Paul's "thorn in the flesh" mentioned in II Cor. 12:7 has been a source of mystery to Christians for almost 2000 years.  I have never understood the controversy.  Most people think is was a strange illness or blindness Paul could not get healed from.  I don't know why we can't accept that it was exactly what the Greek text said it was. It seems clear. "LEST I SHOULD BE EXHALTED (huperairomai) ABOVE MEASURE THROUGH THE ABUNDANCE OF THE REVELATIONS THERE WAS GIVEN TO ME A THORN (skolops) IN THE FLESH (sarx), THE MESSENGER (angelos) OF SATAN TO BUFFET (kolaphizo) ME" The Greek word for exalted means "lift up or haughty."  The Greek word for thorn means "splinter."  The Greek word for flesh means "sensuous human nature."  The Greek word for messenger means "angel."  The Greek word for buffet means to "punch or strike with the hand or fist." It was simple.  Paul had received so many supernatural revelations, more than anyone in history, that God did not want his pride to accelerate, so He allowed a fallen angel to occasionally punch or slap him to keep him humble.  This abuse may have been physical or in the form of trials and tribulations.  When the NT was written everyone understood this verse because many were Messianic Jews and this was a familiar phrase in the Hebrew OT.  The nations that terrorized rebellious Israel were "thorns in their sides" (Numbers 33:55, Joshua 23:13, Judges 2:3), not diseases or illnesses.  Paul was not suffering from an illness or sickness.  It was a physical attack from one of Satan's angels in the form of the trials he mentions in the same chapter.  There is not one sickness or illness mentioned in the list.  MYSTERY SOLVED!

In Ephesians 6 the legendary Apostle Paul of Tarsus shares one of his many dramatic revelations.  Verse 12 is remarkable:  "FOR WE WRESTLE NOT AGAINST FLESH (sarx) AND BLOOD BUT AGAINST PRINCIPALITIES (arche) & POWERS (exousia), AGAINST THE RULERS OF THE DARKNESS (kosmokrator) OF THIS WORLD (aion) & AGAINST SPIRITUAL WICKEDNESS (poneria pneumatikos) IN HIGH PLACES (epouranious)." The Greek word for flesh means sensuous human nature.  The Greek word for principalities means chief rulers.  The Greek word for powers means spiritual authorities.  The Greek word for rulers of darkness means spiritual world rulers.  The Greek word for world means age.  The Greek word for spiritual wickedness means extremely wicked spirits and the Greek word for high places means the atmosphere surrounding the earth. The most Spirit filled man who ever lived was telling us that the spirit world is like Microsoft or Walmart.  It has a CEO (Satan), CFO, COO, executive VP's, regional VP's and continuing down to custodians and landscapers.  There is a distinct hierarchy of evil supernatural beings ruling humanity and they travel thru the atmosphere covering the earth.  The person at work, in your family, at church, in the mall or living next door, that you ignorantly think is your problem, actually is not.  The supernatural beings behind them are the ones out to destroy you and they are simply using humans to perform their seductive and highly organized work.  These vastly intelligent merciless murderers cannot be fought with conventional weapons.  They can only be thwarted with spiritual ones:  The Holy Ghost, the Blood of the Lamb, your holy & sanctified life, your faith, the Word of God and your surrender to God's will.  These evil supernatural seducers have placed you under 24 hour surveillance and know you better than you know yourself.  They know just how and when to tempt you.  They hear every whisper and know ALL your weaknesses. The sin in your life gives them legal access to you and the ability to control you and your family and your circumstances.  Only your complete repentance and surrender to the Holy Spirit will save you and break the bondage of the Kingdom of Darkness in your life.   BE CAREFUL!  YOU ARE BEING STALKED BY SUPERNATURAL BEINGS!  YOU CAN WIN! (Eph. 6:13-18)!

