A Targeted Invasion | Mark Estes

Good morning, North Palm, and thank you

for joining us online. It's an honor to

be able to come into your home. I I want

to share a word with you that I really

believe Holy Spirit is speaking right

now, and it's a fundamental word. It is

a an incredibly important word to our

faith and and that is simply the title

is a targeted invasion. We're going to

look at a couple of the writings of the

Apostle John. In John chapter 1 verse14,

John 1 · chapter mention

the the Bible says that the word became

flesh and dwelt among us and we beheld

his glory, the glory as of the only

begotten of the father, full of grace

and truth. And then in first John

1 John 3 · chapter mention

chapter 3 verse number 8, John says, "He

who sins is of the devil, for the devil

has sinned from the beginning. For this

purpose, the son of God was manifested

that he might destroy the works of the

devil. So, let's take a moment and pray

together. Holy Spirit, open our ears

that we can hear what you have to say.

Open our hearts. Make them receptive.

Open our minds. Give us understanding.

Lord, we give you permission to move

deep in our life to form our hearts, to

form our character. Jesus have your way

in us today. Amen. Amen. The first thing

I want you to notice is that the

incarnation is not incidental. Jesus

didn't come by accident. The birth of

Jesus was intentional. Jesus entered the

world with a mission. He just didn't

arrive randomly. He came with a purpose.

As a matter of fact, he came on purpose

for a purpose. So John doesn't present

the incarnation as sentimental. He

doesn't present it as symbolic, but he

presents it as strategic. That Jesus

didn't merely come to show us how to

live. He didn't come only to forgive

sins, but Jesus came on assignment. John

said, "For this purpose the son of God

was manifested that he might destroy the

works of the devil." And so that pray

that phrase tells us something that is

absolutely critical. The incarnation,

God became man. It was a targeted

invasion into hostile territory. Jesus

entered enemy territory on purpose.

Heaven broke into earth with intent.

Light entered darkness with precision.

So Jesus didn't just come to rescue

people from sin. Jesus came to dismantle

the entire system that made sin able to

reign. So I want to be clear this

morning. John 1 John 3:8 teaches that

1 John 3:8

the incarnation of Christ, God become

coming man, God coming in the form of

man was a targeted invasion designed to

undo sin's authority, to break

deception, to silence accusation, to

free humanity from bondage, and to

restore righteous identity. The works of

the devil are systemic. They are

relational. The works of the devil are

spiritual. And their destruction is

decisive. Their destruction is

progressive. And their destruction is

ultimately final. Evil operates through

cultural, political, religious, and

social systems that normalize rebellion

against God. But Christ came to undo

sin's authority. John begins with a

sober diagnosis of the statement. He

said, "He who sins is of the devil."

Now, this is not a statement about an

occasional failure. This is a statement

about governing power. Sin in scripture

is not just behavior. It is dominion.

And Paul echoes that in Romans in Romans

Romans 6 · chapter mention

chapter 6 verse number 14 where the

Apostle Paul says, "For sin shall not

have dominion over you, for you are not

under the law but under grace." The word

dominion in the Greek means to rule as a

lord. It means to exercise mastery, to

govern as a sovereign. And so Paul says,

"Sin will not govern you. Sin will not

be sovereign over you." And so he's

using kingdom language because sin is

personified as a ruler, not just a

behavior, but as someone who lords over

you. And so the implication is this. Sin

once reigned as your master, but now it

no longer possesses legitimate authority

over you as a believer. Sin was once a

slave master before Christ. Sin wasn't

just something that you did. Sin was

something that had rule over you. So

from the beginning, sin functioned like

a throne. It ruled through desire. Sin

governed through fear. And it enforced

obedience through consequence. But

humanity did not merely commit sin.

