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EXPLORING THE KINGDOM OF GOD: THE KINGDOM & THE SPIRIT

Key Scriptures: Matthew 28:18-20; John 1:32-34; Acts 1:1-11; Acts 2

Introduction:

Where do we find ourselves? So much of the church has adopted the values and standards of the world. We
want what the world has – in the church!

Blinded by the devil’s lies and counterfeits, it is difficult for us to see clearly to embrace the Kingdom of God with
its contrary lifestyle, perspectives, and methods. We have embraced a worldly culture rather than a Kingdom
culture.

I pray the Spirit of God will remove the scales from our eyes and prepare our hearts to learn from Him. It is much
more difficult to un-learn those things contrary to truth than it is to learn Truth in the first place.

Key Points:

I. Before leaving earth, Jesus left instructions with His disciples.

A. He had previously given them what we refer to as the Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20).

Jesus came and told his disciples, "I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. Therefore, go and
make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach
these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to
the end of the age."

1. Go
2. Make disciples of all nations
3. Baptize them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit
4. Teach the Word

B. After His resurrection, He met with His disciples again before He ascended to sit at the right hand of the
Father and spoke to them concerning the baptism with the Holy Spirit. He told them to wait until they were
clothed with power from on high. (Read Acts 1:1-11).

1. He refers to the same baptism that John spoke of – the baptism with the Holy Spirit (and fire).

John baptized with water, but in just a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:5).

2. They would need power to continue the ministry that Jesus began, but to do so they will need the same
power He relied on – the power of the Holy Spirit.

Then John gave this testimony: “I saw the Spirit come down from heaven as a dove and remain on him. I would
not have known him, except that the one who sent me to baptize with water told me, ‘The man on whom you see
the Spirit come down and remain is he who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.’ I have seen, and I testify that this is
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the Son of God.” (John 1:32-34)

4Ekselans School of Ministry: Institute for the Formation of Christian Leaders 2014
EXPLORING THE KINGDOM OF GOD: THE KINGDOM & THE SPIRIT

But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you (Acts 8:1a).

3. The baptism with the Holy Spirit is the promise of the Father to every believer.

 Christ is the one who baptizes us with the Holy Spirit so that our spirits might be saturated with His
Presence.

 It is His intent that we be completely immersed and soaked in the environment, influence, power,
and essence of the divine being.

 It is the Father’s gift to all believers who are willing to yield themselves entirely to God that they
might be taken by Christ and placed into the all-pervading and saturating presence of the Holy Spirit.

4. Satan, the enemy of God, and of us, has sought to keep men and women from receiving this power from
the earliest of times. He knows that Spirit-controlled, anointed, and empowered believers are a threat
to his kingdom.

 One tactic he has used is fear of receiving a counterfeit. But the Word assures us that our Father,
who is an entirely good God, only gives good gifts.

You fathers—if your children ask for a fish, do you give them a snake instead? Or if they ask for an egg, do you
give them a scorpion? Of course not! So, if you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how
much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him (Luke 11:11-13).

 Satan has a counterfeit for everything, but his counterfeits do not lead to godliness and a closer
relationship with the Lord. The difference is obvious.

II. The baptism with the Holy Spirit is a separate and distinct experience from conversion or regeneration even
though the two events may occur almost simultaneously at times. (My testimony)

A. There are several baptisms that believers may experience.

1. When a sinner comes to Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sin, the Holy Spirit baptizes him into the body
of Christ. This is referred to as “Christian baptism.”

But we have all been baptized into one body by one Spirit, and we all share the same Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:13).

2. Believers are baptized in water to obediently fulfill this ordinance of God and publicly acknowledge that
they have repented of sin and made a commitment to follow Christ as their Lord and Savior.

 The power of indwelling sin has been broken through the death of Christ.
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 New life is imparted to the believer as a result of the resurrection.


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4Ekselans School of Ministry: Institute for the Formation of Christian Leaders 2014
EXPLORING THE KINGDOM OF GOD: THE KINGDOM & THE SPIRIT

We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the
dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life. (Romans 6:4)

3. Baptism with the Holy Spirit is an experience after conversion that is essential to receiving power for
service and victorious living.

 The individual being baptized is already a believer and a member of the body of Christ.

 It is not the Holy Spirit’s baptism but rather the baptism of Jesus with the Holy Spirit.