Evil spirits are mentioned all thru the Bible and are every bit as real as material creations in the natural world.  Although confusing to us humans, the Word of God reveals the basic foundations of the Spirit World: Q:  Does the Bible specifically say a Christian cannot have demons?  A:  No.  The issue is not addressed however, several Scriptures hint that a Christian can be infected with them (I Tim. 3:7, II Tim. 2:26, Jas. 3:15, Lk. 11:36, Lk. 13:16, II Cor. 7:1, 11:1-4, Acts 8:22-23).  I explain this in more detail in my study guide Planos Spirits!  The Root Cause of Mental Illness.  You can order it off this web site. Q:  Where do demons come from? A:  No one knows.  The Book of Enoch says they are the spirits of the ancient civilizations of giants who lived before the flood of Noah.  Their spirits did not go to hell and they were left on the earth to help Satan destroy humanity.  King David killed off the last population of the giants and tradition says that most of the bodies were burned.  Josephus noted in his writings that the bones of these giants were on display in various places during the time of Christ.  Some think demons are fallen angles.  This is incorrect (Acts 23:8).  The Greek word for each are different and they have entirely different meanings (GK: angelos, daimonion).  In addition, the Book of Enoch actually names the fallen angels and distinguishes them from demons, IF we assume the book is accurate, which I have not done.  Interesting reading?  Yes.  Inspired?  Not sure.  Q: What are demons? A:  Disembodied spirits seeking embodiment.  Humans are embodied spirits.  Animals, plants, fish & insects do not have spirits and do not exist after death.  Demons desire human bodies to use to control the world, spread sin and damn human souls to the fires of hell.  They use human bodies to perform the work assigned to them by Satan.  They are Satan's emissaries.  They gather his information and carry out his instructions. Q:  What is the main purpose of a demon? A:   To serve Satan in destroying mankind with violence, anger, supernatural powers, nightmares, hate, horror, illnesses, sicknesses, war, death, world religions, church denominations, perversions and every other imaginable natural or supernatural evil. Q:  Can a Christian have a demon or be possessed? A:  Yes and No.  No.  A true born-again Christian cannot have a demon in their spirit or be "possessed."   The human spirit is regenerated and the Holy Spirit lives there.   Yes.  They can, however, have demons in their brain or body.  When someone gets saved, the spirit is born again but the mind, soul and body are not.  They are transformed gradually as the Christian "grows in grace and studies to show themselves approved unto God."  A Christian can have demons but cannot be demon possessed (see the Testimonials section on this web site). Q:  How do Christians become infected (not possessed) with demons? A:  Two main ways:  Carryover and backsliding.  1.  Carryover occurs if a person is infected with demons before they get saved and they carry the spirits into their Christian life in the same way a person who is sick carries their illness into their Christian life.  Just because someone gets saved does not mean they automatically get healed.  Hopefully, they get healed later.  The same is true of demons.  Just because a person gets saved does not mean they automatically get delivered from spirits.  Simon the Sorcerer in Acts 8 is a text book example of having CARRYOVER spirits.  He was born again and experienced water baptism but, retained many demonic qualities because he did not go thru deliverance after he was saved.  2.  Backsliding is the most frequent way Christians become infected with spirits.  The gospel in North America and Europe is so watered down that the majority of all Christians backslide at some point in their Christian walk.  For example, Billy Graham loses at least 85% of his new converts to backsliding.  He admitted it was 90% in a TV interview but their follow up research is closer to 85%.  Luis Palau probably generates about the same ratios.  When someone backslides they can end up worse than they were before they were saved (Mt. 12, Lk. 11). If they go back to drugs, sex and rock & roll and their old sinful life, the demons have legal access to them thru the doctrine of sowing and reaping (Gal. 6:7-9).  When they turn their back on God and deliberately sin, the evil spirits attack and enter into their brains and bodies, causing a wide range of, sometimes serious, physical, mental and emotional issues. Q:  How does it happen? A:  Demons can live IN the brains and bodies of humans and animals (Mk. 5:1).   Their highway to habitation in humans is sin and in animals it is their base level IQs.  Demons feed off sin like maggots feed off rotten meat.  The more frequent and greater levels of sin, the numbers and severity of evil spirits enter the person (Gal. 6:8).   Q:  Can someone be fully demon possessed? A:  Yes, but this condition is rare.  These people are few and far between and usually live in solitary confinement in prisons or mental institutions.  They usually are retained in isolation units or cells where they cannot hurt themselves or others.  You will probably never see a case of full blown possession but, it is possible. Q:  Can demons cause a mental or physical illness? A:  Yes.  This is a common occurrence.  Obviously, not all problems are caused by demons.  If you become fixated, you will see them everywhere and end up seriously confused.  Many people have a physical illness caused by a demon and they use James 5 and are not healed.  That's because the illness does not have a medical root.  The person recovers instantaneously or gradually after the debilitating spirits are removed.  Jesus taught this in the NT.  Some people He healed after casting out demons and some were healed with no mention of demons and some were healed at the moment the demons were expelled.  Remember, all sickness is caused directly or indirectly by humans or Satan and not by God.  Some illnesses are caused exclusively by a medical condition.  Others have a demonic root.   The Devil wants to crush you (John 10:10).  The Son of God wants to help you (Luke 9:54-56)!  Discernment is required to determine the root cause of the illness.  Is the root cause medical, demonic or a combination?  Q:  Do Deliverance ministries help? A:  Yes, but not often.  If you go to a deliverance service that does not focus on repentanceyou may see many manifestations but little healing or complete deliverance.  Manifestations do not mean the spirits are being removed.  You may go thru a cleansing program but, these systems do not provide for the actual removalof the spirits and the person frequently goes thru the program several times, seeking relief that never comes.  You may go thru individual inner healing deliverance  where a minister talks to your spirits, reintegrates, sends spirits to  judgment but, I have seen very few people delivered using this method and most experience serious relapses because most of their ministry time is spent on soul ties, gathering information from demons, generational issues, interviewing altars, family curses and sinful antiquities.  The main reasons this method does not work on a long term basis is because it has no Biblical basis and does not place it's main focus on personal repentance, holiness and sanctification.  The Lord taught me to approach it like He did.  Focus on the person's sin and need of repentance(Mt. 4:17, Lk. 14: 26, 27, 33) and less time on curses, explaining the different kinds of demons and generational sin issues.  Jesus did not interview spirits, argue with them or pray about them.  When you find someone who will take responsibility for their sin, stop blaming everyone for their problems and who is desperate to be healed, you will see success rate near 100%. Q:  How did Christianity get in this condition? A:  Two Reasons:  (1)  Sin.  In the '30s, '40s and '50s few Christians had demons.  With the breakdown of morals North America and Europe and with the prolific spread of blatant sin on TV, cable, satallite and the Internet, evil spirits are engulfing civilizations with Tsunami levels of destruction.  Is it bad now?  Yes, but the worst is yet to come.  Have you read Revelation 9?  The most powerful demons in existence are not even loose on the earth yet! (2)  The failure of churches.  The pathetic spiritual condition of the churches in Europe, America and Canada have allowed our societies to decay into moral insipidness and demonic domination.  The churches moved the Holy Ghost out and moved in theology, dogmas, rituals, debates, secular opinions, powerless intellectualized teaching, clothing and hairstyle disputes, social services, entertainment, recreation, athletic events, Christian metal & rap music, skewed prosperity doctrines, pedophilia, sexual perversion, the love and adoration of money, ego-maniacal millionaire ministers and many other ungodly practices.  The church replaced Holy Ghost preachers with divinity school graduates, TV preachers, Bible college graduates, certified retreat instructors, doctoral level teachers and seminar expositors.  The real NT church was based the  Holy Ghost having the pre-eminence (Acts 4:8, 5:3, 11:16, 13:2).  Our churches talk about Him but leave little or no time for Him to perform His Mighty Miracles in their services, because of fear.  The Holy Spirit likes to be in control and do things that may appear unexpected or confusing.  Pastors and church board members don't like that.  In addition, a church that has manifestations of the Holy Spirit draws unusual attacks from Satan and familiar spirits.  Church leaders are unprepared for this type of spiritual warfare.  The people are afraid and the pastors turn themselves into "life coaches"  and "counselors" instead of Holy Spirit warriors.  The result:  Sinking satanic societies that are imploding with sin.  The weakest Christians in the world live in the United States, Europe, United Kingdom, Australia and Canada.  All of it caused by seeker friendly preachers, gutless guardians of the Word, carnal counselors, economically driven ego-evangelists, spiritually coffinized pastors and self absorbed lustful ministers.  There are almost no churches helping people be free from spirits and Satanic bondage.   Most ministers are scared, the people are confused and God's children are simply left to suffer on their own, using medical and psychiatric remedies that don't cure the root cause of their illness. Q:  How do I tell if I or someone else has become infected with demons? A:  You will have symptomsjust like you have symptoms from a medical condition diagnosed by a physician.  These symptoms include physical illnesses with multiple and conflicting diagnosis', weird personality disorders that never leave, long term nightmares, repetitive bad dreams, depression, chronic addictions (food, drugs, porn, medications, gambling, sex, etc.), uncontrolled periods of rage, lust & cursing, chronic dysfunctional families, arrogance & pride, frequent phobias & stress conditions, spiritual apathy, chronic carnality, inability to love or receive love, lifestyle disruptions, chronic broken relationships, frequent unemployment & job hopping, sporadic church attendance, lack of compassion for the lost, narcissism, self centered lifestyles and self righteousness. Q:  Can I have more than one demon? A:  Yes.  Hitler, Stalin & Hussein for example, were heavily infected with thousands of them.  However, most of the time you will be dealing with a person with much less.  There are thousands of kinds of demons but all fall into 3 categories:  Unclean, Seducing and Familiar.  In my experience they enter people thru the occult, mind altering drugs, religion (esp. Christian cults), perverted sexual behavior (orgies, incest, gentlemen's clubs, group sex, pedophilia, bisexuality, homosexuality, clubbing, swapping, adultery, Internet pornography, office affairs, etc.), crime, violence & addiction. Q: What do demons fear the most? A:  The Holy Spirit.  He is the only person in the universe they fear.  He has the Blood of Christ, the Name of Jesus, the Cross of Christ and the Word of God.  He is omniscient, omnipresent and omnipotent.  Any person who will repent from their sin with a broken heart and take responsibility for their behavior can be healed (Ps. 34:18, 51:17, 147:3, II Cron. 7:14, Isa. 61:1, Lk. 4:18). Q:  Can I get rid of demons thru counseling, reading the Bible occasionally, attending church, attending psychotherapy, taking medication, participating in religious programs, developing  a positive attitude, performing religious rituals, receiving shock treatment, going to retreats & cleansing programs, receiving hypnosis, meditating, exercising and reading self-help books & listening to tapes? A:  No.  Once you become infected with spirits they never leave until you are dead.  Only the Holy Ghost can drive them out!  He is your only hope. Q:  Why are demons so dangerous? A:  They have supernatural powers, can inject thoughts into your mind and their greatest skill is DECEPTION I Tim. 4:1-3).  They cannot be diagnosed by the psychiatric or medical professions and they have convinced most ministers that Christians cannot have them at all!  They have NO conscience and are highly motivated, intelligent, manipulative, determined and merciless.  They are ruled by Lucifer the Destroyer (the study guide "There Really is a Boogeyman is available on this web site). Q:  Is any of this actually in the Bible? A:  Yes.  The following medical and psychiatric conditions were specifically caused by demons:  Hearing & speech impediments (Mk. 9:17, 25, Mt. 9:32-33), seizures & convulsions (Lk. 9:42, Mk. 1:26), blindness (Mt. 12:22), stuttering (Lk. 11:14), fevers (Lk. 4:38-39), insanity (Dan. 4:33, 1 Sam. 16:14, 18:10, Mk. 5:15,18, Lk. 8:27, 35-36), suicide & self-destruction (1 Kg. 18:26-28, Mt. 17:15, Mk. 5:5, 9:22, Jn. 10:10), emotional torment (1 Sam. 16:14, Mt. 4:24), murder (1 Sam. 18:9-11, Jn. 13:27, Acts 19:16), divination (Acts 16:16), deception (1 Tim. 4:1-3), lying (1 Kg. 22:22, 2Cr. 18:20-22, Jn. 8:44), strife (Jdg. 9:23), scoliosis/arthritis (Lk. 13:16) & violence (Mk. 7:30, 9:26, 1 Sam. 16:15-16). Q:  Is there hope for me? A:  YES!  Your hope lies in The Great Physician and looking only to Jesus, the Author & Finisher of your faith!   Go to the "Self Deliverance" page on this web site and be delivered today!

