Jeff Pate
08-19-2008, 06:35 PM
God’s Word and the Sexual Relationship
Have you ever wondered why the word of God is filled with analogies of the sexual relationship between a man and woman and our relationship with God? Very few people like to talk openly about sex, especially when studying the Bible. Talk about “squirm factor” when I say words like intercourse, sperm, or conceive in a Bible study. It’s okay to say these things around the table having some beers, but God forbid we relate God to sex! Hello… God created the sexual relationship, and because of our ignorance, we’ve screwed that up as well (no pun intended).
Let’s go over some basics so you can see clearly how the sexual relationship plays a pivotal role in our warfare. God created the world and life in the world to have seeds in it. These seeds will only produce after their own kind. However, while the seed is contained inside the created being, it must be planted somewhere in order to reproduce. We can talk birds and bees now. The bee lands on a flower’s petals and bud where the seed (spores) are located. The bee harvests the spores and they fall to the ground and because of their relationship with the ground, they reproduce. Without the seeds, the ground could produce nothing; and conversely, without the ground, the seeds would not reproduce. They need a womb of some kind.
Similarly, God has given us not only a natural womb in a woman and seed in a man, but He has given all of us a spiritual womb in which He desires to plant in us His God-life-giving sperm so that we will conceive after His own kind.
Since the devil has to adhere to the same principles of seedtime and harvest, Satan desires also to have intercourse with you so that he can plant his sperm of death to conceive after its own kind.
So, if you look at this way, the spiritual war we wage is an easy one—provided we are willing to be monogamous and not apt to be deceived into thinking the devil is our husband.
Your Mind is the Womb of Your Life
As he thinks in his heart, so is he. [Proverbs 23:7]
Your imagination is the birthplace of your words and actions—your spiritual womb. Your imagination is your “mind’s eye” or the way you perceive things. The imagination can also be seen as your “world view” or “paradigm.” While our spirit man (the Christ in us) knows all things, the Christian life on earth emphasizes the process of renewing the mind (changing the way you think) so that the life of Christ can be completely evident in the body of a person (2 Corinthians 4:6-11). God’s vision for the world is for His Son to be seen by everyone (John 6:38-40; 12:21).
The Bible says, And be not conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind that you may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God. [Romans 12:2]
Without going into great detail I want to share an awesome truth: As a new creature in Christ, (the new man, the Spirit of Christ, the part of you that was born again, your spirit) you have an anointing within you that knows all things (1 John 2:20) and this unction abides in you all the time. The Bible says, For who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ. [1 Corinthians 2:16] In other words, when a person gets born again, God deposits not only the life of Christ, but also the power and knowledge of Christ into your spirit. The entire revelation of God lives within you! As Christ is the fullness of the Godhead bodily, and you are in Christ and He is in you, you possess the fullness of God within you (Colossians 2:6-10, Colossians 3:10).
However, your physical mind was not changed through the new birth, and needs the word of God to be conceived in it so that your mind will be in agreement with your spirit, and consequently you may prove God’s will in your body. If you understand the truth about spirit, soul, and body, you can see that although our spirit was changed and knows all things, the soul (mind, will, emotions) functions as a filter or mediator between the spirit and the body. Therefore, your mind controls your actions.
Thus, it is necessary that the word of God be planted in a person’s mind (not in his spirit) in order that these truths become functional in the physical life of a believer. When our minds are in agreement with what is true in our spirits, then the actions in our bodies will follow accordingly.
So then, hopefully you now see your mind as the place of conception for your life, words, and actions. Using the example of the sexual relationship, we know that when a man and woman have intercourse, a child is not conceived every time. Although it may be a pleasurable experience, but unless something was conceived inside you, you will not bear fruit. There are many Christians who have emotional experiences in worship, prayer, and Christian activities, but nothing is being conceived in them. They may also be hearing and/or reading the word of God, but if no conception occurs, the person will not give birth to anything, which is why you must plant more than one seed.
