Saturday 31 January 2015

When sickness returns to your house ~ Rabqa


Lk 11:24-26 NLT) When an evil spirit leaves a person, it goes into the desert, searching for rest. But  when it finds none it says, "I will return to the person I came from". So it returns & finds that it's former home is all swept & in order. Then the spirit finds 7 other spirits more evil than itself, & they all enter the person & live there, so that person is worse off than before.


Be warned that returning to a past bondage from which you were once delivered results in deeper bondage.

While the promises of the new covenant are free, seeing them manifest in your life is a battle-a battle that involves your faith. The enemy will throw mental darts such as:
                   Is it really God's will that I be healed?
                   Is God trying to teach me a lesson?
                   Is this problem the result of some sin?

Many believers struggle to receive because they are continually bombarded with negative messages from the enemy of their soul. One of the most challenging & difficult conflicts will manifest when the enemy attempts to return to your house.

Luke recorded the statement by Jesus that the unclean spirit departs but attempts to return to the same house from where it was expelled.

Notice that the house is swept & garnished, but it is uninhabited. The person in this story has made an effort to straighten up & has received temporary relief, but he has not properly allowed the Lord to move in & take up residence.

Eventually, the enemy moved back in & bought some unwanted company ( 7 other spirits) with him.

In Mk 5 Christ delivers the man of Gadara from 2000 unclean spirit  (v 13), this former maniac from the mountains wanted wanted to follow Jesus from city to city, Christ told this former demon possessed man to go home (v 19) & tell his friends what great things the Lord had done for him instead of encouraging him the man to follow Him.

He told the man to return to where he came from & testify his miracle. This man probably had a slight fear of returning-a fear that the demons would once again attempt to enter him.

Jesus gave him a powerful key to staying free. He said "Testify of what the Lord has done!"This statement agree with what Rev 12:11 says NLT) & they have defeated him by the blood of the Lamb & by their testimony, & they did not love their lives so much that they were afraid to die.

This verse teaches Spiritual victory we enter into. Jesus Christ has already won the victory through His death, burial & resurrection.
Conduct spiritual warfare on the basis of the shed blood of Jesus & through the declaration that He died for your sins & rose again for your justification. Love Jesus more than life itself.

Before that in Rev 12:10 it tells us that satan is called the accuser of the brethren. He tries to make us feel guilty & commended.

When we feel unhealthy, guilt, & condemnation, we must remember that God does not make us feel that way. God wants us to experience His love & feel the power of His forgiveness.

Guilt depresses us & makes us feel as though we are under a heavy burden. Jesus came to lift us up, to bring good news to us that our sins are forgiven & the penalty of them removed.

Resist guilt & condemnation by embracing the salvation authority of Christ in your life.
A born again believer who is under the covenant of Christ's blood & walking in the Word has a defence against the powers of darkness, including evil spirits.

However there is a spiritual principle that a believer should be made aware of. There are two types of conflicts: attacks & counter-attacks.

Most Christians are fully aware of a frontal assault from the adversary. However, many are caught of guard when a counter-attack comes. The purpose of the enemy's counter-attack is to regain lost territory.

When the person becomes born again the adversary may bring an old before Christ friend who will tempt you to return to late night parties & bars.

Believers who receive the baptism of the H S often must deal with skeptical  relatives who attempt to rescue them from their deception. The same is true with healing. The early full- gospel ministers were continually defending the practice praying for the sick as critics bemoaned or denounced the act of anointing with oil & seeking God for healing.

The adversary is a thief & a robber. He dislikes losing ground  & therefore will make any attempt to steal your blessing, if you permit him to do so.

Some people who are healed have experienced a relapse of a similar affliction. for eg  a person who is healed of a terminal illness is declared clean by their doctor.
Many years later the disease returns, but perhaps to another location in their body. while this certainly does not happen all the time, it does happen from time to time & should be addressed.

Once we have been healed, we must maintain our faith in Christ's ability to preserve our whole body, soul & spirit blameless unto the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ  Thes 5:23 Here we see Paul's final prayer is that we might be wholly sanctified that is our whole being-spirit soul & body maybe yielded to the will of God. The power for this accomplishment must come from the God of peace Himself.

