One creepy night, Smith Wigglesworth was sleeping when there was a knock on his door. He went to check who was there and behold, it was the devil! 😈
What would he do now? He has to bind him and speak in tongues for God knows how long, one may suggest.
Well, he said, "Oh devil, it's you!" Then he shut the door and went back to sleep!
My God! That's the authority of a believer! There's no room for fear!
Day 3 of the conference was exceptional as Dr. Cudjoe taught attendees 'How God fights.'
He read from Psalm 144:1,2:
"Psalm 144:1-2 KJV
Blessed be the Lord my strength, which teacheth my hands to war, and my fingers to fight: [2] My goodness, and my fortress; my high tower, and my deliverer; my shield, and he in whom I trust; who subdueth my people under me."
He noted that the arms, hands and finger of God represent the power of God.
He explained that when you are being trained, you are trained to become something. It's like a train in literal sense: it moves on one track, unlike a car or place which can do U-turns and overtaking.
So, the track you're put on is the same track that you follow to your destination.
God trains us for war and profit.
He turned over to Exodus 15:1-3:
"Exodus 15:1-3 KJV
Then sang Moses and the children of Israel this song unto the Lord , and spake, saying, I will sing unto the Lord , for he hath triumphed gloriously: the horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea. [2] The Lord is my strength and song, and he is become my salvation: he is my God, and I will prepare him an habitation; my father's God, and I will exalt him. [3] The Lord is a man of war: the Lord is his name."
Our salvation is our victory!
We fight to win. We must say what God says. "We know no defeat" should be your confession.
If you don't know how to war you can never win souls. The major thing that moves people from the kingdom of darkness to the Kingdom of light is prayer. This is because unsaved people are influenced by the power of the devil; Bible says that their minds have been blinded by the god of this world.
Prayer is the fuel that drives our faith, and you must learn to fight your way through life; fight your passage.
That's what the children of Israel did; they came out of Egypt as a military group. The horse and the rider represent the military accoutrement of the Egyptians.
Everything the devil does he copied from God. Why? Because he wants to be God. The good news is that we have superior weapons.
Even if the devil copied all of God's weapons, God can create new ones. Is He not the one who made the blacksmith who makes the weapons (Isaiah 54:16-17)?
God's name Jehovah stands for power and authority (Exodus 6:3).
Your life is God's setup to shame the devil. "...had they known it , they would not have crucified the Lord of glory." (1 Corinthians 2:8)
Jehovah is a man of war!
In Exodus 13:17-18, God shielded the children of Israel from battle for a moment. This was to train them. It is recorded that men who were 20 years and older were to be enlisted into the army in Israel (Numbers 1:3).
God expects you to mature and do battle at a point in your life.
The man of God unveiled the first way by which God fights viz.:
God fights by controlling your speed
(Please study Exodus 14:1-14)
The Lord slowed down the Israelites so that Pharaoh would think, "We've got 'em now."
But God had it all planned out- that at the end of the day, Israel would emerge victorious.
He wanted to disgrace every honour of Egypt by drawing their troops out and utterly annihilating them by his awesome power. That Pharaoh never got a befitting burial as was the custom of the Egyptians- he never had the opportunity to be mummified.
You see, in life when things slow down, recognize that God has a plan to appear and deal with the enemy. Remember, you are God's setup to shame the devil.
God must have put biometric sensors in the seabed to detect those who were Israelites and those who weren't and then the standing sea cascaded on the eager Egyptians. Angels were despatched to destroy the wheels of those expensive chariots. Those Egyptians were never seen again! Glory to God!
Fast forward to forty years later and then Joshua is set to take Jericho. News about these Israelites reaches them and they are gripped with fear; the people of Jericho shut their gates- no one comes in, no one goes out.
When you come out of some battles, the enemy stays off because he hears the news of your victory!
The terror of you will go ahead of you; when they hear your name, they will start shivering.
Any location that the Church goes to, the devil quivers in fear.
Remember that Church planting is warfare. We are God's workmanship and he is using us to fight the battle.
Everything about Christianity is warfare.
Secondly, God fights by diversional tactics
(Please study 1 Samuel 23:14-19)
King Saul was seeking to kill David and he finally had the opportunity and surrounded David. Just then, word came to the King that the Philistines had invaded Israel. Saul abandoned his mission to fight David and returned to engage the Philistines.
The man of war will show up when the armies overwhelm you.
Dr. Cudjoe emphasized, "It takes humility and admission of inability to receive grace for the battle."
James 4:6-8 says, "But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble. [7] Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. [8] Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you..."
When your enemies are about to crush you, God will preoccupy them with other issues.
He finally talked about 2 types of deliverance:
# Growing out/ casting out
# Victory delivered by succession
Rest in the fact that God is a master strategist.
When the devil speaks, speak too; don't be quiet!
Warfare and sacrifices go together! Give thanks, worship the Lord, praise him and offer financial seeds to Him!
Tonight, we have yet another glorious training session; please come along with your warrior's jacket/mantle/towel, anointing oil and your warrior's offering.
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