Stand
“Much more then,
having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through
Him. For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of
His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life” (Romans 5:9-10).
Romans chapter 5 says that the blood of Jesus has justified
us. Justify is a word that is used in courts
of law. It means the establishment
of a person as just by acquittal from guilt. If you knew you were guilty of a crime, and then, for some
strange reason, the judge acquitted you, you would be very happy. Acquitted is better than a pardon. A pardon means you are set free even
though you are guilty, but to be acquitted means that you are not guilty. You may ask, “How can I know I am
guilty, and yet the judge acquits me?
What am I even guilty of, and how does that affect me?”
The result of justification is life.
“Therefore, as through one man’s offense judgment came to all men, resulting in condemnation,
even so through one Man’s righteous act the free gift came to all men, resulting in justification of
life” (Romans 5:18).
Life is a courtroom.
I am convinced that the Scriptures show us that life, in the
spiritual sense, is a series of courtroom experiences for each and every one of
us. I believe that these
courtrooms are key when it comes to overcoming, especially overcoming curses in
our lives. Actually there is so
much in the Bible about this subject that there is not enough room in the
chapter to cover it all, nor do I claim to have learned all there is to know
about the subject. However, if
life is a courtroom, then justification is the greatest gift we can receive.
I have not heard a lot of teaching about this subject, so if you
disagree with me, fine, but I am not prepared to be burned at the stake for
heresy just yet! I can tell you
that God has pulled me through many deliverances by this process. I guarantee you that this is not just
some novel way of looking at Scripture to form a parable. This is real! “(For the LORD is our Judge, The LORD is our Lawgiver, The
LORD is our King; He will save us)” (Isaiah 33:22).
During some of the most severe and darkest times of my life, God
has comforted me with this teaching.
He has spoken to me from the Book of Revelation, showing me the
courtroom demonstrated therein.
When I would find myself in impossible situations, when I felt that I
could not go on, that the way was just too tough and it looked impossible, He
would say, “After these things I
looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven. And the first voice which I
heard was like a trumpet speaking with me, saying, ‘Come up here, and I will
show you things which must take place after this.’ Immediately I was in the
Spirit; and behold, a throne set in heaven, and One sat on the throne”
(Revelation 4:1-2). The Lord
wanted me to come up with Him to His throne, His courtroom, and see my
circumstances from His prospective.
From His throne we can see the tragedies of life, we see demons and
dragons, abuse and disorder, financial ruin, suffering, injustice, sickness and
disease. We see what these evil
forces are trying to do to you and your loved ones, and yes, the world itself. We also see that these evil forces and
even ourselves are not really as large as we thought. We see that the battle is not so much about us, but it is
more about a showdown between Satan and God.
God’s view does not stop there.
He also sees the end of things. “And I
looked, and behold, in the midst of the throne and of the four living
creatures, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as though it had been
slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God
sent out into all the earth” (Revelation 5:6). When we can see the Lamb, Jesus crucified for us, we can
obtain hope to hold on until He comes with our final verdict.
We see from “up here,” that when evil is fully ripened, we prevail
in this courtroom as being fully justified, we overcome, and His power is what
accomplished it. He sees everything
and when we can take no more His verdict kicks in. After we make it through this particular trial, we gain
spiritual authority and we reign with Him, then we start all over again. “My brethren, count it all joy when you
fall into various trials” (James 1:2).
“Blessed is the
man who endures temptation; for when he has been approved, he will receive the
crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him” (James
1:12). The crown is authority, and
life is what we have to dispense to the dying world. When we finish our trials, we have gained authority for
ministry, to dispense life. I can
testify to this for sure. There
have been many experiences like this in my life.
Often when we are going through “trials” we do not realize that we
really are in a “trial.” If we can
see this from God’s point of view, we can stand until the process is fully
ripened.
When we see what God sees, we can make it.
We have to “come up here,” and see the Lamb and all of the
circumstances from His point of view.
We will study Revelation from this point of view in later
chapters.
I was telling about this concept to a very good friend of mine
from Ghana, West Africa, and he made the exclamation, “Amahe, jo, amahe.” I asked him to explain, but he told me
that there was no direct English translation. The closest translation is, “This is too much for my soul, I
am overwhelmed, I am beside myself.”
When my friend heard this teaching he was overwhelmed himself, and he
just said, “Amahe, jo, amahe.” There are so many Old Testament and New
Testament examples of this idea, that we cannot use them all. We will attempt to address the
following issues:
1 What are we guilty
of?
2. Why?
3. What is the penalty?
4. How is it we judged not
guilty?
5. How do we obtain the not
guilty verdict?
