Week 6 - REBUKE
CONNECT
What are you thankful for?
What challenge are you facing?
Have there been any answers to prayer?
Pray for each other.
Did anything stand out to you from last week’s follow-up Bible readings?
Last week you renounced evil. How has your week gone in terms of freedom from the influence of this evil? Is there any other evil you need to renounce?
How did your “I will …” statement from last week go?
How did your sharing goal from last week go?
How’s your memory work coming along?
John 8:31-32 (NAB)
31 Jesus said to those who believed in him, “If you remain in my word, 32 you will truly be my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
DISCOVER
Let’s start with a review. We’ve worked through these freedom truths and freedom responsibilities:
OBEY
Obedience leads to freedom while disobedience leads to bondage, so obey the Lord and be free.
RESIST
Jesus resisted Satan by reciting the truth of God’s Word, so resist Satan by reciting the truth of God’s Word.
FORGIVE
God has forgiven you, so forgive others.
CONFESS
Confession is agreeing with God that our unrighteousness is sin, so confess your sin and find forgiveness and cleansing.
RENOUNCE
Not only does God call us to confess our sin but to renounce it, so make a decisive break with sin by verbally rejecting and intentionally forsaking it.
And now …
REBUKE
Jesus has given us authority over all the power of the enemy, so in Jesus’ name, verbally rebuke the work of the enemy in others and yourself.
Ask God to speak to you as you read His Word.
Luke 10:1-9, 17-22 (NLT)
1 The Lord now chose seventy-two other disciples and sent them ahead in pairs to all the towns and places he planned to visit. 2 These were his instructions to them: “The harvest is great, but the workers are few. So pray to the Lord who is in charge of the harvest; ask him to send more workers into his fields. 3 Now go, and remember that I am sending you out as lambs among wolves. 4 Don’t take any money with you, nor a traveler’s bag, nor an extra pair of sandals. And don’t stop to greet anyone on the road.
5 “Whenever you enter someone’s home, first say, ‘May God’s peace be on this house.’ 6 If those who live there are peaceful, the blessing will stand; if they are not, the blessing will return to you. 7 Don’t move around from home to home. Stay in one place, eating and drinking what they provide. Don’t hesitate to accept hospitality, because those who work deserve their pay.
8 “If you enter a town and it welcomes you, eat whatever is set before you. 9 Heal the sick, and tell them, ‘The Kingdom of God is near you now.’”
17 When the seventy-two disciples returned, they joyfully reported to him, “Lord, even the demons obey us when we use your name!”
18 “Yes,” he told them, “I saw Satan fall from heaven like lightning! 19 Look, I have given you authority over all the power of the enemy, and you can walk among snakes and scorpions and crush them. Nothing will injure you. 20 But don’t rejoice because evil spirits obey you; rejoice because your names are registered in heaven.”
21 At that same time Jesus was filled with the joy of the Holy Spirit, and he said, “O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, thank you for hiding these things from those who think themselves wise and clever, and for revealing them to the childlike. Yes, Father, it pleased you to do it this way.
22 “My Father has entrusted everything to me. No one truly knows the Son except the Father, and no one truly knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.”
Have someone retell this passage in their own words.
What stands out to you in this passage?
What does this passage say about God (The Father, His Son Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit)?
What does this passage say about people, including ourselves?
What does this passage say about the life God invites us to live?
Digging Deeper
Because we believe in Jesus Christ, He has given us …
Authorization to use His name
Lord, even the demons obey us when we use your name!Assurance of Satan’s defeat
I saw Satan fall from heaven like lightning!Authority over all the power of the enemy
I have given you authority over all the power of the enemy.Protection from harm
Nothing will injure you.Citizenship in His Kingdom
Rejoice because your names are registered in heaven.
Which of these 5 points encourages you the most?
Rebuke
Matthew 4:8-11 (NLT)
8 Next the devil took [Jesus] to the peak of a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. 9 “I will give it all to you,” he said, “if you will kneel down and worship me.”
10 “Get out of here, Satan,” Jesus told him. “For the Scriptures say, ‘You must worship the Lord your God and serve only him.’”
11 Then the devil went away, and angels came and took care of Jesus.
Matthew 10:1 (NLT)
Jesus called his twelve disciples together and gave them authority to cast out evil spirits and to heal every kind of disease and illness.
Luke 10:17 (NLT)
Lord, even the demons obey us when we use your name!
