 the enemy studies you. The enemy knows you. The enemy watches how you behave in certain scenarios. The enemy watches how you behave around certain people. The enemy watches where your eyes go, watches what your words say, watches what you choose to listen to. He sees what you do in secret. He sees how you behave in private. And he uses all of this information to create the strongest temptation and place it before you. He has many strategies, but all of his strategies are ultimately based on deception. The only power that the enemy can have over you is the power that he deceives you into giving to him. Now there are many deceptive strategies of the enemy, but I want to focus on just two right now so that we can really dig in and see exactly how these work against us in our everyday life, but I want you to write in the comment section right now, write, open my eyes. Let that be your prayer for discernment. Let that be your commitment to being vigilant about the supernatural realm. Remember this, everything about the kingdom of hell is built on shifting shadow. All the weapons, all of the attacks, they're just formations, shadowy figures. So the moment that you introduce anything that has to do with the kingdom of hell to the light of the Holy Spirit, the power of darkness dissolves. Light eradicates darkness. What does light do to darkness? It dissolves the darkness by their very own natures, by the necessity of their natures. Light and darkness cannot coexist. The presence of either means the absence of the other, and so in your life you have to receive the light of the Spirit. Now you have the Holy Spirit living in you. You have the power of God residing in you. You've been positioned in Christ. You are in Christ. Christ is in power and you are in Christ. You're seated in heavenly places. So why then do we not always see the manifestation, the realization, the attainment of that power? Why does it seem as though sometimes we live defeated even though in the Spirit we know we're positioned in victory? Well, I want to show you how the enemy attacks. In fact, you may be under the power of this attack without even realizing it, so it's my prayer that it's exposed and eliminated in your life. So first we must understand that Satan is called the tempter. Look at 1 Thessalonians chapter 3. I'm going to read verses 4 and 5. Even while we were with you, we warned you that troubles would soon come, and they did, as you well know. That is why when I could bear it no longer, I sent Timothy to find out whether your faith was still strong. So the apostle here has some concerns about the faith of the people. I was afraid that the tempter had gotten the best of you and that our work had been useless. Think about this here. The enemy's primary goal is to weaken your faith. Why? Because if he can weaken your faith, he can keep you from accessing and becoming all that God desires for you. When the enemy deceives you, he convinces you to not use your power. I think we make the Holy Spirit jealous when we exaggerate demonic power and minimize the Holy Spirit's power. Well, what does the scripture say? Greater is he who's in me, who's in you, the believer, than he that is in the world. Well, I have a great strength. You have a great strength, the power of the Holy Ghost residing in you. We have been given dominion, power, and authority over the forces of darkness, and we are beings of light because we reflect the glory of God. Yet the enemy deceives us, not wanting us to use the strength of the power that we've been given. Instead, we freak out when he attacks us. What do we do? We panic when we don't understand how the enemy is coming against us. When we face trials and tribulations, we somehow take this as proof that God has abandoned us, proof that the enemy somehow gained power over us. No, my friend. You have the power of the Holy Ghost residing in you. I think far too believers understand their identity in Christ. This crisis of identity is what prevents many believers from walking in and realizing the strength of that power. We have been delivered. We have been rescued. We have been filled with the Holy Spirit, but many of us don't realize or actualize or experience the fruit of that freedom simply because we're deceived in not embracing it. The enemy deceives you. He exaggerates his power over you. He wants you to feel like you're bound. He wants you to feel like you're cursed. He wants you to feel like he's this great immense force over you that you just can't break no matter how hard you try. That's a lie of the enemy. You're being held in place because you don't realize the power that's been given to you. The scripture calls him the tempter. What does he do? He places before us the things that he believes will cause us to choose sin over God. Well, think of Matthew 4. When Jesus was tempted in the wilderness, the enemy three times attempted to offer him something that would satisfy the cravings of the flesh. Well, Jesus of course resisted, but the truth of the matter is if sin were a product, demons would be salesmen. But here's the reality. Though demons may tempt you, they cannot do the sinning for you. Many times Christians try to blame their sinful disobedient decisions on demonic powers. Well, I can't stop doing this because it's a demon and I can't get delivered from that demon because I don't understand the secret to the