TOPIC; LIVING IN GLORY V
MEMORISE
“But upon Mount Zion shall be those who escaped; and it shall be holy. And the house of Jacob shall possess their own possessions.” Obadiah 1:17
READ: Mar 5:1-15
1 And they came over to the other side of the sea, to the country of the Gadarenes.
2 And when He had come out of the boat, immediately a man with unclean spirits met Him out of the tombs,
3 who had his dwelling among the tombs. And no one could bind him, no, not with chains
4 because he had often been bound with fetters and chains, and the chains had been torn apart by him, and the fetters broken in pieces. Nor could anyone subdue him.
5 And always, night and day, he was in the mountains and in the tombs, crying and cutting himself with stones.
6 And when he saw Jesus afar off, he ran and worshiped Him,
7 and cried with a loud voice, and said, What is to me and to You, Jesus, son of the Most High God? I adjure You by God not to torment me.
8 For He said to him, Come out of the man, unclean spirit!
9 And He asked him, What is your name? And he answered, saying, My name is Legion, for we are many.
10 And he begged Him very much that He would not send them outside the country.
11 And a great herd of pigs was feeding near the mountains.
12 And all the demons begged Him, saying, Send us into the pigs, that we may enter into them.
13 And immediately Jesus allowed them. And the unclean spirits went out and entered into the pigs. And the herd ran violently down a steep place into the sea (they were about two thousand), and were choked in the sea.
14 And the ones who fed the pigs fled and told it in the city and in the country. And they went out to see what it was that was done.
15 And they came to Jesus and saw him who had been demon-possessed, and had the legion, sitting and clothed and right-minded, the one who had the legion. And they were afraid.
MESSAGE
Bondage is the condition of being dominated by sin-fleshly lusts, or demonic powers. Bondage refers to any situation contrary to God’s plan and purpose for man, according to Genesis 1:27– 28. It is anything that binds a fellow in the torment of fear (Hebrews 2: 15). Bondage of any kind has one purpose – to shame and disgrace. Incidentally, bondage is usually not forced, as we see in the case of Adam and Eve (Genesis 3:1–19). People usually become enslaved through the wrong choices they make in life. Consequently, many live by choice under the control of demonic powers, hard drugs and other forms of addiction like money, alcohol, sex, and worldly pleasures, without any idea that they are in bondage. That is why 2 Peter 2:19 says:
".... for of whom a man is overcome, of the same is he brought in bondage."
Furthermore, Romans 6 : 16 says: "Know ye not that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?"
No matter what you are passing through, you can make a decision now that will change the course of your life forever. All you need to do is reject sin and evil, then embrace God and righteousness.
There is nothing glorious about living in bondage. Physical bondage includes poverty, sickness, failure, a sinful lifestyle, and addictions. Spiritual bondage includes demonic possession, being remotely controlled or tied down, being under the influence and experiencing situations that are not observable or physically explicable, as seen in the case of the mad man of Gadara in our Bible reading today. The good news is that Jesus came to this world for the purpose of restoring freedom to man in line with John 10 : 10 and Luke 4 : 18.
As you reject Satan and submit to Jesus today, He will make you whole and deliver you completely form all forms of bondage, in Jesus’ name.
PRAYER POINT
Father, please deliver me from everything blocking the manifestation of Your glory in my life in Jesus name.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Leviticus 24-26
AUTHOR: PASTOR E. A ADEBOYE
HYMN 12: My Faith Looks Up to Thee.
1. My faith looks up to thee
Thou Lamb of Calvary
Savior divine!
Now hear me while I pray
Take all my guilt away
O let me from this day
Be wholly thine!
2. May thy rich grace impart
Strength to my fainting heart
My zeal inspire!
As thou hast died for me
O may my love to thee
Pure, warm, and changeless be
A living fire!
3. When life's dark maze I tread
And griefs around me spread
Be thou my guide
Bid darkness turn to day
Wipe sorrow's tears away
Nor let me ever stray
From thee aside
4. When ends life's transient dream
When death's cold, sullen stream
Shall o'er me roll
Blest Savior, then in love
Fear and distrust remove
O bear me safe above
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