 Today I called it strong, but bound And the scripture that I'm gonna read from Comes from scripture mark chapter 3 verse 27, and I'm just gonna read you one verse and it says this now No one can enter into the strong man's house a strong man say strong men and Plunder his goods unless he first binds the strong man, and then he plunders his house See every time I look at that scripture I always refer to to a strong man as a demon or Satan and using it in that sort of a context because in earlier Verses you read and Jesus talks about Satan and that Satan cannot get started Satan because the kingdom can be divided and so this whole context of talking about Satan and All of a sudden this verse comes and we always sometimes read it as a continuation of that What Jesus was talking about but I want to take a little bit from a different perspective today and look at us as Christian as children of God being as a strong man And let me explain to you a bit Bible So right point number one Bible calls us to be strong Bible calls us to be strong, and I'll get to the scripture later I'm just gonna lay a little bit of groundwork for before we get into that In Joshua 1 9 he says I have have I not commanded you be strong and courageous as Children of God God calls upon us to rise up and be strong for us not to be weak Not for us not to be feeble for us not to be cowards not to run away from the challenge away from the pressure God is calling us to be strong say be strong He commends us before Joshua took over the nation of Israel and he led them into the promised land God came to Josh and he told him three times be strong and courageous be strong and courageous be strong and courageous for us as children of God it is a portion to be strong in First Corinthians 1 18 says be on your God stand firm in your faith be courageous Be strong in Ephesians chapter 6 verse 10. He says finally be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power in Joel chapter 3 and 10 famous scripture that we quote a lot. He says let the week say what I am strong God commends us to be strong See real strength is not hidden in your physical ability But into in your mental capacity Real strength is not hidden in your physical ability But in your mental capacity, that's why you hear sometimes you guys probably seen it or you can YouTube it You know strange things like a you know 86 year old grandma Lifts a car because the car rolled over the toddler. I mean you 86 year old grandma. This is you know impossible for a physical strength because we were created by God to be We were not limited to our physical strength as an body and our physical abilities but God placed the strength in us which is hidden in a mental capacity to embrace to embrace the challenge and and And whatever comes at us that one of the definitions of being strong is an ability to withstand great force and great pressure and God calls us to be strong. He's calling us to be able to stand against Anything that comes against us stand against every pressure Stand against any kind of Forces that comes against us for us to be tenacious for us to be relentless Vigorous and for us to be resilient in our stand and never to back down This is who we are as Children of God. This is who were created to be see when God Created us Bible says he created us in his image when lion gives birth He gives birth to a lion when eagle gives birth. He Produces eagles Every creature produces of its kind God created us in his image and we know one thing about God. He is mighty God. He is strong God and No being strong. It doesn't mean That you don't have fears being strong. It doesn't mean you don't have challenges being strong It doesn't mean that you're not scared at times Being strong has nothing to do even with your surrounding or your physical ability being strong is being able to Stand against all odds and not to give back not to fall down not to fall But knowing that God is on your side It's being able to stretch your mental capacity to understand that I can do all things through Jesus Christ That strengthens me and Bible calls on you and me to be strong say strong Say I am strong You know, I was talking the other the other day Liana from our our church She invited us to go to her house and just to just to fellowship and have some tea and talk and talking with her You know, and I encouraged her and I tell her that I said that I'm you know, I'm very proud of you For for being strong woman and she said, you know, I don't think I'm strong and I said and she said that you know I Sometimes I feel so weak and those of you that know her situation You know some months back her husband passed away and she is left with three kids as a widow And and she went through very very difficult time and still it's still recovering. She said, you know what? I don't think I'm strong. It's just by the grace of God, but this is the key this is the point is that it's not that You don't feel pain. It's not that you don't feel the challenge It's not that you don't feel at times that you want to give up But is that in the midst of all these things are going on you say, I'm not going back. I'm not backing down I am taking a next step forward Even if I don't see what's ahead of me Even if I don't know what's the next step gonna bring even if I don't know what next day is gonna bring I am not Going down Bible says that after you done all that you can't just stand and That's the real strength of a believer That's the real strength that we have to be strong and to be courageous never backing down Never going back knowing that God's supporting our position Not looking at our physical abilities not looking at resources not looking at what we have or don't have But understanding that let the weak say I am strong regardless whether I feel weak Well regardless whether you know, I have a lot or don't have much I am strong because Holy Spirit is inside of me. God is on my side. He has his back He has his mind set upon me. He has great future prepared for me He has good intents for me in Jesus name. Therefore. I can't quit. I can't quit I can't fall back. I have to stand strong and be courageous in Jesus mighty name How many strong people do we have in this place? Come on. Let's put our hands for Jesus Apostle Paul is writing to in 1st John chapter 2 13. He says I'm I'm writing to you young people because you have overcome the evil one You have overcome the evil one and that's the strength that comes from the Lord In Philippians 3 13 Bible says I can do all things through Jesus Christ who strengthens me say I can do all things in Jesus name Amen Point number two that I want to share and we're going to come back to the scripture that I read Be free We write the scripture that said no one can enter strong man's house and plunder his goods unless he first binds the strong man And then he plunders his goods See we can be this we can be strong. We might feel it or not