The Law and the 10 Commandments in the Old Testament are being included in the Gospel by many Christians and Messianic Jews in America.  Many of the teachings and traditions and commandments and rituals of the Old Testament are being advocated by many ministers, pastors, rabbi's, priest's & evangelists in America.  What does the New Testament actually say about the Law in this, the Dispensation of Grace? In 2 Cor. 3:11, 14 Paul explains that the Law is DONE AWAY. (GK: katargeo:  to cease to exist) and was replaced by the more glorious New Covenant.  In Eph. 2:14-15 Paul specifically says the Law's ordinances and commandments had been ABOLISHED (GK: katargeo) in Christ's flesh when he broke down the middle wall of partition between God and man, Jew & Gentile. In Heb 8:13 Paul explains that God caused the Law to VANISH AWAY. (GK: aphanismos:  destroy/disappear) and that the Old Law, that is now destroyed, has been replaced by the New Law written on tablets of the heart, not stone. In Heb 10:1-23 Paul explains that the Law was only a SHADOW (GK: skia:  shade) for the New Law which was a GOOD THING (GK: agathos:  beneficial/excellent) and not just and IMAGE (GK: eikon:  likeness/similarity).  In Heb 9:11 Paul explains that the N.T. is the GREATER AND MORE PERFECT (GK:  teleios:  perfectly/completely finished) TABERNACLE. In Col. 2:14 Paul explains that the ordinances of the Law had been BLOTTED OUT (GK: exaleipho:  wipe or smear away) and we are never to be judged according to any holy day (GK: heorte:  feast/festival day) or Jewish new moon day or the SABBATH (GK: Sabbaton:  a day or religious repose) because they were only a SHADOW of the N.T.  In Col. 2:20 Paul explains that we are dead from the RUDIMENTS (GK:  stoicheion:  religious fundamentals) and ORDINANCES (GK: dogmatizo:  religious doctrines) and COMMANDMENTS AND DOCTRINES OF MEN, in Christ.  He explains that religious rituals are merely WILL WORSHIP (GK:  ethelothreskeia:  voluntary human ritualized worship) that perishes and is useless! Jesus said in Mt. 5 that he had not come to destroy the Law or the prophets but to fulfill (GK: plero:  complete & end, like a prophecy that ends after being fulfilled).  He continued saying that until heaven and earth *pass (GK:  parerchomai:  change, pass from one condition to another) not one jot or tittle shall *pass from the Law until all be fulfilled (completed).  He stated in Lk. 24:44 that ALL things in the Law were fulfilled/completed in Him!  He mentions that anyone breaking even one of the least of the N.T. commandments will be considered least in the Kingdom of Heaven.  The commandments he was talking about were the NEW commandments of the N.T. laws, not the OT laws!  Most readers misinterpret this section of text. He spends most of chapter 5, 6 and 7 CANCELLING or MODIFYING the OT laws on various subjects and replacing them with His NEW laws, creating the foundation for the N.T. In Lk. 16:16-17 Jesus said that from the days of John Baptist the Kingdom of Heaven suffers violence and that ALL the Law and the prophets prophesied UNTIL John and SINCE THAT TIME the Kingdom of God is preached!  In the next verse He cancels out the old divorce law found in Dt. 24 and REPLACES it with His new law on divorce, adding it to the New Covenant. In Jn. 7:19 Jesus said the Law was given to the Jews.  He did not mention that it was given to Christians.  He also points out that even the Jews did not keep the Law!  If strict Orthodox Jews in the 1st century could not keep the moral or ceremonial aspects of the Law, how in the world can Messianic Jews and Christians today keep it?  In John 8:17, 10:34, and 15:25 Jesus refers to Moses' Law as "your (Jews) Law."  He did not even identify with it anymore!  If He didn't, why should we? The danger in incorporating O.T. rituals and doctrines into Messianic worship services is that the devil will encourage it, to the avoidance of the moving of the Spirit, as he has done in the Roman Catholic church and most Christian denominations.  The devil will fill the services with readings and rituals and attractive formal prayers and refuse to allow time for the Spirit to minister.  Jesus said in Lk. 5:36-6:11 that you do not pour new wine into old wine skins and that the people using the old wine skins are not eager to switch to the new!  He then goes on to break the Sabbath twice.   By including the OT laws into the NT laws we run the risk of spiritual confusion by allowing Satan to sow tares among the wheat and plant fowls to hide under the branches of the church (Mt. 13:25, Mk. 4:4, 32).  Religious institutions that use the Law for spiritual and sanctification purposes introduce legalism and establish a performance based standard of relating to God, which does not work.  I call it the Reggie White Syndrome.  If you mix the two dispensations and the two covenants, you end up with Paul's letter to the Galatians & Romans.  If Paul and John did not keep the Sabbath or the Old Law of Moses, why should anyone, Jew or Gentile, keep it today?

