SIN & THE BONDAGE OF THE WILL-- Not Prevenient Grace

By Reverend Mark Hunnemann

I have, as I’m sure you have too, thought and even agonized over why some of my loved ones seem so disinterested in the gospel. No matter what I say or do, they seem so…in bondage. This is a very personal issue for all of us.

In our opening segment we looked at scriptural foundation for the doctrine of sin. We looked at the Fall of Adam and Eve in the Garden, and the inspired interpretation in Romans 5. We noted that the original sin of Adam transferred to us both guilt and a radically corrupt nature. We next noted two areas of inability: we are unable to do any good, and we are unable to seek God for salvation. Most importantly, I tried to stress that one’s view of sin has a radical view on how they will understand grace. Do you believe in Grace ALONE? If so, then you may need to do some reassessing to see if your view of sin is consistent with sola gratia or inconsistent, or even contrary to it. We all are inconsistent in some areas but I think we would all want to do all we could to avoid inconsistency in this most vital area. Grace is everything to a Christian. I was raised Roman Catholic and I am disturbed that the common view of initial response to gospel or salvation amongst evangelicals sounds very similar to Rome: cooperating with grace.

Who saves whom? Does God save sinners—is it 100% of grace? Or does God save, with our help—90 % God and 10% us? Is the initial salvation process totally from God, or a mixture of God and us? Sanctification is undoubtedly cooperative effort but we’re speaking of initial stage of saving work.
So, not with a desire to win an argument, but to accent grace, I need to show again how sinful sin is—especially in the area of our inability to believe, without divine intervention-or regeneration. That is, regeneration precedes faith. Have you ever heard that? It marks the difference between two distinct views of how God saves. You will note that this is the reverse of how contemporary evangelical preachers present the salvation process: you first believe in order to be regenerated. But the bible teaches that God must first regenerate us in order for us to believe. If we truly believe man is dead in sin, it HAS to be that way.

Are we merely near-sighted or are we blind? Are we are gravely ill or dead in sin? Are we employees of sin or slaves of it? Are we hard of hearing or stone-cold deaf? Are we seeking God or fleeing Him? To cast ourselves 100% of the mercy and grace of God, to blast away any remains of pride, we must see how dreadfully lost we are outside of Christ.

Let us examine just the gospel of John and see how consistently and persistently he presents such a bleak picture of mans moral inability to seek salvation. I’m going through this step by step so if you have questions they may be answered in future segments. My focus—salvation is from God, grace alone!

12 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, 13 who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.(John 1:13-14) Here we clearly see the confluence of human responsibility and divine initiative. WE receive…WE believe…but the causal factor lying behind that receiving and believing was/is the supernatural act of God—the will of God that brought that decision about. It could not be clearer. God’s will supersedes yours. Divine causality of our belief by regeneration preceding faith. Without divine initiative we could not believe.

Btw in 1:9 Arminian theology misuses this verse to support unbiblical notion of prevenient grace. Does Paul say in Romans 3:21 “But now, God has expressed His prevenient grace…? The notion is antithetical to grace, and I shall return to it.

3 Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born againb he cannot see the kingdom of God.” 4 Nicodemus said to him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” 5Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.c 7 Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘Youd must be born again.’ 8 The winde blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.” Born again/regeneration required before seeing kingdom. Jesus is speaking of the necessity of being born again to even ‘see’ the kingdom, not to mention enter into it..which He does mention in v 5!

37 All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out. (6:37) Jesus asserts that the Father gives as a gift (see John 10) some people to Jesus, and these people will come to Him…and He will never cast them out. How many of those that Father has given the Son will come to Him savingly? All of them! But who is it that comes to Jesus for salvation? All those the Father has given Him.

s. 44 No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day. Notice first that this is a universal negative—NO ONE can come to Me. Perhaps we had same English teacher. In class: can I sharpen my pencil? I’m sure you can! May/Can…Can implies ability. So Jesus is talking about inability. But notice there is a conditional clause—unless Father draws him. Same Greek word is used in James 2:6; Acts 16:19 for ‘drag’ Are not the rich the ones who oppress you, and the ones who drag you into court? doubt it means ‘woo or persuade’
19 But when her owners saw that their hope of gain was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace before the rulers. Same word for ‘dragged’ is what is used here, and I doubt it means ‘woo or persuade’

Kittlels Theological Dictionary defines this word :”to compel by irresistible authority”

64 But there are some of you who do not believe.” (For Jesus knew from the beginning who those were who did not believe, and who it was who would betray him.) 65And he said, “This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless it is granted him by the Father.” Again, we are told by Jesus that nobody CAN come to Him unless that (ability) is granted to him by Father. This was said in adversarial situation and Jesus was explaining, what he said elsewhere you do not believe me bc you are not My sheep.

Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who practices sin is a slaveb to sin. (8:34) Enslavement to sin due to their nature.

26 but you do not believe because you are not among my sheep. (10:26)

Notice that Jesus does not say that they are not His sheep because they do not believe, but they do not believe BECAUSE they are not His sheep, or elect. Again, He is inferring inability because of their condition.

So, our main point in this segment is that people are by nature unable to come to God and be saved. No amount of persuasion, eloquence or compassionate pleading can awaken a spiritual corpse from the dead.

Picture a corpse lying on the ground. Would any amount of pleading or forcefulness cause the corpse to rise from the dead? That is most accurate analogy to Eph. 2:1—dead in sin. Only God can breathe life into a valley of dry bones.

Or Lazarus. Did he in any way cooperate in his resurrection? Of course not.

The obvious question that arises is: how can God hold someone accountable for something they are unable to do? Or, put another way, if God commands something then does that not imply the ability to be able to do it? And what of man and free will? And most importantly, how does a non-Christian become saved if they are unable to?

I have labored this point of mans utter inability to come to God or believe in Him for one reason: to highlight GRACE. God does the saving—He has to do the saving if man is this lost…this enslaved…this dead. There is no island of righteousness where a person can lean on to extend a hand to reach out for saving life presearver. They are on bottom of pool drowned.

Seems bleak but this should lead one to life of intense prayer, realizing that this is truly impossible from human perspective. Pleading with God and God does use us to bring about

My Arminian brothers and sisters appeal to ‘prevenient grace’ but in this scenario nobody would reply to a general summons.
Arminian view-man cannot be saved apart from God’s grace., but fallen man must cooperate and assent to God’s grace before God will save him. Prior to regeneration, man has the power to accept or reject the grace that could save him.

Augustinian or biblical view—man is totally dependent on the grace of God for his initial response to gospel.
Arguments against prevenient grace.

It is nowhere stated explicitly in bible. John 1:9 does not teach it. THE PURPOSE OF THE VERSE IS TO SAY THAT THE COMING OF THE TRUE LIGHT EXPOSES AND REVEALS WHERE PEOPLE ARE IN THEIR RELATIONSHIP TO GOD.

