Shifting Laws and Decrees

"...preach, saying, 'The kingdom of heaven is at hand.' Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons. Freely you have received, freely give." -Matthew 10:7-8

For the kingdom of heaven to come near in someone's life, that must mean that another kingdom has been in place there. Just like the demoniac with a legion of demons who were set free, there are governments over individuals that can be unrighteous, keeping them in slavery. Maybe that's a weird concept, but I think it is true. Just like whole nations have forms of government, individuals also have their own personal governements. And with that government are laws that govern how they behave and how they perceive the world.

When I visited Russia about six years ago, I was struck by the sharp contrast between the people there and the people in the United States. I loved the people,but they rarely smiled on the streets. Most of the time all I felt was mistrust from them towards everyone they encountered. The city had a cold feel to it. In St. Petersburg, I road a subway system that was made during wartime, deep within the ground. It gave me a glimpse of the ravishes the nation had lived through, along with the despair that came as a result of Communism. The leadership that the people were under affected how they viewed life.

These analogies are giving me a new perspective on deliverance. In a way, deliverance is like shifting laws and decrees over people's lives--over my life. Where there have been unrighteous decrees made, meant to bring destruction and evil, those curses can be reversed by bringing the kingdom of heaven near. That's what healing and deliverance is anyways--it's a changing of government--a changing of rule. Just like America was freed from the governing monarchy of England in the Revolutionary war to become a democratic republic, so can people be freed from the oppression and possession of the enemy.

just some random thoughts.