How To Overcome A Stronghold

you've already repented you've already been saved already been baptized yet there's fear anger discouragement bitterness unforgiveness judgmental attitudes sexual immorality and your thoughts and actions rebellion against God ordained Authority alcohol and drug abuse sends a speech like lying gossip slander cursing you see that in your life sometimes you see it all the way back in your family and you say what is going on I'm saved but I've got sin in my life what's going on you're dealing with a sinful stronghold you might say I've never heard of that well if you're at Bellevue you've heard about it not only me but dr. Rogers preached about it my beloved predecessor after Adrian Rogers preached a sermon years ago entitled how to break Satan's strongholds in your life and the good folks at love worth finding have put it together one of the best little booklets you'll ever read in your life right here it is and I encourage you to pick up this a sermon that's been put in a little booklet here's what he says people have all kinds of strongholds in their lives I believe strongly that they are there are some people who have allowed Satan to build strong hold and strongholds in their hearts their minds their lives not only are these satanic strongholds harming them and wrecking their spiritual lives but through them they are contaminating the lives of their families and their churches amen dr. Rutter's all because the devil has found an unclean place topis in that person's heart and has built a stronghold there he the devil then uses it to war against God and against the work of God repentance and resistance and renewal are the steps to breaking Satan's strongholds in your life don't try to repent until you're honest and face your sin don't try to resist until you've repented and don't try to be filled with the Holy Spirit and be renewed until you have chosen against Satan and yielded to God's Blessed Holy Spirit what is a stronghold of sin is the fortress of lies in your heart how do you defeat a lie with the truth what did Jesus say you're truly my disciples John a 31 and 32 you're truly my disciples if you remain faithful to my teachings and you will know the truth and the truth will set you free it's not just truth that sets you free it's the truth that you know that sets you free you will know the truth and the truth what truth the truth that you know will set you free and how do you know the truth of Jesus by living and abiding once you get saved living and abiding in this word letting this scripture burn in your heart every day every time you can and Jesus said in John 17:17 he was praying to the Father he said make them holy by your truth teach them your word your word is truth I Got News for you this Bible is not just true it is the truth and the truth that you know out of this Bible can set you free so I can't read the Bible all the time I've heard people that do that go crazy I got news for you people that read the Bible all the time are the only ones that are not going crazy everybody else is worried about the economy worried about this we've got a god we've got the word we've got the Word of God and the god of the word and we're living in the word we've heard good news this morning why because we're in the Word of God we've chosen the truth and the truth can set us free we're not going to listen to the lives of everybody else we're gonna listen to the truth of the word of God so how do you get free if you've got a stronghold you say I've got that I've got that be setting soon I'm so tired of confessing that to the Lord I'm so tired of seeing that in my family my daddy was like this my granddaddy was like this my grandmother what in the world it's a stronghold declare war on it say it ends with me draw a line in the sand and say this is it no more it's not going to my kids it's not going to my grandkids it stops with me and deal with it you say would you please stop talking to me and tell me how to deal with it yes sir here we go you'd better write this down and husband's get your PIN out and don't make your wife do it I could see some strongholds of anger looking at me right now okay number one identify the stronghold you got to know that they exist yeah no you what the problem is second Corinthians ten talks about them three through five for though we walk in the flesh we don't war after the flesh for the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds there it is casting down imaginations notice all the thought process here every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God bringing into captivity every thought there it is that's what it is bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Jesus Christ so you've got to identify the strong what is it is it fear is it anger is it jealousy is it lust is it unforgiveness what is it identify it number two take the stronghold to the Lord you got to just come and say Lord I've got a stronghold of mine I'm a Christian but I'm dealing with Abba setting sin I can't get rid of this I need some help the Bible says I love Psalm 50 2:22 give your burden or cast your burden to the Lord he will take care of you so you take the stronghold to the Lord not just to your neighbor not just to your pastor but to the Lord then thirdly you seek scriptures that are applicable to your stronghold second Timothy 3 says that all Scripture is inspired by God it's useful or profitable to teach us what is true to make us realize what is wrong in our lives scripture corrects us when we're wrong teaches us to want to do what is right God uses it to prepare and equip his people to do every good word so you start finding scriptures why because you're going to claim and stand on and pray those scriptures that truth is the truth that's going to set you free you've got to find verses that deal with your situation you say Lord I'm gonna stand on these promises if it's fear I'm gonna stand on a verse like Philippians 4:6 I'll be anxious for nothing but in everything by prayer and supplication with Thanksgiving I'll let my requests be made known unto God and the peace of God will guard my heart my mind in Christ Jesus I'm just gonna stand on those verses God whatever this stronghold is number 4 you share the stronghold that you're dealing with with a trusted friend this is accountability James 5:16 confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed then number five you pray with your friend and you repent and you ask God to forgive you there's something powerful when two people pray together jesus said in matthew 18 19 and 20 it's a prayer promise he said I also tell you this if two of you agree here on earth concerning anything that you asked notice that it's not just about church discipline it's about prayer