Preparing the Bride of Christ For His Return By Janet Van Hierdan
A Tale of Two Brides is now available on Amazon.com:
Tuesday, October 29, 2013
The Spirit of Jezebel, Part 8
October 11, 2013
Greetings and Salutations! Praise God!
As I have shared in previous Coffee Breaks, we have been having a daily prayer and ministry call with George Robinson and several other folks including Dwain McKenzie, Timothy & Alicia Brickley, James Riley and others. A little over a week ago, we brought our granddaughter, Serena, into the call. At age 2 1/2, while we were living in Texas, Serena was stricken with Transverse Myelitis (which is a rare form of Spinal Meningitis). The short story is that it essentially left her a quadriplegic, needing 24-hour care. Rebekah (Serena's mother) wound up becoming her nurse (and has had much training in dealing with the symptoms of this disease ever since).
Serena is now 14 years old. Despite the doctors' best prognosis, she has beaten the odds time and time again. She has learned how to maneuver herself with a stylus and notepad and has maintained a 4.0 average in school for the past few years. Several times throughout the years, she has had visitations from the Lord where Jesus appeared to her in the middle of the day and told her that He was going to heal her, that she was going to run and jump and play like any normal kid would and -- more importantly -- that she would be (as she put it back then) a "Jesus Teller" and that she would lay hands on other children who would be healed just like she was.
The visitations have been both personal (while she was wide awake) and in the form of visions or dreams. As the years have gone by, there have been no manifestations of healing and her physical situation has worsened. Over the past months her pain level has increased to the point where, even with the maximum dose of pain medication, her pain level (on a scale of 1 - 10) was an 8. She has experienced muscle spasms that wrench her body so severely that the doctors have become concerned over the likelihood she would break bones during the spasms and seizures.
We have been seeing miracle after miracle after miracle in these prayer and healing conference calls with folks from all over America and Canada. That said, we arranged for a time for Serena to be on one of our calls. As George began to pray over her the pain level was at an eight. We watched the pain drop incrementally during the prayer, first to a level 5, then to a 3, and then a zero. That was the first night. The next night we repeated the time of prayer with Serena. Her pain had returned during that day to a level 6. Again we prayed and decreed an end to the pain. Again it went to zero. Next we commanded the muscles to be at peace and to cease in the seizures.
The following day, Serena experienced for the first time in years, complete freedom from pain and from the muscle spasms and seizures. The nightly prayers over her with George have continued since as we have prayed over the range of motion issues with her arms and hand. Last night she was almost able to touch the top of her head with either hand. The healing is progressive, but Serena is experiencing real progress and a liberty she hasn't had since she was 2 years old. The healing may not be instantaneous -- like a complete miracle all at once -- but for Serena THIS IS A MIRACLE! And we praise God for what we are seeing!
(By the way, if you need healing you are welcome to join our conference calls. The number to call is (805) 399-1000. Next, enter the access code: 124763#.)
OK, let's see if we can wrap up our discussion today on the Spirit of Jezebel.
We have touched on the fact that this spirit perverts sex, sexual relationships and male-female roles. Jezebel was the incarnation of the presiding spirit of the Amorites. Beyond the fact that the dominant spirit in their midst was The Fear of Evil, they had adopted the perversions of their Canaanite brethren. Let's not forget that the curse which came upon Canaan as the firstborn son of Ham the son of Noah was a direct result of Ham's perversion and the homosexual act he committed on his father while Noah was passed out from his wine.
Sexual perversion of every conceivable act and type were hallmarks of each of the seven nations that inhabited the land of Canaan, and it was one of the reasons why God commanded Israel NEVER to cohabit the land with them, not to compromise with them in any way and not to get sucked into the worship of their pantheon of gods. Sexual perversion (sex between men and animals, women and animals, homosexual acts and lesbian activity, just as an example) was elevated by many of the nations as a mode of worship to Baal and Astarte (or Ashtaroth).
The Amorites took it to another level and Jezebel played it to the hilt. Men and women were forced into sexual slavery as "cult prostitutes" for the priests and priestesses, and it became their duty to perform and provide satisfaction to the priests and priestesses as an act of worship to the gods.
