We’ve learned the difference between sozo and soteria salvation, and we learned why iniquity is such a big deal. Today we are going to conclude this study and discover the origins of iniquity.
Origination of Iniquity
Where does iniquity come from? Let’s look at Ezekiel chapter 28.
“You [the devil] were an anointed guardian cherub. I placed you; you were on the holy mountain of God; in the midst of the stones of fire you walked. You were blameless in your ways from the day you were created, till unrighteousness [iniquity] was found in you. In the abundance of your trade you were filled with violence in your midst, and you sinned; so I cast you as a profane thing from the mountain of God, and I destroyed you, O guardian cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire. Your heart was proud because of your beauty; you corrupted your wisdom for the sake of your splendor. I cast you to the ground; I exposed you before kings, to feast their eyes on you. By the multitude of your iniquities, in the unrighteousness of your trade you profaned your sanctuaries; so I brought fire out from your midst; it consumed you, and I turned you to ashes on the earth in the sight of all who saw you.” Ezekiel 28:14-18 (ESV)
Like all spiritual beings created by God, the devil was created blameless and beautiful. But he corrupted himself, turned to profanity and unrighteousness, and iniquity was birthed in him. And he was cast out, after much trouble and deception and evil trades with all sorts of other spiritual beings. He cast doubt onto the character of God and turned many spiritual beings away from God.
When he was cast out of heaven, he basically turned into a lawyer, attempting to use God’s words and rules against Him. And such is the kingdom of darkness.
And so here’s one of the main points: the iniquity that we have in us through our bloodlines or because of our spirits is used as leverage by the devil to create harm and havoc and chaos in our lives.
God is not holding us accountable for this iniquity, but the devil is using it for evil, to steal and kill and destroy.
The good news is this: God made a way through the sacrifice of Jesus, by the blood and water that He shed at the cross. And instead of living in cycles of iniquity and cursing, we can break free and live in generational cycles of blessing.
Blessing
Way back in the Old Testament, the Lord added cycles of blessing as part of the Law.
This is the type of generational blessing that the Lord desires for you, as found in Deuteronomy 28.
“And if you faithfully obey the voice of the LORD your God, being careful to do all his commandments that I command you today, the LORD your God will set you high above all the nations of the earth. And all these blessings shall come upon you and overtake you, if you obey the voice of the LORD your God. Blessed shall you be in the city, and blessed shall you be in the field. Blessed shall be the fruit of your womb and the fruit of your ground and the fruit of your cattle, the increase of your herds and the young of your flock. Blessed shall be your basket and your kneading bowl. Blessed shall you be when you come in, and blessed shall you be when you go out.
“The LORD will cause your enemies who rise against you to be defeated before you. They shall come out against you one way and flee before you seven ways. The LORD will command the blessing on you in your barns and in all that you undertake. And he will bless you in the land that the LORD your God is giving you. The LORD will establish you as a people holy to himself, as he has sworn to you, if you keep the commandments of the LORD your God and walk in his ways. And all the peoples of the earth shall see that you are called by the name of the LORD, and they shall be afraid of you. And the LORD will make you abound in prosperity, in the fruit of your womb and in the fruit of your livestock and in the fruit of your ground, within the land that the LORD swore to your fathers to give you. The LORD will open to you his good treasury, the heavens, to give the rain to your land in its season and to bless all the work of your hands. And you shall lend to many nations, but you shall not borrow. And the LORD will make you the head and not the tail, and you shall only go up and not down, if you obey the commandments of the LORD your God, which I command you today, being careful to do them, and if you do not turn aside from any of the words that I command you today, to the right hand or to the left, to go after other gods to serve them.” Deuteronomy 28:1-14 (ESV)
Does this sound too good to be true? It’s not! It’s God’s desire for your life, and for your children, and for your children’s children.
“So then, those who are of faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.” Galatians 3:9 (ESV)
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love he predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved.” Ephesians 1:3-6 (ESV)
Repentance Prayers
So we’re going to pray as a church and repent for the iniquity of our bloodlines as well as any iniquity in our spirits.
One of the things we can do, and it’s demonstrated all throughout the Bible, is pray and repent on behalf of our ancestors.
Here’s just one of many verses that demonstrates this concept:
“We acknowledge our wickedness, O LORD, and the iniquity of our fathers, for we have sinned against you.” Jeremiah 14:20 (ESV)
Even if we didn’t actually do a thing, we can repent for it on behalf of those who came before us. This helps disconnect the iniquity of our parents and grandparents and great-grandparents from us and our kids and grandkids.
So I invite you to pray through the prayers linked below. There are two prayers: one renouncing the iniquity of our bloodlines, and one renouncing any evil deeds done by our human spirits in their past.
Both of these prayers are from Bride Ministries, and I can testify that these are powerful and effective.
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