‘The thing about favour is that it opens doors, but it also starts wars in the form of jealousy.
Just look at the life of Joseph.’
Bernie Ooley
For the last week or so, the Lord has been highlighting someone to me in my thoughts. Every conversation I’ve had with her in the past, every comment she made, all her actions and inactions towards me. Holy Spirit was leading me as I was combing through every single encounter I’ve had with her, and every time Holy Spirit brought me to to the same conclusion: ‘She has a spirit of jealousy over you and your life.’
I paid a huge price to get to where I am in my life today, which is why I can never understand when someone is jealous of me. If someone wants what I have, then they’ll simply have to walk the same journey I’ve made and make the same decisions I made. A price is paid, and it’s a heavy one. Yet, this lifestyle is available to everyone.
A friend of mine gave me a document this week, aptly titled ‘The Spirit of Jealousy.’
As I started reading through the 25 pages, a few things were highlighted to me. Firstly, it looks like the spirit of jealousy has been following me since high school. The more I started thinking about all those who had come and gone in my life, the more the spirit of jealousy started popping up everywhere. I thought about certain friendships that I had had, and how suddenly, overnight, those friends would devastatingly turn against me.
The hardest thing of all was the realization that I have been an innocent party through all these things scenarios. For the life of me, I don’t understand why someone would want what I have. If you want what I have, you have to be willing to pay the price to get it. And it’s a very costly price to pay.
In the same document, Arthur Burk takes the spirit of jealousy back to the beginning, when Lucifer was thrown out of heaven:
‘We have what he (Lucifer) used to have. He used to have the glory and the honor. He used to have access to the presence of God.
We have spiritual gifts and anointing, access to God, and the Holy Spirit dwelling within us. We have a blood covenant relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ. We have the opportunity to sin and be restored, which the devil apparently does not have. It was a one-way trip for him.
That gave us clarity on the nature of Satan’s jealousy. The enemy is jealous of the God-given position we have. He is also jealous of the worship that we give to God in response to what we have.’
Arthur goes on to state that ‘there are many people in the church who are not willing to pay the price for the things God has called them to do.’
Yes, we live in a day of grace, where it’s freely we have received, so freely we can give. Yet, I agree with Arthur when he states the following:
‘Everything I see in the New Testament teaches that a certain amount of our effort must be expended to develop the potential of our lives.
For example, even though the Holy Spirit reveals spiritual things to us in the Word (John 16:13; I Corinthians 2:14), we are still called upon to be diligent in our studies.
“Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.” (2 Timothy 2:15)
Many other passages deal with our working out our salvation, building the disciplines, and establishing within our life holiness, righteousness, and intimacy with God. All those things take effort. They are the result of the human will. We choose to do certain things that bring us into a closer relationship with God. We can also choose to do certain things that lead us farther away from God.’
Arthur also states the following:
‘By contrast, we see that when an individual is committed to mediocrity, refusing to work out the basic disciplines of the Christian walk, he stands the risk of not being able to possess his birthright. He won’t be able to walk in the fullness of what God wants for him.
These people who want the best without any sweat equity are the kind of people who can become very jealous of those who are willing to pay the price. They are jealous of those who have put in their years on the backside of the desert, and who have walked sacrificially, continually sowing, and waiting to reap much later.’
This document has highlighted so many incidents in my life. From an early age, I choose not to live the life of a victim; I’ve always chosen to be victorious. My name means ‘victory’, and this also means that battles and challenges will come my way. But sometimes, for no explainable reason, I’ve been a casualty of a war that I was unaware of.
When a believer chooses to partner with the spirit of jealousy, it truly devastates the person they are jealous of.
Arthur writes:
‘Apparently, when another individual becomes jealous of you, all of the hatred that Satan feels towards you because of his displacement issues can flow through that individual to you with deadly force.
When someone becomes jealous of you, they have actually come into agreement with the Father of Lies himself. The devil continually challenges your right to have the things God has willed for you to have. If you are reaping the fruit of years of wise sowing, the devil will find some way to claim it is not right for you to have that harvest. Or, if God sovereignly blesses you, the enemy is quick to affirm you likewise have no “right” to those blessings that you have not earned.
The profound truth is that you have a right to receive every single thing that Almighty God has decided to give you. God is infinitely holy, just and wise. Every gift from Him to you has gone through those three grids and many others. No one, absolutely no one, has ever forced God to give them anything at all. If God has given something to you, you have an absolute legal right to have it. Period.
Essentially, Satan is seeking to do anything he can to deny, devalue, denigrate, diminish, defile or destroy our anointing and our calling. That is what Satan wants to do. When another individual who is oblivious of this dynamic seeks, just on the soul level, to deny, devalue, denigrate, diminish, defile or destroy our anointing or calling, then that individual has come into agreement with the fierce hatred of the enemy. It wreaks destruction in the life of the innocent person of whom they are jealous.’
In another article online, called ‘Defeating Jealous Spirits’ on TheGodBlog.Org, the following is written:
‘Songs of Solomon says, ‘Jealousy is as cruel as the grave.’
Jealousy is a ruthless spirit. Jealousy is rooted in hatred. A person who operates in a jealous spirit wants to replace you – displace you – undercut you – sabotage you – move you out of the way – then scorn you, mock you, discredit you, and laugh at you after you are defeated. A person who is jealous of you will despise your assignment, and will be bent on assassinating your character.’
