‘pikria‘ in the Greek, meaning ‘acridity’ (especially poison), literally or figuratively: — ‘bitterness.’ The word ‘trouble’ is translated ‘Enochleō’ in the Greek, meaning ‘to crowd in, i.e. (figuratively) to annoy: —trouble.‘ The word ‘defile’ is translated ‘miainō’ in the Greek, meaning ‘to sully or taint, i.e. contaminate (ceremonially or morally): — defile.‘ – See Strong’s Concordance.
The writer is warning us, don’t let any bitter or poisonous root come into your midst. Don’t let it spring up, crowd in, annoy or bring trouble. Don’t let it sully, taint, contaminate or defile the holiness of Christ in us. He further warns, that if this should happen, that many would become defiled. He then qualifies this statement by warning about fornication and those of unclean living, saying,
“Lest there be any fornicator or profane person like Esau, who for one morsel of food sold his birth right. For you know that afterward, when he wanted to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no place for repentance, though he sought it diligently with tears.”
Hebrews 12:16 & 17
The word ‘fornicator’ in this particular verse is translated ‘pornos‘ in the Greek, meaning ‘to sell; akin to a (male) prostitute i.e. (by analogy) a debauchee (libertine): — fornicator, whoremonger.‘ The word ‘profane’ used here is translated ‘bebēlos’ in the Greek, meaning ‘wicked.’ The writer goes on to use Esau as an example; how after despising (or deeming worthless or failing to esteem) his birth right – See Genesis 25:34 – he sold it for a morsel of meat. Though later he sought the blessing that he had foregone with tears, he found no place for repentance.
The writer also warns us in verse 15, to be “looking carefully lest anyone fall short (be deficient): —come behind (short), be destitute, fail, lack, suffer need, (be in) want, be the worse) of the grace of God.” – See Strong’s Concordance.
We Come to Christ for Help
The writer of Hebrews goes on to tell us, that when we come to God in pursuit of His holiness, we don’t come to Him in fear, but through the finished work of the Cross. We come through the spotless Lamb of God; Jesus Christ; who has already shed His blood on our behalf to make a way for us to come to Him without fear. That is why Jesus Christ is declared to be the Mediator of the new covenant by the sprinkling of His blood.
“For you have not come to the mountain that may be touched and that burned with fire, and to blackness and darkness and tempest, and the sound of a trumpet and the voice of words, so that those who heard it begged that the word should not be spoken to them any more. (For they could not endure what was commanded: “And if so much as a beast touches the mountain, it shall be stoned or shot with an arrow.” And so terrifying was the sight that Moses said, “I am exceedingly afraid and trembling).” But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, to an innumerable company of angels, to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are registered in heaven, to God the Judge of all, to the spirits of just men made perfect, to Jesus the Mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling that speaks better things than that of Abel.”
Hebrews 12: 18-24
- When we come to God for help, He is pleased because He wants to help us.
- This Jesus, the Mediator of the new covenant, declares the power of the Cross to be a completed work on our behalf.
- There is absolutely nothing that Christ has left undone.
- All our needs were provided for – at the Cross – in advance.
- His power is already here to completely heal and free us.
At any point where we have fallen short of God’s holy laws; His righteous standard; Christ has already made up for on our behalf. Every short-fall will be filled with His glory. Amen! This means we can come boldly to His throne of grace, to obtain mercy and grace to help in time of need.
“Seeing then that we have a great High Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”
Hebrews 4: 14-16
The Battle is Real
In the same chapter of Hebrews, the writer also exhorts,
“In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood.”
Hebrews 12:4 NIV
But the Apostle Paul also tells us, that as believers in Christ, our warfare is not against flesh and blood, but against principalities and powers in the heavenly realm. For this reason, we are told, both, to take up and put on the whole armour of God, so that we may be able to withstand (‘stand against, oppose, resist’) in the evil day. And having done all, we are to continue to stand (abide, appoint, bring, continue, covenant, establish, hold up, lay, present, set (up) – See Strong’s Concordance.
“Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armour of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 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. Therefore take up the whole armour of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.”