demon's power. And this is the belief system under which many believers become stuck. They never break free because they just don't realize all of the lies that they've already believed. They grant the premise that they're under the power of the enemy. They grant the premise that the enemy has control over them in some way, completely neglecting the reality of the fruit of the Spirit which is self-control. And so we who have the Holy Spirit have control over ourselves. But what the enemy does do is present the sin. What the enemy does do is try to make the sin seem appealing like he did in the Garden of Eden. The serpent did not eat that fruit on behalf of Eve. Eve ate it. Adam ate it. But the serpent spoke. The serpent used its words. What is that? That's deception. Remember this. All successful temptation is ultimately rooted in dark deception. All successful temptation is ultimately rooted in dark deception. Why? Because you believe the lie, somehow, some way, that that sin will satisfy you. You believe that it's worth trading the precious fellowship you have with God for whatever it is that the enemy's offering to you. So the enemy presents it. And he will not tempt you with something that doesn't tempt you. Think about this. The enemy studies you. The enemy knows you. The enemy watches how you behave in certain scenarios. The enemy watches how you behave around certain people. The enemy watches where your eyes go, watches what your words say, watches what you choose to listen to. He sees what you do in secret. He sees how you behave in private. And he uses all of this information to create the strongest temptation and place it before you. And so the enemy will not tempt you with something that doesn't tempt you. He's going to use something that you've grown to crave. He's going to use something that you've trained yourself, hear what I said there, that you've trained yourself to desire. And yes, you do train yourself to desire things. That's the fact of the matter. When we choose a vice, a temptation, again and again and again, we are programming our bodies to crave that which we are choosing. And demons do take advantage of these desires. They take advantage of these weak points. This is why it seems like just when you're doing right, just when you're doing well, just when you finally feel connected with God, suddenly here's a temptation coming your way, something offered to you in the form that tempts you. Now James 1.14 says, temptation comes from our own desires which entice us and drag us away. So there we see we cannot blame demonic powers. The only reason we're tempted in the first place, please hear me when I say this, the only reason we're tempted in the first place is because we've allowed our flesh to grow in strength. If our flesh wasn't strong, the enemy would have nothing to tempt. If we kept the flesh weak, the temptations would be weak. The stronger your flesh becomes, the stronger the urges of temptations become. And so instead of keeping the flesh subjected, instead of learning to live in the spirit, instead of living a lifestyle of prayer and the word and subjecting the sin nature, we feed it what it desires and we starve the spirit. We starve the spirit when we neglect prayer. We starve the spirit when we neglect the word. We feed the flesh when we choose entertainment over the spiritual on a constant basis. When we're so distracted by the cares and things of this world that we completely forget about the spiritual reality in which we primarily exist. You are not a citizen of this earth as strange as that may sound. If you're a born again believer, you've been translated from the kingdom of darkness and you now exist in the kingdom of heaven. Now this is how it works. Demons understand us, they seek to tempt us, and then they present a lie and here's a lie that they use. This will satisfy you. Or, or, or they'll say this isn't that big of a deal. Now you may not say that outright, you may not think that directly, but somewhere deep down when you're giving into a sin repeatedly, somewhere deep down, you've lost that sense of urgency unto holiness because you do at some deep subconscious level believe the lie that it's no big deal or that it's not really affecting you. Look, here's the reality. Even if you were to never get caught for a sin you're committing in secret, the fact of the matter is that secret sin is affecting you and your life and your joy and your peace and the people around you in more ways than you realize. It's robbing them even of the person that you should be. So this will satisfy. God won't punish this. It's that big of a deal. The presence of God isn't satisfying me. These are lies we believe or I can't help it. There's nothing I can do. And thereby the way, if I may go off on a tangent, thereby the way is one of the lies that is founded upon this idea that demons have this control over us. Well, there's nothing I can do anyway. It's a demon. So until I get that special prayer, until I find that special technique, until I uncover that ancient mystery, until I dig up the information from Ancestry.com, I can't be free of this spirit. So there's really nothing I can do. And that belief in the fact that it has complete control over us is partially what contributes to us giving in again and again. And so what happens? You begin to feel trapped like you're a hypocrite. You become