I want to start out by dedicating this writing to my very good friends Pastor’s Dave and Judy McLeroy who passed away in 2020. After a conversation on the phone years ago, I begin to seek the Lord on their behalf for a word that would bring comfort to them in the midst of some severe circumstances they were facing at that time. And what follows is that word. However, though it was word in due season for them, I am convinced that the Father will use it to speak to His body whenever and wherever He sends me. With that said, let us begin by defining for you, “overcoming death, hell and the brethren.”
Overcoming = one English rendering of overcome is to bowl over
Over = on the other side
Coming = to advance towards a specified place
Overcoming is a process, which is simply a series of steps, or changes that bring about desired results.
Take a moment now and think what your desired result is in your current circumstance. What is it that you are longing to see happen or change?
Now, ask yourself the following three questions.
1] What actions (steps) am I going to have to take in order to achieve this result?
2] What are some things that I am going to have to change in order to achieve this result?
3] Am I willing to make these steps and changes to achieve this result?
To desire something is to have a passion for it.
A result is simply the outcome of one’s course they have chosen to walk.
Principle: Your choices today will determine and precede your circumstances in the future.
Jeremiah 6:16 “Thus saith HaShem [Adonai], Stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls. But they said, we will not walk therein.”
These no doubt desired rest, however their passion to acquire rest wasn’t strong enough.
If you are willing to make these steps and changes, you must understand that you are going to have to be prepared to overcome death, hell, and the brethren along the way!
With that said, let’s get some revelation and principles concerning death, hell, and the brethren.
1] Death: One English rendering of death is to distress or irritate someone to an intolerable or unbearable degree.
To distress one is to worry, upset or unsettle them. Let me break this down for you.
Worry: to bother with complaints [internally by thoughts or externally by words].
Upset: defeat unexpectedly.
Unsettle: to remove from a state of peace.
Irritate: to rouse one to anger.
Intolerable means that you simply can’t take any more.
Idiom: To be the death of someone.
Have you heard some one say, they are going to be the death of a certain person [i.e., parent, etc.]?
What is it that you are worrying about? What is it that has upset you? What is it that has unsettled you? What is it that has made you angry? What is it that has convinced you that you can’t take anymore? Your answers to these questions are the things you must overcome.
You must understand that your problem is not the problem.
Principle: Your problem is how you deal and respond to your problem.
I can give you an example of this in Mark 4:38 where Yeshua and His disciples were in a storm. However, we see Yeshua responding to the storm different than His disciples. He was sleeping while they were crying out in fear.
They were both in the same situation. One overcame while the others were overcome. Can you relate? Are you IN HIM or IN THE STORM?
Now that we have a brief synopsis on overcoming death, let’s move on now and see how to overcome hell.
2] Hell: One English rendering of hell, is a situation or place of misery, discord, or destruction.
One English rendering of hell is a situation or place of misery, discord, or destruction.
Misery: mental or emotional unhappiness
Discord: to hold to a different opinion or mindset
Destruction: a sudden drop to a lower condition or state of being
Your current situation is your circumstance.
Circumstance is made up of two parts…
1] circum, which speaks of a circle.
2] stance, which speaks of one’s attitude or mental posture in any given circumstance.
The way you respond in your circumstance determines if it will be hell on earth or heaven on earth for you.
Have you ever said or perhaps heard someone else say any of the following?
I will never get out of this. This will never change. They will never change. Why do I even try? What’s the use? Nobody cares about me.
These that make such statements are creating a living hell to live in.
With this understanding. Let’s take all these definitions of hell and go a little bit deeper. Hell is a place of misery.
One English rendering of misery is to be in a state of mental distress due to physical circumstances. Simply being, your mind is overloaded due to what is going on in your life.
Distress like circumstance is made up of two parts.
1] Dis, which means to deprive of, to keep from possessing or enjoying.
2] Stress, which means to build so as to be able to withstand external influences.
Have you heard the phrase, under the influence? One English rendering of influence is the power to change or affect a person.