1. As exceedingly important as this issue is, it should be splashed all over NT. It is not seen anywhere. Proof texts are out of context eisogesis.
2. Romans 3:8ff rejects prevenient grace. Note in 3:21 Paul does not say: “But God in His prevenient grace…” In 1:18 all of mankind is under God’s curse and wrath for rejecting the Father, which prevenient grace says it is extended to ALL people.
3. Why do some respond and others do not? Why do some make use of prevenient grace and others do not?
4. Are they more righteous, smarter, wiser, more humble, more teachable, more….? Any answer would give grounds for boasting.
5. Is not faith a gift from God? Eph. 2:1-10; Phil. 1:29; 2 Peter 1:1 2 Tim 2:24-26; Acts 5:31; 11:18
6. Suspends work of God on will of man
7. Grace becomes ‘penultimate’ cause of salvation…ultimate cause is our reply.

BY R. C. SPROUL

As the name suggests, prevenient grace is grace that "comes before" something. It is normally defined as a work that God does for everybody. He gives all people enough grace to respond to Jesus. That is, it is enough grace to make it possible for people to choose Christ. Those who cooperate with assent to this grace are "elect." Those who refuse to cooperate with this grace are lost.

The strength of this view is that it recognizes that fallen man's spiritual condition is severe enough that it requires God's grace to save him. The weakness of the position may be seen in two ways. If this prevenient grace is merely external to man, then it fails in the same manner that the medicine and the life preserver analogies fail. What good is prevenient grace if offered outwardly to spiritually dead creatures?

On the other hand, if prevenient grace refers to something that God does within the heart of fallen man, then we must ask why it is not always effectual. Why is it that some fallen creatures choose to cooperate with prevenient grace and others choose not to? Doesn't everyone get the same amount?

Think of it this way, in personal terms. If you are a Christian you are surely aware of other people who are not Christians. Why is it that you have chosen Christ and they have not? Why did you say yes to prevenient grace while they said no? Was it because you were more righteous than they were? If so, then indeed you have something in which to boast. Was that greater righteousness something you achieved on your own or was it the gift of God? If it was something you achieved, then at the bottom line your salvation depends on your own righteousness. If the righteousness was a gift, then why didn't God give the same gift to everybody?

Perhaps it wasn't because you were more righteous. Perhaps it was because you are more intelligent. Why are you more intelligent? Because you study more (which really means you are more righteous)? Or are you more intelligent because God gave you a gift of intelligence he withheld from others?
To be sure, most Christians who hold to the prevenient grace view would shrink from such answers. They see the implied arrogance in them. Rather they are more likely to say, "No, I chose Christ because I recognized my desperate need for him."

That certainly sounds more humble. But I must press the question. Why did you recognize your desperate need for Christ while your neighbor didn't? Was it because you were more righteous than your neighbor, or more intelligent? (or more humble or broken?)

The $64,000 question for advocates of prevenient grace is why some people cooperate with it and others' don't. How we answer that will reveal how gracious we believe our salvation really is.

The $64,000 question is, "Does the Bible teach such a doctrine of prevenient grace? If so, where?"

We conclude that our salvation is of the Lord. He is the One who regenerates us. Those whom he regenerates come to Christ. Without regeneration no one will ever come to Christ. With regeneration no one will ever reject him. God's saving grace effects what he intends to effect by it. (Chosen by God).

Mark Hunnemann is the author of Seeing Ghosts Through God's Eyes: A Worldview Analysis of Earthbound Spirits. It's also available in eBook format.

The Historical Fall & It’s Radically Comprehensive Consequences

By Reverend Mark Hunnemann

(Genesis 1-4)
After the Creation of the universe and  Adam and Eve, the Fall occurred. I will return next time to what it means to be made in God’s image. You know the story—which I insist occurred in space and time because the Bible does,—not some mythological fairy tale. Adam and Eve disobeyed the direct command of God. We have no idea of how long they remained in garden before being tempted and sinning I want to focus on the consequences of the Fall more than of the event itself.

1, This event occurred in real space/ time history as Adam and Eve were real people. Jesus affirmed Adam as historical as did prophets and apostles. Jesus is second man and last Adam, and just as his sin was imputed to us, so our sins are imputed to Jesus.

2. We do not speak nearly as often as we should of the reality and comprehensive extent of the effects of the Fall. We basically pay it lip service and let it go. It altered everything about the world—not just spiritually. The curse of the Fall has extended its tendrils into every nook and cranny of the universe, on macro and micro level. Indeed the very cosmos itself groans as a result of the their sin—Romans 8. But I maintain that your experience of the exterior world and your experience of your interior world (your own self, psyche) will remain largely mysterious and obtuse if you lose sight of the full ramifications of the Fall. Literally it bent everything. We live in a Fallen world friends. What does that mean? For one, it means that absolutely nothing is perfect; everything is imperfect. It has enormous explanatory power.

Frankly what we sometimes blame Satan for is simply due to living in a Fallen world. If we ever consciously or unconsciously set up and either/or between perfection or nothing, we always get nothing. Whether a perfect church, potential marriage partner, work environment, ect EVERYTHNG has been bent to some degree..and thorns and thistles of some kind are present.

Specifically, what are the consequences of the Fall?

1. Man was separated from God—origin of spiritual death. What was threatened in 2:17 became reality in 3:8. 9 in where we see them hiding from the very God who they used to walk with intimately. This was/is worst consequence bc in Romans 5 and elsewhere we see that Adams sin, as the federal head of human race, was imputed to all of his posterity. Since the Fall, all people enter this world united with Adam and are spiritually dead. Spiritual zombies—biologically alive and spiritually dead. Eph 2:1 Find salvation as it speaks of in protoevngelion. 3:15. We need to speak more of the nature of this sin—how it was imputed to us, and the radical corruption that ensued. and its affect on us spiritually and well do that soon.

2. Physical death—2:17, 3”19 Instead of killing them immediately as God said and they desrved, he graciously extended their lives. Yet this explains the origin of human death…as well as suffering, disease…

We must remember that death is abnormal. Not as most people think today—death is an unfortunate but inevitable fact of life. There is a discontinuity between the world as God created it and the world we live in now. This is tremendously important bc of how it explains the origin of death and how God and can be good in the case of death and suffering. Let me use a story from Albert Camus, the French Existentialist, to illustrate this issue—The Plague. There was a priest who lived in a village. One day a terrible plague broke out. There was enormous suffering and death. The priest felt and agonizing dilemma bc since God made the world as it is, then if he helped those who were suffering, then He would be fighting against God. But if obeyed God by letting God’s nature run its course, then he would be obeying God but betraying his beloved villagers who needed him, who were suffering. He ended up helping them…

Do you feel the dilemma? If this world in all its death and suffering is normal, if it is as God made it, then we have no basis for fighting against it…and we have no way of explaining how God can be good in light of this awful suffering we experience. But the Fall gives us a titanic answer! It explains that the world we live in is abnormal; death is abnormal. Jesus could weep and express anger, as Greek shows, when he confronted the death of his friend Lazarus. Death is the violent disruption of the vibrant flow of life—the ripping asunder what God had joined together—the soul and body. So, the Fall gives us an explanation for the problem of evil.  The original creation was deathless and perfect but we messed it up.

