I had a dream the other night. This may not be comfortable to some of you, but it is necessary for me to share this. Why? Because the Lord tells me to do so. I just want to obey God's instructions.
In the dream, I saw a group of believers of Christ in a building. A commotion then broke out. Some gunmen broke into the building and kept shooting at the believers to kill them. It was not a good sight. Like everyone else in the building, I ran to look for cover. While I was doing that, the gunmen kept shooting and killing the believers of Christ.
It's actually a long dream, but for this prophetic message today, it suffices to only share this part of the dream. Upon waking up, I asked the Lord why this dream. This dream isn't necessarily literal, but this dream can be symbolic in nature. As I woke up from the dream, I prayed in the spirit. I prayed in the spirit for some time.
The Lord then said:
"Tell My people... Be alert and be vigilant. For the enemy has begun coming out in full force against My people. It may even be done in a very subtle way. The aim is to destroy My people's faith and trust in Me. The aim is to confuse and to cause losses to My people. The enemy is like a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour. This is not the Lion of Judah. This is a counterfeit. This is the enemy of the Lion of Judah. And he is on a 'mission' to destroy My people who have been caught unaware spiritually. The intention is to assassinate My people's faith and My people's walk with Me."
Speaking of 'roaring lion' here, 1 Peter 5:8 says, 'Be sober, be vigilant (i.e. be watchful and alert in your spirit), because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.'
The expression 'seeking whom he may devour' here shows that the enemy actually cannot 'touch' you or devour you, if you don't allow him to do so. The enemy is just seeking whom he may devour. You see, the Scripture never says the enemy will surely devour you. But the Scripture says 'seeking whom he may devour'. This means you can take the necessary steps to prevent the evil and to overcome the evil. And if God is with you, and with God's Spirit with you, you shall triumph over whatever that's being conjured up by the enemy against you. The truth is your God is infinitely greater and wiser than any plan, conspiracy, or strategy conjured up by the enemy.
And then, one verse later, 1 Peter 5:9 says, 'Resist him, steadfast in the faith...' This is the solution that the Scripture gives us. Resist the devil. Turn away from the devil. And stay strong and steady in your faith and in your trust in the Lord. How? Keep receiving from God. Keep hearing God's Word. Keep receiving from the Holy Spirit. Remember, Word and Spirit, Spirit and Word. Keep worshiping the Lord. Worship Him in spirit and in truth. Keep praying in the spirit. Never underestimate the power of prayer. And as you pray, heaven comes down. God's kingdom come, God's will be done.
The Lord then said further:
"This is the time to deepen your walk with Me, and walk ever closer with Me. Wash your heart. Wash your hands. Clear away what is unholy in your life, and begin walking in purity and holiness. Because the enemy cannot 'touch' what is holy. Keep receiving from My Spirit, for My Spirit is the Spirit of holiness. Let it flow into your life, and let Me cleanse what needs to be cleansed in your life. Present your life to Me all over again. And fear not. Because I am with you to help you. See My blood covering you. See Me covering you with My blood that has been shed for you on the cross."
So beloved of God, fear not! God has a solution for you!
How to triumph over the evil plans of the enemy? How to prevent those evil? How to overcome those conspiracies of the enemy?
1. See yourself coming under the covering of God!
Jesus has become your covering! Psalm 91:1-4 says, 'He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, "He is my refuge and my fortress; my God, in Him I will trust." Surely He shall deliver you from the snare of the fowler and from the perilous pestilence. He shall cover you with His feathers, and under His wings you shall take refuge.'
The word 'cover' here is interesting. It is 'sawkak' in Hebrew. It can mean 'to shut up (the enemy), to defend (you), or to hedge (you)'. Like the parent eagle that spreads the wings to protect the eaglets. It can also mean 'to join together (with you) in the face of the enemy'. And that's what 'sawkak' means here. He is your covering. He is your defender. He is your hedge. He joins together with you against the enemy. He shuts up the enemy, and shuts out the enemy!
And then, Psalm 91:5-6 says, 'You shall not be afraid of the terror by night, nor of the arrow that flies by day, nor of the pestilence that walks in darkness, nor of the destruction that lays waste at noonday.'
So, fear not, people of God! If you look to the Lord, the Lord will know how to fight for you. The Lord will know how to shield you. The Lord will know how to lead you and guide you to be at the right place at the right time. Amen!
2. Walk in purity and holiness!
Why? Because the enemy cannot 'touch' you if you walk in purity and holiness of the Lord.
1 Peter 1:15-16 says, 'But as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct. Because it is written, "Be holy, for I am holy."'
