You Are Not Your Own

You Are Not Your Own 
By Lynette Kittle

When Adam rebelled against God in the garden, he didn’t understand it meant he would be giving up his power and authority over the earth to the devil (Genesis 3). His sin against God caused the whole world to come under the evil one’s dominion (1 John 5:19).

From that point on Adam became a sinner and passed his fallen legacy on to all future generations, placing mankind in opposition to God.

Romans 5:12 explains what happened stating, “Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all people, because all sinned.”

However in today’s culture, countless individuals mistakenly believe if they don’t choose God, then they belong to themselves but it just isn’t true. There is no middle ground between good and evil. No third choice, no neutrality to choose from.

Jesus came to earth to pay a high price for your sin (1 Corinthians 6:20). But it’s still your decision whether or not you accept His payment and receive the “Paid in Full by Jesus Christ.”

In accepting God’s free gift of salvation, 1 Corinthians 6:19 explains how the Holy Spirit comes to live inside you, taking up residence within you. When He does, your life no longer belongs to you but to God.

If you choose to reject Jesus’ sacrifice for your sin debt, the devil has claim to you.

By not choosing God, you’re making a choice, whether you realize it or not.

So if you, like multitudes of others, believe not choosing God’s way is choosing your own way, you are misinformed.

Many are unaware of the spiritual forces at work on the earth, as Ephesians 6:12 explains “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.”

Unknowingly, individuals are daily carrying out the devil’s desires, unaware they aren’t free agents like they believe, but rather being influenced and led by the evil one (John 8:44).

1 John 3:8 also describes how, “The one who does what is sinful is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work.”

Jesus came to free you from the devil’s claim to you but it’s still your choice to accept it or not. If you refuse to take Him up on His offer, by default, you belong to the evil one.

Yet, know it’s God’s heart and desire for all people to be saved  (1 Timothy 2:4).

5 Indicators of an Evil Heart

• Leslie Vernick

As Christian counselors, pastors and people helpers we often have a hard time discerning between an evil heart and an ordinary sinner who messes up, who isn’t perfect, and full of weakness and sin.

I think one of the reasons we don’t “see” evil is because we find it so difficult to believe that evil individuals actually exist. We can’t imagine someone deceiving us with no conscience, hurting others with no remorse, spinning outrageous fabrications to ruin someone’s reputation, or pretending he or she is spiritually committed yet has no fear of God before his or her eyes.

The Bible clearly tells us that among God’s people there are wolves that wear sheep’s clothing (Jeremiah 23:14; Titus 1:10; Revelations 2:2). It’s true that every human heart is inclined toward sin (Romans 3:23), and that includes evil (Genesis 8:21; James 1:4). We all miss God’ mark of moral perfection. However, most ordinary sinners do not happily indulge evil urges, nor do we feel good about having them. We feel ashamed and guilty, rightly so (Romans 7:19–21). These things are not true of the evil heart.

Here are five indicators that you may be dealing with an evil heart rather than an ordinary sinful heart. If so, it requires a radically different treatment approach.

1. Evil hearts are experts at creating confusion and contention.

They twist the facts, mislead, lie, avoid taking responsibility, deny reality, make up stories, and withhold information. (Psalms 5:8; 10:7; 58:3; 109:2–5; 140:2; Proverbs 6:13,14; 6:18,19; 12:13; 16:20; 16:27, 28; 30:14; Job 15:35; Jeremiah 18:18; Nehemiah 6:8; Micah 2:1; Matthew 12:34,35; Acts 6:11–13; 2 Peter 3:16)

2. Evil hearts are experts at fooling others with their smooth speech and flattering words.

But if you look at the fruit of their lives or the follow through of their words, you will find no real evidence of godly growth or change. It’s all smoke and mirrors. (Psalms 50:19; 52:2,3; 57:4; 59:7; 101:7; Proverbs 12:5; 26:23–26; 26:28; Job 20:12; Jeremiah 12:6; Matthew 26:59; Acts 6:11–13; Romans 16:17,18; 2 Corinthians 11:13,14; 2 Timothy 3:2–5; 3:13; Titus 1:10,16).

3. Evil hearts crave and demand control, and their highest authority is their own self-reference.

They reject feedback, real accountability, and make up their own rules to live by. They use Scripture to their own advantage but ignore and reject passages that might require self-correction and repentance. (Romans 2:8; Psalms 10; 36:1–4; 50:16–22; 54:5,6; 73:6–9; Proverbs 21:24; Jude 1:8–16).