The Roman Catholic church is the largest "Christian" organization in the world and the largest single religious group on the planet with over 1.2 billion adherents (there are approximately 1.1 billion Muslims & 700 million Pentecostals, plus many others).  Untold articles have been authored on this organization, pro and con, over the centuries.  Centuries ago Catholic priest's like Luther, Huss & Calvin started the Protestant revolution after they carefully read the New Testament and discovered many of the teachings of the church appeared to contradict the N.T.  What are some of the concerns of Protestants?

1. Popes, Bishops, Cardinals and Priests are forbidden to marry in the Catholic church.  This causes confusion among Protestants because Peter was married (Mk. 1: 29-31).  In addition, the Priest Zachary was married (Lk. 1: 5,13) & Bishops are permitted to marry (1 Tim. 3:1-4).  
2. Catholics commonly bow in front of statues in church.  Some Protestants are confused over this practice because of the admonition in Ex. 20:3-5.
3. During Mass it is taught that a Priest can forgive someone's sins.  The NT seems to indicate that only God can forgive sins. (Mk. 2:7).
4. Catholics call some of their spiritual leaders "Father."  This is a concern to some Protestants because Jesus seemed to recommend against this practice (Mt. 23:9).
5. Some Catholics ask Mother Mary or deceased saints, friends or relatives who have died to act as a go-between for them to God.  This practice confuses many Protestants because the concept of a mediator between living Christians and God appears to have been reserved ONLY for Jesus & the Holy Spirit alone (1 Tim. 2:5-6, 1 Jn. 2:1-3, Acts 4:10, 12, Jn. 14:6, Heb. 3:1, 4:14, 7:25, Rom. 8:26-27, 34).
6. Purgatory confuses many Protestants because of it's absence in the 4 gospels and in any of the teachings of Paul or John in Revelation.  Additional confusion was generated in December 2005 when the concept of "Limbo" was removed in the Catholic tradition after being taught for over 8 centuries.  It affected over 6 billion dead souls.  The Bible appears to teach that when a person dies they either go to directly to Hell or Heaven (Lk. 16:19-31, Mt. 25:41,46, Heb. 9:27).  The "Limbo of the Innocents"  and removal of "original sin" has no N.T. scriptural foundation.
7. The concept of Mother Mary has caused much confusion in Protestantism.  Some Catholics worship her and others do not.  Some see her as divine and others do not.  Some see her as a co-mediator of humanity an others do not.  The NT describes her in a very positive light but does not seem to give her any special spiritual status beyond being the devoted mother of Jesus (Lk. 11:27-28, Eph. 4:4-6).  Jesus specifically noted that any born again Christian had the same spiritual status as his mother.  We do know Mary (Gk. "Maria") was a pentecostal (Acts 2), had other children (Mt. 13:55) and called God her "savior" (Lk. 1:47), which seems to indicate her need for remission of sins.  Other doctrines regarding Mary which confuse Protestants are "perpetual virginity" (Mt. 1:25), bleeding statues, being born without original sin (Rom. 3:23) & apparitions (ham sandwiches, cakes, toast, buildings, clouds, etc.), none of which have any foundations in the N.T.   
8. Catholics ascribe the word "Saint" to a special class of deceased Christians.  Protestants are confused over this designation because all born again believers, dead or alive (I Cor. 1:2, 6:1-2, Eph. 5:3, Phil. 1:1, 4:22, Jude 1:14, Rev. 13:7, 20:9) receive this designation in the N.T.
9. I have personally known many God fearing, born again Catholics who are dedicated servants of God.  Hardcore Christianity has a special deliverance program designed especially for Catholics and I attempt to assist them whenever possible.  I have seen many Catholics delivered from demons and healed at the House of Healing.  The aforementioned list of 8 Protestant concerns simply reflects areas of confusion between the doctrines of the two religious bodies and does not represent a criticism of the Catholic religion.  A greater clarification of the doctrines of the two entities, from my perspective, will lead to greater understanding and good will between the denominations. 