I baptize you with water for repentance. But after me will come one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals
I am not fit to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. (Matthew 3:11)

God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses of the fact. Exalted to the right hand of God, he has
received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you now see and hear. (Acts 2:32-33)

 What they were seeing and hearing…

When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a
violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be
tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and
began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them. (Acts 2:1-4)

 This was a second experience. Fifty days earlier, they’d had a different experience – before Jesus
ascended.

Again, Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.” And with that he breathed
on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive anyone his sins, they are forgiven; if you do not forgive
them, they are not forgiven. (John 20:21-22)

B. The coming of the Holy Spirit brought to earth all that Jesus had accomplished.

Jesus went on to say, "I tell you the truth, some standing here right now will not die before they see the Kingdom
of God arrive in great power!" (Mark 9:1)

1. In this verse, Jesus is speaking of the promise of the Father, the baptism in the Holy Spirit, when they
would be clothed with power from on high. At that time, they would see the Kingdom arrive in great
power.

2. The apostolic church immediately recognized that the anointing of the Holy Spirit was the same
anointing that was upon Christ.

3. The Holy Spirit is essentially the glorified Jesus given to the church. Through the presence of the Holy
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Spirit, the indwelling Christ is the very life of the believer and the power of sanctification.

4Ekselans School of Ministry: Institute for the Formation of Christian Leaders 2014
EXPLORING THE KINGDOM OF GOD: THE KINGDOM & THE SPIRIT

4. The disciples were literally transformed. They had been “clothed” with power from on high, but they
didn’t receive this power without purpose. Power was given to enable them to accomplish their
evangelistic mission.

 Greater power for witnessing.


 Greater joy in spiritual service.
 Increased sense of one’s mission in the world.
 Ability to live a holy life with a new devotion to Jesus Christ and God’s Word.

C. Most people don’t have a problem with being filled or more fully controlled by the Holy Spirit. They have a
problem with tongues, the initial evidence.

While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit came on all who heard the message. The circumcised
believers who had come with Peter were astonished that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out even on
the Gentiles. For they heard them speaking in tongues and praising God. (Acts 10:44-46)

When Paul placed his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they spoke in tongues and prophesied
(Acts 19:6).

Then Ananias went to the house and entered it. Placing his hands-on Saul, he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord—
Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you were coming here—has sent me so that you may see again and
be filled with the Holy Spirit.” (Acts 9:17)

I thank God that I speak in tongues more than any of you (1 Corinthians 14:18).

So, my dear brothers and sisters, be eager to prophesy, and don't forbid speaking in tongues. But be sure that
everything is done properly and in order. (1 Corinthians 14:39-40)

D. Tongues have several purposes.

1. They are the initial evidence of the baptism with the Holy Spirit.

2. They are a gift to edify the church when they are interpreted (1 Corinthians 12:10; Jude 1:20).

3. They are a sign to unbelievers (1 Corinthians 14:22).

4. They are a God-given provision for effective prayer and praise (1 Corinthians 14:2, 4, 14-18)

III. The Holy Spirit encompasses the Kingdom of God. While they are not the same, they are inseparable.

But if I am casting out demons by the Spirit of God, then the Kingdom of God has arrived among you. For who is
powerful enough to enter the house of a strong man like Satan and plunder his goods? Only someone even
stronger—someone who could tie him up and then plunder his house (Matthew 12:28-29).
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4Ekselans School of Ministry: Institute for the Formation of Christian Leaders 2014
EXPLORING THE KINGDOM OF GOD: THE KINGDOM & THE SPIRIT

A. The Holy Spirit enforces the lordship of Jesus, marking His territory with liberty.

But whenever someone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. For the Lord is the Spirit, and wherever the
Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. So, all of us who have had that veil removed can see and reflect the glory of
the Lord. And the Lord—who is the Spirit—makes us more and more like him as we are changed into his glorious
image (2 Corinthians 3:16-18).

1. The King’s domain becomes evident through His work.

2. The second part of this verse reveals the nature of ministry. Anointed ministry causes the collision of
two worlds —the world of darkness with the world of light.

3. This passage shows the nature of deliverance. When the Kingdom of God comes upon someone, powers
of darkness are forced to leave.

4. Jesus declared that the casting out of demons is clear evidence that the kingdom of God has arrived at a
place. Whenever Jesus cast out a demon, it indicated four vital principles in relation to the kingdom:

 The kingdom of God will arrive at a specific place, here and now.

 The kingdom of God will come into a specific situation, here and now.

 The kingdom of God is far more powerful than the kingdom of darkness.

 Satan is totally defeated.

