WARFARE IN THE HEAVENS

WARFARE IN THE HEAVENS

(One ,Two,  and Three  )

Bet Amante, Tuesday bible study

July 14, 2020

(I have a confession to make this morning :O) ……. My knowledge of God and his word is soooooooo  limited. Sometimes I just cannot believe how I miss what I began  studying…… since I was about 5 OR 6 years old…that’s 75 years ago.  And suddenly BAM!!! God drops something entirely …..different into our …on going  morning conversations. Which by the way Is the 1^st order of the day…….and I can’t wait to see what God has to say. ( He already knows what I have to say…..but He still wants to hear it. Amazing!! Just absolutely mind boggling how He is speaking the same message to all of us who sincerely want to hear what He has to say….and it’s a whole lot more than yes and no and later (answers to our soulish prayers)  Some prayerful conversations are very personal and private and meant to stay that way….like when He calls our attention to intercede for a person…brother or sister (or ourselves) on the earth………..under the 1^st heaven…. concerning a particular sin. We are not to discuss it publicly, but to proclaim God’s word privately….speaking the scripture that applies into the atmosphere. (under the 1^st heaven) If the scripture requires 2 or more coming into agreement, such as Mathew 18…which ….actually has to do with forgiveness when a brother or sister offends you. Prayer partners are a wonderful gift of God….and He chooses them for us. Hallelujah!!! Generally He places a novice…or a baby Christian with someone who is more mature. There is a good reason for that…It is wisdom. And those without experience are often blind to the enemies pitfalls. We need each other. We are members of one body. Headed in one direction…..onward and upward….toward the third heaven…our eternal home

 But in between that first and third heaven………….? There is what? Space???? The realm of the second heaven is outer space……..no air….no atmosphere……no life….no light….outer darkness?? There are planets, stars, solar systems,  and the vast voids between galaxies can stretch millions of light-years across and may appear empty. But these infinite spaces actually contain more matter than the galaxies themselves.

CREATION is more than a theory…..the book of Genesis is still God’s word. He speaks…..and there it is…and every living thing reproduces after its own kind???? Yep! There it is in black and white. Its own kind… in its image and likeness….genetically speaking….species within species….and not one thing has changed within God’s specifications.

Slime is still slime……….. apes are  still apes, dogs did  not become horses or cows  and mules cannot reproduce. We did not evolve from another species….whether slime….or monkeys  in the Galápagos Islands                 

 The theory of evolution is Charles Darwin’s word…: an idea or set of ideas that is intended to explain facts or events. : an idea that is suggested or presented as possibly true but that is not known or proven to be true. : the general principles or ideas that relate to a particular subject.

For instance in  Genesis 3:1-13 satan made a suggestion to eve….!!!!!!

²⁶ And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.

²⁷ So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.

²⁸ And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.

²⁹ And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat.

³⁰ And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for meat: and it was so.

³¹ And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day.

So we see that from the beginning of creation, God intended man to take dominion, exercise authority, and rule in strength and power to resist and overcome all (opposing) forces on the earth, in the seas and in the air…and over every thing that moves upon the earth. It was not an afterthought. Man was not a last-minute addition. He was planned specifically according to God’s blueprint and likeness. Why do you suppose that was? Because God wanted fellowship. He wanted children with whom he could relate and freely share his joy. Our creator in heaven knew the risk in giving man such freedom and power. I cannot tell you why or how , but our  heavenly Father loved us before man ever came to be. He looked ahead and made provision for every possible thing that we would ever need. Including the understanding that we would fall and what it would cost Him for our redemption…..and for us to regain dominion, authority and  power…..over the evil ones, satan and his minions

Ephesians 6 ¹² For our struggle is not against flesh and blood [contending only with physical opponents], but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this [present] darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly (supernatural) places.

ON THE EARTH AND IN THE HEAVENLIES

(As nouns) the difference between dominion and authority

is that dominion is power or the use of power; sovereignty over something; stewardship, supremacy while authority is the power to enforce rules or give orders.

THREE GREEK POWER WORDS OF EPH. 1:19-21. I. Three Greek Power ... B. Vs 19 “mighty POWER”. 1. Def POWER: #2904 kratos: dominion / a ruling power. "exercise lordship over."

HEBREW… POWER OR STRENGTH…. TOQEPH

AUTHORITY….SAHM-KHOOT

DOMINION…..RADAH

Greek….power or strength…kratos

Authority….exousia

Dominion…. Kyriarchía ( hierarchy??)kingdom

  From the blue letter bible edition commentary by Don Stewart ::  How many of you here this morning ..or on line….are familiar with the writings, commentaries and teachings of Don Stewart??? Breaking News? (His channel?) Remember…..all of this is new to me….. I don’t even remember ever hearing of Don Stewart….But I do have blue letter bible on my cell phone and I agree with his message and since he says it much better than I could……. I will share it. Don Stewart uses a whooooooole bunch of scriptures, so write them down today since  time does not permit me to read them all.

 The phrase “heavenly places” or “heavenly realms” is used several times in the book of Ephesians (1:3, 20; 2:6; 3:10; 6:12). This phrase is translated from the Greek word epouranios, meaning “the sphere of spiritual activities.” “Heavenly realms” can refer to both angelic and demonic activity. Ephesians 1:20 says that God “raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms.” But Ephesians 6:12 speaks of evil forces in the same realm: “Our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against . . . the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.”

As flesh-and-blood humans, we have very little understanding of the spirit world. We cannot see, hear, or touch it. However, the Bible assumes it, and we can glean insight into a world we cannot see by studying what God tells us about it. First of all, God is spirit (John 4:24). He exists outside the bounds of time, space, and matter. His home is called heaven (Acts 7:55; Isaiah 63:15), but this is a distinct place, not to be confused with “the heavens,” referring to the atmosphere (Genesis 1:1; Psalm 148:4), or the “heavenly realms,” which encompass all spirit beings. In God’s heaven, He sits on a throne (Matthew 23:22; Hebrews 4:16), surrounded by adoring angels (Revelation 7:11; Psalm 99:1) who exist to serve God and minister to His saints (Hebrews 1:14; Matthew 4:11; Genesis 19:1). Angels also have the ability to appear as men when sent to deliver messages from God (Genesis 18:2, 16–17; 19:1–2; Daniel 10:5–6).

However, the dark side of the heavenly realms belongs to Satan and his evil spirits. Satan is not the counterpart to