JOEL 2 GENERATION PODCAST

A follow-up to the last podcast message - wherein we definitely need a BAPTISM of BOLDNESS to preach the Gospel, throughout Church History the most spectacular expression of BOLDNESS is undoubtedly the hundreds of thousands of Christians who have lost their lives for their faith as martyrs. 

In this follow-up message, I share many of those stories - from the Apostle Peter's martyrdom in the first century to Polycarp's (a personal disciple of the Apostle John) in the 2nd century to the innumerable martyrs in the early 4th century (AD 303-AD 313) that was infamously known as the "Diocletian Persecution". 

The level of boldness that the martyrdoms during the Diocletian Persecution illustrate is hard for us to believe today. However, annually they estimate that today more than 300,000 Christian martyrs die annually for their faith around the world. So, maybe it is for us Western Christians that this level of boldness is so hard to believe.

May we be inspired to live our lives differently as we consider the names and stories of these early Christian martyrs! Many of them had many opportunities to deny Christ and save their lives - and yet, they chose NOT to deny their Lord and suffered the most horrible torture and painful deaths in the Name of the Lord Jesus.

A powerful message by my wife Natalie where she looks at the transformation that took place in the life of the Apostle Peter when he received the Baptism of the Holy Spirit. A baptism we ALL need as well. May this message inspire you to pursue God for the type of encounter that Peter himself had so that we can live the lives that God is calling us to live!

Acts 2:16-21  - 16 But this is what was uttered through the prophet Joel: 17 “‘And in the last days it shall be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams; 18 even on my male servants and female servants in those days I will pour out my Spirit, and they shall prophesy. 19 And I will show wonders in the heavens above and signs on the earth below, blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke; 20 the sun shall be turned to darkness and the moon to blood, before the day of the Lord comes, the great and magnificent day. 21 And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.’

Matthew 14:28-30 - 28 And Peter answered him, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.” 29 He said, “Come.” So, Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus. 30 But when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out, “Lord, save me.”

Matthew 16:21-23 - 21 From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised. 22 And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, “Far be it from you, Lord! This shall never happen to you.” 23 But he turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.”

Matthew 26:30-35 - 30 And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives. 31 Then Jesus said to them, “You will all fall away because of me this night. For it is written, ‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.’ 32 But after I am raised up, I will go before you to Galilee.” 33 Peter answered him, “Though they all fall away because of you, I will never fall away.” 34 Jesus said to him, “Truly, I tell you, this very night, before the rooster crows, you will deny me three times.” 35 Peter said to him, “Even if I must die with you, I will not deny you!” And all the disciples said the same.

Matthew 26:36-44 - 36 Then Jesus went with them to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to his disciples, “Sit here, while I go over there and pray.” 37 And taking with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, he began to be sorrowful and troubled. 38 Then he said to them, “My soul is very sorrowful, even to death; remain here, and watch with me.” 39 And going a little farther he fell on his face and prayed, saying, “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.” 40 And he came to the disciples and found them sleeping. And he said to Peter, “So, could you not watch with me one hour? 41 Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” 42 Again, for the second time, he went away and prayed, “My Father, if this cannot pass unless I drink it, your will be done.” 43 And again he came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were heavy. 44 So, leaving them again, he went away and prayed for the third time, saying the same words again.

Matthew 26:69-72 - 69 Now Peter was sitting outside in the courtyard. And a servant girl came up to him and said, “You also were with Jesus the Galilean.” 70 But he denied it before them all, saying, “I do not know what you mean.” 71 And when he went out to the entrance, another servant girl saw him, and she said to the bystanders, “This man was with Jesus of Nazareth.” 72 And again he denied it with an oath: “I do not know the man.”

John 19:25-26 - 25 but standing by the cross of Jesus were his mother and his mother's sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. 26 When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to his mother, “Woman, behold, your son!”

John 20:19 - On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being locked where the disciples were for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.”

Acts 1:8 - But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

Acts 2:1-4 – 1 When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. 2 And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. 3 And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.

Acts 2:14 - But Peter, standing with the eleven, lifted up his voice and addressed them: “Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and give ear to my words.

