When we look at the world through God’s microscope, we cannot but observe that something is fundamentally wrong. God’s creation - intended to dominate over all He has created - is held captive by sin. God’s ‘treasured possessions’ that we are, we are spellbound by the lies and treachery of Satan and are literally under his feet – for all the wrong reasons you can imagine. Our Lord Jesus came into the world to set things straight. He came to save people from their sins (Matthew 1:21). He came to offer life lived in full. “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” (Romans 10:10)
At the creation, God said:“Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and all the creatures that move along the ground.” (Genesis 1:26) Thus, humankind was empowered to rule the universe as a king with all God’s creation submitting to him. Unfortunately, he is being dragged away from God’s age-old principles for living, to succumb to sin with it stagged wages - which is death (Romans 6:23). Humankind is drifting at an alarming pace from God’s precepts of living misled by the devil. In this regard, Satan has set up his own guidelines for living based on falsehood and humanity has swallowed this bait - hook, line and sinker – diving head-long into self-destruction.
The nature of sin is temporary and fleeting. When however we are awake to sin and its negative impact, we can brace ourselves up in order not to give Satan and his agents a toehold. “Submit yourselves then to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.” (James 4:7)
God is not obsolete. He is still very active in the lives of those who believe in Him; those who have not been lured by Satan into thinking that this life must be lived on the fast lane with all the pitfalls disguised as earthly havens. Nothing is further away from the truth. Such deception started at the Garden of Eden when Adam and Eve were fooled into believing that they could be like God. Blindfolded by Satan, they were led straight to their downfall. God created life and therefore knows best how it should be lived. Satan is bent on having us chained and deprived from the blessings God has already laid out for us through Abraham.
Satan is a deceiver and is up to no good; all his accomplishments are death traps for our doom. He is at the helm of anything that is or has gone wrong in our lives. He will seek to deter you from entering into your Promised Land. He will inflict you with sickness, disease, want, hardship just to impede your spiritual growth and victory.
Our Lord Jesus was sent to set captives free, to undo Satan’s lie. He offers life, true life in abundance to all those who refuse to live that lie and put their trust in God, the Father.”…the Lord has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the broken-hearted, to proclaim freedom to the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners …” (Isaiah 61:1-2)
Keeping people in darkness is one of Satan’s tools to shield humanity from the truth. Ignorance is a hindrance to our rightful place in the kingdom of God.“My people are destroyed from lack of knowledge.” (Hosea 4:6) Satan wants us to live in perpetual darkness, soaked in sin; helpless and unrepentant. But our Lord Jesus is that light that can lift the blindfold that seeks to deprive us of our inheritance.
The Bible is drawing our attention to the dangers of giving in to Satan, the prince of darkness, the tempter, the evil one. “Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.” (1 Peter 5:8) He deceived Adam and Eve and will deceive you too. He ridiculed Samson before his sworn enemies when in concert with his foreign mistress he lost his God-given strength to end up bound, hands and feet, to become a public laughing-stock.
Our Lord Jesus is the light that overcame darkness. Just as darkness cannot withstand light, nothing could hold Him bound – not even death. He declared:”If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” (John 8:32-33)
All those who came to him bound either by blindness, leprosy, fever, the palsy, depression or demon-possessed, He liberated. Demons fled before Him. What is holding you bound?
If you feel bound by your sins, the good news is that Jesus forgives sin so you can start all over again, free from guilt. Those who come to him, He says: “… I will never drive away.” (John 6:37)
