Wrestling With The Father

Generational Curses & Spiritual Bondages

BONDAGES – Sinful actions performed by an ancestor may open a door that gives the enemy the right to frustrate future generations

e.g. Occultism (Deut.18:10-13), Sexual perversion (Lev.23), Idolatry (Ex.20:1-5), Oppression (Ex.22:25, 23:6-9) and Murder (Gen.4)

Why are bondages and curses effective?
CURSES – God has given power to the spoken word.
Proverbs 18:21 ‘Death and life are in the power of the tongue’
Proverbs 26:2 ‘Like a fluttering sparrow or a darting swallow, an undeserved curse does not come to rest’

READ GEN 32:22-30

How We Break Bondages And Curses

1. We Confess Ancestral Sin
2. We Wrestle With The Father For Our Relatives
3. We Grow Spiritually

PRAYER FOR THE WEEK

Dear Heavenly Father, I come to You as Your child, purchased by the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. I here and now reject and disown all the sins of my ancestors.

As one who has been delivered from the power of darkness and translated into the kingdom of God’s dear Son, I cancel out all demonic working that has been passed on to me from my ancestors.

As one who has been crucified and raised with Christ and who sits with Him in heavenly places, I reject any and every way in which Satan may claim ownership of me.

I declare myself to be eternally and completely signed over and committed to the Lord Jesus Christ.

I now command every familiar spirit and every enemy of the Lord Jesus Christ that is in or around me to flee my presence and never to return.

I now ask You, heavenly Father, to fill me with Your Holy Spirit. I submit my body as an instrument of righteousness, a living sacrifice, that I may glorify You in my body.

All this I do in the name and authority of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

Let It Go!

Minor Hurts
Annoyances – those things that irritate us
Slights – when someone snub you, mostly unintentionally
Disappointments – when people don’t do what we expect them to do for us

Get over it! Learn to develop a thick skin!

Major Hurts
Disloyalty – when someone I trust doesn’t reciprocate that trust
Betrayal – when someone I trust goes behind my back to harm me
Brutality – when someone violently assaults me and causes me harm

Genesis 45:1-15 Let It Go!

Why Let It G0?
1. God asks us to do it – 2Corinthians 2:11
2. We leave room for – Romans 12:19
3. We close the door – Matthew 18:21

Three things that forgiveness is not…
Forgiving is not forgetting
Forgiving is not excusing
Forgiving is not tolerance

Closing The Door…
1. Acknowledge The Pain
2. Re-frame The Pain
3. Choose To Let Go
4. Seek Reconciliation

PRAYER FOR THE WEEK
Dear heavenly Father, I thank You for the riches of Your kindness, forbearance, and patience, knowing that Your kindness has led me to repentance (Rom.2:4). I confess that I have not extended that same patience and kindness toward others who have offended me, but instead I have harbored bitterness and resentment. I pray that during this time of self-examination You would bring to mind all those people that I have not forgiven in order that I may do so (Matt.18:35). I also pray that if I have offended others You would bring to mind all those people from whom I need to seek forgiveness and the extent to which I need to seek it (Matt.5:23-4). I ask this in the precious name of Jesus. AMEN.

It’s My Life!

Numbers 12:1-15

When we rebel against God’s instituted authorities…

1. 1. We rebel against God
2. 2. We open the door for the enemy

Closing The Door of Rebellion…

1. Identify The Rebellion – Psa.139:23 ‘Search me, O God, and know my heart’
2. Confess The Rebellion -‘Lord, I confess I have rebelled against… by… Please forgive me for the sin of rebellion.’
3. Replace The Rebellion - Philipians 2:13 ‘It is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose’

PRAYER FOR THE WEEK
Dear heavenly Father, You have said that rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft and insubordination is as iniquity and idolatry (1Sam.15:23). I know that in action and attitude I have sinned against You with a rebellious heart. I ask Your forgiveness for my rebellion and pray that by the shed blood of the Lord Jesus Christ, all ground gained by evil spirits because of my rebelliousness would be cancelled. I pray that You will shed light on all my ways that I may know the full extent of my rebelliousness and choose to adopt a submissive spirit and a servant’s heart. In the name of Christ Jesus my Lord. Amen

Identity Crisis

Enemy Lies…
1. The Performance Trap - I must meet certain standards in order to feel good about myself
2. Approval Addiction - I must be approved by certain others to feel good about myself
3. The Blame Game - Those who fail are unworthy of love and deserve to be punished
4. The Shame Game - I am what I am; I cannot change; I am helpless

Overcoming The Lie: See yourself as God sees you!

1. Identify The Lie  – Psa.139:23
2. Replace The Lie – Eph.6:17
3. Expose The Lie  (through confession) - James 5:16

DAILY PRAYER
Dear heavenly Father, I know that You desire truth in my inmost self and that facing this truth will set me free (John 8:32). I acknowledge that I have been deceived by the father of lies (John 8:44). I pray in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ that You, dear Father, will rebuke all deceiving spirits that have distorted my view of myself and of You. And since by faith I have received You into my life and am now seated with Christ in the heavenly places (Eph.2:6), I command all deceiving spirits to depart from me. I now ask the Holy Spirit to guide me into all truth (John 16:3). I ask You this week to “search me, O God , and know my heart; try me and know my anxious thoughts; and see if there be any hurtful way in me, and lead me in the everlasting way” (Psalm 139:23,24). In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.

NB. Here’s a document with some verses you can use this week to replace the lies…

It Wasnt Me

Genesis 3:8-13

We are sinful people, born in sinful families who live in a sinful world…

PRAYER OF SURRENDER

Dear heavenly Father, you have said that pride goes before destruction, and an arrogant spirit before stumbling. I confess that I have been thinking mainly of myself and not of others. I have sinned by believing that I could be happy and successful on my own. I confess that I have placed my will before Yours and I have centered my life around myself instead of You. As a result, I have given ground to the devil in my life.

I repent of my pride and foolishness and pray that all the ground gained by the enemy in my life because of it would be cancelled. I choose to rely on the Holy Spirit’s power and guidance so I will do nothing from selfish ambition or vain conceit. With humility of mind, I will regard others as more important than myself. And I choose to make You, Lord, the most important of all in my life.

Please show me this week, all the specific ways in which I have lived my life in pride. Enable me through love to serve others and in honor to prefer others. I ask all this in the gentle and humble name of Jesus, my Lord. Amen.

Adapted from ‘Neil Anderson, ‘Bondage Breaker’

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