When Jesus required his followers to fast, it was as a means to have victory in their spiritual warfare. He told them that 'this kind will not go away, except by fasting and praying.'
In the next few blogs, I will write about spiritual warfare and how fasting can be used as a tool for victory in this battle. I have much to share from my experience in this area.
The worst of the spiritual battles we see in The Bible is the Spirit of Jezebel. Let me start there.
Jezebel of history was the wife of King Ahab in ancient Israel. She was the daughter of Ethbaal. Ethbaal means 'being with Baal.' So it is possible that her father was a Sidonian priest king, which was common then. The word Jezebel means 'without dwelling or habitation.' Was she a habitation for a wandering spirit? We do not know. But when one study the depth of evil that possessed her, there is room to think so.
King Ahab had already decided to follow the path of his forefather Jeroboam. He was already exposed to pagan worship. But when he decided to marry Jezebel, that ushered the northern kingdom of Israel into a tail spin.
What Ahab brought to the camp of Israel was not just a person, but a spiritual influence. She is the one who established Baal worship in Israel. What she did was to erect a counter altar to the altar of God almighty. Even the ministry of spiritual giants like Elijah and Elisha could not wipe out that evil influence from the land. It ultimately decimated the northern kingdom. To this day the ten tribes that comprised the northern kingdom of Israel are scattered around the world.
So let me start with a word of caution. If you enter into a treaty with a person who possess a deep seated evil spirit in him or her for temporary gains, you are inviting an influence that will eventually decimate your camp. Watch out with whom you form alliances!
This is what Bible teaches about how the Spirit of Jezebel functions:
1. It will gain upper hand seizing a weakness in a community.
Ahab was a weak king. As soon as Jezebel married him, she realized that and decided to take advantage of it.What she brought to Israel as dowry was 450 prophets of Baal and 400 prophets of Asherah. the King made an altar for Baal in Samaria and entrenched this evil spirit in the community.
The parallel to this historic lesson is given to us in Revelation 2:18-29. There we can learn how the Spirit of Jezebel functions in a church or a spiritual community like a denomination.
The church of Thyatira was one of the seven prominent churches in Asia Minor. When Holy Spirit said, 'your works, the last are more than the first,' it means it was a growing church. It was known for their 'works, love, service, faith and patience.' the negative remark about this church was that it allowed 'the Spirit of Jezebel to function' in the church. It talks about a person moving in the prophetic had gained upper hand in the church prior to leading the church into apostasy.
Please realize that prophetic office is not the issue. Jesus is building his church on the foundation of Apostles and Prophets (Eph. 4:11). What kind of spirit moves in the prophet is the issue. 1 Kings 18: 19 talks about the 'prophets of Baal' and 'prophets of Asherah.' Thyatira had a 'prophetess' who was moving in the Spirit of Jezebel.
What the Bible teaches us is that you will see the true color of a person moving in the Spirit of Jezebel after he or she gains the upper hand. And to gain the upper hand, it will latch on to people already in authority.
2. The servants of God becomes the target.
Once the altar of Baal was established, she started targeting the servants of God. 'Jezebel massacred the prophets of the Lord.' (1 Kings 18:4).
When a person moving in the same spirit is allowed prominence in a church or a in a community, servants of God watch out! You will be hunted. You will be viciously attacked. You will be mercilessly butchered. Nothing brings out the depravity and darkness of the evil side as when it attacks servants of God or entities established to show the goodness of God to others.
It will fight people of God mercilessly.
3. It will not respect limits and will work to gain control at any costs.
Once she gained upper hand, she began to exercise dominion. People had only two choices: obey her edicts or hide! When she screamed threats, even Elijah looked for a hiding place!
The climax came when she killed Naboth when he dared to stand up against the king and her (1 Kings 21).
Even today we see people with the same spirit doing the same things. They will encroach into your personal affairs. They butt their heads into things that do not concern them. They want to snatch your privacy, your honor, your blessings, your everything- just to show the extend of their influence.
Never forget that Ahab went to Jezebel, not the other way around. She was an invited presence! And she capitalized on it. Pretty soon all the prophets of God who used to boast about their anointing were hiding in caves.
4. It will not back off easily.
This principle becomes clear when you look at what happened on Mount Carmel. The fact that the prophets of Baal and prophets of Asherah were killed by Elijah did not stop her. You would expect her to run back to Sidon. But she did not have to. The person who invited her into Israel was still standing with her. So she dared to declare another threat against Elijah: '"So let the gods do to me, and more also, if I do not make your life as the life of one of them by tomorrow about this time."(1 Kings 19:2).