Ephesians 6: 10-13
For each one of us to be able to walk in holiness before the Lord, we need to learn how to persevere in spiritual warfare so that in His Name we can overcome the powers of darkness around us.
There Were Giants in the Land
When the leaders of the twelve tribes of Israel were sent by Moses to spy out the land of Canaan, they came back with a report that the descendants of Anak were there. The descendants of Anak were giants, translated ‘nĕphiyl’ in the Hebrew, or ‘Nephilim.’ Also translated ‘a feller – one who cuts down, as in a bully or a tyrant.’ – See Strong’s Concordance.
“Nevertheless the people who dwell in the land are strong; the cities are fortified and very large; moreover we saw the descendants of Anak there.”
Numbers 13:28
“There we saw the giants (the descendants of Anak came from the giants); and we were like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight.”
Numbers 13:33
These giants were not just a people group that the Israelites had to drive out of the Promised Land that they were about to inherit, but were aligned with the demonic principalities and powers contained in that region. Genesis 6 tells us that giants came about when the sons of God (translated ʼĕlôhîym – gods in the ordinary sense; but specifically used (in the plural thus, especially with the article) of the supreme God; occasionally applied by way of deference to magistrates; and sometimes as a superlative:—angels, × exceeding, God (gods) (-dess, -ly), × (very) great, judges, × mighty) went in to the daughters of men and they bore children to them. – See Strong’s Concordance.
The sons of God are also mentioned in the book of Job.
“Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan also came among them. And the LORD said to Satan, ‘From where do you come?’ So Satan answered the LORD and said, ‘From going to and fro on the earth, and from walking back and forth on it.‘”
Job 1:6 & 7
We Are to Protect our House of Worship
The holy Scriptures tell us, that Satan is a created being, also known as Lucifer; son of the morning; king of Tyre and king of Babylon. He was once ‘the anointed cherub who covers’, but is now a fallen angelic being, who was created by God to worship the Lord God Almighty. But Satan fell through pride and wanted to be worshipped like the Most High God – See Isaiah 14:3 – 15 and Ezekiel 28:13 – 19.
Isaiah 14:11 and Ezekiel 28:13, speak of Satan as having been given stringed instruments; timbrels and pipes; perhaps inlaid as part of his being. It seems no coincidence then, that it was the horn, flute, harp, lyre, and psaltery (wind and stringed instruments) that King Nebuchadnezzar had played in Babylon, to get the people to bow down to the golden image he had wrongly made. — See my article, ‘A lifestyle of Fasting and Prayer.’ But these instruments were made to worship the Lord, and the Lord alone. That is one of the reasons why Satan is defeated through our worship and praise. The psalmist says,
“Praise him with the sound of the trumpet: praise him with the psaltery and harp. Praise him with the timbrel and dance: praise him with stringed instruments and organs. Praise him upon the loud cymbals: praise him upon the high sounding cymbals.”
Psalm 150:3 – 5
This Lucifer, is a fallen created being, who was created by God to worship the Lord God Almighty, the only creator of the heavens and the earth. Amen! But he fell through pride and was cast out of heaven. And like Lucifer, we too have been created to worship the Lord God Almighty, not to be worshipped by others.
The Apostle Paul teaches us, we are to speak to one another, in psalms, hymns and spiritual songs, making melody in our hearts to the Lord. In this way, we edify ourselves and we teach and admonish one-another, singing with grace in our hearts to the Lord.
“And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord.”
Ephesians 5:18 & 19
“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.”
Colossians 3:16
Overcoming the Powers of Darkness
The book of Genesis in the Holy Bible tells us, that the children born out of the union between ‘the sons of God’ and the ‘daughters of men’, became mighty men of old; men of renown.
“There were giants on the earth in those days, and also afterward, when the sons of God came in to the daughters of men and they bore children to them. Those were the mighty men who were of old, men of renown.”