We read in the Scripture that Heaven and Hell are eternal.  Does this mean that they will never end?  What does the Word actually reveal about this subject?

1. Phil. 4:20 states that the GLORY OF GOD is "forever and ever", meaning it will never come to an end.  This Greek phrase (eis aion aion) means "unto age to age without end."  Heb. 13:8 states that JESUS CHRIST is the same yesterday, today and forever (eis aion), meaning that the Son of God never changes into perpetuity.  I Peter 1:23 & 25 states that the WORD OF GOD lives and abides "forever" (eis aion:  unto the ages), meaning that it never ends.  John 6:58 states that Jesus is the BREAD OF LIFE and if one eats Him, they shall "live forever" (eis aion), meaning that will always be alive and never die.  2 Peter 1:11 states the the KINGDOM OF CHRIST is "everlasting" (aionios: without ending or ceasing).  I Tim. 6:16 states that the HONOR and POWER of God is "everlasting" (aionios), meaning it never ends.  It is universally agreed in all Christian religions & denominations that the above Scriptures and the associate Greek words literally mean Eternal (without ever coming to an end).
2. In Mt. 25:41 Jesus said that on Judgment Day the sinners on his left are cursed and will be cast into Hell which is described as "everlasting" fire (aionios pur) and that Hell (hades) was originally prepared for the Devil and his Angels, not humans.  In verse 46 Jesus explains that sinners will be sent to "everlasting" punishment and the righteous will be sent to life "eternal".  The Greek word "aionios" is used for BOTH WORDS in this verse and mean the same thing.  Mt. 18:8 states that if your hand offends you it is better to cut it off and go thru life without a hand than to have two hands to be cast into the "everlasting" (aionios) fires of Hell.  In verse 44 & 46 Jesus says that the worms in Hell do not die and the fires of Hell are not quenched (GK:  sbennymi:  extinguished).  THE FIRES OF HELL WILL NEVER BE PUT OUT!  Rev. 20:10 states that the Devil and the False Prophet will be cast into the Lake of Fire (GK:  limne pur:  pond of flames) and will be tormented "forever and ever" (GK:  eis aion aion), meaning they will never ever escape the punishment of Hell.  In the 14th verse it says that Death and Hell (GK:  hades) are cast into the Lake of Fire and that this is the 2nd death.
3. There are a few Satanic cults that teach that Hell will some day burn out and that everyone in Hell will get out after an unknown period of time.  This is an obvious fabrication of Familiar Spirits.  Satan wants people to think that they can live in sin and eventually be saved.  The exact same words that state that Heaven, God's Glory, God's Word and Jesus are eternal and never end also say Hell, punishment for sinners and punishment for Satan and his angels are eternal and will never end.  Hell will obviously never be extinguished and neither the Devil or his angels or his human servants will ever get out!

There are a number of Christian based treatment/rehabilitation programs throughout the country that are designed to help people, Christian and non-Christian, overcome their chemical addictions and live lives of sobriety and productivity.  Unfortunately, the effectiveness of many of these programs could drastically be improved by adding an essential missing ingredient.  Fortunately, most Christian based programs tend to demonstrate statistically superior success rates when compared to secular ones.  However, AA and NA have approximately 85% to 95% relapse rates.  Treatment centers and hospital programs exhibit similar patterns.  The AMA estimates that up to 40% of all people in general hospital beds in the U.S.A. are there for some problem related to chemical dependency!  Most Christian based programs have higher success rates for their graduates but also have significant drop out and relapse rates.  Typically 50% to 85% of all patients that start a residential treatment program quit before completion.  The Christian programs generally rely on education tapes, sermons, guest speakers, strict discipline, videos, counseling, group therapy, Bible studies, chapel worship services, work details and fund raising.  My experience working as a professional counselor and Bible teacher in these type of programs has allowed me to observe a dramatic missing ingredient:  The programs do not implement productive methods of dealing with unclean spirits.  Unclean spirits are the key tools Satan uses to cause life destroying addictions (drugs, alcohol, sex, food, gambling, money, etc.).  They infect the patients brain and body (Mk. 5, Lk. 13, Mk. 1, Lk. 11, Dan. 4, Job 4, I Tim. 4:1-3) causing internal cravings and anxiety that the patient cannot permanently overcome and does not understand.  Program directors mistakenly think that chapel services, Bible studies, discipline training and Christian fellowship alone will correct the problem.  Unfortunately, it is incomplete because something miraculous is missing.  The Holy Spirit is the only person who can completely heal a person of an addiction.  He must be given freedom to move in, through and among the patients.  He alone is able to cast out the demons of addiction and heal their bodies; allowing the person freedom to pray, learn and grow.  I frequently see many people in rehabilitation programs who cannot be successful because they don't know they have unclean spirits or they don't know how to get rid of them.  Almost none of the treatment programs in the United States allow for teaching about unclean spirits and how to remove addiction demons. I have personally seen many men delivered from demons who improve dramatically in treatment programs as apposed to those who constantly struggle because they have not been able to overcome the internal cravings or their demons and their bodies.  Relapsing is common.   Unfortunately, most leadership in rehabilitation programs do not understand demons and are afraid to deal with them.  Many of the leaders are themselves infected with spirits from their own prior drug/alcohol usage.  What needs to be done?  Restructure the programs: Priority 1: Genuine repentance and a born again experience must be ascertained for EVERY new inductee.  I have personally led many men to the Lord for the first time in their lives who had been in a program for months!  2:  Cast out the unclean spirits of addiction.  If a person graduates and still has addiction demons in their brain or body they will probably relapse within few months.  3:  The Baptism of the Holy Ghost must be required before any patient graduates!  If the programs would give the Holy Spirit the preeminence, the relapse statistics would drop dramatically (Acts 2, 8, 10, 19)!  4.  Each client must complete their GED and be referred to the state employment office or the state department of vocational rehabilitation prior to graduation.  With these implementations relapse rates will drop dramatically!  The results will be remarkable!

