There was once a head of state in West Africa, Burkina Faso to be exact. Captain Thomas Sankara.
He was interviewed back then, and they asked him what if his 2nd in command wanted to overthrow him? He said, if that situation ever occurred, it would be too late by the time he found out.
That was exactly what transpired. His second in command Blaise Compaore plotted against him, and he was ambushed and assassinated. 38 years ago in 1987.
In this sermon, we want to pray to address the syndrome of the enemy within.
The enemy within, is the close associate that knows everything about you, has every intelligence about you, knows where all your cards lay and then wants to or has used the information and intelligence to attack you, or your position. So much so that your present or latter state is a very shabby and bad shadow of your glorious past.
Now because of the definition; the enemy within can be anybody.
Your spouse, your child, your assistant pastor, your colleague in the office, your subordinate, a former lover, former friend, present friend. Anybody.
There are quite a number of examples in the Bible. Jacob and his mom were the enemy within to Esau. The story of Jacob and Esau is told in the Bible in Genesis 25:29-34 and Genesis 32-33. When Isaac was dying, Jacob, with Rebekah's help, cheated Esau out of his father's blessing. Esau would have killed Jacob, but Jacob fled; when he returned 20 years later, Esau forgave him. They knew his secret that he was hairy and when he would go to ask for his birthright. Got ahead of him and used the intelligence they had to deprive him. They were the enemy within.
Jacob’s father-in-law; Laban, also known as Laban the Aramean was the enemy within to Jacob. He was born and died in Paddan Aram, which is present-day Harran, Turkey. Laban promised his younger daughter Rachel to Jacob in return for seven years' service, only to trick him into marrying his elder daughter Leah instead. The Bible passages about Jacob and Laban are found in Genesis 28–31, particularly in Genesis 29, 30, and 31.
In Genesis 38, Judah's daughter-in-law Tamar who tricked him. She was the enemy within. She knew where and when he'd be traveling along a certain road (Genesis 38:14), and she positioned herself there, veiled as a prostitute, and seduced him (Genesis 38:18). She accepted his staff, signet, and cord as a pledge for later payment, then disappeared back home. Because of her veil, Judah never knew she was the widow of his two deceased sons whom he had promised to marry to his third son (Genesis 38:11). It was the realization that Judah's promise was a lie (Genesis 38:14) which drove Tamar to concoct her scheme.
Tamar conceived that day. From her perspective, this was the best possible outcome. Twice widowed and childless, her only prospect had been marriage to Judah's son Shelah. Now, however, she is expecting children and has powerful evidence to ensure support from the father (Genesis 38:25).
In 2 Kings, Elisha's servant Gehazi was the enemy within. Gehazi was a trusted attendant who witnessed many of Elisha's miracles. However, Gehazi was also dishonest and was punished by Elisha.
• Elisha cursed him: Elisha cursed Gehazi, causing him to become leprous.
• Gehazi's descendants were also cursed: Elisha cursed Gehazi's descendants, saying that Naaman's leprosy would "cleave to him and his descendants for ever"
In the Bible, King Solomon judged two women who both claimed to be the mother of a living infant. The story appears in 1 Kings 3:16-28.
The story:
1. Two women who lived together and each had a baby boy came to King Solomon.
2. One of the babies died, and each woman claimed the surviving child as her own.
3. Solomon ordered that the living baby be cut in half, with each woman receiving half.
4. One woman agreed to give up the baby, while the other insisted on the verdict. The latter woman was the enemy within,
because she knew the baby was not hers, but that the situation was whose word was believed.
5. Solomon awarded the baby to the first woman, who protested the judgment.
6. The people of Israel respected Solomon for his wisdom.
Michal, the daughter of Saul, was said to be barren until she died. Michal was in love with David and saved him from her father's attack on his life. The Bible passages about David and Michal are 1 Samuel 18:17-27, 2 Samuel 3:13–16, and 2 Samuel 6:16-23.
