Mike and Deb Parsons
with Jeremy Westcott –
No Condemnation
We are going to be looking at some difficult subjects in this post. Please do not get drawn into feelings of guilt and condemnation because of anything we write here. Let’s be sure to remember that there is no condemnation for us. The Holy Spirit will certainly bring conviction of sin where sin exists; but we can repent (that is, stop thinking about ourselves [and how we act] according to our own understanding, change our minds and see ourselves the way God does instead), turn from it and renounce it, receive forgiveness and look for transformation.
Ungodly trading
Adam and Eve traded with the accuser and gave their DNA for position and power to be like God (humanism, rationalism). That inclination to ungodly trading was passed on to each one of us.
Whenever we do not seek first God’s kingdom we are trading for ourselves; seeking to be gods of our own lives (just what Adam and Eve were offered). Esau traded his birthright for a bowl of stew, and we trade today on things that are coming tomorrow.
We even need to consider for whose benefit we are doing ministry: the approval of man is temporal, not eternal. In Matthew 6 Jesus spoke about practising righteousness before men, drawing attention to our giving, fasting and praying: there is nothing wrong with these activities except the motive.
Anything we do should be for God, for His glory, not for us. Jesus introduced a new standard, based not on external adherence but on heart motive. Anger equals murder, lust equals adultery; love your enemies, pray for those who persecute you:
“For I say to you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven” (Matt 5:20).
If our righteousness does not bring glory to God it is not righteousness at all.
Earthly, natural, demonic wisdom
This wisdom is not that which comes down from above, but is earthly, natural, demonic. For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there is disorder and every evil thing (James 3:15-16)
What source of wisdom influences, motivates and directs our decisions?
- Whenever we seek to use our own knowledge as opposed to God’s we are falsely trading.
- Whenever we use a substitute instead of God’s provision we are falsely trading.
- Whenever the motives of our heart are selfish we are falsely trading
This gives access to the demonic world to influence and affect us, to restrict us and take away our inheritance.
Trading floors
When I first came to teach on this subject, I knew I could not do so without having gone through it in my own life, but I kept putting it off. Ian Clayton was a forerunner in this, and he took 8 months to work through it in his own life. In the end, I did it in three weeks, because I was part way through teaching this series already and I was running out of time. It was the hardest thing I have ever done. I had to recognise how I had been meeting my own needs in my own way, and deal with the reasons for this in my heart.
There are at least seven ungodly trading floors I have recognised. I went through every one of them, asking God on each one how and where I had traded on them. God showed me in detail, and emotionally it was really difficult to deal with it.
Then I needed to outwork my repentance. I asked God to sharpen my conscience so that I would stop if I found myself going down that route again. I have found that with perseverance, it is possible to take captive the thoughts, to recognize the whispers, before I even get on that pathway.
Seven floors
I will just say a few words about each of the trading floors here, but if you would like to work through them in your own life, you may find it helpful to download the full Trading Floors document which you can find here: Negative Trading Floors – Mike Parsons
1.Tyre – money, materialism.
The King of Tyre ransacked and robbed God’s temple, using the gold to build a trading city for his own glory and gain.
This is often about money taken from God and used for our own purposes. This includes areas such as offerings, gambling, financial cheating and debt.
2. Jezebel – manipulation, control, domination, witchcraft
Jezebel was the daughter of Ichbaal (the King of Tyre), who married the King of Israel to gain control of the religious system.
This covers issues such as the use of emotions, politics, sexual wiles, bribery or blackmail, and using substances to alter how we feel.
3. Athaliah – kingly seed
Athaliah was Jezebel’s daughter (or by some accounts, sister-in-law). She married the king of Judah and tried to control the future seed by killing all the possible heirs. She used the political system to usurp authority, and became the only queen Judah ever had.
Poor self-image, believing lies and familiar spirits, and masonic involvement all belong to this trading floor.
The King of Tyre, Jezebel and Athalia were all Baal worshippers – involved in idolatry, the cult of fertility, sensuality and child sacrifice.
4. Cain – murder
Cain was the son of satan, serpent seed, who murdered Abel his half-brother because of jealousy and the nature he inherited from satan.