6. Who is the accused?
7. Who is the accuser?
8. Who is the judge?
9. Who are the witnesses?
10. What is the practical application for my life? The trial.
11. What is the end result?
Now let us start with the first two.
1. What are we guilty of? We are guilty of belonging to a race of people who are
disconnected from their Creator.
Certainly we all have sinned, and we are all guilty, but beyond that our
true malady is our spiritual inheritance.
The curse was pronounced on Adam, Eve, and Satan in the Garden of Eden.
2. Why? God cannot just wink at our sin, the
sin of our forefathers, and the resulting penalties. The penalties are harsh.
3. What is the penalty?
The curse and the fallout of sin.
“ keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving
iniquity and transgression and sin, by no means clearing the guilty, visiting
the iniquity of the fathers upon the children and the children’s children to
the third and the fourth generation” (Exodus 34:7).
“But it shall come to pass, if you do not
obey the voice of the LORD your God, to observe carefully all His commandments
and His statutes which I command you today, that all these curses will come
upon you and overtake you”(Deuteronomy 28:15).
These are not curses that God puts on us, these are curses that come upon us due to
the our own disobedience, or the disobedience of our forefathers, going all the
way back to Adam and Eve. Even
though we are Christians, often these curses are still trying to oppress us and
stay attached to us.
Here is a brief description of some common curses and
their sources. Read Deutoronomy 28 for a list of blessings and
curses.
1. Mental or emotional
breakdown.
2. Repeated or chronic
sicknesses, especially if hereditary.
3. Barrenness, and/or a
tendency to miscarry, or related female problems.
4. Breakdown of marriage and
family alienation.
5. Continuing financial
insufficiency.
6. Being accident prone.
7. A history of suicides and
unnatural deaths.
Some sources of curses.
1. False gods (Exodus 20:3-5)
2. Idolatry (occult)
(Deuteronomy 27:15)
3. Disrespect for parents
(Proverbs 30:17)
4. Treachery…neighbor
(Proverbs 17:13)
5. Injustice to the weak and
poor (Proverbs 28:27)
6. Unnatural sex/incest
(Leviticus 20:10-16)
7. Anti-Semitism (Genesis 12:3, 27:29)
8. Depending on the flesh
(Jeremiah 17:5-7)
9. Stealing/perjury
(Zechariah 5:1-4)
10. Stinginess (Malachi 3:8-10)
11. Perverting the true Gospel (Galatians 1:8-9)
12. Self-imposed (speaking negative words,
and/or personal sin) (Genesis 27:11-13,
Matthew 27:24-25)
4. How is it we are judged not guilty?
“Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law,
having become a curse for us (for it is written, ‘Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree’)” (Galatians 3:13).
The work that Jesus did on the Cross is unfathomable!
We could spend a lifetime and still never plumb the depths of what He
accomplished. Some people think
that His death and resurrection just saved us from Hell. That is so true and the most important
thing, however, He also redeemed us from our curses here on earth!
On the Cross, every curse from every tribe, nation, civilization,
tongue and race was put on Jesus.
Sin always carries a penalty, which is some kind of curse or negative
effect that can be used by Satan over our lives. Satan has the right to put that curse on every generation of
our family.
The good news is that when we are born again, the generation or race that was originally ours at birth
goes to death. Actually, Jesus put
to death all of the old race of Adam.
In Jesus, all the curse of the family of Adam was paid for, and it died
in Him. Death is the final penalty
for every curse, and Jesus died with every curse.
When Jesus was raised from the dead, He was raised into a new creation, or a
new species of being, or a new race that never existed before. He was the first born, we are second
born or whatever number we obtain when we are born again. This new race is not subject to any
curse. So we used to be guilty,
but are no longer guilty due to the penalty paid by Jesus and due to the fact
that we are part of a new race that is no longer subject to curses.
5. How do we obtain the ‘not guilty’ verdict?
I can tell you that most of the time we do not experience the ‘not
guilty’ verdict easily. God may
have given us some things, but we need to possess what is ours legally. The
Book of Joshua gives us a beautiful example of what I mean. Joshua had been given the promise of
taking the Israelites into the Promise Land. God spoke to Joshua and said, “Moses My servant is dead. Now therefore, arise, go over
this Jordan, you and all this people, to the land which I am giving to them –
the children of Israel. Every place that the sole of your foot will tread upon
I have given you, as I said to Moses” (Joshua 1:2-3). Notice the different tenses God uses for the verb give. He said “I am giving to them,” then He
said, “I have given to you.” We
need to possess what is ours!
The ‘not guilty’ verdict, and all the other benefits and
promises of God, may be ours legally, but we have
to obtain them experientially.
