DELIVERANCE- We hear this word in the church narrative almost daily. In many church sermons, this word pops up and many times we are expected to understand what it means. But as a long-time believer in the Lord I find myself going back to this word, asking the Lord for some understanding as to what it really means.

But before I dive into this discussion, a brief review of my first days as a new convert and the reality I faced. Accepting the Lord into my life was the most powerful thing ever. There were no supernatural visitations, visions or anything of that sort. Instead, an urging inside me, unexplained at times, created a hunger in me for this Jesus I had heard about. A whispering in my spirit. The voice of the Maker calling me into His fold. And when I did decide to go to a church, wonderful people- I was met with a culture I knew nothing about. Church culture- the way you speak, act, the words say, the way you dress- all of which was displayed for me and I was expected to get in line with this culture. Whether you believe it or not- church cultures and the way people practice their faith is as real as the air we breathe and no matter what assembly of believers we choose to associate with, it is something we confront daily. To be part of that assembly, to be accepted- so important for a new believer- we sometimes feel we must also embrace this culture.

A word of warning though- to accept church culture and to accept Christ are two DIFFERENT things and sometimes the two clash and many times church culture wins. As believers we need to shake ourselves and ask some very pertinent questions about our faith and what we believe. Are we following Christ or are we following some church mandate and /or culture? We have to differentiate- because serving Christ  and not our church traditions and culture must be our purpose. There are some aspects of Christianity  that has crept into the Church/Ekklesia that  separate us from truth. My goal is to debunk some of the myths that have crept in and present themselves as truth when it fact they are far from it.

Luke 4: 16-21 ( NKJV) –And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up to read. And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Isaiah. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written, The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he has sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, To preach the acceptable year of the Lord. And he closed the book, and he gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him. And he began to say unto them, This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears.

The word of the Lord when He presented Himself to the people to announce His purpose, He declared He came to ‘preach deliverance”. The word “preach” or proclaim comes from the Greek “kērýssō” – meaning  to herald (proclaim); to preach (announce) a message publicly and with conviction (persuasion). The word “deliverance” is from the Greek  “áphesis” meaning, “something sent away“; i.e. remission (“forgiveness”), releasing someone from obligation or debt.

To go further, there is a parallel in the Bible where God used Moses to bring about the deliverance of the people of Israel from the bondage they suffered in Egypt as slaves. He made a way. He moved them out of one place where they were afflicted and their identity was “slave”. He took them out of Egypt and gave them a promise of hope to enter a promised land. However, deliverance is not just a physical movement from  place of torment. It is a mental and spiritual journey as well.  It requires a wholehearted commitment to move away from that which enslaves.

Unfortunately, for the generation of Israelites who were born in Egypt and  who were delivered physically by the mighty hand of God, witnesses to the might of God through the plagues and the crossing of the Red Sea, the deliverance in the mind and the Spirit did not take place. Enslaved to a culture of self gratification and self praise, where a man was worshiped as god (Pharaoh), the mindset of that culture was so strong- in other words, there was such “strong hold” on these people of what they witnessed, what they were a part of and what they enjoyed, even as slaves, that they could not let go of those things to believe in a God whose power they had just witnessed.

Was He just another god? They complained, they grumbled, they even made an idol of gold when Moses stayed too long up on the mountain. For the fact that they refused to be delivered in their mind, soul and spirit, they were condemned to wander 40 years in a desert and to die in the wilderness for their unbelief.

We look to the past and are quick to draw conclusions and condemnations. But let us look at ourselves. Jesus died on the cross to bring us the deliverance out of the bondage of the sin and the enemy. We have the blood of the innocent Lamb of God shed so that we may walk free. As ministers of God, we preach/proclaim deliverance. We have deliverance services and many charismatic preachers proclaim healing and deliverance to those who are sick and oppressed. Some are charlatans, merchandising the word and the power of GOD.

While I certainly believe God can heal and that HE is able to break bondages of sin, torment and the lies of Satan, there is a line we have to draw when it comes to those who proclaim deliverance for a fee. Deliverance and healing is not something you can buy with silver and gold. To those who propagate a gospel of prosperity, health and healing for a “seed” or “money” – we need to say “STOP IT!”

Deliverance is not about running to every prayer line and asking for an “anointed” person to lay hands on you. It is not only about the exorcism of spirits. What has been perpetuated on the Ekklesia is a watered down version of God. No man can heal you! No man can deliver you! There is deliverance in one person only- the Man- Christ Jesus. God the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Like the Israelites who were delivered out of bondage from Egypt, so we are delivered from the bondage of sin from the ultimate Pharaoh- Satan. But, this is just the beginning. When we accept Jesus Christ as our Savior, He delivers us out of the bondage of sin and death to life and life more abundantly- (John 10:10).

But the culture war only now begins. We must also be delivered in our mind and our mindsets. It is not about rejecting the world culture and accepting a church culture. It is about rejecting culture and man made traditions totally. A whole generation was unable to do this except two- Joshua and Caleb. So too, in our times, we have to hold on to our deliverance through belief. Deliverance is a position of authority. It is a place where we come to understand that there is no shelter other than HIM. It is a place where we realize there is no safety except in the “shadow of the Almighty”.

People who live in an age of instant gratification are fixated on those who promise quick fixes. There is none! We have to fight the giants in our lives and constantly take territory in our minds and lives. We may lose some wars, but the ultimate battle has already been won. A life in Christ is a life of FAITH. Understand this, culture must die- HIS WORD must live in us. DELIVERANCE is about FAITH. IT is about moving from one place to another. Not just physically, but spiritually and mentally. What we once clung too, we have to give up.

God is our Healer and our Deliverer. Hold on to Him- Confess HIS WORD daily in our lives and pursue faith. Faith not just to believe for healing and deliverance- but to believe HIM to accomplish HIS purpose. Sometimes we don’t understand the things God throws in our path. We look through a lens darkly- but when we see Him- we will know as we are known and understand. Holiness is a walk of faith. Healing is walk of faith. Deliverance is a walk of faith.

It requires us seeking Him, dwelling in His Presence, rejecting the things that come to torment, tempt and tantalize us. While we may fall- God Himself takes us through this journey. But we must take a stand- BELIEVE HIM and take comfort in HIM. As warriors, as ambassadors, we must fight against the gods of this age- presenting themselves daily in our cultural war. TRUE deliverance is believing God, believing His Word and believing His promises. It is about rejecting the culture of both our society and our religion. It is about embracing the Truth and shaking out the things that seek to distract from our destiny.

The Israelites were distracted from their destiny to the promised land when they dwelt on their suffering, their needs, their wants, their past, themselves. They became mired in self-pity and complaints. When we only see ourselves, our needs and our circumstances, we somehow lose sight of our destiny. When we allow ourselves to be blinded by the bitterness of rejection, self-pity, false expectations and pain of wounds from friend and foe- we lose our destiny and our deliverance.

True deliverance is knowing your identity and taking up that identity- clothed in the garments of love, faith, hope, praise and forgiveness and walking in the shadow of the Almighty. It is only in Him that we are delivered and made whole.