Acts 2:36, 38 - 36 Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.”…38 And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

Acts 3:14-16, 26 - 14 But you denied the Holy and Righteous One, and asked for a murderer to be granted to you, 15 and you killed the Author of life, whom God raised from the dead. To this we are witnesses. 16 And his  name—by faith in his name—has made this man strong whom you see and know, and the faith that is through Jesus has given the man this perfect health in the presence of you all.... 26 God, having raised up his servant, sent him to you first, to bless you by turning every one of you from your wickedness.”

Acts 4:3 - And they arrested them and put them in custody until the next day, for it was already evening.

Acts 4:8-13 - 8 Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “Rulers of the people and elders, 9 if we are being examined today concerning a good  deed done to a crippled man, by what means this man has been healed, 10 let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead—by him this man is standing before you well.  11 This Jesus is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone. 12 And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” 13 Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated, common men, they were astonished. And they recognized that they had been with Jesus.

Acts 4:18-20 - 18 So they called them and charged them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. 19 But Peter and John answered them, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, you must judge, 20 for we cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard.”

Acts 4:29-31 - 29 And now, Lord, look upon their threats and grant to your servants to continue to speak your word with all  boldness, 30 while you stretch out your hand to heal, and signs and wonders are performed through the name of your holy servant Jesus.” 31 And when they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness.

Acts 5:14-21 - 14 And more than ever believers were added to the Lord, multitudes of both men and women, 15 so that they even carried out the sick into the streets and laid them on cots and mats, that as Peter came by at least his shadow might fall on some of them. 16 The people also gathered from the towns around Jerusalem, bringing the sick and those afflicted with unclean spirits, and they were all healed. 17 But the high priest rose up, and all who were with him (that is, the party of the Sadducees), and filled with jealousy 18 they arrested the apostles and put them in the public prison. 19 But during the night an angel of the Lord opened the prison doors and brought them out, and said, 20 “Go and stand in the temple and speak to the people all the words of this Life.” 21 And when they heard this, they entered the temple at daybreak and began to teach. Now when the high priest came, and those who were with him, they called together the council, all the senate of the people of Israel, and sent to the prison to have them brought.

Acts 5:27-32 - 27 And when they had brought them, they set them before the council. And the high priest questioned them, 28 saying, “We strictly charged you not to teach in this name, yet here you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching, and you intend to bring this man's blood upon us.” 29 But Peter and the apostles answered, “We must obey God rather than men. 30 The God of our fathers raised Jesus, whom you killed by hanging him on a tree. 31 God exalted 

him at his right hand as Leader and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins. 32 And we are witnesses to these things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him.”

Acts 5:40-42 - 40 and when they had called in the apostles, they beat them and charged them not to speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go. 41 Then they left the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer dishonor for the name. 42 And every day, in the temple and from house to house, they did not cease teaching and preaching that the Christ is Jesus. 

SECOND TEMPLE JEWISH VIEW of the Origin of Sickness & Demons

“And we acted in accord with all of his words. All of the evil ones, who were cruel, we bound in the place of judgment, but a tenth of them we let remain so that they might be subject to Satan upon the earth. And the healing of all their illnesses together with their seductions we told Noah so that he might heal by means of herbs of the earth. And Noah wrote everything in a book just as we taught him according to every kind of healing. And the evil spirits were restrained from following the sons of Noah. (Jub 10:11–13) 

Commentary – Mastema [fallen angel] required assistance in his work of corrupting and afflicting humanity. The key item to observe is the reference to healing (Jub 10:13). VanderKam explains, “One way the spirits harmed humans was by causing diseases; so, God ordered the angels to teach Noah medicines to counteract their influence.” The Second Temple Jewish mind saw a clear connection between illness and demonic activity. This consequentially blurred the line between healing and exorcism and, as we have seen, the overlap is discernible in the Gospels. Demons: What the Bible Really Says About the Powers of Darkness 

NEW TESTAMENT VIEW OF SICKNESS & DEMONS

John 10:37-38 - If I do not do the works of My Father, do not believe Me; but if I do, though you do not believe Me, believe the works, that you may know and believe that the Father is in Me, and I in Him.”

John 14:12 - “Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do, because I am going to the Father.