Genesis 6:4
The word ‘mighty’ in this verse is translated ‘gibôr’ or ‘gibbowr’ in the Hebrew, meaning ‘powerful; by implication, warrior, tyrant: — champion, chief, excel, giant, man, mighty (man, one), strong (man), valiant man.‘
The phrase ‘of old‘ in this verse is translated ‘ʻôlâm’ meaning: ‘properly, concealed, i.e. the vanishing point; generally, time out of mind (past or future), i.e. (practically) eternity; frequentatively, adverbial (especially with prepositional prefix) always:—alway(-s), ancient (time), any more, continuance, eternal, (for, (n-)) ever(-lasting, -more, of old), lasting, long (time), (of) old (time), perpetual, at any time, (beginning of the) world (+ without end).’ – See Strong’s Concordance.
This denotes, that unless destroyed, these giants; or demonic strongmen; would live perpetually; without end; or eternally. These were demonic, supernatural beings that the Israelites were fighting! But just like we who fight in the Name of Yeshua Hamashiach (Jesus Christ the Messiah) God had already given them the victory!
We Fight Through to Victory
Giants continued to be mentioned in the Old Testament, where many great men of God fought against them and won! But these giants were known by different names amongst the different people groups – See the people of Moab and Ammon in Deuteronomy 2:11 & 20; the kingdom of Og in Joshua 12:4 & 13:12; the valley of the giants (the Rephaim) in Joshua 15:8 and 18:16; the Perizzites in Joshua 17:15 and the Philistine giants in 1 Samuel chapter 17 (Goliath) and 2 Samuel 21:15-22 – which included the brother of Goliath.
Fallen angels are also referred to in the New Testament of the Holy Bible in the book of Jude 1: 6&7 and in 2 Peter 2: 4-8, where their judgement is mentioned alongside those who commit ungodly acts without repentance; like those in the days of Noah and in the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah – Who had “given themselves over to sexual immorality and gone after strange flesh” – See Jude 1:7.
But Noah, a preacher of righteousness; and Lot, who was vexed by their wicked conduct, were both removed out of harms way, before these judgements occurred.
The Victory Has Come Says the Lord
In the book of Second Chronicles in the Bible, is the wonderful true story of a major battle fought against some of these same people groups inhabited by giants. When king Jehoshaphat heard that the people of Moab and Ammon, and others with them, besides the Ammonites, were coming up to battle against them, he was afraid. So he sought the Lord and proclaimed a fast throughout all of Judah, as the people came to seek the Lord and to ask for His help.
“Then some came and told Jehoshaphat, saying, ‘A great multitude is coming against you from beyond the sea, from Syria; and they are in Hazazon Tamar’ (which is En Gedi). And Jehoshaphat feared, and set himself to seek the Lord, and proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah. So Judah gathered together to ask help from the Lord; and from all the cities of Judah they came to seek the Lord.”
2 Chronicles 20: 2-4
The people of Judah sought the help of the Lord, because they knew the survival of the next generation was at stake. They came with their families, their wives and their little ones. And together they fixed their eyes on the Lord.
“O our God, will You not judge them? For we have no power against this great multitude that is coming against us; nor do we know what to do, but our eyes are upon You. Now all Judah, with their little ones, their wives, and their children, stood before the LORD.”
2 Chronicles 20: 12 & 13
As the Spirit of the Lord came upon Jahanziel the son of Zechariah, the Lord spoke through him, telling king Jehoshaphat and all the people,
“Do not be afraid nor dismayed because of this great multitude, for the battle is not yours, but God’s.”
2 Chronicles 20: 15
“You will not need to fight in this battle. Position yourselves, stand still and see the salvation of the LORD, who is with you, O Judah and Jerusalem!’ Do not fear or be dismayed; tomorrow go out against them, for the LORD is with you.”
2 Chronicles 20:17
The Warfare of Praise
Just like King Jehoshaphat and the people of Judah, there are times in our lives when the battle we are facing is too big for us. But the battle belongs to the Lord! In response to the word of the Lord, the Levites and the children of the Kohathites and Korahites stood up to praise the Lord. Then King Jehoshaphat, after consultation with the people, appointed those who should sing to the Lord, who would praise the Beauty of Holiness.
