THE
BATTERING-RAM
OF GOD
Romans
16:20. I
Corinthians
2:1-5; 4:20.
I
Thessalonians
1:5,6.
Ephesians
6:10-18.
When Titus
laid siege
to Jerusalem
in 70 A.D.,
and brought
Jewish
nationalism
to crushing
defeat, one
of the
principle
weapons he
used against
the city was
a gigantic
battering-ram
named Nico.
In a very
real sense,
the title
Nico was
prophetic
and still
speaks to
the church
today. It
means
"conqueror".
Nico is the
same word
used in the
Greek text
of
Revelation
2:15, where
Jesus speaks
to the
church in
Pergamos of
His hatred
for the
"doctrine of
the
Nicolaitans."
The word
Nicolaitan
is a
combination
of the
words, nico,
i.e.,
"conqueror",
and laos,
meaning
"laity", or
people under
the
leadership
of others.
The message
of these
combined
words is
obvious. In
the only
instance in
Scripture
where Jesus
is described
as hating
something,
it is used
here. He
hates the
doctrines
and deeds
that enslave
the saints.
He wants the
saints to be
free and has
fully
purchased
that freedom
for them.
Ancient
battering-rams,
such as Nico,
were usually
assembled by
invading
armies at
the battle
site and
consisted of
immense
wooden
platforms
overlaid
with iron
plates. This
metal
covering
protected
the
scaffolding
from enemy
fire. The
ram itself
consisted of
a huge log,
suspended
horizontally
by chains,
that could
be swung
back and
forth by
squadrons of
men holding
onto ropes
below. As
the huge
butt-end
struck the
wall and
bounced
back, the
men
maintained a
rhythm much
like the
pendulum of
a clock. The
slamming of
the ram
against
individual
stones was
important,
but of equal
value was
the fact
that the
constant
thudding set
up a
vibration
that
affected the
molecular
structure of
the whole
wall. Though
unknown to
the Romans,
they
employed a
principle of
physics
which would
not be
identified
until much
later times.
It is this:
Energy
stored in
the log by
the "rhythm
of input"
was
transferred
into the
wall at the
instant of
impact. This
sudden
impact
overcame
what is
known as the
"moment of
inertia" in
the stone.
Initially,
in the log's
striking the
stone, it
appeared
that nothing
happened.
That,
however, was
not the
case. Though
unseen, the
energy in
the log
instantly
transferred
into the
stone. This
is the same
pattern
which
frequently
occurs in
the realm of
spiritual
warfare. The
natural eye
may see
nothing
happening
when in
reality the
kingdom of
darkness has
instantly
been shaken
to its core.
Hear this
carefully:
The power of
the Holy
Spirit is
often
transferred
through the
laying-on-of-hands
in such
shattering
force that a
demonic
stronghold
is instantly
jarred to
its center.
This may not
always be
outwardly
visible. The
believer's
faith, as
well as the
one
receiving,
must go
beyond their
sight. Each
must realize
that the
Holy Spirit
is working
in power in
the
spiritual
realm even
if they do
not see it.
Some of the
stones in
Jerusalem's
walls
weighed 570
tons, were
forty-five
feet long,
fifteen feet
wide, and
twelve feet
high. The
fact that
stones like
these were
dismantled
and
tremendous
energy that
was released
by the
battering-ram.
Ultimately,
it was
battering-rams
like Nico,
mere wooden
scaffolds
supporting
ordinary
logs, manned
by teams of
pushed aside
by the Roman
Army helps
us realize
the
soldiers,
empowered by
a principle
of physics,
that
penetrated
Jerusalem's
walls and
brought the
city to
defeat. Many
of the
towers which
Titus
erected
against the
walls of
Jerusalem
were over
seventy-five
feet tall.
Some even
had wheels
and were
portable.
Such was the
ingenuity of
ancient
warfare;
Rome
conquered
because of
its
overwhelming
military
superiority.
When the
Jewish War
was over,
not one
Temple block
was left
standing
upon
another.
Titus
dismantled
everything.
This was
precisely
what Jesus
had foretold
would
happen.
