Tearing Down Strongholds Part Three
From The HeartPublish date: 10/04/2009
For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: 4 (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) 5 Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ; 6 And having in a readiness to revenge all disobedience, when your obedience is fulfilled. 2 Corinthians 10:3-6 KJV
For we are not wrestling with flesh and blood [contending only with physical opponents], but against the despotisms, against the powers, against [the master spirits who are] the world rulers of this present darkness, against the spirit forces of wickedness in the heavenly (supernatural) sphere.
Ephesians 6:12 AMP
God created you to be free and live free. Even now, His plan for you is to be free—in your spirit, in your soul and in your body. None of us is born into freedom—we are born into the bondage of sin. Sin exalts itself against the truth of God’s word and habitual sin is a stronghold in your mind. The key to your freedom from bondage and demonic strongholds lies in your obedience and submission to Christ.
The enemies we face in this life are not other people, but the devil and his demons. His ultimate plan is to kill you and send you to a lost eternity through sin and disobedience. If he can get you to take others with you, if he can get you to destroy other lives, he will do it. He doesn’t care what you do as long as the end result is eternal death—eternal separation from God. The greatest lie of the devil is that your freedom lies in following your own impulses and lusts. He is there to tempt you and to drag you down into the gutter of sin as far as he can. He knows full well that the wages of sin is death. The devil’s plan is to get you so tied up in sin that you cannot break free—to erect strongholds of sin and rebellion in your mind that keep you in bondage and drive you deeper into sin and death.
Beware, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God; 13 but exhort one another daily, while it is called “Today,” lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin. Hebrews 3:12-13 NKJV
Sin is a deceiver—it is never satisfied—it is like a fire that cannot be quenched. Once you start on a particular path of sin, you will find that you are always drawn in deeper and deeper. Sin comes to harden your heart and pull you away from God—His protection and His blessings. When people—even Christians—yield to sin and make it a way of life, their heart becomes harder and harder and they move further and further away from the Living God. You are either both moving toward God, and freedom, and away from sin and bondage, or you are moving away from God and freedom, and toward sin and bondage.
The more you yield to temptations, the more you lose control of your own life. Sin is ruling and dominating you more and more. It’s a slippery slope. As you yield to sin and fleshly lusts, so you are yielding yourself also bit by bit into the control of the devil—all the time he is gaining more and more dominion in your life. You find yourself at a place where you are powerless to stop on your own—you need divine intervention! The devil’s plan is to defile God’s special creation—Man—so that he can possess and control them. Because the devil is a thief, even after you give your heart and life to Jesus, he is trying to tempt, deceive, control and destroy you. The devil wants to live in your house, but God says that you are created to be the temple of the Living God!
1 Corinthians 6:19-20 AMP says, “Do you not know that your body is the temple (the very sanctuary) of the Holy Spirit Who lives within you, Whom you have received [as a Gift] from God? You are not your own, You were bought with a price [purchased with a preciousness and paid for, made His own].” You have been bought and paid for by the precious blood of Jesus and you owe Him your life. The devil has no right to try to move in to a house that already belongs to God! Verse 20 goes on to say, “So then, honor God and bring glory to Him in your body.” You have an obligation to yourself to keep your house pure and clean. When you honor God, you keep the devil out!
God gives us armor for protection and weapons to fight the good fight. The weapons of our warfare are not weapons we can see, hear, touch, taste or smell—they are not man’s weapons—they are spiritual weapons. Our armor is truth, integrity, righteousness, the reality of the Gospel, faith, and salvation and our weapons are the Word of God and prayer. God’s word is a blueprint for a life of freedom and joy—now and in eternity. We can each choose this freedom by choosing obedience to God, His word and His way.