5. The Spirit of Jezebel operating in a christian community.
There are four specific things mentioned about this in revelation 2.
A. 'A prophetess': Became part of the church through a ministry position.
B. It became a contaminating spirit: The imagery presented in revelation 2 is that 'she seduced My servants to commit sexual immorality.' (As far as we know it is figurative speech, speaking about spiritual adultery.')
C. It will violate the directions of God. The issue in Thyatira was encouraging people 'to eat things sacrificed to idols' which was contrary to the teachings in 1 Corinthians.
D. It will refuse to repent. God says, "I gave her time to repent and she did not." People with Jezebel Spirit think they are the ultimate purveyors of truth. Therefore, they will not repent or change their ways. In the end, God will deal with them violently when he unleashes his fury.
6. They will be successful for a season.
1 Kings 19 shows that they can affect even the very elect for a while. The same Elijah who had a major victory on Mount Carmel found himself running the next day. Robert Morris, the Pastor of Gateway Church in Dallas has pointed out four ways in which the Spirit of Jezebel can affect an anointed servant of God.
A. Fear: he arose and ran for his life.
B. Isolation: he himself went a day's journey.
C. Exhaustion: he prayed that he might die.
D. Depression: he ate and drank, and lay down again.
He talks about a season when such a spirit was functioning in his church. He was often overcome by thoughts of quitting, thoughts of depression and desire to die. As a child of God he overcame that season and now Gateway is one of the largest churches in the USA.
THE ANSWER
God shows both in 1 Kings and in Revelation 2 that fate of people moving in the Spirit of Jezebel is sealed. God will judge them just as mercilessly as they have dealt with the people of God. They are guaranteed a violent end. So people of God will have victory in the end.
But God does not leave the Spirit of Jezebel unopposed until then. An Elijah came on the scene to oppose Jezebel. He was least qualified for the job. He was from Tishba (from the bushes). But he knew the word. And he had a personal relationship with God which strengthened him. When Jezebel had him on the run, he still heard God's voice. God gave him counsel to set things in motion which eventually guaranteed the violent end of Jezebel. When Jezebel had him discouraged, God came with bread and water to strengthen him.
So if you step out to oppose the Spirit of Jezebel, be ready. Prepare yourself. It will be a long and strenuous struggle. The Spirit of Jezebel is an entrenched spirit that has found habitation in a person or a church. It will not depart easily. But with prayer and fasting, you can gain the strength for the long haul.
In the next few blogs, I will write about spiritual warfare and how fasting can be used as a tool for victory in this battle. I have much to share from my experience in this area.
The worst of the spiritual battles we see in The Bible is the Spirit of Jezebel. Let me start there.
King Ahab had already decided to follow the path of his forefather Jeroboam. He was already exposed to pagan worship. But when he decided to marry Jezebel, that ushered the northern kingdom of Israel into a tail spin.
What Ahab brought to the camp of Israel was not just a person, but a spiritual influence. She is the one who established Baal worship in Israel. What she did was to erect a counter altar to the altar of God almighty. Even the ministry of spiritual giants like Elijah and Elisha could not wipe out that evil influence from the land. It ultimately decimated the northern kingdom. To this day the ten tribes that comprised the northern kingdom of Israel are scattered around the world.
So let me start with a word of caution. If you enter into a treaty with a person who possess a deep seated evil spirit in him or her for temporary gains, you are inviting an influence that will eventually decimate your camp. Watch out with whom you form alliances!
This is what Bible teaches about how the Spirit of Jezebel functions:
1. It will gain upper hand seizing a weakness in a community.
Ahab was a weak king. As soon as Jezebel married him, she realized that and decided to take advantage of it.What she brought to Israel as dowry was 450 prophets of Baal and 400 prophets of Asherah. the King made an altar for Baal in Samaria and entrenched this evil spirit in the community.
The parallel to this historic lesson is given to us in Revelation 2:18-29. There we can learn how the Spirit of Jezebel functions in a church or a spiritual community like a denomination.
The church of Thyatira was one of the seven prominent churches in Asia Minor. When Holy Spirit said, 'your works, the last are more than the first,' it means it was a growing church. It was known for their 'works, love, service, faith and patience.' the negative remark about this church was that it allowed 'the Spirit of Jezebel to function' in the church. It talks about a person moving in the prophetic had gained upper hand in the church prior to leading the church into apostasy.
