LESSONS OF WAR — PYRRHIC VICTORIES & AMBUSH

 LESSONS OF WAR — PYRRHIC VICTORIES & AMBUSH 

Jesus Described The Work Of Ministry As War

𝒟𝒶𝓎𝓈𝓉𝒶𝓇 𝒥𝒞𝐻𝑀

INTRO 

Matthew 12:30, MSB 

    “This (thing called ministry) is war, and there is no neutral ground. If you’re not on my side, you’re the enemy; if you’re not helping, you’re making things worse”.

 • A promotion in the ministry without accurate preparation is a set up, one you cannot survive. Remember Uriah. Pyrrhic victory is “a victory that is not worth winning because so much is lost to achieve it.” The word comes from the name of Pyrrhus, a long-ago king of Epirus, who suffered heavy losses in defeating the Romans at Asculum in Apulia in 279 B.C.E. You need adequate training and information to fight well : "from" victory and not "for" victory. 

 • Ministry is war, but you cannot win when you're "Nice" in attitude, mind you, the word nice in Latin means stupid or impotent, like an eunuch lacking the desire to win (breed productivity). War requires a pull or a push, like the act of intercourse, an affair from victory, a force of brute. 

 • And primarily, you war with words, with the sword of the Spirit. In the Hebrew, the words “bread and fight” originate from the same root word, implying that if you want to fight in the Spirit , you need to feed on the word, the bread of life : through meditation, roar and declarations. 

 • Jesus Described The Work Of Ministry As War — Paul by the spirits also described the “word of reconciliation” as the “ministry of reconciliation”, meaning the word in your mouth is the foundation (sword) of true ministry in war. 

 • The enemy coming at you in the ministry is a personal thing, not a group escapade. In 1Peter 5:8, the Apostle who was once a victim of satan's sifting said “... YOUR adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour”, he personalised it, he didn't say "the adversary", but rather "your adversary", meaning you're his goal and dream, and if you don't stand your ground, he's coming for you — likewise in Matthew 13:25, Jesus also used a personal phrase But while men slept, HIS ENEMY came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way”. My dear, ministry is way, and you're in a wrestle whether you like it or not, so you must stand on the word, your victory and insist on who you are as the rule of engagement.

MAIN MESSAGE 

- It is time for Rhema and all these words you're hearing are collecting in your heart. To believe is to act out the word became believe is the verb of faith (God's word).

- Ministry is war and no man that warreth entangles himself with the affairs of this world. Mind you, whatever you have an affair with will determine what you produce.

- II Timothy 2:4, KJV says “No man that WARRETH entangleth himself with the AFFAIRS OF THIS LIFE ; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a SOLDIER”.

- A man on a mission is careful what he entertains affairs with, a man of war does not entangle himself with affairs, thus engagements that sap the strength of a man 

      — Uriah in II Samuel 11:11, ISV replied King David IN A TIME OF WAR, saying, “The ark, along with Israel and Judah, are encamped in tents, while my commanding officer Joab and my master’s staff members are camping out in the open fields. Should I go home, eat, drink, and have sex (AN AFFAIR) with my wife? Not on your life! I won’t do something like this, will I?”

- Impact starts from your spirit, so if the word of God is not impacting your spirit you can't do much.

- You should understand that all the things we do in the ministry, we do out of love, and without love : God has no interest in your offering, this is why it's called a labor of love labour of love. Paul the Apostle in 1 Corinthians 13:3 ASV restated, “... and if I give my body to be burned, but have not love, it profiteth me nothing”.

- Ministry is war, Jesus said so Himself, and there's no neural ground, it's either you're fighting or being fought against.

- And primarily, you war with words, with the sword of the word. In the Hebrew, the words “bread and fight” originate from the same root word, implying that if you want to fight in the Spirit , you need to feed on the word, the bread of life : through meditation, roar and declarations. 

- Jesus said if you're not on my side then you're the enemy, He used a definite article because satan is going to use you against the work. 

- If you're not helping the work of the ministry : you're making it worse.

- People are cities and they have gates, but to get access to these cities, we have to break down the gate, bringing down the strongholds in their mind to establish Christ.

(The state of cities in the Spirit as Jesus said is, "I've set before you an open door, thus an open city, and no man can shut it")

- When you hiss in the spirit, you're pushing away the forces of darkness that threaten your work in that city.

- If you're a leader and you don't deal with your flesh , you'll destroy your own people. David destroyed His own mighty man Uriah, because he failed to bring his flesh under control. 

- When you hear that a brother or sister is doing well in ministry, that is when you start to pray more for them because they suddenly become a target for the devil's arsenal's. In Ephesians 1:15-16, Paul said “Wherefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus, and love unto all the saints, Cease not to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers”. Effective Christians require more prayers and backings from God's saints, the Church. 

- Be instant in season and out of season, whether it seems convenient or not, supply sufficient energy and commitment. 

