RELIGIOUS SNAKE BITES

RELIGIOUS SNAKE BITES

Mary Ann Wray

RELIGIOUS SNAKE BITES

Mary Ann Wray

Here is what Jesus had to say to the ‘religious leaders’ of His day. This passage is taken from Matthew 23: 13-39. Notice what He calls and pronounces over these leaders. We still have this kind of leadership in pulpits all over the world. They create confusion, produce hardship and manufacture lies from scriptures taken out of context. As a result, God’s flock is carried away captive and cannot experience the liberty the Holy Spirit brings to live free from bondage, sin, addictions and rejection.

 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You shut the door of the kingdom of heaven in people’s faces. You yourselves do not enter, nor will you let those enter who are trying to. “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You travel over land and sea to win a single convert, and when you have succeeded, you make them twice as much a child of hell as you are. “Woe to you, blind guides! You say, ‘If anyone swears by the temple, it means nothing; but anyone who swears by the gold of the temple is bound by that oath.’ You blind fools! Which is greater: the gold, or the temple that makes the gold sacred? You also say, ‘If anyone swears by the altar, it means nothing; but anyone who swears by the gift on the altar is bound by that oath.’ You blind men! Which is greater: the gift, or the altar that makes the gift sacred? Therefore, anyone who swears by the altar swears by it and by everything on it. And anyone who swears by the temple swears by it and by the one who dwells in it. And anyone who swears by heaven swears by God’s throne and by the one who sits on it. “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel. “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean. “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of the bones of the dead and everything unclean. In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness. “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You build tombs for the prophets and decorate the graves of the righteous. And you say, ‘If we had lived in the days of our ancestors, we would not have taken part with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’ So you testify against yourselves that you are the descendants of those who murdered the prophets. Go ahead, then, and complete what your ancestors started! “You snakes! You brood of vipers! How will you escape being condemned to hell? Therefore I am sending you prophets and sages and teachers. Some of them you will kill and crucify; others you will flog in your synagogues and pursue from town to town. And so upon you will come all the righteous blood that has been shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah son of Berekiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar. Truly I tell you, all this will come on this generation. “Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were not willing. Look, your house is left to you desolate. For I tell you, you will not see me again until you say, ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.’

Some of the symptoms of a religious snake bite are much like a physical one but manifest spiritually in the realm of emotions, mind and will. Some of the physical symptoms of a venomous bite are: blurred vision, tiredness, convulsions, fainting, bleeding from the skin, diarrhea, fang marks on the skin, fever, increased thirst, numbness, rapid pulse, weakness, loss of muscle coordination, pan, shock, tissue damage and swelling. The results of religious venom will in turn manifest in your day to day walk causing spiritual weakness, emotional convulsions, not being able to ingest or digest healthy spiritual food properly, blurred spiritual vision and spiritual paralysis in your walk with Christ. If you have one or more of these symptoms you may have been bitten by a religious snake. If you look to the Cross of Jesus Christ as the anecdote and repent of believing the lies of the enemy and are willing to renounce them you will be healed. Ask the Holy Spirit for the Spirit of Wisdom and Revelation in Christ Jesus. If need be, leave the church you are in or NOT in and ask Father to lead you to a NEW Testament Church that follows the New Testament Pattern of Worship found in the Book of Acts and 1&2 Corinthians. Note, that you can be a believer in Jesus but you struggle in some area that you can’t get freedom in. If this is the case, chances are you’ve been snake bitten. OR, you may go to a church and live a ‘good’ life in your own estimation, but if you have not renounced your past sins and look to the Cross and Blood of Jesus Christ alone through repentance and complete allegiance to the cross, you’ve been bitten by a religious snake. You need to be Born Again-Born of the Spirit-Born from Above! (John 3) This spirit masks or covers itself with a form of godliness but denies or is void of its power! (2 Timothy 3 5)

"The Lord said to Moses, “Make a snake and put it up on a pole; anyone who is bitten can look at it and live.” Numbers 21: 8

"Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: "Cursed is everyone who is hung on a pole." Galatians 3: 13

HERE ARE SOME OF THE SYMPTOMS OF A RELIGIOUS SNAKE BITE:

-the cross and blood of Jesus has little to no significance in the daily life of a believer

-‘believes’ in Jesus but doesn’t follow Him or His teachings as a disciple

-hates the word repent or thinks it’s irrelevant

-gets easily offended at the ‘corrective’ Word of the Lord

-seeks to cover sins with excuses and reasons for doing what it does i.e., I was born this way, there is nothing wrong with it, God loves me any way

-justifies abhorrent behavior as a only a mental condition or not a big deal to God. He loves everybody just the way they are. (If this was the case, why did Jesus DIE on the cross and rise again on the third day?)

-hates or is critical of those who walk in true holiness and separation unto the Lord Jesus; looks at them as hypocrites or holier than thou’s

-exhibits good works and/ or a form of zealousness but the heart motivation is to earn favor with God or the praise of man rather than works springing forth out of pure faith in Jesus and obedience to the Holy Spirit’s direction and Word

-calls good evil and evil good...can't discern between the truth and a lie (Isaiah 5: 20)

-little to no hunger for God’s Word or can’t understand scriptures

-finds fault in godly leadership and God’s true flock not understanding the journey to maturity takes time, patience and love

-demands perfection in others but is tolerant or blind to one’s own faults (self-righteousness)

- talks about God but lacks intimacy with the Father in prayer, worship and relationship

-Powerless life-no spiritual change, momentum or gifts working on a regular basis

-immediate family life is dysfunctional i.e., children in home are rebellious, marital strife, constant financial struggle, can’t manage money properly

-dislikes giving to support the work of God or gives for show

-is a spectator, not a participator in the House of the Lord

-can't get delivered from fear (Roman 8: 15-17)

-uncomfortable in a Spirit Filled setting where tongues, and other gifts of the Spirit are in operation according to Acts 2 and 1 Corinthians 14

-believes one man leader has everything the Body needs to grow

-does not recognize or embrace Ascension Gifts as relevant for today or they do not recognize and allow them to operate in the Local Body (Ephesians 4)

-exhibits anger and self-control issues

-can’t get healed of certain recurring infirmities (Luke 13: 11; John 5: 1-8)

-justifies an extravagant lifestyle

“Therefore, since we have such a hope, we are very bold. We are not like Moses, who would put a veil over his face to prevent the Israelites from seeing the end of what was passing away. But their minds were made dull, for to this day the same veil remains when the old covenant is read. It has not been removed, because only in Christ is it taken away. Even to this day when Moses is read, a veil covers their hearts. But whenever anyone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.” 2 Corinthians 3: 12-18