Jezebel used these practices to entice men and women in Israel. Just like her Canaanite cousins, she ordained homosexual priests and lesbian priestesses as Israel's "holy ones." Here's the issue! She was facilitated and enabled by Ahab. As an Israelite, Ahab knew better. He knew God's commands to Israel. He couldn't have been more familiar with God's command:
"There shall be no cult prostitute [lesbian] of the daughters of Israel , neither shall there be a cult prostitute (a sodomite) [homosexual] of the sons of Israel
Consider what the Scripture says of Ahab: "And Ahab the son of Omri did evil in the sight of the LORD above all that were before him. And it came to pass, as if it had been a light thing for him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, that he took to wife Jezebel the daughter of Ethbaal king of the Zidonians, and went and served Baal, and worshipped him. And he reared up an altar for Baal in the house of Baal, which he had built in Samaria. And Ahab made a grove; and Ahab did more to provoke the LORD God of Israel to anger than all the kings of Israel that were before him.
How's that for a testimony against him? Now you see how Jezebel was enabled in Israel with her abominations. There is a particular phrase in this passage which says a whole lot: "And Ahab made a grove." This is a poor translation from the Hebrew "asherah." While this word can be translated as "image" it is representative of a place of worship with life-size idols, altars and (somewhat) secluded sites hidden among leafy trees for their "worship." Since the "worship" of these idols of Ashtaroth and Baal required every kind of perverse sexual activity, Ahab was specifically enabling Jezebel to promote these abominations in the land.
History makes very clear that Jezebel and those of her ilk sacrificed the lives of young boys and young girls, forcing them into temple sex until their lives were spent and they were discarded and (frequently) put to death when they no longer satisfied their masters. The flourishing sex trade we see today is a direct product of Baal worship, or the worship of the ancient gods. The fact that we see so many priests being tried for sexual molestation of young boys is a continuing carryover of the spirit of Jezebel.
Jezebel went out of her way to reverse the roles of men and women so that men who are afflicted by this spirit become effeminate and women become masculine. The rebellion that accompanies this role reversal is a direct slap in the face at God and the way He created mankind in the first place. (I'll address this a bit more momentarily.)
So why am I making such a point of all this? We are seeing the promoting of homosexuals as pastors and "bishops" among churches and denominations. We are seeing women ordained to ministerial leadership who live a lesbian lifestyle. Pornography is being increasingly winked at. The abominations of these abuses are being laughed at and even promoted within society.
Ever consider why this spirit of Jezebel so promotes homosexuality and lesbianism, along with bestiality and other perversions? The answer should be staring you in your face.
There is no reproduction when you have male with male or female with female. Any kind of abortive reproduction that occurs when women lie with animals or men lie with animals becomes a monstrosity that never lives.
The spirit that we see in Jezebel -- that of the Amorites -- figures prominently among something we see recorded in Genesis 6:4, where we read, "There were giants in the earth in those days; and also after that, when the sons of God came in unto the daughters of men, and they bare children to them, the same became mighty men which were of old, men of renown."
This word, "giants" comes from the Hebrew naphal, which means "fallen." The giants were nephilim. The offspring that they produced were also giants. This phraseology in the Hebrew text refers to "the sons of God" as B’nai Elohim. The phrase, "the daughters of men" in Hebrew is Ben’oth Adam. Now, here's the critical phrase for us in this discussion from Genesis 6:4: "and also after that". Without getting into a discussion of how it was possible for giants to exist in the earth following the great flood, (that's an interesting study all by itself!) suffice it to say that giants populated the seven nations Israel was commanded to drive out and destroy.
The Amorites were noted for the giants among them. What makes this significant is that the giants were progeny of the "fallen ones." They were descendants of the fallen angels -- the same ones that Jude describes in his gospel: "And the angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day."
In Revelation 12:7, John writes, "And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels, And prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven. And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him."
So now we have a clear picture of the ongoing war against God. These "fallen ones" seized the "daughters of men" and began to create a race of beings neither human nor angelic -- a race of beings that opposed and exalted itself against God and all that pertains to Him including His people. It was a deliberate effort to contaminate the gene pool so that it would be impossible for the promise of God to Eve to be fulfilled -- namely, that her offspring would tread down and bruise the head of the offspring of the serpent.
Being a part of a nation with a contaminated gene pool, the spirit of the Fear of Evil that drove Jezebel also compelled her to do everything possible to cut off the reproduction of men and women so that the promised Messiah could never be born. This is the spiritual root of all homosexual, lesbian and transgender activity. It drives men and women to unreproducible sexual activity so that children cannot be born -- in this case, a people who are called and given the opportunity to be a part of the family of God, and even more specifically, the Bride of Christ!
It is why God spoke absolute judgment and destruction upon the descendants of Ham through Canaan. It is why God saw the wickedness of the earth and destroyed the contaminated gene pool with the flood. Noah was the exception in his generation.
"These are the generations of Noah: Noah was a just man and perfect in his generations (toledah - descent, family history and genetics), and Noah walked with God."