There are two kingdoms in the earth. They are the Kingdom of darkness and the Kingdom of God (Light). A kingdom is a realm in which a king rules. Thus, the Kingdom of God is the realm in which Yeshua governs and rules from. On the other hand, the kingdom of darkness is the realm in which satan and his demons govern and rule from. With this insight, take a moment to see which of these Kingdoms have the greatest influence in your life.
John 1 teaches us there is Life in God and that the Life is the Light of men. If one therefore is governed or influenced by the Kingdom of God, they will not walk in darkness, but Light and you will know they are walking in the Light when you see the Life of God being manifested in them.
On the other hand, if one is governed or influenced by the Kingdom of darkness, they will be noticeable in that they will be walking in darkness or the realm of death.
Have you ever looked at someone that may be young but yet look like they are 20-30 years older? This is a good sign of one that has not been influenced by the Kingdom of God wherein there is Life!
So, how can one overcome this hell we are talking about?
Colossians 3:15 And let the peace of God rule in your hearts.
Isaiah 9:6 Tells us that the Lord is the Prince of Peace.
Luke 17:21 Behold, the kingdom of God is within you.
Romans 14:17 For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost.
1 Corinthians 6:19 What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?
The peace of God is the Son of God, the Prince of Peace and King of Kings.
Let the Lord influence you from within and you will be able to withstand all that is external or around you.
One that is Dis-Stressed can be noticed in that they will be irritable and depressed.
Another rendering of hell is discord, which is defined as tension or strife resulting from a lack of agreement.
Discord is made up of two parts.
1] Dis, which means to deprive of, to keep from possessing or enjoying.
2] Cord which speaks in principle of love.
We sing the song, bind us together with cords that can’t be broken, bind us together with love. One that sows discord therefore is one that deprives others from enjoying the Love of God. And take love away from a person and that folks is hell on earth.
Finally, another rendering of hell is destruction. One English rendering of destruction is a sudden drop to a lower condition. Have you ever heard someone get up on Sunday and testify of their deliverance and then come back the next week down again? That folks is hell on earth.
Jonah 2:2 And said אָמַר, I criedקָרָא by reason of mine affliction צָרָה unto the LORD יְהֹוָה, and he heard עָנָה me; out of the belly בֶּטֶן of hell שְׁאוֹל criedשָׁוַע I, and thou heardest שָׁמַע my voice קוֹל.
Here is another reason that I love studying the Hebrew language. Note that the English word cried is used two times in this verse. However, in Hebrew it is two different words.
The first usage is the Hebrew word “kah-rah” and this word means to call out to a person by name. Hence Jonah cried out to HaShem [Adonai]. The principle being, Joseph knew WHO to call when he found himself in hell.
The second usage is the Hebrew word “shah-va” and this word means to be free or to call out for help with the intent of getting freedom from trouble. We put these two Hebrew words together and see that Jonah knew WHO to call upon to get free from the hell he found himself in.
We can get a feeling on Jonah’s hell by looking at the meaning of affliction in Hebrew. It simply means tightness, trouble, distress, and tribulation. Can you relate?
Jonah found himself in hell when he refused to do what God had told him to do. Many there are living in hell on earth because of disobedience. Has the Lord told you to do something and to this day, you still have not done it?
Now that we have a brief synopsis on overcoming death and hell, let’s move on and see how to overcome brethren. I don’t intend on spending a lot of time here; but I do want to point out in principle who the brethren are.
Brethren: a member of the Body of Messiah, a fellowman and one who shares common ancestry. This covers your natural and spiritual family.
Those that profess to be followers of God: And one shall say unto him, what are these wounds in thine hands? Then he shall answer; those with which I was wounded in the house of my friends [Zech 13:6].
Your fellowman: This speaks in principle of those you come in contact with on a daily basis. If the world hates you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you [Jn 15:18].
Common ancestry This speaks in principle of your blood kin. And a man's foes shall be they of his own household [Mt 10:36].