Submit to Subdue

This is a series of devotions and meditations on scripture that reject fear. Fear is a spiritual force used by Satan to keep people down. Instead, faith in God is championed. Scripture is taken from the World English Bible. We are encouraged to bring all thoughts into captivity to the obedience of Christ and resist negative influences. Being obedient and praising God leads to a life of peace and happiness. God's love is steadfast and reaches to the ends of the earth. We are reminded of our worth and that God loves us just as we are. Welcome to Fear No Fear. Grace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. May the Holy Spirit embrace you today. This is a series of devotions and meditations on scripture. We reject fear in any and all forms. Fear is a spiritual force, the currency of darkness and ignorance. It's what we inherited when Adam gave up his faith and Satan uses it to keep people down. His only weapon is words. If he can get you believing or looking at words of fear, he's got you. Instead, we champion faith as an allegiance to God, as a belief and trust and loyalty to the Lord God Almighty. We accept the evidence of His word as unvarnished truth, as is, just as it's written. We get close to His perfect love through the word, and perfect love casts out fear. 1 John 4.18 All scripture is taken from the World English Bible, which is in the public domain. Visit eBible.org Job 5, 21-22 You will be hidden from the scourge of the town. Neither will you be afraid of destruction when it comes. You will laugh at destruction and famine. Neither will you be afraid of the animals of the earth. This seems like good words for this day and age. If nothing else, the recent pandemic and political climate have unleashed a multitude of scourging tongues and violence. So this seems like a good promise to stand on. But it isn't a promise. This isn't a thus says the Lord thing. This is simply the reality of life for a particular type of person. While in the main it was an old covenant person, the principle holds true in the new covenant. This was the reality of life for any person whom God reproved. God corrects us, reprimands us, if you will, because while we have been given the righteousness of Jesus, that perfection is in our spirit. Over here in our flesh, we're still dealing with things, because they are a habit. And let's face it, we're children. We get excited, we jump ahead, we don't listen, we leave underwear on the floor. We do not have to sin. But we frequently visit the old us out of habit. Something happens, and we react the way we always have. Or we decide to be disobedient. Either way, we've made a choice. You know when you're about to lose your temper. You can feel it come upon you. You know with how a conversation is going, how you're going to answer the type of answer that you'd normally give. You know what you're going to say, even if it's mere moments before it comes out of your mouth. Oh, no, I don't, you say. But you do. Your mind must conceive the words in the language you're about to speak. Orders have to be relayed down your nervous system to muscles so that tongues move, mouths move, throats contract, air is taken in and pushed out, etc., etc. There's a process. It's a fast process, but a process nonetheless. And it all starts in the mind. For though we walk in the flesh, we don't wage war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but mighty before God to the throwing down of strongholds, throwing down imaginations, and every high thing that is exalted against the knowledge of God and bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ. 2 Corinthians 10, 3-5 It's an extension of what we were talking about yesterday. We're not going against flesh and blood, but principalities and power. We're armored against them when we put on the armor, equipped through the grace of Jesus to stand. But not everything is defensive. We must also be offensive to tear down the strongholds of our habits, although this verse refers to more than that, and throwing down those things that we dwell on that aren't of God. Instant pictures of what could be, as well as thought-out explorations of ideas, fantasies, and desires. This isn't just sexual terminology, and applies to a lot more than you think it does if you meditate on it. Now, it also gives us a mandate to bring every thought captive to obedience. Every one. We're to reject any and everything that comes at us from the outside that isn't Jesus-centric, which means full of faith, going along with the principles, morals, and actions of the Word. For example, thinking of a movie isn't anti-God. Thinking on a movie that idolizes immorality is. A million thoughts a day flash through