Got the picture? Homosexual, lesbian and transgender activity is a declaration of war against God, driven by the Spirit of Jezebel for the purpose of deliberate interference with the plan of God throughout history to have a people for Himself, a holy people, a set apart people, a people who reflect His image, His character, His makeup, His authority, His power, His love, His Glory!
Hence the ongoing effort for role reversal between men and women.
Hence the feminization of men and the drive for masculine women.
Hence, the effort to destroy the Father image of God.
Hence the fraud that has been perpetrated upon the human race which promotes "Mother Earth."
Hence, secular and religious humanism!
See the picture? Do you now understand and see how the spirit of Jezebel has fought so hard to usurp the name, the authority, the prophetic voice of Father God through Jesus Christ and Holy Spirit? Do you now see and know why the body of Christ has been so contaminated with humanistic, "feel good" doctrines which permit and even encourage the watering down of God's Word?
Good! Then this series has succeeded in accomplishing what Holy Spirit instructed me to lay out before you!
Next week, the Lord helping me, I will begin to lay out for you a revelation of how religion and racism are so intertwined with each other.
Blessings on you!
Regner
Regner A. Capener
CAPENER MINISTRIES
CAPENER MINISTRIES
709 South 7th Street
Sunnyside, Washington 98944
Sunnyside, Washington 98944
(509) 515-0133
A Tale of Two Brides is now available on Amazon.com: http://www.amazon.com/Tale-Two-Brides-Relationship-ebook/dp/B00BSV6HZC/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&qid=1363139096&sr=8-8&keywords=A+Tale+of+Two+Brides#_
All Coffee Break articles are copyright by Regner A. Capener, but authorization for reprinting, reposting, copying or re-use, in whole or in part, is granted –provided proper attribution and this notice are included intact. Older Coffee Break archives are available at http://www.RegnersMorningCoffee.com. Coffee Break articles are normally published weekly.
If you would like to have these articles arrive each morning in your email, please send a blank email to: Subscribe@AnotherCoffeeBreak.com.To remove yourself from the mailing list, please send a blank email to Unsubscribe@AnotherCoffeeBreak.com.
If you would like to have these articles arrive each morning in your email, please send a blank email to: Subscribe@AnotherCoffeeBreak.com.To remove yourself from the mailing list, please send a blank email to Unsubscribe@AnotherCoffeeBreak.com.
CAPENER MINISTRIES is a tax-exempt church ministry. Should you desire to participate and covenant with us as partners in this ministry, please contact us at either of the above email or physical addresses, or visit: http://www.RiverWorshipCenter.org.
The Spirit of Jezebel, Part 7
October 4, 2013
During the past couple of weeks we've been having healing conference calls on a daily basis, Monday through Friday at 7:00 PM Eastern. We have hosted these calls with George Robinson who has a remarkable track record in ministering healing to folks who either have stage 3 or stage 4 cancer, or have other debilitating or terminal diseases. It absolutely blesses my socks off to see the miracles that are taking place on a daily basis over the phone.
This morning (as I write this) I received a phone call from a woman whose best friend was dying with stage 4 cancer. George had prayed for her several days ago. She had gone to a doctor this morning and the doctor reported that she was completely free of all traces of cancer. Last week we had a woman who was suffering with severe pain in her lower back and walked with a decided limp [her husband referred to it as "a swivel" :-)]because of one leg that was shorter than the other.
We listened to her husband literally explode with laughter as he watched his wife's legs even out following prayer. The issue was more than one leg being short. She had a pelvic issue which contributed to the continuous pain. The Lord delivered her from the pain (naturally!) as she was healed of the deformity.
It is a fabulous experience to have this happen on a daily basis just with telephone calls. Neither George nor Dwain nor I (nor any of the other folks who've joined us) are with any of these people in person to lay hands on them. This is a work of Holy Spirit in response to folks who are hearing the word of faith -- a true rhema in their spirits -- and responding! Praise God!
Let's begin our discussion today with a personal story. During the last few discussions, we've talked about the fact that the spirit of Jezebel is an extremely unrepentant spirit. Folks who are ruled by this spirit have extreme resistance to acknowledging their need to repent or to turn from the witchcraft (because that's exactly what it is) of manipulation of people's lives, more often than not through the use of religion, religious doctrines which usurp the authority and integrity of God's Word, and the traditions of man which have no bearing whatever on what God is saying!