“Then the Levites of the children of the Kohathites and of the children of the Korahites stood up to praise the Lord God of Israel with voices loud and high. So they rose early in the morning and went out into the Wilderness of Tekoa; and as they went out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, “Hear me, O Judah and you inhabitants of Jerusalem: Believe in the Lord your God, and you shall be established; believe His prophets, and you shall prosper. And when he had consulted with the people, he appointed those who should sing to the Lord, and who should praise the beauty of holiness, as they went out before the army and were saying: “Praise the Lord, For His mercy endures forever.”
2 Chronicles 20: 19 – 21
The Israelites knew something about the power of praise in the midst of a spiritual battle. They praised the Lord God of Israel with voices loud and high. They praised the beauty of holiness, proclaiming His mercy endures forever. As part of our warfare, we too, must look to the power of praise. For with our hearts we believe, but with our mouths our confession is made.
“For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.”
Romans 10:10
The Enemy Must Flee as we Praise
Whilst worship is the admiration of our hearts, praise, is the exuberant expression of that heart of worship, expressed through our mouths in praise.
- It is given to man to approach the throne of grace ~ not light-heartedly, but in the power of praise.
- Though worship is the attitude of our hearts, our victory is won through the power of praise.
It was when the Israelites began to praise, that the Lord God of Israel set ambushes against their enemies; so that their enemies were totally defeated on their behalf. Not one of the people of Judah lifted a hand in physical warfare. They simply praised!
“Now when they began to sing and to praise, the Lord set ambushes against the people of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, who had come against Judah; and they were defeated. For the people of Ammon and Moab stood up against the inhabitants of Mount Seir to utterly kill and destroy them. And when they had made an end of the inhabitants of Seir, they helped to destroy one another. So when Judah came to a place overlooking the wilderness, they looked toward the multitude; and there were their dead bodies, fallen on the earth. No one had escaped.”
2 Chronicles 20: 22-24
This battle is an exact representation of the anointing of Christ that comes to do the work of deliverance as we begin to praise His Name. The Lord once told me, that the enemy was being rendered powerless as I praised Him and the glory of His Name. The Lord God said to me, “She becomes confused as you praise and cannot see what I am doing.” The attacks I had begun experiencing, were being overcome through the power of praise.
Our Praise Precedes the Anointing
The Christian name ‘Jesus’, is also translated ‘Iēsous‘ and ‘Yeshua’. It is a derivative of Joshua, meaning ‘Saved’ or ‘Jehovah is Salvation.’ The Name ‘Christ’, is translated ‘Christos’ meaning ‘Anointed.’ After Jesus, who was a Jew, had been tempted by Satan in the desert; He stood up in the Synagogue in Galilea; and as was His custom, He began to read from the Book of Isaiah.
“And when He had opened the book, He found the place where it was written: ‘The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the broken-hearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed; to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.” Then He closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all who were in the synagogue were fixed on Him. And He began to say to them, “Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”
Luke 4: 17-21
Jesus, the Christ, was rightly declaring, that this prophecy was speaking of Him and His ministry here on the earth.
When we lift up the name of Jesus Christ in our praise, the anointing of God’s Holy Spirit will come, as the burden bearer of praise, to help us in our area of need.
- Praise answers the distress call of our hearts by releasing the burden of our hearts in the power of praise.
Jesus be Enthroned
When the Lord first gave me this article to write, without warning, I found myself engaged in a major spiritual battle, simply because the enemy did not want this word to come forth and change the lives of many. Intermittently, I began battling major confusion and intrusive thoughts of fear and defeat, even as I was writing. The Lord began to warn me, that much sorcery was being practiced against me, and that for this reason, He instructed me to saturate myself in prayer.
Other attacks came in the form of sickness and demonically inspired dreams, in an attempt to attack and defile me. But each time I worshipped and praised the Lord, these attacks would always subside. Each time I overcame them through the blood of the Lamb and the word of my testimony. – See Revelation 12:11. The final victory came one morning, as I quietly began to praise the Lord’s Name at home. Being led by the Holy Spirit, I began to declare aloud the words “Jesus be enthroned.” And as I began to repeat this phrase, the anointing from Christ came upon me and all of those demonic powers that had been working against me, began to go in His Name, as I violently vomited them out.
This whole process took maybe a quarter of an hour, as I repeatedly praised and confessed His Name. At the end of this time, the Lord told me I had been set free from those things that were holding me back and a beautiful peace from the Lord came.
