You will possess the gates of your enemies

“And they blessed Rebekah and said to her: 'Our sister, may you become the mother of thousands; and may your descendants possess the gates of those who hate them.'” (Genesis 24:60)

Rebekah, like Sarah, was barren (Gen. 25:21), yet through God, she was destined to become the mother of nations (Gen. 25:23). Not only the mother of nations, but of those who would victoriously possess the gates of their enemies.

Genesis 22:15-18
“Then the Angel of the Lord called to Abraham a second time out of heaven, and said: '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 gates of their enemies. In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice.”

Gates are the place of positional strength in battle. To possess ones gates was to have victory over them. Obadiah 1:1 says, “On the day you stood aloof while strangers carried off his wealth and foreigners entered his gates and cast lots for Jerusalem, you were like one of them.”

Nehemiah was deeply grieved and concerned when the gates of Jerusalem were burned down. In Nehemiah 3:13 he told the king, "May the king live forever! Why should my face not look sad when the city where my fathers are buried lies in ruins, and its gates have been destroyed by fire?"

Gates were significant as the place of strength, not only because they represented protection to those inside but because many significant activities occurred at one's gates:

• They were the place for legal transactions to be completed such as with Boez in regards to Naomi and Ruth (Ruth 4:1-2). [1]
  
• Gates were also places for judgments to be made. [2] Deuteronomy 16:18 says, “You shall appoint judges and officers in all your gates, which the Lord your God gives you, according to your tribes, and they shall judge the people with just judgment.” [3]
  
• Gates were the place where advice was offered [4] such as with Job at the city gates (see Job 29:7-17).
  
• And gates served as the marketplace of the town (2 Kings.7:1). [5]

One article notes, “The gate became a symbol of strength, power, and dominion (Ps.24:7), but it was also the weakest point of defense (2Chr.14:7; 26:9; 32:5; Ps.48:12) and therefore heavily defended. Watchtowers were constructed above the corners of the gates as lookout posts – a place where watchmen could see when an enemy was approaching and call the city to alert. At night the gates were closed, barred and guarded (Josh.2:5,7; Neh.7:3), secured by locks with big keys. To possess the gate was to possess the city!” [6]

“Take authority over the dominion of darkness and press through” sings in the background.

Jesus tells Peter in Matthew 16:18-19, “And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it. And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” [a]

People's New Testament Commentary notes about this verse, “The powers of hades are represented by its gates... They expected to demonstrate that the confession of his [Jesus] divinity which he had made was false by sending him to hades, which they supposed would hold him and prevail against the confession of the ROCK. He was sent there from the cross, but the gates of hades did not prevail, for they could not hold him, and the living Savior, rising triumphant from the tomb, was the unanswerable argument that his own and Peter's confession was a rock that could never be moved. His resurrection demonstrated that he is the Rock. Hades did not prevail.” [7]

1 Peter 3:18-20 says,
“For Christ also died for sins once for all, the just for the unjust, in order that He might bring us to God, having been put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit; in which also He went and made proclamation to the spirits now in prison, who once were disobedient, when the patience of God kept waiting in the days of Noah, during the construction of the ark, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through the water."

The earth was corrupt, not much left to save
Men thought of evil all night and all day
The one found righteous, You brought through it all
The eight in his family answered Your call
They were saved through their building of an ark
So You could lift them out of the dark.
No more, You have promised, would it end this way
No more would You be left with no other way.
A Light has came forth out of the dark
So that all who look to it are saved in that Ark [b]
Darkness will no longer prevail and have its way
In Your death, You had something to say-
You proclaimed the victory and caused Satan to fall
As you gave Your life, Your love, Your all.

Jesus triumphed over the gates of Hades and He, in turn, has given us power and authority over our enemy. Jesus says in Luke 10:17-20, “Then the seventy [those Jesus had appointed and sent out to heal the sick and proclaim the kingdom of God is near] returned with joy, saying, 'Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name.' And He said to them, 'I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. [c] Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you. Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rather rejoice because your names are written in heaven.'”

People's New Testament Commentary notes about this verse, “To tread on serpents and scorpions. Evidently an allusion to the promise that the seed of woman shall bruise the serpent's head (Ge 3:15). It is a promise of victory over the power of sin, of victory over all the power of the enemy. The connection shows that it is symbolical.” [8]

Victory Over The Temptations of the World

1 John 5:4 says, “For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith.”

The world is Satan's domain where he has his authority. 2 Corinthians 4:4 says, “In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.”

And the ways of the world are the ways of Satan. Ephesians 2:1-2 says, “As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient.”

James says in 4:4 says, “You adulterous people, don't you know that friendship with the world means enmity against God? Anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God.”

And John 2:15-17 says, “Do not love the world or anything in the world. If you love the world, the love for the Father is not in you. For everything in the world -the cravings of sinful people, the lust of their eyes and their boasting about what they have and do -comes not from the Father but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever.”