One personal experience stands out (among several similar instances) in my own past in having to address the spirit of Jezebel. This happened while I was pastoring in Salt Lake City with Bill Christopulos. I received a phone call from a former Bible college classmate who was ministering in the Barstow, California area. He shared with me a rather extraordinary event that was taking place in the church where he was sharing (he was not the pastor, but had been invited to spend some time in this particular church teaching in both prophetic and evangelistic ministry).
It seems that a woman (who shall remain unnamed in this discussion) who had recently moved to Daggett (a small town about 5 or 6 miles east of Barstow) with her husband and family found this particular church to her liking. The background of this church was that the founding pastor had been stricken with a heart attack and died suddenly without any advance warning signs. His wife (who co-pastored with him) was left in a state of shock. She was accustomed to ministering with her husband, and the two of them shared a real sense of teamwork in ministry. His sudden departure caught her flatfooted, and she felt the entire load of responsibility for the church they had built together.
Being vulnerable and struggling emotionally to catch her equilibrium, this new family's entrance into the church came at a strategic moment -- strategic, that is, when viewed by a spirit that was looking for an opportunity to usurp authority and exercise a fair degree of control over a congregation. The lady in question saw her opportunity and took immediate advantage.
Without taking the time to build any kind of relationship with the woman-pastor and establish any kind of basis for her voice to be heard in this fellowship, she began to break into the middle of church services with prophetic utterances that literally commanded everyone's attention. It wasn't long before these “prophetic utterances” (none of which came forth from the Spirit of Prophecy, the Lord Jesus Christ Himself) had that local body of believers in a state of confusion.
This was the situation my former classmate (whom I will refer to only as Allen) laid out for me on the telephone. He knew that the Lord had anointed me in times past to deal with situations like this and asked if I would be willing to come to Barstow. Actually, the church was in the nearby town of Daggett. He said he would provide the transportation and sent a driver to pick me up. During the trip, I waited on the Lord for an answer as to how to deal with this situation.
The trip was without incident, and I arrived in Daggett less than an hour before their midweek service was scheduled to begin. Our evening began with prayer and folks gathered around the altar in front, or prayed at their seats throughout the church.
About 15 or 20 minutes into our prayer time, this voice suddenly begins loudly prophesying about midway back through the church. I didn't have to look up to guess where it was coming from. The woman in question had stood to her feet and begun uttering some miserable excuse for a prophetic word in her loudest voice. I was on my knees praying and flipped open my Bible.
It fell open to I Corinthians 14:29-33, where Paul speaks of the order and pattern of prophetic utterances and says that "God is not the author of confusion;" and then I read the last verse of the chapter, "Let all things be done decently and in order."
I lifted my head from my bowed position and caught the eye of the lady pastor. She just looked at me and nodded her head. I got to my feet, walked up to the platform and spread my Bible out on the pulpit. Without any introductions or preliminary comments, I simply began reading Paul's remarks from the 14th chapter of I Corinthians. The prophesying ceased as suddenly as it had begun, and the lady who had been prophesying sat down and began glaring at me angrily.
As I began to share about the necessity of things being done in an orderly manner, the necessity of recognizing those in authority whom God had placed -- meaning, in this case, the woman pastor -- over a body of believers, the lady who had been prophesying turned to her husband and muttered a few words. They stood to their feet in as disruptive a manner as possible, making noise as they picked up their coats, and headed for the exit.
It was about as obvious a display of rebellion as you'd ever want to see. There was no acknowledgement of their sin (and I use the word "their" advisedly); there was no repentance or humility of any kind: just pure arrogance.
The more astonishing part of this story unfolded the following morning when Allen, James (another elder from the fellowship) and I went to the home of the couple with the objective of ministering to them. The front door was standing open. When we went to knock, James (the elder) pushed the door open all the way to call the people. The house was empty. The people had packed up their few possessions and vacated the (rented and sparsely furnished) house. Neighbors confirmed that they had left hurriedly during the night. They were nowhere to be found. The church (and apparently the community of Daggett) never heard from the people again.
The spirit of Jezebel hates confrontation. It is unrepentant. Those afflicted by this spirit have serious emotional and psychological battles to fight just to repent. They allow pride and the fear of exposure to block their repentance. It becomes easier (for many) to pretend to repent in order to receive acceptance. Deception (a la the Hivites and Perizzites) on their part becomes the order of the day.
In every case where I've dealt with and addressed the spirit of Jezebel over the past 35-plus years, I can only remember one incident in which the person afflicted with this spirit actually repented -- truly repented -- and was set free. In every other instance, the reaction has been arrogance, pride, rebellion, fear, lots of crying, false repentance followed by an even greater display of rebellion and efforts to usurp authority, etc., etc.