our heads. Some of them are from the outside. A bullying voice, a depressed voice, an anxious voice. It can take time to learn what it is that's coming at you, but if you're in the habit of rejecting everything negative as it comes at you, it's easier to identify them and put a stop to them. It isn't a sin to have a thought a dozen times. It's a sin to engage in it, actively participating in what it represents. Isaiah 11, 2-3 gives us a method to walk by. Yahweh's spirit will rest on Him. The spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of Yahweh. His delight will be in the fear of Yahweh. He will not judge by the sight of His eyes, neither decide by the hearing of His ears. Again, fear here is respect, awe. It's not scaredishness. So, Holy Spirit can help us judge what comes across our mind's eye, balancing it against His nature and rejecting what isn't profitable. Like anything, it takes practice. But if you think about the number of thoughts that come up in a day and how quick we can communicate with the Holy Spirit, you can see that it won't be long before we will be proficient with nanoprayer. We're to be offensive, using our weapons, making sure that not even a single thought is left unfiltered. We're to make everything captive to the obedience of Christ. If we do this, we will walk in victory. Remember that kingdom faith, or sonship faith, is being fully persuaded you are already walking in victory in Jesus. We're not struggling to make a victory. We're telling the enemy to stop trying to steal it. We're not sick trying to be healed. We are healthy and refusing to get sick or accept disease. We're not denying the sights and sensations of the flesh, but we're demanding they bow to the name of Jesus and our kingdom rights. Not because of hope or words, not because of our will or what we deserve, not because of positive thinking or desire, because we are sons and daughters of the Lord God Almighty, members of the family, co-heirs in Christ, and residents of his total and complete righteousness, partakers in all that he partakes in, and full to overflowing in his spirit. We are the redeemed, and we say so. How do we get fully persuaded then? How do we walk in kingdom faith? How can we be offensive in our spiritual walk, not defensive? How can we decide to remove the enemy and expand our area of operation? James 4.7 tells us how. Be subject therefore to God, resist the devil and he will flee from you. A. Subject yourself to God. B. Resist the enemy. C. Be left alone. Simple, right? When we're subject to God, we're living in his victory. When we resist the enemy, we're saying, Nope, this is ours, go away. When he flees, he flees. Sure, he isn't going to stop trying, but this time, we have him. Next time, we could too. In fact, if we're walking in God every step of the way, we don't have to fail ever. Now, we're human, so I won't say we won't fail ever. But we don't have to. It's a choice. As far as the Word says, Jesus was the only human who ever, never failed, ever. But if we're being like him, if we're obedient, if we're striving to abide, we will never, ever have to fail. There will always, forever and ever, be the possibility we will succeed every time. Because it's God who does it all. Without him, we're nothing. John 15, 4-8 Be subject. That means to submit, to be in subjection or subject to. Defined as being one who lives in the territory of, enjoys the protection of, and owes allegiance to a sovereign power. Subjection also refers to the mind, ego, or agent of whatever sort that sustains or assumes the form of thought or consciousness. That's the agent of whatever sort that sustains or assumes the form of consciousness. That is interesting to me. Why? Let's put it in word speak. We are to be the agent, Matthew 28, 18-20, of he who sustains, Psalm 55, 22 and Genesis 17, 1. By renewing our mind to his word, Romans 12, 2, assuming the form of Jesus, Ephesians 5, 1-2, who should be the form of our consciousness, Galatians 2-20. In other words, 1 Corinthians 11-1. Be imitators of me, even as I also am of Christ. Or be like Paul. He's like Jesus. We are to be like Jesus. It's simple. But if we haven't mastered the habits that our flesh has, then we'll miss it from time to time. We'll go the wrong way, stay still, fail to stand, say the wrong thing, etc. etc. God will need to correct us. But that isn't a bad thing. God is never selfish, abusive, or unfair. He is good and just, Deuteronomy 32, 4 and Psalm 9, 7-9. Always. God's correction never has an ulterior motive. He wants us to be disciples of Jesus and to make more disciples of Jesus. Matthew 28, 19-20 and Mark 16, 15-18. He wants us to be obedient and to give him the praise that he deserves. That's