The Power of Perversion- the Archenemy of Purity

The subtleties behind the perversion invasion on the church resembles lymphatic cancer, it starts with only one small choice or cell but it soon spreads through the entire body and is highly incurable. The sad news is the church has been hiding this disease under its pews for decades and it is now habilitating destruction. “We don’t like to talk about such things or bring it out in the open”, I have been told by some church going leaders. I’m afraid ignoring cancer just doesn’t make it disappear. The growing nihilistic movement within the church also suggests that we live with it because, aren’t we just human? The Church is under an onslaught from the enemy, yet we have befriended the notorious foe and now the church’s very existence has become threatened.

Can you imagine the Apostle Paul hearing these arguments from today’s church? He would be outraged! I imagine hearing his heart break as he would preach, “Everything Christ died and lived for, which was to restore us in Him, is being marred by perversion. You choose in flesh and therefore live according to the destructive powers of this world, which is in direct opposition to Christ!”

Perverted jokes are no big deal, right? No, perversion destroys all “romantic” bonds we have with the Lord. We categorize perversion as a small problem but perversion breaks true love and settles for the lusts of the flesh. When we decide to crack a funny perverted joke we decide to step out of union with God in Spirit and align ourselves with the forces of darkness. Sadly, I have aided in the disfiguration of what purity seeks to restore, which is relationship and intimacy with God. Every time we do this though, especially as leaders within the church, we lose the presence of God.

Eph 5:3-5:
3 But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God's holy people. 4 Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving. (NIV)

Jesus reveals where perversion takes place in Matt 5:27-28:
"You have heard that it was said, 'Do not commit adultery.'28 But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart. (NIV)

The battle for purity takes place in the mind because it’s all about what you are looking for. Jesus condemns the man who LOOKS lustfully at a woman. What are you looking for? Matt. 5:8 promises us that, “The pure in heart will see God.” I believe the pure in heart see the Lord because purity is directly proportional to what you are looking for. What I mean by this is that which is pure will only seek for what is pure and God is the highest form of purity. God lives and breathes purity. When our heart desires God it ultimately desires purity and vice-versa. Therefore, the flipside means that if your heart desires perversion, you don’t desire God.

We know also that where your treasure is there your heart will be also. (Matt 6:21) We have many men and women in our society committing adultery in their heart because their treasure is wrapped up in idolized romance and sex worship.Twilight asks: when you live for forever, what do you live for? The entire series is about hooking up with a vampire.

If I were the enemy I would use perversion to attack the church as well, I mean think about it: One, perversion replaces identity. They would no longer see human beings made in the image of God but rather objects of pleasure to use for their own good, both emotional and physical. Two, perversion separates their walk in love. They would no longer walk in love, which is what life is all about. They would constantly be looking for self-fulfillment instead of self-service. Three, perversion blinds and distracts. There is nothing more powerful to shut down dreams, visions, and prophecy then the perverted spirit. If you are addicted to pornography, your prophetic gift is impaired. If you have a visionary gift, your visions will be stripped from you because light and darkness cannot stay in the same mind. This is why we are commanded to take captive every thought (2 Cor 10:5) and to think on things above.
(Col 3:1-4):
1 Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. 3 For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. 4 When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. (NIV)

Phil 4:8
8 Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable-if anything is excellent or praiseworthy-think about such things

Humans were created to be worshipers and whatever we think on or praise it then becomes exalted in our mist. The reason perversion is such an epidemic is because it operates by a spirit and stronghold of the enemy. Every time we think or worship with perversion in our hearts we create an atmosphere in our life that quenches the Spirit of God. An illustration of this is when we worship God because there are times when you can actually feel the manifested presence of God, this is a very normal experience but likewise, as we are getting closer to the day of the Lord; you will be able to feel darkness the same way. The lesson behind it is: the space you create will be occupied. If you create space for perversion, it will take over, and influence every aspect of your life. You will feel the dark presence from the kingdom of the air (Eph. 2:2). If you create space for the presence of God to dwell in your life, you will walk in Him.