Are you a Christian?  Are you saved?  Are you a born again?  These are typical questions people ask to determine if a person is a follower of Jesus Christ and is bound for Heaven.  But, what does that phrase actually mean by God's definition? Jesus told Nicodemus in John 3:3 "Except a man be born again he cannot see the Kingdom of God."  The Greek phrase for born again is "gennao anothen" which means "to be generated or born from above."  A person who is not a Christian is spiritually dead, meaning that their inner spirit (GK:  pneuma) is dead in trespasses and sins.  When they become "born again" their spirit is resurrected from the dead or quickened from the dead (Eph. 2:1, 5, Col. 2:13, I Pet. 3:18, I Cor. 15:45).  This is a supernatural spiritual experience that can actually be felt by the repentant & believing God seeker.  However, their soul (GK:  psuche) and their mind (GK:  nous) and their body (GK:  soma) are not resurrected/quickened/born again.  The person has the same mind, soul and body after their salvation as they had before.  The rest of the person is transformed over time by their productive Christian walk (Rom. 12:1-2).  The body is "born again" so to speak, at the Rapture when the Lord grants us glorified bodies (I Cor. 15:52). Why is this important?  Many people who think they are saved and are Christians actually are not!  To experience the "miracle of the new birth" a person must be (1)  Drawn to God by the Holy Ghost (Jn. 6:44).  (2) Convicted of their sin by the Holy Spirit & God's holy Word (Jn. 8:9).  (3)  Sorry for their sin & iniquity against God (II Cor. 7:9-10).  (4)  Repentant in their heart of their rebellion adn disobedience (Mt. 3:2, 4:17, Mk. 1:5, 6:12, Lk. 13:3, 16:30, Act 2:38, 3:19, 8:22, 17:30, 26:20, Rev. 2:5, 2:16, 2:21-22, 3:3, 19).  (5)  Life surrendered (past, present and future) to Christ as Lord and not just Savior (Mt. 10:24-25, Lk. 14:26-27, 33, Act 8:37).  The born again experience is caused and experienced thru the Holy Ghost and not thru the human intellect.  It is a supernatural experience of the heart received thru child-like faith (Mt. 13:15, 18:3, Mk. 4:12).  Being a Jesus "fan" or believer is not enough to get a person forgiven and to Heaven.  Intelligence and education will  not work. The value of this understanding is vital to explaining the bankrupt status of Christianity in America.  People are told they are "saved" in North America if they "believe" in Jesus, "accept" Jesus as Savior, "join" a church, "perform" good works and change their positive speak, etc.  This does NOT work.  Believing in Jesus does not get you to Heaven.  The apostle James said "demons also believe" in Christ (Jas. 2:19)!  They are obviously not "born again."  The only way to get to Heaven is by being "gennao anothen."  There is no other way.  There are only two types of people on the planet.  Those who are born again and those who are not.  The Billy Graham Evangelistic Association does follow up research on their crusades and have determined that approximately 85% of their new converts backslide and are not in church within six months of their crusade.  The reason for this is that the new "converts" believed in Christ intellectually and accepted Him emotionally but they were not "born again" in their spirits!  The few that were actually born again, backslide shortly after the crusade because they were not told the hardcore truth of the gospel:  It will cost them everything they have to come to Christ and they must surrender all (Mt. 10:37-39)! Casually raising your hand or saying the "sinner's prayer" does not save anyone.  They MUST be "born again" (Jn. 3:5).  Faith healer A.A. Allen in the 1960s evangelized effectively.  He would have an altar call for salvation in his crusades afterwhich the "new converts" were taken to a separate tent and required to pray until they had EXPERIENCED the moving of the Spirit and the miracle of the new birth.  The legendary evangelist Phillip in Acts told the Ethiopian eunuch he could only be baptized in water "If he believed with ALL his heart."  Indifferent or casual converts were not accepted into the early Church.  It was life and death to them.  It is only a lifestyle issue to us in the 21st century. I hope all evangelists will remember that casual converts make casual backsliders.  Your "numbers" of new converts will be higher by lowering the standards of salvation and making is sound easy to get "saved" but you will lose them later.  It is far more productive to preach a hardcore message, drawing the "line in the sand," to attract hardcore converts.  Your initial statistics will be lower but your long term retention rates will be much higher.  Are you sure you are saved?  MAKE SURE you have received the born again experience!  Just thinking and believing and telling yourself you are saved does not mean you are.  Jesus said "YOU MUST BE BORN!"  Period!

The Bible is replete with amazing miracles. The spirit world is a remarkable mystery that not even the most spiritual and gifted saints fully understand.  The power of the Holy Spirit and Satan is so great that the human mind can't absorb the full magnitude of it.  What is the most incredulous miracle after Gen. 1:1 and the resurrection of Jesus?  What are the contenders?  1.  Satan's destruction of Job's family and property.  2.  The 10 plagues of Egypt.  3.  The Red Sea crossing.  4. Joshua stopping the sunset.  5.  The raising of Lazarus.  6.  Noah's ark.  What may be the most remarkable? The Son of God loved riding in boats and water.  He used it to preach, travel, sleep, relax, bond with his disciples and break from the pressing crowds.  Boating & fishing in Biblical times was dangerous because any significant storm capsized many fishing and transport crafts.  Mk. 4 reveals an interesting event.  They were in the boat at sea and Jesus was sleeping, as usual.  There arose a great storm (GK. megas lailaps anemos/an above water storm or hurricane of some significant level).  The storm was caused by the devil because Jesus arose and "rebuked" (Gk. epitimao) the attack.  This is the same Greek word used to describe Christ rebuking demons and satanic forces.  It is only used under these circumstances. In Mt. 8 we see what may be the greatest miracle in the Bible and a second time the devil attempted to drown Jesus in the sea.  In this incident a great tempest (Gk. megas seismos) arose in the sea and the waves were covering the entire ship.  The disciples again woke Jesus and he "rebuked" (Gk. epitimao) the SEA and the wind.  This incident was not an above ground storm as in Mk. 4 above.  It was an under sea earthquake (seismos)!  JESUS AWOKE OUT OF A DEAD SLEEP AND STOPPED A TSUNAMI!  If He can stop a tsunami He can meet your life's most difficult challenges when you pray in faith!  The devil can cause destructive weather conditions and perform miracles.  The Holy Ghost can quash them on your behalf!  As Jesus said to Bro. Jairus "Keep on Believing!"

