THE ARMY OF GOD
Equipping Christians for Joy, Peace and Life
Christians are exciting people
Aren’t Christians those boring people who have no excitement?
Let’s look at some analogies that give us a better idea of what an individual Christian faces in his daily life.
The word “Spy”, conjures up many thoughts: Exciting, dangerous, behind enemy lines, operating according to a different set of rules, gathering information, You need to be alert, you need to be fit, you need to know how to use different weapons, sacrificing your life for a cause, being an important part of a bigger picture.
The word “Soldier” has some of the same thoughts as that of a “spy”, but there are still more thoughts with the word “Soldier”. Discipline, obeying orders, not needing to know the whole picture before carrying out your orders, fit, being prepared to die and protecting your people.
None of these thoughts would be entertained by sissies.
Christians… real ones… are not sissies. They are in the process of being God’s spies in satan’s territory and God’s Soldiers in the war on satan and his kingdom.
But there is another word, which describes Christians especially in terms of their purpose on this earth. “Antibiotic”. An antibiotic is medicine, which kills off bad germs and normalises infections. This world has been infected by Sin. satan was the agent that brought it and Adam and Eve accepted this infection. The germs are the evil principalities and powers: spiritual beings with evil intentions, who destroy and harm this planet and the people and creatures on it by guiding the decisions of humans.
Christians are there as antibiotic agents. The spiritual warfare is engaged between Angels and Demons, between God and satan, but we have to give God permission to act in this world. You remember this world does not belong to God any longer. It belongs to satan. So for God to act in a world that is not His, humans that are a part of this world must request His help. We Christians must pray to God, not just for our own protection, or our own guidance, strength, encouragement, or for that matter any of our needs. We have to open the door for God, who will never act unjustly, to come into our world and reach, touch, heal, strengthen, etc… all those who do not, or feel that they cannot ask Him for their help. In this we show God that we love our neighbour. We also have to multiply the antibiotic, by reaching others and showing them that Jesus loves them. Then they will turn against satan and this world, and they will help to destroy satan’s influence on other people through prayer.
Now I want to get back to the thoughts conjured up by the words “Spy” and “Soldier”. For this is what a real Christian is. Are you one?
A Christian is a spy
A Christian is a spy in satan’s kingdom, this earth. Where satan is our enemy and is in fact the enemy of all human beings, whether they realise this or not. He (satan) comes to kill, steal and destroy, but Jesus has come to infiltrate satan’s kingdom and to give life and life in its fullest sense (John 10:10). How does Jesus infiltrate satan’s Kingdom? Through us, His spies. We are in opposition to what satan wants for this world. We have a cause, to bring real joyous life to human kind. We know that our physical death can do nothing to us but bless us into the
It is both exciting and dangerous to proclaim your love for humanity in a world where people are governed by their own status, greed for money and popularity, where people are so often angry with everyone and everything that they will reach out and try to make the lives of Christians miserable. The saddest thing about their state is that they have brought this upon themselves. Remember that unforgiveness gives satan the right to torment and torture people (Matthew 18:34 - 35) physically, mentally and emotionally. Pray for these people. Love them when they hurt you. They do not realise they are being used by satan.
Peter once made a suggestion when he was out of control with excitement at the transfiguration of Jesus, that caused Jesus to turn and look straight at him and say “get away from me satan” (Matthew 16: 21 - 23) Now if I were Peter, I would probably have been seriously hurt by the insinuation that I was satan, but Peter recognised that Jesus was not talking to him but rather to satan who had for that moment in which Peter lost control, used his tongue to tempt Jesus.
This brings me to the next point about a spy. They have to be in control at all times. They cannot afford to let themselves be tricked into saying things that might get them into trouble. In the same way we have to make sure that we do not allow our tongues to be used by satan to do damage to the work we are doing. Notice that, in the above scripture, the Bible says that “he (Peter) did not know what he was saying.”
We have to make sure that we are at all times in control. What does this mean. Do not put yourself in a situation where you will become unable to control your mind (which controls both your body and your words.) Do not become drunk, drugged or over excited, enraged, embittered, etc… Jesus can help you with all these problems if you decide you will live your life His way and not your own way.