Too often, while being encouraged to plant seeds of the word of God in them (have relationship with God) many Christians don’t enjoy the experience. Similar to an abused woman, she may have sex with her husband, but it won’t be a pleasurable experience or fruitful in her life because of her relationship with him. Because God has been frequently portrayed as a “jealous husband,” a glory mongering ego maniac, apt to destroy cities with hurricanes and tsunamis in a fit of rage, or make even His own children sick or refuse to heal them, it is no wonder why His bride doesn’t want to engage in much of a relationship. In fact, some people who call themselves Christians teach that God “rapes” His children by forcing His will upon them without their consent.
I imagine if God were perceived as He truly is, which is Jesus, more people would want to have intimate relations with Him, and consequently have more conceptions and produce more fruit. I am currently teaching a series called “As He Is: God’s True Nature” (http://www.bovministries.net/As_He_Is_Series.html) which has opened the eyes of many to see the true heart of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
Now back to our conception: Although better than none, a person simply cannot stand or rely upon For God so loved the word that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life by itself. This would be like having sex once and believing that you will get pregnant. And while it only takes one sperm to conceive a child, millions are deposited into the womb of a woman. The same is true with the word of God. You have to plant more than one seed.
The Bible says, Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. [Romans 10:17] I believe this refers to repetition, study, pondering, meditation, and consideration so that not only the word is understood, but also it can be applied in your life. Remember Joshua 1:8.
Jesus said, If you continue in my word, then are you my disciples indeed; and you shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free. [John 8:31-32]
Spiritual Birth Control
Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. [James 4:7]
It is a sad fact that honoring God concerning the sexual relationship has been all but eradicated in this country. Even some Christians are promoting abstinence NOT as a way of honoring God and themselves, but as a means of preventing disease and/or unwanted pregnancies. Let me ask you this… If we could discover a foolproof way of preventing pregnancy (all the time) and sexually transmitted diseases, would having sex outside of marriage then be acceptable? No, it wouldn’t, because God’s word still says that sex is for married people—between one husband (man) and one wife (woman).
Instead of rearing their children in the admonition and nurture of the Lord, teaching their children to honor God first, then honor their own bodies and the bodies of their mates, parents most often surrender to the lie that says, “they’re going to do it anyway” and give their sons condoms and put their daughters on the pill. It’s easier to have them succumb to the will of the world and be corrupted, then to take the time to teach and monitor their own children from an early age. Our school systems resist teaching the godly perspective on abstinence and instead distribute condoms and offer “health advice” and sex education to those curious teenagers who are not willing to exercise self-control.
And then there’s the most abominable method of birth control—and this is the practice of abortion, the systematic murder of unborn children disguised as a “choice of convenience” in many ways. “Planned Parenthood” means to have sex whenever you want, with whomever you want, and if you get pregnant you have the “choice” to kill the child or not. As far as we’re concerned, God is pro-choice, but He is very clear what His will is—CHOOSE LIFE! God has given us the power to choose, but He wants us to make the righteous choice and has given us the power to do so (Deuteronomy 30:19).
However, true birth control begins and ends with avoiding the act that causes conception—not trying to get around it with a condom or pill that regulates a woman’s ovulation, and certainly NOT with abortion. You can dance around the edge of the water only for so long until you trip and fall in. How about this for the best method of pregnancy and birth control: KEEP YOUR CLOTHES ON!
It is really no wonder that the passage from Isaiah 54:17 No weapon that is formed against you shall prosper is NOT coming to pass in the lives of so many people. And some of you, after reading this rant on the sexual morals today, are wondering what this has to do with spiritual warfare. In one word: PLENTY.
The reason weapons are prospering against us is because we are allowing them to be conceived in us. Yes, we believe that no weapon that is formed against us shall prosper, but by itself, it’s like believing that a birth control pill or condom will prevent a woman from getting pregnant. The only way to positively assure that a woman does not get pregnant is to simply not have sexual intercourse with a man. Thus, the only way to prevent conception is to avoid the act that produces conception. While we understand this (at least we should) in the natural, we should also apply this in the spiritual. Words are to life and death as sperm is to conceiving a child.