“And he called to him his twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits , to cast them out , and to heal every disease and every affliction.… These twelve Jesus sent out, instructing them, “Go nowhere among the Gentiles (no Stage 3) and enter no town of the Samaritans (no Stage 2), but go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel (Stage 1). And proclaim as you go, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’ Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, cast out demons .” (Matt 10:1, 5–7a; compare Mark 3:13–15; 6:7–13; Luke 6:13; 9:1, 2) 

Luke 7:18-23 - 18 The disciples of John reported all these things to him. And John, 19 calling two of his disciples to him, sent them to the Lord, saying, “Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?” 20 And when the men had come to him, they said, “John the Baptist has sent us to you, saying, ‘Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?’” 21 In that hour he healed many people of diseases and plagues and evil spirits, and on many who were blind he bestowed sight. 22 And he answered them, “Go and tell John what you have seen and heard: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, the poor have good news preached to them. 23 And blessed is the one who is not offended by me.”

Luke 8:1-2 - “Soon afterward he went on through cities and villages, proclaiming and bringing the good news of the kingdom of God. And the twelve were with him, and also some women who had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities: Mary, called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out.

Luke 8:36 - And those who had seen it told them how the demon-possessed man had been healed. (Gerasene/Gadarene demonic)

Luke 9:37-43 - 37 On the next day, when they had come down from the mountain, a great crowd met him. 38 And behold, a man from the crowd cried out, “Teacher, I beg you to look at my son, for he is my only child. 39 And behold, a spirit seizes him, and he suddenly cries out. It convulses him so that he foams at the mouth, and shatters him, and will hardly leave him. 40 And I begged your disciples to cast it out, but they could not.” 41 Jesus answered, “O faithless and twisted generation, how long am I to be with you and bear with you? Bring your son here.” 42 While he was coming, the demon threw him to the ground and convulsed him. But Jesus rebuked the unclean spirit and healed the boy, and gave him back to his father. 43 And all were astonished at the majesty of God.

Luke 13:10-16 - 10 Now he was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath. 11 And behold, there was a woman who had had a disabling spirit (spirit of infirmity) for eighteen years. She was bent over and could not fully straighten herself. 12 When Jesus saw her, he called her over and said to her, “Woman, you are freed from your disability.” 13 And he laid his hands on her, and immediately she was made straight, and she glorified God. 14 But the ruler of the synagogue, indignant because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath, said to the people, “There are six days in which work ought to be done. Come on those days and be healed, and not on the Sabbath day.” 15 Then the Lord answered him, “You hypocrites! Does not each of you on the Sabbath untie his ox or his donkey from the manger and lead it away to water it? 16 And ought not this woman, a daughter of Abraham whom Satan bound for eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath day?”

Acts 5:16 - The people also gathered from the towns around Jerusalem, bringing the sick and those afflicted with unclean spirits, and they were all healed.

Acts 10:38 - how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him.

EARLY CHRISTIAN VIEW of the Origin of Sickness & Demons

 Furthermore, we are instructed by our sacred books how from certain angels, who fell of their own free will, there sprang a more wicked demon brood, condemned of God along with the authors of their race. ...Their great business is the ruin of mankind. So, from the start, spiritual wickedness sought our destruction. Accordingly, they inflict upon our bodies diseases and other grievous calamities. And by violent assaults, they hurry the soul into sudden and extraordinary excesses. ...By an influence equally obscure, demons and angels breathe into the soul, and rouse up its corruptions with furious passions and vile excesses.  Tertullian (AD 197)

“…the demons…No doubt, they are very kind, too, in regard to the healing of diseases! For, first of all, they make you ill. Then, to get a miracle out of it,...they withdraw their hurtful influence. Supposedly, then, they have wrought a cure!”  Tertullian (AD197)

 From the seed [of the fallen angels and women], giants [nephilim] are said to have been born. By them, arts were made known in the earth. They taught the dyeing of wool and everything that is done. When they died, men erected images to them. Yet, because they were of an evil seed, the Almighty did not approve of their being brought back from death when they had died. For that reason, they wander and they now subvert many bodies. And it is these whom you [pagans] presently worship and pray to as gods.  Commodianus (AD 240)

...As I was saying, these contaminated and abandoned spirits wander over the whole earth. They console their own ruin by destroying others. Therefore, they fill every place with snares, deceits, frauds, and errors. For they cling to individuals and even occupy whole houses, from door to door. ...And since spirits are without physical substance and cannot be held, they slink into the bodies of men. Secretly working in their inward parts, they corrupt the health of these persons, bring on diseases, terrify their souls with dreams, and harass their minds with frenzies. They do this so that by these evils, they may cause men to come to them for aid.  Lactantius (AD 304-313)

• Awareness of & Standing Against  “the schemes of the devil”

2 Corinthians 2:11 - 11 in order that Satan might not outwit us. For we are not unaware of his schemes.

Ephesians 6:10-12 - 10 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.