But back to the point. You need to create a “stop sign” in your brain between your thoughts and your words or actions. The minute you have a thought treat it like an enemy. Treat it like a lie and ask yourself:
1. Is this thought really true?
2. What made me think this thought?
3. Why do I feel the way I do when I get this thought?
You see satan is counting on you to believe that everything you think is true. When you start questioning these thoughts then he has a problem. You are going to find out that he is once again trying to get you to believe a lie. In fact not only to get you to believe it but to actually act on it by saying or doing what the thought indicates. One of the most common statements made by criminals in prison when asked why they committed the crimes they did is
“I did not really think about what I was doing
and what the consequences could be.”
satan does not want you to think. As a spy you will have to think.
If he finds that you are trapping your thoughts and checking to see if they are from him or God then he has to do what he did with Peter. By getting into a state of out of control:
1. over excitement;
2. sexually charged;
3. embittered;
4. angry;
5. drunk;
6. drugged;
7. some other high…
8. depressed;
9. lonely;
10. some other low…
satan is then able to ram his thoughts through your brain and out your mouth or into some action you commit. Why? Because when you are out of control, too high or too low, your police officer in your brain who is supposed to check your thoughts at the stop street has resigned, and you let him go when you lost control.
I want to go a step further with this point. You cannot lose control from the inside. You must be stimulated to lose control from some outside source. Whether it is nasty experiences you’ve had and people satan used to demean your character over a long time. Whether it is some chemical agent, or some physical or mental experience you go through as a result of something you see or do for example lusting over pictures in pornographic magazines. Girls, don’t switch off on this issue. This same problem exists for you when you see or work or are with guys that make you feel like a lady. You often covet these men.
Be just as careful.
The next thing about going out of control is that God will always show you the warning signs that you are about to go into a situation where you could lose control. You need to pre-program your brain to either, if you can, run away from the situation or if you can’t then to focus intently on Jesus Christ. When I say if you can’t I mean if someone ties you down and forces you physically. A true friend would respect you enough never to do such a thing as pressurise you into doing something you do not believe is right. So be sure to get rid of those people who think so little of you as to do this sort of thing. If a friend says lets go somewhere where you see a possibility that you could lose control tell them that you are not going. Anyone who tells you “If you love me then you would do or say (whatever they ask) and that which they ask contradicts God’s character. Then turn to them and speak to satan who is using them. Do what Jesus did. Tell satan to get away from you. I always add “and leave my friend (their name) Alone too.” Boy do I get some interesting reactions sometimes. The fact is. This is war. It’s not a game and people, your friends included are going to get hurt by satan if you compromise on this one.
Well I must say this has cleared up a few things for me too. I will have to be a lot more vigilant. The Lord was bringing to my mind, while I was typing, just how many ways I allow myself to lose control. Looooong way to go on this one. But well worth the rip. (I was told to leave this spelling error. I was trying to type “trip” but apparently some of you are going to get more out of the word rip than the word trip.)
A spy also gathers information and feeds it back to those who are also fighting the enemy. Let’s have a look at this analogy a moment. We are always in contact with people being used or being hurt by satan. The Army of God is here on this earth to make a difference to these people. We need to gather information about who is being hurt and who is being used. Actually all of us are used when we allow ourselves to lose control, and we should be reporting that we also need assistance. Now you do not have to go and tell other people that certain people are doing certain things they should not. Leave out the details, for these details are actually private and are between that individual and God Almighty. They have nothing to do with you. But you do need to report back that they need assistance.
What is the purpose of this report back and to whom should you be reporting back to.
Well firstly I need to say that reporting back is very often done but seldom is any assistance delivered to the person in need. Why? No one takes the responsibility to see to it that it happens. Now I need to tell you… no… promise you and categorically state that if you find out about someone who is in need, then you found out because either:
1. you can help;
2. you know someone who can help;
3. you have the ability to find someone who can help
that person. How can I be so sure about this? If you are good then your steps are ordered by the Lord (Psalm 37:23). You never found out by chance. Chance and Luck are ideas created by satan to hide all the work God is doing in our lives so that we will not give Him the glory and thanks and praise that he deserves. There is no finding out by chance. No! You have been sent to a place to overhear, or discover that someone needs help. God could have sent anyone to find this out. The fact is, He sent you. And He sent you because you are able to succeed. So do not hesitate. Find out how to help that person and do it.