But we've only just begun to describe this spirit and its deadly nature. Neither have we talked about the accompanying spirit of Ahab (that's what I've come to call it) which not only permits but facilitates the operation of the spirit of Jezebel. Stay tuned, folks. We're just getting started with the letter to Thyatira.
We have talked about the significance of the rebuke to this Ekklesia -- and in particular, the permission given to the spirit of Jezebel (a spirit of the Amorites) to operate in their midst, and I shared with you one experience I had in dealing with this spirit.
As I noted before, this is easily the most unrepentant, the most arrogant, the most usurping spirit that plagues the body of Christ. I've lost track of the number of times where I have had to deal with people under the domination of this spirit, and I really have only one recollection of a case in which real repentance and restoration took place.
Thinking back a few years, an instance came to me in which a certain pastor was afflicted with this spirit. He demanded absolute control over the church he pastored, refusing to permit any open ministry within his church. The only prophetic words given in that church either came from him, his wife, or his mother. (That may be overstating things a bit, but I emphasize this to note that this pastor was extremely restrictive in controlling prophetic words.)
This is symptomatic of the spirit of Jezebel. It usurps the authority of the Lord seeking to be the voice that is heard, and the only voice that is heard. When folks in his church began coming to some of my mid-week teachings and heard things that were based soundly in the Word, but things that contradicted what they heard from this pastor, they went to him to ask an explanation. He immediately launched a personal attack from his pulpit against the Word that I was teaching and preaching, and -- more specifically -- against me as an individual.
When the attacks were reported to me, I called this pastor and invited him to come to my office and allow me to share with him exactly what I was saying so that nothing could be taken out of context. He brought some of his "elders" with him and refused to listen to anything I had to share; instead launching into a tirade and personal attack on me, the fellowship, and the benevolence ministries which were peripheral to our fellowship. I invited him to take a cassette tape copy of the teaching that seemed to have sparked his anger, but he refused.
When I gently suggested that he needed to take a look at the spirit in which he was addressing things, he arose from his seat, motioned to the elders who were with him and promptly exited my office. It wasn't long before he engaged in a public letter-writing campaign against me. It isn't necessary for me to take this story out to all of its details other than to say that in the months that followed, he was caught in adultery and forced to give up his pastorate.
Although I have no firsthand knowledge of this, in the years that followed, I was told that this pastor publicly repented and confessed his sin. He was later restored to the pastorate of the same church where he had fallen. That, my friends, is the grace and mercy of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Let me wrap up today with one final event -- this one again involving my lifetime friend and fellow-laborer in the Gospel, Dwain McKenzie.
Back in the late nineties, Dwain's first wife, Betty June, succumbed to a years-long battle with cancer. As noted in #'s 3 and 4 of this series, Dwain was back in Barrow ministering at the same church where he had been falsely accused, betrayed by denominational "brethren" -- and where the Lord had ultimately vindicated him in the years that followed.
Susie had been the worship leader for some time and she and Dwain had developed a real flow in ministry together. There was one fly in the ointment. Susie's first husband had run off with another woman and she was in the middle of a rather prolonged divorce. Dwain had occasion to come and visit Della and me while we were in McAllen, Texas and shared his growing love and affection for Susie. "Do you think it would be OK for me to ask her to marry me after she gets finished with her divorce?"
He admitted to being very nervous about asking her and was concerned that she might not accept his proposal simply because of the way it might look -- and of course there was the issue of whether the denomination would revoke his ordination papers because of her previous marriage since they took a very strong stand on that issue. He was also concerned that if she rejected his proposal of marriage it could damage their ability to flow together in ministry.
Della and I counseled him to pursue things as soon as it was legally possible. If she accepted, he was going to need to run things past the Alaska District Superintendent so that any questions of Biblical propriety could be resolved as far as the denomination was concerned.
This story has lots of interesting twists and turns and details, and I could really stretch it out into a romance novel, but let's get to the heart of things.
With no small amount of trepidation, Susie accepted Dwain's proposal of marriage. Dwain contacted the District Superintendent, and to everyone's surprise and pleasure he expressed not only his congratulations but agreed to perform the wedding. The wedding was a joyous, faith-filled event, and the church rejoiced with Dwain and Susie.
Here's where things take a Jezebel twist!
Not very many months later the very same District Superintendent who performed their wedding sent a letter to Dwain which stated in no uncertain terms that Dwain was in violation of the Word, having married Susie, that he was in violation of the denomination's doctrines and policies, that he was required to surrender his ordination papers, and -- finally -- that he was required to leave the church in Barrow. He called me and read the letter to me over the phone. We both laughed at the irony of the situation. It was 1965 all over again!