double-minded. You feel like you're switching from one person to another and you don't know which one's the real you. And then the action that manifests from this is more and more you give in again and again. So first it's the lie. Once you believe the lie, that becomes deception. Then this leads to feelings of being trapped, of being a hypocrite double-minded condemnation, guilt, shame, and that compounds the problem. And so when you feel condemnation, guilt and shame, what do you do? You distance yourself from God. And in distancing yourself from God, you strengthen the flesh and guess what? It gains more power to sin. And then you live in this state of hypocrisy. You sin more and more. And what results from that sinning again and again and again? That consistent sinning. Well, you form a habit. And what does this habit become? This habit becomes a life cycle. Six months you do good, two weeks you're back on sin again. And then two weeks you do good and then six months you're back on sin. It just goes back and forth and back and you go through cycles just when you thought you were free. It's right back in. Why? Because when you finally do get free, you're not living in such a way where you keep the flesh subjected. Many believers don't realize that once you're free, you have to continue to walk in submission to God in order to stay away from that temptation. So now what begins to happen? A secretive lifestyle, sinful habits, guilty conscience, you feel distant from God. And here's the problem. People try to address just the symptoms. And this is where they come to me or to a preacher or maybe they've come to you before, they say, Hey, I'm dealing with this particular issue. And I can't seem to overcome this sin right here. Or I'm dealing with this particular habit and I can't overcome this habit. Hey, I have a problem with this kind of attitude, this kind of mindset, these kinds of thoughts, whatever it may be, however the sin is manifesting, we have issues with it and they become habitual in our lives and we feel stuck. Here's the problem. You're addressing the symptom. You want to address the habit itself. And you should. You want to address the sin itself. And you should while also neglecting the root and you shouldn't neglect addressing that root. You must address not just the result, but also the root, not just the symptom, but also the source, not just the chaos, but the cause of the chaos. What is that? It's the lie you believe. It comes back to, you see here now deception. It comes back to this place where you realize, Oh my goodness, I'm believing a lie. It could be, you believe that the sin will satisfy. It could be that you believe that you have no choice that you have to sin. It could be that you believe that it's no big deal. It could be that you believe that you're just never going to be free of it. So you might as well give in from time to time. Those are the lies that keep you bound. And ultimately, all of that giving into temptation is rooted in that deception. Temptation is a form of deception because you must first question the word before you contradict the word with your lifestyle. And so somewhere in there, you're believing a lie. If you are bound, there's a lie you believe. Period. Jesus said, you shall know the truth and the truth shall what? Right in the comments, the truth shall set you free, set me free. So then if I'm still bound, if it's the truth that sets me free and I'm still bound, then if I'm bound, there's a truth I've not yet come to believe. Yet people again just want to address the exterior. They want to address the habit itself when they need to look inside and say, okay, what's the lie I'm believing? And this is where repentance comes into play. My goodness, we as the church have greatly misunderstood what repentance is and what renouncing is because we imagine that repentance is to turn away from something. That's not what it means. Now don't hear what I'm not saying. I absolutely agree that we should turn away from sin, but turning away from sin is to renounce sin. To repent is to change your mind. It's a change in mind that results in renouncing, forsaking, turning from sin. But many people try to address the habit before they've addressed the mindset. So what does repentance look like? Well, repentance looks like this. Lord, I agree that this sin is wrong. I agree that it's wrong in all forms. I agree that it's wrong in all measures. In other words, I'm not going to allow myself or my flesh a little relief here and there. And I agree that it must go once and for all. And until you come to that place where you acknowledge this is destroying me, whether I see it or not, and either way, it's contradicting the nature of God. Once you've come to agree with God, this thing has to go now. This thing has to go in all forms and this thing has to go forever. Well, now you've repented when you've come to truly believe that. Now you've repented. Once you repent, then you can renounce. What is renouncing? No, my friend, renouncing is not picking up a list like this and going, I renounced this, I renounced that, I renounced this. I mean, you can do that if you want. There's nothing wrong with it, but that's not what renouncing is. To renounce is to forsake, to renounce is to actually turn from. But many people try to turn from sin before they've changed their mind about sin and then they just get