The Triumphant Church (Lesson 4)

The New and Living Way Church, Ikorodu

Meeting: Sunday Service

Date: 2nd May, 2021

Ministers: Pastor Happy

Pastor Happy

WISDOM OF GOD

(Ephesians 1:16-23) Our wrestling is not something that has not been done before. Jesus Christ has done it before and this is one of our comforts and victory. We are wrestling to follow Jesus, we are not wrestling against Satan. (Ephesians 1:16-17) The spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Jesus Christ was not given to us when we gave our life to Christ. We can see here that Paul had to pray for the Ephesian believers to come into this knowledge. This knowledge is not our right as new birth believers, it has to be given to us. We must pray for it, if it was our birthright, we would not need to pray for it.

A believer can live the entirety of his life and not come into this knowledge. That is why we must pray for it. The Ephesian church had journeyed to a point, as testified about them in Ephesians 1:15 but they still didn’t have the knowledge in Ephesians 1:16-17.

Rev. Hagin prayed this prayer as well, over and over and over. This is not a prayer we will ever outgrow because our soul needs to continuously be enlightened. It is by this enlightenment that our soul will journey out of the region of darkness.

(Ephesians 3:14-21) If we are not strengthened with might in our inner man, Christ cannot dwell in our hearts. Christ is a learning and Apostle Paul prayed these prayers that believers might know all the parts of the Godhead. The Holyspirit wants all believers to pray that the eyes of their understanding be enlightened. Giving our life to Christ is a calling to know the way because at new birth, our eyes have yet to be illuminated or flooded with light.

(1 Corinthians 2:6-7) You can be a believer and still be operating by the wisdom of this world. (1 Corinthians 1:21) The way God saves us is through the foolishness of preaching. Our victory is in what we are hearing. This preaching we hear is what will knock out the wisdom of this world. Our business as believers is not wrestling with Satan but comprehending all that God has for us. A triumphant church is a church that is learning mysteries. (Revelation 1:17-18) Satan is a defeated foe, Christ already defeated him. He has the key to unlock hell and death in our souls. This is why we need to learn Christ so we can unlock hell and death in our souls. Our warfare is staying to learn Christ, to follow Christ, not warring with Satan. There’s no operation of hell and death that Jesus doesn’t know because He already has the key. The way we will overcome Satan is by following Jesus. As He speaks we are to follow Him.

SPIRITUAL WARFARE (WAR, WARFARE AND WRESTLING)

Wrong thinking and wrong believing leads to wrong action. The reason believers are added to the church is so they can come to learn the wisdom of God. If we still have a wrong belief that we are to fight Satan, we will spend our lifetime fighting and casting out demons. (Romans 7:22-23/Romans 8:1) Apostle Paul figured out another way to defeat this other law warring in our members. He didn’t say I cast out, He said we are to not walk after the flesh but after the Spirit. It is walking that will take us out of the law of sin and death.

It is a lazy believer that will want to keep casting out demons and fornication etc when the only solution Christ has given to the church is to walk in the Spirit. It is in our walking in the spirit and being led by the Spirit that some natures will drop and we won’t see them or do them anymore. (Proverbs 16:7) When our ways are pleasing to the Lord, this will be our breakthrough out of our warfare. We cannot cast out Satan; we must walk after the dictates of the Spirit to war with Satan and his evil spirits. (2 Corinthians 10:3-6) By fulfilling obedience, we cast our imagination and warfare to God. (1 Timothy 1:18-19) The weapon of our warfare is holding faith and a good conscience. Obedience is the way. We must fight to have a good conscience, not to allow bitterness or envyings towards our brethren, by not taking offence. We must trust the Lord in this regard and look to what the Lord says in scriptures; this is how we war. (1 Peter 2:11) We need to war to come out of fleshly lusts and we war by our knowledge of Christ. We must labour to come into the rest of God. If our Spirit has attained it, we must also fight to bring our soul into this state of rest.

(Ephesians 4:26-27) Most of us open the door of our hearts when the devil comes, but it is possible to shut the door on the devil. We must learn to block some things from the door of our hearts. (Romans 13:14) Our victory is in putting on the Lord Jesus (the new man). When we put on the Lord Jesus, we will not make provisions for fleshly lusts.

(Galatians 6:7) The things we watch and hear are also doctrines and they teach faster than Christ’s revelation because they can relate more with our flesh. Some of the things warring with us are what we gave our hearts to. Some of us have sowed things to the flesh and that is why we reap fleshly lusts. We are reaping what we sow when spirits come to disturb or oppress us. Our warfare as believers is sowing into the Spirit that we might reap everlasting life (Galatians 6:8).

We take Satan far away from us by staying within the boundaries of what scriptures say; this is the weapon of our warfare. There’s no place in scripture where the word War and Warfare was mentioned and it was in connection with Satan.

The things we give attendance to define ways for us. The wrong thoúghts we pick up is a result of too much fellowship with the wrong things. We are not to add to our warfare by adding more wrong thinking or feeding on wrong things.

SUFFERING: OUR WEAPON OF WARFARE

(Hebrews 2:10/1 Peter 2:21) Christ suffered, we also must follow after His steps. To suffer is to obey the law of scriptures against the standards of the world. An example of suffering is to not revile when we are reviled or to not threaten (1 Peter 2:21-23). Suffering is going with the will of God and not our own will. It is keeping a law against our wish. Suffering is not poverty in the natural, because it does not affect our soul. (1 Peter 4:1-2) Our suffering just as Christ did is how we arm ourselves against Satan. This is how we war. To deny suffering is to deny entrance (Acts 14:22).

WALKING IN THE NEWNESS OF LIFE

(Ephesians 6:10-15) Our victory over the wiles of the enemy is by putting on the whole armour of God. Our standing for truth is how we war. Our submission to God is how we resist the devil. Rather than always trying to stand against something, why not just stand for something (God).

FERVENT PRAYER

(James 5:16) Confessing alone doesn’t make us healed, we must PRAY. We must labour and be fervent in prayer. We are all fighting, and one way tremendous power can be made available to us is by effectual fervent prayer. (Jude 1:17-20) We must not be sensual, we must pray in the Holy ghost. (1 Corinthians 14:2) We don’t speak in tongues to cast out demons but to speak mysteries.

CONCLUSION

The problem with us believers is that we don’t want to give ourselves to the knowledge of the truth. We must give ourselves to the knowledge of the truth to be set free. The more we give ourselves, the more freedom we come into. (Ephesians 6:17-18) One of the things that will help us to stand against the wiles and fiery darts of Satan is perseverance in prayer. When we have not yet gotten the victory over a particular sin, we are to persevere in prayers until we gain victory over that sin. We must pray for grace in labouring in prayer; to endure the hardships of rest.