LESSONS FROM THE FIRST EVANGELIST - POINT #2
Here is my son John's Point #2 to his message entitled - "Lessons From The First Evangelist." It is based on the story of the demoniac as recorded in Mark 5.
If you recall, his last point dealt with RECOGNIZING THE SPIRITUAL NEEDS OF OTHERS. Have you been faithful to do that? Are you asking the Lord to give you Divine Appointments to the lost, dying, and messed-up in this world? Can you hear the cries of those who are oppressed of the devil?
Point #2 will assure you that you do have the POWER to set the captive free. There is NO EXCUSE for not stepping out and ministering to these hurting people. As the Church of the Living God, we are His extended Hand - reaching out to the oppressed.
May the Lord Jesus use each and every one of you in a greater capacity in these upcoming days. May you each experience a demonstration of His Power as you step out of your comfort zone to fulfill the Great Commission.
IN JESUS' NAME!
And in the POWER OF THE HOLY GHOST!
Be blessed of the Lord - the Maker of Heaven & Earth,
Connie
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Lessons From The First Evangelist - Point #2
by
John Giordano
Now as we look further into the story of the first evangelist, we see that this man was not just a little oppressed or possessed by demons; no, this man was totally taken over by them. Look with me again at Mark 5:4 - "Because that he had been often bound with fetters and chains, and the chains had been plucked asunder by him, and the fetters broken in pieces: neither could any man tame him."
The Amplified Bible says that this man would break his shackles (or fetters in the KJV) by rubbing and grinding them together until they broke in pieces. No doubt this was a very painful and arduous process, yet, because of the extent of this man's demon possession, these kind of actions were done.
Further evidence of this man's extreme demon possession is given in Mark 5:9 when Jesus asked the name of the spirit who was possessing the man - "And He asked him, What is thy name? And he answered, saying, My name is Legion: for we are many."
Here is what the Holman Bible Dictionary says regarding the term Legion - "In the New Testament a collection of demons(Mark 5:9. 15; Luke 8:30) and the host of angels (Matthew 26:53). Behind this usage was the Roman military designation. The legions were the best soldiers in the army. At different times in Rome's history, the legion numbered between 4,500 and 6,000 soldiers. It was composed of differently skilled men: spearmen, commandos, skirmish specialists, calvary, and reserves. Originally, one had to be a property owner and Roman citizen to belong, but these requirements were waived depending on the need for troops."
Therefore, it is safe to say (from the history of the Roman Legions) that this man had a minimum of 4,500 demons possessing his body. Yet Jesus did not shy away from casting them out. He knew who He was, and He knew that the anointing He walked in was greater than Satan and all his legions put together.
This brings me to my second point which is: As Christians We Need To Realize That We Have The Same Power That Jesus Had When He Walked The Earth.
For many years, Christians have read about the miracles that Jesus did with the attitude of - "That is nice that Jesus did all that, but He's God. I could never do anything like that."
This attitude, my friend, is a deception of Satan to try to hold believers back from walking in the fullness of the power and authority available to them from the Holy Spirit. See, Jesus, (when He was on earth), laid aside His glory and became a man. He was still fully God, but while He was on earth, He operated as a man, and had to be anointed of the Holy Ghost - just like we have to be - before He could begin His ministry.
Acts 10:38 says - "How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: Who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with Him."
Christian, are you anointed with the same Holy Ghost that Jesus was?
If you are living the life of a true Christian (in sincerity and righteousness), the Bible says you are! Therefore, you can cast out demons and heal the sick in the authority of Jesus' Name - just like He did! If this were not true, why would He say - "Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on Me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto My Father" (John 14:12).
Notice the above verse does not say - "I am Jesus; I am God, and because of that, I can do miracles. You, on the other hand, are little peons who will never do much because, after all, you only represent Me."
It also does not say - "If you are a televangelist with a special gift - that I give to one in a million of My children - then you will do the same works that I have done."
Neither does this verse say - "If you will fast forty days on nothing but water, and if you will lie prostrate before Me for five hours a day and speak in tongues for at least two of those hours, you can do the works that I do."
Friend, let's read what Jesus said again - "...He that believeth on Me, the works that I do shall he do also..." The only qualification for you to do the works that Jesus did is for you to believe on Him.
Christian, do you believe on Jesus? Do you have the power of the Holy Spirit living inside you?
If the answer is yes, then go do the same things that Jesus did! Realize that as a representative of the living God on this earth, you have the power to make demons tremble just like Jesus did (Mark 5:10-12).
By verse thirteen, Mark records - "And forthwith Jesus gave them leave. And the unclean spirits went out..."
My friend, if Jesus cast out a whole legion of devils, and He said if you believe on Him, you could do what He did; don't you think it's time you stopped fearing the devil, but instead realized your power, and went out in Jesus' authority and cast him out?
Become a devil chaser today - walk in the power of the Holy Spirit.
Then when you meet a poor demon-possessed soul like Jesus did, you can set him / her free by the power of God.
I heard a preacher talk about how he used to play college basketball when he was at a large university. One of the cheers he remembers the cheerleaders chanting as he and his teamsters played was -
"You got it, now use it.
You got it, now use it."
Friend, that's what I am trying to tell you today - "You got it, now use it." All the authority Jesus had on earth has been delegated to you. You got it. Why not go and unleash the power of God on a dying, lost, messed-up world? Why not use it?
May God Bless His Word,
Connie
© COPYRIGHT Connie Giordano - All Rights Reserved
Subscribe to Daily Bible Messages at - connie@walkingintruth.org .
