To maintain integrity in interpreting the scriptures, certain principles should be adhered. This avoids personal application of meaning and presuppositions. It takes discipline to hold to these principles when they fly in the face of our preconceptions. … More Five Principles of Interpretation
Prayer is communicating with God. Pray brings one into relationship with God and comes out of that relationship; therefore, certain elements in the life of a Christian that can hinder prayers. For our prayers to be productive, we should consider these five areas. … More Can prayers be hindered?
Jesus gave this outline or guide in which to pray. By using this simple model, we can see the areas that prayer should cover. Since prayer is communicating with God, it is important that listening be a part of each portion. For example, while you are worshiping and giving honor and adoration to the Father, it would be to your advantage to pause and listen in your spirit to see if the Holy Spirit gives you a strong impression or spiritual thought. It is also helpful to be prepared to write down what you receive in prayer. … More Jesus’ Model of Prayer
Though one may have a clear conscience, that in and of itself does not make it an acceptable practice at all times. Some may reject Paul’s warning with a judgment, “Those Christians are just too narrow-minded and legalistic! I am going to do what I like; I have liberty in Christ.” Such an attitude reveals a lack of love for the Body of Christ and will not preserve the unity of the Spirit. Let us walk in our liberty but not use it to bring an offense to another. … More When You are Offended Without a Cause
Very few people actually like confrontation. In fact, it is so few that I have never met anyone who actually admitted to liking it, but seasoned disciples know the valuable fruit it brings. Healthy dialogue is necessary for peace to flourish. A failure to interact with another out of weakness or fear can only produce conflict later. … More When is it Right to Confront a Brother?
Whatever you see prevailing from the kingdom of darkness, you can counter by living and acting in the opposite spirit. If perversion is prevalent, then the Christian should manifest purity. The Church is to be the salt and light to the world. Your life stands in contrast to darkness. When proper actions and decisions are kept, the influence of demonic power is broken. Each believer who acts in the opposite spirit diminishes Satan’s strongholds. … More Exercising Authority in Warfare
Once you identify the operations of Satan, you can exercise your authority in various means of spiritual warfare. Being able to identify Satan’s influences is a key to overcoming him. … More Spiritual Warfare
What negative talk do you have in your life? Are you telling yourself that you will never amount to anything? Are you saying, that you do not deserve better? Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal any self-talk or destructive thoughts that may be holding you back from the purposes of God in your life. … More Self-Inflicted Wounds
Identifying specific names given to evil spirits helps us in our fight against these powers. Tomorrow we will begin dealing with our struggle and how to participate in this fight. … More Demon Forces
Two extremes are often taken when discussing issues related to Satan and demons. First, some think that Satan is not real and that demons do not exist. In our modern world, the idea of the existence of demons may seem primitive and even unenlightened. Science can find physical relationships to most problems; therefore, many assume that none are related to demonic activity. The second extreme is to associate most every conflict or problem directly to demons or the devil. To error on this side gives too much credit to the devil and creates curiosity and interest in darkness. This error arises from a misunderstanding of Satan’s activities and how he operates with his demonic forces. … More Who is Satan?
GLENN SHAFFER 