Spiritual Abortion
While most Christians abhor the act of abortion in the natural, especially as a means of birth control, the sad truth is that, in their spiritual lives, they are the worst offenders of this horrific act. Jesus talked about this is His parable of the sower and the seed. He also that received seed among thorns is he who hears the word, and the care of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches (and the lusts of other things entering in) choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful. [Matthew 13:22; Mark 4:19]
Because most Christians are not rooted and grounded in the word of God, the fruit that was conceived by the word is easily choked and aborted by the things of the world. This is abortion—the fruit was conceived and was choked before it could be born. The longer a plant (or weed for that matter) is in the ground, it is much more difficult to uproot because the initial stage of growth is always downward—in the roots.
In the same way Christians commit spiritual abortion to the word of God, they also seek to do it with what they have conceived from their “relations” with the world. They expose themselves to all the rottenness of this world, and conceive “evil fruit” of the world, and then they pray for God to commit spiritual abortion for them in the form of a miracle. I know this sounds harsh, but it’s true, and you need to hear it.
When you have intercourse with the prince of this world, you’re very likely to conceive Rosemary’s Baby in your womb, and then like in the movie, you’ll either want to abort the baby or kill it once you realize what you’ve given birth to. While you may not knowingly grant consent to the devil to plant his seed in your womb, he preys upon your ignorance of the truth (he may even appear as an angel of light) to gain entry into you. Again, in order for NO weapon that is formed against you to prosper or flourish, you MUST condemn (cast down, bring captive) EVERY tongue that shall come against what the word of God says. If you’re not drawing on the unction from the Holy One (meditating, considering, pondering) and you have no physical knowledge of God’s word, you have nothing to compare it to. This warfare prevents the seed of evil fruit from being conceived in your life.
Here’s another great truth: God loves you, and like any loving parent, when their child gets in a bind, they want to help them. While God has no problem giving you a miracle, I believe that He desires you to live in His blessing rather than need a miracle, because the very nature of a miracle requires a crisis. He desires that you conceive ONLY from the incorruptible seed of the word of God—and not get pregnant with a crisis and then need to have an abortion!
Now I know some of you may assert, “that without a test, there is no TESTimony.” I don’t disagree with that statement, other than I see it as a reality—not as God’s will. The bottom line is that God does not desire you to be infected with the ways and evil seeds of this world. Miracles are available, but as I said, I believe God would rather us live in such blessing that we would have no crises like sickness, divorce, addictions, tragedy, etc.
Miracles are temporary, but blessings are permanent--the feeding of manna, for example. The miracle of the manna was the longest running miracle in the Bible, but this miracle ended when Joshua led the children of Israel into the Promised Land--the blessing of God (this was a picture of Christ (Yeshua) leading us into Rest). For those of you who think that I believe God would rather hand us things on a silver platter without any effort on our part, let us remember that although the land of Canaan was "given" to Israel, they had to go in and possess the land, which was with through great warfare. Does this sound familiar? Some people refer to the birth of a child a miracle when it's not because the birth of a child is God's blessing (Genesis 1:28).
And yes, this is how God created the world and for us to live in it. The Garden of Eden was paradise—and all Adam had to do was “dress and keep” the garden (Genesis 2:15). There were no problems until they chose to allow the seed of the serpent’s word to conceive sin in their hearts and consequently to their actions. This is God’s perfect will, but we know that because of sin and the fact that we live in an imperfect world, there will be challenges, which is why God has granted us miraculous power. However, His original plan for mankind did not include crises and problems. We chose that route—not God.
Here’s another truth about abortions… we understand that in the natural, abortions can cause a woman to be sterile because they destroy the womb. It is no different in your spiritual womb. Perhaps the reason you’re not conceiving godly fruit is because your womb has been damaged from so many abortions that it has been rendered barren. Great news! This is why I’m teaching this… because your womb can be healed and renewed to bear godly fruit, and then begin exercising the tools to prevent any further evil conceptions.