What is the process? I
submit it is a legal case, the courtroom of God. We may have inherited our Father’s treasure, but Satan is
going to contest the will. The
contest takes place in court. The
Scriptures all support this. Hang on!
6. Who is the accused?
7. Who is the accuser?
The word “accuser” in the Hebrew Old Testament is translated “Satan,
superhuman adversary.” In the Greek
New Testament it is defined by Strongs Concordance as, “to accuse, before a judge: to make an
accusation, of an extra-judicial accusation.” In Vines Dictionary (New Testament), it is defined,
as “an evil charge of accusation in a forensic sense. It is a legal complaint or charge against one who is being
tried. It means to slander, insult,
and treat abusively, to lay charge against. It signifies a charge or complaint issued for a crime.”
“Then I heard a loud voice saying in
heaven, “Now salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power
of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren, who accused them
before our God day and night, has been cast down” (Revelation 12:10).
Notice how Satan used people to falsely accuse Jesus.
“So they watched Him closely, whether He would heal him on
the Sabbath, so that they might accuse Him”(Mark 3:2).
“And the chief priests accused Him of many
things, but He answered nothing” (Mark 15:3).
“And the inscription of His accusation was
written above: THE KING OF THE JEWS” (Mark 15:26).
Jesus was falsely accused in three mock trials just before His crucifixion. The unfair trial is what was due to us,
yet Jesus bore what we deserved.
Now we receive what He deserved, a just trial in the eyes of God.
Satan accused Job before God, and accused Job through Job’s friends. But Job finally won the case.
I submit that the accuser is Satan and his helpers, and the
accused are the believers, who are considered legally not guilty, but have not
been to trial as yet. Actually, it
also includes non-believers who do not know that their sins are not being held
against them. Who are Satan’s
helpers, how does he dispense his lies to us? I believe he has a sophisticated multi-media system set up. We hear thought bombs. Others come to us with
accusations. Circumstances line up
the lies and we become overwhelmed with lying wonders. “The coming of the lawless one is
according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders” (2
Thessalonians 2:9).
Satan lies to people. His tactic is to hide facts and
truth. If we knew that we were no
longer of the Old Creation who were subject to the curse and the penalties
thereof, but that we were indeed of the New Creation, a new species of being, a
new race, we would no longer accept the lying accusations. If we knew that as a man from the race
of Adam, Jesus accepted the penalty for everyone’s curse, we would not believe
the lies. If we knew for sure that
even though Jesus was of the race of Adam from His mother’s side, but from His
Father’s side He was of the race of God, we would not believe the lies. If we knew that Jesus was both, at the
same time, the sinless Son of God, and the exact representation of the race of
Adam, and as that person received all of the criminal punishment due to the
race of Adam, we would not believe the lies.
“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is
a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become
new” (2 Corinthians 5:17).
8. Who is the judge?
The courtroom is beginning to take shape. Now we need to know who the judge
is. Throughout the Old and New
Testaments, God is shown as the judge.
Not only is He the judge, but He also stands as judge over the earth.
In the Old Testament the enemies of God’s people were considered human beings by the Israelites. In the New Testament our enemies are
known to be spiritual powers. We
can read the Psalms and translate using this principle.
“O our God, will You not judge them? For
we have no power against this great multitude that is coming against us; nor do
we know what to do, but our eyes are upon You” (2 Chronicles 20:12).
“God is a just judge, and God is angry
with the wicked every day” (Psalm 7:11).
“Vindicate me, O God, and plead my cause against an ungodly
nation; Oh, deliver me from the deceitful and unjust man!” (Psalm 43:1).
“Let the heavens declare His
righteousness, for God Himself is Judge. Selah” (Psalm 50:6).
“But God is the Judge: He puts down one,
and exalts another” (Psalm 75:7).
“I charge you therefore before God and the
Lord Jesus Christ, who will judge the living and the dead at His appearing and
His kingdom” (2 Timothy 4:1).
“After these things I looked, and behold,
a door standing open in heaven. And the first voice which I heard was like a
trumpet speaking with me, saying, ‘Come up here, and I will show you things
which must take place after this.’ Immediately I was in the Spirit; and behold,
a throne set in heaven, and One sat on the throne” (Revelation 4:1-2).
The word “throne” used here in Revelation 4 means a tribunal bench used for
judges. God is now on the throne as
a judge! There are many other
examples showing God to be the judge.
Some might say, ‘Oh, the Book of Revelation, and the judgement therein
is for some future time in history.”
Well, it might be, but it is also for the present! We have the right to bring the Kingdom
of God to earth now! I personally
have experienced this kind of judgements!