Humanity lived under sin. But God

invaded this sin cursed earth. Paul said

in Philippians chapter 2 verse 5-8, "Let

Philippians 2:5–8

this mind be in you, which was also in

Christ Jesus, who being in the form of

God, did not consider it robbery to be

equal with God, but made himself of no

reputation, taking the form of a

servant, and coming in the likeness of

men, and being found in appearance as a

man, he humbled himself and became

obedient to the point of death, even the

death of the cross. In Galatians 4 verse

Galatians 4:4

4 and 5, Paul said, "But when the

fullness of time come, God sent forth

his son born of a woman, born under the

law, to redeem those who were under the

law, that we might receive the adoption

as sons." So when Jesus arrived, he

didn't negotiate with sin. He confronted

sin in the wilderness. Jesus resisted

sin in his ministry. Jesus forgave sin

at the cross. Jesus condemned sin. And

in the resurrection, Jesus defeated sin.

So sin's authority was broken. It wasn't

just bypassed. It was annihilated. Sin

no longer reigns where Christ rules. You

understand that Jesus came to break

deception. Jesus himself identified the

devil's primary weapon in John 8 verse

number 44. Jesus said, "For you are of

your father, the devil, and the desires

of your father you wanted to do. He was

a murderer from the beginning and does

not stand in the truth because there is

no truth in him. When he speaks a lie,

he speaks from his own resources. For he

is a liar and the father of it. You see,

the devil's greatest success was not

tempting humanity to disobey. It was

convincing humanity to think wrongly.

Every deception traces back to one

central lie in Genesis chapter 3 verse

Genesis 3 · chapter mention

one. I want you to notice this in the

very beginning. Now the serpent was more

cunning than any beast of the field

which the Lord had made. And he said to

the woman, "Has God indeed said, you

shall not eat of every tree in the

garden?" And the woman said to the

serpent, "We may eat of the fruit of the

trees of the garden, but of the fruit of

the tree, which is in the midst of the

garden. God has said, 'You shall not eat

of it, nor shall you touch it, lest you

die." Then the serpent said to the

woman, "You'll not surely die. For God

knows in that day you eat of it. Your

eyes will be opened, and you'll be like

God, knowing good and evil." So you see

the devil's strategy in Genesis wasn't

violence, it was distortion.

Did God really say, sowing that seed of

doubt, you're not going to die? No. No.

God didn't mean what he said. He doesn't

want you to be like him. You'll be like

God. Eat the fruit. So deception

reframes rebellion as wisdom and it

reframes independence as freedom.

But Jesus is the revelation of truth.

The gospel of John opens in John chapter

John 1 · chapter mention

1 verse one. In the beginning was the

word and the word was with God and the

word was God. The same was in the

beginning with God. All things were made

through him and without him was not

anything made that was made. So the word

became flesh. Truth didn't come as

philosophy.

Truth came as a person. Jesus breaks

deception by revealing the father

accurately. By revealing humanity

honestly and by revealing sin for what

it is. He reveals freedom as submission,

not as autonomy. So the works of the

devil collapse when truth stands

embodied.

Christ came to silence accusation. And

there are so many of you today that the

enemy is bringing accusation against

you. He's combating your mind. He's

bringing condemnation. He's constantly

accusing you. Revelation names Satan as

the accuser of the brethren. In

Revelation 12 verse 10, then I heard a

Revelation 12:10

loud voice saying, "In heaven now

salvation and strength and the kingdom

of our God and the power of his Christ

have come. For the accuser of the

brethren who accused them before our God

day and night has been cast down." So

accusation is not the same as conviction

because conviction leads you to

repentance but accusation leads you to

respare. When when the Holy Spirit

brings conviction on you, it causes you

to want to go on your knees and to pray

and say, "God, forgive me. I have messed

up." You you're convicted. You are

convinced that there is sin operating in

you. But but when the enemy comes with

accusation then you become what you did

the accusation accusation has a voice.

It says you are a drug addict. You are

an alcoholic. You are the sin that you

committed. Accusation says you're never

going to change. Why are you even

trying? Your mother was like that. Your

father was like that. Your ancestors

have been like that. You've always

you're never going to change. accusation

says God tolerates you but he doesn't

delight in you and this voice traffics

impartial truth. It's a it's a partial

truth. It's the skin of the truth that's

stuffed you with a lie because

accusation robs you of hope.