I chuckled a bit when the article said, ‘People do not come with caution signs.’ That is most definitely the truth. The person whom I mentioned at the beginning of this devotional was someone that I felt cautious over. It was as if Holy Spirit was holding me back, telling me, ‘Don’t get too close to this person, don’t become friends too quickly.’ And that’s exactly what I did, although I couldn’t understand why. But now I know why. As TheGodBlog.Org writes, ‘Trust the cautions of the Holy Spirit and gently – gracefully walk away from jealous individuals.’
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TheGodBlog.Org has great tools on how to break a spirit of jealousy over your life.
This is something I’ll be focusing and meditating on for the next few days:
DECLARATION OF GOD’S PROTECTION
Father, we declare that “No weapon that is formed against us shall prosper and every tongue, which rises against us in judgment, we do condemn [PROVE TO BE IN THE WRONG]. This is our heritage as servants of the LORD, and our righteousness is from You, O LORD of Hosts.” (Isaiah 54:17)
If there are those who have been speaking or praying against us, or seeking to harm, or do evil to us, or who have rejected us, we forgive them and having forgiven them, we ask that You would reduce their hearts to love, transform them into Your holiness, and birth within them reverent obedience to You Father so that the enemy can no longer use them against us, in the Name of Yeshua.
Father, now we declare, O LORD, that You and You alone are our GOD, and besides You there is no other — a just GOD and Savior, the FATHER, the Son and the Spirit — and we worship You! We submit ourselves afresh to You this day in unreserved obedience. Having submitted to You, LORD, we do as Your Word directs. We resist the devil — all his pressures, his attacks, his deceptions, and every instrument or agent he would seek to use against us. We do not submit! We resist him, drive him from us, and exclude him from us in the Name of Yeshua. Specifically, we reject and repel infirmity, pain, infection, inflammation, malignancies, allergies, viruses and every form of witchcraft. LORD, we thank You that through the sacrifice of Yeshua on the cross, we have passed from under the curse and entered into the blessing of Abraham, whom You blessed in all things — exaltation, health, reproduction, prosperity, victory, and GOD’s Favor.
DEFEATING JEALOUS PERSONS
“Father, we ask that You open the Books and identify every individual who has thought, spoken, or written untrue words about us and the things You have ordained for us.
We now ask You, FATHER, to severe every agreement that was entered into between any demon, person, or any groups of individuals that would frustrate, prevent, or deny Your divine purposes and blessings from being established in our lives.
We now ask You FATHER, to severe the agreements between human beings and the demonic realm where those agreements empowered the spirit of jealousy, directly or indirectly which resulted in curses upon our lives – namely to steal, kill and destroy – and to frustrate our purpose and to prevent us from completing our destiny assignment.
We ask You Father to secure our victories and breakthroughs and destroy every curse in the Name of Messiah Yeshua, reverse the curses and turn them into blessings! Thank You, FATHER, for Your Faithfulness! Thank You Messiah Yeshua for the price You paid by taking on all the forces of darkness and OVERCOMING THEM FOR US! FATHER, we petition that You will now judge the thoughts and words of any agent of Satan or human person that has come to falsely accuse us before You, Almighty GOD, please severe every agreement of lying accusation against us, in the Name of Messiah Yeshua.
FATHER, we repent of our sins and the sins of our ancestors. For those who have come to accuse us of our sins, we ask Father that you not harken to the voice of our accusers, but rather, wash us in the Blood of Yeshua.
FATHER, thank You, for leading me every step of the way to appropriate what Messiah Yeshua has done for me, and to be the seal on my life. I am more than a conqueror through Messiah Yeshua who always leads me into triumph over my enemies! I receive the blessings and favor of Abraham! In Yeshua’s name – AMEN!
DECLARING GOD’S BLESSINGS
Father, I decree and declare that as Your child and ambassador for Your kingdom, all aristocratic, diplomatic, rights, privileges, respect, and honor are granted unto me this day. Every negative stigma concerning me is reversed. Nobility, honor, and greatness is my portion. I have EVERYTHING that You say that I can have. I will BE everything that You have ordained me to be.
Father, You have the final say in my life In the Name of Messiah Yeshua, we proclaim the truth that we have a legal right to receive everything GOD has given us namely: • Life, Health, Beauty, Mental Sharpness • Skills, Talents, Spiritual Gifts, Wisdom • Family, Wealth, Fame, Ministry, Favor • Open Doors, Joy, Peace, A Future • Might, Destiny, and Sonship in Messiah Y’shua (Jesus Christ) of Nazareth
SCRIPTURE MEDITATION
Isaiah 61:7:
“Instead of your shame you will receive a double portion, and instead of disgrace you will rejoice in your inheritance. And so you will inherit a double portion in your land, and everlasting joy will be yours.”
ASSIGNMENT:
PRAY – Let’s build our spiritual endurance by praying at least an hour each day.
SOAK – In the presence of the Lord, release the people that you need to forgive. In worship, allow the Lord to bathe your wounds and take away the sting of angry words and painful memories.
REMAIN FOCUSED – We are accomplishing a great work in the realm of the Spirit! Let us cancel every assignment of distraction or discouragement that would hinder our progress over the next 40-days.
FAST – Let’s turn off distractions in our lives. Some may chose to fast a meal. Some may chose to fast entertainment. Father God will show you how to draw closer to him during our season of prayer.
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