“Your kingdom come. Your will be done on
earth as it is in heaven”(Matthew 6:10).
“…and have tasted the good word of God and
the powers of the age to come” (Hebrews 6:5).
“Arise, O God, judge the earth; for You
shall inherit all nations” (Psalm 82:8).
“For He is coming to judge the earth. With
righteousness He shall judge the world, and the peoples with equity” (Psalm
98:9).
“Then the trees of the woods shall rejoice
before the LORD, for He is coming to judge the earth” (1 Chronicles 16:33).
The white hair used to describe God in Daniel and in Revelation shows God as the judge.
In Revelation it shows Him with feet like brass, which speaks of
judgement.
Daniel 7:9-10 (Amplified Bible) says, “I kept looking until thrones were placed
[for the assessors with the Judge], and the Ancient of Days [God, the eternal
Father] took His seat, Whose garment was white as snow and the hair of His head
like pure wool. His throne was
like the fiery flame; its wheels were burning fire. A stream of fire came forth
from before Him; a thousand thousands ministered to Him and ten thousand times
ten thousand (one hundred million) (some courtroom) rose up and stood before Him: the Judge
was seated [the court was in session] and the books were opened.”
“and in the midst of the seven lampstands
One like the Son of Man, clothed with a garment down to the feet and girded
about the chest with a golden band. His head and hair were white like wool, as
white as snow, and His eyes like a flame of fire; His feet were like fine
brass, as if refined in a furnace, and His voice as the sound of many waters;
He had in His right hand seven stars, out of His mouth went a sharp two-edged
sword, and His countenance was like the sun shining in its strength”
(Revelation 1:13-16).
9. Who are the witnesses?
Now we have the accused, the accuser, and the judge. We understand what we are being accused
of and what the potential penalty is.
We understand that Jesus has already taken our penalty for us, and that
the curse, the penalty, can no longer exert power over us. But we also know that there will be a
trial. Too many believes just look
at their “trials” in life as a difficult time that they are going through. They are going through a difficult
time, court trials are not any fun.
“But you shall receive power when the Holy
Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and
Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” (Acts 1:8).
Jesus said this to His disciples when they were asking Him about coming back to set up His
Kingdom. He made it clear that
their job was to be a witness, and in being that witness, His Kingdom would
come. He also emphasized that we
need the power of the Holy Spirit to do this job. I believe that Jesus was referring to the type of witness we
are talking about.
What is a witness? The word ‘witness’ in Greek is defined as ‘martur’, meaning “one who bears witness by his death, in a legal sense, one
who is a spectator of anything, e.g. of a contest.” I do not think that this is limited to our traditional
definition of martyr. Jesus said
that we must, in a spiritual sense, take up our cross. We die daily when we live for
Jesus. We are killed continually
when we testify to the truth. We
need to be prepared to give up our physical life if needed, but often it is
more difficult to stay alive than it is to die.
What are we to witness to?
We can only witness to the truth of God’s Word. Actually, we are not the witnesses, we
are only a mouthpiece for the true witness, the Holy Spirit. He is the only one who was an eye
witness to the resurrection of Jesus.
He is the only one who can prove that Jesus was raised from the dead and
that we are justified. The Holy
Spirit empowers us to speak the truth of the Word of God, and we are the
witnesses. The Holy Spirit is the
only one who can help you obtain a ‘not guilty’ verdict. When going through a trial, it is
vitally important to press into God’s presence until such time as you hear Him
speak a Word directly to you. It
is called “rhema” or revelation knowledge.
Are we qualified to be witnesses?
Good question! In
ancient historic tradition, one did not dare speak a word in the court of the
king unless specifically invited to do so, especially if that person was a mere
commoner. If the king would point
his scepter at even a commoner, then that person could speak and his/her witness
would carry weight in the king’s court.
Pointing the scepter was the king’s method of authorizing a
witness. In the Book of Esther,
Esther risked her life to come into the King’s court, before his very throne to
speak on behalf of her people. The
scepter was pointed at Esther.
Read Esther 4:11, 5:1, 5:2, 5:3, 7:6, 7:10.
What is the Scepter of Jesus our Judge?
It is our
righteousness. “But to the Son He says: ‘Your throne, O God, is forever and ever; a scepter of
righteousness is the
scepter of Your Kingdom’” (Hebrews 1:8).
“even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to
all and on all who believe. For there is no difference” (Romans 3:22).
Notice that Esther had clothed herself in royal garments before seeing the king. She was the queen, legally related to
the king. However, she still
needed to clothe herself properly.