B. Those who learn how to work with the Holy Spirit actually cause the reality of His world (His dominion) to
collide with the powers of darkness that have influence over a person or situation. The greater the manifestation
of His presence, the quicker the victory.

C. I will be with you is a promise made by God to all His servants (Exodus 3:12; Joshua 1:9; Judges 6:16; Matthew
28:19).

1. It comes when God requires something of us that is humanly impossible.

 It’s the presence of God that links us to the impossible.

 God is 100% supernatural. If we invite Him to a situation, we should expect nothing less than
supernatural invasion.

2. Part of the privilege of ministry is learning how to release the Holy Spirit in a given location.
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4Ekselans School of Ministry: Institute for the Formation of Christian Leaders 2014
EXPLORING THE KINGDOM OF GOD: THE KINGDOM & THE SPIRIT

Because of the apostles' work, sick people were brought out into the streets on beds and mats so that Peter's
shadow might fall across some of them as he went by. Crowds came from the villages around Jerusalem,
bringing their sick and those possessed by evil spirits, and they were all healed (Acts 5:15-16).

 It wasn’t Peter’s shadow that brought healing. There is no substance to a shadow.

 Peter was overshadowed by the Holy Spirit, and it was that presence that brought the miracles.

 The anointing is an expression of the person of the Holy Spirit. He is tangible.

 There were times in Jesus’ ministry when everyone who touched Christ’s clothing was healed or
delivered (see Mark 6: 56).

 The anointing is substance. It is the actual presence of the Holy Spirit, and He can be released into
our surroundings.

3. A bottle is not completely full until it overflows. So, it is with the Holy Spirit. Fullness is measured in
overflow.

 The Holy Spirit is released through faith and compassion, and faith and compassion are never self-
centered.

D. Jesus often healed after being moved with compassion.

1. I frequently detect the leading of the Holy Spirit by recognizing His affection for someone else.

2. Being drawn to a person through compassion usually means that there will be some realm of
supernatural ministry to them—either with a word of encouragement, or a miracle of healing or
deliverance.

3. Loving people is Christ’s agenda, and surrender of our own agendas makes us available for His.

E. The Holy Spirit will always lead you in truth; therefore, follow Him wherever He leads.

1. To do so, you must be willing to go beyond what you know. That means getting out of your comfort
zone.

2. It also means recognizing His presence above everything else.

3. There is a great difference between the way Jesus did ministry and the way it typically is done today.
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 He was completely dependent on what the Father was doing and saying.
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4Ekselans School of Ministry: Institute for the Formation of Christian Leaders 2014
EXPLORING THE KINGDOM OF GOD: THE KINGDOM & THE SPIRIT

 He illustrated this lifestyle after His Holy Spirit baptism. He followed the Holy Spirit’s leading, even
when it seemed unreasonable, which it often did.

4. The Church has all too often lived according to an intellectual approach to the Scriptures, void of the
Holy Spirit’s influence.

 We have programs and institutions that in no way require the Spirit of God to survive.

 In fact, much of what we call ministry has no safeguard in it to ensure that He is even present.

 When our focus is not the presence of God, we end up doing the best we can for God. Our
intentions may be noble, but they are powerless in effect.

F. Jesus sets a standard with the statement “John the Baptist was the greatest of all Old Testament prophets.”
But the least in this new era are to surpass him due to their relationship with the Spirit.

I tell you the truth: Among those born of women there has not risen anyone greater than John the Baptist; yet he
who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. From the days of John the Baptist until now, the
kingdom of heaven has been forcefully advancing, and forceful men lay hold of it. (Matthew 11:11-12).

1. Jesus is not saying that the people in heaven are greater than John. He was speaking of a new level of
living that was soon to become available to all believers.

2. John prophesied of Christ’s coming and went so far as to confess his need of what He was to bring.

He who is coming after me is mightier than I… He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire (Matthew 3: 11).

Jesus came to be baptized… John tried to prevent Him, saying, “I need to be baptized by You …” (Matthew 3: 14).

 Not even John, who Jesus called great, possessed what was about to become available to the least
of all saints.

 “I need to be baptized by You,” meaning, “I need Your baptism …the one I was assigned to
announce!” The baptism in the Holy Spirit makes a lifestyle available to us that not even John had
access to.