Matthew 17:18 (NLT)
Then Jesus rebuked the demon in the boy, and it left him. From that moment the boy was well.
Mark 8:31-33 (NIV)
31 [Jesus] then began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and after three days rise again. 32 He spoke plainly about this, and Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him.
33 But when Jesus turned and looked at his disciples, he rebuked Peter. “Get behind me, Satan!” he said. “You do not have in mind the concerns of God, but merely human concerns.”
Whom is Jesus ultimately rebuking when He rebukes Peter?
Why are strong words of verbal rebuke important in dealing with the work of the enemy in others and ourselves?
Truth & Responsibility
This week’s freedom truth is:
Jesus has given us authority over all the power of the enemy.
This week’s freedom responsibility is:
So in Jesus’ name, verbally rebuke the work of the enemy in others and yourself.
Not Able but Enabled
This authority doesn’t belong to us. It belongs to Jesus. Through His death, resurrection and ascension, Jesus (re)claimed this authority and as citizens of His Kingdom He has delegated this authority to us. So use it to set captives free—others AND yourself.
Notes on FREEDOM
As always, what’s shared here must stay here. Please practice strict confidentiality.
Satan doesn’t want you to be free. And he’ll do everything he can to discourage and distract you. For example, you may experience mental oppression as you go through today’s freedom exercises. Thoughts like, “This isn’t going to work” or “God doesn’t love you” or “Don’t believe this stuff or this person” may come to you. Resist these lies and trust God’s truth. If you’re experiencing mental oppression, it’s important to tell the others in the group so they can pray for you and help you stand firm on God’s truth.
These freedom exercises may take some time, maybe more time than one week’s meeting. Especially if you have several people working through these exercises, it may take more than a week. There’s no need to rush. Just take the time you need.
These freedom exercises may bring up some very personal and painful issues. Going through these exercises will give you greater freedom in Christ. You may, however, need additional help from a Christian support group, pastor, counsellor or therapist. Your group can help you discern if you need additional help.
If you’re unsure that you need to deal with something being covered, deal with it anyway. It’s better to be safe than sorry. For example, if you couldn't remember whether your jeans were washed or not and you threw them in the wash, it wouldn't be the end of the world, right? They would still be clean and you would know it. So, if in doubt, go through the freedom exercises. You may find greater freedom having done so.
Please don't use the prayers below as magic formulas. It's not about getting the words just right. It's about intimately and honestly connecting with our Heavenly Father. So feel free to modify the prayers to fit your situation and communicate your heart.
Canceling Curses, Dedications and Vows
Proverbs 18:21 (NIV)
The tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit.
Romans 12:14 (NIV)
Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse.
What power do words have?
Why are words so powerful?
Words aren’t just powerful mentally and relationally, they’re powerful spiritually. In the Bible, blessings, curses, dedications and vows carry spiritual power.
Proverbs 26:2 (NLT)
Like a fluttering sparrow or a darting swallow, an undeserved curse will not land on its intended victim.
It’s a good thing that most curses never land. They’re undeserved because there’s no ground in our lives for them to land. So to speak, they just bounce off us. That doesn’t mean, however, that no curses ever land. Some do because there IS ground or they're given ground to land because:
We spoke them over ourselves or someone with spiritual authority in our lives (such as a parent or grandparent) spoke them over us.
We gave them power through agreement. In other words, we accepted them and believed them.
We gave Satan the right to use them against us through footholds created by unconfessed sin.
We forgot that we are at war. So instead of fighting them, we acquiesced with them. We went down without a fight.
Here are some examples:
We cursed our bodies because we hated the way a certain part looks.
Our parent repeatedly cursed us with the words “You’ll never amount to anything!”
Our great-grandfather dedicated all his ancestors to Masonry in a secret ceremony.
We dedicated ourselves to a pagan god in an occult ritual.
We vowed never to get married because of a painful breakup.
We vowed never to share the Gospel again because of an embarrassing attempt.
Some of these may seem harmless and they may be. But some are real and need to be cancelled for their power to be broken. Regardless, all of them should be prayerfully considered.
Galatians 3:13 (NLT)
Christ has rescued us from the curse pronounced by the law. When he was hung on the cross, he took upon himself the curse for our wrongdoing. For it is written in the Scriptures, “Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree.”
The Good News is that on the cross, Jesus became a curse for us and has removed the greatest curse against us—our guilt for having broken God’s holy law. Now, in Jesus’ name, we can cancel all other curses against us.
