REBOOT: Breach Points
Scriptural Context of Ezra:
● Israelites sanctioned by Cyrus, King of Persia to return to Jerusalem
● Fully funded to rebuild the wall, Temple, resume worship/festivals
● Resume Jewish life in the region
● Area residents disliked Cyrus, but disliked Israel even more
● Attempted to hinder the rebuilding process with the following strategy
Ezra 4:4–5 (ESV) Then the people of the land discouraged the people of Judah and made them afraid to build and bribed counselors against them to frustrate their purpose, all the days of Cyrus king of Persia, even until the reign of Darius king of Persia.
Title: BREACH POINTS
In our REBOOT series we’ve talked about:
The ongoing need for spiritual REBOOTS, how they are activated.
The importance of regular updates that bring us back into alignment with The LORD. TODAY: Defending your life from the ongoing attack of the enemy and the impact of his lies.
Scripting attacks seek to insert malicious code in order to lead users to interact with false information that leads to false data, hijacked links and fake websites in order to steal resources or cause system failure. Cyber security specialists have dedicated significant resources in order to identify and secure common breach points where the attacks take place.
Real life has some very common parallels. God has given us His Word, the code for abundant living but the enemy our our souls attacks all of us at common breach points, seeking to inject his malicious code to pollute our lives with his word, which is nothing but lies designed to reroute our lives into a less-than experience, steal our resources and cause personal failure on any level possible.
We know:
● John 10:10 (ESV) The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy
● John 8:44 (ESV) ...he is a liar and the father of lies.
● Luke 4:13 (ESV) ....until an opportune time.
● Genesis 4:7 (ESV) ...sin is crouching at the door.
● 1 Peter 5:8–9 (ESV) ...the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.
● 2 Corinthians 2:11 (ESV) ...so that we would not be outwitted by
Satan; for we are not ignorant of his designs.
Every one of us have been the victim of his lies and deception.
Illus: 7th grade, Lynn Michaud, Ricky’s lies to her to win her over
Israel had been given the green light by heaven and earth, by God and man, to return to their home land, to rebuild and to reoccupy. But the enemy fought their script, looking to inject malicious code by engaging several common breach points:
BREACH POINT: INSERT MALICIOUS CODE WHERE NO OTHER CODE EXISTS
Ezra 4:5 (ESV) and bribed counselors against them to frustrate their purpose, all the days of Cyrus king of Persia, even until the reign of Darius king of Persia.
● There are many things we have never experienced before and counsellors play a key role in navigating them
● People Of The Land hied counsellors (foreigner and Israel)
● There will be people in your world with a giant pro-them agendas that requires anti-you. ● They may not have made a blood oath with Satan, but He is behind the narrative. ● They look to inject their code where you have yet to establish code.
Illus: our greatest concern for our kids - someone else building their value system - homeschool
● Hosea 4:6 (ESV) My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge…
● Amos 8:11 (ESV) “Behold, the days are coming,” declares the Lord GOD, “when I will send a famine on the land— not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the LORD.
There has never been more access to God’s Word than there is today!
DEFENSE:
● Study God’s Word daily; understand it’s context; consider life application ● Study Basic Doctrine
BREACH POINT: OVERWRITE TRUTH WITH MALICIOUS CODE
Ezra 4:2 (ESV) “Let us build with you, for we worship your God as you do, and we have been sacrificing to him ever since the days of Esarhaddon king of Assyria who brought us here.”
● POTL were playing the long game
● Lied about who they were in order to shift thinking and later the actions
● Get you to participate in something that leads to your downfall.
ILLUS: engaged young woman whose boyfriend kept disappearing to fast and pray TRUST, BUT VERIFY.
When this is slow to work, scripting attacks introduce temptation: the risky “click-here” link
● Trojan Horse - looks like a reward, but invites the enemy into your otherwise protected city.
Numbers 22-23 Balaak King of Moab, wanted to destroy Israel
● Brought in the prophet Balaam to curse them, but three times he was unable
● Balaam suggested tempting them with the women of Moab
Often the best strategies to get you to participate in WRONG is to show you the REWARD only available to you by doing the WRONG thing
● “I know God’s word says A, B and C, BUT…”
● It’s in that moment you are exchanging God’s truth for your new truth!
● Romans 1:24–25 (ESV) ...they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.
Malicious code works overtime to get Christians to embrace things that are wrong: ABORTION ● What about if someone was raped - less than 1% of the time
What about if the mother’s life is in danger - less than 1% of the time.
Illus: Elaine Stimpson
99% of abortions are after the fact contraceptives
○ 2017 - 862,000 abortions - 20% of all pregnancies end in abortion
○ 2,363 abortions per day -
○ 7,700 people die per day
○ 25% of deaths every day are the result of murder in the womb.
○ 431,000 abortions during COVID - died because of abortion
○ 210,000 died during COVID - but only 12,000 die of COVID
○ More babies die of abortion in a week than people died soley of COVID in 6 months
Illus: Christian mom who wanted teenage daughter to abort baby - how will people look at me?
Christians buy into the, “I know it’s not right, but it’s still better than….
This child is going to be deformed
○ What level of deformity is acceptable?
○ Down syndrome?
○ Heart condition
○ Blonde hair, black skin?
○ Illus: Matthesius’ daughter
● Not wanted”
● Will be unhappy”
● Someone can’t afford”
● Contributes to overpopulation”
● Places additional stress on the world’s food supply
Let’s use these same arguments on old people, or sick people… your grandmother. What does God’s word say about the child in its mother’s womb?
● Psalm 139:13–19 (ESV) For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my
soul knows it very well. My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them. How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them! If I would count them, they are more than the sand. I awake, and I am still with you. Oh that you would slay the wicked, O God! O men of blood, depart from me!
If you have had an abortion, there is forgiveness for you.
It’s possible that it was malicious code injected when you didn’t know it was wrong It’s possible that it was malicious code injected to overwrite what you knew to be wrong.
But abortion cannot continue under the cover of a woman’s right to choose. The choice can be and should be made prior to conception, not after.