While we cannot add anything to our imputed righteousness, our living a
clean, pure, and unselfish life before God does indeed give us added authority. “And to her it was granted to be
arrayed in fine linen, clean and bright, for the fine linen is the righteous
acts of the saints” (Revelation 19:8).
The Holy Spirit is called the Comforter, Counselor, Helper, Intercessor, Advocate,
Strength, Standby (John 14:26, Amplified Bible). The word ‘comforter’ in Greek is translated ‘paraklesis’.
It means “advocate (in a courtroom sense), combining encouragement with
alleviation of grief. It suggests
the capacity of giving aid. It was
used in a court of justice to denote a legal assistant, a counselor, and advocate,
one who pleads the case of another.” When looking up the definition of
advocate, you are referred back to comforter. An advocate is a courtroom lawyer. Jesus is our advocate, however, He did say that the
Comforter would come and take His place.
So our witness is the combination of the Word and the Holy Spirit. We must participate as witnesses
because we are the only people who are allowed to speak on earth.
Satan cannot employ witnesses who are not human.
God cannot employ witnesses who are not human. We are the only people authorized to speak word of testimony
on this earth. Satan attempts to
get us to speak as his witness. We
are tempted to say, “I have cancer.
I am poor. I wish I could
just die. This old car of mine
will never make it another mile.”
Or others may become witnesses for us like Job’s friends did. They may tell us how bad we look. They may tell us that so and so was
trusting God but their house was foreclosed. They may tell us, “You never know what God will do, sometimes
He helps and sometimes He does not.”
While it is true that we do not know how God will orchestrate our trial, and while we
do not deny the facts of lack and sickness, what we do is exalt His Word as the
witness, establishing the truth, standing on the truth until such time as God
judges the case in His timing and in His wisdom. God is a fair judge inasmuch as He allows both sides to make
their case. Often that takes time.
“But I say to you that for every idle word
men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment. For by your
words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.” (Matthew
12:36-37).
Here is the entire matter of
witnesses, martyrs summed up. “And they overcame him by the blood of the
Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to
the death” (Revelation 12:11).
The judicial system in the USA is
one of the best in the world, but it is not based upon justice, it is based upon who can win
the case, even if the guilty one is set free, or the not guilty one is
jailed. Both sides are not vying
for justice, they are competing to win at any cost. This is the way Satan works. As a matter of fact, our judicial systems are systems of the
world, and Satan is the Prince of the World. However, God judges righteously. “…He (Christ) left his case in the hands of God, who always
judges fairly. He personally
carried away our sins in his own body on the cross so we can be dead to sin and
live for what is right. You have
been healed by his wounds” (1 Peter 2:23-24, New Living Bible)
First, these types of trials always purify us and work things into us that we could not obtain in any
other way. “That the genuineness
of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is
tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of
Jesus Christ” (1 Peter 1:7). “Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the
fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to
you” (1 Peter 4:12).
Sometimes
our trials come after a tragedy that has already taken place. There is
nothing we can do to recover that particular loss. However, overcoming is just as valid and important in these
cases. While we may not be able to
recover the apparent loss, and we may experience pain for a lifetime, God wants
you to overcome nevertheless. He
is good at turning the loss into gain.
We overcome by finally recognizing that God’s purposes will be
accomplished. He comforts us.
Now
let’s peek into a courtroom that Daniel was given in a vision. Daniel (in chapter 7) was living as a
captive in Babylon. He had been
through the lions den, he saw his friends go through the fiery furnace. He was witnessing some of the most
powerful kings and kingdoms that the world will ever see.
All of the sudden, WHAM!
He had a dream and he wrote it down. He saw a courtroom and a trial taking place. This is a
picture of you and me in our “trials.”
I believe that what we call “trials” are really courtroom proceedings in
the heavenlies.
Have you ever been to a trial?
Or have you ever been in a trial? Have you
ever experienced a trial in life?
Check out this courtroom!
The prosecutor, Satan, accuses you. The evidence comes in.
It does not look good. He
begins to wear you out. You check
out his record and discover that he has worn out many before he focused on
you. You feel fear!
You hear the verdict in the lower court, “guilty.”
Perhaps you did not handle things just right and you do have some
guilt. Maybe you were without
guilt but the prosecutor was just skilled. Maybe the doctor’s report convicts you. Job has been in this courtroom and we
have a first hand report on how it worked out for him. He appealed to the Supreme Court. You decide to try one more appeal,
maybe, just maybe you can overcome the impending sentences and doom.
You
walk into the Supreme Court and
you glance over and see Satan at the prosecutor’s bench. He is staring at you with evil so thick
that you can feel it in your bones.
