Lincoln

Every human has desires. They motivate, they inspire dreams, they build ambitions, and they can build or destroy relationships. Desires are an important part of our decision-making process affecting all of life. Desires are rarely neutral by nature, and sometimes they even lack any distinguishing qualities.  Sometimes they are of little consequence, while other times they have catastrophic repercussions. 

More often than not our desires fall into one of two categories. Be they passive desires or raging passions, they are either good or bad. They will either benefit or damage. They frequently alter the course of life with far reaching consequences for better or for worse. 

Obviously, desires are a God given ability as a result of being made in the image of God (Gen 1:27). Unlike God, who only has pure and wise desires, we struggle and even battle with our desires (Jas 4:1). To counter the believer’s struggle with desires, God has given His Word and His Spirit. The Holy Spirit takes the Word of God and constructs a right mind and heart attitude based on knowledge. 

Although often-misunderstood, David explained this in Psalm 37:4; “delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.” This is not a universal promise of God providing everything you want. Instead, for those who delight in Him, the Lord will place His desires within their believing hearts. 

As Solomon rightly explained; “desire without knowledge is not good…” (Proverbs 19:2). Therefore, God builds the internal necessities for growing in the “grace and knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 3:18). “Now the Lord is the Spirit… And we all… are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit” (2 Corinthians 3:17-18). 

As Jesus was explaining the parable of the sower and the seed to his disciples, He described the seed that fell among thorns. “They are those who hear the word, but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches and the desires for other things enter in and choke the word, and it proves unfruitful” (Mark 4:18-19). Notice the enemy’s strategy; introduce significant cares. Apply layers of appetising and inviting success and wealth. Then, to top it all off; strangle the input of God’s Word. Before long, you have another isolated would-be believer who calms himself with thoughts of “well, I gave Jesus a go, and he just didn’t work out.” 

This battle strategy is possibly the easiest one for the enemy to implement in your life. At the time, it’s almost undetectable through the natural course of events, desires, and consequences. You think you’re doing the best thing at the time. Your goal is to remove the pain, to eliminate the inner struggle of waring desires and conflicting beliefs. So, you stop ready God’s Word. You stop praying. Then, you gradually reduce the number of Church gatherings you attend and Christian friends you hang out with. Before long, the enemy called isolation has won. 

All the apostles were realistic, and down to earth men. They acknowledged their struggle against sin and their need for divine resources in order to experience victory. “Walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do” (Galatians 5:16-17). Natural desires which lead you away from God are impossible to beat without the Holy Spirit’s enablement. Focus your mind and heart on Jesus Christ. Fill yourself with God’s Word and surrender to the desires of the Holy Spirit.

Paul was careful to instruct Titus on the essentials for setting up elders in the Churches on the island of Crete. To qualify; “he must hold firm to the trustworthy word as taught, so that he may be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it” (Titus 1:9). Understanding biblical truth and being able to pass that truth on to others was critical. However, right living was of equal importance.

Right doctrine must produce right behaviour. Elders, like all believers are to “renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives” (Titus 2:11-12). Our behaviour should match our beliefs. The trouble is, constantly battling right Christian character are the distractions caused by the busyness and cares of life. It’s not always the big nasty temptations which catch us out.

Distractions can easily lure us into spiritual adultery. That’s when we give to another the love we promised to Christ. No matter how tasty or demanding the distraction, devotion to Christ should never be surrendered. Make no mistake, God’s enemy is skilled at introducing complications which challenge your loyalty to Christ.

Paul had this same concern for the Corinthian Church. He wrote to them saying; “I am afraid that as the serpent deceived Eve by his cunning, your thoughts will be led astray from a sincere and pure devotion to Christ” (2 Corinthians 11:3). Satan is a master at twisting arguments, at misguiding loyalties, and at diluting moral values so the child of God not only becomes distracted but deceived into spiritual adultery. Once he has your thoughts focused on something or someone, other than Christ, you are putty in his hands.

The apostles understood this basic component of spiritual warfare. If you want to beat the enemy, you must master him at his own twisted strategy. Therefore, Paul said; “We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ” (2 Corinthians 10:5). Put simply; Christ must dominate Christian thoughts, beliefs, and behaviour. Jesus said; “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (John 8:31-32).

