Every Spirit That Binds You Must Go (Inspirational & Motivational)

one of my favorite movies is Shawshank Redemption and one of the main characters in the movie is Ellis Boyd reading he's known in the movie as red red is one of the best smugglers in the prison and can get anyone just about anything they need inside the prison walls one of the reasons red is so good at smuggling is that he has been inside the prison for a very long time when we first meet red he's up for parole after about 30 years of being in prison he tells the parole board that he's been rehabilitated and wants to be set free from prison unfortunately the board denies his parole he would have done anything at the moment to get out of prison five years later he goes in front of the parole board and they give him the same answer finally after 40 years of being in the prison they let red out on parole he received the freedom that he always wanted however after being out for a few weeks he hates it he is so familiar with living in the cell that he starts thinking about trying to find a way to return he even thought about buying a gun to break his parole so he'd be sent back he desired to go back to the very prison he hated we often do the same thing as Christians we are imprisoned to some sort of sin God breaks those chains free however we eventually feel the desire of the prison calling for us and we run back first Peter 2 verse 20 to 21 speaks to this it says for if after they have escaped the defilements of the world through the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ they are again entangled in them and overcome the last state has become worse for them than the first for it would have been better for them never to have known the way of righteousness than after knowing it to turn back from the holy commandment delivered to them Peter is talking about false teachers specifically those who teach that you can live a life however you want after coming to Jesus those who teach that there is no need for repentance it is better for that person to never claim that they knew the Lord than to turn to God and then turn away to be clear this is not saying that any Christian who has been drawn back into sin they have already overcome by the power of the spirit will not receive forgiveness however if you claim to know the Lord then completely forsake Him and turn back to your old worldly sin you are outside of the Lord's grace and mercy you are a dog that has returned to his own vomit to eat we need not only think of this on the level of sin such as drug addiction or re-entering a forbidden relationship this happens on much smaller levels as well maybe God has broken you free from a food addiction or gossip well you may say to yourself it's not a big deal if I gossip about my friend's bad habits one more time it is actually a big deal in that moment you are forsaking the work that the spirit has done in your heart this could be a slippery slope that leads you to forsaking the Lord in other areas of your life if not careful you may end up forsaking the Lord altogether we have a wonderful opportunity to live a life of Freedom through Jesus Christ while the Temptation we face can give us a thrill and falsely make us feel alive sin will put us in the very cell we already escape from [Music] but let me tell you this the blood of Jesus has set you free from that sin you are forgiven you are set free do not return to the very sin that has destroyed your life in the past don't go back to anything you had to pray your way out of [Music] a theologian by the name of Martin Luther once said something remarkable he said I have held many things in my hands and I have lost them all but whatever I have placed in God's hands that I still possess [Music] think about what we're being told here everything that this man has held on to and put his hands on everything that he's tried to fix and change he's lost it all he's been unsuccessful with but he says whatever I have placed in God's hands that I still possess in other words he's saying I've had better success in life when I've left things in God's hands and dear friends that's what I want to encourage you to do today leave it in God's hands that means pray about it stand on God's word concerning that issue or problem fast and believe God for it but more importantly leave it in the hands of the master and let me tell you this when you take things into your hands you are being disobedient to God because the Bible says trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding the Amplified translation for First Peter chapter 5 verse 7 says casting all your cares all your anxieties all your worries and all your concerns once and for all on him for he cares about you with deepest affection and watches over you very carefully furthermore Philippians 4 verse 6 to 7 says be anxious for nothing but in everything by prayer and supplication with Thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God and the peace of God which surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and Minds through Christ Jesus this is telling you that if you have something you're worried about pray about it make your requests known to God and leave it in his hands if there is something that's making you anxious the Bible tells you to cast all all your cares on Jesus Christ is there an issue with your children is there a private sin you're wrestling with whatever it is remember that we are not to worry about anything instead pray about everything tell God what you need and thank him for all he has done only then can you and I experience God's peace which exceeds anything we can understand his peace will guard your hearts and Minds as you live in Christ Jesus I want to tell you something if you've ever prayed for God to take you out of a certain situation don't go back to it if you've prayed for God to remove you from a toxic situation or an unstable environment don't go back to it if there is anything you've asked God to save you from and he does don't go back to that very thing that once held you in bondage don't go back to anything you had to pray your way out of and for those who've prayed for deliverance or freedom once you have been delivered once you've been set free draw a line there and refuse to go backwards refuse to look back let's say you were in a sinful relationship he then prayed and prayed for the strength to make it out of that relationship it was hard because you truly loved the person but you knew it was not a relationship the Lord would want you to be in eventually by the power of the spirit you have enough strength to leave the relationship you are free from that relationship for a few months and life is going great however you start to feel the desire to re-enter a relationship with that person God is calling you to flee why return to the same thing you prayed for God to deliver you from while that desire may feel good for a little while in the end it will lead to destruction you are flirting with bondage by giving in to that 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