21st August 2011


Free #6 – Living Free From Ungodly Control


There are two aspects of life for which God has created us that Satan, our enemy, would like to divert or destroy. Delight and Destiny.

  1. •We have been created to know a daily ‘delight’ in life, in those around us, and in God (even in trouble and trials the Bible exhorts “count it all joy”).

  2. •And we have been created for an amazing ‘destiny’ that will complete, fulfil and satisfy every purpose for which we were created.

  3. •God’s work in creation, in redemption, through His Word and the Holy Spirit shout aloud this preeminent desire of God for us … to usher us into both ‘Delight and Destiny.’

  4. •However, Satan’s desire is the opposite. He would like to bring controls over us in order to cause us to miss our true destiny, and for our life with ourself, with people and with God to be anything other than a delight.

  5. •One of the enemy’s primary means to accomplish this is by demon spirits of control working through people and bringing fear and bondage over us.

  6. •These demons of control are also called spirits of witchcraft.

  7. -We understand the life-altering aims of back-magic and occult practices.

  8. -But more common is the use of human manipulation to divert a person from ‘Delight and Destiny’. Doesn’t look so dramatic, but still powerful.

  9. -In Galatians 5:20 ‘witchcraft’ or ‘sorcery’ is named as a ‘work of the flesh’ – that is, the use of human devices to manipulate and control.

  10. -Because Israel’s King Ahab’s wife, Jezebel, practiced witchcraft (or control), these demons are also referred to as Jezebel spirits.


Complete personal freedom is a vital part of God’s design for our lives.

Galatians 5:1 Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage.

  1. •Jesus came to set us free from all bondage and bring us into freedom to enjoy all the privileges and benefits of being a child of God – Delight and Destiny.

  2. •Liberty = (Gk) unrestrained freedom, unhindered.

  3. •True freedom is the ability to exercise choice and make decisions free from external pressure or internal fears.

  4. •Genesis 2:15-17 Then the Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to tend and keep it. And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, "Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.

  5. •God gave man a free will to exercise choice and make decisions, but set important boundaries or limits in order to protect a persons relationship with God, with others and with themselves.

  6. •Adam was given freedom of choice – even to make a wrong choice -  but he was not given freedom from the consequences of whatever he chose.

  7. •God always gives us freedom of choice but not freedom of consequences.


Ungodly Control

  1. •Ungodly control is any unlawful pressure or force that restricts our ability to exercise choice and make decisions.

  2. •Godly control is any lawful, good and justifiable control that limits our freedom for a greater good. E.g. parental training of a child, road rules, safety regulations for buildings, food, etc, criminal laws, and so on.


An Example of Ungodly Control

Comes about by wrong responses to a family crisis. Tamar is raped by her step brother, Amnon; but followed by control from her brother, Absolom.

2 Samuel 13:19-22 Then Tamar put ashes on her head, and tore her robe of many colours that was on her, and laid her hand on her head and went away crying bitterly. And Absalom her brother said to her, "Has Amnon your brother been with you? But now hold your peace, my sister, he is your brother; do not take this thing to heart.” So Tamar remained desolate in her brother Absalom’s; house. But when King David heard of all these things, he was very angry. And Absalom spoke to his brother Amnon neither good nor bad. For Absalom hated Amnon, because he had forced his sister Tamar.

  1. •Her experience was traumatic – it was a family crisis.

  2. •Her brother would not let her speak (Code of Silence).

  3. •He holds back his true feelings (hatred) pretending nothing is wrong.

  4. •Her family covered over the issue to control the pain.

  5. •Tamar's inner life was shut down by ungodly control.

  6. •She became disconnected from her feelings (desolate = to be stunned), her desires and dreams, her family members.


What is Ungodly Control?

  1. •Ungodly control is any influence that takes away or hinders your freedom of choice.

  2. •The highest freedom is the ability to freely choose a course of action which pleases God and advances both your ‘delight’ and your ‘destiny.’


Five Common Sources of Ungodly Control

  1. 1.Generational Control Spirits

  2. -evidenced by wrongful control being repeated by successive generations.

  3. -perpetrated through ‘law of beholding’ – even the thing a person hates, they become.

  4. -only forgiveness breaks the cycle in a family, then the demonic can be dealt with. John 20:23 If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained. (Gk) Krateo = to have power, be powerful, to be chief, be master of, to rule, to get possession of, to take hold of, to hold fast and not discard.

  5. 2.Traumatic painful experiences – this was the case with Tamar.

  6. 3.Controlling relational, family, cultural or peer environment. Daniel, Shadrack, Meshach and Abednego are all examples of men who would not allow themselves to be controlled by the prevailing culture in Babylon. 

  7. 4.Controlling leadership environment – it’s huge challenge for leaders to understand what practices cross the line to become ungodly control (especially church leaders because “shepherds” are especially targeted by Satan, because he wants to scatter the sheep).

  8. 5.Witchcraft spirits assigned against us. Demon spirits taking advantage of wrongful control practices being exercised by one person to get another person to do what they want.



Part 2