Part 4 to come...
Have you ever wondered why the word of God is filled with analogies of the sexual relationship between a man and woman and our relationship with God? Very few people like to talk openly about sex, especially when studying the Bible. Talk about “squirm factor” when I say words like intercourse, sperm, or conceive in a Bible study. It’s okay to say these things around the table having some beers, but God forbid we relate God to sex! Hello… God created the sexual relationship, and because of our ignorance, we’ve screwed that up as well (no pun intended).
Let’s go over some basics so you can see clearly how the sexual relationship plays a pivotal role in our warfare. God created the world and life in the world to have seeds in it. These seeds will only produce after their own kind. However, while the seed is contained inside the created being, it must be planted somewhere in order to reproduce. We can talk birds and bees now. The bee lands on a flower’s petals and bud where the seed (spores) are located. The bee harvests the spores and they fall to the ground and because of their relationship with the ground, they reproduce. Without the seeds, the ground could produce nothing; and conversely, without the ground, the seeds would not reproduce. They need a womb of some kind.
Similarly, God has given us not only a natural womb in a woman and seed in a man, but He has given all of us a spiritual womb in which He desires to plant in us His God-life-giving sperm so that we will conceive after His own kind.
Since the devil has to adhere to the same principles of seedtime and harvest, Satan desires also to have intercourse with you so that he can plant his sperm of death to conceive after its own kind.
So, if you look at this way, the spiritual war we wage is an easy one—provided we are willing to be monogamous and not apt to be deceived into thinking the devil is our husband.
Your Mind is the Womb of Your Life
As he thinks in his heart, so is he. [Proverbs 23:7]
Your imagination is the birthplace of your words and actions—your spiritual womb. Your imagination is your “mind’s eye” or the way you perceive things. The imagination can also be seen as your “world view” or “paradigm.” While our spirit man (the Christ in us) knows all things, the Christian life on earth emphasizes the process of renewing the mind (changing the way you think) so that the life of Christ can be completely evident in the body of a person (2 Corinthians 4:6-11). God’s vision for the world is for His Son to be seen by everyone (John 6:38-40; 12:21).
The Bible says, And be not conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind that you may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God. [Romans 12:2]
Without going into great detail I want to share an awesome truth: As a new creature in Christ, (the new man, the Spirit of Christ, the part of you that was born again, your spirit) you have an anointing within you that knows all things (1 John 2:20) and this unction abides in you all the time. The Bible says, For who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ. [1 Corinthians 2:16] In other words, when a person gets born again, God deposits not only the life of Christ, but also the power and knowledge of Christ into your spirit. The entire revelation of God lives within you! As Christ is the fullness of the Godhead bodily, and you are in Christ and He is in you, you possess the fullness of God within you (Colossians 2:6-10, Colossians 3:10).
However, your physical mind was not changed through the new birth, and needs the word of God to be conceived in it so that your mind will be in agreement with your spirit, and consequently you may prove God’s will in your body. If you understand the truth about spirit, soul, and body, you can see that although our spirit was changed and knows all things, the soul (mind, will, emotions) functions as a filter or mediator between the spirit and the body. Therefore, your mind controls your actions.
Thus, it is necessary that the word of God be planted in a person’s mind (not in his spirit) in order that these truths become functional in the physical life of a believer. When our minds are in agreement with what is true in our spirits, then the actions in our bodies will follow accordingly.
So then, hopefully you now see your mind as the place of conception for your life, words, and actions. Using the example of the sexual relationship, we know that when a man and woman have intercourse, a child is not conceived every time. Although it may be a pleasurable experience, but unless something was conceived inside you, you will not bear fruit. There are many Christians who have emotional experiences in worship, prayer, and Christian activities, but nothing is being conceived in them. They may also be hearing and/or reading the word of God, but if no conception occurs, the person will not give birth to anything, which is why you must plant more than one seed.