Michal later publicly disrespected David, which led to a prophecy that she would have no children. She was the enemy within.
Another powerful example of the enemy within is Absalom who was King David's third son who rebelled against his father. The rebellion is described in chapters 15–20 of 2 Samuel.
Who was Absalom?
• Absalom was a favorite of his father and the people and because of the closeness, knew a lot about his father’s habits and strengths and used them against David.
• He was known for his beauty, charm, and leadership qualities.
• His father allowed him to live in luxury, with a chariot and fifty men running before him.
• He had three sons and a daughter named Tamar.
Why did Absalom rebel?
• Absalom was impatient to become king himself.
• He had legitimate grievances against his father and his response to his father's injustice was almost pathological.
Lastly, for this sermon, Judas Iscariot who sold Jesus to his killers for a few pieces of silver was the ultimate enemy within. The Bible passages about Judas Iscariot's betrayal of Jesus are in the Gospels of John and Matthew.
John 13:21-27: Jesus tells his disciples that one of them will betray him, and then identifies Judas as the betrayer.
Matthew 26:14-16: Judas agrees to betray Jesus for 30 pieces of silver.
Matthew 27:3, 5: Judas returns the money and then hangs himself.
Without the mercy of God, it is almost impossible to escape an enemy within.
If you are in Christian ministry, your jealous younger pastoral assistant could sell your spiritual secrets to enemies.
Your chef, your driver, your barber, your hairdresser. These people know your movements. Your bank manager, or customer service representative.
How do you escape this potentially dangerous situation?
Desire and ask for the revelation gifts in 1 Corinthians 12:7-11
The Word of Knowledge is a spiritual gift given to Believers by the Holy Spirit. It is a supernatural knowledge that manifests as a vision, dream, thought, voice, or feeling.
The word of knowledge gift is a revelatory power gift and often works in unison with other gifts of the Spirit.
The Word of Wisdom; The word of wisdom is a supernatural gift from the Holy Spirit that gives believers wisdom and guidance.
It works with the word of knowledge and the gift of prophecy.
It helps believers prepare for the future and be witnesses of God's character.
The Discerning of Spirits is the ability to tell the difference between spirits, including human spirits, holy spirits, and demonic spirits. It's a spiritual gift that can help people recognize the presence of God and evil.
Next you must be in the word of God constantly and be very prayerful. You must be connected to the Lord, so that he can lead you to safety always.
Say these verses in the Psalms as prayers for yourself and your family.
Psalm 25
• "Show me the right path, O LORD; point out the road for me to follow"
• "Lead me by your truth and teach me, for you are the God who saves me"
• "You keep me safe, and I always trust you"
Psalm 27
• "Teach me thy way, O LORD, And lead me in a plain path, because of mine enemies"
• "Lord, show thou me thy way; and direct thou me on the right path, safe from my enemies"
Psalm 23
• "He leads me in paths of righteousness"
• "Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me"
Other Bible passages that relate to God leading people include:
• Proverbs 1:33, which promises safety and security to those who listen to God's wisdom
• Proverbs 3:5-6, which encourages people to trust in the Lord with all their hearts.
Say these prayers:
1. Father, expose, disgrace and defeat any enemy within in my house fathers’, mother’s house, church, business in Jesus’ name.
2. Father, whatever instrument of manipulation that the enemy within is using against me, let that instrument of manipulation fail by the reason of the Blood of Jesus.
3. Every finished work that the enemy within has perfected in my life, let it be reversed in the name of Jesus.
4. Father, I desire all of these revelation gifts, I covet them, so release them to me in the name of Jesus.
5. "Show me the right path, O LORD; point out the road for me to follow"
6. "Lead me by your truth and teach me, for you are the God who saves me." You keep me safe, and I always trust you"
7. "Teach me thy way, O LORD, And lead me in a plain path, because of mine enemies"
8. "Lord, show thou me thy way; and direct thou me on the right path, safe from my enemies"
9. Give thanks to the Lord for answered prayers.