In living in the world, temptation is all around us. Everywhere we look there is an offer to enter into the ways of the world. Through Jesus, we have the power not to let the world grip hold of our hearts as we let go of our grasp on what the world offers. We do this because our hearts are set on something that is so much greater than what the world has to offer.

In Genesis 14:21, Bera [which means son of evil], the king of Sodom, offered Abram to keep all the possessions he brought back when he rescued his nephew Lot. Abram told the king of Sodom, “I have raised my hand to the Lord, God Most High, the Possessor of heaven and earth, that I will take nothing, from a thread to a sandal strap, and that I will not take anything that is yours, lest you should say, 'I have made Abram rich'...” (Genesis 14:22-23).

Abram had a treasure that was much greater than what Bera could ever offer him. Right after this, the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision saying, “Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your exceedingly great reward” (Genesis 15:1). It is as we look to this God, our shield and exceedingly great reward, that the world looses its ability to grip hold of our hearts.

Victory over Attacks of the Enemy

When the enemy comes against us, Ephesians 6:10-13 tells us to “be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.” We are to put on the whole armor of God, so that we may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil when attacks come. “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.”

As I mentioned in a previous writing, the armor is put on ahead of time. It is because we have prepared ourselves on a daily basis that we are dressed for battle and able to stand. It is by seeking Him that we have “the belt of truth buckled around our waist” and the “breastplate of righteousness in place,” and our feet “fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.” Ephesians 6:16-17 says, “In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.”

These we take up on a day by day basis. David did not instantly have faith to fight Goliath. He had exercised His faith for years in fighting lions and bears, protecting his father sheep (1 Samuel 17:34-36). Because he had been faithful in day to day tending of duties when no one was watching, he was able to stand when everyone else was afraid -the day he faced the giant.

Steven Covey would often say that private victories in ones personal life always precede public victories. He would note that it was our personal habits and choices in our day to day lives that moves us to a place of greater maturity, preparing us for public victories.

Luke 8:17 says, "For nothing is hidden that will not become evident, nor anything secret that will not be known and come to light.”

Victory Over Our Own Darkness and Sin

Besides faith and preparation, we need humility and brokenness to stand against the enemy. James 4:7, it says, “Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” The verse right before this says, “God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble and oppressed” (James 4:6b).

It is often our pride and lack of brokenness that keeps us out of a place of submission to God where the devil will flee from us. James 3:16 says, “For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice.”

When Sarai's maid, Hagar, conceived a child by Abram, she despised Sarai, who could not conceive. One commentary notes, “Using a surrogate mother may have been expedient and acceptable to the culture, but the hatred and belittling by the arrogant young servant woman was excruciating for Sarai. Now that she saw the pride of her servant, Sarai was humiliated.” [9]

Sarai treated Hagar harshly because of her arrogance toward her and Hagar fled. The Angel of the Lord found Hagar by a spring of water in the wilderness and told her, “Return to your mistress, and submit yourself under her hand.” It was in that place that Hagar called the Lord, “You-Are-the-God-Who-Sees; for she said, 'Have I also here seen Him who sees me?”

In the midst of Hagar's sin and arrogance, God saw Hagar, loved her and called her into submission. It was in this place that the Lord extended her grace and promised to multiply her descendants exceedingly (Genesis 16:10).

"You're the God who sees, You're the God who hears, You're the God who responds - my heart is moved within me" sings in the background.

It is our arrogance that at times keeps us blind to our the depth of our sin and keeps us striving in our own strength rather than surrendering all to God. In this place, Satan keeps us striving both to cover our sin and to accomplish God's will in our own strength.

Philippians 2:3-8 says the cure for selfish ambition and vain conceit is humility, emptying ourselves, taking on the form of a servant, humbling ourselves by becoming obedient to death -even death on a cross.

Joel Hanson recently wrote on his facebook page, “What if we could admit that the worst about us is actually true? Perhaps then redemption could come to the darkest places in us.” He went on to write a comment, “Just saying that the reality is we hide the darker side of ourselves to our own detriment. We only find freedom when we bring everything into the light.”

1 John 1:5-9 says,
“This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin. If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”

Victory Over Darkness and Sin in the World

When we fully live in the light and we are broken over the depth of our own sin, we easily extend grace to others in their sin and shortcomings. There is nothing in us to make us stumble.

1 John 2:9-11 says, “Those who claim to be in the light but hate a fellow believer are still in the darkness. Those who love their fellow believers live in the light, and there is nothing in them to make them stumble. But those who hate a fellow believer are in the darkness and walk around in the darkness; they do not know where they are going, because the darkness has blinded them.”

When the Pharisees and teachers of the law brought Jesus a woman caught in adultery wanting to stone her, Jesus told them, “Let anyone of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” At this statement, one at a time, all of them left (John 8:1-11).