4. Evil hearts play on the sympathies of good-willed people, often trumping the grace card.

They demand mercy but give none themselves. They demand warmth, forgiveness, and intimacy from those they have harmed with no empathy for the pain they have caused and no real intention of making amends or working hard to rebuild broken trust. (Proverbs 21:10; 1 Peter 2:16; Jude 1:4).

5. Evil hearts have no conscience, no remorse.

They do not struggle against sin or evil—they delight in it—all the while masquerading as someone of noble character. (Proverbs 2:14–15; 10:23; 12:10; 21:27,29; Isaiah 32:6; Romans 1:30; 2 Corinthians 11:13–15)

Do you know someone like this?

If you are working with someone who exhibits these characteristics, it’s important that you confront them head on. You must name evil for what it is. The longer you try to reason with them or show mercy towards them, the more you, as the Christian counselor, will become a pawn in his or her game.

They want you to believe that:

1. Their horrible actions should have no serious or painful consequences.

When they say “I’m sorry,” they look to you as the pastor or Christian counselor to be their advocate for amnesty with the person he or she has harmed. They believe grace means they are immediately granted immunity from the relational fallout of their serious sin. They believe forgiveness entitles them to full reconciliation and will pressure you and their victim to comply.

The Bible warns us saying, “But when grace is shown to the wicked, they do not learn righteousness; even in a land of uprightness they go on doing evil and do not regard the majesty of the Lord (Isaiah 26:10). 

The Bible tells us that talking doesn’t wake up evil people, but painful consequences might. Jesus didn’t wake up the Pharisee’s with his talk nor did God’s counsel impact Cain (Genesis 4). In addition, the Bible shows us that when someone is truly sorry for the pain they have caused, he or she is eager to make amends to those they have harmed by their sin (see Zacchaeus’ response when he repented of his greed in Luke 19).

Tim Keller writes,

“If you have been the victim of a heinous crime. If you have suffered violence, and the perpetrator (or even the judge) says, ‘Sorry, can’t we just let it go?’ You would say, ‘No, that would be an injustice.’ Your refusal would rightly have nothing to do with bitterness or vengeance. If you have been badly wronged, you know that saying sorry is never enough. Something else is required—some kind of costly payment must be made to put things right.”1

As Biblical counselors let’s not collude with the evil one by turning our attention to the victim, requiring her to forgive, to forget, to trust again when there has been no evidence of inner change. Proverbs says, “Trusting in a treacherous man in time of trouble is like a bad tooth or a foot that slips” (Proverbs. 25:19). It’s foolishness.

The evil person will also try to get you to believe...

2. That if I talk like a gospel-believing Christian I am one, even if my actions don’t line up with my talk.

Remember, Satan masquerades as an angel of light (2 Corinthians 11:13–15). He knows more true doctrine than you or I will ever know, but his heart is wicked. Why? Because although he knows the truth, he does not believe it or live it.

The Bible has some strong words for those whose actions do not match their talk (1 John 3:17,18; Jeremiah 7:8,10; James 1:22, 26). John the Baptist said it best when he admonished the religious leaders, “Prove by the way you live that you have repented of your sins and turned to God” (Luke 3:8).

If week after week you hear the talk but there is no change in the walk, you have every reason to question someone’s relationship with God.

Can an evil person really change?

Part of our maturity as spiritual leaders is that we have been trained to discern between good and evil. Why is that so important? It’s important because evil usually pretends to be good, and without discernment we can be easily fooled (Hebrews 5:14).

When you confront evil, chances are good that the evil heart will stop counseling with you because the darkness hates the light (John 3:20) and the foolish and evil heart reject correction (Proverbs 9:7,8). But that outcome is far better than allowing the evil heart to believe you are on his or her side, or that “he’s not that bad” or “that he’s really sorry” or “that he’s changing” when, in fact, he is not.

Daniel says, “[T]he wicked will continue to be wicked” (Daniel 12:10), which begs the question, do you think an evil person can really change?

What Is Praying in the Spirit?

Praying in the Spirit is prayer with divine help. It’s trusting in faith and relying on God to hear, understand, and act. Praying in the Spirit is a gift to be received through faith in Christ Jesus.