Matthew
24:2.
The fact
that
Jerusalem's
stones were
larger,
heavier, and
stronger,
than the
battering-ram,
did not
alter the
fact that
they had to
move.
Darkness
cannot
resist
light, death
cannot
resist life,
so the
stationary
rock wall
could not
resist the
movement of
the log.
Identically,
when the
authority of
Scripture,
spoken by a
believing
disciple,
and
empowered by
the Holy
Spirit, is
brought
against a
demonic
stronghold,
there is an
immediate
effect. Hell
may pretend
that it has
not happened
but inwardly
it knows
that it has;
best of all,
the kingdom
of darkness
panics with
the
knowledge of
the attack.
If the
saints
proceed in
faith,
believing
what their
eyes cannot
see, and do
not quit the
battle
early, they
will win.
With
believers
following
God's battle
plans, it is
impossible
for them to
lose.
Jesus' gift
of divine
blood
redeemed us
from sin,
from the
hand of the
enemy, and
from the
curse of the
law. In
addition to
these, He
made
available to
us other
amazing
gifts for
spiritual
warfare.
Here are
three:
1. The
position of
sonship in
the Kingdom,
2. The
ministry-gifts
of the Holy
Spirit,
3. The
authority of
the written
Word of God.
These three
provisions
are ultimate
endowments
of power.
Not only so,
but each
contains a
plethora of
accompanying
grace-gifts.
It is
therefore
totally
unnecessary
that the
saints
become prey
to the
devil's
attacks.
Quite the
opposite, it
is Jesus'
intention
that the
offensive of
warfare be
turned
against
Satan. Three
times, in a
progressive
extension of
His own
power, Jesus
gave
authority to
the saints.
First, He
gave it to
the twelve
Apostles.
Luke 9:1.
Secondly, He
gave it to
the seventy
evangelists.
Luke 10:1.
Lastly, He
gave it to
all
believers.
Mark
16:17,18.
Significantly,
we find that
all whom
Jesus sent
to preach
were
equipped
with power
to cast out
unclean
spirits. It
was because
of this
established
pattern that
Paul wrote
the Romans
that "the
God of peace
will crush
Satan under
your feet
shortly."
Romans
16:20. God
always does
the
crushing.
That is
absolute
fact. But it
is equally
true that He
does it
under the
feet of the
believers.
If Satan is
not being
crushed it
is because
the church
is not
carrying out
its mission.
Demons are
forcibly
exorcized
wherever the
Kingdom of
God is
present.
Matthew
12:28.
We have the
exact
parallel of
God and the
saints
functioning
in this
cooperative
role in the
Old
Testament
account of
Israel's
victory over
the giants
of Anak.
Moses
identified
this
two-fold
aspect ver y
carefully:
"Therefore
understand
today that
the Lord
your God is
He who goes
over before
you as a
consuming
fire. (1) He
will destroy
them and (2)
bring them
down before
you; (3) so
you shall
drive them
out (4) and
destroy them
quickly ..."
Deuteronomy
9:3. Two
things were
to happen:
God would
destroy them
and drive
them out,
but,
identically,
Israel also
was to
"drive them
out and
destroy
them."
Though it is
not apparent
in most of
our English
translations,
the Hebrew
language
uses two
different
words in
this verse
which are
translated
as
"destroy".
The first,
referring to
God's
destruction
of Anak,
means a
total
annihilation
of the
enemy's
presence and
power; the
second use
of the word
"destroy" in
regard to
Israel,
denotes a
less violent
operation
but
signifies a
necessary
part of
God's total
battle plan.
The point is
that in the
Old
Testament as
well as the
New, God
works in
cooperation
with His
people.
Jesus said,
"I give you
power to
tread on
serpents and
scorpions
and over all
the power of
the enemy."
The analogy
of treading
upon the
enemy
implies that
the enemy is
under the f
eet of the
church.
Satan's
power is
therefore
subordinate
to the
Kingdom of
Jesus
Christ. It
cannot and
will not be
otherwise.