This is not only physical attacks, but any kind of anger, character assassination, accusations, and selfishness.
5. Delilah – seduction
She offered pleasure and gratification, seducing Samson in order to rob him of his destiny.
This trading floor is where we find people living in a fantasy (especially romantic or sexual), finding ways to gain (or hang on to) acceptance, approval, or affirmation; and a lust for money, power or influence.
6. Leviathan – gossip, lies, deception
A demonic sea creature, a twister.
This is about lying or cheating to make others think better of you; half-truths; self-promotion, looking to impress, gossip… and what are you sharing on Facebook?
7. Apollyon – opposes the gospel
A fallen angel who opposes preaching of the gospel.
Whenever we have watered down the gospel of the kingdom, offered a cheap salvation gospel, been involved with false cults, been ruled by fear or embarrassment, or failed to share the full truth of the gospel for any reason, we have traded on this floor.
But if the watchman sees the sword coming and does not blow the trumpet and the people are not warned, and a sword comes and takes a person from them, he is taken away in his iniquity; but his blood I will require from the watchman’s hand (Ezek 33:6).
What should we do?
None of this is easy to admit to when we discover it in our lives. But the truth is, we all have it, and plenty of it. It is keeping us from what God has for us. He wants us to come into His glory, but that is impossible with all this in place. We need to get rid of it!
We must be ruthlessly honest about our past, not covering up or pretending. It is really hard to face the horrible things we have done, but the reality is that unless we do we will not be free of them.
Remember that God loves us. His love is a canopy over us, which gives us a safe place to deal with these things. Remember all the things I wrote in the first paragraph of this post. There is no condemnation for us.
This is not easy, but because forerunners have already gone there, they have made it a little less difficult for us (and our doing it will make it a little less difficult for those who follow us). We must:
- own our past trading and motives
- confess our trading as sin
- seek revelation about any family trading that may influence us (we will look at this more fully in a future post on iniquity).
We may find it useful to use this diagram that we have seen before:
We can use the court system in heaven. The mobile court is a very effective place to deal with all this:
- Accept the accusation and receive God’s judgment for our own and our family’s trading
- Repent and renounce false trading (be very specific)
- Be separated from false trading
- Invite God to activate our ‘reverence’ and ‘fear of God’ spiritual gates, so that our ‘conscience’ gate will be sensitive and activated.
Armed with this revelation and experience, in future we may recognise when we are going down the route towards negative trading. The earlier we can catch ourselves (or hear the Holy Spirit’s warning) and turn around, the better. We really want to get to the point where our conscience kicks in right away, so that negative trading is no longer even an option for us.
This is all part of the process of renewing our mind so that we can be transformed into the image of Jesus.
Courtroom Prayer
Before using this prayer, I recommend you work through a section (or even just a few lines) of the full Trading Floors document for yourself, so that you can be very specific about each trading floor, and how you have traded on it.
Father, I thank you that you love me
And that your kingdom is based on righteousness and justice.
By faith I step into the court of accusation.
I face my accusers and I accept and agree that I have wrongly traded.
I accept that I have followed the pathway of the knowledge of good and evil
I accept that I have been influenced and motivated
By earthly, natural and demonic wisdom.
I stand here representing myself and my forefathers, identifying with them.
I repent of and renounce all false trading for myself and my forefathers
(be very specific here about what trading you have recognised).
…
I receive the judgment of God
And I am justified and made righteous through my advocate, Jesus.
I release the judgment of God against my adversaries and accusers.
I receive a mandate to be separated from all false trading.
I step back into this realm
With the authority to identify and reject
All demonic, natural and earthly influences and motives.
I choose to be identified as your son
Walking in the light
Following heavenly wisdom on the earth.
Next Post: Godly Trading Floors
Related articles by Freedom ARC
- Information For Elevation – Trading (1)
- Seeds, Roots and Fruit
- Beholding As In A Mirror
- The Fire of Transformation
Other resources from Freedom ARC
- Trading Floors document (our grateful thanks to Alison Cain for compiling this)
- Transformation 20-part audio series with slides (this post is based on extracts from Mike’s notes for session 9).
- Kingdom Realms (audio series and blog series).
- Freedom Apostolic Resources website
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