Now to the actual reporting back. You need to report back to the following people:
1. Someone who will pray for this person in need and for you to be guided correctly in helping that person.
2. Someone who can stand by that person, or by you and offer emotional support. Girls are best at helping girls and boys are best at helping boys in the emotional area.
3. Someone who knows the scriptures well and can give you scripture references to assist the person to see God’s plan for healing and help. The person God has asked you to help will not need a Bible Bashing. Just a list of scriptures and a Bible. The Holy Spirit will prompt them to read in their own privacy where He can talk to them one on one. You are there to simply love them and help them without expecting or asking for anything back. Because this action of yours will make you even more loving and helpful… more like your Heavenly Father. The only clue the other person ahs is the list of scriptures and the Bible you have left with them. And that is all the Holy Spirit needs, besides you showing God’s love towards them
Another thing we Christians are particularly bad at is reporting back to those who are praying, or helping on the recovery progress of the person they are praying for or helping. This is very disheartening to those who assist you and often leads to satan getting these people to stop praying or helping. They must know what God is doing in the life/lives of those God has chosen you to help.
As a spy, you need to be fit too. You never know what situation you are going to find yourself in. You need to be ready for every possible situation. On this subject, you need to realise that to remain fit requires exercise. It also requires that you keep your muscles stretched and ready for action. The exercise you need is prayer, studying the Word of God and walking in a relationship with him. The stretching exercises are the same thing but it takes place early in the morning. It does not help to have a quiet time with the Lord at night, because one has already faced the day with unprepared muscles. You need to re-establish your connection with God as soon as you wake up. I find that as I surface to this world from my sleep before I even open my eyes, I say good morning to my Father and thank him for sparing me to face another day. This sets my day correctly in terms of my relationship with this world and my relationship with the spiritual world. The fact is that I am no longer a physical person living in a physical world but rather a spiritual person living in a spiritual world who happens to be trapped in a physical world by a physical body. But my spirit must rule, because the spiritual world is more important than the physical world and bringing physical people into the spiritual world is God’s number one priority and so it is mine too. In fact I have learnt to see people in terms of spirits as apposed to males and females. God normally does not reveal to me whether a human being has a spirit or not so I treat all as though they do and leave the Holy Spirit to convict the person about the state of their spiritual non-spiritual health.
A spy is also trained in the use of various weapons and they practice using them often. This will be the subject of my next book as the details are too deep to go into here. What is important is that if your enemy is spiritual it makes sense that you will need to use spiritual weapons and defences. The Armour of God is laid out
“Finally, build up your strength in union with the Lord and by means of his mighty power. Put on all the armor that God gives you, so that you will be able to stand up against the Devil's evil tricks. For we are not fighting against human beings but against the wicked spiritual forces in the heavenly world, the rulers, authorities, and cosmic powers of this dark age. So put on God's armor now! Then when the evil day comes, you will be able to resist the enemy's attacks; and after fighting to the end, you will still hold your ground.
So stand ready, with truth as a belt tight around your waist, with righteousness as your breastplate, and as your shoes the readiness to announce the Good News of peace. At all times carry faith as a shield; for with it you will be able to put out all the burning arrows shot by the Evil One. And accept salvation as a helmet, and the word of God as the sword which the Spirit gives you. Do all this in prayer, asking for God's help. Pray on every occasion, as the Spirit leads. For this reason keep alert and never give up; pray always for all God's people. And pray also for me, that God will give me a message when I am ready to speak, so that I may speak boldly and make known the gospel's secret. “ (Ephesians 6: 10 - 19)
Finally a spy understands that they are part of a bigger picture. They do not see the whole picture and so they need to obey. Of course they have to make sure that the instruction they were given came from their side and not from the enemy. But once they know that it conforms to their side they act on it and keep at it until they win or die trying. If you believe you have received an instruction from God then you need to make sure that it came from God. Do not be misled. Just because you get a confirmation in the Bible in a scripture, does not make it a request from God. This request must line up with the character and nature of God.
