4 BOCNEWS.com MAY 2017 Hey Devil, The Blood of Jesus is Against You Let me begin by saying that the Bible tells us a lot about the spiritual realm. There is a spiritual world that we cannot see with our naked eye. It is a fight in the spirit of good versus evil. It's a fight of light versus darkness. It's a fight of God versus the devil. Paul said that we have a spiritual enemy, who devises strategies and schemes against us. Unfortunately, too many Christians today don't take the enemy seriously. The truth is that our spiritual enemy is real, and we are all in a spiritual battle. Jesus referred to our spiritual enemy many times during His ministry. He said that this enemy does everything he can to steal, kill and destroy. He said that this enemy is nothing but a liar, and the father of all lies. He uses his lies in order to destroy and deceive people. Your spiritual enemy's main strength is in deception. His power comes when we are ignorant of the way he operates. That's why we must always go to the Word, because God’s Word is our defense against the enemy’s lies. Some people make light of the devil. Even though we have power in the spirit over him, he is no joke. He doesn't wear a little red suit, have two horns and a tail. He's very clever and is the master of all deception and lies. (He disguises himself as an angel of light… Séances) The enemy's strategy against you is to discourage you to the point that you lose your faith or that you quit. His assignment is to make evil look good and good look evil. His strategy is to stop God’s plan in your life. (To get you out of church… To isolate you… To put your fire out… Purpose… A calling on your life…) When you received Jesus Christ as your Lord, you broke your alliance with the enemy. That makes him mad. So he stirs up as much trouble against you as possible. (He loves to use those closest to you… He works through people…) Every bad report is designed to steal your faith. The enemy wants to bring enough trouble into our lives that we say, "What's the use? The harder I try, the worse it gets. I don't understand why God won’t help me?" (His strategy is for you to walk away from God's plan… It’s to discourage you…) That's what marriage problems are all about. That's what the financial struggles are all about. That’s what negative reports are all about. That's why people are lying on you and saying things that aren't true. (It’s to discourage you and stop God’s plan… Know your opponent…) You know that the enemy has been fighting you all of your life. The enemy has been trying to discourage you for years. He wants you to think that you are defeated. But I've come here to say, "That the devil is a liar. He's the one that is defeated, and greater is He that is in you..." I declare that, "No weapon formed against you shall prosper." That doesn't mean you don't have trouble. It simply means that the enemy's assignment will not accomplish what he wants it to do. (That’s why you have to fight the good fight… Be in the right church…) Now that I’ve given my life to Jesus Christ, I have some battles to fight, some crosses to bear, and some sacrifices to make. In fact, my family may turn against me. My friends may leave me. I may be thrown into the fiery furnace. But I declare that the devil’s tricks won’t work. (Trouble is a sign…) Our spiritual enemy's ultimate plan is to get us to stop fighting the good fight of faith. Paul said, "I fought the good fight, I finished the course, and I kept the faith." The enemy's plan is to get us to quit, before we finish what God has called us to do. Anytime you are making spiritual progress, the enemy will do everything possible to stir up trouble against you. Anytime you make a stand for the Lord, your spiritual enemy will challenge you. (Paul said that we are not ignorant of the devil’s devices…) Your spiritual enemy has a strategy against you. It's his plan to drive you to despair. It's his plan to make you think that God is mad at you, or that God doesn't care about you. His plan is to make you think that life isn't worth living. (Become a servant… Get started… Don’t take it lying down… Your life is a seed…) Sometimes my mind tells me that God isn't listening to my prayers. Sometimes my mind tells me that I am nothing but a failure. Sometimes my mind says that I might as well quit. But you have to fight back with the Word… Make no mistake, you do have a spiritual enemy that has a contract on your life. He is plotting and strategizing your destruction even now. However, you do not need to fear him if Jesus is your Lord. (David said, “I will fear no evil for God is with me.” Walk by faith…) If you are in some kind of trouble today, you need to know that chanting will not deliver you. If you are in trouble, you need to know that religion can’t help you. Every believer must say, "Hey Mr. devil, the Blood of Jesus is against you." (Rev. 12:11…) It seems as though there are seasons where we are tested. There are times when the storms are greater than normal. There are times when the battles are overwhelming. There are times that we wonder whether we can make it or not. (That’s when we need the power of agreement…) There comes a time in every household when somebody has to stand up and say, "As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord." In other words, it's Sunday morning and everybody in my house is going to church! (Fight for your children…) I don't care if you have to go to the crack house to find your child, you have to