perhaps you have heard of the term the
spirit of jezebel
don't have the spirit of jezebel you
don't want the spirit of jezebel
but before i get into the three
practical ways
that we as believers can protect
ourselves
and guard ourselves from this evil
influence
there are some things we need to
understand
what exactly is the spirit of jezebel
what does it mean what does it look like
and why doesn't anybody want it
i think the first step in answering all
of these questions
is by asking who was jezebel
in 1st kings chapter 16 the bible paints
a picture for us
in the 38th year of asa king of judah
ahab the son of omri became king over
israel
and ahab the son of omri reigned over
israel
in samaria 22 years now ahab the son of
omri
did evil in the sight of the lord more
than
all who were before him and it came to
pass
as though it had been a trivial thing
for him to walk in the sins of jeroboam
the son of nebat that he took as his
wife
jezebel the daughter of ethbale king of
the sardonians
and he went and served baal and
worshiped him
from this passage we learned several
things about jezebel
with the main one being that she was a
worshiper of the canaanite god of rain
and fertility
bale she was an idol worshiper
now here's what you need to know about
what kind of woman
jezebel was the bible says in first
kings 18 verse 4
for so it was while jezebel massacred
the prophets of the lord
that obadiah had taken 100 prophets
and hidded them 50 to a cave and had fed
them with bread and water
this passage tells us that jezebel
killed many prophets of jehovah in
large-scale persecution
and don't just gloss over them this
wasn't a woman who was unfriendly or
just mean
she was driven to hunt and destroy god's
prophets
now you don't go against the work of the
lord with such intensity and such
ferocity
unless unless you are driven
by an evil spirit a spirit that seeks to
destroy the things of god
something that works in opposition is
only from the devil
and so it is clear that this woman
was used of the devil now after elijah
proved jehovah's superiority against
baal
on mount carmel jezebel sought to kill
elijah
the bible goes on to say in 1st kings 19
verses 1 and 2. and ahab told jezebel
all that elijah had done also how he had
executed
all the prophets with the sword then
jezebel sent a messenger to elijah
saying so let the gods do to me and more
also if i do not make your life
as the life of one of them by tomorrow
about this time
and so i would like to explain what the
spirit of jezebel is
its main objective is to destroy to
destroy the work of god
to destroy the man of god and the woman
of god
it's a spirit that is of a tempter a
seducer
one that lures people away from god with
the intention of destroying their faith
their hope joy and peace perhaps you
have known a person like this in your
life
someone who is always seducing and
leading others into trouble
now be wise don't automatically think or
relate seduction simply to sex
money can seduce people do crazy things
for money
the thought of fame the opportunity for
fame can be seductive to some
lord knows people are willing to do
crazy and unspeakable things
all to become famous evil can seduce two
matthew 4 verse 1 says then
jesus was led by the spirit into the
wilderness to be tempted
by the devil to be tempted
by the devil now when it comes to a
person
with the spirit of jezebel this is
beyond someone being a troublemaker
this is someone who specifically leads
others into trouble
into sin and destruction jesus says it
this way
woe to the world because of the things
that cause people to stumble
such things must come but woe to the
person through whom they come
this verse in matthew 18 verse 7 is
jesus
letting us know that temptations will
come but he provides a stern warning
to the people who are facilitators of
temptation
we must be very guarded as believers
against the spirit
of jezebel or the spirit of the seducer
in tempter
god dealt severely with the historical
jezebel
because of the way she seduced ahab and
by extension
all israel into idolatry and we just
heard what jesus had to say about those
that led others into temptation
in matthew 18. this is not something
that god takes lightly
and neither should we so how do we guard
against the spirit of jezebel
how can we keep ourselves from being a
person that leads others into temptation
and sin
first we can commit to living righteous
lives
ourselves when you strive for
righteousness it doesn't mean
you're perfect but it means you have
your priorities in check
you are intentionally taking steps
towards becoming a better christian
each day you are intentionally building
your faith through the word of god each
day
you are intentionally strengthening your
relationship with
jesus through prayer each day so it
becomes
difficult for us to lead others or to be
led into sin
when we are striving to live according
to god's word
on the other hand can we sincerely be
trying to follow god's word
and still unwittingly lead people into
temptation and sin
sure but i believe that jesus in matthew
18
was talking about people who
intentionally lead people into
temptation
people who are motivated to sin or to
lead others
into sin falling into sin and
deliberately leading others
into sin are two different things
so the first step in not embodying a
jezebel spirit
or balling for this spirit is to commit
to righteousness
be so focused on the things of god that
the spirit of jezebel
will find no room to tempt you even to
fall
secondly we must be mindful of our
influence
some people are natural born leaders
they have a certain gravita
and magnetism about them they are
influencers
whether they know it or not we must be
very
mindful of the influence we are having
on people as well as the influence we
allow
others to have in our lives if we are
parents
we are influencing our children if you
are an older sibling
chances are you are influencing your
younger siblings
if you are a pastor or leader of any
sort you are
influencing those beneath you even if
you hold
no official leadership positions if you
are an influential person in your circle
reflect on how you are using that
influence
are you using it to influence people
towards righteousness
or towards sin are you influencing
people toward god or away from god
this is something we must all examine
within ourselves
and on the opposite side of things look
at those who are closest
to you what's their influence to you
are they leading you to church or to the
club
to purity or unrighteousness 2nd
corinthians 6
17 says therefore come out from among
them and be
separate says the lord do not touch what
is unclean
and i will receive you be careful who
you allow to influence you in your life
and the type of influence they have over
you
refuse to be influenced by evil now
finally we should separate ourselves
from those
with the spirit of jezebel especially
once we have identified the seductive
and destructive spirit paul says in his
first letter to the corinthian church
but now i have written to you not to
keep company
with anyone named a brother who is
sexually immoral
or covetous or an idolater or reviler or
a drunkard or an extortioner
not even to eat with such a person
paul is clear here that we should not
associate with people that are staunchly
committed to staying in their sin
if they are repentant and willing to
change that's another story
but if they are like jezebel and fire
raining down from heaven won't change
their minds or hearts
we should not associate with them this
can get very complicated
if that person is someone in your own
family
in that scenario pray to god for wisdom
and ask your local pastor or counselor
how best to handle it at the end of the
day
we should not allow anybody to lead us
away from god
so commit yourself to righteousness be
mindful
of your own influence whether it's godly
or sinful in nature be mindful of the
influence of those around you
are they leading you to god or to the
devil
and finally separate ourselves from
those with the spirit of jezebel
we are more than conquerors through
jesus christ
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