1 Corinthians 12:10 – “to another the ability to distinguish between spirits”

“He gives someone else the ability to discern whether a message is from the Spirit of God or from another spirit.”

“…the ability to tell the difference between gifts that come from the Spirit and those that do not”

• A Vision for Freedom

Luke 6:17-18  - 17 When Jesus had come down from the hill with the apostles, he stood on a level place with a large number of his disciples. A large crowd of people was there from all over Judea and from Jerusalem and from the coastal cities of Tyre and Sidon; 18 they had come to hear him and to be healed of their diseases. Those who were troubled by evil spirits also came and were healed. 

ROCK OC = A PLACE FOR ALL TYPES OF HEALING!!

• Origin of Demonic Realm - Satan

Satan’s Fall – Who? When? What?

Ezekiel 28:13-15 – 13 You were in Eden, the garden of God… 14 You were an anointed guardian cherub. I placed you; you were on the holy mountain of God.  15 You were blameless in your ways from the day you were created, till unrighteousness was found in you. 

Isaiah 14:12-14 - “How you are fallen from heaven, O Day Star/shining one/O Lucifer, son of Dawn!

“...When he saw man made in the image of God, he [Satan] broke forth into jealous and malevolent envy. ...How great an evil it was, beloved brethren, that caused an angel to fall!” Cyprian (AD250)

The devil was one of those angels who are placed over the spirit of the air. ...However, becoming envious of man, he was rendered an apostate from the divine law. Irenaeus (AD180)

• Origin of Demonic Realm - Fallen Angels & Demons

•Fallen Angelic Beings – “Sons of God”/ “Watchers” / “elohim” - embodied

•Nephilim - LXX –γίγαντες (gigantes) = Demons (disembodied spirits)

Genesis 6:1-4 - When man began to multiply on the face of the land and daughters were born to them, 2 the sons of God saw that the daughters of man were attractive. And they took as their wives any they chose. 3 Then the Lord said, “My Spirit shall not abide in man forever, for he is flesh: his days shall be 120 years.” 4 The nephilim were on the earth in those days, and also afterward, when the sons of God came in to the daughters of man and they bore children to them. These were the mighty men who were of old, the men of renown.

Psalm 82:1, 6-7 – 1 God [elohim] has taken his place in the divine council; in the midst of the gods [elohim] He holds judgment…6 I said, “You are gods, sons of the Most High, all of you; 7 nevertheless, like men you shall die, and fall like any prince.”

• Origin and Schemes of the Demonic Realm

The angels transgressed this appointment and were captivated by love of women. And they begat children [the nephilim], who are those who are called demons.  Justin Martyr (AD 160)

These angels, then, who have fallen from heaven, and haunt the air and the earth, and are no longer able to rise to heavenly things, and the souls of the giants [nephilim], who are the demons who wander about the world, perform similar actions.  Athenagoras (AD 175)

Furthermore, we are instructed by our sacred books how from certain angels, who fell of their own free will, there sprang a more wicked demon brood, condemned of God along with the authors of their race. ...Their great business is the ruin of mankind. So, from the start, spiritual wickedness sought our destruction. Accordingly, they inflict upon our bodies diseases and other grievous calamities. And by violent assaults, they hurry the soul into sudden and extraordinary excesses. ...By an influence equally obscure, demons and angels breathe into the soul, and rouse up its corruptions with furious passions and vile excesses.  Tertullian (AD 197)

“…the demons…No doubt, they are very kind, too, in regard to the healing of diseases! For, first of all, they make you ill. Then, to get a miracle out of it,...they withdraw their hurtful influence. Supposedly, then, they have wrought a cure!”  Tertullian (AD197)