The only weapon God has equipped saints with is “the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God” (Ephesians 6:17). God’s enemy knows this, and he will do everything in his power to keep you away from God’s Word. Scripture is a lethal weapon in the mind of a Spirit filled child of God. When filled with the written Word of God, the believer stands secure, undistracted, prepared and ready to do the Master’s work.

Sadly, “those who are self-seeking and who reject the truth and follow evil, there will be wrath and anger” (Romans 2:8 NIV). Satan knows this well, so he applies all his shrewd resources to keeping people away from the life-giving Word of God. Anything from a subtle distraction, to a life changing catastrophe, the enemy will happily use for keeping your mind off God, away from Scripture, and indifferent to the truth of Jesus Christ.

But the crown jewel of distractions is misguided affections. Paul said it straight for the benefit of the foolhardy Corinthian Church; “Do not be deceived: ‘Bad company ruins good morals’” (1 Corinthians 15:33). Satan’s most used and appetizing distractions are the wrong and captivating affections of the fleshly human heart. Weak or wrong relationships grind down the pure thoughts and emotions of God’s people. 

Be encouraged; “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; but fools despise wisdom and instruction” (Proverbs 1:7). Walk today giving careful attention to your love for Jesus Christ as Lord. Christ will be honoured, and you will be blessed.

The enemy of God makes it his business to interfere with believers’ lives. However, he is unable to touch or alter the eternal life which indwells the believer via the Holy Spirit (1Jn 5:18). Even in extreme cases where God permits the evil one to cause physical harm, the Lord maintains spiritual security in Christ.

The Holy Spirit never moves over, nor does He move out of the believer in order to make room for demon possession. God the Spirit never moves to accommodate mutual possession of the child of God by the enemy of God. What a contradiction that would be! The very heart of the gospel is that “God is light, and in him is no darkness at all” (1 John 1:5). God the Holy Spirit, who is light, does not share his human temple (1Co 3:16) with demons of darkness.

The New Testament never gives instruction for casting demons out of a believer (Eph 6:10-18). Rather, believers are instructed to resist the devil (Jas 4:7; 1Pe 5:8-9). The reason is both simple and clear; a believer can never be possessed by a demon; therefore, you cannot cast out what is not there in the first place.

Integral to salvation is the Holy Spirit sealing repentant sinners the moment they believe (Eph 1:13). He seals their eternal destiny and is Himself God’s guarantee of fulfilment. Holy Spirit security is certain, unchangeable, and knowable. Your predetermined destination for which the Holy Spirit sealed you, is Heaven.

Christian, set your eyes on eternity and the fulfilment of your election in Christ. This hope compels believers not to “…grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption” (Ephesians 4:30). Paul boldly proclaimed; “he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ” (Philippians 1:6).

For God’s part; “those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified” (Romans 8:30). It’s a done deal beloved. Salvation has the immutable purpose of delivering God’s children to heavenly glory. Their heavenly destination is as certain as the sovereignty of God was in your election and justification. At no point does the Holy Spirit move out of the believer, leaving them unsaved and abandoned to darkness as they were before salvation.

In Christ alone, believers are secure! Neither the believer nor any power of darkness, can undo the saving work of Christ. Once born again, the powers of darkness can never take up residence within that regenerated child of God. Following salvation, the perpetual sufficiency of Christ’s justification makes it impossible for the sins of anyone else, including ancestors, to ever be laid against the believer.

No power of the devil, past, present, or future, shall be able to bring the child of God under His dominion again. “No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:37-39).

Praise God for such a full and secure salvation. Encourage other believers with these wonderful truths. Explain Christ’s gospel freedom to a non-believer so they too can discover the liberating life in Christ.

The arch enemy of God shrewdly blurs the line between non-biblical thinking and God’s Word. Human thinking lures people away from God’s truth with the certainty of the gospel (2Pe 1:3-9). Only Christ offers absolute freedom once for all (Heb 10:10).

Titus explains the sufficiency of salvation when he writes; “he (God) saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Saviour, so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life” (Titus 3:5-7).

Salvation is totally the work of God; Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Any and all sins are included in the cleansing regeneration of salvation. No human assistance is needed, nor can it benefit the repentant sinner one bit. Faith triggers the Holy Spirit’s response; who recreates the sinner to become a Saint, a whole new creation in Christ (2Co 5:17). Spiritual rebirth and justification are unable to be affected by ancestral sin or demons.