Too often, while being encouraged to plant seeds of the word of God in them (have relationship with God) many Christians don’t enjoy the experience. Similar to an abused woman, she may have sex with her husband, but it won’t be a pleasurable experience or fruitful in her life because of her relationship with him. Because God has been frequently portrayed as a “jealous husband,” a glory mongering ego maniac, apt to destroy cities with hurricanes and tsunamis in a fit of rage, or make even His own children sick or refuse to heal them, it is no wonder why His bride doesn’t want to engage in much of a relationship. In fact, some people who call themselves Christians teach that God “rapes” His children by forcing His will upon them without their consent.
I imagine if God were perceived as He truly is, which is Jesus, more people would want to have intimate relations with Him, and consequently have more conceptions and produce more fruit. I am currently teaching a series called “As He Is: God’s True Nature” (http://www.bovministries.net/As_He_Is_Series.html) which has opened the eyes of many to see the true heart of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
Now back to our conception: Although better than none, a person simply cannot stand or rely upon For God so loved the word that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life by itself. This would be like having sex once and believing that you will get pregnant. And while it only takes one sperm to conceive a child, millions are deposited into the womb of a woman. The same is true with the word of God. You have to plant more than one seed.
The Bible says, Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. [Romans 10:17] I believe this refers to repetition, study, pondering, meditation, and consideration so that not only the word is understood, but also it can be applied in your life. Remember Joshua 1:8.
Jesus said, If you continue in my word, then are you my disciples indeed; and you shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free. [John 8:31-32]
Spiritual Birth Control
Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. [James 4:7]
It is a sad fact that honoring God concerning the sexual relationship has been all but eradicated in this country. Even some Christians are promoting abstinence NOT as a way of honoring God and themselves, but as a means of preventing disease and/or unwanted pregnancies. Let me ask you this… If we could discover a foolproof way of preventing pregnancy (all the time) and sexually transmitted diseases, would having sex outside of marriage then be acceptable? No, it wouldn’t, because God’s word still says that sex is for married people—between one husband (man) and one wife (woman).
Instead of rearing their children in the admonition and nurture of the Lord, teaching their children to honor God first, then honor their own bodies and the bodies of their mates, parents most often surrender to the lie that says, “they’re going to do it anyway” and give their sons condoms and put their daughters on the pill. It’s easier to have them succumb to the will of the world and be corrupted, then to take the time to teach and monitor their own children from an early age. Our school systems resist teaching the godly perspective on abstinence and instead distribute condoms and offer “health advice” and sex education to those curious teenagers who are not willing to exercise self-control.
And then there’s the most abominable method of birth control—and this is the practice of abortion, the systematic murder of unborn children disguised as a “choice of convenience” in many ways. “Planned Parenthood” means to have sex whenever you want, with whomever you want, and if you get pregnant you have the “choice” to kill the child or not. As far as we’re concerned, God is pro-choice, but He is very clear what His will is—CHOOSE LIFE! God has given us the power to choose, but He wants us to make the righteous choice and has given us the power to do so (Deuteronomy 30:19).
However, true birth control begins and ends with avoiding the act that causes conception—not trying to get around it with a condom or pill that regulates a woman’s ovulation, and certainly NOT with abortion. You can dance around the edge of the water only for so long until you trip and fall in. How about this for the best method of pregnancy and birth control: KEEP YOUR CLOTHES ON!
It is really no wonder that the passage from Isaiah 54:17 No weapon that is formed against you shall prosper is NOT coming to pass in the lives of so many people. And some of you, after reading this rant on the sexual morals today, are wondering what this has to do with spiritual warfare. In one word: PLENTY.
The reason weapons are prospering against us is because we are allowing them to be conceived in us. Yes, we believe that no weapon that is formed against us shall prosper, but by itself, it’s like believing that a birth control pill or condom will prevent a woman from getting pregnant. The only way to positively assure that a woman does not get pregnant is to simply not have sexual intercourse with a man. Thus, the only way to prevent conception is to avoid the act that produces conception. While we understand this (at least we should) in the natural, we should also apply this in the spiritual. Words are to life and death as sperm is to conceiving a child.