stuck in a battle with themselves. This is why you have to come to the place where you've removed all deception with the help of the Holy Spirit. Identify that root lie. What is it I believe about sin that gives me and my flesh permission to give into it? What is it I believe about sin that gives my flesh permission to engage in it? And once you've identified that lie, well, now you can actually renounce it. So this is temptation. It's one of the attacks that it may mean. Now watch this, watch this. And by the way, 1 Corinthians 10-13 makes it clear that God provides a way out. That's scripture. There's no temptation that comes against you that God has not provided a way out of. So we are without excuse here. Let me say that again. We are without excuse. I'm going to look right in the camera and say it to you. I know this will offend some, but I would rather offend you with the truth than to comfort you with a lie. I would rather offend you into freedom than lie to you and watch you stay in bondage. Here's the truth. Nobody chooses to sin for you but you. No, it is not a spirit sinning for you. No, it is not a demonic force forcing you to disobey God. We have to grow up. And if you don't grow out of that mindset, you will never be free. Hear me say this again. If you do not grow out of that mindset, you cannot be free. Why? Because you will be constantly blaming demons for your undisciplined flesh. Now, I know this isn't popular to say, but I love you and I want to see you go free and it breaks my heart every time I receive a message from someone who says, I've been dealing with this addiction. I've been dealing with this struggle for years and I just can't break it. And it breaks my heart to see that they've been lied to again and again. My friend, yes, there's grace. Yes, there's mercy. No, this is not a message of condemnation because there's hope. And the hope is that the Holy Spirit lives in you and the Holy Spirit has given you self-control. Once you finally realize I am responsible for the decisions that I make, then you've begun the process of repentance. Then you begin to agree with God about sin. This is wrong. It has to go. And it has to go in all measures for all time. But God has provided a way out. God has provided a way out of every temptation. So Father, I pray in the name of Jesus that you would cause your people to encounter your presence. Let your power flow even now. I rebuke every demonic attack in the mighty name of Jesus. Every attack I rebuke you now. Say this out loud. Say I rebuke. Say it out loud with authority now. Say I rebuke every demonic attack in Jesus' name. Now say Holy Spirit. Say it out loud. Say Holy Spirit. Help me to walk in truths that I might walk in freedom. Now Holy Spirit, let your power flow through them. Let them sense you near. Come on, stretch your hands toward mine. Ask Him to touch your life right now. Many of you are sensing like a heavy weight coming on the room. Others feel like electricity moving through you. Some may feel a heat or like waves, whatever you're feeling. Just understand that the power of God is flowing through you. Even if you're not feeling anything yet, it doesn't matter. By faith, just receive. Thank you, Jesus. We honor and bless you. We honor and bless you. I want you to say it because you believe it. Type it in the comments. Say amen. I want to mention, real briefly, this resource that's available to you titled Holy Spirit, The Bondage Breaker, experience permanent deliverance from mental, emotional, and demonic strongholds. This is available at bondagebreaker.com and in this book, I talk about the root causes of demonic bondage. I talk about the believer's identity. And ultimately, I talk to you about the power of the Holy Spirit that already rests in you, that power that allows you to walk in freedom. And I'm going to challenge you before you turn off this video or click on something else just for a moment. Hear me out so that you might be a part of what God is doing through this ministry. We as a ministry believe that it's time that the world saw the power of the Holy Spirit. The gospel of Jesus Christ must be preached, especially now in this generation. There is so much darkness permeating our world. We carry the light. And everywhere we carry the light of the gospel, lives are transformed. People are saved, healed, delivered. The truth sets them free. Now, the gospel is free and we give it away for free. Freely we receive so freely we give. But the means to deliver the gospel on a mass scale, the media like you're seeing right now, the media like you see on the live streams and through events like you see us do around the world where people pack conference centers and receive the gospel, receive a touch of God's power, all of that costs resources and we don't charge people for it. How do we support it? How does it continue to generous people like you? So get behind what God is doing through this great work by going right now to davidhernandezministries.com slash donate to give a single donation or davidhernandezministries.com slash partner to become a monthly supporter of this ministry. Don't say somebody else. Don't say some other time. I'm asking you to do your part. Join the thousands around the world who support this great work. Do your part today. If you enjoyed this teaching then you will love four doors you may have opened to demons.