View source for Blow the Trumpet in Zion 2

====Blow the Trumpet in Zion, #2====

For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. (Ephesians 6:12—NIV)

The actions, words, and imaginations of the peoples of the world are one mammoth illustration of the nature of the evil lords of sin and rebellion against the most High. It is these same evil lords against whom the Church is to wrestle in the Spirit.

Why hasn't God destroyed the rebels long ago? He has not destroyed them because He is using them to test and perfect the victorious saints whom He is preparing to be rulers of the ages to come.

The Scriptures inform us that God has determined to destroy the lords of darkness through Christ—Head and Body—during a period called the Day of the Lord. This destruction will be accomplished as soon as the Body of Christ has been brought to the required level of maturity, and union with the Head.

God has not forgotten one rebellious thought, imagination, motive, word, or deed that has been formed against Him. In His wisdom He has established a specific manner and time in which He will execute His judgment.

God never is slack, never careless. He is infinitely wise, infinitely patient, infinitely good, infinitely merciful. Sometimes people mistake God's compassion and patience for indulgence or forgetfulness. This error can be fatal.

The trumpet of the Lord is sounding an alarm in the churches in these days. God is calling His people to war. The warfare is not against human beings. The warfare is against wicked spirits in the heavenlies. The warfare is not against our personal human enemies, it is against God's enemies.

The unclean spirits are God's enemies. They despise Christ. They despise the Word and will of God. They despise the image of God in mankind and they pervert that image in every conceivable manner. The Christian churches must be alerted to the fact that the Spirit of God is preparing for the Day of Vengeance.

The Lord Jesus appeared for the purpose of destroying the works of the devil (I John 3:8). He cast out many wicked spirits as He walked back and forth throughout the land of Israel. Casting out devils is the first sign that is to follow Christian believers (Mark 16:17).

We Christians must prepare ourselves for spiritual warfare. Our attention must be shifted away from purely human activities and centered on the things of the Spirit, such as fervent prayer and worship, and continual study and meditation in the written Word of God.

Social gatherings, musical performances, athletic competition between churches—all may have their place from time to time as the occasion indicates. Good works of all kinds are essential to healthy church life. However, it is not the purpose of the Body of Christ to operate or succeed in the realm of human activities.

The call of the Body of Christ is to God's war of judgment against the armies of darkness. The destruction of the works of the devil is the purpose for the revealing of the sons of God (Romans 8:19).

Continued.[[Blow the Trumpet in Zion 3]]