Are you always seeking a pastor to help you with prayers? Maybe you have grown to believe that as soon as a particular ‘man-of God’ lays hand on you, all your problems will be over. Do you really understand God’s Word for yourself? Have you taken the time to search out God’s word with the same diligence you use for your academics or business?
Sometime ago, I had a call with one of my friends, a Christian, she was seriously complaining about hardship, poverty, and the enemy, attributing her sufferings to some enemies – wicked friends or evil family members. It seemed to be the norm: to blame difficulty on some ‘village people’, who we believe are responsible for our hardship. We blame them when things are not working out, we curse them by directing most of our prayers towards them.
My question
I asked her: but we are Christians, how come the enemies have power over us? If we say we believe in God and are following him, why do we complain so much about enemies? Why do we feel defeated? Is it that they have power over us whose lives are hidden in Christ? What about our authority in Christ?
I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you. (Luke 10:19)
I also know that greater is He in us than he who is in the world.
I really pondered over this conversation. Why are believers always complaining of the enemy? why does it seem we are at their mercy? why do we organize repeated prayer sessions to ‘bind the devil’? why do we sometimes go to church with physical weapons to fight enemies?
I decided to do a diligent study of the bible for myself. I told myself, if I can learn computer programming myself and become proficient, why can’t I study the bible with the same zeal. Why can’t I study the bible the same way I studied in university for my courses, during exams, or during my research project.
So, I decided to create distraction-free time for detailed bible study. I started from Genesis chapter 1. I prayed hard and studied so diligently. My passion grew as I journeyed. With the increased interest and clarity, and realizing the bible is very consistent, I studied almost every book.
Before now, I had believed that the bible, especially the Old Testament, is boring. Someone had communicated this to me by how he always acted frustrated whenever reading the bible. Someone also joked that if you want to fall asleep, just pick the bible and start reading. As simple as this may sound, this is one of the greatest limiting factors people are facing today, people are discouraged from studying the bible, they make you feel it’s ‘rocket science’, or some kind of esoteric concept.
This is the major cause of suffering all over the world because people do not understand the will of God and are poorly guided.
The word of God is consistent
The word of God all through the bible is very consistent. If you sincerely study the bible, you will understand the will of God; you will find the knowledge of God.
You will know that God wants the best for you and is always looking for ways to bless you;
You will be set-free from fears holding you back;
You will understand that the enemy has no power over you;
You will know that God is not interested in your money; you do not need to sow seeds before God blesses you;
God is passionate
God is fervent; He is very passionate, and also patient. He speaks through numerous examples. The easiest way to demonstrate something is through actions and examples. That’s what God has done for us; He demonstrated His will, repeatedly, through numerous illustrations over history. When someone is arguing or twisting a concept, an easy way to know the truth is a question like ‘show me an example or a related story’.
What does God require of us
He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God (Micah 6:8).
If there is only one role of God today, I will say it is justice. God is a God of Justice, integrity, honesty, and due process. He will never allow injustice to prevail, he continuously oversees these things. Corruption is a primary cause of spiritual blindness, and the reason you may seem defeated.
The LORD detests dishonest scales, but accurate weights find favor with Him. (proverbs 11: 1).
God expects us to be truthful and kind, and to treat other the way we want to be treated.
Do not be ignorant of the wiles of the enemy
The book of Job chapter 1 provides what I consider the ultimate spiritual welfare strategy. Firstly, God described a righteous man:
“Have you considered my servant Job? There is no one on earth like him; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil.” (V8).
Then the enemy confessed that no one can harm a God-fearing man:
“Have you not put a hedge around him and his household and everything he has? You have blessed the work of his hands, so that his flocks and herds are spread throughout the land.” (V11).
This simply illustrates that when you are humble, truthful, honest, and faithfully serving God, you ought not worry much about enemies, nor even the devil, for God himself will be your shield.
For the Lord gives wisdom; from his mouth come knowledge and understanding. He holds success in store for the upright, he is a shield to those whose walk is blameless, for he guards the course of the just and protects the way of his faithful ones. (Proverbs 2:6-8)
So, why do believers seem defeated
The No.1 real enemies we have are the false preacher and teacher, that occupy every channel today, teaching all manners of greed and lies. They are the ones ‘binding’ most Christians; they are the cause of suffering.
GodlySensation
A great sorrow is to be under a false prophet, a fake pastor or a so-called man of God. This is a terrible thing – to be constantly bombarded by lies and deceptions from false teachings. This is one of the greatest limitations in life. This is the main reason people are suffering and never amount to anything in life.
They do not teach the word of God, they know that once you truly understand the word of God, you will be empowered, so they deliberately twist things up to leave you confused, so as to continuously feast on you.
They systematically discourage you from studying the bible for yourself, making it look difficult. They quote words out of context. They emphasize on doctrine instead of character. Their interest is money.
Importantly, because of their greed, they do not teach you spiritual welfare strategies. So, many believers do not even understand the wiles of the enemies, they cannot discern between a wicked man and a righteous man. This is a serious problem with tremendous consequences.
Check out my article on: How To Avoid Bad Advice And Stay Blessed
For instance, A popular pastor in Nigeria preached that Job was not faithful in tithing.
Let us re-consider this story, although I talked briefly about it before. Job was a man God used to describe a righteous man, in fact, these are the very words God used to describe him:
a. My servant;
b. There is no one on earth like him;
c. He is blameless and upright;
d. A man who fears God and shuns evil; (Job 1: 8)
We already know that the devourer, who is the devil, confessed that he could not harm Job nor touch any of his properties. (V11)
Surprisingly, even though this is a very popular story and we all know that Job was only tested, yet it was preached that he was not faithful in paying tithes (someone who God said was blameless). Where was the conclusion or inference that Job was disobedient or unfaithful in tithing drawn from???
This is just one of many reasons you should know the word of God for yourself.
Example 2:
Another popular pastor in Nigeria attributed King’s Solomon wealth to his offerings.
This man tried to convince his audience that due to king Solomon generous giving and offerings, he became exceedingly rich.
This was also surprising to me that people believed him, even though the story of king Solomon is a popular one. This king did not ask God for money, but for wisdom, for discernment in administering justice, so God was pleased, and decided to also make him wealthy.
The teaching of today is centered on money, and it’s the major cause of strife, greed, crime, poverty, and the major reason believers seem defeated.
God does not delight in money
The reason the false teachers are rich and succeed in doing what they do is simply because you don’t know the word of God for yourself; Once you know the word of God, it will be easy to spot fake teachings and then quickly detach yourself.
You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it; you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings. My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart you, God, will not despise. (Psalms 51: 16-17).
How do I gain my freedom?
- I would advise you to carefully and prayerfully study God’s word for yourself and consider it the best counsel you could ever get;
- If you are diligent and commit the kind of effort you put in project research or your business, you will be amazed at your understanding;
- You will never regret the effort as it will lead you to breakthrough;
- You will be able to easily spot false prophets, who are the agents of the thief that Jesus talked about in John 10:10;
- You will be set free from limiting beliefs and strongholds;
- you will know your heritage, your rights, and won’t bother praying about things you already have, but instead would be grateful;
- You will understand blessed acts: Fear God and depart from evil; Let truth and kindness never depart from you; treat others the way you want to be treated; seek peace; don’t pay evil for evil;