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The Front
A prophetic look at the place where people meet with God and do battle.
"And even things without life-giving sound, whether pipe or harp, except they give a distinction in the sounds, how shall it be known what is piped or harped? For if the trumpet give an uncertain sound, who shall prepare himself to the battle" (1 Corinthians 14:7-8)? The life-giving voice of the Holy Spirit prepares believers to the battle.
The front is the first position of thought before a decision is made and action is taken. Even before a thought in the mind, there is influence. Before words are spoken or actions are taken, there must be thought; thought is evidence of influence. The word "influence" means "to produce a usually mental or emotional effect on one capable of reaction; to cause to have opinions formed without due knowledge or examination." The thought process begins with receiving, accepting, or speculating on that which has been introduced by influence. Influence either comes from God, the world, the flesh, or the devil. Of these, only God is all truth.
"Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:…" (I Peter 5:8). When evil influence is received, and thought has been given place, if the thought has not been submitted to God, the next step taken is exalting self above the knowledge of God’s wisdom. The thought can become words or action, and the devil’s temptation is complete. Jesus said, "…That which cometh out of a man, that defileth the man" (Mark 7:20). A demonic foothold is established for further influencing and tempting, which leads to increasing darkness. Greater darkness leads to further rejection of God’s light, causing more compromise, which is substituted for truth. When it comes to God’s truth, compromise is just another word for lukewarm. God said, "So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of My mouth" (Revelation 3:16). "Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth Me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life" (John 8:12). Whenever God’s light enters through the eye, it enlightens the whole body, which allows man to see (understand) truth. "The light of the body is the eye: therefore when thine eye is single, thy whole body also is full of light; but when thine eye is evil, thy body also is full of darkness. Take heed therefore that the light which is in thee be not darkness" (Luke 11:34-35). If people are not in God’s light, they are in darkness, with a foreordained ending. God’s light is where no darkness can stay, and darkness must not be given place; to give place to darkness is contrary to the kingdom of God.
A believer can see and know the truth, which is through the wisdom (light) of God. By intimacy with God and understanding His truth, a believer can recognize where influence is coming from. For instance, if someone asks you probing questions and you simply answer the questions, you may not know what influenced the questions. Believers are wise to seek the Holy Spirit for discernment and to ask why a question has been asked. If someone answers with the reply, "I don’t know, I just thought I would ask," it is very possible they have been influenced from an origin other than God, because there is no visible light from the answer "I don’t know." Some call questions curiosity, but before words are spoken, there is influence from some source. To assume anyone, even a family member, is asking innocent questions and is not influenced one way or another is to be susceptible to deception. Judgement based on assumption is deception.
God tells believers to test the spirits and to be aware of who or what they are dealing with. "Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world" (I John 4:1). Believers are affectionately called beloved by God, and the above verse is given to reveal His truth. One way to test the spirits is to say, "Why do you ask?" or "Why do you want to know?" There is usually a motive or purpose behind a question, or there would be no question. Jesus was frequently asked questions, often with the motive of trying to trick, tempt, entice or deceive Him. Throughout the gospels there are examples of Jesus answering a question with a question of His own that was designed to reveal the source of the influence or to teach His listeners through the use of questioning for revealing the truth.
There is a way to test the spirits, also, when a statement is made to which a reply is expected. Consider the conversation between Jesus and the devil when Jesus was in the wilderness fasting and praying. (Luke 4:1-12; Matthew 4:1-10) Satan made statements; Jesus replied with "It is written…" and the devil was silenced and had to change his tactics. Believers can, and should, follow the example of Jesus and use one of the weapons of our warfare, the living and active and powerful Word of God, in reply to peoples’ questions and statements.
God says to try the spirits to discern whether they are from Him or not for this reason: "For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way. And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the Spirit of His mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of His coming: Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, And with all deceivableness of unrighteous-ness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness. But we are bound to give thanks always to God for you, brethren beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth: Whereunto He called you by our gospel, to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ" (2 Thessalonians 2:7-14).
If a believer’s battle is not against flesh and blood, who or what is the battle against? "For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places" (Ephesians 6:12). This hierarchy of evil, along with the world and the desires of the flesh, is formidable against God’s will for man. Through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ at Calvary, however, believers can know the truth by listening to and walking in His Holy Spirit. "As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him that loved us. For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Romans 8:36-39).