Spiritual Abortion
While most Christians abhor the act of abortion in the natural, especially as a means of birth control, the sad truth is that, in their spiritual lives, they are the worst offenders of this horrific act. Jesus talked about this is His parable of the sower and the seed. He also that received seed among thorns is he who hears the word, and the care of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches (and the lusts of other things entering in) choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful. [Matthew 13:22; Mark 4:19]
Because most Christians are not rooted and grounded in the word of God, the fruit that was conceived by the word is easily choked and aborted by the things of the world. This is abortion—the fruit was conceived and was choked before it could be born. The longer a plant (or weed for that matter) is in the ground, it is much more difficult to uproot because the initial stage of growth is always downward—in the roots.
In the same way Christians commit spiritual abortion to the word of God, they also seek to do it with what they have conceived from their “relations” with the world. They expose themselves to all the rottenness of this world, and conceive “evil fruit” of the world, and then they pray for God to commit spiritual abortion for them in the form of a miracle. I know this sounds harsh, but it’s true, and you need to hear it.
When you have intercourse with the prince of this world, you’re very likely to conceive Rosemary’s Baby in your womb, and then like in the movie, you’ll either want to abort the baby or kill it once you realize what you’ve given birth to. While you may not knowingly grant consent to the devil to plant his seed in your womb, he preys upon your ignorance of the truth (he may even appear as an angel of light) to gain entry into you. Again, in order for NO weapon that is formed against you to prosper or flourish, you MUST condemn (cast down, bring captive) EVERY tongue that shall come against what the word of God says. If you’re not drawing on the unction from the Holy One (meditating, considering, pondering) and you have no physical knowledge of God’s word, you have nothing to compare it to. This warfare prevents the seed of evil fruit from being conceived in your life.
Here’s another great truth: God loves you, and like any loving parent, when their child gets in a bind, they want to help them. While God has no problem giving you a miracle, I believe that He desires you to live in His blessing rather than need a miracle, because the very nature of a miracle requires a crisis. He desires that you conceive ONLY from the incorruptible seed of the word of God—and not get pregnant with a crisis and then need to have an abortion!
Now I know some of you may assert, “that without a test, there is no TESTimony.” I don’t disagree with that statement, other than I see it as a reality—not as God’s will. The bottom line is that God does not desire you to be infected with the ways and evil seeds of this world. Miracles are available, but as I said, I believe God would rather us live in such blessing that we would have no crises like sickness, divorce, addictions, tragedy, etc.
Miracles are temporary, but blessings are permanent--the feeding of manna, for example. The miracle of the manna was the longest running miracle in the Bible, but this miracle ended when Joshua led the children of Israel into the Promised Land--the blessing of God (this was a picture of Christ (Yeshua) leading us into Rest). For those of you who think that I believe God would rather hand us things on a silver platter without any effort on our part, let us remember that although the land of Canaan was "given" to Israel, they had to go in and possess the land, which was with through great warfare. Does this sound familiar? Some people refer to the birth of a child a miracle when it's not because the birth of a child is God's blessing (Genesis 1:28).
And yes, this is how God created the world and for us to live in it. The Garden of Eden was paradise—and all Adam had to do was “dress and keep” the garden (Genesis 2:15). There were no problems until they chose to allow the seed of the serpent’s word to conceive sin in their hearts and consequently to their actions. This is God’s perfect will, but we know that because of sin and the fact that we live in an imperfect world, there will be challenges, which is why God has granted us miraculous power. However, His original plan for mankind did not include crises and problems. We chose that route—not God.
Here’s another truth about abortions… we understand that in the natural, abortions can cause a woman to be sterile because they destroy the womb. It is no different in your spiritual womb. Perhaps the reason you’re not conceiving godly fruit is because your womb has been damaged from so many abortions that it has been rendered barren. Great news! This is why I’m teaching this… because your womb can be healed and renewed to bear godly fruit, and then begin exercising the tools to prevent any further evil conceptions.
Part 4 to come...