Again, the
Old
Testament
gives us the
physical
example of
this
spiritual
truth when
Joshua
ordered his
captains of
war to stomp
their feet
on the necks
of the five
heathen
kings.
Joshua
10:22-26.
The number
five is
significant
in regards
to Satan's
kingdom.
This is
identified
for us in
Ephesians
6:12. 1)
Principalities.
2) Powers.
3) Rulers of
the darkness
of this
world. 4)
Spiritual
wickedness
in high
places. 5)
Satan.
Significantly,
the
five-pointed
star of the
pentagram is
used as a
power-symbol
in Satanism
and various
forms of
witchcraft.
There were
also five
Philistine
kings who
withstood
Israel,
Goliath had
four
brothers,
equaling
five giants,
Moses
destroyed
the five
kings of
Midian. The
list goes
on.
Jesus
forever
settled the
question
regarding
the Seat of
Power with
His
declaration
to the early
church that
"All
authority
has been
given to me
in heaven
and on
earth. Go
therefore
and make
disciples of
all the
nations ...
teaching
them to
observe all
things that
I have comm
anded you
and lo, I am
with you
always, even
to the end
of the age."
Matthew
28:19,20.
There is no
mistaking
this
language:
Jesus
intended
that all
nations be
taught "all
things"
which He had
given the
first
disciples
"to the end
of the age".
Theologically,
there is no
such thing
as an
apostolic
church and a
post-apostolic
church–with
the final
one having
less of the
Holy Spirit,
less
Scripture,
and less
power. No!
Regardless
of the age
or nation
there is
simply the
"church,"
the
"gospel,"
and the
"power."
God has
entrusted us
with weapons
of attack
and defense
far greater
than that
which Titus
brought
against
Jerusalem.
As "Sons",
we are
"seated with
Him in
Heavenly
places."
Ephesians
1:3,20. As
anointed
disciples,
baptized in
the Holy
Spirit, He
is has
endowed us
with
miraculous
gifts. Acts
1:8. As
lovers of
truth, we
have the
"sword of
the Spirit"
which is the
Word of God.
Ephesians
6:17.
The
Believer’s
Scriptural
Authority
Against
Demonic
Spirits
1. Luke
10:17-19:
"Then the
seventy
returned
with joy,
saying,
Lord, even
the demons
are subject
to us in
Your name.
And He said
to them, I
saw Satan
fall like
lightning
from heaven.
Behold, I
give you the
authority to
trample on
serpents and
scorpions,
and over all
the power of
the enemy,
and nothing
shall by any
means hurt
you".
2. Mark
16:17,18,20:
"And these
signs will
follow those
who believe:
In My name
they will
cast out
demons; they
will speak
with new
tongues;
they will
take up
serpents;
and if they
drink
anything
deadly, it
will by no
means hurt
them; they
will lay
hands on the
sick, and
they
will20recover."
V.s. 20:
"And they
went out and
preached
everywhere,
the Lord
working with
them and
confirming
the word
through the
accompanying
signs."
3. Hebrews
2:14-15:
"Inasmuch
then as the
children
have
partaken of
flesh and
blood, He
Himself
likewise
shared in
the same,
that through
death He
might
destroy him
who had the
power of
death, that
is, the
devil, and
release
those who
through fear
of death
were all
their
lifetime
subject to
bondage."
Finally, you
and I hold
the rope to
God’s
Battering-Ram!
Hallelujah!
CC
IN WHOM IS
YOUR
"SECURITY"?
A young
Dutch woman,
Margie, once
sat in my
office and
wept-out a
story of
great
courage and
great
heartbreak.
Courage
involved her
work; she
was a secret
Christian
missionary
to Moslem
women in one
of the Arab
republics.
Such a role
is dangerous
beyond our
comprehension.
For her
protection I
will not say
where she is
working. Nor
is Margie
her real
name.
Heartbreak
involved her
family; her
parents and
an older
brother
lived
through the
Nazi
occupation
of Holland
in the
Second World
War and were
left
mentally
damaged. All
suffered
severe
depression
with the
brother
sometimes
requiring
institutional
care. Though
Margie was
born after
the war and
was spared
the trauma
the others
endured, a
gap existed
between
them.