Scripture about Praying in the Spirit

• “And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people” (Ephesians 6:18).
• “But you, dear friends, by building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit,” (Jude 1:20).
• “In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans” (Romans 8:26).

Meaning of Praying in Spirit

According to John Gill’s commentary, prayer, “when performed aright, is performed ‘in the Spirit’; with the heart, soul, and spirit engaged in it. It is put up with a true heart, and a right spirit, and without hypocrisy; in a spiritual way, and with fervency, and under the influence, and by the assistance of the Spirit of God.”

Praying in the Spirit is distinct from praying in tongues.

Some teach that praying in the Spirit is synonymous with praying in tongues. But as tongues is a gift of the Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:8-11), not a fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23), not every Christian can speak in tongues. Yet, Paul instructs Christians to “pray in the Spirit on all occasions,” (Ephesians 6:18). Therefore, we can know that praying in the Spirit is distinct from praying in tongues.

Praying in the Spirit is relying on the Spirit in prayer.

“The beginning of understanding what it means to pray in the Spirit is accepting Paul’s words: ‘We do not know what we ought to pray for….’ (Romans 8:26),” Alan Wright said.

The context around this verse portrays an intimate relationship with God through prayer, patiently trusting God to hear, understand, and act:

“But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently. In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God. And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:25-28).

Prayer “is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” (1 Thessalonians 16-18), not to burden his people with rules and rituals, but for relationship with him. And while “praying without ceasing” (1 Thessalonians 16-18) is a command of God, the Spirit of God himself enables and empowers his people to pray.

Praying the Spirit is praying secure in your position as an heir of God.

In Matthew 6:5-8, Jesus describes religious hypocrites who prayed in public places to be seen by other people, rather than praying in the Spirit before God. He talks about the pagans who pray also, but in a ritualistic way with specific, repeated words. Jesus told his disciples to pray differently, being confident that God sees them and knows what they need even before they ask.

“Only inasmuch as you know that God is your Father can you pray with intimacy rather than with religious ritual. Part of what it means to pray in the Spirit, therefore, is to pray with the help of the Holy Spirit who is constantly reminding you of your position as heir of God. You’re God’s child and, as such, you’re a co-heir with Christ. You can pray with the power of a child of God to a perfect Father,” Wright said.

Praying in the Spirit is valuable and possible for every Christian.

Dr. Michael Milton discussed praying in the Spirit in his Crosswalk article.

“Praying in the Spirit is an indispensable part of the Christian life,” he said. “Opinions admittedly vary about the exact meaning of praying in the Spirit. There are assorted theological claims about how to ‘achieve’ prayer in the Spirit as if the admonition is a skill to be acquired. It is not. It is a gift to be received, a life to be lived… Prayer with divine help is praying in the Spirit.”

He went on to explain:

“‘Praying in the Spirit’ is altogether a divine activity that one appropriates through faith in Jesus Christ and in His finished work on the cross… To pray in the Spirit, walk in the Spirit, and worship in the Spirit (‘in Spirit and in truth,’ John 4:24) is to come before the Lord according to His appointed means—that is through the One whom the Spirit magnifies, the Lord Jesus Christ (Romans 8:26-27), depending on His revealed Word and pleading as a lesser creature to our glorious Creator.”

Who Is Jezebel in the Bible?

• Blair Parke

The name creates a visual that anyone would recognize; a woman who strives to undermine the authority of others and will use anything, even murder, to get what she wants of power, prestige, and fortune. Jezebel is known by many as the name representing a woman with dangerous and harmful intentions in mind, who never hesitated to create the downfalls of others in order for her plans to work. Jezebel wasn’t a figment of people’s imaginations, but a real woman who was possibly one of the first feminists in our history.

The Historic Beginnings of Jezebel

Firstly, Jezebel was not just any woman; according to Biography.com, she was a Phoenician princess in the ninth century BC, the daughter of King Ethball. Their kingdom worshipped the nature god Baal, among other gods, which would later be a point of contention within her next kingdom.

At the time of 922 BC, Israel was a divided nation (Israel to the north and Judah to the south) and Phoenicia (located to the north of Israel) was considered a city that couldn’t care less about following the traditions and beliefs of Yahweh, the true God. What is now present-day Lebanon once comprised the coastal towns of Tyre and Sidon that King Ethball (or Ethbaal) ruled.

