Purifying a People Unto Himself
Praise God. I believe I am going to continue sharing some more about overcoming the occult. There are obviously people reading on the internet that God is ministering to by reading these testimonies, who otherwise may not even be aware that these things are of the devil, or that they could have the impact on a person's life as they do. But this is the mercy of God, not only on all of our lives that are sharing these testimonies, but also on people all over this world who God has led to these links. The wisdom of God is absolutely incredible!
The other day I received a couple of e-mail's and I knew it was right to respond back, and I commented that God was 'purifying' a people unto Himself. I knew that was somewhere in the Bible when it came up out of my heart, but I could not have told you where. But I looked it up, and sure enough it was in Titus 2:14 and it says, "Who gave Himself for us (Jesus), that He might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto Himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works." Redeem us (or loose us away) from all iniquity - that is an amazing thing, that Jesus is after redeeming us from 'ALL' iniquity. But He does say He is coming back after a church that is without spot, wrinkle or blemish. And if we did not have any iniquity in our hearts, then there would be no need to redeem us from it. Right?
One thing God has been redeeming me from for the past few weeks is witchcraft curses. In Galatians 3:1 it says, "O foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you, that ye should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth, crucified among you?" Witchcraft is what keeps you from obeying the truth - and the truth is that Jesus died, was buried and rose again. This is exactly what I was raised in because I did not obey the gospel - I did not even know what the gospel was until 1985. So all of those years I was walking in witchcraft. (And the occult is witchcraft, no doubt.) In I Samuel 15:23 it says that rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft. Years back I would have thought you were crazy if you had told me I was in witchcraft. I had heard that that was only in Africa - no kidding! I would not have argued with you (much) about having some rebellion - just not witchcraft.
But getting back to my younger years and playing in the devil's territory, there is something I want to share with you that we did. I am sure I will overcome something in the Spirit by sharing this with you, and that is what I am always after in my life - overcoming the powers of darkness that hinder me from obtaining the promises of God. And in Revelation 12 it states that we overcome by the blood of the Lamb, and the word of our testimony, and love not our lives unto death. Revelation 2 and 3 talk about what God has for the overcomers, and I do want to be in that group of people! Also in Revelation 2l:7 it says that he that overcomes shall inherit all things - so it is better to overcome the powers of darkness than to be overcome by them!!
Anyway, I remember the exact girl's house we were at having a slumber party, and I was probably in the 5th or 6th grade. Someone there told us that if we would go in the bathroom and close the door with the lights out and say 'Mary Worth' so many times, then we would see this old lady in a rocking chair appear in the mirror. So several of us went in there an said her name over and over and we saw this old lady sitting in a chair rocking. We all ran out the door screaming. I have no idea who this 'Mary Worth' was, or if she was even a real person - dead or alive. But one thing I do know, is that this was the devil for sure, and it was an abomination to God. I had never heard of saying this 'Mary Worth' chant before that night, and I have not heard of it since. But this is described in Deuteronomy 18 and also in I Samuel 28. I shared last time how I was in my car coming home from church the other night, and up out of my heart came, "One thing I know, is that Jesus overcame the ouija board, seances, and all the occult." Every single thing we have been involved in, no matter how demonic it was, Jesus dealt with it on the cross and overcame it. And there is no condemnation to us if we will trust in, rely on and adhere to the death, burial and resurrection power of the Lord Jesus to set us free from it.
Several years back there was a period of time when Doyle, by the Spirit of God, set me free (as well as several others) from much of the occult - much of these same spirits. I even remember him praying and making intercession for God's forgiveness over being involved in these things. But there was obviously still some more of these curses in my life that had to be dealt with. We did not get bound overnight with all of these spirits, and we surely do not overcome them in any less time. Jesus said He takes these things out little by little, lest the beast of the field multiply against us. And little by little He will drive them out from before us, until we be increased, and inherit the land (Exodus 23:28-30).
I John 3:8 says, "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." In Romans 14 it states that anything that is not faith is sin. Unless you are walking by faith, being led by the Spirit, obeying this gospel from the heart - then you are in walking in sin. And for the first 29 years of my life I was walking in sin (even though I was born again at the age of 14). And ever since 1985, God has been purifying me unto Him; purging my conscience from dead works by the blood of Jesus that I might serve the living God. I Peter 1:22 says that as you obey this gospel through the Spirit, you purify your soul (your will, intellect and emotions). If you will read the Psalms out loud and pray in tongues (in faith mixed with believing the gospel), you will see the Spirit of God start bringing these things up out of your heart. And when He does, do not suppress it, but let Him set your heart free. God is the only One who can lead a person to repentance, and it is His goodness to do so (Romans 2:4), and repentance is in the heart.
As I said last time also, you do not regard what is in your heart, you look to the One who was raised from the dead for you and let the power that raised Him from the dead set you free from all of these hindering influences in your life. Believe this gospel and you will never be ashamed! Remember, Jesus is purifying a people unto Himself - a people that can show forth His praises and His power in the earth.
Until next time - God bless you!