 It is the baptism in the Holy Spirit that became God’s ultimate goal for mankind. Salvation was the
immediate goal, but then we are to press into the Kingdom and its lifestyle, which the Holy Spirit
enables us to live.
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4Ekselans School of Ministry: Institute for the Formation of Christian Leaders 2014
EXPLORING THE KINGDOM OF GOD: THE KINGDOM & THE SPIRIT

3. We are given an Old Testament picture.

 The children of Israel left Egypt when the blood was applied to the doorposts of their homes. It’s the
blood of Christ that saves us.

 Going through the Red Sea was referred to as the baptism of Moses (1 Corinthians 10:2), Similarly,
we are baptism in water after conversion.

 When the Jews finally entered the Promised Land (Canaan, a type of the Kingdom of God), they
entered through a river – another baptism.

 They fought wars on the other side of the river and won, but now their battles take on a new
element.

o Now they would march around a city in silence for days, finally raising up a shout and
watching the walls fall (Joshua 6).

o Later, they would experience the challenge of sending a choir into battle first (2 Chronicles
20: 21).

o And then there was the time God intentionally sent more than 30,000 soldiers back home,
so He could fight a war with 300 torch-wielding trumpet blowers.

G. This baptism in the Holy Spirit is the fulfillment of the Old Testament picture of entering the Promised Land.

1. Suppose the children of Israel had chosen to cross the Jordan but became content to live on the banks
of the river.

 They would have missed the purpose for crossing the river in the first place.

 There were nations to destroy and cities to possess.

 Contentment short of God’s purposes would mean having to learn to live with the enemy.

 That is what it is like when a believer is baptized in the Holy Spirit but never goes beyond speaking in
tongues.

2. When we become satisfied apart from God’s ultimate purpose of dominion, we learn to tolerate the
devil in some area of our life.
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 As glorious as the gift of tongues is, it is an entrance point to a lifestyle of power.

4Ekselans School of Ministry: Institute for the Formation of Christian Leaders 2014
EXPLORING THE KINGDOM OF GOD: THE KINGDOM & THE SPIRIT

 That power has been given to us that we might dispossess the strongholds of hell and take
possession for the glory of God.

IV. If you want anything from God, you will have to pray into heaven. That is where it all is. If you live in the
earth realm and expect to receive from God, you will never get anything. 1

The Church has been negligent in one thing… she has not prayed the power of God out of heaven. 2

A. We need to recognize the authority as well as the territory that we have been given.

1. Bill Johnson, Director of the Supernatural School of Ministry, quietly took authority over a fortune teller
that had come to his town. She was not his enemy nor the problem. The kingdom of darkness was his
target.

He declared, You don’t exist in heaven; you are not to exist here. This is my town. You are here illegally. I forbid
you to establish roots here! God has declared that wherever the soles of my feet tread, God has given it to me. I
bind you to the Word of God that declares that I have authority over you. Be gone!

He walked around her tent like Israel walked around Jericho. Nothing fell in the natural.

While she was practicing her sorcery on a couple seated at her table, he stood on the other side of the tent wall,
only a few feet away from the unsuspecting couple.

He held his hands toward them, binding the power of hell that was intent on their destruction.

He left when he felt he was done.

(The hands that are surrendered to God can release the power of heaven into a situation. In the spirit world it is
released like lightning. See Habakkuk 3: 2-4.)

Although the event still lasted for several more days, the fortune teller left town the next morning. The power
that influenced her had been broken. She couldn’t leave fast enough.

B. The Lord’s Prayer gives us the clearest model of how we are to bring the reality of His world into ours. If we
pray, He will come.

1. Biblical prayer is always accompanied by radical obedience. God’s response to prayer with obedience
always releases the nature of heaven into our impaired circumstances.

2. Jesus’ model reveals the only two real priorities of prayer:

 First, intimacy with God that is expressed in worship— holy is Your name.

 And second, to bring His Kingdom to earth, establishing His dominion over the needs of mankind—
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Your Kingdom come.


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4Ekselans School of Ministry: Institute for the Formation of Christian Leaders 2014
EXPLORING THE KINGDOM OF GOD: THE KINGDOM & THE SPIRIT

3. As disciples, we are both citizens and ambassadors of another world.

 This world is our assignment, but not our home. Our purpose is eternal.

 The resources needed to complete the assignment are unlimited. The only restrictions are those
between our ears.

C. When we pray for His Kingdom to come, we are asking Him to superimpose the rules, order, and benefits of
His world over this one until this one looks like His.

1. That’s what happens when the sick are healed or the demonized are set free. His world collides with the
world of darkness, and His world always wins.