The world is a place where believers are proven in God. He sees everything and He is watching to see who or what a person worships and believes in. God alone knows a person’s heart and motives; He alone can reveal these things. (Jeremiah 17: 9-10) Unregenerate man does not have the capacity to love. Jesus gave His life so believers can come to know and love Him by following His indwelling Holy Spirit. With this truth in mind, God commanded that believers love Him with all their heart, and that requires intimacy with God, Who is love. "…God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him" (I John 4:16b). "And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment" (Mark 12:30). The Holy Spirit shows the way, because He reveals Jesus Christ. To believe man can love God, or anyone else, without intimacy with God, is to be deceived.
Consider the close relationship God requires of His followers; He says to trust no man. (Psalms 146:3) Jesus said, "If any man come to Me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple" (Luke 14:26). God’s truth denied is fatal, and Satan will try to use every lie and deceptive influence conceivable to reach his objective. "The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy:…" (John 10:10a). So who is man to trust in—himself? Of course not, that would be denial of God’s truth. (See 2 Corinthians 1:9) "…I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly" (John 10:10b).
A believer’s thoughts are to be in agreement with and guarded by the Holy Spirit. God said, "Can two walk together, except they be agreed" (Amos 3:3)? Believers are to take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ and to put down imaginations. "Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;..." (2 Corinthians 10:5). Believers, by obeying God, will be influenced by His thoughts and their minds will be transformed into the mind of Christ. The powers exerted over thought or behavior can be made known by first listening to the Holy Spirit. Evil influences, fleshly desires, and worldly perspectives can be seen for what they are through abiding in Jesus and following after Him.
The truth in God’s Word is life. Jesus is the Word of God and He was made flesh as part of God’s order to save people from the world, themselves, and the devil. Man’s opinions will cause division from God and His ways. God said, "For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways, saith the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts" (Isaiah 55:8-9). God does not need man to defend Him; man needs God to defend him from principalities, powers, rulers, wickedness, self, and the world, which can influence the thoughts of man. God’s ways are higher than man’s ways and God’s words are higher than man’s opinions and thoughts.
Inspired by the Holy Spirit, the apostle Paul tells believers to work out their salvation with fear and trembling. "Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure" (Philippians 2:12-13). Jesus, the Word of God, is the standard for believers in Him. He submitted His will to the will of His Father; He paid the cost of salvation by His obedience. God’s good pleasure for believers is that they show their love for Him by their obedience, and by doing so, believers will be in accordance with God’s kingdom principles. God desires to protect His beloved through His Holy Spirit and through obedience to His Word, for man was created in God’s image and likeness in His love. The battle for salvation takes place in the heavens, but obedience to God works out man’s salvation on earth.
God said, "And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed" (John 8:32, 36). Free from what, some would say? Free from ungodly decisions caused by influences that are designed to entice man into captivity and keep him bound in darkness. The importance of knowing the origin of influence (who or what a believer knowingly or unknowingly enters into alliance with) can be clearly seen. God’s ways lead to truth, freedom and life; all other ways lead to deception, bondage and death.
Salvation is more than just words spoken; salvation is man’s working out his salvation in and through the power of God’s Holy Spirit. Jesus said, "For whosoever will save his life shall lose it; but whosoever shall lose his life for My sake and the gospel's, the same shall save it. For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul? Whosoever therefore shall be ashamed of Me and of My words in this adulterous and sinful generation; of him also shall the Son of man be ashamed, when He cometh in the glory of His Father with the holy angels" (Mark 8:35-38). Believers should not be afraid or ashamed to ask other believers, or their parents, or their brothers, or sisters, friends, or spouse, children, or anyone else the question, "Why do you ask?" or "Why do you want to know?" All that comes out of a person who has truly given his or her life to God should be influenced by God and approved of God. So ask questions and listen to the Holy Spirit’s response, because it is part of, and given for, the working-out of salvation. Knowing and abiding in God’s truth makes believers free in Christ.
"Set a watch, O Lord, before my mouth; keep the door of my lips" (Psalms 141:3).
Ref: Webster Dictionary
"The kingdom of God and the authority of His Church will be seen in a people who are terminally committed to
love-motivated prayer." Francis Frangipane
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