April, 15 2024

This Week's Battle Axes

WHEN, WHAT, AND HOW: SEALING THE MARRIAGE – GOD’S WAY! (cont.)

(Remember that the weekly BATTLE AXES help you mobilize God’s words and send them into battle)

This week we want to continue examining the common complaints against the Christian Purity Culture (CPC). Some Christian women voice their disillusionment and pain about how the Body of Christ’s teachings on sex and sexuality have not only harmed them sexually but shaken the foundations of their faith in God. However, to be fair, we must distinguish between what God says on sexual purity and how man communicates it.

Everything God says is always redemptive, restorative and never destructive.

WHAT IS THE CHRISTIAN PURITY CULTURE?

The Body of Christ is a holy nation called by God to purity in lifestyle: thoughts and deeds. The language, sex and sexuality, worldview, music, relationships, and everything else must reflect the values of a holy God. Specifically, sexual impurity is the willful, erotic and sexual activity engaged in outside a heterosexual marriage. The sexual revolution of the sixties taught that the erotic should be celebrated as part of normal life and all traditional and biblical restraints should be cast off. As a result, adultery, homosexuality, premarital sex and teen pregnancies skyrocketted. Unfortunately, many Christians were caught in it. Then came the 90s with the ubiquitous deaths from AIDS. To protect the flock, teachings on CPC became extremely popular, emphasizing virginity before marriage, promoting courtship instead of dating, encouraging taking purity vows to remain abstinent till marriage, and many such guardrails.

COMMON COMPLAINTS AGAINST PURITY CULTURE

A common complaint about CPC is a supposed sexual shaming. It is said that counseling those who violated or are violating sexual purity is tantamount to judging and shaming them. Rather, they are supposed to be left alone to express their sexual desires and sexuality freely. This view is anti-God. It is of the world and has no place in the holy nation of Christians. The bible requires fellow believers to be one another’s “keeper” and the Church to admonish and correct erring believers in love and with humility, in ways that bring them to true repentance and not crush them with guilt and shame. (…to be continued)

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THIS WEEK'S DAILY MEDITATIONS, PRAYERS AND CONFESSIONS

MONDAY

Meditation:

For God may speak in one way, or in another, yet man does not perceive it. Job 33:14 (NKJV); The thief comes only in order to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance (to the full, till it overflows) John 10:10 AMPC

Prayer Point:

Dear Lord Jesus, thank you for abundant life. Dear Holy Spirit, give me a revelation knowledge of the word in areas that are still unclear to me on matters of sex and sexuality. Thank you.

Confession:

No devil can steal my joy, my peace and my holy conscience in Christ Jesus. God has not given me the spirit of guilt and shame but of love, power and sound mind. I am fully accepted by God in the Beloved.

TUESDAY

Meditation:

And whatever you do [no matter what it is] in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus and in [dependence upon] His Person, giving praise to God the Father through Him. Colossians 3:17 (AMPC)

Prayer Point:

Father, this week I commit all my word and deeds into your hands and surrender my independence to you and I ask that by the power of the resurrection, quicken me so my words and deeds can glorify Jesus this week.

Confession:

I have been bought with a price. My hands, my feet, my mouth, and all my faculties are extensions of Jesus. In him I live, in him I move, in him I have my being. Greater is he that lives in me than all the weaknesses of the flesh that may seek to assail me.

WEDNESDAY

Meditation:

Do not love or cherish the world or the things that are in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh [craving for sensual gratification] and the lust of the eyes [greedy longings of the mind] and the pride of life [assurance in one’s own resources or in the stability of earthly things]—these do not come from the Father but are from the world [itself]. And the world passes away and disappears, and with it the forbidden cravings (the passionate desires, the lust) of it; but he who does the will of God and carries out His purposes in his life abides (remains) forever.1John 2:15-17 (AMPC)

Prayer Point:

Dear Holy Spirit, search my heart and remove whatever lusts that I have for the things of this world. Fill my heart with godly desires all of this week to the glory of your holy name.

Confession:

I am in the world, but I am not of the world. I relinquish today all lustful desires for the things of this world. My citizenship is heavenly.

THURSDAY

Meditation:

Every Scripture is God-breathed (given by His inspiration) and profitable for instruction, for reproof and conviction of sin, for correction of error and discipline in obedience, [and] for training in righteousness (in holy living, in conformity to God’s will in thought, purpose, and action), 2 Timothy 3:16 AMPC

Prayer Point:

Fire of the word, purify and refine me IJN.

Confession:

I receive God’s word with gladness. It is helping me in holy living and in conforming with his ill in thought, purpose and action. I rejoice in its profitability for my instruction, reproof, conviction of sin, correction of my errors, and disciplining me in

obedience. Every day I am becoming like Jesus. Hallelujah!

FRIDAY

Meditation:

For the Word that God speaks is alive and full of power [making it active, operative, energizing, and effective]; it is sharper than any two-edged sword, penetrating to the dividing line of the breath of life (soul) and [the immortal] spirit, and of joints and marrow [of the deepest parts of our nature], exposing and sifting and analyzing and judging the very thoughts and purposes of the heart. Heb 4:12 AMPC

Prayer Point:

Father, let me delight in your word day and night. Oh, that my ways were directed and established to observe your statutes [hearing, receiving, loving, and obeying them]! Keep shame far away from me and let me inherit your promises as I have respect to them.

Confession:

The word lightens my path this week and is a lamp unto my feet. The word will remain in my sight. I will keep them within my heart. They will keep renewing my life and heal me.

SATURDAY

Meditation:

Obey your spiritual leaders and submit to them [continually recognizing their authority over you], for they are constantly keeping watch over your souls and guarding your spiritual welfare, as men who will have to render an account [of their trust]. [Do your part to] let them do this with gladness and not with sighing and groaning, for that would not be profitable to you [either]. Heb 13:17 AMPC

Prayer Point:

Father, forgive me of every disobedience to those in authority over me. Grant me grace to obey them without murmuring. I ask IJN.

Confession:

I receive grace and the spirit of obedience to submit to all those that God has placed in spiritual authority over me. I believe in God, so I am established. I believe in his prophets, so I am prospering.

UPCOMING EVENTS