You see his intelligence and his stacks of papers of evidence. He is smiling at you. You try not to look at him, but you
catch him smirking at you with one eyebrow raised in wicked self-confidence.
All
of the sudden, a voice sweeps the room and says, “All rise for the Judge.”
Daniel 7:9-10 (Amplified Bible) says, “I kept looking until thrones were placed
[for the assessors with the Judge], and the Ancient of Days [God, the eternal
Father] took His seat, Whose garment was white as snow and the hair of His head
like pure wool. His throne was
like the fiery flame; its wheels were burning fire. A stream of fire came forth
from before Him; a thousand thousands ministered to Him and ten thousand times
ten thousand (one hundred million) (some courtroom) rose up and stood before Him: the Judge
was seated [the court was in session] and the books were opened.”
A BEING enters the Courtroom! Just before
you are getting ready to cave in, just before you feel that you cannot stand
any longer, just when you have given up all hope in your fleshly resources for
making a defense you decide to enter into praise. You are praising the Lord for his character, His reputation,
His reliability and His faithfulness (this is called “The New Song”). Just then the resurrected Jesus
(perhaps the Father because the roles are so intermingled), the Supreme Court
Judge, steps into the courtroom!
“I was watching in the night visions, and
behold, One like the Son of Man, coming with the clouds of heaven! He came to
the Ancient of Days, and they brought Him near before Him” (Daniel 7:13).
The accuser offers his witness.
“I watched then
because of the sound of the pompous words which the horn was speaking; I
watched till the beast was slain, and its body destroyed and given to the
burning flame. As for the rest of the beasts, they had their dominion taken
away, yet their lives were prolonged for a season and a time” (Daniel 7:11-12).
Imagine with me now that something like this takes place. The Holy Spirit comes over to you, puts
His arm around your back and says, “My friend, leave this one to Me. I have been here before, and I
personally know the Judge.”
The Holy Spirit comes before the Ancient of Days. He asks Him to look out the
window. The Ancient of Days
commands the curtain and the window to be thrown open. He has a bittersweet look as His head
turns and He sees outside the city.
He sees Golgotha.
Behold, He sees a Lamb slain on a Cross. He turns to you and to me and He says, “You are not guilty! Demon, you go to the pit!”
“And there was given Him [the Messiah] dominion and glory and
kingdom, that all peoples, nations (tribes of gentiles), and languages should serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion
which shall not pass away, and His kingdom is one which shall not be destroyed”
(Daniel 7:14, Amplified Bible).
Daniel 7:26-27 says that the saints prevail and take away the dominion
of Satan.
“Who shall bring any charge against God’s
elect [when it is] God Who justifies [that is, Who puts us in right relations to
Himself? Who shall come forward
and accuse or impeach those whom God has chosen? Will God, Who acquits us?]” (Romans 8:33, Amplified Bible).
It would be beneficial to read
Daniel 7:7-28 for the entire story. This is a case where
the prosecutor, Satan, gets a big surprise. He was prosecuting you in court, and he became the victim,
the guilty one. Jesus actually
gained all the world’s kingdoms at the Cross, but when we enter into this
courtroom, and go through the trials of life is when we actually take
possession of them in reality for His Kingdom. Our trials are like a mission trip for the Lord.
Next time you find yourself in a TRIAL, a suffering, know for sure
that it is a trial, but the Judge is God the Father, your Advocate is Jesus and
your accuser is Satan himself.
Look behind the circumstances that always lie. Look to the Word, look and see what Daniel saw, and say
“Amahe, jo, amahe.”
I submit that the Book of Revelation is also a picture of
the courtroom. We will cover this in more detail in
later chapters. To describe it briefly,
John on the Isle of Patmos is really in a trial. Jesus shows up and reveals Himself as someone who John has
never seen before. I mean John was
close to Jesus, but here John fell on his face as a dead man!
In Revelation chapter 1, John, who is going through tremendous
suffering, sees Jesus, not as he saw Him around Galilee, or even at the
Resurrection, but he sees Him as Judge.
In chapters 2 and 3 John sees Jesus judging and preparing the saints who
are going into the courtroom battle.
Jesus tells them to get their act together, strip away their sin, and
repent, so that they can overcome and take vengeance on the enemy (which is
described in the later chapters of the Book of Revelation).
In Revelation chapter 4, Jesus tells John to “Come up here,” to
take a look at the truth, and to see things from God’s point of view so that it
can be compared and contrasted to the lying wonders that John is
experiencing. We need to be caught
up with the Lord in His Word through the Holy Spirit to hear what He is saying
to us in our infirmities.
