Dear BelieverI have been asked to re post and update a few things concerning a Jezebel spirit. This is because this evil spirit is active once more and we need to be forewarned and on guard! Jezebel caused Elijah to fear and he ran away in the opposite direction and ended up in a cave. Many of God's leaders are still in the cave! But dear ones, we've go to come out of the cave and fulfill divine destiny!
In one of my recent posts I discussed the necessity to dethrone a Jezebel spirit. I did not mention in the posts (though I do address it in my books) the fact that a Jezebel spirit directly promotes religious performance and religious tradition. If you recall, in the Old Testament when Elijah confronted the prophets of Baal, the false prophets went into a religious rage of performance-praying loudly and cutting themselves to get their false god's attention. Today, we may not go to these extremes, but yet due to tradition are we are still depending on works,deeds, and religious rituals to "get God's attention." (Let me encourage you to read my recent blog if you haven't done so as you will have a greater understanding of how to dethrone a Jezebel spirit).
So let's discuss "tradition." Let me again ask:
When we consider ourselves as new covenant believers-is it possible that man's traditions have caused the Word of God to lack power? If we examine the New Testament, I have to conclude this answer-Absolutely! If you recall, Jesus stated that the Pharisees accepted tradition and, therefore, had rejected God's Word. The New International Version says it this way:
"Thus you nullify the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down..." (Mark 7:13.
I believe it is safe to conclude from this passage that the Pharisees’ tradition "dis-empowered" and actually caused it to be "ineffective." One might even say that tradition neutralizes God's word in his/her lives. This does not, by any means, mean that the Word of God is not true! What I am saying is this - tradition robs the Word of God from being effective in our lives. Even though the Pharisees believed that they were serving God to the letter of absolute perfection; their traditions nullified God's Word.
When we think about tradition, many of us visualize those in denominations who are "stuck" in old patterns and belief systems. Maybe we categorize those who are steeped in religious tradition as congregations that are ultra- conservative. However, if we stop and think a moment, there are present - day contemporary churches and ministries that have very strong traditions also. Yes, even charismatics!