Things with a strong hold on you 

“No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.” (1 Cor. 10:13 ESV)

Another thing that can have a strong hold on a person is temptation. Of course, everybody has to deal with temptation; even Jesus did so in the desert (but without sin). But some people have severe temptation, perhaps from an earlier dependence on a substance such as alcohol or other drugs. Or it could be a sexual temptation, or something like gambling or eating, and they try to deal with it constantly.

But there is good news

The promise in the passage at top tells you that God will not let you be tempted above your ability to withstand it. And He says he will provide a way for you to endure it, and even to escape from it.  

Use the Word of God

“The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.  (2 Corinthians 10:4–5, NIV)

Some practical things to do

·      Learn to recognize it and run away. The Bible tells us numerous times that the best strategy for battling temptation is to run from it (1 Cor. 10:14; 1 Tim. 6:11; 2 Tim. 2:22). 

·      Become educated about what tempts you. Know how to recognize it and where it is found.

·      Develop a plan to protect yourself from it. It may mean you must make a few hard personal choices about who you spend time with and where you go. If you are struggling with alcohol, for instance, you wouldn’t spend time with drinkers, and you would not go to places where liquor is present.The Bible says it this way: “And make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires.” (Rom. 13:14 ESV)

Finally

Remember that God is ever-present with you and fighting to give you victory.

“For the Lord your God is he who goes with you to fight for you against your enemies, to give you the victory.” (Deut. 20:4  ESV) 

“I can do all things through him who strengthens me.” (Phil. 4:13 ESV) 

“But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” (1 Cor. 15:57 ESV)

Things with a strong hold on you 

“All things are lawful for me,” but not all things are helpful. “All things are lawful for me,” but I will not be dominated by anything.” (1 Cor. 6:12 ESV)

Over the last few days, I’ve been talking about strongholds and how to break them. There are also things that simply have some kind of strong hold on you. Things that have gained some kind of grip or dominance over you or hold you back from being totally free as you're supposed to be. “Whom the Son sets free is free indeed.” (John 8:36)

 Habits that stick

 I’ve heard people say on occasion, “Sorry, but that’s just the way I am!” It usually has to do with some kind of behavioral trait or shortcoming. But is that really true? Are you locked into certain characteristics for life? Or could it be that the person has simply given into a habit that had formed over a long time until they conformed to it? Eventually, it became a part of how they came to see themselves mentally and who they now believe they are.

Be transformed by the renewal of your mind

You must never give into the "this is just the way I am" mentality but instead bring your thinking into line with God’s Word. (1 Cor. 6:12). Find powerful Bible promises to counteract negative habits that have gotten a grip on your life. A good promise to start with is "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me" (Phil. 4:13). And tackle any negative thing that is trying to dominate you. And be diligent and patient; many reliable studies have shown that it takes approximately a month to build a new habit. 

Therefore

“Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” (Rom. 12:2 ESV)

“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9 ESV)

Dealing with Strongholds 

“And Jesus asked his father, “How long has this been happening to him” And he said, “From childhood.” (Mark 9:21 ESV)

A demonic stronghold

Mark 14-29 tells the story of a boy who was tormented for a long time by a demon which caused him to convulse, foam at the mouth, and even fall into fires and water. The apostles tried but could not cast the demon out even though Jesus had empowered them to. Jesus then came and cast out the demon. 

This failure was very troubling to the apostles

Later, the apostles asked Jesus why they had failed. And He said, “This kind can only come forth by nothing, but by prayer and fasting. (Mark 9:29 KJV).

Don’t give up!

“And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.” (James 1:4 ESV)

“Is not this the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the straps of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke? (Isa. 58:6 ESV)

Therefore

“But when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, that your fasting may not be seen by others but by your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.” (Matt. 6:17-18 ESV).

“Do not be anxious about anything, 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 your minds in Christ Jesus.” (Phil. 4:6-7 ESV)

Dealing with strongholds 

“Though I walk in the midst of trouble, you preserve my life; you stretch out your hand against the wrath of my enemies, and your right hand delivers me.” (Psalm 138:7 ESV)

Don’t allow an evil attack to turn into a stronghold

An evil attack becomes a stronghold when it causes you to retreat in fear and prevents you from completing what God has assigned you to do, which is to share the good news of Jesus with others.

His assignment to all of us

Jesus’s last command just before He ascended into heaven was, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel...” (Mark 16:15). This command was to all of God’s followers, and it included you, too! You have been placed in God’s world at the exact time and place you now live (Acts 17:26), and you are there to share the good news with those who live in your world, and the enemy will try to stop you from doing it!

The enemy will cause trouble

If you are a danger to the devil by promoting God’s kingdom, you will be attacked. There’s no exception. Jesus said, “In this world you will have trouble” (John 16:33). And if you are never attacked or persecuted for your faith, it should act as a warning to you; you aren’t a threat to the enemy. Jesus said, “Woe to you, when all people speak well of you” (Luke 6:26).

The enemy is the destroyer and attacks God’s people every way he can (John 10:10). He especially attacks those who share Christ. He attacked Jesus continuously, he attacked the Apostle Paul multiple times, and he continues to attack everyone who promotes the gospel of Jesus Christ.

The great news is that God is ever present to help you! (Psalm 46:1) 

What to do 

If you get attacked by the enemy there are two things you must immediately do (and do them in order listed in the verse): First. Submit yourself to God, and second, resist the devil. And these two commands are followed with a wonderful promise: the devil will flee from you.

“Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” (James 4:7 ESV)

Therefore

“No weapon that is fashioned against you shall succeed, and you shall refute every tongue that rises against you in judgment. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord and their vindication from me, declares the Lord.” (Isa. 54:17 ESV)

Dealing with strongholds

“And the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” (Eph. 6:17)

The Bible serves as both an offensive and defensive tool

“For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.” (Eph. 6:12 ESV)

Strongholds are broken and enemy is vanquished by the Word which transforms defeat into victory

 “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” (Heb. 4:12)

Dealing with strongholds

“This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil.” (John 3:19)

One of the hardest strongholds to deal with are those who love sin

“Who delight in doing evil and rejoice in the perversity of evil;” (Prov. 2:14)

They are hard of heart

“They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart.” (Eph. 4:18)

It’s a sign of the last days

“But realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come. For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, revilers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy,” (2 Tim. 3:1-2)

What to do

Over the years, I’ve encountered lots of people, some of them family and friends, who loved their sin and were totally resistant to change. And because of that, it was impossible to talk to them about Christ. But God can soften their hearts. Pray earnestly that Christ will remove their hardness of heart. Always be kind and patient, because God is in the business of changing hearts.

“But their minds were hardened. For to this day, when they read the old covenant, that same veil remains unlifted, because only through Christ is it taken away.” (2 Cor. 3:14)

Therefore

“And I will give them one heart, and a new spirit I will put within them. I will remove the heart of stone from their flesh and give them a heart of flesh,” (Ez. 11:19)

Dealing with strongholds 

“Your rulers are rebels, partners with thieves; they all love bribes and chase after gifts. They do not defend the cause of the fatherless; the widow’s case does not come before them.” (Isa. 1:23)

They’re everywhere!

 Another stronghold and reason often given for resistance to Christ has to do with the bad examples they’ve been exposed to. Unfortunately, the entertainment industry, including movies and television shows, has often portrayed Christians as weak, hypocritical, and even corrupt—the very opposite of what they are. as well as the media using bad examples for news stories, such as fallen pastors and greedy televangelists. And then there are the actual bad experiences some have had with church attendance and poorly behaving religious people, which have left them cold.

What to do

A few years ago, I spoke with a woman about Jesus, and it just made her furious. She angrily told me about several people she had known who were terrible people, even though they claimed to be Christians. And yes, all her examples were very bad. She said she did not want to hear anything more about God! Shortly after that, her husband became a believer, and his life was dramatically changed from one of addiction and abuse to one of love and kindness. Several years later, he passed away, and I got a phone call from her. She said she couldn’t deny the change that had happened to her husband’s life, and she wanted that, too. She invited me over to her house and asked me to explain how she could receive Jesus. After hearing the gospel, she, too, received Christ as her Savior.

What made the difference in her attitude?

It was the very positive example that was more persuasive than the negative ones—the changed life of her husband lived out before her!

Be a good example

“In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.” (Matt. 5.16)

“Show yourself in all respects to be a model of good works, and in your teaching show integrity, dignity,” (Titus 2:7 ESV)

“Brothers, join in imitating me, and keep your eyes on those who walk according to the example you have in us.” (Phil. 3:17 ESV)

Dealing with strongholds 

“And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.” (2 Cor. 4:3-4 ESV)

Some people just can’t see it

I have a businessman friend whose favorite saying is, “You don’t know what you don’t know.” And he says the secret to success in anything is to first find out what you don’t know about it, and then that new knowledge will give you what you need to succeed in that thing. He’s right about that. But some people have a spiritual blindness and just can’t see what they can’t see, no matter how hard you try to explain it to them. And because they can’t see it, they continue to not know what they don’t know and to be resistant to receiving any information about it.

What the Bible says about spiritual blindness:

“In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.” (2 Cor. 4:4 ESV)

“He has blinded their eyes and hardened their heart, lest they see with their eyes, and understand with their heart, and turn, and I would heal them.” (John 12:40 ESV)

How to deal with the stronghold of spiritual blindness

When an individual rejects Christ's message, he is unsaved and needs his eyes to be opened to the importance of Christ in his life.  

Pray and ask God to open their eyes

“To open their eyes, so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.” (Acts 26:18 ESV)

“I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people,” (Eph. 1:18 NIV)

Therefore

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed,” (Luke 4:18 ESV)

Dealing with strongholds

“And behold, the whole city came out to meet Jesus; and when they saw Him, they implored Him to leave their region.” (Matt. 8:34)

Rejecting Christ

One of the most frustrating and discouraging strongholds are loved ones and friends who say they don’t want to hear about Jesus. This happened to me right after I was saved. My life had been dramatically transformed, and I was boldly telling everyone about Jesus. But when I tried to share my new-found faith with my family and friends, they told me to shut up and forbade me to ever talk about it to them. It was a huge stronghold of resistance.

 What to do

·      Pray for them — Remember that prayer is powerful and brings God into any situation. “The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results.” (James 5:16b NLT)

·      Ask God to draw them — “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them” (John 6:44a NIV)

·      Ask God to bring His light to their heart — “For God, who said, ‘Let light shine out of darkness,’ made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God’s glory displayed in the face of Christ.” (2 Cor. 4:6 NIV) 

·      Claim God’s promises for them — God doesn’t want them to perish. “The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.” (2 Peter 3:9b)

·      Wait and watch — “The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you” — (2 Peter 3:9a)

Therefore, never give up!

I’ve heard many wonderful stories of how God worked and continued to work in the hearts of people who seemed impossible to reach. Some even came to Christ after those who had been praying for them had died. The important thing is to not give up and to continue to have faith that God is able to do above and beyond what you ask or think (Eph. 3:29–21).

By the way, all my family members eventually did receive Christ, each in God’s perfect timing, and with their own wonderful story of what God did to reach them. Yes, prayer works!