3 And when Paul had gathered a bundle of sticks, and laid them on the fire, there came a viper out of the heat, and fastened on his hand. 4 And when the barbarians saw the venomous beast hang on his hand, they said among themselves, No doubt this man is a murderer, whom, though he hath escaped the sea, yet vengeance suffereth not to live. 5 And he shook off the beast into the fire, and felt no harm.
Acts 28:3-5 KJV

The day you make up your mind to arise beyond the lukewarm state of self, to come into agreement with God’s heavenly vision for your life, & to do the predestined works which God has ordained for you [in delivering men out of the cold of spiritual bondage , Sin & Death], you will be confronted squarely by the serpent!. Just as Apostle Paul was in our text.

  • Moses was confronted by the serpent in the very people he came to save, Acts 7:27-28
  • Joseph was confronted by the serpent in his own brothers. Gen 37:8
  • David was confronted by the serpent in his eldest brother Eliab on his way to destiny 1 Sam 17:28
  • Gideon was confronted by the serpent in his fathers household. Judges 6:27-32
  • Elisabeth was confronted by the serpent in her time of celebration and testimony Lk 1:59-61
  • Hannah was confronted by the serpent in her marital home. 1 Sam 6:6
  • Jesus was confronted by the serpent in the church by the elders Mark 11:28

The confrontation will come in many different forms, and in the guise of many different people (some you love, some you dont) but behind it all is the same protagonist: the serpent.

From the very moment you were born, the serpent has “considered you” Job 2:3. The very moment you became born-again, you became an ‘existential threat’. But when you actually decided to go beyond ordinary Christianity and accomplish things for the kingdom of God you had to be “handled”. This is necessary to state because far too many believers have bought into this serpentine doctrine that’s now pervasive in the church which says “don’t disturb the devil and he wont disturb you“

Make no mistakes, we are in a cold war of the ages, and yes it is true that Christ has won, we know the end result – Hallelujah –  yet as far as Satan’s concerned, every believer must be denied the opportunity of living the overcoming life and walking in that liberty that has been purchased for them. The believer & his seed must be neutralized (swallowed up); trapped & enslaved 2 Tim 2:26. And possibly even co-opted into working against the kingdom objectives of God. Just like peter in Matt 16:22-24. Satan and the Serpent are 5 star spoilers!

BUT “He that is in me, is greater than he that is in the world“…!!!!??
Well if that promise will hold true for us, we must also be willing to consider vs 2 of the same 1 John 4 which says”...every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God:“…
So here comes the qualifying question:
“How much has Christ really come in my life”??
“How much of me does Christ occupy as against he that is in the world?”

it is fair to say that:- The extent in which Christ is come in your life [Your mind space, your heart space, your belly space and your body] is the extent that you will be able to walk in His Authority. Its foolishness to try to effectively confront the serpent when it’s also residing & thriving in your life more so than the Holy Spirit. Consider that Moses tried it, but God had to take Moses out to the wilderness for 40 years to tame the serpent of Egypt in him. Only then was he fully capable of confronting pharaohs serpents in Egypt.

Lets consider our diagram:body soul spirit

Last post we discussed the four spaces in our lives that the serpent seeks to occupy.  It is along the journey of life that the opportunities for occupation are often presented. These are more easily deduced in the four realms of engagement where we have to interact with the world.

  • The serpent you will meet in the way: [The Adversary].
    It is Adversarial in posture, lying in wait to hinder and retard your progress in life Gen 49;17 . It is very common in our career/education/business spaces. Sometimes it camouflages as friendly whilst working against your interest in secret, Other times it manifests itself in superiors/supervisors who are hostile for no apparently clear or justifiable reason.
  • The serpent lurking outside your hedge: [The Watcher]
    This one has an opportunistic posture, it lingers around sniffing for a chance to get in when the hedge is broken, to bite. It understands the boundaries of your faith walk. When you fall into its temptation trap. It strikes swiftly. When the bible encourages us to be obedient to God, it is to our benefit, because once we begin to walk in disobedience we leave ourselves open to harassment.
  • The Serpent LIKELY residing within you: [The Parasite]
    The thought of a serpentine spirit occupying some of your space is not a palatable thing to imagine for most of us, but often more a reality than we know. It takes the revelation of the Holy Spirit and discernment of the symptoms to readily identify its operation in and through us.
    This kind has a parasitic posture. Essentially feeding off of our ‘life force’ (for want of a better word), our emotions, draining our energy, contaminating our giftings and even using us as conduits to feast on the flesh of others (particularly in sexual sins) Isa 59:5
  • The serpent residing in those around you. [The Familiar]
    This has an alluring friendly posture when its coercive ways are being paid heed to, but can easily switch into a combative posture when it begins to lose its control & influence over you.
    It has a highly manipulative and indoctrinating stance, always wanting to control the direction and destiny of your life, planting seeds through words, attitudes, emotional manipulation.
    The serpent became a trusted friend of Eve first before it could lure her into the sin of disobedience in the garden. He had reasoned enough with her over the years that it was no longer a stranger to her. (we often think the temptation of eve was an instant thing but it wasn’t)