Look at Revelation chapter 5. At the
throne, John saw the Lamb who was the only one worthy to take the Scroll, which
Zechariah describes as the curse (Zechariah 5:3). Then the Scroll unrolls and explosions take place (the
catastrophes in the Book of Revelation).
We feel the shadow of our curses, the explosions, and they feel like the
real thing. But the Lamb is
holding the Scroll and the explosions hit Him. When we shine the light into the shadow, we see the Lamb bleeding for our curse.
If we can stay in the courtroom and keep up our testimony, Jesus will return
for us on His White Horse as described in Revelation chapter 19. Notice there are other saints riding
with Him, those are the ones who have already been through trials and can help
us who are just learning. Chapters
20-22 summarized speak of ministry, our ministry after we win the trial. We are used for the healing of the
Gentiles, the unbelievers. The
demon that was deceiving the unbelievers is bound and sent into the pit.
Often
trials take a long time, Satan tries to wears us out. “He
shall speak pompous words against
the Most High, shall persecute the saints of the Most High, and shall intend to
change times and law. Then the
saints shall be given into his hand for a time and times and half a time”
(Daniel 7:25). Many believers
never finish this “overcoming” process because Satan wears them out. One is worn out by taking small
punishments over a long period of time.
I have read accounts of prisoners of war experiencing this. When we don’t see our trials ending
quickly, we begin to testify for Satan.
That is just what he wants!
Actually, we should be wearing him out. “Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you” (James 4:7).
The
parable of the unjust judge in Luke 18 also gives us insight into this idea. “Then He spoke a parable to them, that men always ought to pray
and not lose heart, saying: ‘There was in a certain city a judge who did not
fear God nor regard man. Now there was a widow in that city; and she came to
him, saying, ‘Get justice for me from my adversary.’ And he would not for a
while; but afterward he said within himself, ‘Though I do not fear God nor
regard man, yet because this widow troubles me I will avenge her, lest by her
continual coming she weary me.’ Then the Lord said, ‘Hear what the unjust judge
said. And shall God not avenge His own elect who cry out day and night to Him,
though He bears long with them? I tell you that He will avenge them speedily.
Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will He really find faith on the
earth?’” (Luke 18:1-8).
Jesus
is using the unjust judge here as a contrast. If the
unjust judge will avenge the widow, then much more will God the just judge
speedily avenge His children. Also
notice that the object here is the widow, which represents our helpless
position. The last statement has to
do with Jesus wanting to find us waiting for vengeance in faith. Notice, it says “faith on the earth.”
Notice
in verse 1, it says that we are to pray continually. Our witness should be the Word of God
anointed by the Holy Spirit, spoken against our accuser, Satan. Our job is to continue to speak the
Word of testimony until the trial is over. It really is not our business how long this trial lasts, or
exactly how the results will play out in our lives. That is not our business. God has a sovereign plan!
What is our job during the waiting period?
1. It is to pray as a witness,
using the Word of God against the accuser.
2. It is to walk in God’s light so that He may
continually cleanse us and keep us innocent before Him and Satan.
Walking
in the light. One very import thing for us to
remember while we are in these
trials is that we need to stay in God’s light so that He may have His way with
us. There are so many impurities
in our souls that need to be worked on, and this time of trial is an excellent
opportunity for just that. If the
accuser finds a good case in bad attitude even outright sin in us God cannot
issue a final judgement in your favor until it is confessed as sin. We cannot be perfect, but we can be
perfectly repentant. 1 John 1:7
says that we must stay in the light, and 1:9 says that when we confess our sin
Jesus is quick to cleanse us. The
lions could not touch Daniel in the lion’s den because Daniel was “innocent”
before God. That word means to be
transparent. Stay before God and
repent your way through the trial.
Praying
as a witness. “Therefore
take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil
day, and having done all, to stand. Stand therefore, having girded your waist
with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having shod
your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; above all, taking the
shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of
the wicked one. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which
is the word of God; praying always with all prayer and supplication in the
Spirit, being watchful to this
end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints” (Ephesians
6:13-18).
Taking
the Word of God on our lips is our continual job. Not only
are we being a witness, but we are also confronting the enemy with Jesus who is
the Word. All Satan sees when we
confess the Word is that same Jesus that John saw in Revelation chapter 1.
Entering into the rest of God.
Jesus is the High Priest over our confessions.
When the Word of
God is confessed and prayed over a person or a situation, it is powerful! Jesus created everything by His
Word. Jesus IS the Word. Jesus gave us the authority to use the
Word as if it was Him saying it!
When the Passover was administered to Israel in Exodus 12, the Israelites were told
to put the blood of an innocent lamb over their doors and the death angel
(demon) would “pass over” and not hurt them. Jesus is the Lamb of God, and we can put His blood over our
doors and over the doors of our loved ones and those that we pray for. How? Revelation 12:11 says, “And they overcame him by the blood
of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony., and they did not love their lives
to the death.”
