Sometimes, before you can deal with a spiritual enemy, you need to remove the legal groundwork beneath his feet. This is where repentance comes in. An act that involves accurately judging yourself and owning where you are wrong.
Here’s a trap: ”all or nothing” thinking. Suppose you are mostly right and the other person is mostly wrong? What if you are 25% at fault but they are 75% at fault? Can you do a 25% repentance and reconciliation? No.
But you can take 100% responsibility for your 25%….and this often releases the GRACE on the other person to own their 75%.
There will be other times when you need to ignore the enemy. This isn’t easy. Ever get into a fight where you want to keep at it? The hardest thing to do is to stop and disengage! If you are accustomed to verbally persuading and influencing others, something inside you wants to talk, text or type your way into triumph! But it never works. You can’t ever kill off a spirit by conversation.
And if the spirit has an offended person attached, you are in for a season of never ending verbal volleyball.
That’s where you need to ignore the situation. Bide your time. David ignored the deeds of those who conspired against him…..but told his son Solomon that he needed to deal with those specific troublemakers if his administration was going to succeed. Think of yourself as a combined David/Solomon. David is the guy that screwed up and gave the enemy an opportunity to injure the dynasty. Solomon is the “wisdom” that came out of that screw up (talking about Bathsheba.) Once you get wisdom (often from the consequences of your bad decisions), God gives you a season to deal with your enemies and uproot them.
Revenge is not an option. “…Avenge not yourselves but give place to wrath: for it is written, ‘Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.’ ” (Ro 12:19) If we do our best to overcome evil with good, and it does not work, there is always the prospect that God will take matters into His own hands and overcome evil by visiting it with an ax. Isn't that the point Jesus made about the unfruitful tree?
Jesus taught that an unfruitful tree may have a delayed execution, but, if it persists in its unfruitful state, it will be uprooted. What if God does that with areas of our life? He “dungs around the tree” so to speak, but after a while, if thing's don't yield to the master, He uproots it.
This cycle is manifest in David’s unfinished business being taken care of by Solomon.
Be wise. Remove the legal groundwork. Repent of 100% of your 25%, if need be. Bless… do good… Ignore judging – till the time comes, if necessary, to judge… when that time comes.
Lance Wallnau
Thank you for this lesson. It’s one we all need to learn.
This is very helpful Lance. As a matter of fact, the Lord has already dealt with me to make peace with my enemies, and take that 100% responsibility of my 25% in the issue. When I did this, I felt a weight lift off of me. I hear you mention the jezebel spirit sometimes. A lot of Christians don’t understand this spirit or know how to deal with it. I would like to learn more strategies against this spirit of witchcraft, control, and manipulation, especially when it is family members, or even a spouse or a son.
Excellent post, Lance … The removal of the legal groundwork from beneath the feet of my enemy many times is like mountain climbing. Gravity is the great equalizer. From my perspective, in the
spiritual realm the great equalizer is the silence of the tongue. Many times He reveals Himself as my Justice in my silence. Then the fowler falls at my feet …. the devourer, the accuser and the liar as well. (speaking of spiritual wickedness of course) …
Then I am lifted up and revealed in the presence of my enemy … in a broad and level place of justice above and over him.
This is good strong word! Very helpful reminder…
Awesome word! I had been struggling with a situation, but this word brought so much light to me. Thanks Lance
on the money !!
Indeed when we remove the legal ground work beneath the enemy’s feet then the enemy becomes incapacitated no longer will he even be the ‘accuser of the brethren” I like what you said… ‘you can’t ever kill off a spirit by conversation’ so true. We must always identify who the real enemy is; and deal with it instead of using words such as haters the devil and his demons are the real haters, “ignorant” people avail themselves to be used by the enemy that is why we must examine ourselves always to know what spirit is leading at any given time or situation..
.I appreciate your wisdom and insights. Great read and thank you
Thanks…great
Thanks, Lance. This is just what I needed to hear tonight.
As always, very helpful. Thank you.