Dwain gladly surrendered his ordination papers with the denomination. Leaving the church was another matter, however. The church throughout the years had become independent of the denomination in terms of its charter, its ownership of property, and its right to keep or reject a pastor. The mid-1960's events that had forced Dwain out the first time taught the church a lesson, and one they had taken to heart. The elders of the church rejected the denomination's demand for Dwain's removal and he stayed on.
Think back to #2 in this series and you'll remember that I mentioned watching the District Superintendent of the denomination standing over my mother on her death bed and waiting until she signed over the church, the parsonage and all the property at Saint Paul Island to the denomination. This was the same District Superintendent!
His behavior couldn't have been more indicative of the spirit of Jezebel! You remember Jezebel's ignominious end, don't you? Not too long after this event with Dwain's dismissal from the denomination, this DS was accused of financial improprieties. He ultimately was removed from his position and lost his standing -- and his papers -- with the denomination.
By the way, the end of Dwain's story in Barrow was that he remained on to oversee a move of the Spirit of God that had people falling on their knees in the streets of the city crying out in repentance and surrendering their lives to the Lord.
Got the picture? Jezebel DOES NOT get the last word!
See you next week.
Blessings on you!
Regner
Regner A. Capener
CAPENER MINISTRIES
CAPENER MINISTRIES
709 South 7th Street
Sunnyside, Washington 98944
Sunnyside, Washington 98944
(509) 515-0133
A Tale of Two Brides is now available on Amazon.com: http://www.amazon.com/Tale-Two-Brides-Relationship-ebook/dp/B00BSV6HZC/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&qid=1363139096&sr=8-8&keywords=A+Tale+of+Two+Brides#_
All Coffee Break articles are copyright by Regner A. Capener, but authorization for reprinting, reposting, copying or re-use, in whole or in part, is granted –provided proper attribution and this notice are included intact. Older Coffee Break archives are available at http://www.RegnersMorningCoffee.com. Coffee Break articles are normally published weekly.
If you would like to have these articles arrive each morning in your email, please send a blank email to: Subscribe@AnotherCoffeeBreak.com.To remove yourself from the mailing list, please send a blank email to Unsubscribe@AnotherCoffeeBreak.com.
If you would like to have these articles arrive each morning in your email, please send a blank email to: Subscribe@AnotherCoffeeBreak.com.To remove yourself from the mailing list, please send a blank email to Unsubscribe@AnotherCoffeeBreak.com.
CAPENER MINISTRIES is a tax-exempt church ministry. Should you desire to participate and covenant with us as partners in this ministry, please contact us at either of the above email or physical addresses, or visit: http://www.RiverWorshipCenter.org.
The Spirit of Jezebel, Part 6
September 27, 2013
Felicitations! Greetings and Solutions! Good Morning! Howdy! In case I missed anyone, Hi, there!! Glad you could join me on this most auspicious occasion. So, what’s the occasion? It’s the best day of your life. See, yesterday’s gone, and tomorrow isn’t here yet. That means you’ve only got today. And God doesn't make rotten days! I could take this to extremes, but you get the picture. Hehehehehe……
"And there are seven kings: five are fallen, and one is, and the other is not yet come; and when he cometh, he must continue a short space."
What seven kings are those referred to? Deuteronomy 7:1 describes them as the Hittites, the Girgashites, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Perizzites, the Hivites and the Jebusites. Now I know you think I just fell off the turnip truck, but bear with me.
These seven nations were each ruled by a dominant spirit. In the Greek text of Ephesians 6 where Paul writes, "For we wrestle not against flesh and blood but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places," we see four classes of spiritual rulership. They appear in this order: (1) arche, (2) exousia, (3) kosmokrator, and (4) pneumatico epouranios. Each has its respective place of power and dominion, but the one I want to focus on today is "kosmokrator:" world ruler of darkness. The Greek word is a conjunction of "kosmos" (the world at large, or areas of the world) and "krateo" (to seize power or strength and to retain it).
You may remember Daniel's experience when he fasted for 21 days. The angel of the Lord came to see him and told him that he had to do battle with the prince of Persia for those 21 days and that the archangel Michael came to help him defeat the prince of Persia; that when he departed Daniel's presence he was on his way to do battle with the prince of Greece.
This is the picture that Paul is drawing out of Ephesians 6, and this is the picture we have of the seven nations Israel was commanded to drive out. Ever wonder why Israel was commanded the following?