Do Not Usurp the Power of Praise
The anointing of God is a precious thing and not to be taken lightly; so what is the purpose of praise? It is to bind us to the author of praise, who is the Lord God of Israel. Our praise is extremely powerful in overthrowing the enemy’s plans, because in it, we bind ourselves to the One that we praise. We bind our minds to the mind of Christ and we bind our spirits to the Spirit of Christ. And we do this in the Spirit of praise.
While the Spirit of the Lord will always bring freedom, He will never point to man as our source of help. True peace and understanding, will never come outside of the source of Jesus Christ. We are not to look to the anointing of man, but to look to the power of praise in His Name.
Our praise and worship is not for man, but is a gift of God for the purposes of God. It is not to be given to anyone else. If we give our praise and worship to anyone other than the one, true, holy God; we usurp the purpose of praise. When we usurp the purpose of praise, we also undermine the power of Christ’s Name.
There is much deceit in the praises of men, and for this reason we must be very careful in the giving and receiving of praise. Therefore, by faith, we take the high regard we felt for others and we give it back to God. Amen. King Solomon said,
“The crucible for silver and the furnace for gold, but people are tested by their praise.”
Proverbs 27:21 NIV
Trust in The Power of His Name
A number of years ago, the Lord gave me a dream in which He was showing me the complete authority we have over all witchcraft and ungodly religious systems in the world, in the powerful Name of Jesus Christ. In this dream, I was standing inside a large traditional church building, when a group of witches began walking towards me. Though in the dream I knew these people were witches, they were dressed as ordinary men and women. And as they began to approach me, I began to point at them and loudly declare: “At the Name of Jesus the enemy is rendered powerless.” Each time I said this, I gave strong emphasis to the word ‘Jesus,’ and as I said these words, the witches would stumble and be forced backwards. But as the dream progressed, I began to grow weak, so that it became harder and harder to say these words. And as I began to have difficulty saying them, the witches began to come closer.
When I awoke from this dream, although I had been repeating the phrase, “At the Name of Jesus the enemy is rendered powerless,” all that my husband was hearing me say in my sleep was, “The Name! The Name! The Name!”
We need to remember the complete authority we have in the wonderful, powerful Name of Jesus. But first, we need to know we have the authority to use it, by coming into a relationship with God through the Lord Jesus Christ, through the finished work of the Cross. There were many crosses, but only One has the power to set us free and deliver us from hell, death and sin. It is so powerful that all witchcraft is defeated in the Mighty Name of Jesus. So keep speaking the Name of Jesus over your situation!!
Transformation Comes as we Praise
Whilst some of those attacks coming against me had arisen from the sorcery of others, the Lord also showed me that I also needed cleansing from the fruit of my own lips. He told me He would protect me from the curses of others if I would obey His word. King Solomon wisely said,
“Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit.”
Proverbs 18: 21
Jesus explained this very principle to His disciples, telling them,
“Hear and understand: Not what goes into the mouth defiles a man; but what comes out of the mouth, this defiles a man.”
Matthew 15:10 & 11
“But those things which proceed out of the mouth come from the heart, and they defile a man. For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies. These are the things which defile a man, but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile a man.”
Matthew 15: 18-20
Treat Others with Courtesy and Respect
For this reason, James warns us:
“But no man can tame the tongue. It is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless our God and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in the similitude of God. Out of the same mouth proceed blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not to be so. Does a spring send forth fresh water and bitter from the same opening? Can a fig tree, my brethren, bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Thus no spring yields both salt water and fresh. Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show by good conduct that his works are done in the meekness of wisdom. But if you have bitter envy and self-seeking in your hearts, do not boast and lie against the truth. This wisdom does not descend from above, but is earthly, sensual, demonic. For where envy and self-seeking exist, confusion and every evil thing are there. But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy. Now the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.”
James 3: 8-18
So, what is the power of praise? To throw off the old garment, obtaining one that is new! Like gold refined in the fire is the redeeming power of praise!
“There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death. For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh, that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.”
Romans 8: 1-4
Have you prayed for someone today?