Examples Of Being Spiritually Enslaved

Question

What is spiritual bondage?

spiritual bondage

Answer

The exact phrase spiritual bondage does not appear in the Bible, but Scripture does speak of unbelievers' beingness in chains to sin (Acts 8:23; Romans vi:6, 16, 19; seven:14; 2 Peter 2:xix). Jesus said, "Very truly I tell you, everyone who sins is a slave to sin" (John 8:34) and that He came to set us free (verse 32). Evil has a style of taking agree in a person's life, and bad habits are hard to intermission. For an unsaved person, sin forms a chain that merely the Savior can interruption.

And so, in that location is some biblical truth in the idea of spiritual bondage. Information technology is possible to "give the devil a foothold" (Ephesians 4:27) by harboring sins like anger in our hearts. Nonetheless, we should not remember of spiritual bondage as Christians beingness jump by demons. Ministries that focus wholly on breaking demonic bondage oftentimes misapply biblical texts to support their teachings. For example, at that place is a deviation between a person who lives co-ordinate to the flesh (an unbeliever) and one who lives according to the Spirit (a believer), according to Romans 8:5–13. The ane is in bondage; the other is not. A believer can exist guilty of disobeying God, but he cannot practice disobedience (ane John 3:4–10). That is, a believer is not in bondage to sin. A believer may take a compulsion to steal, and he may even carry out a theft, only he volition repent. What a believer cannot do is self-identify as a thief, enjoy being a thief, and experience no remorse. Romans viii does not support the idea of spiritual bondage for a believer; information technology simply delineates the deviation betwixt a believer and an unbeliever.

There is no uncertainty that demons oppress and tempt believers, and there are some states of mind that are fertile ground for temptation (Matthew 6:13; one Corinthians vii:5; Galatians 6:1). Merely at that place is no evidence to propose that we are in any way bound by demons or rendered helpless in spiritual warfare. A give-and-take search for oppression in the Bible reveals that man's oppression of his boyfriend man is a far more common problem. Here is the existent danger: that we become obsessed with spiritual bondage and with our own inner workings to the indicate that sin becomes our focus rather than Christ.

The discussion faith comes from a Latin word significant "to demark fast." The thought behind the term religion is that the devotee is bound under an obligation of some sort. Religion can hands turn into a type of spiritual bondage when nosotros let our fears of hell, judgment, or demonic activity to control united states or when we adopt a religious mindset that says, "If I don't perform such and such a ritual, at that place will exist bad consequences." This is not biblical truth. "Perfect love drives out fear" (1 John 4:xviii). We are not saved past rituals nosotros perform; in fact, Jesus said that ritualistic organized religion does nothing but "load people downwards with burdens they can hardly carry" (Luke 11:46). Those who believe in Christ are given rest and spiritually protected (Matthew 11:28; Romans viii:37–39; Jude one:24).

We know that sin is harmful, and some sins are quite addiction-forming. Merely there is nothing in the Bible to propose that when nosotros sin we are spring by demons or cinched upwards in spiritual straps.

The fear of God is the commencement of wisdom (Task 28:28; Psalm 111:ten; Proverbs 1:seven), and trusting God is the way to safety (Proverbs 3:5–6). This may seem counterintuitive. How can nosotros trust the One we fright? What information technology means is that God—not demons, not other men—has omnipotent power in the universe. He is the King. If we set ourselves against Him, we are putting ourselves in the simply existent danger that exists. But if we trust Him, nosotros are safe. God's children are costless: "You didn't receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but y'all received the Spirit of adoption, by whom we cry, 'Abba! Begetter!'" (Romans 8:xv, World English Bible).

Return to:
Questions about the Christian Life

What is spiritual bondage?

This page last updated: January 4, 2022