Over the course of the past two years, freedom is a subject that has been on my mind and heart. I have desired freedom in areas of my own life and I have desired freedom on behalf of family, friends and loved ones. I have desired freedom to sweep across the church.
Through this season, God has touched my heart with the promise of freedom. The Lord has used various means to reiterate and confirm this promise to me over and over again. And it has become clear to me that freedom is not just something nice that we hope for. Freedom is our God given right as children of the Father. Declaring the good news that brings freedom and releasing captives and prisoners is our God given mandate. But in order for the reality of that freedom to manifest in our lives and our surroundings we must believe that it’s available and we have to go after it.
Check this out:
The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is upon me, for the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to comfort the brokenhearted and to proclaim that captives will be released and prisoners will be freed. (Isa. 61:1)
In his ministry on earth, Jesus recited these same words. His spirit lives on the inside of us and therefore, these words apply to us! In his book, Spirit Wars Kris Vallotton distinguishes the difference between prisoners and captives. We send people to prison because of wrong they have done. People are held captive by forces that control them. In other words, a person is imprisoned by sinful actions, attitudes and mindsets…areas in their life not surrendered to Jesus. People are held captive by demonic lies that they have believed. Prisoners become free through repentance. They must decide to live in full surrender and obedience to Christ and renounce sinful thoughts and behaviors. Captives become free by choosing to replace the lies they have believed with the truth of God’s word. Understanding this is so vital to us living the life of abundance that Jesus intends for us.
For the Lord is the Spirit, and wherever the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. (2 Cor. 3:17)
Again, if you have made the decision to walk in relationship with Jesus, you carry God’s spirit with you wherever you go. And what that means is you carry freedom on the inside of you. When you walk into a room, freedom shows up too. The life-transforming resurrection power of the Holy Spirit is literally bursting at the seams ready to overflow in every area of your life and to spill out to every person and circumstance you come into contact with. The only thing that can hold us bound is our unwillingness to take Him at His word. We must believe that His ways are better than ours and come into alignment with the life of holiness and righteousness He has planned for us. We must choose to agree only with His truth and renounce every lie that has kept us trapped in places of fear and deception. And we must choose to stand in the gap and fight for those still in the trenches of captivity, declaring the promises of heaven over their lives and storming the gates of Hell with our bold faith and worship.
Not only is freedom possible it’s promised to us. Let’s grab hold of it and be agents of freedom in the world around us.
