Being Filled With the Spirit (Part 3)

THE FULLNESS OF THE SPIRIT (Part 3)

By Robert Wurtz II

Destroying the Works of the Devil

It is impossible to destroy the works of the devil in the flesh. As we learned in our previous lesson, it is also impossible to live a genuine Christian life in the flesh. These are supernatural things and they require supernatural power. The flesh is of no use in either case. Genuine Christians, full of the Holy Ghost, live lives that tread on all the power of the enemy (Luke 10:19). Genuine Christians are utterly submitted to the Holy Ghost and when they resist the devil he flees from them (James 4:7). Others have such power in Christ that the enemy knows them on a first name basis (Acts 19:15). Jesus was so anointed of the Holy Ghost and power that the devils cried out for mercy when Jesus came near them (Matthew 18:29; Mark 1:24; etc.) Some devils are particularly hard to deal with and require prayer and fasting to be cast out (Matthew 17:21). Yet the vast majority of Christians are in no wise ready to deal with the power of the enemy. The people in Jesus day were a faithless and perverse generation and it is no different today.

God has allowed the enemy certain liberties to roam in the earth, to which demons have influenced, vexed, and possessed people since the Garden of Eden. This is a matter of fact and no doubt has only increased in our day. In the time of Christ He was repeatedly casting out devils and such. He encountered people vexed of the devil all over the country. This continued into the book of Acts as there were people coming from many cities bringing sick people and those vexed of demons and they healed all of them (Acts 5:16).

Wrestling With the Enemy

The enemy is very organized and methodical. Yet many in the Church think the devil to be a fairytale and scoff right into his hands. They speak under his influence supposing to call God a liar as He Himself warned us repeatedly of our enemy (See Ephesians 6). Spiritual warfare was a very large part of the whole workings of the New Testament, yet none take him seriously enough in our day. In our generation, evil seducers are said to wax worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived (II Timothy 3:13). What power are they using to deceive the people? What power is used to deceive the people with such force that if it were possible even the very elect would be deceived? (Matthew 24:24) They are deceived likely because they don't take the devil and his demons seriously- and in that deception they propagate the devils lies.

Demonic Activity Increasing Like the Days of Noah

Throughout the New Testament we are warned of conditions that will exist in these last days. The conditions are said to parallel the days of Noah. This is significant because of the high level of demonic activity that existed at that time. Fallen angels left their habitation and began corrupting the earth and filling it with violence. So bad were these devils, that afterward God bound them in chains of darkness; some temporarily and some permanently (Jude 6). They had crossed over a boundary that God set up and exceeded their liberties in the earth. For this cause God bound them. Those that are bound temporarily will be loosed at various intervals during the tribulation period to wreak havoc on the earth. Revelation nine refers to four angels that are currently bound in the great river Euphrates being loosed to bring about such violence that a third of men will be killed. Revelation 16:14 describes devils that perform miracles to deceive the people into fighting against the armies of God in the battle of Armageddon.

Violence And Perversion Are Evidences of the Demonic

Satan and his demons have been working to destroy people since the Garden of Eden. Yet in our time we are seeing the evidence as we head more towards the days of Noah when the earth was filled with violence and every thought of the hearts of men were only evil continually. Two things stand out in our day: extreme perversion and extreme violence. People's minds are filling up with sin and wickedness and the multitude of types of media equipment are hastening this process. The enemy, through the lust of the eyes, the lust of the flesh, and the pride of life has brought mankind near utter ruination. The love of money has opened the floodgates of hell spewing all manor of wickedness into our society.

Why Wickedness Multiplies

Revelation 9:20-21 offers us a glimpse of the sins that will exist during the tribulation. Here we read... "And the rest of the men which were not killed by these plagues yet repented not of the works of their hands, that they should not worship devils, and idols of gold, and silver, and brass, and stone, and of wood: which neither can see, nor hear, nor walk: Neither repented they of their murders, nor of their sorceries, nor of their fornication, nor of their thefts." Demon worship, idolatry, murder, mind-altering drugs (sorceries), sexual immorality, and theft are the primary sins of the last days and are the sins we now see or soon will see. Covetousness is an idolatrous sin that never gets preached against. Covetousness is discontentment (literally to be fond of money). For this cause it and like sins will spread until they become a plague in the last days as men and women refuse to repent no matter what judgment hits them. Sexual immorality is an epidemic today with adultery and fornication rampant everywhere including the Church. You can't and won't take a stand against sins you commit; therefor the church is all but helpless to be salt and light in this area. Mind altering drugs are practically taken like candy and marijuana is smoked like cigarettes in our generation. Even church kids smoke marijuana as though its no big sin; yet Revelation 9 calls it sorcery (pharmakia) which no true child of God would practice. Over a million babies are murdered a year in America in spite of technologies that can show a picture of the baby in the mother's womb; yet the same groups shout a hypocritical cry to eliminate the death penalty. Are these not the characteristics of a generation yielded to devils? Will God not avenge the blood of these babies that He declared should be suffered to come to Him for of such is the Kingdom of Heaven? American's serve the god of Mammon-, which is idolatry. Yet, this sin is tolerated? Why? Because most are deceived by riches.

Lust Leads to the Demonic

ALL that is in the world; the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eye, and the pride of life are not of the Father but are of the world. These are the three weapons that the devil has used for thousands of years to damn the souls of men. The lust of the flesh is covetousness. Lust of the eye is a desire for forbidden forms of sensuality. The late Paris Reidhead stated that lust for sensual pleasure is the desire for the utter satisfaction of man's glands. The pride of life is lust for power and position- to exalt ones-self. Lust for more and more goods. All these things lead to extreme deception and open the door to the demonic. At some point man will reach the end of all the madness that he or she can fill themselves with in the natural and will cross over the line into the demonic realm. This is what the children of Israel did as they started to serve the false gods of the land. Their lust for the things of this world (the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eye, and the pride of life) opened the door for them to be snared by the gods of the pagans. Understand, the flesh can only take a person so far, and then, like Solomon, they will step into the realm of false gods and entertaining demons. This is the end of all the sins mentioned in Revelation 9:20-21. It is a progression. Covetousness, sexual immorality, drugs, hatred (murder), and idolatry ends up in its final stages as demon worship. This is what we are wrestling with. It is ultimately the devils plan. When we remain submitted to God and full of the Holy Ghost we will destroy these things; if we do not we will be snared by them. Are you covetous? Are you involved in sexual sin? Are you filled with hate? Do you do drugs or smoke marijuana? If you can say yes to any of those questions you have opened the door to the demonic. Your only hope is to REPENT! Turn loose of those things and seek whole heartily after God.