But the cross is the silencer.

At the cross something legal occurred.

At the cross, sin was judged. At the

cross, debt was cancelled. At the cross,

charges were dismissed. Paul says that

the handwriting of requirement was

nailed to the cross. In Col in

Colossians chapter 2:14,

having wiped out the handwriting of

requirements that was against us, which

was contrary to us, he has taken it out

of the way, nailed it to the cross. So

accusation loses its legal standing when

guilt is removed. Where there is no

condemnation, accusation has no

jurisdiction.

I want you to notice that Jesus came to

free humanity from bondage. Bondage is

the lived experience of sin's rule. The

Bible describes it as slavery. Some of

you, the enemy has bound you as a slave

to sin. The Bible describes it as

chains. You are chained in that bondage

of sin. It's captivity. You have been

taken captive by sin. And the Bible

describes it as darkness. Paul said that

if the gospel is hidden, it is hidden to

those who do not believe lest the

glorious light of the gospel of Christ

should shine on them and they and they

understand. So you you know that Jesus

described his mission very clearly in

John 8 verse number 37

Jesus said John 8:36 rather therefore if

John 8:36

the son makes you free you shall be free

indeed so freedom isn't permission

biblical freedom is not the ability just

to do whatever you want to do it is the

restoration of your ability to obey God

with joy. That's real freedom. So

bondage enslaves desire, but freedom

realigns desire. Jesus didn't just

forgive prisoners. Jesus opened the

prison. Jesus broke the chains that held

you bound. Jesus set you free through

his death on the cross. I want you to

understand that Christ came to restore

your righteous identity. John's argument

doesn't end with behavior. It ends with

identity.

John declares in 1 John chapter 3 verse

1 John 3 · chapter mention

number one. Behold what manner of love

the father has bestowed on us that we

should be called the children of God.

Therefore, the world does not know us

because it did not know him. You

understand that the devil works to

distort identity. There is such a battle

today that is going on in the world over

identity. The devil wants to distort

your identity from being an imagebearer

of God to being a rebel of God. The

devil wants to destroy your identity

from being a son of God to actually

becoming a slave. He wants to distort

your identity from being beloved of God

to being condemned. But Jesus restores

identity. Jesus will move you from

sinner to a son. He will move you from

being an orphan to becoming an heir of

God. He moves you from being condemned,

condemned by sin, condemned by your

actions, condemned by the works of your

flesh, to being justified by faith, to

being restored and righteous, to become

a son of the living God. You see,

righteousness is not cosmetic.

Righteousness is not moral improvement.

Righteousness is new birth. The works of

the devil are destroyed when a new

nature is installed. And so the nature

of the devil's work, I want you to see

this. And I want you to see their

destruction because the works of the

devil are systemic. They are embedded in

structures and in cultures. Everywhere

you look, you can see the works of the

devil. You can see them in religion. You

can see them in government. You can see

them in education. You can see them in

the media, in arts and entertainment. In

every area, you see the enemy working

systemically to bring destruction on

humanity. They are relational. The works

of the devil are relational. They

corrupt trust. They try to destroy

trust. They try to destroy authority and

ultimately to destroy your ability to

have intimacy.

And they're spiritual. They are rooted

in unseen powers. But you need to

understand this. Their destruction is

decisive. Their destruction was

accomplished on the cross of Calvary.

When Jesus went to the cross of the of

Calvary, he destroyed the works of the

devil. They're progressive. They're

worked out in your sanctification. When

you decide, I'm going to serve the Lord.

I'm going to live for Jesus. Then you

are progressively destroying the works

of darkness. Your sanctification

is a progressive destruction of the

enemy's work. And you need to understand

that their destruction is ultimately

final. That the enemy, Satan, will be

destroyed. He will be cast into the lake

of fire that burns with brimstone. He

will be consumed in judgment. So the

enemy is defeated,

but yet he's not been removed. The war

is won,

but the enemy

is disarmed.