The angels transgressed this appointment and were captivated by love of women. And they begat…certain wicked demons (so to speak, of the race of Titans or giants [nephilim]) who have been guilty of impiety towards the true God and towards the angels in heaven. They have fallen from it, and they haunt the denser parts of bodies. They also frequent unclean places on the earth. Since they are without bodies of earthly material, they possess some power of foretelling future events. So, they engage in works of this kind, desiring to lead the human race away from the true God. They also secretly enter the bodies of the more predatory, savage, and wicked of animals and stir them up to do whatever they choose, whenever they choose. They can turn the fancies of these animals to make flights and movements of various kinds, in order to entrap men by such power of divination.  Origen (AD 248)

Among angels, some are angels of God, and others are angels of the devil. But among demons, there is no such distinction. For they are all said to be wicked.  Origen (AD 248)

From the seed [of the fallen angels and women], giants [nephilim] are said to have been born. By them, arts were made known in the earth. They taught the dyeing of wool and everything that is done. When they died, men erected images to them. Yet, because they were of an evil seed, the Almighty did not approve of their being brought back from death when they had died. For that reason, they wander and they now subvert many bodies. And it is these whom you [pagans] presently worship and pray to as gods.  Commodianus (AD 240)

However, those who were born from [the relations of angels with women]—because they were neither angels nor men, but had a mixed nature—were not admitted into Hades [when they died]. Similarly, their fathers had not been admitted into heaven, either. Thus, there came to be two kinds of demons: one of heaven, the other of the earth. The latter are the wicked spirits, who are the authors of all the evils that are done. This same devil is their prince. ...However, grammari­ans say that the reason they are called demons...is because they are skilled and acquainted with matters. For the grammarians think they are gods. In truth, the demons are acquainted with some future events, but not with all. For He has not permitted them to know entirely the counsel of God. ...As I was saying, these contaminated and abandoned spirits wander over the whole earth. They console their own ruin by destroying others. Therefore, they fill every place with snares, deceits, frauds, and errors. For they cling to individuals and even occupy whole houses, from door to door. ...And since spirits are without physical substance and cannot be held, they slink into the bodies of men. Secretly working in their inward parts, they corrupt the health of these persons, bring on diseases, terrify their souls with dreams, and harass their minds with frenzies. They do this so that by these evils, they may cause men to come to them for aid.  Lactantius (AD 304-313)

• Summary of the Schemes of the Demonic Realm

Seduction & secret knowledge (fallen angels)

Haunt the air and the earth (both)

Business = ruin of humanity (demons)

Inflict bodily disease (demons) – ‘calamities’?

Soul into sudden & extraordinary excesses (demons)

Rouse corruptions, passions, vile excesses (both)

Illness & then demonic healing (demons)

Haunt denser parts of human bodies (demons)

Hang around “unclean places” (demons)

Disembodied (demons)

“Some power” of foretelling future (demons)

Lead humanity away from God/deception (demons)
Possess animals, affect behavior to entrap us (demons)

All wicked (demons)

Arts revealed (demons? fallen angels)

Source of idolatry & false religions (demons)

Wander & subvert bodies (demons)

Worshipped as false gods (demons)

Authors of ALL evils (demons)

Devil = their prince (both)

Sow snares, deceits, frauds, and errors (demons)

Nightmares (demons)

Work secretly in our inward parts (demons)

Harrass minds (demons)

• MODERN APPLICATIONS

Mental Health issues – anxiety, paranoia

Addictions

Sexual perversions, abominations

Channeling – Sex Magick, spirit guides

Reincarnation

Yoga (false religious ideas/practices)

Fortune Telling

New Age ideas

Horoscope (Astrology)

SUMMARY OF DEMONIC SCHEMES - "THE WATCHERS"

“…the same angels who rushed from heaven on the daughters of men. ... they laid bare the operations of metallurgy, divulged the natural properties of herbs, promulgated the powers of enchantments, and traced out every curiosity, even to the interpreta­tion of the stars. They conferred appropriately—and as it were, peculiarly—upon women that instrumental means of womanly ostentation: the radiances of jewels,...the dyes of orchil with which wools are dyed, and that black powder itself with which the eyelids and eyelashes are made prominent.  Tertullian (AD 198)

“those angels—the deserters from God, the lovers of women—were likewise the discoverers of this curious art [of astrology]...For we know the mutual alliance of magic and astrology.  Tertullian (AD200)

Secret Knowledge (forbidden)

Art of seduction (make-up, jewelry)

Advanced Technology 

Astrology

Magic

pharmakeia (herbs)

Future Deception?? 