Pray this discernment prayer out loud:
Lord, bring to my mind any and every curse, dedication or vow spoken over me by another or myself so I can cancel them and break their power over my life. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Take a moment and wait on the Lord. Note any curses, dedications and vows the Holy Spirit brings to your mind.
Pray this prayer out loud:
Jesus, thank You for becoming a curse for me on the cross and removing the greatest curse against me—my guilt because I have sinned against God’s holy law. I now cancel all other curses, dedications and vows spoken over me by others or myself. Specifically, I cancel _____________ (name curse, dedication or vow) spoken by _________ (name person) OR by me. In the name of Jesus Christ, I break the power these words have had on me and the hold that Satan has over me because of these words. I now bless myself with ________ (the opposite of the curse, dedication or vow). Thank You for my freedom, in Jesus’ name, Amen.
Have you cursed anyone? What do you need to do about this?
Who can you start to bless? What specific blessing can you pronounce?
Dealing with the Demonic
There are three enemies constantly attacking us:
The flesh (sin-within)
The world system and
Satan and his demons.
How are these enemies at work in this passage from Ephesians 2?
Ephesians 2:1-3 (NIV)
1 As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, 2 in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. 3 All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath.
We have been fighting back against all three enemies through FREEDOM and we’ll continue to do so as we keep working through FREEDOM. Now, however it’s time to decisively deal with the demonic.
You can think of it this way. Demons are like rats. Rats love garbage. And when they smell it, they get to it through holes in our homes. But what if you get rid of the garbage by …
Forgiving others
Asking others to forgive us
Lamenting our struggles to God
Confessing our sin
Renouncing evil?
What if we fill the holes that let them in by ….
Removing the footholds
Breaking sexual bonds
Destroying paraphernalia
Canceling curses, dedications and vows?
Then there’s only one thing left to do. Kick the rats out! And we have the authority to do just that!
In John 14:30, Jesus said the devil had no claim on Him. Jesus could say that because there was absolutely no ground for Satan to work with. He was sinless and perfectly clean. That can’t be said of us. But through faith, we have been given the righteousness of Jesus. And as we have been working through FREEDOM, we have been progressively dealing with our sin. So now it’s time to decisively deal with the devil through the authority that Jesus has given us.
Luke 10:17-20 (NLT)
17 When the seventy-two disciples returned, they joyfully reported to him, “Lord, even the demons obey us when we use your name!”
18 “Yes,” he told them, “I saw Satan fall from heaven like lightning! 19 Look, I have given you authority over all the power of the enemy, and you can walk among snakes and scorpions and crush them. Nothing will injure you. 20 But don’t rejoice because evil spirits obey you; rejoice because your names are registered in heaven.”
Now, based on the Truths of this passage, say out loud:
Because I believe in Jesus,
He has given me:
Authorization to use His name,
Assurance of Satan’s defeat,
Authority over all the power of the enemy,
Protection from harm,
And citizenship in His Kingdom.
Therefore, in the name of Jesus, evil one and unclean spirits be gone!
And Holy Spirt come and fill me!
Amen.
Don’t use this as a magic formula like the seven sons of Sceva (see Acts 19). And don’t feel like you have to say it exactly like this. But this is Gospel Truth that you can boldly use to assert and enforce your freedom in Christ.
And be persistent. Demons may push back. They did when Jesus dealt with them (see Mark 5:6-13). So don’t panic. Keep stating these biblical truths with faith-based confidence. Eventually, demons must give way to the authorized use of Jesus’ name.
That One Thing
As we asked last week, Is there anything else you need to confess , renounce or rebuke? Here was the question: What’s that one thing about yourself that you don’t want anyone else to know? If you’ve already revealed it, confessed it, renounced it and rebuked it, thank you. That takes courage and will lead to freedom. But if you’re still holding back, please consider this a safe place to deal with it.
LIVE
What truth have you discovered from today’s Bible passage(s) and conversation?
What would stop you from believing and obeying this truth?
How will you live out this truth this coming week? Finish this statement: “I will ….”
Who else needs to hear this truth? How could you share it with them?
When will we meet again?
Who will facilitate that meeting?
Pray for God’s help as you seek to follow Jesus this coming week.
WEEKLY BIBLE READINGS
Here are the Bible passages you are encouraged to read this coming week:
BUDDY SYSTEM
Connect with your buddy this week and ask each other these questions:
How are your readings going?
How’s your “I will …” statement coming along?
How’s your sharing goal coming along?
How can I pray for you?