You should ask ALL the following questions:
1. Is this an act of kindness?
<answer should be “Yes”>
2. Is it an act of love?
<answer should be “Yes”>
3. Does it contradict any laws God has laid down?
<answer should be “No”> (You must know your Bible)
4. Do I have complete Peace in my heart that God is asking me to
say/do or not say/do this?
<answer should be “Yes”>
5. Have I received independent confirmation?
<answer should be “Yes”>
When you can answer all of these in this way then you can be certain that God is behind that instruction. When you know that God is behind it, then you must act on it. There are other parts of this plan that God has already arranged. These He does not tell us because He wants us to trust Him. He wants us to walk in Faith and trust that He will bring about the desired result. You can never fail God if you obey Him. Even if the end result you see indicates a failure. The plan is simply bigger than what you can see. He has chosen that result for a reason far beyond your comprehension and somewhere it is touching someone, and in my experience normally hundreds of people.
A Christian is a Soldier
A Christian is a Soldier and a spy is a soldier. But what is more evident in the life of a soldier than that of a spy is the discipline seen in a soldier that is all too often not seen in a spy, but which of course has to be there. A soldier is always on show. Everyone sees that the soldier’s boots shine, that his clothes are well ironed and that he wears his uniform with responsibility, authority and is pleased to be a soldier. Sure the soldier may look somewhat different while in the middle of a battle, where he is more concerned about bringing about the result required than about his looks. But when he is not in battle he is both always ready for it and is an ambassador of the government of the country in whose service he stands as a soldier. What is important to note in this analogy is that you as a Christian are always on show. You are to wear the fact that you are a Christian with pride in Jesus Christ, not pride in yourself. You are to be an example of what a Christian should be like. Be the best person you can be as often as you can be. Never judge any of your fellow brothers and sisters in Christ. The Holy Spirit is dealing with their imperfections in the same way that he is dealing with yours. Do not put on a show of how wonderful you are. Do not try to pretend to other people that you are any better than you really are. Isaiah says in (Isaiah 64:6) All of us have been sinful; even our best actions are filthy through and through. Remember that there is nothing you can do or be that is worth anything but for the Grace that God shows you (and that only because Jesus made it possible for Him to do this). Be prepared to be just who you are. Do not hide your faults. Do not worry what others think about you. Do not be insincere. Be thrilled that you can be so blessed by God hat He should provide you with brothers and sisters in Christ. They are so precious.
One of the things that disappointed me most when I went to the army and became a soldier was to find out that the army was not made up of a group of superhuman beings that were capable of doing amazing things. I had this picture dashed to pieces from day one. I found out that the army is just a bunch of ordinary people like you and I slapped together who did not know one another, sometimes did not like each other, and did not really care about each other either. But as they were forced to be with each other, help each other, support each other and even more importantly to depend on each other. As they were trained in the art of combat and in the use of weapons and in discipline, hygiene and cleanliness and as they were subjected to difficult situations painful experiences and good old hard work. So they developed into a fighting unit. They never allow themselves to be isolated from one another. They guard their thoughts and their actions. They are always in control of themselves.
This fighting unit, in which you find the real Christians, is the
I urge you. As does Christ Jesus urge you. Stay on the fence no longer. Choose your side now. Then get ready. The battle is the Lords (Deuteronomy 3:22), The Battle is now (Ephesians 6: 10 - 19). And the battle is only over when God has accomplished what He has set out to do.
Then will come the end of all things that are not eternal. And we who have been steadfast in this battle will be crowned as kings to rule over many (Luke 19:17)
Thankyou for visiting this page. brother and sisters have also popped in.
You are most welcome to return again.
May God Almighty, who has sent you to Earth to accomplish His will, show you how amazing a life you can lead if you follow His desires.
Feel free to send this page to the Christian brothers and sisters that the Holy Spirit lays on your heart to send to.
Your little brother in [Jesus Christ, He who travelled the length and breadth of Palestine, Healing, Helping, Teaching and Guiding]
Rick Evans (TheArmyofGod@softhome.net)