Please realize that prophetic office is not the issue. Jesus is building his church on the foundation of Apostles and Prophets (Eph. 4:11). What kind of spirit moves in the prophet is the issue. 1 Kings 18: 19 talks about the 'prophets of Baal' and 'prophets of Asherah.' Thyatira had a 'prophetess' who was moving in the Spirit of Jezebel.
What the Bible teaches us is that you will see the true color of a person moving in the Spirit of Jezebel after he or she gains the upper hand. And to gain the upper hand, it will latch on to people already in authority.
2. The servants of God becomes the target.
Once the altar of Baal was established, she started targeting the servants of God. 'Jezebel massacred the prophets of the Lord.' (1 Kings 18:4).
When a person moving in the same spirit is allowed prominence in a church or a in a community, servants of God watch out! You will be hunted. You will be viciously attacked. You will be mercilessly butchered. Nothing brings out the depravity and darkness of the evil side as when it attacks servants of God or entities established to show the goodness of God to others.
It will fight people of God mercilessly.
3. It will not respect limits and will work to gain control at any costs.
Once she gained upper hand, she began to exercise dominion. People had only two choices: obey her edicts or hide! When she screamed threats, even Elijah looked for a hiding place!
The climax came when she killed Naboth when he dared to stand up against the king and her (1 Kings 21).
Even today we see people with the same spirit doing the same things. They will encroach into your personal affairs. They butt their heads into things that do not concern them. They want to snatch your privacy, your honor, your blessings, your everything- just to show the extend of their influence.
Never forget that Ahab went to Jezebel, not the other way around. She was an invited presence! And she capitalized on it. Pretty soon all the prophets of God who used to boast about their anointing were hiding in caves.
4. It will not back off easily.
This principle becomes clear when you look at what happened on Mount Carmel. The fact that the prophets of Baal and prophets of Asherah were killed by Elijah did not stop her. You would expect her to run back to Sidon. But she did not have to. The person who invited her into Israel was still standing with her. So she dared to declare another threat against Elijah: '"So let the gods do to me, and more also, if I do not make your life as the life of one of them by tomorrow about this time."(1 Kings 19:2).
5. The Spirit of Jezebel operating in a christian community.
There are four specific things mentioned about this in revelation 2.
A. 'A prophetess': Became part of the church through a ministry position.
B. It became a contaminating spirit: The imagery presented in revelation 2 is that 'she seduced My servants to commit sexual immorality.' (As far as we know it is figurative speech, speaking about spiritual adultery.')
C. It will violate the directions of God. The issue in Thyatira was encouraging people 'to eat things sacrificed to idols' which was contrary to the teachings in 1 Corinthians.
D. It will refuse to repent. God says, "I gave her time to repent and she did not." People with Jezebel Spirit think they are the ultimate purveyors of truth. Therefore, they will not repent or change their ways. In the end, God will deal with them violently when he unleashes his fury.
6. They will be successful for a season.
1 Kings 19 shows that they can affect even the very elect for a while. The same Elijah who had a major victory on Mount Carmel found himself running the next day. Robert Morris, the Pastor of Gateway Church in Dallas has pointed out four ways in which the Spirit of Jezebel can affect an anointed servant of God.
A. Fear: he arose and ran for his life.
B. Isolation: he himself went a day's journey.
C. Exhaustion: he prayed that he might die.
D. Depression: he ate and drank, and lay down again.
He talks about a season when such a spirit was functioning in his church. He was often overcome by thoughts of quitting, thoughts of depression and desire to die. As a child of God he overcame that season and now Gateway is one of the largest churches in the USA.
THE ANSWER
God shows both in 1 Kings and in Revelation 2 that fate of people moving in the Spirit of Jezebel is sealed. God will judge them just as mercilessly as they have dealt with the people of God. They are guaranteed a violent end. So people of God will have victory in the end.
But God does not leave the Spirit of Jezebel unopposed until then. An Elijah came on the scene to oppose Jezebel. He was least qualified for the job. He was from Tishba (from the bushes). But he knew the word. And he had a personal relationship with God which strengthened him. When Jezebel had him on the run, he still heard God's voice. God gave him counsel to set things in motion which eventually guaranteed the violent end of Jezebel. When Jezebel had him discouraged, God came with bread and water to strengthen him.
So if you step out to oppose the Spirit of Jezebel, be ready. Prepare yourself. It will be a long and strenuous struggle. The Spirit of Jezebel is an entrenched spirit that has found habitation in a person or a church. It will not depart easily. But with prayer and fasting, you can gain the strength for the long haul.
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