The victory is still being enforced.

Victory is accomplished, but the final

removal is coming. So the message of the

Lord to you this morning is hold on.

Don't give up because the invasion is

continuing. The incarnation of Christ,

God became men. It wasn't the end. It is

the beginning. And now Jesus advances

his victory. But how does he advance his

victory? He advances his victory through

regenerated lives. He advances his

victory through truth that's proclaimed.

He advances his victory through

authority that is exercised. He advances

his victory through holiness that is

manifested. And where Christ reigns, sin

loses authority. Where Christ reigns,

lies lose credibility. Where Christ

reigns, accusation loses its voice.

Where Christ reigns, bondage loses its

grip. Where Christ reigns, identity is

restored. The Son of God was manifested

not to coexist with darkness, but to

dismantle darkness, to destroy darkness.

And so I declare today that Jesus Christ

did not come to manage sin. Jesus came

to destroy sin. He didn't negotiate with

darkness. Jesus overcame darkness. What

the devil built through deception,

Jesus dismantled through truth.

What sin ruled through fear,

Jesus broke through the cross. And what

was lost in Adam has been restored

in the sun. So the invasion has

succeeded.

The works of the devil are undone

and the reign of Christ advances.

but it advances

through us.

Now, if you're watching this morning and

and you're not sure if you were to die

tonight that you would go to heaven, I

want to give you an opportunity

to allow Jesus to come into your heart

to forgive you of your sins, to cleanse

you from your unrighteousness.

You see, everything happened because of

Calvary. Because of Calvary, you have

hope. Because of Calvary, you can have

forgiveness. Because of Calvary, you can

be set free from condemnation and

accusation. Jesus Christ wants to give

you a new life and a new hope. And it

begins by embracing him, by welcoming

him into your life. So, if you don't

know the Lord, I I want to give you an

opportunity. Pray this prayer with me

now. Ask Jesus to come into your heart.

allow him to give you a new life that

only comes through his precious blood.

So pray with me now. Lord Jesus, I

confess my sin. Come into my heart.

Forgive me of my sin. Cleanse me from my

unrighteousness.

I confess with my mouth and I believe in

my heart that God has raised Jesus from

the dead. Thank you Lord for saving me,

for forgiving me,

for setting me free in Jesus name. Amen.

Amen

and amen.

Now, I would encourage you to go to the

uh to go online and to text the word

notes to 843755-6209

and and get a copy of the notes and you

can study further. And then also,

there's a 7-day prayer plan at the end

of those notes that I would encourage

you to pray through every day. It's a

guided prayer plan that'll give you

action points and a prayer focus and

really help us to apply the word to our

lives. It's been an honor to to come

into your home and I just want to I want

to bless you. I want to bless you in

Jesus name. You know, we have a

benediction that we go through each week

at the end of the service. And and so I

I just want to ask you to receive that

right now because I put a demand on your

faith and I say in Jesus name, increase

faith grow, become stronger. I call

forth that supernatural gift to come

over you, to flow in you, to work

through you. that everywhere you go that

there is an outbreak of signs and

wonders and miracles, that demons are

cast out, that the sick are healed, that

that the lame are able to walk, that the

deaf hear.

And so, right now, right where you are,

just lift your hands and get ready to

grab as much as you can. May the face of

the Lord shine upon you. May the glory

of the Lord go before you and may he

lead you from victory to victory to

victory to victory to victory to victory

to victory to victory to victory to

victory. May the enemy that comes at you

in one direction run from you in seven.

I declare in the name of Jesus, you are

the head and not the tail. You are the

first and not the last. You're blessed

when you come in. You're blessed when

you go out. You're blessed when you sit

down. You're blessed when you get up.

The work of your hands are blessed. The

steps of your feet are blessed. The

thoughts of your mind are blessed. You

are blessed to be a blessing. Now, be a

blessing to someone this week in Jesus

name. God bless you.