What about God’s knowledge of the Fall prior to it? Well, I have to stop there, all I can do is deal with the reality we all live in and not jump into abstractions.

3. Man was separated from himself-origin of psychological problems. Do you really think that perfect humans had deep psychological issues? 3:7,10 Prior to Fall they were naked and unashamed but after they were naked and ashamed. Nakedness in the bible is a profound motif which expresses how the entry of sin introduced shame and guilt feelings. Since the Fall, everyone born (not Jesus) was born with cracks in their psyches. We all have psychological issues—some worse than others. We can be unintentionally cruel to people, like Jobs counselors, if we try to attribute all emotional/psychological issues with demonic. Some deliverance ministers need a refresher course on the comprehensive effects of the Fall so that they will not be trying to toss out a demon which is simply caused by imbalance in brain chemistry. I do not know about you, but not a day goes by that I am not acutely aware of my psychological brokenness—some inherited and some caused by life’s battering ram. All of us, without exception, have broken places but we have become so accustomed to them that we think they are normal. Or, the circles we hang out in may look down on us for not being 'victorious'.

I don’t have time to develop this but the gospel can bring substantial healing to some psychological issues—especially guilt feelings. Justification deals directly with forgiving our guilt before God…and the guilty feelings that ensue. There is therefore no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. Rom. 8:1

4. Man separated from other men—origin of sociological problems or mans inhumanity to man, See Adam accusing Eve…3:12…and Cain killing Abel.4:8 God’s very good creation in 1:31 has degenerated terribly due to Fall. The lovely fields of Edenic Paradise have turned into killing fields.

5. Man separated from nature—origin of environmental problems, and fear. 3:17ff. The original cultural mandate has been abused and we’ve raped creation. And instead of the animals coming to Adam to be named they now have instinct to flee from us…sad.

6. Nature separated from nature-origin of violence and decay in creation.1:29, 30—Romans 8. Nature is red in tooth and claw. Carniverous activity…survival of the strongest.

7. Man separated from evil angels and conflict between folowers of Christ and Satan—spiruatal warfare  3:15.
Note how comprehsnsive these effects are. Do you see that now? And how life and this world is inexplicable apart from accurate understanding of the Fall.

We usually focus on Adams sin and how it effects us spiritually and that is primary. It is what plunged us into radical ruin…spiritual death.
It has enormous explanatory power.
Man separated from God-origin of spiritual problems, spiritul death
Origin of physical death, disease
Man separated from others--origin of relational confict and violence
Man separated from himself—origin psychological problems
Man separated from nature—origin of pollution, and fear between us and animals
Separation of nature from nature—origin of violence in nature.

Do you see how the Fall sheds so much light on us as well the world we live in? Let us recapture a deeper understanding of the reality and effects of the Fall—and how that accents the beauty of the cosmic scope of Christ’s redemption.

The goal of the drama of redemption is to not just restore pristine glory of Eden, but much further…Paradise will be here on earth. A renewed heaven and earth. Rev. 21, 22

Still, very very lovely. Not just as proof of existence of God but it is beautiful.

Mark Hunnemann is the author of Seeing Ghosts Through God's Eyes: A Worldview Analysis of Earthbound Spirits. It's also available in eBook format.

Made in God’s Image and Likeness: Meaning & Implications

Made in God’s Image and Likeness: Meaning and Implications

By Reverend Mark Hunnemann

26 Then God said, “Let us make manh in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”

27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. (Genesis 1:26-27) This is an astonishing text in which the trinitarian God purposes to make a different kind of being than had been created thus far—one that would image Him. Not be Him, but be His image and likeness.

Who are we and what are we? Why questions, as opposed to how questions, have haunted the landscape of my heart and brain ever since I can remember. What is our identity? God answers that for us, very clearly. Since we are made in God’s image, then we cannot know who we are or what we are without knowing who/what God is first. That is one reason why we looked at Him first in our study. As Calvin noted in the first pages of the Institutes—the knowledge of God and of ourselves are inextricably connected at a thousand different points.

There is a crisis today in our culture re purpose and identity. Think about: ask the average person on the street what they would say if you asked the purpose of life, and who they are? If we jettison the living God, then it comes at a very high price; human dignity and purpose. So our country is becoming increasingly barbarous—slaughtering the unborn.

Perhaps the hardest book I ever read was Jean-Paul Sartre’s book ‘Being and Nothingness.” In it he stated that existence precedes essence. Think about that term for a moment…..(you, me, chair, all facts are brute meaningless facts—non-interpreted). We are meaningless. All facts are meaningless intrinsically—until we choose, in act of courage, to give them meaning or essence. In other words, there is nothing outside of us to give essence or meaning to our lives. On the other hand you have the other existentialist Albert Camus asserting that the only question remaining is should we commit suicide? So, the credo of the secular humanist or pagan is this: I originated in meaninglessness and am destined for meaninglessness, but in-between these 2 poles of meaninglessness, my life it is magically imbued with essence or meaning. Talk about leap of faith, and absurd. That is the sad situation of modern man. If we are but cosmic accidents, personal warts on the face of an impersonal universe, then our origin and destiny are equally insignificant. No basis for human dignity or worth. The 20th century is a murderous testimony to the inevitable fruit of that kind of thinking: man is the measure of all things. We have become zeros-less than zeroes.

Our origin, destiny and meaning are tied to God. He declares that we have essence or meaning-value and dignity. God alone has intrinsic dignity and value, but He has assigned us extrinsic value and dignity; we are made in His image. What does that mean?

Some have suggested (some RC theologians) that image and likeness refer to different things but the structure of the Hebrew indicates that they are synonymous, and the bible uses them often interchangeably. What does imago dei mean? Tons of ink has been spilt over this issue!

The short answer, but I think still profound, of what it means to be made in God’s image is that we image Him! Isn’t that what images do? Images express likeness to something or someone else—it mirrors or expresses what the original is like. 100 yards away from my apartment is a national Military Park commemorating the battle of Guilford Courthouse, and especially General Greene, whom our city of Greensboro was named after. Greene was Washingtons brilliant leader of southern campaign of revolutionary War. Ever since I was a kid we used to go see this enormous image of him on horseback—still there. This image of Greene is meant to portray or represent Greene…his dignity and honor and brilliance a military strategist. Images of all kinds of people that are important are all over the place.

So, as God’s image we are to image Him to the world. We were created with that express intent or purpose—at heart of our humanness and identity/purpose. We are to mirror to the world what God is like—His holiness and love. Walking and talking images, and in our behavior and words we are to express His character to all the rest of His creation. So that we adorn the gospel—people look at us and can say: that is what God is like. We mirror to the animals, the angels, other people-- God.

We do not exist for ourselves but for God—and He designed us with unique and incredible dignity.

Since we are Gods image bearers may be one reason for second commandment—there is already one image of Him, and that is us, and to be only us—which shows our dignity!