Doors we Open for the Serpent to Enter

The Mind Space

  • Severe Trauma:
    Trauma especially experienced at a vulnerable age almost always creates a wide crack for the serpent to get in. Issues like early loss of a loved one, Sexual abuse, Rape, Physical and emotional child abuse, mental domination. These are direct doorways for the serpent to get into out minds. In my few years of counselling i’m shocked with just how deep the issues of sexual abuse runs in the lives of Christians and in our churches…truly staggering.
  • Enchantment / Divination / Indoctrination;
    Spells are usually cast to control peoples minds and actions. They are common doors through which the serpent enters.
    Witches & spell casters are no longer riding brooms, they were suits and drive flashy cars now…so there’ easier to miss.
    We must be particular careful who we lend our ears and attention. Like the Galatians in Gal 3:1 were bewitched in Paul’s short absence from them.
    There are many enchanters in the guise of pastors/prophets putting saints under spells of many forms in the name of Christianity. Every enchantment works with the serpentine spirit. As a christian your priority is to read the word and listen to the Holy Spirit over and above any pastors, teachers and prophets. 1 John 1:4. I don’t even encourage new believers to read books until you are somewhat grounded in the word.
  • Anger / Offence
    Proverbs 25:28 “A person who does not control his temper is like a city whose wall is broken down“. If your anything like me, this is a familiar subject to you. i’ve suffered immeasurable losses over the years because of this but the Spirit has helped me come very far from where i used to be. [My wife will tell you the journey is still far :-)] Its a daily battle of submission and surrender.
  • Other very common symptoms to watch out for include: regular bouts of depression, self-loathing, suicidal inclinations, hearing multiple voices,

The Heart Space | Conscience

In him was life; and the life was the light of men.
John 1:4

Every man born of woman is born with a conscience. As they progress is life this becomes darkened and seared based on circumstances and interactions. The heart space is a hotly contested point in the life of a believer. The Holy Spirit enjoys working in a man whose heart is full of love and compassion. The serpent’s operation in and against the heart can leave it stony and hard.

Do you have a lot of bitterness, mistrust and unforgiveness in your heart?
It is ripe ground for the serpent to spin venom and you must prayerfully tender your heart to the dealings and sanctification of the Holy Spirit.
Sometimes in my discipleship classes i like to tease believers that we have all been witches or gainfully engaged in part-time witchcraft operations regularly in our lives…much to their chagrin :-). Rebellion starts in the heart 1 Sam 15:23 and it certainly is the launching point for “arrows”.
Have you ever in a moment of hot anger wished evil on anyone?

From the sole of the foot even unto the head there is no soundness in it; but wounds, and bruises, and putrifying sores: they have not been closed, neither bound up, neither mollified with ointment. Isaiah 1:6

Where wounds and deep callouses are in our hearts, they are direct hatching ground for serpentine motivations. We need to prayerfully bring them to the healer of our souls to mollify our wounds with ointment, bind it up and pour His healing oils.

The Belly Space | Engine Room of the Spirit

He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.
John 7:38

This is the one place in a believers life that CAN NEVER BE INVADED OR OCCUPIED by the serpentine or any other foul spirit for that matter.
I like Watchman Nee’s explanation of who dwells in our belly space:

Before we were saved, we did not have life in our spirit. Our spirit was only an organ. When we received the Lord Jesus, He came into our spirit to be our life. In our spirit we have another life, the divine life. The Greek word which the New Testament uses for this life is zoe. Zoe is in our spirit.

Zoe, referring to the divine life, is in our spirit. This divine life is simply God Himself. This divine life is simply Christ Himself, God Himself, coming into our spirit to be our life.

The more we yield in surrender to the Holy Spirit, the more the Life of GOD is able to flow forth abundantly from this place. As the living waters flow from here, it flows into our heart space, and mind space – constantly sanctifying and building us up in the process.
The strength of our wills and mind can often “dam the flow” of this Zoe life from the belly space. [God has demonstrated this to me in a dream before]. This is often why we need to be subjected to dealings and trials targeted at breaking our outer man and strength, because it is only in our weakness we become strong in His strength…Joel 3:10

Everything needed to flush out the serpentine in us flows from this space. It will be most effective when we are broken and thoroughly yielded to the divine life of God in us.

Give way!!! [In your mind, In Your Heart and in your Body]

The Private Space | The Body

Its ironic that i refer to this as the private space, because these days it often the LEAST private of all the spaces were dealing with in the body of Christ.
Sexual immorality and Sin in particular should be singled out for discussion.They are great big keys with large “OPEN FOR PATRONAGE” signs that give legal entry to every bit of scum spirit lurking about out there.