So, be holy in all your conduct. It means inwardly and outwardly. Not just a facade and for show in the outward to impress others. But holiness in the inward and also holiness in the outward. It means what is in the inside of a person is what is on the outside of that person. It means being consistent when the person is in the private and when the person is in the public. That's what God means here when He says, 'in all your conduct'.
So, right now, beloved of God, allow the Holy Spirit to wash you clean. Allow the Holy Spirit to clear what needs to be cleared in your life. Now, that takes humility on our part. That takes laying down our pride on our part. Present yourself to the Lord again. Re-dedicate yourself to the Lord again - spirit, soul, body; mind, will, emotions.
Let your eyes be cleansed. Yes, spiritual eyes and even physical eyes. There is power in walking in purity and holiness. And you know what? Everything is going to be so clear in your spirit. You will begin to see and understand many things in the spirit. There will be clarity. You will begin to make right decisions in your life. Why? Because there is clarity in your spirit.
3. Walk ever closer with the Holy Spirit!
You know why? As you walk closer and closer with the Holy Spirit, you become so in tune with the Holy Spirit, and you can 'catch' what the Holy Spirit wants to tell you or even warn you. Yes, the Holy Spirit can warn us. Why? In order to prevent evil, dangers, or pitfalls in our lives.
The Holy Spirit can give you promptings. The Holy Spirit can give you dreams to tell you in advance what to go ahead and what to avoid, who to associate with and who to dissociate with, and when to move on and when to let go. In other words, when to go ahead and when to stop.
In my personal walk with God, I thank God that He has helped me so many times in every season of my life through dreams He gives to me to show me my direction in life. At times, I do say this to Him: "What? Time to let go and move on again?" And then I would seek the Lord for further confirmation, and the Lord would show me further confirmation till I am convinced. Till I say: "Okay. Yes, Sir! I will obey, even though I don't fully understand yet why You do so."
But as I look back in my life, I'm glad I obeyed Him all these while. And by the grace of God and by the help of God, I want to continue to obey Him every step of the way, going forward.
That's why it's so important to deepen our relationship with the Holy Spirit. Walk closer and closer with the Holy Spirit. And that's when you'll be led by the Holy Spirit. That's when you'll be guided by the Holy Spirit. Not led and guided by your flesh, or by your own mind.
And sometimes, when you follow the leading of the Holy Spirit, it may even be illogical to your mind. But you know what? The Holy Spirit will not go wrong. He is all-knowing and all-wise. He sees farther than any one of us can. And He can lead you to be at the right place at the right time, every season of your life. You will not end up at the wrong place at the wrong time.
Romans 8:14 says, 'Those who are led by the Spirit of the Lord, these are sons of God.'
You see, true sons and true daughters of God are those who are led by the Holy Spirit in every area of their lives. It means they allow the Holy Spirit to lead them in every area of their lives. Not just one area. Not just two areas. But in every area of their lives. These are the people who would bare their souls to the Lord. They will not keep anything from the Lord. They will not hide certain compartments of their lives from the Lord. They bare it all to the Lord. They worship the Lord in total surrender.
In cross-reference, Ezekiel 36:27 says, "I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them."
This is prophetic of our times now as believers in Christ. The word 'cause' here is 'awsaw' in Hebrew. It can mean 'to bestow upon (you), do a work in (you), bring (you) forth, or lead (you)'. So, the Holy Spirit can do a work in you and can lead you to walk in God's ways. That's what 'awsaw' means here. The Holy Spirit does all this inside of you, so that you will begin to walk in all that the Lord has spoken, instructed, and commanded you. That's what 'cause you to walk in His statutes' mean here. When He says so, you say so; when He says no, you say no. When He says go ahead, you go ahead. When He says let go and move on, you let go and move on. Yes, even at times you don't fully understand yet why He does so and so, or why He says so and so. But one day you will understand. He knows better. He sees further. Because He is God, and we are not.
And you will also keep His judgments, as you can see in Ezekiel 36:27 here, "You will keep My judgments and do them." This can also mean you discern what is of God and what is not. You judge what is of God and what is not. You know how to differentiate and separate between what is of God and what is not. Amen!
Prayer:
"O Lord God, sensitize our spirit to be so in tune with Your Spirit. Show us any area in our lives that hinders us from receiving and hearing from You. Let there be no hindrance anymore. Purify us. Sanctify us. Wash us white as snow. We want to be a people who are walking so close with You. We thank You for Your words today. In a time like this, lead us to be at the right place and right time. Teach us to be watchful and alert to our surroundings, both in the spiritual realm and physical realm. We want to be a people who are overcomers. We want to be a people who triumph over whatever plan, conspiracy, or work of the enemy. In Jesus' name. Amen."