A peaceful solution for the divided nation was suggested in the form of an arranged marriage between the newly appointed king of Israel’s son, Ahab, to the Phoenician’s princess Jezebel. Jezebel appears in the Bible in 1 Kings, first in chapter 16, verse 31, stated as daughter of Ethbaal, king of the Sidonians instead of Phoenicians. This is also the point of the Bible where the marriage between Jezebel and Ahab is mentioned.

Jezebel’s Change of Ahab’s kingdom

After the wedding for Jezebel and Ahab’s arranged marriage, it soon became apparent that Jezebel wasn’t planning on changing her worship of Baal just because she was in a new kingdom. As briefly stated in 1 Kings 18:4, Queen Jezebel continued worshipping Baal in her new home, despite how this angered the townspeople of Israel. She even brought 800 Baal prophetsinto the kingdom to encourage the worship of Baal by others. When the prophets of Yahweh stood up against Jezebel’s promotion of Baal worship, she had them killed.

It is described as a massacre in 1 Kings 18:4, enough to where Obadiah, the lead prophet within King Ahab’s palace, had to hide a hundred prophets in caves to avoid their deaths at the hands of Jezebel. Jezebel’s wrath of murder didn’t just end there, it continued when the king wanted to take a vineyard from Naboth the Jezreelite that was located next to the palace. Naboth’s refusalto give the vineyard that had been in his family for years led Ahab to go into a depression, and Queen Jezebel took matters, again, into her own hands.

She told King Ahab to arise and eat while she would deliver the vineyard into his hands, which she did using letters with his seal advising two men to falsely accuse Naboth of blaspheming God and the king and requesting that he be stoned to death.

Elijah’s Proclamation for King Ahab and Queen Jezebel

Around the same time, Israel was also experiencing a drought, and King Ahab and Obadiah were trying to find water and grass to keep the city’s livestock alive (1 Kings 18:5-7). It was while Obadiah was searching for water and food that he crossed paths with the prophet Elijah, sent by God to help the kingdom and who had predicted in 1 Kings 17 that a drought would be sent due to Jezebel’s actions.

The treason committed by King Ahab and Jezebel had encouraged the drought created by God, and Elijah voiced God’s proclamation that Jezebel’s murder of His prophets and Naboth (with King Ahab’s passive assistance) meant their deaths were imminent as well.

1 Kings 21:19 states that just like Naboth’s blood was licked up by the dogs of the kingdom after his death, their blood would also be licked up by the dogs. When King Ahab heard this proclamation, he immediately began fasting and mourning, repenting of what he did to the Lord. This display led God to reverse the destruction to come during King Ahab’s generation, to be fulfilled in the generation of his son.

The End of Jezebel

Jezebel’s death isn’t recorded until the book of 2 Kings, where the new king, Jehu, after King Ahab (who died in battle), was named. He became king by murdering Jezebel’s son and taking her power through the action.

It is said in 2 Kings 9:30that Jezebel, knowing that Jehu was coming to kill her, adorned herself with fine clothing and makeup and peacefully waited for him by looking out her bedroom window. When she saw Jehu approach through the gate, she asked if peace was what he came to bring, followed by calling him “murderer of your master” in reference to her dead son.

Jehu asked who was on his side, while looking up at Jezebel through her window, and then commanded two men in her bedroom to throw her out the window. She died from the fall and when Jehu’s men came to bury her body, in honor of her royal blood, all that was found was body parts. It was assumed God’s declaration, stated by Elijah, came true.

What Does Jezebel’s Life Teach Us?

Many wonder whether Jezebel’s actions of makeup and fine clothing were meant to either seduce Jehu or as a stand against her murderer, but either way, Jezebel’s stand before death doesn’t drift too far from the command of attention and control that she expressed throughout her reign as queen.

If anything, Jezebel is forever synonymous with someone who carved her own path that may or may not have been for the betterment of others, or even herself. Some may admire her for her actions that changed the trajectory of her husband’s leadership of Israel, while others might see her actions as someone who rejected the Lord’s desire for a woman to a peaceful blessing with her husband (Prov. 3:10-16), instead being a woman who sought success through dangerous, murderous actions.

However you look at Jezebel and her murderous reign, her story shows that when someone kills one of God’s people (which is anyone), He will make sure that person’s plans through these actions don’t succeed well. God is sovereign and though punishment may not be immediate for wrongdoers like Jezebel, punishment is inevitable for those who remain outside of God’s family.