Through
discipline
and
self-effort,
she had
become a
well
educated,
committed
believer who
devoted her
life to
Christian
missions.
"Pastor,"
she began,
"My problem
is this:
When I leave
the U.S. and
return to my
work in the
Middle East,
my parents
expect me to
stop in
Europe to
see them."
She began to
cry, "And I
want to see
them! I need
to see them!
But the
depression
in their
home is so
overwhelming
that I can't
fight it. I
get
depressed
too. It
takes me
weeks–sometimes
months–to
recover.
After I get
back to my
post I can't
function.
All I can
think about
is the
misery my
parents are
in." She
stopped long
enough to
regain her
composure.
"Being with
them is the
most
difficult
thing I have
to do–but if
I don't stop
in Holland
they think
I'm
rejecting
them and get
more
depressed."
She began
sobbing, "I
don't know
what to do!
Please help
me."
I hope you
will listen
carefully to
what I
shared with
this young
woman. The
family's
circumstance
was complex
but God's
remedy for
Margie was
not. I took
her hand and
made her
look at me,
"Margie," I
said, "It is
not God's
will that=2
0your
parents
control your
sense of
security.
Under no
circumstances
does He want
your
confidence
dominated by
people
around
you–even
though they
are people
you love. He
is the only
One worthy
of such
trust." She
listened.
"God wants
you to
cherish your
family,
visit them,
minister to
them, but He
never wants
them to
subdue you
in the way
you have
allowed."
This young
woman’s
situation is
common.
Husbands and
wives
frequently
find
themselves
unable to
help their
partner
because both
are
spiritually
dependent on
the other
for support.
When one
crashes, the
other
crashes. If
one is up,
both are up.
If one
quarrels,
both
quarrel.
Teenagers
are
particularly
vulnerable
to this
tragedy in
their dating
experience.
Their sense
of happiness
depends
totally on
how the
other
reacts.
Apart from
their date's
reassurance,
they are
usually
powerless to
maintain a
consistent
level of
security.
Lives
trapped in
this
emotional
roller-coaster
are on a
wild,
erratic
ride. Such
people
absolutely
must
recognize
the danger
they are in
and stop it.
Hear me: It
can be
stopped.
In Margie’s
case, I
illustrated
God's remedy
for her by
pointing to
a spot near
the ceiling.
"Today," I
sa id, "You
are going to
tell the
Lord that
you nail
your
security in
Him, so high
on the wall,
that no
matter how
hard your
parents try,
they cannot
knock it
down." She
listened
intently.
"You are not
merely
hanging it
beyond their
reach," I
said, "you
are nailing
to the wall
so securely
that it can
never be
moved."
Again, I
made her
look at me,
"Your
security
must be
anchored
into Christ
so tightly
that it
cannot be
changed." I
gave Margie
several
minutes to
prepare
herself for
the "act of
commitment",
then led her
in prayer in
which she
dedicated
her security
to God
alone. It
was that
simple.
Quietly, she
prayed,
making that
decision a
life-long
promise. A
few minutes
later she
left the
office.
A month
passed
before I
heard from
her. The
letter was
exciting.
After
spending two
weeks in
Holland, she
was back on
her mission
field. The
letter had
taken
another two
weeks to
arrive. She
said,
"Pastor, I
want you to
know that I
had the most
wonderful
visit with
my family
that I have
ever had.
The first
day I
arrived the
depression
was so bad
that I did
not th ink I
could stand
it. But I
remembered
what I had
promised the
Lord and
determined
that I would
not give in.
On the
second day
something
wonderful
happened: I
saw my
family
coming up to
where I was.
That
encouraged
me! Would
you believe,
on the third
day I heard
my mother
laugh for
the first
time in
years. It
was
thrilling to
see her
smile again
... I am so
grateful to
God! We had
the most
wonderful
visit we
have ever
had ...
Thank you,
Love,
Margie."
By standing
secure in
the Lord,
Margie had
been able to
minister
security to
her family.
Thankfully,
she saw
immediate
results.
