Chain Breaking Freedom

Pastor Eric Schroeder

July 20, 2025

How can we be free, when we allow the cares of this world, and its issues chain us, and prevent us from moving forward into all that God has for us. How can we be an example to those around us when we are bound to the same addictions as our neighbor, friend, or family member.

We can’t.

true freedom isn’t just an outward appearance that we put on in front of those that we are with, and then in the quiet of our lives, we struggle.

We all go through the stress of life, we all have cares and concerns, we all are tempted but the question is how do we cope? Do we give in or do we stand.

u in the face of adversity sometimes is the hardest things to do when everything is crashing around you. Standing with the hope and assurance in God and staying true to His steadfastness is hard sometimes when there is chaos all around us.

2 Timothy 4:7-8 NASB

Why is there such a great struggle in our lives with conflict, anxiety, depression, unforgiveness, or just plain chaos?

We know that the enemy is here to kill, steal, and destroy. We know he wants to destroy the very thing that God created in His image. He wants to get rid of the very thing that has more power than him.

We know that the war that is waged is a spiritual one. But I am here to tell you no matter what things look like in the natural, you have already won. Isaiah says no weapon formed against you will prosper.

Galatians 5:16-26 NASB

We see that the flesh is tied to the world, and the spirit is tied to the kingdom of heaven. So, there is this conflict inside each one of us and we have the choice to follow one or the other.

We have the choice to allow the things of the flesh to rise and take control, or we can choose to allow and follow the things of the spirit and all the spirit of God inside of us take control.

It is our which direction we take.

Our enemy is tricky, his methods decisive, remember the bible calls him the deceiver of nations, and the accuser of the brethren. He is an imposter.

1 Peter 5:8-9 NASB

The enemy walks around like a roaring lion. The enemy is seeking who will open the door for him to come in.

James 4:7 NASB Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

If we see an avenue in our lives that the enemy is using to get in that is an avenue or an open door that we have that we need to work on and resist.

Fear is an open door, fear can stop us in our tracks, fear can bring on depression, and anxiety, fear can bring hopelessness, fear can cause us to quit, and or give up.

Jesus on the other hand came to bring us hope and strength to stand strong. He has anointed each one of us to break the cycles, and chains of bondage.

Isaiah 61:1 NASB

The amplified says it this way: to proclaim liberty to the [physical and spiritual] captives and the opening of the prison and of the eyes to those who are bound.

Luke 4:18 in the Amplified adds this: to send for as delivered those who are oppressed [who are downtrodden, bruised, crushed, and broken down by calamity].

That word is not possessed as we think sometimes, no it means to bring forth pressure. Like doing things that are contrary to the word of God, being bound to sin, being pressured by the spiritual wickedness to do things we are not called to do. (addiction, depression, hatred, unforgiveness, anxiety, fear, hopelessness….)

The enemy will try to bring pressure in our lives to get us to open a door and cave in to His ways.

See Jesus came to break us free from spiritual bondages for example:

1. Addictions: substance abuse, gambling, pornography, etc.
2. Generational Curses: partnership with inherited patters of sin, disease, or misfortune (mindsets)
3. Mental and Emotional Strongholds: chronic depression, anxiety, fear, unforgiveness, bitterness, negative thought patterns, or compulsive destructive behaviors
4. Spiritual Blindness/Deception: breaking people free from not seeing the spiritual truth – the enemy will cause confusion to not get us to see the truth.
5. Financial Bondages: cycles of poverty or debt
6. Physical illness: healing from those things that have a spiritual root or tie. Many times, from word curses that we have spoken over ourselves or things we have tied ourselves to lies.

Jesus had the anointing to break this, and He also passed it on to us. This anointing can be accessed through:

1. Prayer – fervent prayer that commands strongholds to be broken in Jesus’s name
2. Declaration and Decrees – This is done usually by a minister using his/her spiritual authority. We can all make decrees over our household, workplaces, but remember we cannot make decrees to change a person’s free will. That is witchcraft and it will go unanswered.
3. Worship – Our worship is a weapon that the enemy doesn’t like because it brings us into a place where bondages must fall and where freedom is found.
4. Laying on of hands: Scripture says lay hands on the sick and they will be healed. The anointing is transferred with the physical touch.
5. Deliverance Ministry: If you are struggling to walk things out and fight to remove the influences yourself it is good to come and get some deliverance ministry. It doesn’t hurt, and it is freeing.

(MULTILINE)

 

Last week, we started talking about Fire of Revival and talked about the promises of God once His people do something. We see God waiting for an action on our part and then He responds with an answer to our actions. This is throughout scripture.

I believe that God is testing us in the process.

James 2:2-4 NASB

God tests our , and when He has us step out what is He doing testing our faith. He is waiting to see if we are going to be obedient to His word.

God is no different with us. His word tells us exactly what we need to do, and He is waiting for us to follow it, and when we begin to understand and do it, then we begin to see rewards in our lives.

Hebrews 11:6 NASB

He is a rewarder of those who seek Him. Some translations say diligently seek Him.

He us not on our own actions, but for us Him and in Faith and in Him and His word.

The question we need to ask ourselves today:

1. Am I diligently seeking God with all my life?
2. Am I walking in faith by trusting His word? Am I willing to burn for Him?

These questions are easy to hear, but hard to walk out. Why?