The words of our mouth will apply the blood. Notice in
Exodus 12 that as long as the lamb’s blood stayed in the basin, it did no
good. But when they took the
hyssop, dipped it in the blood, and applied to their door, then God and the
devil could see it. The hyssop was
a common weed, which did not seem to have much value. The words of our mouth do
not seem to have much value, but when we dip them into the Word of God (Who is
Jesus Himself) and apply them as blood, God sees it and the devil sees it!
Jesus takes our confession and makes it powerful.
Hebrews 3:1 says,
“Therefore, holy brethren partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the
Apostle and High Priest of our confession, Christ Jesus.”
When we speak God’s Word, Jesus takes it to the Father and asks Him to perform
it. John 16:23 says, “And in that
day you will ask Me nothing. Most assuredly, I say to you, whatever you shall
ask the Father in My name He will give you.”
Then we can enter into rest and let the Word do the work.
Hebrews 4:1 and 12
says, “Therefore, since a promise remains of entering His rest, let us fear
lest any of you seem to have come short of it.” “For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper
than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and
of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the
heart.”
Angels go to work when they hear God’s Word.
“Bless the LORD, you
His angels, who excel in strength, who do His word, heeding the voice of His
word” (Psalm 103:20).
Demons
flee! Psalm
149:5-9 says, “Let the saints be joyful in glory; let them sing aloud on their
beds. Let the high praises of God be in their mouth, and a two-edged sword in
their hand, to execute vengeance on the nations, and punishments on the
peoples, (representing our spiritual enemies) to bind their kings with chains,
and their nobles with fetters of iron; to execute on them the written judgment;
this honor have all His saints. Praise the LORD!”
Here
is one way to pray against Satan our accuser. Use these Scriptures and others that
the Lord gives to you. (A Prayer
Book is available from Int’l School of the Bible with many important Scriptures,
which are too numerous to list here).
“Let this (this being his own curse
coming on him) be the
LORD’S reward to my accusers, and to those who speak evil against my person”
(Psalm 109:20).
“Let my accusers be clothed with shame,
and let them cover themselves with their own disgrace as with a mantle” (Psalm
109:29).
“Rescue me and deliver me from the hand of
foreigners, whose mouth speaks lying words, and whose right hand is a right
hand of falsehood” (Psalm 144:11).
11. What is the end result?
The curse is broken, and vengeance is taken. Going back to
Jesus’ mission statement in Isaiah 61, remember that many things
that Jesus wishes to do for us come after the “Day of vengeance.” I believe you will see a multitude of
results after overcoming.
As bad as the trial has been, you will feel glad for having
participated (in a bittersweet way).
Next, you have broken the curse(s) from your life, and your family
line. Also, because the curse is
broken, the demon(s) who had attached themselves to the curse are heading for
an early retirement in the pit.
“And suddenly they cried out, saying,
‘What have we to do with You, Jesus, You Son of God? Have You come here to
torment us before the time?” (Matthew 8:29).
“and he cast him into the bottomless pit,
and shut him up, and set a seal on him” (Revelation 20:3a).
In addition, you have entered new realms of operating in the
Kingdom of God here on earth. You
life has been purified, and you have a much more intimate fellowship experience
with the Lord. Finally, you are
now the minister of comfort, an advocate for others who are going through
similar circumstances. You are one
of the saints riding with Jesus on white horses in Revelation chapter 19 coming
to the aid of others.
How long do you need to stand on the Word? Until you win!
“And they cried with a loud voice, saying, ‘How long, O Lord, holy and
true, until You judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?”
(Revelation 6:10).
“Amahe, jo, amahe.”
Notes:
The kingdoms in Daniel 7 correspond with the kingdoms in Daniel
2. The ten toes are the ten
horns. The last kingdom is
divided, clay and iron, therefore it cannot stand before the Stone that
destroys the entire image.
Why? Because the division
takes place between the natural and the spiritual. Prior to the Cross, the natural kingdoms of the world were
supported by spiritual kingdoms that reigned in the heavenlies. Since the Cross, Jesus, the Kingdom of
God reigns in the spiritual.
Therefore, when the Kingdom of God comes upon the kingdoms of the enemy
in the natural, they cannot stand.
However, the entire battle takes place in a courtroom, as evidenced in
Daniel 7.
Visions:
Chapter 2 – Gold, silver, bronze, iron/clay
Chapter 7 – Lion, bear, leopard, beast
The Kingdom is divided, iron/clay.