Freedom - Permission Granted - Part 4
Published:Thursday | August 23, 2018 | 12:00 AM
Today, we conclude our series on how we grant permission to Satan. As previously discussed, we grant permission to Satan through personal sins, generational curses, and participation in occult activities. All occult activities rely on the power of Satan and open our lives to demonic influences, but through the power of the blood of Jesus Christ and in His name, persons can come from under Satan's influence.
A spoken curse is another way we grant permission to Satan. The words we speak are important because our words are powerful. God created the Earth with spoken words, and we are made in the likeness of God. Our good words can bless, but our bad words can hurt. These can do significant harm in our lives, not only on an emotional level, but also on a spiritual level.
Consider the Israelites and an account of their experience in Numbers 14:2-4 (NIV):
"All the Israelites grumbled against Moses and Aaron, and the whole assembly said to them, 'If only we had died in Egypt! Or in this wilderness!'"
See the Lord's response in verses 26 -29:
"The Lord said to Moses and Aaron: 'How long will this wicked community grumble against me? I have heard the complaints of these grumbling Israelites. So tell them, 'As surely as I live, declares the Lord, I will do to you the very thing I heard you say: In this wilderness, your bodies will fall'."
And they all died.
Jesus warns us about our use of words in Matthew 12:36-37 (NKJV): "But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgement. For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned."
What are 'idle words'? They are words we utter thoughtlessly, words that sometimes do not express our real thoughts or intentions. We often excuse these words by saying, "I didn't really mean it" or "I was only joking". However, idle words can be a tool in the devil's hands. He does not care that we were joking. He is happy that we granted him permission and is willing to fulfil them in our lives. It is these idle words that Jesus warns us against.
These idle words can open the door to demons. Words concerning death are particularly dangerous. Death is a dark, evil power, and we are foolish to treat it lightly. In a temporary fit of grief or discouragement, a person will often say, "I wish I were dead", or "I'd be better off dead." Words like these are a direct invitation to the spirit of death, and many persons open themselves up to the spirit of death by such carelessly spoken words ... "Death and life are in the power of the tongue ..." Proverbs 18:21 (NKJV).
Sometimes we use words in relation to someone else, and what is said becomes a curse in his or her life. A curse is an evil appeal for harm to come to someone. 'Cursing others' can come through idle words or by words spoken out of frustration or anger. Something said in anger or frustration can set in motion demonic forces in the supernatural that have the potential to do great harm.
Sometimes we are the victims of a curse. A curse is particularly powerful when it is spoken by an authority figure. The impact of these words can range from moderate to severe. Many people do not know how to recognise that they have been cursed or how to fend off these 'fiery darts of the enemy'. Author and deliverance minister Derek Prince lists seven indications of a curse:
SEVEN SIGNS OF A CURSE
• Mental and/or emotional breakdown
• Repeated or chronic sickness (especially if hereditary)
• Barrenness, a tendency to miscarry, or related female problems
• Breakdown of marriage and family alienation
• Continuing financial insufficiency
• Being accident prone
• A history of suicides or unnatural and untimely deaths.
But we rejoice because we have a Saviour who has taken care of every need that we have before we even knew we had them. The power of Jesus' death on the cross cancels the curses set against His children. Once you have accepted Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Saviour, you can appropriate the provision of the cross by breaking the curse in the Name of Jesus.
So, if you are not a follower of Jesus Christ, I encourage you to accept Him today. And I encourage all believers to break every word curse over their life with prayers such as the sample below:
"In the name of Jesus, I break every curse against me and I take every word captive that has been spoken over me. I break the power of those curses, and I cancel every assignment of darkness and I cast them to the ground. I call blessings to fall on me in their place. Jesus took my cursing so I can live in blessing. Amen."