Mercy Culture

Pastor Les Cody continues the Spiritual Warfare series by teaching on the Jezebel spirit, opening in Revelation 2 where Jesus confronts the church at Thyatira for tolerating this controlling, seductive influence. Pastor Les explains that spiritual warfare is a battle over who rules the will of man and warns that the enemy’s most effective tactic is convincing believers their problems are only natural rather than spiritual.

Tracing Jezebel’s biblical history as the daughter of a Baal worshiping king, Pastor Les describes her as a demonic spirit of manipulation, intimidation, and control that targets prophetic, spirit led people and works to divide churches and relationships. He clarifies this spirit is not gender specific and outlines ten of its characteristics, including jealousy, false submission, weaponized vulnerability, seduction, division, confusion, and a refusal to ever repent.

Using Ahab and Naboth’s vineyard from 1 Kings 21, Pastor Les teaches that Jezebel has no authority except what is surrendered to her through unchecked desire, and he challenges listeners to examine what they want badly enough to be manipulated through. He also shares a deeply personal testimony of years spent under the influence of this spirit at a previous ministry, describing fear, performance, and silence, until exposing it in the light broke its power over him, pointing to Elijah’s story in 1 Kings 19 as a model for finding rest and truth after spiritual battle.

Pastor Les closes by urging the church to stop tolerating this spirit in their own lives and relationships, to expose it rather than hide it, and to pursue the presence of God as the surest way to recognize and resist its counterfeit voice.

The vision of Mercy Culture is to take people from corporate encounters with God to daily personal encounters with God. At Mercy Culture, one of our unique characteristics is that we are a presence driven church. We are not built around any person or ministry. We are built around the presence of God. Each week, you will hear a teaching from our Lead Pastors, Sean and Natalie Gleason or another leader in our community. To learn more about Mercy Culture, visit https://mercyculturewaco.com

In "Supply Lines," Senior Lead Pastor Landon Schott teaches on the spiritual war over money and how the spirit of mammon seeks to draw our trust away from God. Through the story of Moses and Pharaoh in Exodus 10, we learn why our resources matter to our worship, the importance of honoring God through tithing and generosity, and how our giving advances the Kingdom of God.

Jesus was the most perfect leader who ever lived, and people still left Him. So why do pastors believe that if they just lead well enough, no one will walk away?

Pastor Landon Schott has a warning for pastors and spiritual leaders: do not let people change your relationship with God. Pharaoh never broke Moses, but 40 years of the people's complaints, criticism, and betrayal did. He struck the rock, and it cost him the Promised Land. If it happened to Moses, it can happen to you. Go back to the place where you first fell in love with God, and don't leave that place.