We must make a sacrifice of ourselves, our pride, and completely surrender to the perfect and wonderful will of God.

Romans 12:1-3 NASB

There are some key factors here.

1. our bodies as a living and holy sacrifice – purity, holiness, righteousness, repentant
   1. This is acceptable to God and our spiritual or rational service to Him
2. Do not to this world
   1. We do that by being transformed by the renewing of our mind
      1. Prayer
      2. His word

By doing so we will prove (approve) what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.

The word prove also means approve – We must approve to allow the will of God to encompass our lives, we must approve walking in His statutes and follow His direction.

We have a free and we approve if we decide to walk in the world or the kingdom ways. We approve if we are going to walk in depression, anxiety, or the peace of God.

It is us who approve what happens in our lives, and it is us who can disapprove and tell the enemy I do not approve of what you are trying to do in my life so back off you have no permission, and no message.

We must then tell God that we approve of His destiny for our lives, we must approve to walk in His righteousness, Holiness and Purity. We must approve to walk kingdom minded and not according to this world.

1 person can spread the fire of revival into a major move of God. We don’t need to wait for the fire to begin, we are and have the fire inside of us.

That is why Jesus tells us not to hide our light under a bushel but to let it shine. He wants the fire inside of us to be seen by those around us. He wants us to have a wiliness to burn for Him.

It is a willingness to stand outside of the world ways and allow Him to burn is us. It is a wiliness to trust God, have faith in Him, and renew our minds in His word once again.

A can’t be offered where there is no fire, and we are called to be living and holy sacrifices, which means we need to be willing to lay down our worldly, quit, fearful, hopeless, depressed, anxious, and poverty mindsets, and in return allow the fire of His glory burn in us once again for the whole world to see.

In closing:

Matthew 5:14-15 NASB

We are not called to hide our lives in the valley where no one can see us. No, we are called to be on a hill for all who can see, and we are not called to put our light/fire for God under a basket but to let it shine for all to see.

(MULTILINE)

Fire of Revival

Refining Fire

July 6, 2025

It is time, we need to ask ourselves are we ready? Are we desperate? Are we ready to fully surrender? Are we really all in?

These are some of the things that we really need to ask ourselves, because on Sunday we can say YES, but as soon as we walk out those doors we do something completely different. God is moving, He is looking across the land, to see who is willing and ready. Who is willing to step aside from the wickedness of this age, and allow Him to cleanse, mantle, and use.

America is on a pivotal point really the church is on a pivotal point. One that we can’t sit back and take lightly, but on that we must start getting busy and start seeking the face of God once again. As I have said before, God is calling us deeper into His glory, deeper into His presence, and deeper into trusting Him for all things. Not just want we want to give Him but in all things.

It is an understanding that He will do what His word says if we , , and have in Him.

Every bit of revival comes at a . It comes from a place of total , and a place of  to see more of God in operation in our own lives.

= Refinement, purification, holiness

Revival is not self-promoted but is promoted by God.

Revival brings a conviction to the heart, that sees its wicked ways, changes from them, and becomes kingdom minded.

is about revival

Us:

then God:

1. Will
2. Will
3. Will

Our God is a refining fire:

is defined as:

1. The act or process of making something pure: This refers to removing unwanted substances from something to make it cleaner or more refined.

Jesus being called the refining fire is taking us through a process of purification, testing, and transformation.

In ancient times, when this passage of scripture was written precious metals like gold and silver were heated to extremely high temperatures. This process would cause impurities to rise to the surface, where they could be skimmed off.

The fire itself wasn’t meant to destroy the metal but to purify it, making it more valuable and shining.

is when we are willing to go through the process of refinement, and allow the fire of the Lord to reveal, cleans, and purify us.

What in our lives is being tested through the refinement process?

Let’s turn to

Our are being tested, purified, and made holy.

Our heart will lead us astray, but it will also lead us to greatness.

The is the key, and where our heart is our life will revolve around it.

It is being willing to be set aside, and allow the process, and staying with it until it is finished and we are refined.

When we allow the process to take place not only are we brighter, shinier, but we also become stronger in the purist form. Also, in the purist form we become more valuable, rarer, and more sought after.

We are valuable to God when we come to Him and ask Him into our lives, but we become more of value to those that we are around when they get to see our transformation into our purist form.

Revival is always about us first and then it spreads to those who see what God has done in us, and it makes them desperate to have it as well.

True revival isn’t promoted, flyers aren’t handed out, no it spreads through community, spreads through word of mouth that God is moving. What He is really doing is refining and purifying the hearts of man who come to a move of His glory.

Revival brings change to the heart and people will always walk out different.

Again, revival begins with us.

(MULTILINE)

When you think about suffering, what comes to mind? Do you envision bedraggled children with distended stomachs, a hospital patient hooked up to life-sustaining medical equipment, or a courageous veteran dealing with the aftermath of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.  Adversity seems to be a common denominator to human existence, but what does the Bible have to say about suffering?

Jesus spoke to His disciples about suffering. One of the most well-known verses reads, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me” (Matthew 16:24 ESV). The Greek word for cross in this verse is staurós. It refers to the crossbeam which the lowest criminals carried as they trudged toward their execution. The cross symbolized degradation and indescribable pain as well as sacrifice.

While the invitation to eternal life is free, it comes at a price–certain suffering.

(MULTILINE)