Walking In Truth Ministry | P.O. Box 383016 | Duncanville | TX | 75138
If you recall, his last point dealt with RECOGNIZING THE SPIRITUAL NEEDS OF OTHERS. Have you been faithful to do that? Are you asking the Lord to give you Divine Appointments to the lost, dying, and messed-up in this world? Can you hear the cries of those who are oppressed of the devil?
Point #2 will assure you that you do have the POWER to set the captive free. There is NO EXCUSE for not stepping out and ministering to these hurting people. As the Church of the Living God, we are His extended Hand - reaching out to the oppressed.
May the Lord Jesus use each and every one of you in a greater capacity in these upcoming days. May you each experience a demonstration of His Power as you step out of your comfort zone to fulfill the Great Commission.
IN JESUS' NAME!
And in the POWER OF THE HOLY GHOST!
Be blessed of the Lord - the Maker of Heaven & Earth,
Connie
&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&
Lessons From The First Evangelist - Point #2
by
John Giordano
Now as we look further into the story of the first evangelist, we see that this man was not just a little oppressed or possessed by demons; no, this man was totally taken over by them. Look with me again at Mark 5:4 - "Because that he had been often bound with fetters and chains, and the chains had been plucked asunder by him, and the fetters broken in pieces: neither could any man tame him."
The Amplified Bible says that this man would break his shackles (or fetters in the KJV) by rubbing and grinding them together until they broke in pieces. No doubt this was a very painful and arduous process, yet, because of the extent of this man's demon possession, these kind of actions were done.
Further evidence of this man's extreme demon possession is given in Mark 5:9 when Jesus asked the name of the spirit who was possessing the man - "And He asked him, What is thy name? And he answered, saying, My name is Legion: for we are many."
Here is what the Holman Bible Dictionary says regarding the term Legion - "In the New Testament a collection of demons(Mark 5:9. 15; Luke 8:30) and the host of angels (Matthew 26:53). Behind this usage was the Roman military designation. The legions were the best soldiers in the army. At different times in Rome's history, the legion numbered between 4,500 and 6,000 soldiers. It was composed of differently skilled men: spearmen, commandos, skirmish specialists, calvary, and reserves. Originally, one had to be a property owner and Roman citizen to belong, but these requirements were waived depending on the need for troops."
Therefore, it is safe to say (from the history of the Roman Legions) that this man had a minimum of 4,500 demons possessing his body. Yet Jesus did not shy away from casting them out. He knew who He was, and He knew that the anointing He walked in was greater than Satan and all his legions put together.
This brings me to my second point which is: As Christians We Need To Realize That We Have The Same Power That Jesus Had When He Walked The Earth.
For many years, Christians have read about the miracles that Jesus did with the attitude of - "That is nice that Jesus did all that, but He's God. I could never do anything like that."
This attitude, my friend, is a deception of Satan to try to hold believers back from walking in the fullness of the power and authority available to them from the Holy Spirit. See, Jesus, (when He was on earth), laid aside His glory and became a man. He was still fully God, but while He was on earth, He operated as a man, and had to be anointed of the Holy Ghost - just like we have to be - before He could begin His ministry.
Acts 10:38 says - "How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: Who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with Him."
Christian, are you anointed with the same Holy Ghost that Jesus was?
If you are living the life of a true Christian (in sincerity and righteousness), the Bible says you are! Therefore, you can cast out demons and heal the sick in the authority of Jesus' Name - just like He did! If this were not true, why would He say - "Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on Me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto My Father" (John 14:12).
Notice the above verse does not say - "I am Jesus; I am God, and because of that, I can do miracles. You, on the other hand, are little peons who will never do much because, after all, you only represent Me."
It also does not say - "If you are a televangelist with a special gift - that I give to one in a million of My children - then you will do the same works that I have done."
Neither does this verse say - "If you will fast forty days on nothing but water, and if you will lie prostrate before Me for five hours a day and speak in tongues for at least two of those hours, you can do the works that I do."
Friend, let's read what Jesus said again - "...He that believeth on Me, the works that I do shall he do also..." The only qualification for you to do the works that Jesus did is for you to believe on Him.
Christian, do you believe on Jesus? Do you have the power of the Holy Spirit living inside you?
If the answer is yes, then go do the same things that Jesus did! Realize that as a representative of the living God on this earth, you have the power to make demons tremble just like Jesus did (Mark 5:10-12).
By verse thirteen, Mark records - "And forthwith Jesus gave them leave. And the unclean spirits went out..."
My friend, if Jesus cast out a whole legion of devils, and He said if you believe on Him, you could do what He did; don't you think it's time you stopped fearing the devil, but instead realized your power, and went out in Jesus' authority and cast him out?
Become a devil chaser today - walk in the power of the Holy Spirit.
Then when you meet a poor demon-possessed soul like Jesus did, you can set him / her free by the power of God.
I heard a preacher talk about how he used to play college basketball when he was at a large university. One of the cheers he remembers the cheerleaders chanting as he and his teamsters played was -
"You got it, now use it.
You got it, now use it."
Friend, that's what I am trying to tell you today - "You got it, now use it." All the authority Jesus had on earth has been delegated to you. You got it. Why not go and unleash the power of God on a dying, lost, messed-up world? Why not use it?
May God Bless His Word,
Connie
© COPYRIGHT Connie Giordano - All Rights Reserved
Subscribe to Daily Bible Messages at - connie@walkingintruth.org .
Walking In Truth Ministry | P.O. Box 383016 | Duncanville | TX | 75138
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