I think we all have operated one time or another, in the spirit of perversion but the Lord wants to set us free now. Every day we should decide to start anew in Christ. He wants to restore your dreams and visions. He wants to give you his love in exchange for the counterfeit lusts of this world. I pray that you see the importance of this message and begin to walk with a purpose to destroy the works of the enemy within your own heart. It’s not easy but that’s because there is a price to be paid for purity because good things are never cheap.
Matt 7:7-8:
7 "Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened. (NIV)

God's Emotions

I’m caught off guard almost every time I hear a person say that they don’t feel God. What exactly is feeling God? Some extremists say that it is impossible to feel God. This conclusion is enticing but if it were so, almost the entire bible would not be applicable. I often wonder if these folks are experiencing the same God I am because Romans 8:11 says, “And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit, who lives in you.” The previous verse talks about the Spirit being alive because of righteousness. With the Lord living in us how can you NOT feel Him? Right… well maybe… Sadly I have come to the realization that only dead things can’t feel and I’m afraid many people are dead in themselves and serving a dead God. On the flipside we have those emotionalists who attribute everything they feel to God! One day they joyously walk into the work place singing how they feel God, and the next day they are completely distraught and depressed. I indirectly ask to myself if they are still feeling God. Instead of blaming our feelings on the absence of God or attributing them to God, I would like to stand on the fact that we are in God and apart of being in God means that we should experience God at every level, including the complete emotional realm. God is not a feeling but he is a Being with the entire spectrum of emotions available for us to experience in Him. The fruits of the spirit for example, are traits involving deep emotions that are interwoven within the personality of our LORD. The problems arise when we aren’t in Him. You hear the urgency in Jesus’ voice as he explains it to his disciples in John 15:4 “Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.” (NIV)

One problem Christians have is when we are in Christ but then the life we feel isn’t always what we want, so we disassociate this experience from God. Our arrived assumption is that we do not feel God. Sadly, this claim reminds me of the time in scripture when God cut Jesus off from Him. Jesus cried out, Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani, also known as “My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?” (Matt 27:46 NIV) Many Christians complain, in a sluggish way, that they don’t feel God and it crawls under my skin because the only time Jesus claims not to feel God is when he carried the weight of our sins, so that we can feel and experience life with Him. Our problem is not that we don’t feel God or are incapable of feeling him but that we still want control of our emotions and are not completely grafted into the vine, which is life. We don’t want to admit that experiences shape our emotions as opposed to God’s truth so we claim we don’t feel him. We think that feeling God needs to be a pleasant experience, when truly it’s not the emotion that gives contentment but the action of remaining in him. Paul’s contentment in prison is a great example. I believe what Paul wrote in Philippians was inspired by the fact he stayed in the vine. Our emotions should be so caught up in the Lord that we never fail to produce a harvest, despite what season or drought we are in because the harvest is not from our source but God’s.

Another problem Christians have is that we claim to be in Christ but our fruit isn’t alive. We get so caught up in the emotion that our obedience and behavior turns outside of God’s will. One of the saddest things I see in the church today is when mighty men and women of God, who are gifted, try to recreate what was done before by the spirit, in the flesh. It takes the life and joy out, and substitutes it for a mediocre replacement. We have many Christians today who are up one day and down the next because they put their value and emphasis on the emotion instead of the alignment to God’s emotion. God has an array of emotions but they are in sync with his pleasing and perfect will, not yours.


If our purpose for being in God is to feel good then it is impossible to be in God. Just as Christ died, so must every one die to their sinful nature. If you attribute, “feeling God” only to the times you, “feel good” then you are robbing yourself of the joy you can receive through suffering. Being in God is a choice we make every morning. We decide who is in control, and we can only serve one master. Have you surrendered to God and will you let him dictate how you feel?