Alien agenda? “as in the days of Noah”

Medical? – Rev. 18:23 - …your merchants were the great ones of the earth, and all nations were deceived by your sorcery (Gk. pharmakeia).

• RESOURCES FOR FURTHER STUDY

Demons – documentary - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H41Lw2YEY74 

Demons: What the Bible Really Says about the Powers of Darkness – Michael Heiser

The Unseen Realm: Recovering the Supernatural Worldview of the Bible – Michael Heiser

REVIEWING THE QUESTIONS
How long would you have had to follow Jesus around until you saw someone healed?

How long would someone have to follow YOU around until they saw someone healed!?!?

Previous Healing messages - 1. Healing Revisited 1.0 – The Issue of God’s Will / 2. Healing Revisited 2.0 – The Issue of Fear

MESSAGE - HEALING Revisited 3.0  - The ISSUE OF LACK OF LOVE

Why don't we heal the sick? 
•Ignorance

•Deception / False Teaching (God’s will, Gifts ceased)

•Unbelief

•Fear – Fear of Failure? Fear of Man?

•Lack of Love

Picture of Love - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PQv6zN06JHA

 What motivated Jesus?
•Matthew 14:14 - And when Jesus went out He saw a great multitude; and He was moved with compassion for them and healed their sick.

•Romans 5:5 - And hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.

Lack of Love - My greatest issue/sin

•1 John 3:17-18 - But if anyone has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God’s love abide in him? Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth.

If anyone has the Holy Spirit inside of them, with the mandate and authority to heal the sick and sees someone who needs healing, yet closes his heart against him-how can God’s love be in that person?” (DOV – Dave’s Ouch Version)

How do we get "this love"? - 1st way - BY HOLY SPIRIT

•Romans 5:5 - And hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.

How do we get "this love"? - 1st way - THROUGH OBEDIENCE

•1 John 2:4-5 - 4 Whoever says “I know him” but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him, 5 but whoever keeps His word, in him truly the love of God is perfected.

•1 John 2:15-16 - 15 Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life —is not from the Father but is from the world.

•1 John 5:2-3 - 2 By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and obey his commandments. 3 For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments.

•1 John 4:7-12 - 7 Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. 8 Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. 9 In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent His only Son into the world, so that we might live through Him. 10 In this is love, not that we have loved God but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. 11 Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 12 No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and His love is perfected in us.

•1 John 4:16-21 - 16 So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. 17 By this is love perfected with us, so that we may have confidence for the day of judgment, because as He is so also are we in this world. 18 There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love. 19 We love because He first loved us. 20 If anyone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen. 21 And this commandment we have from Him: whoever loves God must also love his brother.

OUR RESPONSE

•Obedience – Time to REPENT again. Confess. 

•Encounter – God’s love deposited by the Holy Spirit, “love is from God”

•Commitment 

“Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand” (Matthew 4:17) Is there something “at Hand” in 2023?

REPENTANCE and the KINGDOM OF GOD

John the Baptist - In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” (Matt 3:1-2) 

Jesus - From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” (Matt 4:17) 

Peter -       “Repent” (Acts 2:38, 3:19) – to believing Jews

Paul -         “Repent” (Acts 17:30) – to pagan Greeks in Athens

DO CHRISTIANS NEED TO REPENT? – turn from sin (stop) and obey God

Lord’s Prayer - …And forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us. (Matthew 6:12)

James – Book of James written to believers!

Apostle John - 8 If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we say we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us. (1 John 1:8-10)

Apostle John – to CHRISTIAN churches

       in Ephesus          “Repent” (Rev. 2:4)

       in Pergamum        “Repent” (Rev. 2:16)

       in Thyatira         “Repent” (Rev. 2:22) - only those committing immorality

       in Sardis            “Repent” (Rev. 3:3)

       in Laodicea          “Repent” (Rev. 3:19)

Pete(r) - to the church in 2023

              in Irvine            “Repent” (PEF)  PEF = Pete EVERY Friday

THE ANSWER? – YES…but only on an “as needed basis”

What might our repent on an “as-needed basis” be this morning?