Jesus says in Matthew 7:1-5, "Judge not, that you be not judged. For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you. Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, “Let me take the speck out of your eye,” when there is the log in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye."

Somewhere I heard that it is much easier to see other's sin and faults, judging their intentions as wrong rather than assuming the best of them. We are quick to throw stones at others. However, when we sin ourselves, our tendency is to deny our intentions as wrong and minimize it, failing to live in the light and truly repent.

When people live fully in the light and experience the brokenness of their own sin, they no longer feel justified to stone others with righteous judgments. And in a place of humility and brokenness, we no longer feel warranted to claim what is ours and demand our rights with others.

When one receives a great amount of grace, mercy and forgiveness, letting this in, they experience freedom. They have much to give because they have been given much. Luke 12:48 says, "From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked."

Abram brought Lot with him out of Haran. It was because of Abram that Lot prospered. When strife arose between their heardsmen over support of the livestock, Abram had every right to send Lot off and take the best territory for himself. He easily also could have been offended for Lot's lack of gratitude and appreciation for him. Instead, he told lot, “Please let there be no strife between you and me, and between my heardsmen and your herdsmen; for we are brethren. Is not the whole land before you? Please separate from me. If you take the left, then I will go to the right; or, if you go to the right, then I will go to the left.” (Genesis 13:8-9)

What Jesus desires is that we not only turn from stoning another for their sin, but with brokenness and humility, we extend His grace and a helping hand to restore and heal others.

"Jesus, the only one deserving, The only one worthy."

In Jeremiah 30:17, the Lord says, " But I will restore you to health and heal your wounds,' declares the LORD, 'because you are called an outcast, Zion for whom no one cares.'"

This happens through his power not ours. And, As the Message Tool notes, 2 Corinthians 12:9 says, "But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me." [10] It is in our brokenness and humility that his power is perfected in us, equipping us to be in a position to extend a hand to others.

Job said in Job 29, " How I long for the months gone by, for the days when God watched over me... when my path was drenched with cream and the rock poured out for me streams of olive oil. When I went to the gate of the city and took my seat in the public square, the young men saw me and stepped aside and the old men rose to their feet; the chief men refrained from speaking and covered their mouths with their hand... Men listened to me expectantly, waiting in silence for my counsel. After I had spoken, they spoke no more; my words fell gently on their ears. They waited for me as for showers and drank in my words as the spring rain. When I smiled at them, they scarcely believed it; the light of my face was precious to them. I chose the way for them and sat as their chief; I dwelt as a king among his troops; I was like one who comforts mourners...."

The truth is that Job was probably clueless and was more than likely absolutely no help to anyone in real need. His helping others was all about him. It was when he experienced pain and suffering and came to a place of brokenness that He saw God's face in the midst of his suffering and came to a position to understand that he did not have all the answers. He told God, "Surely I spoke of things I did not understand, things to wonderful for me to know." [d]

I find that I struggle with living in the light and coming to terms with my own darkeness. I think that maybe why I struggle so much with this is that I struggle with giving myself grace. I recently had to come face to face with a sin of my own that I didn't know was in me. I was taking credit for what was not mine in something I wrote a few weeks ago. Rather than seeking to glorify God, I was seeking my own glory in my heart and it led me off track without even realizing it. It was not until days later that I even recognized it.

What I realized is there was no excusing it, my intentions were wrong. Yet, even though I knew Jesus wasn't condemning me for it, I was condemned myself for it and I struggled with facing it. I pushed Jesus away and wouldn't let Him heal me because I couldn't stand to see the depths of the sin in myself. I couldn't give myself grace so I couldn't believe anyone else could either. As my pastor noted this weekend, we need to give ourselves grace. Without extending grace to ourselves, we are afraid of the light. [10] We also fail to be broken over our sin so we cannot extend the same grace to others.

When I fail to come to terms with my own darkeness and truly live in the light, it keeps me from fully living in brokenness and humilty towards others sin. I become more like Job who wants to help people out of my own self-righteousness.

What is even worse, is when I want to stone someone for their sin and have no desire to see them set free (because I am in bondage myself). One of the greatest struggles I have had to deal with as it relates to a longstanding sin, has been in the area of contempt. When I have judged people, I have struggled with feeling contempt for them.

Lot and Abram are a perfect example of one of the ways I have struggled with this. The only reason Lot was blessed and had such an abundance is because of his relationship with Abram. Without Abram's influence, Lot would have sat in Haran and done nothing with his life. Yet, Lot was anything but grateful and immediately took the best land for himself without thinking of Abram. If I had been in Abram's shoes, I would have struggled with feeling contempt for Lot.