"When the LORD thy God shall deliver them before thee; thou shalt smite them, and utterly destroy them; thou shalt make no covenant with them, nor show mercy unto them: Neither shalt thou make marriages with them; thy daughter thou shalt not give unto his son, nor his daughter shalt thou take unto thy son. For they will turn away thy son from following me, that they may serve other gods: so will the anger of the LORD be kindled against you, and destroy thee suddenly. But thus shall ye deal with them; ye shall destroy their altars, and break down their images, and cut down their groves, and burn their graven images with fire. For thou art an holy people unto the LORD thy God: the LORD thy God hath chosen thee to be a special people unto himself, above all people that are upon the face of the earth."
God's command to Israel was there because you cannot co-mingle and co-habitate with other gods. Israel was serving God! He was absolute King and ruler. It is impossible to serve two kings at the same time. The King of the Hittites was the Fear of Death. The King of the Canaanites was the Fear of Man. The King of the Amorites was the Fear of Evil. None of that is compatible with our serving the Lord!
It is the Amorites that we want to pay attention to, in this case. History tells us that they almost always chose the high places, the hills, the mountains -- any place that would give them an elevated view of the surrounding countryside. The Hebrew word for Amorite, eõmoòrŒòy, couldn't more clearly describe their nature. Em-or-ee is the word for: publicity, prominence, (and is frequently used for mountaineers). The Hebrew eõmoòrŒòy stems from a root word for folks who talk a lot; those who love to make their voice heard as the most prominent voice. As you see this picture of the Amorites unfold, you'll better understand the significance of that characteristic.
The characteristic of the Amorites that made them want to be THE leaders, THE most prominent, THE rulers and subduers of everyone, is easily demonstrated in Scripture by the fact that there are 23 verses in the OT referring to Amorite kings, with an additional two that mention them in conjunction with Canaanite kings. As far as the kings of the other nations are concerned, Canaanite kings are named three times, Hittite kings are named three times, and -- with the exception of the Girgashites for whom no king is named -- the remaining nations only have their kings named one time. The Amorites' character and nature presents a stark contrast to the other nations.
Years after Shem's (the son of Noah) death, the Jebusites moved in to occupy the city and citadel he had established in the midst of Canaan. Sometime thereafter, an Amorite king subdued the Jebusites and took control of the city and the region. That Amorite king took for himself the appellation and name, Adoniy-Tsedeq (we have it Anglicized as Adonizedek), attempting to identify himself with Shem's power, authority and esteem throughout the land.
Adoniy-Tsedeq translates to "Lord of Righteousness." He thus palmed himself off on the inhabitants as being a picture of righteousness, and rightful heir to Shem's throne. This king was anything but righteous, and God's judgment fell upon him when he rose up in collaboration with four other Amorite kings against Joshua, being overthrown and killed at Makkedah with his four cohorts. Adoniy-Tsedeq's efforts are a clear picture of that spirit that dominated the Amorites.
We know that spirit today as the Fear of Evil. If there can be said to be any master spirit of fear, it is the Fear of Evil. It is a highly religious spirit, and it has all the pretense of right and righteousness. Yet, this spirit lives in dread fear of the power and authority of God.
Most folks don't think of her in this way, but Jezebel was an Amorite. Consider her background. Jezebel's father was an Amorite king by the name of Ethbaal (his name translates to: "living with [and enjoying the pleasures of] Baal") who also served Baal in the role of high priest. I Kings 16:31 describes Ethbaal as "king of the Zidonians." We know Zidon as the Canaanite city, Sidon
Jezebel was a picture of the Amorites and their dominant spirit all by herself. She was a usurper of power and authority. Once she had access to the throne of Israel through Ahab, she drove Baal-worship to new heights (lows?). If the Canaanites were licentious and aberrant in their sexual behavior, Jezebel took their use of prostitutes in Baal-worship to extremes the Canaanites couldn't even imagine.
Her marriage to Ahab, while politically arranged as part of a peace pact between Ahab and Ethbaal (more compromise between Israel Israel
When Elijah spoke and fire rained down and consumed the sacrifice after twelve barrels of water had been poured on it, proving that the god of the prophets of Baal was dead and lifeless, Elijah and the company of people present with him put all 450 prophets of Baal, plus another 400 prophets of the groves "which [ate] at Jezebel's table" to death by the sword. (See I Kings 18)
The picture of Jezebel as a part of the spirit of the Amorites is so significant, and that spirit’s influence so great in the body of Christ today that it gives us clear understanding of John's prophecy when he writes, "...five [kings] are fallen, and one is, and the other is not yet come; and when he cometh, he must continue a short space."