it. No life lessons, no working things out, no suffering so that he can bring us understanding. He doesn't promise no persecution or suffering. Just that he won't use it to teach us something. We haven't been sent to earth to perfect ourselves or to refine ourselves or any other spiritualistic mumbo-jumbo. This is not our first of five or seventh of twelve times. What is the meaning of life? Here's a spoiler. We're to be obedient and to sing his praises. That's it. Have a relationship with him. That is the meaning of life. Why we are here. Why it all exists. But what about all the other gods, says the atheist? Well, there are none. No living gods but the Lord God Almighty. He who sustains. He who does it for us. Yahweh, Jesus, Holy Spirit, three in one. That's it. Be obedient and praise the only living God. And as you sing, remember that everything we say is true. We're not stroking his ego. It has no use for attempts to puff him up. Everything we sing to him is truth. They're just facts. Pure and unadulterated. You couldn't overdo it if you tried as long as you praise with honest intent. To recap, we need to armor up with the armor of God. We need to defend offensively. We need to be like Jesus. Obey the Lord and praise his holy name. Resist the devil. Be willing to be corrected by the Lord. Please choose to be willing to be corrected. You could choose to resist, rebel, throw a hissy fit. Your life will reflect that, spiritual and natural. The flip side to that is that you could choose to be obedient. Your life will reflect that as well. Tune your heart into his word and his spirit. Receive any correction, humbly and thoroughly. Which means changing our behavior to reflect what he wants. To obey and not kick up our heels. To be subject. It can rub us the wrong way if we're focused on our earthly life. Flesh hates subduction. Be focused on your kingdom life. It won't ruffle you. It will be simple. It will be as simple as saying, yes, Lord. And what will your life look like then? At peace with the beasts of the field so you're not afraid of them. Not afraid of the destruction that surrounds you. Your home, safe and secure. Finding nothing amiss there or when you return to it. Long life. Reaching the grave in old age. Most important, you'll be happy and fortunate. Like Jesus when he walked this earth. We'll be surrounded by storms. Hated by those who hate righteousness. Persecuted by those who don't love God. But we will be asleep in the boat that sits in the middle of the storm. Not panicked or stressed. That's Matthew 8, 23 to 27. We'll be singing praises while in prison. Acts 16, 25. Victorious in Jesus, forgiving all who wrong us. Acts 7, 16. Happy in the Lord and fortunate. Romans 15, 13. And James 1, 2 to 3. Now, who doesn't want to be happy and fortunate? Our daily affirmation of God's love is Psalm 48. Who doesn't like a good celebrity? They're everywhere. Social media, television, magazines, well, those that still exist. And the internet. Ooh, the internet really likes them. And people follow them, look up to them, and emulate them. Why is that? Escapism? Good qualities? Accomplishments? Did they portray a beloved or hated character on screen? Probably a little bit of all of them. But there is one who is known across the whole world. Jesus. The name above all names. He's known everywhere, by everyone. What is most associated with his name? Love. That God loves. Some mock it. Some doubt it. Some bask in it. Some don't understand it. But all know it. God is love. It is pure, righteous, and steadfast love. God's steadfast love, like his name, like his praise, reaches to the ends of the earth. All the while, his hands are filled with glory, and his people rejoice. How can you be sad with God loving on you? He's the ultimate celebrity. The only one who deserves to be celebrated with all that you have. As we close, remember that you have worth. You are precious and valuable. Declare this. Today, God loves that I... Now you fill in the blank. Was it a meal you made? A smile you gave? Did you get out of bed? Read? Put on socks? There's no wrong answers here. There is no end to God's love, and no end to the things about you that he loves each and every day. Pick one. And remember, the Lord loves you. Just because you're you. 1 John 4, 9-10 tells us, By this, God's love was revealed in us, that God has sent his only-born Son into the world, that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son as the atoning sacrifice for our sins. His perfect love turned away God's wrath because of sin, and it casts out our fear too. See verses 18 and 19. We love because he first loved us. He just loves us. He can't get enough of us. And amen to that. See you next time.