Good Morning.
“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.” (Genesis 22:16-17)
Abraham’s obedience moved God to reaffirm the covenant He had already made but with emphasis saying, “By Myself or “As I live.” There is no higher authority than the Sovereign of the Universe and so His promise to Abraham was as sure as the fact that He was the Creator of all things. Because He had created the stars of heaven and the sand upon the seashore, He would multiply Abraham’s seed through Isaac and make them as numerous. Not only would they be numerous but they would also be victorious — they would possess the gate of their enemies.
This idiomatic phrase is intended to mean that no obstacle and no enemy would be able to withstand the people of God. It also implies that the people of God would not be stagnant and settled in one place but like a plant that reproduces itself and spreads through a field, so too would the seed of Abraham.
That is, in fact, what the Kingdom of God is designed to do — multiply, advance and take territory away from the enemy, thus setting captives free. We aren’t supposed to be sedentary, just waiting things out until Yeshua comes. We are supposed to be on the move, forcefully advancing against the kingdom of darkness and liberating those who are in bondage to the Adversary. When we are empowered by the Spirit of God to move against the enemy, nothing he has will be able to withstand this advance. After Peter confessed that Yeshua was the Messiah and Son of the Living God, Messiah said:
“On this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.” (Matthew 16:18)
That statement was not intended to say that we will survive the onslaught of the enemy; He was saying that the enemy wouldn’t survive the advance and overcoming force of the Kingdom of God. We are to move against him, not sit around waiting for him to attack us. We have a promise that is backed up by the Creator of all things; if we are established upon the Rock, we will possess the gates of our enemies. The kingdom of darkness will not be able to stand when confronted by the light. So let us, in the name of the Almighty, take the battle to our adversary and batter down his gates.
Blessings and Shalom,
Bill
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