I need to preface this article by noting that I will be explaining this phenomenon based on my years of experience as a counselor (30) and my knowledge of the Holy Scriptures.  Homosexuality is accelerating at a remarkable pace in America.  I suspect it will be a common issue by 2015.  It is formally estimated that only about 8% of the general population is officially homosexual.  The statistic is actually much higher if we factor in bisexuals, heterosexuals living on the "DL" and the wide range of sexual behaviors associated with lesbianism.

1. Homosexuality and homosexual behavior need to be bifurcated.  The former may or may not include the latter and vise verse.
2. As you know, there are many people who are non-practicing homosexuals and there are many who are heterosexuals engaging in homosexual behavior.  For example, many Catholic priests are non-practicing homosexuals.  Some "fall off the wagon" and become pedophiles.  The LA diocese in 2007 paid close to a billion dollars to settle hundreds of personal injury law suits involving these catastrophic cases involving homosexual or bisexual priests.  For example, the African-American community in America is currently facing a strange cultural phenomenon.  Many heterosexual married heterosexual males are "living on the down low" and engaging in recreational homosexual behavior while having no desire to divorce.  The AIDS virus is abnormally higher in both males and females in this minority group related, in part, to this behavior.  For example, many Caucasian males are "coming out of the closet" and leaving their wives and children to pursue their latent desires for homosexual/bisexual behavior. 
The cause of homosexuality is usually debated alone these lines:  (1)  "It's genetic and they are born that way."   (2)  "It's a conscious choice, having nothing to do with birth." The truth of the matter is that they are both correct.  A.  Many heterosexuals choose to engage in homosexual behavior for a variety of reasons (recreational, financial, emotional, social).  Lipstick lesbians, party girls, men with male prostitutes, etc.  Most of the women who make porno films involving female to female sexual activity are not lesbians and are simply acting.  Many are bisexual.  Many heterosexual woman engage in lesbian activity at gentleman's clubs or at orgies for recreational or financial purposes.  Threesomes & other group sex events frequently involve homosexual behavior by heterosexuals.  Actress Ann Height was living with Ellen Degeneres, a hardcore lesbian.  She awoke one morning and decided she was not homosexual and later married a man.  The same thing happened to Melissa Ethridge, a famous country singer.  She had two surrogate children by her "lesbian" lover and singer/donor David Crosby.  Her lover decided one day she was no longer homosexual and left to date men.  These people behave like homosexuals by choice but, they actually are not.  B.  In the fall of Adam, as Paul explains in Romans, humans are born "damaged goods."  All kinds of things can and do go wrong in the womb thru genetics, generational curses, demons & our inherited DNA. Many people are born with certain traits that encourage certain types of sinful behavior later in life.  Some people are born with chemical aversions to alcohol or other chemicals or medications.  A "cheap drunk" is far more apt to develop alcoholism and is typically more addicted than a heavy dysfunctional social drinker.  Some people are born with an abnormally high sex drive, pushing the person into sexual addictions and severe promiscuity.  Some people are born with physical or mental birth defects.  Some people are born with latent sexual desires for the same sex thru hormonal or chemical imbalances or they may be born with abnormal fat cells or slower metabolisms leading to debilitating obesity problems.  What is the bottom line with birth conditions?   Just because someone is born with a genetic predisposition, propensity or penchant for a certain type of sin does not make the behavior morally correct.  It is still a sin to become a glutton or drunkard even if the person was dealt a "bad hand" when they were born.  The same is true of homosexuality.  A very small percentage of people are born with a desire for the same sex however, this is not the MAIN cause of homosexuality in my years of experience as a counselor (30). Most people become homosexuals (male and female) thru childhood sexual abuse or dysfunctional parenting, which allow the entrance of unclean spirits of sexual perversioninto the home.  The spirits then infect the bodies & minds of the children.  They demons usually enter the body when they are young, creating a false impression to the person that they were born that way, because they don't recall ever having heterosexual desires.  Some of these unclean spirits are so strong they can actually morph the persons body and mind into the opposite sex.  You may recall seeing some lesbians who look so masculine (physically, mentally, emotionally) that you would swear by their appearance and personality temperament that they are males.  You have seen some men so effeminate that you would swear they are females.  These type of powerful unclean spirits are the ones that inspire patients to seek sex change operations and are the foundation of the trans-gendered and cross dressing lifestyles. Many ministries set up retreats and seminars to treat homosexuality, pedophilia and pornography addictions.  Unfortunately, they usually are ineffective.  The camps include significant private & group therapy, counseling, prayer, church activity, Scripture study, worship and full-time employment or busy work to help support the ministry.  Unfortunately, these programs do not deal with the unclean spirits and the person returns to their old lifestyle soon after discharge.  None of the Christian camps set up to "cure" homosexuality work.  Is homosexual behavior a sin?  Yes, (Romans 1, Lev. 18) but is is not listed in the Bible as a greater or worse sin than adultery, bestiality, pornography, murder, stealing, lying, pedophilia, etc.  What is the cure for homosexuality?  THE UNCLEAN SPIRITS MUST BE CAST OUT OF THE BODY AND THE MIND (Mt. 8:16, 10:1, Lk 11:14, Mk. 1, 16)!  The body then must be healed (James 5, Isa. 53) and the mind renewed (Rom. 12:1-2) to complete the recovery. All of these miracles can only be accomplished by the Holy Spirit.  Human effort, training, teaching and knowledge alone will not suffice.  Condemning homosexuals or bisexuals or transsexuals or adulterers, or fornicators is not our place as ministers of the gospel.  Loving them with the truth and the anointing of the Holy Ghost will lead to their repentance and recovery!

Many Christians are suffering from mysterious illnesses (mental, physical, spiritual, emotional) that will not dissipate with conventional medical treatment and will not eviscerate thru prayer, worship, church attendance, fasting, laying on of hands, seminars, retreats or anointing with oil.  In most American churches the majority of parishioners are physically or mentally ill and are unable to unlock the key to healing. In early 2007 I preached at the Reformed Christian Church of God in Lagos, Nigeria and I took a poll before starting my sermon.  I asked if anyone in the church (approximately 250 people) was physically sick and needed to be healed.  No one raised their hands.  I asked if anyone in the church needed to be delivered from demon oppression.  No one raised their hands.  This exercise would have had the opposite results in almost any church in America.   Most Christians are ill.  The main reason?  The inability of Christians to distinguish between an illness with a medial root and a demonic one.  The root cause of the illness, in many cases, is not psychological or medical.  It is demonic.  The Christian may be infected in the brain or body with unclean, familiar or seducing spirits, causing the illness.  These people have been praying for a "healing" when they really need a "deliverance."  What are some of the symptoms that you may be infected by infirmity spirits (Lk. 13)?

