I heard a statement recently, and it got me all shades of fired up:

“What the Body of Christ needs now more than ever is a spirit of defiance.”

Sound weird? Allow me to explain.

The king in Babylon thought it was a great idea to make a statue of himself and mandate everyone in the kingdom to bow to it. No one was exempt from this mandate – no matter where they were from, no matter their background, no matter if they had a religious exemption (*ahem*), none of these mattered to the tyrannical king. Bowing to his statue was the mandate, and by golly, everyone had better comply or face the consequences.

Many in the kingdom didn’t think twice about it and followed the king’s mandate without question. They did as they were told and willingly bowed their knee. However, a few in the kingdom refused to obey the mandate. Their non-compliance was brought to the king’s attention, and they were summoned to appear before him. Their defiance made the king so angry that he threatened them with death in a fiery furnace.

Their response to the king is worth quoting:

“We do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and He will deliver us from Your Majesty’s hand. But even if he does not, we want you to know, Your Majesty, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.” Daniel 3:16-18.

Boom.

A bold, courageous, unstoppable, unquenchable, unmovable spirit of defiance!

The spirit of the king of Babylon is alive and well in this nation.

I started thinking about the “gold statutes” we are commanded to bow to:

Bow to the king’s definition of gender

Bow to the king’s definition of marriage

Bow to the king’s definition of equality

Bow to the king’s definition of sexuality

Bow to the king’s definition of religion

Bow to the king’s mandates regarding your body

Bow to the king’s abortion laws

Or face the consequences –

Attacks from all sides,

Accusations of narrow-mindedness, bigotry, hatred, and racism,

Possibly lose your business, your right to defend yourself, and in extreme cases – lose your ability to buy or sell unless you comply.

Sisters, we are living in perilous times described in Scripture.

BUT, we are NOT powerless!

Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego STOOD FIRM despite the threats, accusations, and consequences, and SO SHOULD WE. God delivered them, and He will deliver us one way or another: from the fire, through the fire, or by the fire, it doesn’t matter. Stand firm and see the deliverance and power of Almighty God!

Almighty God, send the fiery winds of your Spirit to embolden and indwell your sons and daughters with a holy spirit of defiance to stand against the wicked schemes of the enemy. Empower your Bride to stand firm in the face of evil and declare the powerful, unmatchable truth of your word - no matter what the consequences may be. Fill us with a holy fear of you and forgive us for fearing those who can kill the body but cannot kill the soul.

We stand firm in bold defiance by the power of the Name that is above every name. Only at the name of Jesus will we bow.

Only the Name of Jesus will we confess as King of kings and Lord of lords, to the glory of God the Father.

We will not bow to the gold statutes set up by wicked leaders or rulers of our day.

We humbly ask you Father, to unify your Bride by giving us all a holy spirit of defiance. Pour out your Spirit and make us bold and courageous.

Embolden us to defiantly stand against teachings that are contrary to Your Word.

Embolden us to defiantly stand against threats.

Embolden us to defiantly stand against the shifting and redefining definitions of what your word declares to be right and holy and good.

Embolden us to unapologetically call what is evil, evil and what is good, good.

Empower us to boldly declare that Jesus Christ is the way, the truth, and the life, and no one comes to the Father except through him.

Empower us to boldly declare the Gospel message. The Gospel has been and will always be the most powerful message in the world. Jesus Christ came to save sinners, and forgiveness and eternal life are possible only through Him.

Let's pray for a spirit of defiance, then let's put on the whole armor of God, then let's STAND FIRM and see the deliverance of the Lord!