Be more specific: We are like Him in some ways or analogous. Though He is Creator and we are creatures, we alone are made in His image. God is holy, creative, rational, communicative, gregarious (relational), a will. We are to mirror to the world His holiness, for example. Likewise, though we cannot create from nothing, as His image bearers we can create beauty—whether in home, garden, or on canvas, we mirror Gods creativity when we create and this pleases Him.. All the traits I mentioned we share with Him which make up our image bearing.

In a word, God is personal—Infinite/Personal God. We may not be able to verbally express what person is, but we know instinctively what a person or personality is. And we are finite/personal….infinite/personal.

Immediately after the verses describing our being made in God’s image we are said to be His under-shepherds in ruling and caring for this earth. We are to reflect God’s righteous rule over the cosmos in how we build culture. That is crucial aspect of our image-of-Godness.

This view of the image of God is contrary to a platonic view of spirituality that is common in bible believing churches in which there is a spiritual compartment and a non-spiritual compartment. Plato taught that the soul was all that counted and the body was the prison house of the soul. Matter was inferior to spirit. We must resist this super spirituality, platonic tendencies which dehumanizes the whole man. But true spirituality sees Christ as King and Lord over the totality of life: the arts, government, academics, every day life. It also means that of all people, Christians should be the most sensitive to environmental issues; the most excited about the humanities and sciences. Knowing that we do have dominion over it as the secular environemntlaists deny, we are still to not recklessly rape Gods good earth in advancing culture.

That we shall live forever is perhaps another way we image God, though he alone is immortal. Our soul is not intrinsally immortal as Plato taught—we live forever only bc God decreed so. Our soul is not made of intrinsically immortal stuff.

Notice that it is the intra trinitarian communication in which we are discussed as being made in “our” image. So, as a communicative triune God, what we say, and how say it, is a salient aspect of our image of Godness. Language and the ability to communicate is an expression of it.

Like God, we are rational, creative, communicators, have spiritual side—so our image of Godness is rich. Some have also suggested that since were created with bodies and will have bodies forever, then they in some sense reflect God’s image as well—though God is spiritual…but the glorified Incarnate Christ has body. Fearfully and wonderfully made—images God’s wisdom in our bodies.

Note too, that the male and female comprise God’s image—we need both to complete this image. This further enriches the beauty and multi-faceted nature of God’s image.

We are told that God Himself brought Eve to Adam and in the garden chapel it was like the Father walked his daughter down the holy aisle to join hands with her husband. Marriage officiated by God Himself.

Last segment we talked about the consequences of the Fall, in which ghastly things happened. The image of God in us was severely tarnished. Our ability to mirror God’s holiness has been greatly affected; our hearts, minds, and wills have all been adversely affected. The mirror is fogged.

I had mentioned that the Fall has much explanatory power re the world and ourselves. A powerful example is how the Creation, image of God, and the Fall alone can adequately explain the paradox of mankind; the simultaneous Majesty and misery of mankind. The history of the world bears this out over and over: breathtaking expressions of our singular nobility/potential for such beauty on every level, including relationally. At the same time, we are capable of the most horrendous inhumanity to man..or on every day level, just our pettiness and selfishness. We are a study in contrasts: majesty and misery!! When we say the bible is true we mean that not just in spiritual matters but it alone expresses and explains the complexities of the world we live in-including ourselves. The bible is really true.

Note that biblically, though we are the pinnacle of creation, we are not the goal of creation. The last and most sacred day is the 7th day which focuses on God. The sixth day is penultimate, but the ultimate day is the seventh. Perhaps that explains, at least in part, the meaning of 666. It elevates part of creation/man as the ultimate, raised to third power, which in Jewish thought is highest way of accenting something. Holy, holy, holy…God is dethroned in this antichrist scheme and mankind is elevated as the measure of all things. Imaging not God but Satan. I think that is the essence of 666 perhaps. And some person will come that personifies this satanic scheme. But we must remember we don’t exist for ourselves but to mirror God.

There are 2 extremes regarding the results of the fall and the image of God in us: some virtually deny that it affected us at all (like modern day Pelagians or paganism), and others say that the image was totally destroyed. We shall deal the first error in depth later, but re the latter the bible is clear that we are still made in His image—Gen. 9:6; 1 Cor. 11:7; James 3:9
6 “Whoever sheds the blood of man,
by man shall his blood be shed,
for God made man in his own image. (Gen. 9:6)
9 With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God. (James 3:17)
We are still humans, and the goal of redemption is to restore our true humanity—in all its earthy, lovely splendor.The goal of salvation is degree by degree restore God’s image in us.

The restoration of the fullness of the image of God in us is being accomplished by Christ. He is as Hebrews 1:3 says :”the brightness of His glory and the express image of His Person.”

Sanctiifcation is the restoration of our true humanness; as His image in all its rich fullness is restored degree by degree.

1. God created human beings—both male and female—in His image and likeness
2. There is some analogy between God and mankind that makes communication between them possible
3. Human beings, like God, are moral agents with the faculties of mind and will and creativity.
4. Humans are called to have dominion over the earth-subdue and build culture but not rape it.
5. In the fall, the image of God in us was marred
6. Christ is the perfect image of God, and he is restoring us to the fullness of the image of God.

Mark Hunnemann is the author of Seeing Ghosts Through God's Eyes: A Worldview Analysis of Earthbound Spirits. It's also available in eBook format.

The Devil has Full Authority--What You AREN'T Taught in Church!

The devil truly understands the authority that it has over the world. Sadly, many people do not understand this aspect. For you see even Christ Jesus did not question the authority that the devil had for when he was tempted by the devil to be given all that is in this world.

What I am writing about today should be going off like an alarm to you on the inside. For you see this is NOT taught in churches. Let's jump and go back into Genesis and in this book we find that God had intended Adam and Eve to have dominion (authority/ruler-ship) over this earth Gen. 1:28.

However, because of Adam's disobedience to God, Adam therefore surrendered the authority (legal rights) over the earth, the regents, stewards, trustee's to the devil by partaking in the forbidden fruit according to Gen. 3.

By this act of surrendering of legal rights by Adam the Devil was given these rights over the dominion of the world. Therefore, God had to send HIS only Begotten Son to remove those rights from the devil back to the creator.

This is just one aspect of training that you need to understand regarding Spiritual Warfare and Deliverance/Exorcism. Now you can see a bigger picture and understand why large percentages of humans throughout history - including even people today have DEMONS and they do not even know this, because of the authority transferring to the devil.

This even goes for Christians who profess Christ Jesus until they choose to go through the removal of legal authority via Deliverance/Exorcism to take the authority away from the Devil over their life by the command found in the Children's Bread story - which as a reminder is a direct command for all followers of Christ Jesus to do this act.

If we are to live successfully in Christ Jesus, the devil and its past influence in our lives must be thwarted. Of course, on-going repentance is key to reversing the process of sin and unholiness in our lives. But the devil is still the 'Prince of the power of the air' and it has great authority and power to influence our lives and actions.

We must be aware of Satanic realities about us that seek to draw us back into his grip, even after we have become born-again. We may be inclined to think since Christ Jesus dwells within us nothing, even Satan, can touch us. This is a wrong impression to have and sadly MANY churches preach and embrace this falseness!