Paul proclaims; “For our sake he (God) made him (Christ) to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Corinthians 5:21). If the sins of ancestors could pass down to a Christian, then everything Scripture declares to be true of Christ is wrong. Because Christ has victory, we have victory in Him, by faith.

Those who teach the curse of generational sin often associate demon possession in the same package of error. Such people often claim you need deliverance once they have labelled you as being under the curse of generational sin. So, can a believer be demon possessed? Scripture would answer a resounding NO!

Actually; there are no biblical examples of believers being demon possessed or under a curse of ancestral sin. The New Testament only speaks of unregenerate people possessed by unclean Spirits. To be demon possessed, means they have direct and complete control over the thoughts and actions of a person (Examples: Mat 17:14-18; Luk 4:33-35; 8:27-33). Whereas, to be oppressed means they attack or use any means at their disposal to influence and direct a person into sin.

Obedience is God’s answer to oppression, not deliverance of something you don’t have. John asserts that “everyone who has been born of God does not keep on sinning, but he who was born of God (Jesus) protects him, and the evil one (Satan) does not touch him” (1 John 5:18). Children of God are under the protection of the Lord Jesus Christ. Just as Satan cannot touch Christ, so in Christ he cannot touch the believer.

Scripture declares believers are indwelt by the Holy Spirit (Rom 8:9-11; 1Co 3:16; 6:19; Eph 1:13-4), and that “where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom” (2 Corinthians 3:17). That’s because “he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world” (1 John 4:4). Consequently, the Holy Spirit neither shares a believer nor moves over for any-one, especially Satan. Instead, God’s Spirit frees the believer to sanctified security and glorification.

“Nevertheless, do not rejoice… that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven” (Luke 10:20). Faith focuses on Christ and His victory more than on your enemies. It looks to your heavenly home more than this world. It rejoices in Christ’s strength more than wallowing in human weakness. Faith stands secure in the unchangeable certainties of Christ’s supremacy, not focused on or stressing over defeated enemies.

God’s Word speaks clearly to those promoting a curse of generational sin on the Christian. When a sinner turns in faith to Christ, dependent upon His appeasement of God’s wrath against their sin, justification takes place. Justification acquits the sinner’s guilt and declares them righteous before God. Faith recognises the sacrifice of Jesus’ life on the Cross as the only way of satisfying the justice of God (Romans 3:26).

In recognition of faith, God responds by transferring Christ’s righteousness to the repentant sinner. God’s wrath is appeased (Calmed to peace), the sinner is declared righteous, and the Holy Spirit seals the validity of the spiritual transaction. “In him [Christ] you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit” (Ephesians 1:13).

Every Old Testament requirement of the Law was fully satisfied in Christ at the cross. The righteousness of Christ is gifted to the repentant sinner without any assistance from obedience to God’s Law. “But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law… the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. …for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, ²⁴ and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, ²⁵ whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith” (Romans 3:21-25).

Salvation is complete because it is totally worked out by God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Mankind has no part to play in the regeneration of a sinful soul. The sinners only involvement, which is enabled by God (Eph 2:8-9), is to believe.

The implication is this; if the sins of your forefathers are passed down to you as a believer in Christ, then Christ has failed. If this is true, God’s wrath still requires appeasement, and the Holy Spirit has failed to bring about rebirth and sealing. Paul speaks to this forcefully; “…you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God” (1 Corinthians 6:11). God will never undo the work of Christ and the Holy Spirit; not for anything or anyone.

Peter adds to this; “For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God…” (1 Peter 3:18). Christ brought you to the Father without the baggage of any other person’s sins. The writer of Hebrews details this; “Therefore he (Christ) is the mediator of a new covenant, so that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance, since a death has occurred that redeems them from the transgressions committed under the first covenant” (Hebrews 9:15).

Christ’s death fully satisfies all God’s requirements for all offenses made to those people living under the controls of the Old Testament covenant. Therefore, when a sinner comes to faith in Christ, they are redeemed by the mediation of Christ which enters them into the new covenant. This new covenant was purchased and sealed as a full and complete transaction by the death of Christ (Luke 22:20). Nothing can be taken away from this new covenant, nor can anything be added to it. The transaction is done! Sin cannot get added to your account. It can never be opened for renegotiation, nor can the terms of agreement between the Father and Son be altered or even considered for an amendment. Your sins are forgiven!

I encourage you to praise God for your complete and secure salvation.