Perry tells a story of a woman with cancer on her face was standing for prayer while the evangelist was fervently praying for God to perform miracles. Her hand was covering the large cancer on her face & she suddenly cried out as the cancer fell into her hand & her face was completely healed. People began rejoicing. The woman however, said, "I can't believe this...this is impossible...this can't be happening" she placed her hand back to her face & the cancer melted back into her skin! In shock she made a profound statement, "O God; what my faith has taken off, my unbelief has put back on.

The Story of Goliath contains a clue as to how to deal with sickness when it returns. In David's time there were 5 giants who lived in the promised land.

There names were:
Goliath 1 Sam17:4 we are told that he was 6 cubits & a span which is about 9 feet 9 inches. He lived Gath which was a major city of the Philistines not far to the west.  He was a champion which is literally a middle man, one who could decide the outcome of a particular  battle by one single handed fight with a similar champion from the opposing sides.

Ishbi-benob 2 Sam 21:16 He was one of the sons of the giant, the weight of whose bronze spear was 300 shekels who was bearing a new sword, thought he could kill David
300 shekels is about seven & a half pounds. Sons of the giants is a race of giants from which Goliath had come.

Saph 2 Sam21:18 He also was one of the sons of  the giant.

The giant from Garth. 2 Sam 21:20 This verse says that he was a man of great stature who had six fingers on each hand & six toes on each foot, he was also born to the giant.

Lahmi 1 Chron 20:5 says that he was Goliath's brother.


Goliath was a large & intimidating man that no man or army of Israel was willing to tackle him until a faith filled teenager arrived on the battle field.

Before approaching Goliath, David stopped by a brook (1 Sam 17:40) The reason is obvious to collect five stones that David was prepared to take Goliath out & his four other colleagues. Lahmi as we have just heard was Goliath's brother.

If Lahmi was part of the Goliath family, he may have been the same hight & had the same facial features & threatening voice of his brother, Goliath. & yet he was not Goliath, because Goliath was dead (1 Sam 17.51) which tells us that David took his sword & drew it out of it's sheath & killed him, cut his head off.
We see the very head of Goliath had been removed by the sword of David, a picture of the sword of the Spirit, or the Word of God getting to the root of the problem that is affecting us (Heb 4:12).

Once God has wrought a healing for you, whether through the prayer of faith, a manifestation or through communion, He makes good His healing work, & your faith & obedience maintain a continual flow of life into your spirit, soul & body.
However, occasionally the enemy will counter tack, attempting to bring the very thing you were freed from back into your body.

This is not Goliath because that giant is dead. It may look the same, feel the same, & act the same, but Goliath has a brother. Lahmi Must be dealt with just as Goliath was dealt with.
If a person comes to you asking for prayer because the same ailment is attempting to return. You can tell him it's not Goliath, it's his brother.

 BUT there are still stones in the brook! The point is the same faith that defeated Goliath will also defeat his brother.
The same anointing that brought the initial healing & the same faith that defeated the adversary years ago are the same anointing & faith that can conquer the enemy today! 

If the Lord tarries, we will all have our final day on Earth & pass from this life to the next. We are not presently in an immortal body, & our body which is the temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Cor 3:16) Our body which is the building identified as God's temple, made holy by the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit. Here the temple of God is the local Church. In Eph 6:19 it is the individual Christian body, & in Eph 2:20&21 it is the Church.

Our body occasionally needs repairs & maintenance. Throughout our journey storms will come & damage parts of our temple. But just as God cared for His house in Jerusalem, He is concerned about your physical house, which was created in His image.

Here are 3 points to remember:

1 God is able to keep (preserve) what we commit to Him, & this includes our health
(Thes 5:23-24) Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; & may your whole spirit, soul & body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it.

God's faithfulness gives assurance that we will be preserved blameless until the return of Christ.

2) If the enemy returns, use the same weapons  to defeat him again & again.

 Corn 10:4 For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds.

Our warfare is not against flesh & blood (Eph 6:12) therefore carnal ( weak or worldly) these weapons will not do; we need weapons that are God-empowered (mighty in God) their purpose is for pulling down or demolishing strongholds which is anything opposing God's will.

3) We should maintain faith & fellowship through communion as often as we can or feel led.

1 Corn 11:25 NKJ) In the same manner He also took the cup after supper, saying "This cup is the new covenant in My blood. This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.



Acknowledgement Perry Stone.

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