2. Our battle is always a battle for dominion— a conflict of kingdoms.

V. How the kingdom of darkness rules

Once you were dead because of your disobedience and your many sins. You used to live in sin, just like the rest of
the world, obeying the devil—the commander of the powers in the unseen world. He is the spirit at work in the
hearts of those who refuse to obey God (Ephesians 2:1-2).

A. Through spiritual ignorance

1. Spiritual ignorance is the absence of spiritual knowledge, or a lack of revelation from God and His Word.

2. The kingdom of darkness dominates its subjects by keeping them unaware of, or blinded to, eternal
realities— such as their true spiritual condition, their purpose on earth, and the power of Christ through
the cross and the resurrection.

3. A lack of revelation leaves people vulnerable to demonic strongholds in their minds, and this is how the
enemy gains the upper hand to enslave them.

4. The kingdom of darkness and of “religion” thrive on our tendency to remain in spiritual ignorance.

B. Through people’s disobedience

1. People who live in rebellion and disobedience are automatically a part of the kingdom of darkness,
whether they realize it or not.

2. Satan and his kingdom operate within or dominate everyone who is disobedient.
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3. People’s disobedience may be either voluntary or due to ignorance, but God allows Satan to rule over
rebellious people who have been blinded, since their sinful nature or rejection of Him has opened the
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door to Satan’s influence.

4Ekselans School of Ministry: Institute for the Formation of Christian Leaders 2014
EXPLORING THE KINGDOM OF GOD: THE KINGDOM & THE SPIRIT

4. As God’s ambassadors in the world, He wants us to intercede for these people and break Satan’s
bondage so that they might come under the authority and freedom of His Kingdom.

5. We must ask God to remove the blindfold from their eyes so that they might repent and so the enemy
can no longer keep them enslaved.

C. Through domination and control.

1. “To dominate” means to rule people to make them do what we want, with the help of the spirit of
witchcraft or a demonic power that replaces the authority of God and the power of the Holy Spirit.

2. Satan often rules his kingdom through rebellious people who oppress others by manipulation, control,
and intimidation; sometimes, they may employ witchcraft, magic, and other occult practices.

3. Satanic domination can even occur in the church, when people try to rule over others without the
leading of the Holy Spirit. When Satan is in control, the Spirit of God is not present.

4. The law of the kingdom of darkness is domination and control over people. The law of the Kingdom of
God is submission freely offered to Him.

5. Even though the enemy can use people by influencing them through demonic spirits that have gained a
legal right to act in and through them, we must remember that our battle is not with the people but
with evil spiritual beings that have no bodily form.

6. Satan does not want us to know when he is operating. He hides. He will try to make us think that certain
things are just in our imagination, psychological, or the fault of another person.

7. We need discernment to deal with these entities and cast them out. We cannot remain ignorant of the
existence of Satan’s invisible and wicked kingdom.

8. His kingdom is well structured and undivided because he learned from God that power comes from a
coordinated effort – even though he creates his united effort through force and subjugation by his
spirits rather than by true harmony.

VI. We must live in the revelation of Christ’s victory over Satan.

A. Satan was defeated. By way of the cross, Jesus inflicted on Satan a total, permanent, eternal, irrevocable
defeat.
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In this way, He disarmed the spiritual rulers and authorities. He shamed them publicly by his victory over them on
the cross.
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4Ekselans School of Ministry: Institute for the Formation of Christian Leaders 2014
EXPLORING THE KINGDOM OF GOD: THE KINGDOM & THE SPIRIT

B. Satan was dethroned. Jesus nailed to the cross every weapon Satan uses to torment people.

For when a strong man like Satan is fully armed and guards his palace, his possessions are safe— until someone
even stronger attacks and overpowers him, strips him of his weapons, and carries off his belongings (Luke 11:21-
22).

C. Satan was disarmed. The spiritual victory of the Son of God makes us more than conquerors (Romans 8:37).

D. Satan was destroyed.

Because God's children are human beings—made of flesh and blood—the Son also became flesh and blood. For
only as a human being could he die, and only by dying could he break the power of the devil, who had the power
of death. Only in this way could he set free all who have lived their lives as slaves to the fear of dying (Hebrews
2:14-15).

1. Jesus came to earth to destroy all the works of the devil.

2. By His death and resurrection, Jesus broke the power of sickness, sin, demons, poverty, and death.

3. We have the authority to enforce Christ’s victory— to keep destroying the devil and his works by
delivering people through supernatural revelation and manifestations.

