Getting to the root!

In the King James Version, one of the names for Satan is Beelzebub (Mt. 12:24; Luke 11:18) – It means “Lord of the Flies” or “Lord of the Dung.” 

   A disgusting reference to waste and ultimately, a spiritual reference to moral degeneracy.

In other words, Satan, you are Lord of Manure!  That’s what you are king over! You are ’Lord of the Flies'.  Flies do not breed on waste - they are in the waste.......

When an animal is grazing, it eats the eggs on the grass or bushes, which then go through its system and don't get digested. Thus when the animal defecates, the eggs are right there.....in a perfectly controlled,

 temperature-friendly environment made naturally for hatching. Manure begins to work as soon as it is on the ground - and the temperature is warm  -  - great for hatching eggs.  It is a cycle that science fights to stop, but can’t. Therefore you get generation after generation of pests and infestation.

Defecate means, ‘to get rid of solid waste from your body’. That is what the devil is lord over, lord of manure, of flies.................pure evil, pure wrong, absent of any righteous....

In Matthew 4:1-11, Jesus fought satan, ‘the lord of manure,’ or ‘the lord of flies,’ and for forty days the 'lord of flies' could not defile Jesus...he couldn’t dirty our Savior. After the conclusion of that battle when Jesus was hungry, worn out, and undefiled, satan continued to attack him through 3 final tests of which Jesus succeeded to stay pure, unsoiled and undefiled.

But what is significant about Jesus' battle with Satan, is the 40 days. That 40 days is important, because in agriculture when you have an infestation of flies...which carry loads of disease and sickness...in order to kill the flies when you spray, you have to do it for 40 consecutive days. All flies have a life cycle that is under or  equal to the 40 days, so if you spray one day you will only kill the hatched flies of that particular day. The unhatched eggs buried in the manure are going to hatch at a later date, and you better spray again if you want to kill them, or else you will have more flies...and more eggs. So, you have to spray and spray and spray for 40 consecutive days in order to totally stop the infestation..........

Jesus fasted and was tempted by the devil for 40 days. Each day that He didn’t sin, He destroyed a root (egg) of sin until He completely and thoroughly destroyed the sin infestation of satan........

Before Jesus went out into His ministry, He had to be sure that there was nothing behind Him.  He had to know that the devil had already been defeated because Christ had all power and authority over him. There could be no doubt. His position as Son of God, with all authourity over everything He had created in heaven and on earth, had to be confirmed. Satan could have no doubt when in a conflict with Jesus that he would not succeed in any wrestling matches that would surely arise.  Jesus destroyed Satan's unchallenged power right there in the wilderness - He took all authority right there. There were no more eggs, or roots of a sin from this point, on that Jesus hadn't destroyed......

Not only was Satan defeated out there in the wilderness during those 40 days, but Jesus showed satan that there were no more eggs or any roots to come up later when our Savior was preaching and teaching. When you get the root out, it is over, it is done. Jesus was saying, basically, that there was nothing behind Him... no root to sprout an unwelcomed influence, nothing of Satan  rising up and causing Him a problem to come back and haunt Him, or distract Him later when He was ministering to hurting people.

Using that, remember, during your 40 days of Lent, don't just ask God to help you stay off of chocolate, or give up TV, or stop cussing for 40 days. Instead, go for something deeper and more meaningful. Ask Jesus to remove a deep root to the cause of your stumbling.  Make Lent a season of spiritual victory. God love ya.

The Road to Calvary

For many of us Christians, Easter Sunday is the most significant day of the year!  Christmas is about the birth of Jesus, but Resurrection Sunday is about His victory.  Think about it, dear ones, of all the billions in the world, only one man, Jesus Christ of Nazereth, came back to life after His horrible death -  - and still lives. For me, my soul stirs as I remember Jesus' victory over sin, satan, hell and death.
For centuries, Christians have observed a forty-day period of preparation that ends just before Easter - called Lent. They use these very solemn days to focus on what our Lord Jesus taught and went through during His last days on earth.
This Sunday I will be teaching on what Jesus did and how it shapes Lent. We will also be passing out a beautifully printed booklet to be used for the next 40 days called: 'Journey to the Cross - 40 days of discovery'.  You will enjoy a short reading, reflection and a space for meaningful comments for every day of the Lenten period. It's a great way to add meaning to these days & a great time to worship the Lord.
The first day of this special period is called Ash Wednesday.  During Ash Wednesday services, worshipers come forward, and the pastor makes a mark in the shape of a cross on each person's forehead or wrist. Is that kool or what?  The dastardly devil has the no. 666 but we have so much more, we have the cross!
This cross that is placed on the forehead or wrist is made of ashes, usually from palm branches from the previous year.
It might seem gloomy to today's world, but I think it creates a powerful impression on us that reminds us that trouble, sickness, and death came into God's perfect creation because two human beings rebelled and wanted to do it their way. God could have abandoned us, but He didn't.  Instead, He came even closer to us through His Son, Jesus Christ, who became a human being to rescue us.
Jesus paid a debt He didn't owe, because we owed a debt we could never pay. Now, we are free from the debt of sin! Sin has no more hold on us!  Because of Christ death, and resurrection we receive eternal life in heaven.  Those who don't know Jesus as Savior, have a destiny of hell and suffering eternally with Satan.
So Wednesday, Feburary 13th at 7pm come and receive the mark of a Christian - the mark of the cross! Bear it gladly-whether quietly on your wrist or boldly and visibly on your forehead, and if anyone asks about it, tell them: Jesus died and rose again for us!