After Calvary the Devil became like a wounded bear. It is out of control with fear, rage and hatred. As the time of judgment draws nearer and nearer so does the wrath and desperation increase against all - even followers of Christ Jesus. It will not fail to pull out all stops trying to destroy the works of God whenever and where ever it can. (Rev. 12:12)

The believer must be resistant and actively oppose the works of the Devil, not by word only, but by his life and deeds. If one resists the devil and is walking daily in the spirit that person will not be sinning. For you see it is not possible to walk in the Spirit of Christ and sin. The Spirit of God does not sin - ever; cannot sin, it makes no sense to say or think that God can sin.

This is an immutable contradiction for us to even think that we should still be open to sin at all, but sadly MANY people do just this because they choose to not make the flesh like stone. This is just one of the reasons why God came in the flesh was to destroy the works of the Devil. "He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the Devil." (1 John 3:8)

For you see HERE is what the churches and MANY do not understand WHY Christians can and will have DEMONS - Due to our past companionship with the spirit of the world (the Devil), our complicitous dalliance with Satan and due to our full involvement in sin, Satan still has legal right to harangue us, attack us and generally oppress us with his strategy of hate and deceit. Even though you profess Christ - YOUR past still gives the devil LEGAL authority to YOU!! This is why EVERY Christian is to go through Deliverance/Exorcism to remove the past aspects.

Remember HE who controls and owns the past has the future!!! Deliverance is the friend and ally of every Christian who expects to have a close and victorious walk with Christ Jesus. It is Christ Jesus Himself who likened it to "the children's bread" when He had an exchange with a Gentile woman who sought deliverance from an unclean spirit for her young daughter.

When she asked the Lord Jesus Christ to free her daughter from this afflicting spirit Jesus at first told her that He would not, saying, "It is not meet to cast the children's bread unto dogs" (Mark 7:27). But it was her cry for mercy when she responded that even the dogs eat of the crumbs from the children's table that caused Christ Jesus to reconsider and cast the spirit out of the youth.

Whatever His reasons for saying this and first refusing, one thing remains clear: Christ Jesus was saying that deliverance from evil spirits (and, we can surmise, deliverance from sin and oppression of all sorts) is THE CHILDREN'S BREAD!

It is my prayer that each reader will embrace Deliverance/Exorcism as the sweet bread and nourishment that it truly is. Since it is the children's bread then it should be consumed by us like a little child eating a goody. We should not doubt its sweet goodness.

We shouldn’t fool ourselves. When deliverance and such things are brought to us by God our flesh reacts with such bitterness and resentment. We are easily embarrassed, as well as offended. What do you mean I have a flaw?  What do you mean I need the hand of God to supernaturally and powerfully deliver me from the influence of evil that has overcome me by my own doing?

But we should not be embarrassed. We should resist the temptation to sweep our personal need for deliverance under the rug. Deliverance is THE CHILDREN’S BREAD. Deliverance is a friend. It is God's mercy. It helps us to grow. In fact, without it one can’t grow into maturity within Christ Jesus.  Exorcism/Deliverance is a lifelong friend which every Christian, young and old, strong and weak, experienced and inexperienced, needs to invite into their heart daily.

If we want to grow into full and strong "adult" Christian, into what the Scripture calls the "measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ" (Eph. 4:13), we must eat of the children's bread, accepting the fact that we all need deliverance from demonic influences and spirits that are contrary to the Spirit of God. This is fundamental to our growth in Christ Jesus!


Rev. Bradley Luoma

My Basic Beliefs About What the Paranormal Realm IS...

... and How That Relates to People’s Suffering

by Reverend Mark Hunnemann

continued from Viewing the Paranormal from a Biblical Worldview, Part 1

Ever since I became interested in the paranormal, I felt a call from God to analyze the basic beliefs of the paranormal community. But underneath that was a deeply felt compassion and concern for those who are unwittingly exposing themselves to danger by their involvement in the paranormal and the demonic.

Recently, I came across an excellent article by Tim Yohe, whom I have subsequently met, who expressed concern about the physical dangers of being exposed to the demonic via involvement with the paranormal. Tim was kind enough to mention me in his blog and I sincerely want to thank him for his gracious and kind spirit…as well as his deep compassion for those who are (or may) suffering from serious diseases or organ failure. Tim mentioned that he met a woman who is trying to collate the data of the connection between the paranormal and ‘getting sick’….hopefully by July.

It occurred to me that if we want to deal with this issue thoroughly, then we need to ask a very basic question: WHAT IS THE PARANORMAL REALM? If we wish to understand more fully why an increasing number of folks are suffering by being involved with the paranormal, then we must understand what the paranormal realm IS. That will be my main focus in this blog.

In this blog I simply want to explore the origin and nature of the spirit realm. I will mostly leave it to the reader to assess what is appropriate behavior towards the supernatural realm, after discussing what it IS. My ultimate criterion which gives justification for my beliefs is the Word of God, which is based on the unchanging character of our Triune God. If you are a Christian, then I trust that the Word of God is your ultimate criterion as well. We desperately need to recover a CHRISTIAN MIND, especially with regards to this exploding fascination with the paranormal. All too often we mirror the intellectual status quo, instead of having our minds thoroughly transformed…able to reflect deeply and honestly with people’s honest intellectual questions, which deserve honest intellectual answers. It is a matter of compassion that we listen to the questions/beliefs of those around us, and express an observable love to a watching world.

 As I mentioned, I have had the honor of communicating with Tim Yohe, whom I quoted from a couple weeks ago…and whom I have grown to deeply respect.  He is a man that cares deeply for those who are suffering, and he is trying to do something about it. We share a mutual burden….

As will become clearer, I’m not going to appeal to the scientific method to answer this extremely vital question. Instead, please read the following texts which shed God’s light on the origin and nature of the supernatural realm, which has taken our nation by storm. How can we answer other questions, if we are not clear on what the paranormal realm actually IS? And the bible has a lot to say about that.

He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. 16 For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. 17 And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18 And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. 19 For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross. (Colossians 1:15-20)

Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came among them. 7 The Lord said to Satan, “From where have you come?” Satan answered the Lord and said, “From going to and fro on the earth, and from walking up and down on it.” (Job 1)

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. 11 Put on the whole armor of God that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. 12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. 13 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 firm. (Ephesians 6)

8 Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. 9 Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world. (1 Peter 5:8-9)

We know that we are from God, and the whole world lies in the power of the evil one. (1 John 5:19)

What do these texts teach us about what the paranormal realm IS?

1. God created all things, including the paranormal realm (invisible, supernatural, spirit realm) out of nothing for His glory. (Genesis 1:1; Colossians 1:15-18) Because the Triune God created the supernatural realm: He owns it, He sustains it moment by moment, and He is absolutely sovereign over it. That MUST be our starting point in our quest. The bible’s view of the paranormal realm (as with all reality) is theo-centric. There are no brute facts in any realm…only theistic facts or data. He not only created and owns the spirit realm, He sustains it moment-by-moment. Otherwise it would ‘poof’ out of existence.

