My spirit continues to be exercised by the statement of Jesus concerning the church's assault on the "Gates of Hell".
In our last post on this, we spoke some of the Gates of Hell within. Just by way of review, it is important to consider a statement in James.
Jas 3:6 KJV And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity: so is the tongue among our members, that it defileth the whole body, and setteth on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire of hell.
When coupled with a quote from Jesus it becomes a strong statement that must be considered seriously.
Mat 15:19-20 KJV For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies: (20) These are the things which defile a man: but to eat with unwashen hands defileth not a man.(Mark 7:21)
Mat 12:34 KJV O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.(Luke 6:45)
When brought together with our opening scripture there is grounds for saying the one interpretation of the passage is that hell can be in the heart.
This brings us to a point of recognition that the Gates of Hell can be internal as well. This makes it essential to consider an assault on this stronghold within. It brings new understanding to Paul's comments in 2 Cor 10:4-5
2Co 10:4-5 KJV (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) (5) Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;
While pondering this, I also want to consider a balance in the battle.
In the external world there is also an application of this that comes out of an awakening in my experience. I believe the Word of God is the final authority. When it says the "gates of hell" will not prevail against the Church, it is clear that gates do not move. That means the Church must be moving.
This begs a question: What do these gates look like?
Some have looked for some physical place or expression that is clearly an expression of satan's work. Gates are entrances or doorways into cities, forts, or strongholds. There are those who would argue that it is all the things that religious men and women call "sin". There is a sense in which that can be true in a life or situation. But in looking at that I think we may miss the deeper meaning.
In both our understanding of heaven and of hell, we think of physical places, limiting ourselves and allowing places for the enemy of our souls to hide. I am not saying that there is not a literal heaven or a literal hell, I believe in both, but often believing in the literal blinds us to the spiritual, when both are true. It is not either or, as much of the church has taught. Truth lays in a balance between the two.
If the first thing the Lord did, after he made man, was relate to them through walking with them in the garden, then that relating sets the context for understanding all things spiritual. Because of the fall, we were turned inside out. That which originally was predominate, the spiritual, became the least priority. That which was the least priority before the fall, became predominate, that is the visible.
Jesus came to restore us to the original position and then take us on into the fullness of God. The vision of this journey must be seen first, before we can give ourselves to taking the journey.
When Lucifer fell from heaven, and deceived man, he became the prince of the power of the air. The route to the heavenlies goes through what is currently the devil's territory. This means that is some sense, we go through hell on our way to heaven, just as Jesus did when He descended into hell and got the keys of hell and death. The gates of hell are blockages in our lives to a life of true holiness and abundant life. (There will be more on life and holiness later, but holiness is an internal condition, not external.)
The church has spoken of the saving of sinners. From inside the church they try to fulfill the great commission and wonder why they only see limited results. Others go out into the streets and do witnessing and that also brings a measure of results.
Yet God is looking for a group of men and women who will allow Him to train them with such precision that nothing can stop them as they assault either the external manifestations of the gates of hell or the internal manifestations.
Selah
Mat 16:18 KJV And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.
Matt 16:13 ...And answering, Jesus said to him, Spiritually prosperous are you, Simon Barjona, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you but my Father who is in heaven. Moreover, as for myself, I alto am saying to you, You are Rock [petros, masculine in gender, a detached but large fragment of rock], and upon this massive rock [petra, feminine in gender, feminine demonstrative pronoun cannot go back to masculine petros; petra, a rocky peak, a massive rock] I will build my Church. And the councils of the unseen world shall not overpower it. I shall give to you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; and whatever you bind on earth [forbid to be done], shall have been already bound [forbidden to be done] in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth [permit to be done], shall have already been loosed in heaven [permitted to be done]. (from The New Testament: An Expanded Translation by Kenneth S. Wuest Copyright © 1961 by Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co. All rights reserved.)
It is extremely interesting as we observe Wuest's translation of this passage. It takes our consideration to a whole new level. One of the first things God spoke concerning the gates of hell, is "gates do not move".
If we first look at that phrase, "the gates of hell", it seems to indicate a fortress like structure with gates or entrances that are blocked or locked against the people of God who are in warfare mode.
One of the names of God used extensively throughout the Word is, The Lord of Hosts. It is a name associated with war. In any war, we must first define the enemy. In doing this it must be clear, otherwise we will not aim our weapons at the proper enemy and therefore have 'needless casualties of war', Scripture is clear concerning the adversary.
1 Peter 5:8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: KJV
1 Peter 5:5 Your adversary who is a slanderer, namely, the devil, as a lion roaring in fierce hunger, is constantly walking about, always seeking someone to be devouring. (from The New Testament: An Expanded Translation by Kenneth S. Wuest Copyright © 1961 by Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co. All rights reserved.)
The devil is our adversary, not God's. God's adversary is our flesh.
Rom 8:7 Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. KJV
Rom 8:5-8 For those who are habitually dominated by the sinful nature put their minds on the things of the sinful nature, but those who are habitually dominated by the Spirit put their minds on the things of the Spirit. For to have the mind dominated by the sinful nature is death, but to have the mind dominated by the Spirit is life and peace; because the mind dominated by the sinful nature is hostile to. God, for it does not marshall itself under the command of the law of God, neither is it able to. Moreover, those who are in the sphere of the sinful nature are not able to please God. (from The New Testament: An Expanded Translation by Kenneth S. Wuest Copyright © 1961 by Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co. All rights reserved.)
This is important because of how it changes the rules of engagement. The devil is our adversary and is arrayed against that which God is doing in our lives. Yes, he is arrayed against the church, but, he preys on that which is internal first. It is only by taking each individual one on one, that he is able to get a group of people into a situation that is against the Kingdom of God. If he can cause confusion as to the purposes of God, he does not have to defeat the Christian in the ways we have always thought, he just has to keep them divided internally, and thereby produce an external division in the Body of Christ, effectively stopping that which is able to break his yoke upon the individual.
In our understanding of the "gates of hell" there is an approach that hopefully will expose the power of the enemy's hold within. Please follow carefully. Jesus in speaking of dealing with the demonic in a person talks of "binding the strong man". Too often the strong man is able to hide behind a weaker one, as Baal did behind Jezebel. Many have attacked the "spirit of Jezebel" not realizing that in the final confrontation, Jezebel was absent. Elijah rightfully confronted the power behind the throne; Baal. The confrontation on Mt Carmel was between the Lord God Almighty and Baal. Jezebel was not even invited, although she seemed to all appearances to be the one pulling the strings and keeping Israel in bondage to her whims. When Baal was defeated, it seems that Jezebel lost her ability to intimidate and control, even though she lived for 11 more years.
This understanding proves that Baal was the strong man, even though the visible expression that seemed to oppress and intimidate the men of God in that hour(the 7000 that had not bowed the knee) was Jezebel. Once Baal was dealt with by God through Elijah's anointing, Jezebel had no power over the man of God after God cleared that in him which was intimidated.
Again, we have dealing with the personal problem clearing up the power of the enemy over God's man. Much of our enemy's power over us has to do with the internal world rather than something external. It could almost be said that the external is a distraction to the real realm that is in bondage. If the enemy can keep us distracted by the external then the internal will not be dealt with.
God has called us to learn from our internal struggle the principles of defeating the enemy and trains us for the end time battle.
With the above in mind we need to rethink a number of things.