Flee from sexual immorality. Every other sin a person commits is outside the body, but the sexually immoral person sins against his own body.
1 cor 6:18

Getting into all the other spaces in your life takes work, takes time, takes engagement and perseverance on the part of the serpent.
But sexual sin is you literally opening the door to the serpent and handing them over your destiny and your life! It is that severe. There is no faster way to bondage than this.

Sexual sin IS temple defiling! It is so damaging because in 1 single act of disobedience and indiscretion is enough to defile all the spaces in your body! It is the one sin which can so quickly quench the operation of the Holy Spirit out of your belly space.

– Sexual Immorality – Pre-marital sex – Extra marital sex
– Pornography (even through social media channels like Instagram)
– Masturbation (Yes it is a sin) – Lewdness on the marital bed
– Homosexuality – Lesbianism – Bestiality

When we commit these sins, the serpent should even be the last of our concern. God should be. Because few other sins invite direct risk of destruction from God than temple defiling sin, Many believers today sadly are operating under the curse and judgement of God because they refuse to repent from sexual sins. We as churches are also very culpable because we refuse to address these issues anymore, all we want to preach about is the “betterment of self” and in so doing we have built structures where broods of vipers thrive and prey on the weak mercilessly.
Lets get back to truth brothers and sisters.

17 If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are..
1 cor 3:17

Summary

Later on this year, we are going to hold a youth conference titled
“Close your Legs”. Should be very interesting.

One thing i didn’t touch on is “Abortion” and how that factors into this.
There is not enough time to get into the details but what if i were to say to you that when we commit abortion (no matter the stage of the fetus) we essentially offer up a child in sacrifice upon the altar for a serpent to come and feast upon!! It is no less grievous than what the Israelite did in making their young ones walk through the fire for molech!!!

We thank GOD for the great opportunity for repentance and forgiveness.
It is my prayer that anywhere we are erring, may the Holy Spirit shine His light of truth to help us come to our senses and repent.
Standing on Job 20:15 may He also grant us great grace for recovery from every good thing we have lost to the enemy.. Amen

He will spit out the riches he swallowed; God will make his stomach vomit them up.

Job 20:15

[Recent Encounters with Serpentine Operations]

Enchantment that led to captivity
Several months ago, we were called to intervene in a grievous situation in a christian household. Upon arrival, the young girl of 16 years old had been physically bound up in chains to prevent her from moving. We were told that she had been running around the street naked as she was losing her mind. As we began to engage her, the Holy Spirit expressly said “Its the case of blood-covenant”.
She an usher in her church had been entertaining the advances of a young chorister in the same church. He had spent some months working on her mind and heart until he lured her up to a mountain retreat where he cajoled her into making a blood oath that they would marry each other and none else. Failure of either party to keep to this agreement would be under penalty of untimely death! (their own words). They start sleeping together, she gets pregnant – gives birth and then wakes up to the reality that she no longer wanted to marry him.
She is nursing the child one faithful day, right into her room walks the spirit of death come to claim her per the agreement, She cant handle what she sees and goes insane for weeks.
By the mercy of God she is alive today, but this type of cases are more rampant among our youth. Lesson: that brother, that sister, that colleague, that friend. Vet their overtures thoroughly with the magnifying glass of the spirit. Tests their mettle with His fire! Not everything around you should be taken at face value.

Enchantment designed to lead to captivity

In this battle with the serpent, you have no greater companion, aide and defender than the Holy Spirit. There is no substitute for knowing Him, hearing His voice, and obeying His direction.
Counselling a sister-in-Christ one day, she was narrating the issues. I hear the voice of the Holy Spirit say “stop counselling her” “hand her over to person x”. I’m thinking, “Holy Spirit why? i’m right here, available and genuinely concerned about her issue”. I linger in the conversation.
Several minutes after a spirit passes before my face, i’m starting to feel ‘different’ then my ears open. She is still speaking in plain English, but all of a sudden i hear another indelible speech under her words (its hard to describe) and its got the ssss tone of a serpent. Again i hear the voice of the Holy Spirit much sterner than earlier! (He was not pleased with me) “Stop this counseling now!!!”

Instantly i cut off, give some silly excuse and go off unto someone else.

I have encountered people who physically seem to have 2 tongues.
Whilst they speak normally with the natural one, they have another tongue which they deploy to speak to your soul. Many a man, many a woman, many a pastor have been sprung into this snare!!!
These people are so fully integrated with the serpent, they can easily switch personality like changing gears in a car. [Imagine what a christian wholly submitted to the Holy Spirit can do 🙂 ]

They are in our office spaces, they are in our churches, they are in our hospitals, they are in our children schools. They are more about than we know, Yet in all of this “He that is in us is greater than He that is in the world“. But we must allow for Him to Increase in us (not just confined to our belly space) even as we decrease.

In this will our continuous victory be manifest.

Shallom.

16 Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves.

Mathew 10:16