(2 Cor 4:10-11) “We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body. For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus' sake, so that his life may be revealed in our mortal body.” (NIV)

Hair Cut

This past Friday I decided to get a much needed hair cut. Unfortunately the coupon I had that would have knocked three dollars off my bill was to a hair cut place that I couldn’t find. It’s not like hair cutting places all have the same name but they do all smell the same and sell the same products. It’s very easy to get confused. I think I past three hair cutting places all located within a mile before I reasoned to forget about my coupon. I was about to walk into one store, when I saw that the line was very long. This is why they have multiple hair cutting shops located so close to each other I thought to myself. I got back in my car and went to the next shop. I walked in and there wasn’t a line, so I put my name on the sign in sheet.

The girl who sat me down to cut my hair was a young, nose pierced, southern girl. She asked what she could do for my hair and I told her. The nice thing about getting your hair done is it opens up opportunity for conversation and that is exactly what we did for the next thirty minutes. We didn’t talk about normal social events or anything typical but instead the topic revolved around church. I told her I went to Emmanuel College and she inquired if that was a private school. This started the very meaningful conversation.

The hair dresser, Jenifer, explained to me how she used to go to church but doesn’t anymore. The hypocrisy is just too much she huffed. What the Lord challenged me to do was to listen without pushing anything on her. I did. She admitted to me that she needed to be back in church and I asked her why? She said that she was raised that way and that she wasn’t living right without being in the church. I asked her what she meant by that and she defended her case and said that she wasn’t living that bad but she didn’t feel it was right. My heart broke. The Lord reminded me that worldly people don’t need to know when they are wrong nor do they need correction because it is a natural understanding. What they need are real people who are willing to love them and bring them to the Lord who lives in us.

I only had ten more minutes with Jenifer but I made the most I could to show my love. It reminded me of the quote from Hammarskjold, “It is more noble to give yourself completely to one individual than to labor diligently for the salvation of the masses.” I did give all I could with the time I had but unfortunately I wasn’t at a place relationally to show her my Lord with words but only with my actions. She has been so hurt by other church people that she said she didn’t like those who imposed their views on her and she was thankful that I was not like that. Yet, I knew I had done that before, so what made me different now? The Lord whispered in my ear, love.

For the sake of her soul maybe silence was the required seed to plant and God will use one day to bring her to Him? Are we willing to pay whatever the cost for one soul? Whether it be silence or death or punishment are we willing to do it in Love? The reality that she might eternally die gripped my heart as I gave her the tip and I smiled, almost with tears, as I said my last goodbye. God didn’t want me to speak yet I felt very obligated. What type of people stand by and watch others die? We should say something LORD!? Silence ensued as she took the tip and I walked away. One seed fell and hit the cold ground.

Dear God, help us be obedient to you. Forgive us for not making the most of every opportunity and forgive us for doing things our way instead of walking in your perfect love.

Doors of denial or trust?

We try so hard to make it happen, whatever “it” may be. The “it” can be doors of destruction or even doors of blessing. Have you ever considered that the door won’t open because it was never intended to be pursued? The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and getting the same result but expecting something different. So many times I feel like we do this. We just know what is best for us, so we pursue it over and over again. We weren’t intended to live a life of denial, yet we constantly revert back to this behavior of insanity. What is wrong with us? Maybe it’s because God is far from us? A life lived independent of God is a life lived in perpetual denial. There are Christians who love God but try to put Him in places he isn’t. Many Christians ramble on, “Oh God did this and God did that” when in reality they are trying to cover their decisions with lies of denial. We’ve gotten good at spiritualizing our sin and lack of trust in God! To put it plan and simple: Christians are pro discount shoppers. They find out what they want and put a God discount tag on it. Stop seeking for opportunity in dead ends and dangerous street alleys, when the Lord is saying loud and clear, “I’m not there!”
Are we willing to be thankful with where we are in God, with others, and with our self? The fastest way to blessing is thankfulness. God will entrust more to those who are thankful and responsible with what God has given them. In fact, God gives the desires of their heart, to those he loves. Can God trust you with his desires; can he trust you with yours? Are we going to label what is done by man as God’s way or will we trust in Him? As we begin to trust in God with the small things and only open the doors he has for us now, the doors that we worry about and try to control will be opened.