Jesus Can Free Us From Bondage (Proper 21C)

The Luke reading (13.10-17) reminds us that Jesus mission to proclaim the good news, open the eyes of the blind and free the prisoners includes freeing those “crippled by a spirit” (v 11). Sadly many in our time do not believe in spiritual warfare and would interpret this as a psychological problem or victory over superstition. One has to be blind spiritually, another form of bondage, to miss the clear meaning of “whom Satan has kept bound for 18 years” (v 16). Other forms of bondage mentioned in the readings are:

• Fear that almost prevented Jeremiah (1.6) from accepting his call to be a prophet 
• Legalism that criticized Jesus for healing on the Sabath
• Religious spirit that prevented the Pharisees and teachers from seeing the love of God 

My discovery of the importance of mental strongholds and bondages and how they destroy lives was the hinge of Going Spiritual. They are the link between the psychology of self-deception and the supernatural spiritual battle we all face. Let me summarize what these bondages or mental strongholds are, how we construct them and how Jesus can free us from them.

1. What are bondages / mental strongholds?

John L. Sandford defines them as “…a way of thinking and feeling that has developed a life of its own “ (Deliverance and Inner Healing). This can be anything we can not free ourselves from. The physical bondage mentioned in the gospel would be an extreme example of spiritual oppression. More common examples include:

• Depression, death wishes, suicide or excessive and unexplainable patterns of sickness. 
• Extreame ‘ism’s’ - intellectualism, liberalism, denominationalism, alcoholism etc.
• Addictions - smoking, drugs, power, control, sex, fear etc.

2. How do people get into bondages?

• False teaching, physical or emotional trauma or inherited sin-guilt or pattern of excessive sinful behaviour can lead to rebellion against God and spiritual wounding. 
• Spiritual wounding invites the demonic to oppress people from the inside. 
• Temptation works with our natural fears and psychological defenses to develop a destructive way of thinking and feeling with a life of its own - a bondage or mental stronghold. 

3. How does Jesus free us from bondage?

Hidden sin-guilt is the cement that holds the wall of bondage up so people inside can not see a way out. Satan uses our sin-guilt to keep us in this mental or biological prison. The Good News of Jesus is that His New Covenant provided a new way to free people from the sin-guilt that imprisons them:

• New Covenant of Jesus is that those who who seriously repent, believe in Him and take their specific sins to the Cross in faith will be forgiven.
• Removal of sin-guilt heals the wound, ends the oppression and weakens the bondage
• Jesus mission statement (Luke 4.18-19) teaches us how heal by proclaiming the Good News to open spiritual eyes that can not see and help people take their sin to the Cross and freedom
• Challenge is God’s primary gift of free will that means we can not force or bully people into faith
• We can only love them into the faith that will set them free and patiently proclaim the truth to the lie