Complaining? Arguing?

Philippians 2:14 - Do everything without complaining or arguing.

Broken relationships? 

Matthew 5:23-24 - 23 So if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, 24 leave your gift there before the altar and go. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.

Inappropriate Talk?

Ephesians 4:29 - Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edification according to the need of the moment, so that it will give grace to those who hear.

“Let no foul language come from your mouth” 

“Stop all your dirty talk…”

Giving? Mistreated?

Luke 6:30 - Give to everyone who asks of you, and whoever takes away what is yours, do not demand it back.

1 John 3:17 - 17 But if anyone has the world's goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God's love abide in him?

Sharing the Gospel?

Mark 16:15 – He [Jesus] said to them, "Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.”

Unbelief? Doubting God’s Word?

John 14:26 - But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, He will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.

Lustful thoughts? Impure thinking?

Matthew 5:28 - But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to desire her [with lust for her] has already committed adultery with her in his heart.

Philippians 4:8 - Finally, brothers, …whatever is pure…think about [dwell on] these things.

Anger? Slander? Unkindness? Unforgiveness? (“Cluster Bomb”)

Ephesians 4:31-32 - 31 Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. 32 Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.

James 4:11 - 11 Do not speak evil against one another, brothers (Slander)

Prayerlessness? Unthankfulness?

1 Thessalonians 5:16-17 - “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” 

Selfishness? Pride? Superiority?

Philippians 2:3 - Don't be selfish; don't try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves.

Favoritism? (especially towards rich/powerful)

James 2:1, 9 – 1 My brothers and sisters, believers…must not show favoritism…. 9 But if you show favoritism, you sin and are convicted by the law as lawbreakers.

Worldliness? 

James 4:4 – …Don’t you realize that friendship with the world makes you an enemy of God? I say it again: If you want to be a friend of the world, you make yourself an enemy of God.

Romans 12:2 –        Do not be conformed to this world 

Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world 

Don’t be like the people of this world…

Gluttony/Care of Body?   

1 Cor 6:19-20 – body = temple of the Holy Spirit…glorify God in your body

This could be the greatest barrier people face in terms of going after the ministry of healing - the Fear of Man is gigantic - What will people think? What if they don't get healed? Beyond that, there is another fear that became all too apparent during COVID - namely that people were fearful of the virus. A virus that 99.83% of the people who contracted it survived. God gave us an "underhand pitch" to see where His people were at - what would they do? Would they do what Jesus did or would they "socially distance" and pray from a distance? We all know what the answer to that question was! The FEAR in the Body of Christ manifested for all to see. This podcast is about overcoming fear as it relates to healing. And wherever we have succumbed to fear, we need to repent. God wants His people to rise up in fearlessness. I guaranteed that future pandemics will be far more serious (that is if we believe the Book of Revelation - which I do!). 

What is God's will when it comes to physical healing? 

Everyone is in full agreement that God CAN heal and most would say that He does heal. 

But Is it God's will to ALWAYS heal? Is healing something that God has promised? Is it something that He has provided for?

In this message, I explore these and other important questions with regard to God's will and healing. If something is known to be God's will, then by definition it will radically affect the way Christians live who are seeking to obey God. 

ANYBODY who wants to pray for the sick and to see God use them in the ministry of healing must wrestle with this issue. 

The Church Began in Houses

“When Christianity first started after the ascension of Jesus [i.e. Pentecost], Christians did not gather in church buildings but in people’s homes. These were known as "house churches." One reason Christians…met in homes was monetary: the money collected went to help poorer Christians and to support missionaries and perhaps even clergy. As Christianity grew larger, the Roman Empire began persecuting Christians. Therefore, Christians were not able to build churches because that would be like putting on a big target and saying, “Here we are.” So, Christians gathered and held their meetings secretly in people’s homes.”

Part 1 - Acts 1-9 – AD 30-AD 40

BOOK OF ACTS TIMELINE/EVENTS - AD 30 (33) PENTECOST

How am I currently reading/studying ACTS? Personal ’House Church Movement’ Disclaimer

ACTS 1:13 - 13 And when they had entered, they went up to the upper room, where they were staying

ACTS 2:1-4 - 1 When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. 2 And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. 3 And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and restedon each one of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.