The phrase, "and one is," is a reference to the spirit of the Amorites as manifested in the spirit of Jezebel. The five kings (or ruling spirits) who had fallen (and were not in a position to exercise kingly authority) were the Hittites, the Hivites, the Jebusites, the Girgashites and the Canaanites. The spirit of Jezebel and the Amorites was in full bloom already in the body of Christ when John wrote the Revelation, manifesting itself in the doctrine of the Nicolaitanes in the form of the hierarchical structure that was usurping the authority of the Lord in the Ekklesias.
The phrase, "the other is not yet come.." is a reference to the king and ruling spirit of the Perizzites whose influence was initially felt through the "born again" Pharisees as they tried to implement a form of democratic structure (the other half of the doctrine of the Nicolaitanes) within the Ekklesias. That spirit began to really manifest itself through the introduction of "congregational" church structure in the 1700's and 1800's.
One thing that is eminently clear is that these last two kings (the Amorites and the Perizzites), while appearing to be in opposition with each other, actually cooperate with their Master as they drive the doctrines of humanism forward within the body of Christ.
This last bit is somewhat of an aside but I wanted to help you understand the character and background of the spirit of Jezebel, and why this spirit is so arrogant and unrepentant. I remind you that the character of the Amorites was to always have the high places, to have the preeminence among their brother nations, to be in control of everyone and everything. Historical references to them in Egyptian archaeological findings call them "the long-necked ones" -- a reference to the way they held their heads up in arrogance and pride. The Amorites all thought they were pretty "hot stuff!"
Jezebel idolized herself. She thought she was the greatest thing on the planet. She loved what she saw in the mirror and worshiped herself to her own downfall. So it is with folks who become ensnared by this spirit. They become the center of their own attraction and self-worship. They become so arrogant in their own appearance or abilities that they believe everyone else should likewise be drawn to them. Thus, manipulation and control – witchcraft and sorcery, and with it, divination – become their modus operandi.
It is that very arrogance and self-worship which is at the heart of the spirit of Jezebel's inability to come to a place of repentance. Folks who are contaminated by this spirit have an extremely difficult time accepting their need to repent of their attitudes, their activities and their usurpation of power and/or authority. They become control-freaks!
The Amorites principality, or ruling demonic spirit, was the Fear of Evil. They (and, of course, Jezebel) were ruled by fear, and they -- in turn -- used fear as a means to control and manipulate people. The Fear of Evil is a highly religious spirit whose primary purpose is to get us to be afraid of God rather than having an awe and respect of Him. The Fear of Evil -- like every other spirit of fear -- is a driving spirit who seeks control of all those within its influence.
The Amorites used force to achieve their ends. (Hence hierarchical church government, and hence, Jezebel's modus operandi.) Force is always the first alternative when people lack real authority. Real authority, of course, is only found with the Lord Jesus Christ; and that authority becomes operational in us when we are in fellowship and union with Him!
It was my intention to share a personal story with you today to demonstrate the difficulty that people have in coming to a place of repentance when they are confronted with the fact that they are being used and manipulated by the spirit of Jezebel. My story is long enough that it would make this Coffee Break much too long, so I will save it for next week. Instead let's wrap up this week's discussion with a current prophetic word that came from a brother in the Lord who has since gone home to be with the Lord.
Many years ago I was fortunate enough to meet and share with Wade Taylor on a number of occasions. He was a brother with a deep sense of the heart of the Lord, and the cry that went forth from him prophetically came directly from that knowing within.
This word from Wade was published on September 10th on the Elijah List.
"Deep calleth unto deep at the noise of Thy waterspouts: all Thy waves and Thy billows are gone over me. Psalm 42:7
"Deep calls." Our Lord is a seeking God who desires a satisfaction that can be found only in us – our worship and our times of fellowship with Him. We were created for this purpose, which became marred by the transgression of Adam.
"At the noise of Your waterspouts." Our initial response may seem to us as being "noise," but as we continue to worship and spend time in fellowship with the Lord, it will become as a "song."
The Lord is my strength and song, and He is become my salvation: He is my God, and I will prepare Him an habitation; my father's God, and I will exalt Him. Exodus 15:2
If we will be patient and not become discouraged, we will be immersed in His presence – "all Your waves are gone over me." Now, we are no longer in control. Others will notice the change in us and ask: Who is this that cometh up from the wilderness, leaning upon her beloved?... Song of Solomon 8:5
All this begins with our response to the cry that comes from within the heart of the Lord, "Deep calls." In order to rightly respond, we must become spiritually hungry.
Blessings on you!
Regner
Regner A. Capener
CAPENER MINISTRIES
CAPENER MINISTRIES
709 South 7th Street
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