- Wherever you've been put, you stay there as a soldier, and as one who breaks no rank.

- Don't desire a promotion you've not prepared for. Uriah was put at the hottest front of a battle he didn't have the qualifications for. A promotion without preparation is a set up, one you cannot survive. Remember Uriah. The bible says desire the office of a bishop and not the office of your bishop.

                WHAT TO KNOW IN A TIME OF WAR 

- In a time of war, you have to know the position of your enemy, so you don't box the air, know the enemy's position that his kingdom has been defeated. If he's been defeated, why then do we go out there to preach ?, we step out to collect the spoils of Jesus, the results of what He conquered eternally. Listen, the enemy's position as defeated is important because the devastation of war is the attack of ambush, implying you'll have to know that the kingdom you're of is an everlasting one, a victorious kingdom.

- If you want to win and be effective in the ministry, you need knowledge, learn to use words, you need scriptures in your spirit.

- The enemy coming at you in the ministry is a personal thing, not a group escapade. In 1Peter 5:8, the Apostle who was once a victim of satan's sifting said “... YOUR adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour”, he personalised it, he didn't say "the adversary", but rather "your adversary", meaning you're his goal and dream, and if you don't stand your ground, he's coming for you — likewise in Matthew 13:25, Jesus also used a personal phrase But while men slept, HIS ENEMY came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way”. My dear, ministry is way, and you're in a wrestle whether you like it or not, so you must stand on the word, your victory and insist on who you are as the rule of engagement.

- Your leaders can't do much if you do not honor them, and the evidence of honor from scripture is your humility. Teach this to your assistants, leaders etc because there'll be no increase, growth or miracles without honor.

- Remember, God's answer to a situation is Wisdom and Power , Power is what it takes to make the thing happen and Wisdom is to know how to make things happen.

- There're strategies in a time of war, and the more you grow : the more the Holy Spirit guides you on what to do, and what strategies to use at every point in time.

- Humility is one of the signs that you're honoring your leader, the book of Proverbs 22:4 emphasised that reality. 

- You don't say “I'm humble in my heart , after all God sees the heart ”. Yes, God sees the heart but man relates with you outwardly, and that is what the Bible says, so your humility should necessarily show outwardly.

- There're different strategies of war and that is what is called wisdom.

- Ministry is war, but you can't win when you're "Nice", mind you, the word nice in Latin means stupid or impotent, like an eunuch lacking the desire to win (breed productivity). War requires a pull or a push, a force. 

         DESIRE — WHAT EUNUCHS LACK IN WINNING 

- Desire is a force and it drives/drags you into that experience you want to have. James 1:14 (NIV) says “But each person .... when they are dragged away by their own... desire and enticed.” 

- You build desire in seeing and hearing. Creating a, picture with what is heard. You can never do what you've not seen or heard. Building desire is a day to day thing. II Peter 2:8, KJV states “(For that righteous man dwelling among them, in seeing and hearing, vexed/influenced his righteous soul from day to day with their unlawful deeds;)

- What you're mindful of, you'll have the opportunity to return to it. Hebrews 11:15, nkjv reads “Indeed, they might have had opportunity to return if they had been mindful of the country from which they came out.”. Your mentality is so important, desire is so important for productivity in a time of war. 

- When you see someone getting a certain kind of result you desire, ask questions, activate that grace through knowledge, yoke your self to the elder and plough. Two animals are only yoked when they have work in common. Then the younger will learn from the older till experience is transferred necessarily.

- There's a equity when it comes to grace , go for the knowledge (equation) and you'll see the same kind of grace at work in you. Your heart (desires) is like a womb, anything you feed it, it'll produce it back for you.. 

- God doesn't give you certain kinds of influence until he has trained you fo it, lest the beasts (fiendish authorities) of the field multiply against you. 

- If you have a desire, then you can have everything. In a war, your oppressor does not want you to go, so you'll have to constantly rebel, you need an ever mounting desire that spells out emancipation. Constantly Pray. Ronald Regan, An American President once said “the government is not your friend”, this means the forces of this world would not be nice to you when you commit to the work of ministry, this is why you must learn to insist on your victory in soul winning. 

- Jesus Described The Work Of Ministry As War — Paul by the spirits also described the “word of reconciliation” as the “ministry of reconciliation”, meaning the word is the foundation of true ministry and war. 

- Snakes ambush, and that is a core of their survival mechanisms and winning kit. Julius Ceasar went against Gaul for 8 years determined to siege and bring it to its knees. Listen, conquests take time but determination will build any kind of result, remember that. 

- The devastation of war is ambush, the shock of surprise attack is what cripples nations, one of such us Yugoslavia

- Ministry is your life, you'll have to stay there till you win.

𝒟𝒶𝓎𝓈𝓉𝒶𝓇 𝒥𝒞𝐻𝑀®