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Battling This Demonic Jezebel
Spirit
4 Sure Signs You're Battling This
Demonic Jezebel Spirit
as
you take new ground, there's resistance pushing back against you - spiritual
conflicts most often occur when we advance into new territory that is inhabited
by evil spirits - we are not warring against our old man, but against
principalities - our old man is dead, we don't try to fight with him anymore
Kris
Vallotton
Do you feel like
you're walking through the valley of the shadow of death?
Has this year been a
constant battle? Earlier this year, I gave a prophetic word regarding spiritual
warfare on the earth.
There was an
onslaught of fear during 2018 because we moved into enemy territory that has
been occupied for years.
Demonic forces that
have held the planet in their clutches for generations were, and still are,
being broken.
So, you may have
experienced resistance in the form of anxiety, depression, nightmares and even
suicidal thoughts because you have taken new land to change the world and to
love the evil out of the earth.
And as you take new
ground, there's resistance pushing back against you.
Spiritual conflicts
most often occur when we advance into new territory that is inhabited by evil
spirits.
Much like Joshua's
promised land experience or Nehemiah rebuilding of the walls, the enemy defends
his territory when we are pushing forward into the new land.
Don't Misidentify
Your Enemy
It's so important
that we understand we are not warring against our old man, but against
principalities.
The war is finally
won when you recognize that the thoughts you are fighting against are not your
own, and you resist them.
Ephesians
6:12 says, "For our fight is not against flesh and blood, but against
principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this
world, and against spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places."
Evil spirits attack
by giving you thoughts that are compelling.
In other words, they
make you feel like you want to do them, even though they are the opposite of
your history and nature.
Then those same
spirits accuse you of having these thoughts and feelings.
If you believe these
accusations, you slip into fighting yourself instead of the true enemy and may
even lose confidence in yourself and God's ability to keep you.
This starts a spiral
down into depression, anxiety and self-hatred.
Prophetic Word
Revisited
One of the demonic
forces I see active on the earth with those who are in the midst of warfare
right now is the Jezebel spirit.
I want to be clear
that Jezebel is not a strong-willed woman, but rather a spirit, which is
personified by a woman in the story in the Bible.
I know that some
people in the church like to label women who have a strong voice or point of
view as a Jezebel, but that is simply inaccurate and inappropriate.
The Jezebel spirit is
an issue of spirits, not of people, as we just mentioned above.
4 Signs You're Under
the Influence of a Spirit of Jezebel
So how do you know if
you're under the influence of a Jezebel spirit?
I encourage you to
read the full story of this playing out in 1 Kings 18 and 19.
The story is long,
but what I want you to know before reading on is that Elijah had just come out
of a great battle and won a great victory (he defeated 850 false prophets).
Suddenly, he came
under the influence of a spirit of Jezebel when she said she was going to kill
him.
Perhaps this year,
you had some great victories followed by some intense battles.
I propose you didn't
"miss it" when you stepped into new ground with courage.
You're experiencing
resistance because you're right where you need to be: taking new ground,
advancing the kingdom and shining light in dark places.
Irrational fear and
insecurity.
Elijah had just
killed 850 prophets and turned the Israelites back to God.
He had a great
victory! However, when Jezebel said she'd kill Elijah, he ran for his life.
Her threat of his
life was not a real threat because he could easily defeat her, as he had just
defeated 850 false prophets.
So, this fear was
irrational.
You may be under the
influence of a spirit of Jezebel if you are dealing with irrational fears that
make no sense in light of the reality of your life.
The spirit of
suicide.
Elijah wants to die
when he comes under the influence of the spirit of Jezebel.
Let's think about
where else this happens in the Bible.
When Jesus met Satan
in the wilderness in Matthew 4, one of the temptations was to throw himself off
the pinnacle of the temple.
Suicide is actually a
spirit. How do we know this? Because self-preservation is one of the most
common drivers of creation.
So, what causes a
person to want to take their own life? I propose to you that this desire is not
human.
Your innate desire is
to live, but the one (Satan) who hates you wants to see you die.
Confusion
Elijah doesn't want
to live and ends up in a cave, isolated and alone.
When he recounts to
God the story of what had just happened, he brings up a story that is many
years old about a time when everything was going wrong.
Yet, the most recent
story, of 41 days prior, is about his victory. All he can remember is what went
wrong.
He is confused and
forgot his recent breakthrough.
If you can't see
clearly, feel foggy in your spirit and are confused about where God has brought
you from, you may be under the influence of this spirit.
Isolation
Elijah said to God, "I
alone am left" (1
Kings 19:10b)
but God responds that He has 7,000 other prophets who had not bowed their knees
to Baal.
When you're under the
influence of a spirit of Jezebel, you feel alone and think you're the only one
left.
It's as though the
world is coming to an end.
But it's important to
remember the truth is that the world has dramatically improved in the last 100
years.
You are not alone,
and God is moving on the earth.
The Purpose of Your
Battle
Vision gives pain a
purpose.
When you know what
you're moving towards, you'll have the stamina, strength and steadfastness to
come out on the other side of your battle.
So why do we war in
the Spirit?
What glistening light
awaits at the end of the tunnel, and how can you focus on its glow instead of
the shadows around you?
The clear purpose of
wilderness battles is to test and establish our faith.
The
apostle James told us to rejoice in trials because of what they produce in us —
the same maturity and perfection that Christ displayed in His complete
dependence on God: "My brothers, count it all joy when you fall into
diverse temptations, knowing that the trying of your faith develops patience.
But let patience perfect its work, that you may be perfect and complete,
lacking nothing" (James
1:2-4).
Faith is
fundamentally a relational term — it is not first a matter of what you believe,
but whom you trust.
In the midst of
battle, it can seem so complex, but when the dust settles and the smoke clears,
the real war is always over the same question — whom will we believe?
Whom will we listen
to, God or the devil?
Your Victory Is
Bigger Than You
May I remind you that
your battle is not simply to establish your faith, but it is also to
demonstrate light on the earth.
People speak of
darkness as if it is the most dominant force in the world, as if darkness is
forcing light out of the world.
But nothing could be
further from the truth. It's light that is stalking the darkness.
The goodness of God
is overwhelming evil; truth is overcoming lies, and the power of the Spirit is
displacing the powers of darkness.
If you experienced
breakthrough when this prophetic word was released earlier this year, please
share your testimonies in the comments.
If you're still in
your battle, I'd also love to hear how you plan to stalk the darkness in this
season.
Remember, your battle
is happening because you're taking new ground, so may your steps be strong, may
your path be illuminated and may your sight be made clear so that every
advancement will be accomplished with great confidence.
Kris
Vallotton
is the senior associate leader of Bethel Church in Redding, California, and
cofounder of Bethel School of Supernatural Ministry (BSSM). Kris travels
internationally, training and equipping people to successfully fulfill their
divine purpose. He's a best-selling author, having written more than a dozen
books and training manuals to help prepare believers for life in the kingdom.
He has a diverse background in business, counseling, consulting, pastoring and
teaching, which gives him unique leadership insights and perspectives. Kris has
a passion to use his experience and his prophetic gift to assist world leaders
in achieving their goals and accomplishing their mission.
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