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I am not against true intercession, which is the Holy Ghost praying through us the perfect will of God for any situation; but I am against fleshly prayer.

There are those in the Church who think that to see revival our prayer life must be directed towards the devil in a warfare attitude. They believe we must wage war on the devil in the heavens to release God so that He can move freely. They act as if God is bound in the heavenly realm, waiting desperately for a believer to loose Him so that the plan and purpose of God can be done on earth.

Honey, I Blew up the Devil and other Nintendo Games
This game of spiritual warfare is nothing more than a spiritual Nintendo game played by baby Christians who have no understanding that Jesus defeated the devil two thousand years ago. He has sent the Holy Ghost to empower the believer and to flow through that individual's life to enforce the devil's defeat.

In this game, the devil is seen through the eyes of the believer as very big and in control. God is having a problem containing him. Believers, instead of preaching the gospel, are in their closets waging war on the devil. Many live in a fantasy world of spiritual warfare. It's probably the result of a bad dream and an overdose of pizza with too much cheese.

This has permeated the Church, infiltrated the worship, prayer, and study of the Word to such an extent that when you go to some churches, you wonder who are you going to worship. All they ever seem to do is talk about the devil and pray about what he is doing.

Even the sermon and their heavenly language is directed toward the devil. By the end of the service, all the believers are stamping their feet, binding and loosing in a frightened frenzy. It reminds me of a bunch of kids who have been told they are going to have to walk home in the dark past a graveyard after they've just seen a horror movie.

Pulling Down Strongholds in the Mind or Heavenlies?
(For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal,but mighty through God, to the pulling down of strongholds;) Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ.
(2 Cor. 10:4-5)
This speaks of a warfare in the mind of man rather than in the heavenlies. We have no account of Paul or anyone else—including Jesus—indulging in these so-called warfare practices. This practice is based on Daniel's 21-day fast while the angel was trying to get through. This, of course, is Old Covenant.

The Holy Ghost is here on earth now. He came on the day of Pentecost and never left. So rather than indulging in religious practices that do not produce any fruit, let us turn to the proclamation of the gospel linked to the demonstration of the power of the Holy Ghost resulting in the establishment of the kingdom of God. "The kingdom is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost." (Rom. 14:17)

It is interesting to note that the greatest soul winners in the world have never indulged in such practices. They have spent their time in prayer, fellowshipping with the Lord on a daily basis, and ministering out of an overflow of that communion with Him.

What Did Jesus Do?
When Jesus was tempted of the devil, He did not cast him down, but said, "It is written." When He stood at the tomb of Lazarus and prayed, it was not out of desperation, but for the benefit of those around Him. He turned first toward heaven, speaking only to God, not addressing demonic realms. Then out of His relationship with His heavenly Father, He proclaimed the desired result. (See John 11:41-44.)

Also, in the country of the Gadarenes, the demons knew who Jesus was. They said, "Have you come to torment us before our time?" They knew that their time was not yet and they pleaded with Him to cast them into the swine. He did, not in a three-hour battle, but with one word (go! (See Mark 5:1-14.)

There Is a True Intercession
I am not against true intercession, which is the Holy Ghost praying through us the perfect will of God for any situation. But I am against fleshly prayer that produces nothing but pride in the individual's life and robs them of their joy and peace and their productivity in the kingdom of God.

Source: The Touch of God
by Rodney Howard-Browne
Excerpt permission granted by Revival Ministries International

Author Biography

Rodney Howard-Browne
Web site: Revival Ministries International
 
Rodney and Adonica Howard-Browne, married since October 1981, spent the early part of their ministry traveling across southern Africa.
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