Living like a Lion

Speaker: Billy Wilson
Official website: World Impact
Date: July 24, 2011
Texts: Genesis 49:8-10, Proverbs 28:1, 30:29-30, Revelation 5:5-6

Billy Wilson didn't mention Narnia or Aslan. I didn't think he would. But it doesn't matter!

Jesus Christ is both a lion and a lamb. The lamb is humble, meek, and submissive. The lion embodies royalty, boldness, confidence, strength, and courage. It was the ensign of the tribe of Judah, which went first in battle.

Are you like a lion or a kitty cat -- defeated in failure? Christ is the hope of glory in us. So we as His lambs must also be like lions. Stir up the lion inside you! Conquer passivity in your churches and in your prayer life/walk with God. Walk with victory. You are a king and priest before God [Revelation 1:6]. Learn to be like a lion in. . .

Spiritual inheritance

Psalm 31:8: David says God has put his feet in a large place. We must also live large. A lion's domain is 100 square miles. No one else is allowed in his territory. Judah's territory in Israel was where giants lived. At age 85, Caleb told Joshua, "Give me this mountain" [Joshua 14:8-12]. He believed he could conquer the giants.

The territory God has assigned you must be taken for his glory. There will always be giants. You must learn to overcome them through Christ. One territory God has assigned everyone is their own family. Psalm 2:8: God will also give us nations and the ends of the earth if we just ask.

Here's the problem: the righteous are bold as a lion. We cannot be like Achan [from the tribe of Judah]; we cannot take what belongs to God. Otherwise we'll flee when no one pursues.

Against the influence of the infernal [Satan, darkness]

Wear the full armor of God [Ephesians 6:12-13]. Problem: there's nothing for your back. If you run, you're gone. Stand, don't flinch. God will give you victory. Don't panic. Don't be timid. God has given us power [2 Timothy 1:7]!

Caesaria Philippi, where Peter gave his confession of faith, was a center of heathen worship in northern Galilee in the days of Christ. People there worshipped Pan, a goat-footed Greek god of hunting, sensuality, and victory in battle. He was also a god of spiritual possession who created fear in his enemies. The "cave of Pan" was considered an opening to the underworld. It's probably what Jesus was looking at when he said "the gates of hell shall not prevail against [the church]." The message version says the church will be "expansive with energy." We must confront hell with divine energy! We must rise up and push the darkness back.

Intercession

Prayer will keep us from sin, or sin will keep us from prayer. "The righteous are bold as a lion" [Proverbs 28:1]. We need boldness and endurance for end-times revival. We must do this:

-Come boldly to the throne of grace [Hebrews 4:16].

-Pray big prayers that will glorify a big God.

-Look at the greatness of God, not our puny past or minds. He had to get Abraham out of his tent to look at the stars, so God could show him his inheritance.

-Pray always, not faint or give up [Luke 18:1]. Sometimes we quit too soon. Don't quit until you get your victory! Lions in conflict don't run. David ran to the giant Goliath, not away from him.

Examples:

-Mexico is full of drug cartels. Yet revival is spreading throughout Latin America. The spiritual warmth there needs to come north, crossing the border into America's cold churches. Wilson visited the president of Mexico in late May. He prayed for hours for the safety of the man's family, whose wife is a Christian. A few days later, 4000 gathered in Mexico City to pray for Mexico: revival and the end of the drug cartels. Big victories have happened since!

-Indonesia has 500 24/7 prayer towers. But there are only a handful in the US.

-Malaysia: Wilson and others prayed all night for a demon-possessed girl. He got tired. A male voice within the girl acknowledged this and said he wasn't leaving. Wilson replied, "I may be tired but God isn't!" The Holy Spirit came down and gave the men a word of knowledge about the girl [child abuse, bitterness, anger]. She was delivered and called on Jesus' name.

-Blind Bartimaeus heard about Jesus and called on his name when he arrived in town. Others told him to be quiet -- a test of faith. Bartimaeus cried out again but louder -- in faith. He pushed through, instead of backing off and running away. His desperation led to his boldness. As a result, Jesus answered his prayer and healed his eyes.

Conclusion

A message and interpretation in tongues: "In the near future, some will run in fear and look to the hills for protection. But I tell you to be strong, trust me, and I will give you victory."