Where did Stage 1 of Pentecost begin?

ACTS 2:6 - 5 Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men from every nation under heaven. 6 And at this sound the multitude came together (?)

ACTS 2:46-47 - 46 And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, 47 praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved.

Saved? Revival. 3000 on Pentecost. 

ACTS 4:4 – 4 But many of those who had heard the word believed, and the number of the men came to about five thousand. 

5000+ - including women and children (10,000+???)

ACTS 4:23 - 23 When they were released, they went to their friends and reported what the chief priests and the elders had said to them.

ACTS 4:31 - 31 And when they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness.

Pentecost 2.0! Where does it happen?

BOOK OF ACTS TIMELINE/EVENTS - AD 34-35

By AD 34, possibly 15,000-20,000 new believers in the Jerusalem church. 400+ House Churches would have been needed! Leadership issues? 

What about bigger gatherings? – Temple (2:6?, 2:46, 3:1), Solomon’s Colonnade next to Temple (3:11, 5:12)

ACTS 4:1-2 - 1 And as they were speaking to the people, the priests and the captain of the temple and the Sadducees came upon them, 2 greatly annoyed because they were teaching the people and proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection from the dead

What doctrines will “greatly annoy” the authorities today? Where? 

ACTS 5:17-18 - 17 But the high priest rose up, and all who were with him (that is, the party of the Sadducees), and filled with jealousy 18 they arrested the apostles and put them in the public prison.

ACTS 5:20-21 - 20 “Go and stand in the temple and speak to the people all the words of this 

Life.” 21 And when they heard this, they entered the temple at daybreak and began to teach.

ACTS 5:42 - 42 And every day, in the temple and from house to house, they did not cease teaching and preaching that the Christ is Jesus.

What are our “temples” today? Restaurants? Malls? Stores? Parks? 

ACTS 8:3 - 3 But Saul was ravaging the church, and entering house after house, he dragged off men and women and committed them to prison.

Does the “house” guarantee no persecution? 

ACTS 9:17-18 - 17 So Ananias departed and entered the house. And laying his hands on him he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus who appeared to you on the road by which you came has sent me so that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” 18 And immediately something like scales fell from his eyes, and he regained his sight. Then he rose and was baptized;

ACTS 9:19b-20 – 19 …For some days he was with the disciples at Damascus. 20 And immediately he proclaimed Jesus in the synagogues, saying, “He is the Son of God.

What are our “synagogues”? Same as our “temples”.

BOOK OF ACTS TIMELINE/EVENTS - AD 39-40

ACTS 9:32-34 - 32 Now as Peter went here and there among them all, he came down also to the saints who lived at Lydda. 33 There he found a man named Aeneas, bedridden for eight years, who was paralyzed. 34 And Peter said to him, “Aeneas, Jesus Christ heals you; rise and make your bed.” 

ACTS 9:37, 39-42 - 37 In those days she [Tabitha] became ill and died, and when they had washed her, they laid her in an upper room…39 So Peter rose and went with them. And when he arrived, they took him to the upper room. 40 But Peter put them all outside, and knelt down and prayed; and turning to the body he said, “Tabitha, arise.” And she opened her eyes, and when she saw Peter she sat up. 41 And he gave her his hand and raised her up. Then, calling the saints and widows, he presented her alive. 42 And it became known throughout all Joppa, and many believed in the Lord.

What is the result of what happens in the house?

Source: The Book of Acts – The Timeline, History & the Writings of the New Testament Letters, Bob Emery

FINAL OBSERVATIONS/THOUGHTS

+ The Church BEGAN in a house 

+ No Church ‘buildings’ (earliest in the 200s, converted house)

+ Revival needed houses – evangelism/teaching/discipling

+ Public Meetings (i.e. Temple) often led to problems

+ First 10-year period involved ONLY Jews (2:5 - “devout Jews”,   2:11   - “both Jews and converts to Judaism”)

+ House-sized churches are still the norm in many places

+ Fearful (masked) people won’t go to big meetings, but homes?

+ House meetings necessitate relational evangelism (vs. contact)