Fighting Spiritual Oppression - Only Jesus Can Defeat It

 

Where is God calling you? Going forward with Him means, well, going, even if just at school.

You may hear a lot about oppression. Mere religion is works based, but Jesus gives us freedom. So, He is the key to ending oppression.

Going forward for Him means following His lead. Remember, He came to seek and to save that which was lost. Think of what that means. We should look everywhere for people who need Jesus. We should ask God to help us keep building more of a Missions mind. That means thinking about how we can point others to Jesus.

Some kids are more outgoing and ready to share Jesus. Others grow slower. God has a plan for each of us. But, we can all go somewhere. Even if just in your family.

Coming back from seeing Sander in D.C. in 2003, my flight from D.C. to Cleveland was delayed. I asked the Lord to guide me, and then I led a 12YO to Christ - he’d been visiting his grandma. This youth had had head knowledge, not heart knowledge. Who knows where he is?  The key is, he knows where he’s going. Hopefully he’s following the Lord. I don’t often think of him, but I prayed just now for him. You can, too.

That boy may have had a good church; he was Lutheran but maybe they were like the guy who goes 90 yards before being pushed out of bounds, and I dove in from the 1. Even if he wasn’t oppressed by mere religion, some are – the Pharisees sure did it to people. Jesus rebukes them a lot; Matt. 23 is a great example

The devil is the true oppressor. Sure, he can use religion at times. But Jesus opposed the Pharisees because they were all about works, and you know Ephesians 2:8-9. So, if someone talks about oppression, tell them Jesus said the same thing. Because works oppress, works make an “I’ll love you if” but Jesus says “I love you no matter what.”

Jesus supports the oppressed, but He also opposes sin. So, for instance, sure, He wanted woman to be able to own property when they couldn’t. He tried to get people to let them without forcing them to; He doesn’t want us to be mindless robots. At the same time, He doesn’t support people who want to turn right around and oppress others when they get free. Nor will He help people get *only* worldly things. He says build treasures in Heaven, where nothing can happen to them. (Mat. 6:19-21) Sure, we should make the world better, but we should do it with the goal of sharing the Gospel, just like Bekah will do in that hospital.

We think more about souls by realizing others need Jesus like we did. Sadly, too many don’t think about that, let alone do anything about it, not even praying. Prayer is so vital. As we pray, we care more about others – their souls and lives on Earth. That, in turn, should help us pray more. Often, we can do more, too.

We need to know what God’s Word says – and understand the devil twists things to try to discredit God. That’s why getting saved, discipled (taught to follow Jesus) and serving are all important. Salvation is vital, but why stop there?

So, in the last weeks of school, tell all you can Jesus will free them from the oppression of sin and give them peace. I included a tract. If you only go to school virtually, share what it says online. Go in your neighborhood, park, etc.. Even if you just pray, remember, only Jesus gives freedom from the world’s oppression. He has overcome the world (John 16:33) and offers them eternal life where there will be no pain, no suffering, nothing evil. Al are equal at the cross.