THE BRAIN:

1. Hearing strange voices audibly or in the mind.
2. Frequently seeing angels, female angels or shadow figures at night.
3. Migraine headaches with no organic cause (the patient's CT and MRI exams are "normal").
4. Uncontrolled racing thoughts, particularly at night, just before sleep.
5. Persistent, unwarranted fears, phobias or anxieties.
6. Nightmares or strange repetitive dreams, most of which are negative.
7. Persistent anti-social, obsessive or compulsive negative or useless thoughts.
8. Chronic memory or concentration deficits with no organic cause.
9. Most (not all) learning disabilities.
10. Chronic inability to feel the Holy Spirit or "break through" to God.
11. Biblical reading deficits.  The "my mind goes blank when I try to read the Word" syndrome.
12. Formally diagnosed mental illnesses such as bipolar, OCD, PTSD, DID, etc.
13. An revulsion of people or a consistent absence of compassion for others.
14. Chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS).
15. Long term chronic depression or dysthymia.
16. Uncontrolled anger or rage which manifests suddenly.  The "short fuse" syndrome.
17. Isolationism and self rejection.

THE BODY:

1. Lung disorders (sleep apnea, asthma, COPD).
2. Non-traumatic arthritic disorders (RLS, fibromyalgia, RSD, PN) with inconsistent symptoms.
3. Physical illness with no objective medical diagnosis or multiple medical diagnosis.
4. "Hypochondriac" illnesses that no one really believes you have.

THE MIND:

1. Obsessive religious thoughts & ideas that do not really help anyone.
2. Obsessive religious thoughts regarding the end of the world, the Rapture or the Apocalypse.
3. Prior experience in the occult or religious cults such as Christian Science, Unity, Scientology, TM, Satanism, Shriner or Masonry.
4. Strong knowledge of the Bible and Christianity while living a secretive unholy lifestyle.  A sinful "Bible thumper".
5. Bitterness, ought or unforgiveness that won't permanently leave.
6. Antisocial behaviors (chronic unemployment, job hopping, frequent firings, relationship break-ups, suicidal thoughts).
7. Chronic church hopping after finding being rejected and discovering "deception" or "false teaching" in the group.
8. A critical/critiquing nature regarding religion, theology, churches and pastors.
9. Feeling the need to constantly give a "word" from God to people with the ability to effortlessly dismiss it or make excuses when it does not come true or is rejected by the recipient.
10. Constantly blaming others for self-inflicted personal & financial problems.
11. Frequently seeing conspiracies
12. Having an aversion to work while insisting "god" had called them into full-time ministry despite chronic failure, poverty, abandonment, hardships & lack of support.

In Genesis Ch. 6 we discover an unusual historical event.  Fallen angels having intercourse with human females producing a separate race of giant humans or humanoids of some sort.  The Septuagint and Book of Enoch also describe this as an historical event.  The writings of Josephus also include these events.  He notes in his writings that the bones of these giants were on display in his time (Ant. Bk. 5).   The Hebrew word for giant is "nephil" or "nephiyl" meaning giant/bully.  They were physically very large (Gen. 6:4, Num. 13:22,33).  Some were congenitally deformed (2 Sam. 21:16-22, I Cr. 20:4-8).  The Anakims, Emims and Zamzummims of the O.T. were a race of giants (Dt. 1:28, 2:10-11, 19-21, 9:2, Josh. 11:21-22, 14:12).  Bashan and Ammon was a geographic area where they resided (Dt. 2:19).  Og the King of Bashan was one (Dt. 3:11-13, Josh. 12:4, 13:12).   The Hebrew word "rapha" was translated Rephaim (a race of giants) in Josh. 15:8, 18:6 Gen. 14:5, 15:20, 2 Sam. 5:18, 22, 23:13, I Cr. 11;15, 14:9, Isa. 17:5.  However, the KJV incorrectly translates this word as "dead" or "deceased" in Job 26:5, Ps. 81:10, Pr. 2:18, 9:18, 21:16, Isa. 14:8, 26:14, 19, Dt. 3:11 causing confusion.  These verses are correctly translated in the Septuagint.  The Jewish historian Josephus comments on the giants and their fate (Ant. Bk. 5, Ch. 2).  Isa. 26:14 indicates they will not be resurrected in the future, as all humans will.  These fallen angels are currently in Sheol/Hades/Hell because of this special sin of fornication (Pr. 2:18, 9:18, 21:16, Isa. 26:14, 19, II Pet. 2:4-5, Jude 6-7, I Pet. 3:19, Isa. 14:9).  They existed before and after the flood of Noah (Gen. 6:4). The Hebrew phrase "ben elohim" translated  "sons of God" means angel and is translated this way in the Septuagint (Gen. 6:3, Job 1:6, 2:1).  The "sons of god" could not have been sinful humans or decendants of Adam because humans, as in all of nature, can only reproduce "after their kind" (Gen. 1:21, 25, 6:20, 7:14).  Evolution is an unfounded theory based on junk science.  There are no examples in biology of anything reproducing something after "another kind."  People cannot reproduce giants and such has never been recorded in the history of humanity.  The Bible does not say angels are incapable of reproduction but it does indicate that they do not marry (Mt. 22:30, Mk. 12:25).  The Word does not record any female angels.  To our knowledge they do not exist.  In II Pet. 2:4 and Jude 1: 6-7 we notice that these fornication angels are in (GK:  tartaros/the lowest portion of hell/hades) and they are in chains of torment and darkness until judgment day.  Josephus also verifies that the sons of God were angels who had intercourse with human females (Ant. Bk. I, Ch. 3) and generated the giants.  Why did they do it?  No one is sure however, it appears it was done to destroy humanity, give Satan control of the planet and eliminate the blood line of the Messiah predicted in Gen. 3:15.  If we understand that the giants of old were very large (8' to 10' tall) and possessed superhuman strength (see the description of Goliath in I Sam. 17), it is not hard to understand how the pyramids and many other amazing ancient ruins were built that were clearly beyond the physical and architectural capability of humans.  It was probably not space aliens that did it.  It could have been the Rephaim!