ARE YOU SLEEPING WITH THE ENEMY? When I was saved, I was delivered from drugs and alcohol. I stayed away for about 10 years and then started drinking a glass of wine because I was having anxiety and panic attacks. God kept telling me, “that’s not for you” and He gave me dreams to show me and multiple warnings. Interestingly enough, my anxiety got worse. Yet, I continued to rebel and argue with Him because I “was not getting drunk”. Who was I hurting? I was only having one glass of wine, sometimes only a half glass.
I had so many spiritual attacks, worse and worse anxiety and I would cry out to God, “What’s going on? My life is totally for You. I love others and serve them. I preach your Word. I prophesy. I don’t understand!” See, I was sleeping with the enemy. I let him back in. I returned to a sin that God told me to not touch and it opened a crack for the enemy to run all over me. We believe that because we are doing “all these things”, that we can be disobedient in another area and it’s OK. Nope.
““Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’” Matthew 7:21-23
Lawlessness is against law. It means anything that God has commanded you to do or not to do. As in “do not touch the unclean thing” and “do not forsake the gathering” or “love your enemy and do good to those who despitefully use you” or “if you do not forgive those who trespass against you, you will not be forgiven”. We are not allowed to pick and choose which of God’s commands we can/cannot obey. This is lawlessness. Rebellion, greed, pride, murmuring, divisiveness, strife, arrogance, selfishness, separation from the brethren, unforgiveness- all these and more are cracks for the enemy.
It doesn’t matter how much you warp and twist Scripture, God will not be mocked. If He says to you, “Do not touch”, He means it. If He says, “if you do these things, you will not inherit the kingdom of God”, He means it. You might get away with it for awhile, but continual disobedience leads to the hardening of the heart. The hardening of the heart will grieve the Spirit’s work in your life and eventually put out His fire and quench His sanctifying work. The Spirit left Samson and He left Saul and neither even knew it. In your self-righteousness you proclaim, “I’ve done nothing wrong!” But God will prove you to be a liar. What do you do?
“Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Lament and mourn and weep! Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up.” James 4:7-10
All it takes is a crack of disobedience.
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