As we march forward into 2021, the keys and tools of powerful prayer and intercession that He has given us are going to continue to be front and center. We have the weapons of our warfare, but not everyone is familiar and comfortable with their use. When you hold a new tool in your hand, there is usually an awkward phase of learning to use the tool and growing more and more confident and skilled with the passing of time. It is the same with our keys and the weapons of our warfare. We must grow in our knowledge of their use, and become skilled in wielding them against our enemy.
I believe 2021 will continue to be a time of strategic advancement for prophets and intercessors, as God continues to release greater revelation concerning our place of authority in His Kingdom.
Contending with Faith
Recently, I had an experience that, for me, became a powerful picture of where we are and the stance we are to take in this strategic hour. Our daughter was getting married and because of the pandemic and family assembling from several different nations, they chose Cancun, Mexico as the initial place for the wedding party to gather. It was one of the few places they could find that was not requiring a quarantine period for everyone.
After a few days in Cancun, we were to all ferry over to Cozumel where the actual wedding would take place. But, Hurricane Iota entered the picture causing the waters to be too rough for the ferry to run, so we were left to our own resources to manage plane rides over to the island.
The wedding party was only 22 people, but there were at least a couple of hundred others who were also needing to cross to Cozumel for various reasons. That morning, two thirds of our party were miraculously able to get a flight over before lunch, but the rest of us were put off, and continued to wait. We were still continuing to wait at around five o'clock that afternoon, and it became evident that there was only one more small plane that would make the journey that day.
During all of this waiting (about 8 or 9 hours), the groom's father, who spoke Spanish, stood at the iron gate that separated the anxious crowd from the airstrip and the men who were making decisions about who could fly that day. He was pleading and "contending" for our group to be given favor. I never saw such persistence! He refused to leave his post and so the rest of us took him coffee, water, and tacos so he could keep up his "intercession" on behalf of all of us.
What a picture of the One who ever lives to make intercession for us! We were all praying for God to part the "Red Sea" that day and were eventually granted favor with the opening of the gate. Our little group secured a ride on the last plane of the day, joyfully making it over to the island just in time for the rehearsal dinner that night.
In all of these circumstances and others I've experienced in recent months, God has been speaking to me about powerful prayer, and more specifically, what it looks like to contend with faith and authority at the gates. My faith was tested that day in Cancun as we waited to cross over, and I believe many are in a season of the testing of their faith as well. Many may feel as if they are up against a gate in their life and are desperate to see breakthrough. We have personal gates, corporate gates, and national gates that we face, which many are contending for in this hour.
I would like to share some prophetic keys for contending at the gates so that you are equipped to go in and possess the land He has given you.
4 Keys for Contending at the Gates
1. Your identity of being "in Christ" will set you up for breakthrough.
Hebrews 13:12 says, "And so Jesus also suffered outside the city gate to make the people holy through His own Blood." Jesus suffered outside the gate so that you could possess your gates! Not only have you been made holy, but you are a royal priesthood (1 Pet. 2:9) and co-heir with Christ (Rom. 8:17). You have been seated with Him in heavenly places (Eph. 2:6) and He has been seated "far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is invoked, not only in the present age but also in the one to come" (Eph. 1:21).
Your enemy knows your vulnerabilities, and will seek to lie, deceive, and intimidate those who do not yet have a "heart knowledge" of who their Father is and the family they now belong to. The foundational knowledge of your identity in Christ is a necessary key for possessing your gates. With this heart knowledge, you can step boldly into the authority He has given you. (Photo via Flickr)
God is releasing identity upgrades and breakthrough so that you can fully engage with Him and the call to be part of His Bridal army. He is bringing healing and enlightenment to your heart so that you will be fully alive unto Him and His Spirit within you.
2. Knowing the love and character of your Father in Heaven builds within you a well of trust that you can draw from as you face your battles.
This knowledge of His character creates a type of protective barrier around your heart that helps to insulate you from the lies and threats of the enemy. When you truly know someone you can not be easily dissuaded from what you know of their character. This intimate knowledge is developed over time and allows you to contend and wage war in confidence, knowing the heart of the One in whose name you wage war. This is why Paul, in his suffering, was able to say, "...I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that He is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him until that day" (2 Tim. 1:12). Paul's intimate knowledge of his Father freed him up to boldly proclaim the Gospel even in the midst of his own suffering.
I declare over you today the prayer that Paul prayed in Ephesians 1:17: "I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know Him better."
3. As we use the keys to the Kingdom, we step into our royal authority.
Jesus has given us powerful weapons with which we wage war and overcome our gates. We know that Jesus referred specifically to the "keys of the Kingdom" in Matthew 16:19, "I will give you the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven; and whatever you bind on Earth shall have been bound in Heaven, and whatever you loose on Earth shall have been loosed in Heaven." Keys open and shut things.