What she did
is true of
all forms of
ministry:
Good or bad,
right or
wrong,
depression
or
exhilaration,
we minister
whatever is
in us.
Insecure
people will
automatically
minister
insecurity
to those
around them.
Secure
people will
minister
security.
Believers
empowered
with the
Holy Spirit
impart that
blessing.
Whatever
"anointing"
is on the
head will
run down
upon the
rest of the
body. If
anger,
jealousy,
rebellion,
suspicion,
etc., is on
the leader
(in the home
or church)
it will
infect those
around it.
The only
safeguard is
to make a
deliberate
effort to
stop it.
Margie8 0s
decision not
only ended
the power of
her family's
negative
depression
in herself
but
benefitted
them as
well. In my
travels, I
meet many
Christians
(some are
pastors and
church
leaders) who
need
deliverance
from
destructive
behavioral
patterns.
Oftentimes,
these
mannerisms
of
depression,
pride,
anger,
egotism,
insecurity,
arrogance,
etc, can be
traced back
to childhood
trauma. In
many
instances,
the injury
was not
caused by
deliberate
abuse by the
parents but
carelessness
and neglect.
In such
cases, the
devil never
misses an
opportunity
to expand
and
intensify
the problem.
The best
example I
can give of
God's
recovery
program from
such
problems is
found in the
Old
Testament.
Judges 6:28.
It is
twofold.
One: The
pagan altar
must be
demolished,
torn down,
its' remains
scattered.
Two: The
Altar of God
must be
rebuilt
securely on
the site of
the old. By
"pagan", I
mean
anything
that usurps
our
confidence
in the Lord
and places
it back in
the hands of
men. The
rebuilding
of the Altar
of God is
accomplished
by
re-filling
our lives
with the
power of the
Holy Spirit;
that
involves
worship,
fellowship
with other
believers,
study of the
Word, etc.
My question
to you is
this: Is
your sense
of security
nailed to
God's20wall?
Is it beyond
the reach of
those who
would pull
you down? Is
your life
controlled
by the Holy
Spirit or by
annoying
controversies?
If you are
experiencing
insecurity,
get your
hammer and
go to work!
Nail your
security
into God's
wall. That
is where it
belongs.
Margie’s
testimony
can become
your's.
ARE YOU A
HORSE OR A
MULE?
One horse
can
sled-pull
1,000
pounds. Two
horses can
pull 6,000
pounds. By
cooperating
with
another,
each horse
increases
his own
out-put
300%. Larger
teams
produce
accelerated
power. 85%
of all
results,
good or bad,
come from
the
group-system.
They do not
come from
individual
effort.
God's
principle
declares
that one
believer
shall "chase
a thousand
... two put
ten thousand
to flight."
Deuteronomy
32:30. The
application
of this
precept to
the church
is awesome.
For this
reason Jesus
prayed that
His
disciples
"May be one,
as You
Father, are
in Me, and I
in You; that
they also
may be one
in Us, that
the world
may believe
that You
sent Me."
John 17:21.
Christians
in agreement
have the
potential of
astonishing
power. In
that unity,
two things
happen: 1.
We become a
"restorer of
the breach"
to separated
Christians.
2. The
power-potential
in our own
ministry is
increased a
thousand-fold.
Scripture
commands us
to pray for
all "who are
in authority
that we may
lead quiet
and
peaceable
lives in all
godliness
..." Lee
Grady,
editor of
Charisma
Magazine,
suggests
that we:
1. Pray for
Barack
Obama’s
protection.
2. Cover his
wife and
daughters in
prayer.
3. Pray that
he will
govern with
God’s
wisdom.
4. Ask God
to make him
humble.
5. Pray for
wise and
righteous
advisers to
surround
him.
6. Ask for
the spirit
of
reconciliation.
7. Pray that
Obama will
adopt
pro-life
convictions.
8.Bind all
evil forces
assigned to
manipulate
our
president.
9. Pray that
Obama’s door
will remain
open to the
church.
10.Pray that
our nation
will enjoy
God’s peace
and blessing
during the
Obama
administration.