What I have came to realize, is that much of my struggle with contempt has come from grasping hold of the world. I have laid claim to things in this world, thinking of them as mine, when they were really a gift from God. Rather than being grateful to God and holding the world losely, seeing it as a gift I do not deserve anyways, I sometimes feel I deserve, earn or have the right to something. I think of what God has given me as mine. When I feel wronged, I often struggle with feeling justified in holding contempt.

Lord, I realize that one of my biggest struggles lately has been to live in the light. I am seeing things about myself that I would rather not see and then struggling with being able to give myself grace. This comes from pride. Please help me to both live fully in the light and give myself grace -so that I may also extend it to others.

Lord, thank you that because You had the final say on the cross, we victoriously possess the gates of our enemies. It is through you that the battle is won. Help us to live fully in Your light and love - in both humility and brokenness. Help us to walk in the fullness of all You have for us and extend freely your grace to others.

As the music played in my car ride home: "He holds the keys of death and Hades. Behold He comes, leaping over mountains. Behold He comes, the conqueror."

Come quickly Lord Jesus!






1-4. The Livista Church of Christ. Survey of the Bible - Ruth. Located at: http://lavistachurchofchrist.org/LVSermons/SurveyOfTheBibleRuth.html Last Accessed: 9/7/10

5-6. Vaughn, Jane. The Promise to Abraham. Located at: http://www.ivernainternational.com/teaching/pdf/ThePromisetoAbraham.pdf Jan. 2006. Last Accessed: 9/7/10.

7-8. People's New Testament Commentary. Located at: http://pnt.biblecommenter.com/matthew/16.htm Last Accessed 9/7/10

9. Radmacher, E. D., Allen, R. B., & House, H. W. (1997). The Nelson study Bible : New King James Version. Includes index. (Ge 16:4). Nashville: T. Nelson Publishers.

10. Church of the Open Door. Still Learning the Third Way. September 5, 2010 Message by David Johnson. Located at: http://www.thedoor.org/

a. Sidenote on the difference between Hell and Hades:

"Question: What is Hades?
Answer: Many people believe Hades is hell. Actually, with some, Hades is a euphemism for hell.

Hades and hell are two different words. Hades has not been translated, only transliterated. Hades is found eleven times in the Greek New Testament. Out of the eleven occurrences, Hades is translated "grave" once and "hell" ten times in the King James Version. Hell is from the Greek geenna. Geenna is found twelve times and is consistently translated "hell" in most translations.

Hades and hell are not the same. Geenna (hell), as used in the scriptures, denotes a place of eternal punishment. Jesus associates damnation with geenna (Matt. 23: 33). In fact, Jesus used geenna in such a say as to identify hell as the place of damnation (Ibid.). Hell (geenna) is the place of eternal punishment, "fire that never shall be quenched" and "... their worm dieth not" (Mk. 9: 43 ff.). Hades, on the other hand, should never be translated hell.

Hades is the place of departed spirits. Jesus' soul, when He was crucified, went to Hades (Acts 2: 27). The soul of the rich man also went to Hades (Lk. 16: 23). Thayer defines Hades as, "The common receptacle of disembodied spirits" (Thayer's Greek-English Lexicon, pg. 11). As best we can determine, Hades includes "paradise" (Lk. 23: 43) and probably tarturus (2 Pet. 2: 4). "Paradise" and "Abraham's bosom" appear to be the same, a place of comfort for the saved with tarturus being the holding place of torment for the unsaved. These two areas are separated one from another (Lk. 16: 26). Hades, consisting of paradise where Jesus went and tarturus, the place of torment, is temporary (Rev. 20: 12-15). After the Judgment Day, the saved will ultimately go to heaven and the unsaved to hell (geenna, Rev. 20: 12-15). "

What is Hades? Located at: http://www.biblequestions.org/archives/BQAR162.htm Last Accessed: 9/7/10


b. I took a class many years ago where the instructor talked of the ark as a shadow/type of Jesus. I'm not sure who taught this course and do not have any specific references.


c. Jesus was possibly saying this prophetically.

In Revelation 12:10-12 John says,
“Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say: 'Now have come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Messiah. For the accuser of our brothers and sisters, who accuses them before our God day and night, has been hurled down. They triumphed over him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death. Therefore rejoice, you heavens and you who dwell in them! But woe to the earth and the sea, because the devil has gone down to you! He is filled with fury, because he knows that his time is short.'”

What gave the accuser no more right to accuse man before God? When the penalty for their sin was paid by Jesus. Wesley's Notes state, “By the blood of the Lamb - Which cleanses the soul from all sin, and so leaves no room for accusing.”

d. This may have came from a sermon years ago by David Johnson, Senior Pastor, Church of The Open Door, Maple Grove, MN on Job.

As a sidenote, most of what I write in my journal is based upon someone else's material. It is the working into my heart the word, sermons I have heard, and/or books I have read -mainly from Church of the Open Door and/or from past sermons on CD of Pastor David Johnson.