Jesus said in Matthew 16:18, "...and on this rock I will build My Church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it." Too often the Church has seen herself in a defensive position, striving to withstand the evil forces of Hell. But, this verse actually reveals an entirely different position. This position is one of forward movement and advancement. It is an offensive position and Jesus speaks clearly that the gates which would seek to hold back the forward advancing Kingdom of God WILL NOT PREVAIL.
When we use our keys by binding and loosing, we make decrees and declarations in line with what has already been accomplished in Heaven. When we do so, we are stepping into our identity as "a royal priesthood" (1 Pet. 2:9).
Not only are we priests before God, those who have intimate relationship with Him, but we are also royals, those who carry His authority. We are not just priests, but also kings.
"...You were slain, and by Your Blood You ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation, and You have made them a Kingdom and priests to our God, and they shall reign on the earth." (Rev. 5:9-10)
4. We need to remember that our weapons are other-worldly. We need to stop trying to defeat our enemies through natural means. Our weapons are truly supernatural!
2 Corinthians 10:4 says, "The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds."
The Holy Spirit is coming to bring greater precision to the sons and daughters of God as they continue to grow in wielding their weapons of war. Where there has been lack of clarity and incorrect beliefs, He will blow away the clouds and filters that have kept many bound and unable to stand and contend. His anointing that breaks yokes will be released so that those who have been shackled can now be free to use their keys with authority.
5. A significant part of the Abrahamic Blessing that we step into as people of faith is possessing the gate of our enemies.
"... By Myself I have sworn, says the LORD, because you have done this thing, and have not withheld your son, your only son—blessing I will bless you, and multiplying I will multiply your descendants as the stars of the heaven and as the sand which is on the seashore; and your descendants shall possess the gate of their enemies." (Gen. 22:16-17) (Photo via Pikrepo)
It is important to note that faith is key in stepping into this Abrahamic Blessing. It is our faith in Christ that gives us entrance. But, it is also our faith that will give us access to possess the promises and the gates of our enemies. Hebrews 3:7 clearly tells us, "Understand, then, that those who have faith are children of Abraham."
6. Remember that the battle is at the gate.
In biblical times, when you conquered the gate of your enemy you gained entry and control of the city. We are not just looking for victory at the gates, we are looking for victory that gives us access to territory that is to be taken for the Kingdom of God.
I declare over you today an impartation of faith and fresh vision to not only see the gates before you through new eyes, but a grace to see the land before you with enlarged vision and Heaven's perspective. We renounce every argument and every pretension that would seek to set itself up against the knowledge of God (2 Cor. 10:5).
The battle is often at the gate. This may seem like a simple point to make, but it is important to know, when you engage in the battle at the gate, you are very close to victory. The enemy always operates through lies and deceptions, seeking to cloud our view and understanding of things. He does not want you to know that victory lies on the other side of the gate. But, we have already established that the gates WILL NOT PREVAIL!
God is releasing a Holy Spirit-breathed perseverance and tenacity upon His warring Bride right now to never give up. He is breathing fresh wind into your sails and strength to hold up your arms in battle.
You must stand and fight with the words He has spoken to you.
7. We have already talked about the importance of faith in possessing our gates, but we must know that our faith comes through what we have heard (Rom. 10:17).
Though I have chosen to mention it lastly, this is one of the most important keys in learning to effectively contend at the gates. We must hear what He is speaking and the battle plans He releases to us. We will never engage in effective warfare apart from hearing His voice and specific blueprints of battle that He wants to give us.
Let's Pray: Possess Your Gates!
Today as you move toward the gates in your life, I pray that you will move forward with upgrades in your personal identity and a fresh revelation of who your Father is. I declare over you that you will experience a personal awakening to the keys, tools, and weapons of your warfare that your Father has given you. I pray for an infusion of faith and awareness of your inheritance as part of the Abrahamic Blessing over your life.
He has created you to possess the gates of your enemies. I declare keen discernment over you to see clearly through the enemy's tactics, and to see clearly the impartation for the blueprints and strategies of Heaven to overcome. I pray for fresh manna and revelation from Heaven to fuel your faith to rise up, go in, and possess your gates!
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Sylvia Neusch
Sylvia Neusch Ministries
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Website:Â www.sylvianeusch.com
Sylvia Neusch is a wife, mother, pastor, author, prophetic voice and prophetic blogger. Sylvia operates with an anointing to sense the times and seasons and encourages the Body of Christ in stewarding the current and coming move of God. Through her writing and teaching, Sylvia has a passion to encourage and equip people to discover their true identities and to mature in Christ to walk in their God-given destinies. Sylvia and her husband Richard are the senior leaders of True Life, a non-denominational church in Round Rock, Texas. They are also the founders and co-directors of the Austin School of Supernatural Ministry as well as regional facilitators in Central Texas for Sozo Ministry.
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