prayer my father if you ask my father in heaven he will do it for you for where two or three have gathered together as my followers I'm there among them Hosea 14 - I love this take words with you and return to the Lord say to him take away all iniquity receive us graciously that we may present the fruit of our lips there's something about praying and talking to God and saying God I repent I ask you to forgive me let your friend be there with you when you do it number six take back the ground you have surrendered to the devil you say what in the world are you talking about the devil has no right to be in fluence in your life in any way the devil has no right to have a stronghold of your life you belong you are bought and paid for and you belong to the Lord Jesus Christ the devil is just there as a squatter if you will he's just a hobo on God's property it's time for you to tell the hobo to get off of God's property take back the ground Ephesians 4:27 says don't give the devil a foothold that little word foothold is the Greek word toe pus don't give the devil one inch of topography in your spiritual life take the ground back and how do you do that James 4:7 a this is exactly what you do so humble yourself or submit yourselves before God resist the devil and he will flee from you come near our draw close to God and God will come near our draw close to you I mean - exactly how you do that let's say you're dealing with a stronghold of fear they say father in the name of Jesus I want to thank you that you have not given me a spirit of fear but of power and love and a sound mind 2nd Timothy 1:7 and so father I surrender myself to you I commit myself you Satan in the name of Jesus I come against you you will not be allowed to put fear in my life anymore in the name of Jesus that's that's resisting the devil and then you go right back to God Lord now I surrender to you I draw near to you please Lord draw near to me you say you actually talk to the devil not long but yes you do and don't say that people in the Bible didn't do it because Paul did it it Phillipi he talked to the demons that come out of her the demon came out I mean to say this to you greater is He Who is in you than he was in the world don't talk to him all the time but what you do is you start by talking with God submitting to God resist the devil and then once you resist him with your friend with you your agreeing together you resist the devil then you come back to God and surrender to God that's how you get rid of that that's how you take that out of your life it's just like confessing sin you deal with it you take the ground back and then number seven by faith you receive God's forgiveness aren't you grateful that when you ask God to forgive you the Bible says if we confess our sins to him he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins to cleanse us from all wickedness then you will live you start living and abiding in the Word of God I really encourage you to memorize Scripture I encourage you to sing scripture I encourage you to pray Scripture I encourage you to read scripture all of the above and above all obeying Scripture psalm 119 says how can a young person stay pure by obeying your word I've tried hard to find you don't let me wander from your commands I have hidden your word in my heart that I may not sin against you number nine pray the word this will change your life Jesus said in John 15:7 if you remain in me and my words remain in you or abide in you you may ask for anything you want and it will be granted and then keep on praying the word have been stand firm against sin first Corinthians 16:13 be on guard stand firm in the faith be courageous and strong now I want everybody to stand up and let's read Galatians 5:1 to me one of the greatest verses in all the Bible about not going back to a stronghold of sin it takes a little longer to get up and it does down doesn't let's read Galatians 5:1 read it good and slow but good and strong ok here we go it is for freedom that Christ has set us free stand firm then and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery amen Henry you say pastor I want to be free in Jesus I want to walk in freedom anybody out there like that amen you know what you could change the spiritual trajectory of your whole family if you would deal with the strongholds in your life some of you have strongholds that have been in your family for years I'm telling you be the man be the woman of God that says I draw a line in the sand and it's not going past me I'm dealing with these things in my life I am NOT going to my grave with these miss etting sins in my life I'm not going to do it I don't need to rededicate I don't need to be rebaptised I don't need to join another Church I don't need just to give up and say well this is just the way it is I can't help it I am going to be set free I am going to know the truth and the truth is going to set me free I am going to know the truth Jesus is going to give me the truth and I'm going to walk in the truth and the truth is going to set me free do you believe that I believe with all my heart and I just pray that you won't just take these little 10 things and tuck them away I pray that you'll go home this afternoon if you're a Christian but you're dealing with the settings in say Lord Jesus we got to do business find a trusted friend pray with that person and pour out your heart to God and watch the freedom begin to come here as you live in the word as the word of God set you free and you start knowing though the word if you're truly my disciples then you will obey my word and the word the truth of the word you know will set you free may God what would happen what would happen how many we got here I don't know five six seven thousand I know what we got what would happen if these thousands of people I set free and we didn't have those the settings sins anymore do you think we'd be different in our families do you think it would make us better dads do you think it wouldn't make us better moms do you think it would make us better children do you think it would make us better employees do you think maybe it would make us better soul winners and better prayer warriors and better church members do you think maybe we just be better do you think maybe we would be the fragrance of Christ do you think maybe people would see us and they those people are different why they're free they're free god help us may God give you that vision may God give you that holy bold as to say I'm not living enslaved anymore because I will know the truth and the truth will set me free

Channel: Bellevue Baptist Church

Views: 13,126

Rating: 4.8958335 out of 5

Keywords: Stronghold, sin, addiction

Id: K6YmPcweV7g

Length: 14min 0sec (840 seconds)

Published: Fri May 25 2012