Ryan Shepps

There are no sheepdogs. There are wolves who eat sheep, and wolves who eat other wolves. I don't think there's a take I've had that has stirred up so much controversy, but it is a biblical truth. The prophet Jeremiah says “The heart is more deceitful than all else and is desperately sick; Who can understand it?" The Apostle John says that, “… Jesus, on His part, was not entrusting Himself to them, because He knew all people, and because He did not need anyone to testify about mankind, for He Himself knew what was in mankind.” You aren't good. Far from it. There is something in you that's been there since Cain slew Abel. It's been in our blood since Adam walked past the flaming swords of the Cherubim guarding Eden's entrance, never to return there again. That same blood is running through your own veins, passed down from your father and his father before him. Remember, Eve was made inside the garden, but man was made from the dirt outside of it; in the merciless and savage wild. The default state of our soul is restlessness. Our god is death and our worship of him is war. It has always been this way. There has not been a single day in all of human history where there has not been warfare waged somewhere on this cursed soil. This concept of inherent evil in the heart of every man is illustrated poignantly in a story from Dave Eubank, a Free Burma Rangers missionary and former 75th Ranger, who killed 3 ISIS fighters while he was offering aid in Mosul. Dave said of the ordeal, "We're still sinners. He's the only righteous judge." On finding forgiveness for taking a life, he felt God say to him, "You need forgiveness too, all your motives are not pure. You're not better than these guys, this (ISIS attack on a Kurd outpost) just needed to stop." Solzhenitsyn portrays the same truth when speaking through a political lens. "The line separating good and evil passes not through states, nor between classes, nor between political parties either -- but right through every human heart -- and through all human hearts." Throughout modern history we have been conditioned to see the warring sides in global conflicts as we would a fairytale. A clear and present evil, and pure righteousness that opposes it. This couldn't be further from the truth. The bad guys don't wear all black bandanas, and the good guys don't use pearl handled six shooters. We're all killers shedding each others blood to survive. Once we come to terms with that, we'll realize that our salvation can't be won at the end of barrel, but at the foot of the cross. And that is the crux of the gospel, my brothers. Coming to terms with the true nature of yourself, and the evil just below the surface. Realizing your own propensity for evil, selfishness and bloodshed means the realization that you need a savior. If you are to enter into the Lord's eternal supper, you need to accept the sacrifice of Jesus the perfect lamb to ensure you have a seat at that table. There will come a day when we beat our swords into plowshares, but that time has not yet come. Until then, we will continue to shed blood and be bound like chains by this fallen and sinful flesh. As Job says, "The life of man upon earth is a warfare." There are no good guys. There are no sheepdogs. Only wolves who eat sheep and wolves who eat other wolves. But there is a Shepherd. And he bids you come to Him. "For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him."

Listen, I can't stand to hear one more "we win in the end" because to me it's a subtle lie, that we don't win right here and now. I can't tell you how many pastors I've heard echo this sentiment from the pulpit, saying that satan is the "King" or "Prince" of this Earth. Too many times I've heard the incomplete story that satan offered the kingdoms of this earth during the temptation in the wilderness because they belonged to him and they were his to offer. What's missing from their understanding is the past tense of the word "were". They "were" his to offer. Not anymore. When satan caused Adam to fall, he lawfully seized his authority and the domain of the earth that was originally given to the sons of men, was then rightfully given over to satan. Now you understand why Jesus the Christ only ever referred to himself as the Son of Man. He came as a man, to restore mankind's claim as heirs to the throne, as sons, and to reunite us with the Father through the work of the cross. "For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him." I need you to read that a few times over. We are now the righteousness of God, through Christ. Pauls asks in Corinthians, "Do you not know that we will judge angels? How much more the things of this life!" because he understood that our authority had been restored. Paul says later in Colossians, "And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross." He also says in Hebrews, "that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil;" So when you repeat the idea that "we win in the end" you minimize the work of the cross. The devil no longer has any legal right to your life, your lineage, the generational curses of your family, your future or any part of you at all. Those curses were taken to the cross, as is written in Colossians, Jesus “Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross;” The power of satan was defeated at the cross. Our saviour, Jesus the Christ is the King of this earth. He said so. "And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth." Matthew 28:18 KJV And we are rightful heirs of this throne, through Him. As James says, “Hearken, my beloved brethren, Hath not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which he hath promised to them that love him?” This is a spiritual truth that manifests physically. Eternal life is yours. The earth is yours, too. In Luke 10:19 Jesus himself says, "Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you." Over all the enemy. You know what He means when he says "all"? All of it. Absolutely all of it. Mark’s version speaks explicitly to the physical nature of things when he records Jesus as saying, “They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.” This is the new law, the new covenant spoken of in Jeremiah 31. And if we’ve learned anything from the riots and lawlessness that floods our streets while law enforcement watches on, doing nothing and standing idly by, it’s that a law is nothing if it’s not enforced. It’s why hyper spiritualized pastors will tell you half truths of how the only victory we have is spiritual in nature, and not physical. I understand that in this realm, evil men are given the same free will that we have, and that the true restoration of all things will only happen fully in the Kingdom of Heaven. I understand that there is still death, and sickness, and hardship - which means this authority is contested daily. But that’s exactly why the “we win in the end” mentality is so destructive. You have to fight back. You must enforce the law, or it has no effect. The enemy is disputing the borders of your domain, he is contesting the new law, and you must meet him in battle, spiritually and physically. There's no better quote to verbalize this concept than the scene from Fury. "I started this war killing Germans in Africa. Then France. Then Belgium. Now I'm killing Germans in Germany. It will end, soon. But before it does, a lot more people gotta die." The war is already won, yes. But you still need to pick up the sword, stack up, and fight. The work of the cross gave you back your salvation, and it also gave you back your authority in Christ and dominion over this earth. The cross that allows you to enforce the victory of the cross in your own life, in your home, and over your family also allows you to enforce the victory of the cross in your community, in the streets of your cities, and in your nation. Son of man, the dominion has been reclaimed for you. And if I’ve learned anything from the Idylls of the King, it’s that the sceptre in one hand is useless without the sword in the other. This is your domain. The kingdom is yours. Enforce your Fathers law. "And the kingdom and the dominion and the greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven shall be given to the people of the saints of the Most High;"