2. Though the Word of God (bible) is not an exhaustive handbook on the paranormal realm, it tells us all we need to know (explicitly or by inference) about it in order to function and interact appropriately with it. (2 Timothy 3:16-17) But that does not mean that there are certain aspects of the paranormal which we can’t learn from observation.

Should we explore it though, like the natural realm? I’ll leave that to you to decide after answering what it IS.

3. Before we ask what is appropriate behavior regarding the paranormal—what kind of exploration is proper?—we need to know what the spirit realm IS? From Genesis to Revelation, the invisible realm on earth is the place that God has sovereignly placed Satan and his demons, until they are hurled into hell for all eternity. (see texts above) Of course, holy/elect angels exist here as well, but the paranormal realm ON EARTH is where Satan and countless demons lurk around as roaring lions, seeking those whom they can devour. The important thing to note is that GOD placed Satan and his minions here…in what we call the paranormal realm.

 It is the spiritual battleground between angels and demons. God has placed them here on earth, and as spirit beings, they operate from the spirit realm…interacting with the visible realm. The important fact is that, by God’s decree, the entire paranormal realm is a supernatural battle field in which a battle royal is being waged. It is imperative that we understand that the paranormal realm is essentially a place where armed conflict of the most vicious kind is occurring moment-by-moment (Daniel 10; Ephesians 6, ect.) Of course this conflict spills over into the natural realm, but its origin is in the spirit realm, what we call the paranormal.

I live next to a national military park—where the Battle of Guilford Courthouse was waged in March 1789. It is a battlefield, but it is an INACTIVE battlefield. The spirit realm/heavenlies (Ephesians 6) is an ACTIVE battlefield….every human being is a target for Satan/demons who are lurking about…HERE.

This is extremely important—if I could use just one word to express what the paranormal realm IS, it is a “BATTLEFIELD”. Surely, this fact sheds some light on the dangers of purposely ‘entering it’.
Would you rush headlong into a fire-fight between American soldiers and ISIS terrorists? Surely not! Satan/demons are the ultimate cosmic terrorists who are waging war 24/7, and we must re-think if we are endangering ourselves by certain behaviors relative to the paranormal realm.

4. The creation/cultural mandate given first to Adam and Eve, and then to their descendants, was to subdue all creation (Genesis 1:26-29) in a way that reflected God’s holy and loving character—and love for His creation. However, you will note that this foundation for the scientific enterprise and technological advancements is limited to the natural realm.

In Genesis 2:19-20 God brought before Adam all the various kinds of animals, and whatever Adam called them, that was their name—showing the creation/cultural mandate in action. Again, this holy and happy taxonomic exploration was limited to the natural/visible realm. Never does God ask Adam to name any inhabitants of the supernatural or explore it. Why not?

Perhaps one is thinking, “Adam also did not explore space…go the moon…experience the internet.” Quite true! But he started the ball rolling that eventually brought us to that place. Moreover, all of the technological advances mentioned are within the realm that God sanctioned for exploration—namely, the natural realm.

Just because we can do something, does mean that we should…and we are finding out now the physical suffering many people are enduring for trying to extend the creation mandate to the spirit realm.

The urge to extend exploration to the paranormal is understandable because we are naturally inquisitive. However, in light what the paranormal realm IS, should we not re-think our strategy and assumptions?

5.  As a corollary, we are given no indication that Adam’s creational supremacy and stewardship extended to the paranormal realm. (I am not referring to the work of Christ, but creational inquiry) Indeed the first appearance of a paranormal creature was Satan, who had taken over control (or appeared as) one of the beasts of the field(3:1)…where he is called ‘a beast of the field’. The Hebrew word (arum) for ‘crafty’ does not necessarily take on the negative connotations of English usage.

6. Given all of the above—what the paranormal IS--what role should a child of God (or anyone) play in exploring the paranormal realm? I have no doubt that discoveries are being made, but at what price? Something I am convinced of is that folks will NEVER be able to discern the true identity of paranormal entities solely through scientific means. The scientific method was designed to discover God’s laws graciously manifested in nature. It is not equipped to explore a realm which is essentially a spiritual battleground, harboring creatures of unspeakable evil and deception. When scientists explore the visible realm (from astro-physics to zoology), they don’t have to be concerned about entities who are pure evil and who are master deceivers—and who will intentionally manipulate the data to suit their infernal purposes. How can we trust the results, when they are hell-bent on deceiving us?

In sum, we have been speaking of the physical dangers folks face when exploring the paranormal. My hope and prayer is that this brief blog will shed some light on this subject. Given what we have seen about what the paranormal realm IS—and I say this with tears—is it any wonder that some folks are getting very sick and even dying?

"Seeing Ghosts through God's Eyes" (also in a Kindle edition)...please consider purchasing my book which uses science, logic, and the bible to analyze the true source of power behind paranormal activity.

The Four Witches

This blog is being covered as I am working with several cases that involves a couple of these powerful witches working in the bloodlines of families I am assisting.  According to ancient texts there are four female beings who are the Queen Demonesses thus the most powerful of witches who mated with a very powerful arch angel who is known as Satan.

These female beings were as follows: Lilith, Agrat Bat Mahlat, Eisheth Zenunim, and Naamah.  Now it is stated that these beings are part of Satan’s concubine so to speak which go against the rules of God.  Now according to these ancient texts three of these beings were said to have already been fallen angels while one was a mortal woman (the first woman, not Eve) who fled the Garden of Eden thus becoming a ‘demon’ due to whispering the very secret name of God.

These beings then became the known as the Queens of Hell, and all four have ‘begot’ with this arch angel who holds the title of Satan.  All but Lilith bore children; Lilith instead bore offspring called Lilim or Lithu known as ‘children of night terrors’.  While the others offspring were called ‘the oracles of divinity (witchcraft) and sacred prostitution’.  Discussed in the Kabbalah these offspring were sent to ‘lustful’ men in their sleep and removed some of their lust, or sent them on a journey to the oracles in order for their sin to be removed from their souls so they won’t become possessed.

Now, Lilith is the most well-known demon succubi.  The story of Lilith has so many “chapters” that the real question is where does one begin? For starters the Kabbalah states that Lilith was the first wife of Adam, but because she was made from the same materials as Adam (dust – not from his rib) and that Lilith was not submissive to him during sex.  Lilith wanted to be on top, but Adam felt because he was a male that it was his God given right to be on top. Furious, Lilith spoke the secret name of God thus then turning into a demon and flying out of the Garden of Eden.

Lilith having fled without eating from The Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil is believed to be immortal until the end of times.  When Lilith fled away she took refuge near The Red Sea.  Even though she left, she still visited Adam in his sleep via dreams and supposedly ‘begot’ with him and stole his seed.  Now God sent for Lilith to come back to Adam, so God sent three angels named Senoy, Sansenoy, and Semangelof to convince her to return.

They found her by The Red Sea and informed her that if she doesn’t return then 100 of her offspring shall die every day for her actions of being with the very powerful Satan.  Lilith indicated she’ll never return, but she will spare the human children who bore the mark of one of the three angels who visited her to make her return.

