Tuesday 1 January 2019

OVERCOMING THE SPIRIT OF CONFUSION IN THE NEW YEAR.

OVERCOMING THE SPIRIT OF CONFUSION IN THE NEW YEAR.


CONFUSION is a weapon of warfare and it is one of the most used battle tools of the kingdom of darkness.
Isaiah 9:5 Says, "For every battle of the warrior is with confused noise, and garments rolled in blood; but this shall be with burning and fuel of fire."

1 Corinthians 14:33 - For God is not [the author] of confusion, but of peace, as in all churches of the saints.

WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE CONFUSED?
To be confused is to be perplexed or bewildered. It is to make unclear or indistinct or to fail to distinguish between. The more confused believers become the more indistinct from the world they become. 
If we maintain the same values and priorities of the world we will find it impossible to 
(1) distinguish ourselves from the world, and 
(2) influence the world for Christ. 

Malachi 3:18 declares, “And you will again see the distinction between the righteous and the wicked, between those who serve God and those who do not.” 

It’s high time we awoke from the confusion least we find ourselves on the wrong side of that distinction as individuals, families, churches, and even as a nation.

Believers today are confused about their relationship with God. They are confused about their place in the body of Christ. They are confused about their world view. They are confused about their priorities. They are even confused about their sexuality. I see believers accepting compromise, lies, and contradictory lifestyles almost with the same reckless abandon as people in the world who claim no revelation of the Word or relationship with God. 

Since God is not the author of confusion, we can know for certain that the presence of confusion in our lives is evidence of the enemy’s operation against our minds.

It’s as if the enemy has literally lured a large segment of the Church to sleep through spiritual lightness and a strong bent towards personal fulfillment and happiness. Our greatest fulfillment as believers comes as we discern and act on God’s Word and will for our lives. The pursuit of our personal passions, interests, and goals at the expense of the Kingdom of God always results in a feigned fulfillment, hollow because it lacks the substance of the peace that can only come from doing things God’s way.

Today I want to share a few thoughts about how to
 come out of that confusion and back in to a place of peace and victory…
First,spend some time specifically in the presence of God and ask the Holy Spirit to expose any area of confusion or compromise in your life. Be ready. Prayers like that are always answered and often the answer goes way beyond what we are prepared to hear. Repent of any wrong motive, agenda, priority, behavior, or thinking. Trust the Lord to put you on a path of personal revival and restoration.

Second, find that Bible, dust it off, open it up, read it, think about what it says, and then make up your mind to do whatever it says. The simple truth is that the more time we spend in the Word the less confusion manifests in our lives. Confusion increases in the mind of believers who systematically fail to put the Word of God in their eyes, ears, and hearts. Confusion is evidence that the believer has been neglecting the Word in their lives.

Third, evaluate who you have been hanging around in your life. One man of God recently stated that we are the sum total of the five people we hang around the most. Think about that. If you are running with people who reject the standards and values of the Word of God it’s just a matter of time before you begin to do the same. Iron sharpens iron and bad company corrupts good character. This means if we hang around spiritual dumb dumbs (or dumb downs) we will begin to think, act, and talk just like them rather than living as the overcoming, powerful, and victorious believers God wants us to be.

Fourth, it’s a little known secret that the healthy and faithful participation in a local body of believers is a powerful antidote to confusion. As you gather together with other believers in praise, worship, prayer, and Bible study, a faulty world view, wrong priorities, and fleshly pursuits begin to melt away. For many, the first step into confusion is to step away from the local church. The reality is that faithful church goers are far less likely to be bamboozled by the enemy than those that habitually absent themselves from the house of God (and no, you are not the exception and if you think you are then you are already confused).

Finally, if you want to avoid confusion, open yourself up to the direct accountability of another strong believer. Give him or her permission to tell you like it is (including the right to kick you in the pants occasionally as needed). There is wisdom in a multitude of counselors and we all need to grant someone the right to get right up in our face and tell us boldly if we are going down the wrong path in life. One of the reasons there are so many confused believers today is that so few of us allow others to get close enough to challenge our thinking with the Word of God.

Remember the admonition of the Apostle Peter in 1 Peter 5:8 – “Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour.” We need to understand that it’s easier to defeat and devour someone if they are first drugged, stunned, or debilitated first. 

The enemy uses confusion as a means of stunning the believer so that he can move in for the kill. It’s time for believers everywhere to recognize any confusion in their lives and act quickly to wake up and shake it off before the enemy builds in them a stronghold of unscriptural thinking and ungodly living.

Post a Comment

Whatsapp Button works on Mobile Device only

Start typing and press Enter to search