VII. Satan still has three legal rights.

A. The cross and the resurrection form the bridge that leads us out of the kingdom of darkness and into the
kingdom of light. Now, we are seated in heavenly places in God’s kingdom, where He gives us the privilege of
ruling together with Him.

For He has rescued us out of the kingdom of darkness and transferred us into the Kingdom of his dear Son, who
purchased our freedom and forgave our sins (Colossians 1:13-14).

B. Until Satan’s final defeat at the end of the age, he still has a legal right to attack us in three ways.

1. Temptation is the first tier of attack.

Temptation comes from our own desires, which entice us and drag us away (James 1:14).

 All temptation is based on a deception or a lie.

 Satan uses our own lusts and desires to tempt us. If you have no desire for something, the
temptation will have no power over you.

 Repeated temptation can increase our desire for something. Satan’s tactic is to wear us out.
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4Ekselans School of Ministry: Institute for the Formation of Christian Leaders 2014
EXPLORING THE KINGDOM OF GOD: THE KINGDOM & THE SPIRIT

2. Persecution is the second level of attack (John 15:18-21).

"If the world hates you, remember that it hated me first. The world would love you as one of its own if you
belonged to it, but you are no longer part of the world. I chose you to come out of the world, so it hates you. Do
you remember what I told you? `A slave is not greater than the master.' Since they persecuted me, naturally they
will persecute you. And if they had listened to me, they would listen to you. They will do all this to you because of
me, for they have rejected the one who sent me.

 Satan will incite other people to oppress believers for the purpose of stopping them from preaching
and demonstrating the kingdom of God.

 The enemy will attack anyone who dares to carry out God’s will.

 He will try to destroy anyone who wants to establish the kingdom.

 He will oppose any Christian activity or movement that leads to glorifying God and delivering people
from demonic bondage.

 Satan is not willing to surrender the territory he has gained in people’s lives, and the instant he feels
threatened, he will attack with all the wickedness and power at his disposal.

3. Accusation is the highest form of attack (Revelation 12:10).

Then I heard a loud voice shouting across the heavens, "It has come at last— salvation and power and the
Kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Christ. For the accuser of our brothers and sisters has been thrown
down to earth - the one who accuses them before our God day and night.

 He will always accuse believers of sin and make them feel guilty.

 However, this particular form of accusation is a last resort— a reserved weapon— of the enemy to
attack the credibility of believers when they become a threat to him and his kingdom.

 Jesus was unjustly accused by the religious leaders of being a blasphemer, of using the power of the
devil, and of committing sedition against the authority of Rome.

 The leaders used these accusations in their quest to put Him to death.

 There was no greater threat to Satan than Jesus Christ, and the enemy used rebellious people to
hurl accusations against Him in order to eliminate Him.
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4Ekselans School of Ministry: Institute for the Formation of Christian Leaders 2014
EXPLORING THE KINGDOM OF GOD: THE KINGDOM & THE SPIRIT

C. Even though Satan no longer has dominion over us, he will continue trying to either bring us back into his
kingdom or undermine our spiritual effectiveness. But we have the power to overcome him!

1. For you to be a real danger to the kingdom of darkness, you must be ready to resist satanic attacks.

2. God’s kingdom is not about theology or doctrine but about resurrection power that can defeat the
enemy.

3. When the power of God rests upon a man or a woman, demons must flee. We have the power and
authority to bring deliverance!

4. I must give a word of warning: Though Jesus delivered us from the power and dominion of darkness, if
we continue to disobey God, or if we decide not to follow Him, we are automatically under the enemy’s
authority again.

 We might not realize this fact, because the prince of darkness has blinded us from seeing or knowing
Jesus or the truth of the gospel of the kingdom.

 If this is the case, only God’s revelation can remove the blindfold, so we can see what is really going
on.

5. When we establish the kingdom of God, therefore, hell will rise up against us.

 We must learn to protect ourselves from Satan’s attacks and also to protect those who are new to
the kingdom, because they, too, are being pursued by their prior lord and master.

 Let us remember that the only authority the devil can have over us is the authority we give him
through our disobedience.

 If we obey God, the enemy cannot prevail against us. He might have power but not authority (he no
longer has that right), and he cannot use this power to defeat us unless we allow it.

 Because of what Jesus did for us, we can force Satan to submit; we can destroy all of his works!

Note: An obedient church will render the devil powerless, but a disobedient church will empower him.

HOMEWORK:
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4Ekselans School of Ministry: Institute for the Formation of Christian Leaders 2014

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