Many stories branch off into different interpretations, some say Lilith begot with Satan to turn her into a succubus and becoming a wife for Satan.  While others say she was the serpent who tricked Eve into eating the fruit from the forbidden tree so that their offspring would thus die as well.

Lilith is known as one of the Queen of Demons thus making her a very powerful witch.  Within the paranormal realm people have encountered and do not understand it is Lilith and her offspring tormenting many of the people.   It is said that Lilith will pursue every child born on this earth under the ancestors of Adam and Eve.  The first born is whom she really goes after due to using Witchcraft rights from ancestors who long ago passed away.  It is said in other texts that she has the head of a Lion and the tail of a scorpion if seen by a child this is who this is.  Lilith will also portray an image of an attractive blonde or dark haired woman as a spectre.

The next powerful queen demoness is known as Agrat Bat Mahlat.  In the Hebrew both Agrat and Mahlat are proper names, however Bat means ‘daughter of’; together the name means Agrat daughter of Mahlat.   Mahlat has a translation of ‘illusion, bringer of deception, or reward for deception’.

The Kabbalah references Agrat Bat Mahlat as one of the four sacred angels, who also begot with a specific fallen arch angel known as Satan, once again not Lucifer.  In Rabbinic literature Agrat Bat Mahlot is “the dancing roof-demon” who dances while Lilith sings.  Agrat Bat Mahlat is also known as “the mistress of the sorceresses” who communicated magic secrets to Amemar, a Jewish sage.

Agrat Bat Mahlat is also said to have ‘begot’ with King David and as a result bore Asmodeus, known as the ‘King of Demons.’  However, Agrat Bat Mahlat is depicted like the Gorgon and is better known as ‘Medusa’ because she has snakes as her hair and is a Witch Queen.

Agrat Bat Mahlat will also show herself as on old elderly woman with very frazzled hair to humans.  When a human practices witchcraft or pagan worship it is believed to be her that is thus behind the witchcraft giving power to the dark realm, thus leading the human away from God.

The next queen demoness is known as Eisheth Zenunim.  She is the crone succubus and believed to be the first wife of Satan as well as the very first succubi.  Eisheth Zenunim is about the importance of sexuality and women’s rights (much like Lilith) and is shown as a crone, but she’s ‘the destroyer and bringer of life’, thus manifesting as a thin, graceful crone shown wearing golden robes and a crown with 6 horns.  Eisheth Zenunim is justice based, she goes by “an eye for an eye”.  You have heard that term before and now you know where this comes from.

Lastly is the queen demoness who oversees prostitution and this one is known as Naamah.  The name translates to ‘pleasant’ or ‘pleasing’.  Naamah is said to be one of the goddess’ of divination and the goddess of the earth (i.e. mother earth).  It’s not clear on how she became a demoness of sacred prostitution. The Kabbalah depicts Naamah as a fallen angel and also begot with Satan.

Naamah is said to have joined Lilith in visiting Adam as a succubi, bearing children as well.  Naamah is said to be to so attractive that no one can refuse her, not Satan, not Lucifer nor any angel and certainly not man.  Naamah will present herself as a crouching woman with an animal body in the paranormal realm as this is a very powerful evildoer and is also aligned with Abaddon – known as the ‘Destroyer’, The Gate Keeper of Hell, Baphomet, et cetera.

I pray this has opened someone’s eyes tonight regarding the falseness of witchcraft and how one or more of these powerful witches are active within the kingdom of evil against humans.

Blessings.


Rev. Bradley Luoma

Symptoms of Spiritual Pollution, Part 6

Continued from: 
Symptoms of Spiritual Pollution, Part 1
Symptoms of Spiritual Pollution, Part 2
Symptoms of Spiritual Pollution, Part 3
Symptoms of Spiritual Pollution, Part 4
Symptoms of Spiritual Pollution, Part 5

Understanding Spiritual Warfare -- Becoming a Victor

In my continuation on the blog series Spiritual Warfare from the last time I discussed the critical aspect of Intimacy with God based upon the 4 essential core values that one must have to defeat the kingdom of evil.  In this blog aspect we will now cover what many refer to as DISCERNMENT.  So what is the definition of discernment?

Discernment by definition found in Webster’s is as follows:  a quality of being able to grasp and comprehend what is obscure, an act of perceiving or discerning something.  So what does discernment in the spiritual sense then mean?  In the Christian context it means a perception in the absence of judgment with a view to obtaining spiritual direction and understanding.

Therefore let’s get this started: what is discernment?  This word has multiple definitions.  The culture within the Church wishes to define discernment as the power to see things which are not obvious to the average mind.  In other words, discernment is a special ability which sets a person apart as a special human.  However, once we start using words like “power” and “special”, our egos are listening attentively as well as the demons.

God talks about a person having discernment, this is a different definition.  So our dictionary states discernment can simply mean “showing insight and understanding”.  Spiritual discernment isn’t about power, this is about receiving information via the Holy Spirit.  This is about God helping a person see the difference between truth and deception.  Example of discernment is listen to a sermon, as you don’t want to just believe what you hear.   You will want to pray and ask the Holy Spirit to show you if anything the pastor is saying is truth. 

When you do this act of requesting to be shown truth you are asking God for discernment—you are asking for insight and understanding.  This is a comparison much like a student in a class and God is your teacher.  When you raise your hand to ask a question, you are asking for discernment.  A person is searching for clarification about something that bothers them. Sometimes God will give it to you, but sometimes God won’t.  All wisdom and understanding comes from God and thus God never downloads all of this wisdom into your brain at once.

As a person matures in their faith, they will find themselves feeling more and more dependent on God for everything.  God created you which as a powerless little speck you can’t do anything without Him.  This is a reality that will never change.  By listening to God’s truth, the more in touch a person will become and thus the total dependency on Him becomes even greater.  Now the opposite occurs as a person listens to lies, the more out of touch they become with their need for God. 

When people (whom are not righteous with God) encourage others to view themselves as a little Harry Potter—which is a person who is born with some innate supernatural powers, with which just some cultivating work can turn them into a master over the spiritual realms.  These individuals are teaching you to embrace or downplay your dependency on God.  These people are teaching others to downplay the dependency on God.  Unfortunately, those unrighteous people are teaching these decent people to view God as your willing assistant and not the sovereign King over your life.  Do you think that such a mindset might create problems between you and God?  Answer:  Yes and Big ones at that.

So have you been told that have the gift of discernment by someone other than God?  Can you sense the presence of demonic forces more often and clearly more than other people?  Do you believe that you have a “special” ability to see into the spiritual realm?  Were you taught by someone other than God directly that those special abilities are indicators that God has specially equipped you for battling demons?  If so, then you have been led to a very dangerous place. 

