I just want to say a word
here to all the believers that are being oppressed,
going through depression, and going through
all kinds of mind games. Maybe you feel like you
can't even sleep at night because you have all these thoughts.
You are battling— even though your body is still
but your mind is like a war room. And you hear all kinds of thoughts.
And I know because I've been there before.
Friend, this is warfare. And God has given us weapons
and our weapons are not material. They are not carnal. Look at this in 2 Corinthians 10: “For the weapons of our warfare
are not carnal but mighty in God” “for pulling down strongholds,” Now the word “carnal” means
anything you can do naturally. No, God's weapons are not carnal.
And when it's not carnal, it means God's weapons
are spiritual but they are mighty. So “the weapons of our warfare
are not carnal but mighty in God.” For what?
“For pulling down strongholds.” Now notice, where are
these strongholds? They are called strongholds
because they have been erected by the enemy
and it is a stronghold. If we can find where
the strongholds are, we can bring it down.
Maybe you have a stronghold of fear in your life and
you do not know how to get around it.
The more you try to tell yourself: “I will not be afraid.
I'm not be afraid.” You end up afraid.
It is like people who listen to what Job said
about his predicament. He said: “The thing which
I greatly feared has” “come upon me.”
And then we have preachers that say: “Whatever you
fear will come on you.” And people become more fearful.
I think we got to teach it in such a way,
that we unveil the love of God to the people.
It is the perfect love of God that casts out fear.
We don't focus on fear to get rid of fear.
We experience the love of God to have that fear evicted
from its place in our hearts. Praise the Lord.
Only the love of God. And the more we discover
the love of God— so God bless every preacher
that unveils the love of Christ for the people.
Amen. Thank you, Jesus. And notice also that
the Bible says this pulling down of strongholds is actually “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.” So that's our warfare!
It is in our mind. “The weapons of our warfare
are not carnal but mighty in God” “for pulling down strongholds.”
Thank God that the weapons of God are mighty!
For what? “For pulling down of strongholds.”
Let's pull them down in Jesus' name today.
Amen. Praise the Lord. Notice that these strongholds
are actually arguments that the devil has
put in your mind. And they are actually thoughts! Notice “arguments and
every high thing.” “Every thought.” So these are thoughts.
And what the devil does is that he comes to you and
puts a thought in your mind. And this is the nature
of the warfare. The warfare is not outside.
It's not a matter of like: “I'm meeting someone
and they are demon possessed” “and that is warfare.
We command it to come out.” No, that is casting out demons.
It is different. Spiritual warfare.
We need to know, first and foremost,
where is the arena of the spiritual warfare.
Where is it taking place? If you do not know where
it's happening, where the warfare is taking place,
how can you fight? It's like you can't even
find where the game is held. You'll be going to the
wrong stadium to watch a different game altogether.
You need to know where it's happening!
Praise God. And it's happening in our mind.
So the mind is the battle arena. That’s where it happens.
The devil’s stronghold is actually a pattern of thinking
that he has put into your mind that has grown into a stronghold
after a number of months, a number of days,
and sometimes even a number of years.
It's been there for a long time. Now, you think those
thoughts came from you. Always remember this.
Your emotions are a reflection of
what you are thinking. That's what I just told
my son the other day. If you feel bad, it is because
you are thinking bad. You are thinking bad thoughts.
Thoughts of darkness. “Things won't look good tomorrow.
I don't think I'm able to do that.” And you are negative. “Your emotions follow your thoughts.
But if your thoughts are positive,” I told him that. “Jesus will be with you.” When you go to school,
he's going to walk with you.” “He's going to be your best friend.
He never leaves you.” If your thoughts are positive, guess what?
Your emotions will be positive. My friend, your emotions are an
indicator of what you are thinking because we are so used to
thinking certain thoughts. It's been there for a
number of years that we don't even know
we are thinking those thoughts. But our emotions cannot lie.
Our emotions. If you are experiencing depression,
thoughts of self-loathing, you are feeling inferior, lousy,
or even boredom, it's always based on the thought
that has preceded that emotion. I always say right believing
is so crucial to right living but right believing also produces
the right emotions. The right emoting.
Praise the Lord. And don't say emotions
are not important. Then why did God create them?
Unfortunately, our soul realm needs restoration.
Our spirit man needs recreation, needs to be born again
but the soul realm needs restoration.
It is the same soul realm. God doesn’t cause your
soul realm to be born again. He causes your spirit
to be born again. But your soul realm,
which is your emotions and your mind,
needs to be restored. As for your body,
one day when Jesus comes again,
will be glorified. Amen.
Praise the name of Jesus. So coming back to this again,
on your strongholds, it is built up of what?
Thoughts, arguments. that the devil has
put down there. Arguments like: “Are you sure?
Look around you!” “How many people that
you know who have this” “disease lived long?” “How many of you
who have this condition” “think that you have
a bright future.” “Look at those who
have this condition.” “Look at others.”
He'll point you to others. Always!
If you have a challenge in the area of eating,
what the devil wants to do is that the first moment you
shun food and all that— he doesn't say in
the second person, he speaks in the first pronoun,
the first person pronoun— he comes and puts a thought
in your mind and says: “I am anorexic.
Maybe I am anorexic.” And the more you think:
“I am”, he doesn't say you are, alright?
That's telling you already where the thought comes from.
But it comes so subtly. He makes you think
that it is your thought. Just like Jesus said in
the Sermon on the Mount: “Therefore take no thought, saying,”
How do you take a wrong thought? If the devil shoots thoughts
in your mind and you take it, you take it by saying! “Take no thought, saying,
what shall we eat?” “What shall we drink?
How shall we be clothed?” Worrisome thoughts. Thoughts that cause you
to be depressed, thoughts that cause you to
feel all this sense of hopelessness and helplessness.
A feeling of abandonment. Friend, you take those
thoughts by saying. And notice that
the way we battle the enemy is just with one thought. Confess: “I am the
righteousness of God in Christ.” Why must I confess, Pastor Prince? Because 2 Corinthians 4:13 says:
“We having the same spirit of faith.” How does faith operate? “I believe and therefore I speak,
we also believe and therefore speak.” It's very simple, my friend. Faith is like this.
You believe in your heart and you speak with your mouth.
That's the spirit of faith. It’s the same spirit of faith
that David had. In fact, it is a quotation from
Psalms 116, where David says: “I believe, therefore
have I spoken…” We, having the same
spirit of faith as David, believe and therefore we speak.
Amen. If you believe that Jesus Christ
died for your sins and rose again on the third day
for your justification, you confess: “Jesus Christ is my Savior.
Jesus Christ is my Lord.” “I believe He died for my sins.
I believe God raised” “Him from the dead.” And you shall be saved! “With the mouth, confession
is made unto salvation.” And with the heart, man
believeth unto righteousness.” "With the heart man believes." "With the mouth, confession
is made unto salvation." That’s the same spirit of faith.
And it's the nature of God. Praise God. Jesus says: “Have the faith of God.”
In the original Greek, it says: “Have the faith of God.”
Jesus told His disciples: “Have the God kind of faith.”
When God saw darkness, He said: “Light, be!”
Amen. And He saw light.
He never saw light until He spoke.
He believed and spoke and then He saw.
Amen. So even if the future
might look bleak in the natural, based on natural facts
that we read, or what the news media tells us about,
we can be like God. Praise the Lord. Amen.
Like Father, like son. Jesus says:
“Have the faith of God.” Speak it!
There are good days ahead of me.
Praise the Lord. Amen.
