The secret to freedom is very simple. I’ve experienced freedom in so many ways while on the World Race, and I want to share with you how and why.
The secret to freedom is very simple, but Satan wants us to think it is complicated and impossible because He wants us to stay enslaved.
The secret to freedom is very simple, because God wants every single one of us to experience the sweet freedom He provides for us in abundance.
The secret to freedom is very simple. It is in the Name of Jesus, by the blood of Jesus.
On the cross, when He died, Jesus paid the atonement price for all sin ever. We are free forever from the punishment of sin when we accept the blood of Jesus as our atoning sacrifice.
When we accept Jesus as our Savior, we are joined with Him in His death and resurrection, so we are free from our sinful nature – it was nailed to the cross with Jesus, it died with Him – and our spirit is eternally alive with His Spirit; our true identity is now fully holy and blameless.
Since we are joined with His Spirit, which raised Him from the dead, we have sonship in the family of God and all the authority that comes from the King, the Maker of Heaven and Earth.
With His death and resurrection, Jesus defeated all the power of evil, darkness, sickness, and death. In the Name of Jesus, demons flee, sickness is healed, the dead are raised, and darkness shatters.
We have authority in Jesus to declare His Name over evil, darkness, sickness, and death, and set all the captives free. There is power in the words we say and the things we declare. In the same way God spoke to the darkness, “Let there be light,” and there was light, we can declare light in the darkness through Jesus. All those who are captive to sin, to darkness, to hopelessness, to anxiety, to fear, to unworthiness, to legalism, to perfectionism, to performance, to envy, to drunkenness, to sexual immorality, to depression, to sickness… all are free in the Name of Jesus, by the blood of Jesus! Hallelujah!
I’ve experienced it firsthand.
I’ve walked through seasons on the Race when I feel completely controlled by my emotions – specifically by shame, fear, and anxiety. These were days and weeks of darkness; I felt hopeless. When I realized that my shame, fear, and anxiety were caused by taking my eyes and focus off of Jesus and putting them on my imperfections, problems, and life’s uncertainties, I conquered the shame, fear, and anxiety by declaring that I am free from those things in the Name of Jesus! It wasn’t instantaneous in a lot of cases, but that’s because my mind had spent hours and days thinking about the darkness. When I renewed my mind and chose to think about the Truth of who God is and what Jesus has done to free me – specifically replacing the negative thoughts and lies with positive thoughts and truths in the moment – I experienced freedom more and more every day.
There have been times when I have been overwhelmed with anger. You know the feeling; your blood is boiling, your heart rate is racing, your vision is red, your face is streaked with hot tears. I’ve been angry. And in those moments, knowing that my anger produces only rotten fruit and that grace is more powerful than rage, I’ve cried out to Jesus. I’ve declared that Jesus died to free me from anger, and claimed complete freedom from the negative thoughts and physiological manifestations of anger. And in moments, I am free. Free from the anger! Filled with peace! In the Name of Jesus, by the blood of Jesus.
There have been times of temptation. Times when I know what is right but I want to do wrong. I feel conviction – the Holy Spirit nudging me, “You’ve turned away, Jess, this is wrong.” And I cry out, “Jesus help me! By your death I am free from the power of sin!” And the temptation vanishes and I am free. Wow. It’s incredible, a miracle, a gift.
During a trip to Lake Toba in Indonesia, we heard teachings from Dave and Frances van den Berg, missionaries from South Africa. Dave spoke one day about the Holy Spirit and His mighty power. He told us about how when the Israelites were at Jericho, they shouted and cheered and celebrated before the walls came down, trusting that God would deliver Jericho into their hands as He had promised. Pastor Dave gave testimony of how he took this seriously as a young man in the area of healing; he prayed for healing of a broken tooth and immediately began celebrating his healed tooth, telling everyone about how Jesus healed him, though there was no physical evidence. But one day soon after, he discovered his tooth was completely healed – he had received his miracle!
After hearing this testimony – and even struggling the day before with belief in healing – I felt compelled to take a leap of faith. I had been biting my nails (something I have been doing since I was 9 years old), and my fingers were in a lot of pain from me tearing my nails from the already-sensitive skin. I went to the bathroom and felt nudged to wash my hands 7 times and pray for healing. It felt silly, but I did it. I washed my hands 7 times, and as I did, I spoke aloud: “I am free forever from the obsessive-compulsion to chew my nails. I am free forever from the desire to chew my nails. Through the blood of Jesus, I claim victory over this compulsion. By the blood of Jesus I am already healed. Jesus already defeated this compulsion 2000 years ago on the cross; it is finished.”
It has been two and a half weeks since that day and I have not chewed my nails since. Hallelujah! Puji Tuhan!
You see, when Jesus died and took sin, evil, and death to the grave with Him, He destroyed my obsessive-compulsive tendencies, too. I claimed my healing and received it! I walked in faith that by Jesus’ death I am already healed! Hallelujah!
The battle has already been won for us. Jesus paid the full price not only for the sin that keeps us from being with God in Heaven after death, but He also defeated the evil that still plagues us on Earth, the evil that tries endlessly to get us to turn away from God. It is defeated, and as God’s children we share in His victory. We get to take part in it. We can choose it, wield it, and share it with others.
The key to partaking in this great privilege is faith. Faith in God and believing He is who He says He is, that He is always true to His Word, and He is faithful to keep His promises. Faith in Jesus, believing that He is God’s son and that He died on the cross to save us all from our sin. Faith in Holy Spirit, believing that by accepting Jesus as your Savior, you received the Holy Spirit as your comforter and guide; that He lives in you and therefore you carry God’s power and authority with you always. Faith is the fuel that runs us, gives us strength, and carries us through the hardest trials, temptations, and struggles. And without faith, it is impossible to please God (Hebrews 11:6). It’s His love language!
Perhaps, as you read this today, it sounds impossible. “That kind of stuff happened in Bible times,” you may think, “but it doesn’t happen today.” I encourage you to remember that our God is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow; He doesn’t change. The “God of the Bible” is the same God who lives in you! Once you believe that with all your heart, read His Word. Study the Bible and ask, “What does this tell me about God?” Study the Old Testament, too! Then read the new testament; it is full of incredible, life-changing truth about our identity, purpose, and authority through Christ, because of Christ. And when God’s Spirit within you prompts you to take a leap of faith – to declare freedom, claim victory, command healing – take the leap!
The secret to freedom is simple. It’s through faith in the blood of Jesus, in the Name of Jesus.
Amen.