The way you presently comprehend spiritual warfare and your own spiritual abilities is very damaging to your soul.  Being caught in a web of deceptions is only going to carry you deeper and farther into a plot of delusions.  A person can’t draw close to God when they’re clinging to those delusions.  However, these kinds of delusions which one is headed towards are that these extremely addictive lies leaves a person wanting more.  These actions will serve the ego so much that you won’t want to let them go.  Demons know how to make lies sound far more attractive than truth and have been doing this since Adam & Eve.  The dangerous aspects are that you are some spirit kicking warrior is one of their favorite games to play with these self-absorbed individuals.

Now wait a second—are you saying that demons would encourage one to believe they are a threat to them?  Oh, yes and in a heartbeat.  That whole rebuking package that they’ve been sold—it comes straight from them.  Demons enjoy it when you start rebuking them in the Name of Jesus or better yet—chanting Bible verses at them.  Maybe you’ve been sold the version in which you’re supposed to hold up some large crucifix to drive those evil spirits back and commanding them to leave by just the presence of a crucifix.

Perhaps these spiritual mentors of yours took you down the holy liquids boulevard.  Teaching you to apply upon yourself some holy oil, holy water or something else holy as a physical shield against those powers of darkness.  This is all such a fantastic scam and unfortunately you are the victim.  If you’re serious about wanting to know God (i.e. drawing close) and thus please God with your life, then there is a whole lot of relearning needed about the spiritual realm. 

Getting a person to the proper place in their life with God is a challenge due to truth.  However, this isn’t going to be an enjoyable trek because God’s truth is often very repulsive to our own pride. Sadly, truth is truth, and trying to ignore it doesn’t change anything, this just ends up harming you further by ignoring the truth. Many people feel that God will adjust reality to suit their wishful thinking and that will not happen.  If you want to please God, then you have to submit to His rules and align yourself with His definition of truth, not your definition of truth especially in Spiritual Warfare.

In our next blog we will cover DEMONS and what this affords a person as this is thrown around in Spiritual Warfare.


Rev. Bradley Luoma, Exorcist

Incubus and Succubus

Subject Contains Graphic Nature. 18 And Up Is Advised.....

Keep in mind some of this is Legend, Myth, some Christian Mythology and my humble opinion. No one really knows for sure. Some content is true by the laws of the bible but to many who have different religious or non religious faith will view differently. In addition it can be interpreted differently by each person as well. I was asked about” how many demons had been confined by God?” I can’t answer that other than with these verses. Some are confined (2 Peter 2:4) but many are active in the world. (Matthew 12:43-45). They only seek to go against the purposes of God. (Ephesians 6:11-13), they promote their own system of doctrine. (1 Timothy 4:1), they can inflict diseases (Matthew 9:23) and possess the bodies of men and of some animals. (Matthew 4:244:2), Mark 5:13.

OK...according to Legend, Incubus and Succubus manifest themselves during the nocturnal hours, preying on the victim when they are sleeping, although there have been some cases where females have actually been sexually assaulted while fully awake. Any female who undergoes an incubus sexual assault will not awaken, although she may experience it in a dream. It was said If she becomes pregnant, the child will grow inside her as any normal child except that it will have supernatural powers. The child grows into a evil character or a powerful wizard. According to legend, it is said that the magician Merlin was the result of physical contact between an incubus and a nun.

A succubus is the female version, and she seduces men. According legend, the incubus and the succubus were fallen angels. The word incubus is Latin for "nightmare". Succubus in medieval European folklore, a female demon who sets out to seek men in their sleep to have Ghostly Intercourse. The man who falls victim to a succubus will not awaken, although may experience it while in the dream state. Some believe there was a biblical Lilith believed to be the first wife to Adam before Eve. She is said to also have been the very first succubus on earth. There is a version of Lilith in all religions in the world. These creatures usually from what I have read have different names, such as Marilith or Lilitu.

Just as is the case with the succubus, there are also many legends about incubus but these are not be confused with succubi which is the plural of succubus. The incubi are said to be fallen angels in Judeo Christianity who fell to earth because they had sex with mortal women. It has been said that pregnancy has been blamed on these creatures as a way out of cheating and or sex out of wedlock.

This subject could go on and on. This is so much more to this so feel free to Google and research. I touched base on this subject as best as I could in a nutshell. I hope to those who emailed me have a better basis on where to start but lets not obsess over Demons too much. Giving them too much attention can be dangerous in my humble opinion.

Wishing all a fabulous and blessed week!

Written by Jennifer L. Auld

NOTE: Due to Jennifer's caseload, this is a repeat blog.

Incubus and Succubus

Subject Contains Graphic Nature. 18 And Up Is Advised.....

Keep in mind some of this is Legend, Myth, some Christian Mythology and my humble opinion. No one really knows for sure. Some content is true by the laws of the bible but to many who have different religious or non religious faith will view differently. In addition it can be interpreted differently by each person as well. I was asked about” how many demons had been confined by God?” I can’t answer that other than with these verses. Some are confined (2 Peter 2:4) but many are active in the world. (Matthew 12:43-45). They only seek to go against the purposes of God. (Ephesians 6:11-13), they promote their own system of doctrine. (1 Timothy 4:1), they can inflict diseases (Matthew 9:23) and possess the bodies of men and of some animals. (Matthew 4:244:2), Mark 5:13.

OK...according to Legend, Incubus and Succubus manifest themselves during the nocturnal hours, preying on the victim when they are sleeping, although there have been some cases where females have actually been sexually assaulted while fully awake. Any female who undergoes an incubus sexual assault will not awaken, although she may experience it in a dream. It was said If she becomes pregnant, the child will grow inside her as any normal child except that it will have supernatural powers. The child grows into a evil character or a powerful wizard. According to legend, it is said that the magician Merlin was the result of physical contact between an incubus and a nun.

A succubus is the female version, and she seduces men. According legend, the incubus and the succubus were fallen angels. The word incubus is Latin for "nightmare". Succubus in medieval European folklore, a female demon who sets out to seek men in their sleep to have Ghostly Intercourse. The man who falls victim to a succubus will not awaken, although may experience it while in the dream state. Some believe there was a biblical Lilith believed to be the first wife to Adam before Eve. She is said to also have been the very first succubus on earth. There is a version of Lilith in all religions in the world. These creatures usually from what I have read have different names, such as Marilith or Lilitu.

Just as is the case with the succubus, there are also many legends about incubus but these are not be confused with succubi which is the plural of succubus. The incubi are said to be fallen angels in Judeo Christianity who fell to earth because they had sex with mortal women. It has been said that pregnancy has been blamed on these creatures as a way out of cheating and or sex out of wedlock.

This subject could go on and on. This is so much more to this so feel free to Google and research. I touched base on this subject as best as I could in a nutshell. I hope to those who emailed me have a better basis on where to start but lets not obsess over Demons too much. Giving them too much attention can be dangerous in my humble opinion.

Next week we will discuss Angels and Angelology. As always if you have any questions (you can be anonymous) or any concerns, prayer requests or help, you can contact me via email at biblicaldemonologist@gmail.com or1Demonologychic at Twitter. I will do my best to answer and/or help you to the best of my knowledge and abilities. Wishing all a fabulous and blessed week!

Written by Jennifer L. Auld