fight for them. No matter what they have done, that is your child and you cannot let them go. If you don't fight for them, they will surely be lost. (Acts 16:31… Command the blinders to be removed… Ask God to send a laborer…) In the Book of Genesis, we see satan's first attack against humanity was the family. He hates the family unit because God loves the family. The enemy hates love and unity, and he is still attacking the family today. (A house divided cannot stand) There comes a time in every marriage when you have to stand up and say, "There's going to be some changes around here! Devil take your hands off my husband… off my children… off my finances… Off my job… Off my church…” (Everybody say, “Hey devil, the Blood of Jesus is against you.”) Moses was a type of Christ, and Pharaoh was a type of the devil. Moses didn't go to Pharaoh and say, "Please Mr. Pharaoh would you leave us alone. If you don't mind, we'll leave here and not bother you anymore." No, Moses said, "Thus saith the Lord. Let my people go, or you will be sorry!" We all must reach the point that we say, "Alright devil, I've had enough of you. Let me go now! The Blood of Jesus is against you, and you are defeated!" Paul said that in the last days people would be lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God. (Self-centered) He said that the devil walks about like a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour… Paul said to give no place to the devil. We must forgive others… (Jealousy… Drunkenness… Prejudice… Hate) When we fail, the devil accuses us of our sin. It's our enemy that accuses us of the failures in the past. But that's when we must declare, "I am forgiven by the Blood, and the enemy's plans are cancelled." (No more guilt trips… Heaven’s detergent…) If you want to overcome the lies of the enemy, you have to stop living in the past. Jesus said, "Remember Lot's wife." Mrs. Lot kept looking back until she had no future. (God has good plans for you… A future and a hope… Your future is right in front of you… Stop looking back…) You know how the Children of Israel were in bondage for 400 years. Once God delivered them, they kept talking about the past. They kept remembering the things of their past, and wanted to go back. (They were abused… They were mistreated… Horrible living conditions… The devil is a liar…) The enemy is always trying to get us to go back to our past. The truth is that we forget how bad things were in the past. We forget the lonely nights and the emptiness. We forget about the police knocking on our door… We forget about how life wasn’t worth living. We think about the past and the friends and people we loved back then. The problem is, they really didn't care about us then, and they don't care about us now. They used us then, and they would use us now. If you are under attack right now, don't let it get you down. You see, warfare always precedes a miracle. Storms are a sign that you are on the verge of a miracle. When you are on the verge of a break through, it will always look impossible. So if you are at your lowest point, hang on just a little while longer. It’s darkest just before the dawn. When the ocean is at it’s lowest point, it’s about to turn… When you are under the greatest pressure to quit or throw in the towel, it's the devil's last stand. He has just fired his best shot, and if you don't quit, he has nothing left. You need to open your mouth and say, “Hey devil, the Blood of Jesus is against you.” (David talked to his giant… Talk to your giant…) Whether you know it or not, the enemy is trying to get you to quit. He’s trying to stop you from coming to church. He wants you to put your Bible down and fall back into your old lifestyle. (Go back to the clubs… Sleeping around… Marijuana… To steal your spiritual strength…) I don't know about you, but I'm so glad to be delivered from my past. I'm so glad to be delivered from the clubs. I'm so glad to be delivered from all my addictions. I'm so glad to be delivered from all the lies. I’m so glad to be delivered from the darkness. The enemy brings trouble to make me quit. But I know who I am in Christ. I am taking authority over the enemy. I declare, "Hey devil, the Blood of Jesus is against you. You cannot win." (There is power in the Blood…) I may be hanging on a cross today, but my resurrection is coming. It may be Friday, but Sunday is coming. Satan the Blood of Jesus is against you. I am covered in the Blood of the Lamb Jesus. This trouble has to Passover. My God is able… He will do exceedingly… I have come here to break the assignment of the enemy against you. It’s time to stand up and say, "Hey Mr. devil, your assignment against me is cancelled. The Blood of Jesus is against you.” I declare in the spirit, "As of today the enemy's assignment against you is cancelled." I declare that the lies of the enemy won’t work. We are joining our faith together. We are cancelling every contract that the enemy has against us. (One can put a thousand to flight... “Hey devil, the Blood of Jesus is against you”) My situation is not hopeless. Blessed is the man whose hope is in the Lord. Your situation is not hopeless. Nothing is impossible… The devil is a liar. Open your mouth, and tell the devil that his contracts are cancelled. "Satan your assignment against me is canceled. The Blood of Jesus is against you." By Bishop Dennis Leonard Bishop Dennis Leonard SERMON Sometimes my mind says that I might as well quit. But you have to fight back with the Word.