feel it, but we can be strong But the way Satan plunders our life The way satan steals from us. Bible says he came to steal kill and destroy. We know his nature the way satan Operates in our life is through bondage He brings bondage into our life. He brings addictions to porn to masturbation He brings addictions to lust. He brings addictions to drugs alcohol He brings addiction to even a small things or as innocent things that we look at as like movies Or constantly doing useless things addiction to social media He brings our life. He brings certain bondage. It might be even small and insignificant But to rob our life bible says he binds the strongman first and then what he does he plunders of the goods Let's take a look at for example small addiction like social media You know, it's a it's not a sin But when it becomes a bondage It steals your time Seals you from relationships Steals you you see people they go out on the dates And people are and sometimes i'm guilty of it too And you see two people are sitting together yet. They're not even looking at each other and both Doing the these things You know, i'm sure they're not flipping through scriptures and i'm not getting filled by the holy ghost okay And satan but a small addiction called facebook instagram snapchat and and whatever else that's coming up or will be He rubs us Of a quality relationship Now we can go further further and further we can go in such a things as alcohol You know people say well alcohol is you know alcohol is a is a it's not you know as long as you don't get drunk You don't abuse it But it's a small thing that comes And it leads to big and greater and then we see duis car accidents And broken relationship broken marriages broken promises and satan through bondage Comes your strong man strong woman like you and begins to steal Drugs i mean obvious we don't we don't even have to we don't we don't even have to um Go into the area, you know, there's one person Month ago was talking to and i said hey i noticed that um i've heard that you're you're you're smoking weed Well, you know, he said weed is legal in washington state and it's not a addictive drug And uh, you know, they say that weed is a gateway drug to other drugs But i don't believe so i've been doing for some time, you know, and i haven't been trying other drugs I was like, okay. All right, we finished our conversation on that except that three weeks later He was in a an accident certain things happened lost his commercial license lost his lost money because well and possibly facing a lawsuit will lose any of Hopefully not but lose even more money Small bondage But satan operates through bondage through sin brings that and then steals Remember one thing Doesn't matter how strong you feel Doesn't matter how much resources you have doesn't matter how educated you are Doesn't matter how many things you think you got and you think you're invincible If you allow bondage in your life if you allow sin Satan will plunder your life your house your health your finances your business. He will take it all But i'm glad that today we're in the house of god And even if you caught in a snare and on the trap of satan god will break you free in jesus mighty name God will set you free in a mighty name of jesus christ In hebrus chapter 12 paul says put every hindrance And put every sin that easily Entangles in other words says ensnares us See we're running the race all of us whether you realize it or not We're running this race called life and apostle paul says run the race in such a way that you will get a reward If you're gonna get on a track and those of you that had at very least pe I'm not even talking about participating in sports But when you get in on a on a track to run or get into a game The point of a game getting into the game is so that you win You know nowadays, you know our society is shifting towards making everybody feel good and and given participation trophies, but that's not a biblical way Okay, that's that's just not a biblical way. Bible says run the race in such a way that you get the prize the bottom line I don't want to get a participation trophy. Okay. I want to get A trophy for winning the race So apostle paul in hebrus says run the race in such a way That you receive a prize but then he warns us and he says Put away Every hindrance every put away every weight first of all he says That will might slow you down And then he says put away Seen that ensnares you seen that entangles you seen that eventually will bind you And you will put all this effort in your life. You work so hard in your business But because you accept it Bundage in your life because you allow sin in your life because you allow certain area in certain area satan to operate in your life You are entangled And you're running a race you running a really hard yet. You're not receiving the reward yet You're not seen breakthrough in your in your finances yet. You're not seen breakthrough in your health in your marriage You know how many how many marriages? Got broken down because they they they allowed Things like pornography and other things in their marriage Thinking that they're gonna spice up the love life But at the end satan used that trojan horse to bring bondage in their life and broke apart their marriage Their sexual life went even worse than it was before Children are suffering because parents are split apart because parents are arguing and bondage satan used bondage to come and and plunder their life Anytime you allow sin in your life anytime you allow any kind of bondage in your life Satan will plunder your life 100% Whether it's may not be here today might not be even tomorrow might not be even three months from now But keep wanting in mind If you hide that bondage if you don't seek freedom, we have many wonderful leaders in the church We have many wonderful Pastors in the church that will not judge you but will work with you to help you to break off that addiction that you're facing Break off that cycle of sin or cycle of setback Whatever it is But we're here to pray for you to help you break that snare So satan will stop plundering your life and you can live a life that god has promised you So we can sit here and we can ask god god bless me God bless me god bless me and god wants to bless you and god might be even pouring blessings into your life But if your vessel Is broken if your vessel if your bucket contains holes Any kind of blessing that god's going to pour into your life Which is simply will leak out any kind of blessing that god has for your marriage or simply leak out If you don't get rid of sin and bondage Satan will steal from your life You can be strong. You can have degrees. You can be smart. You can have all kinds of things, you know, like working for you But if you have bondage It will plunder your life and i'll finish with um You know what my personal My personal story In my life, you know, I started Decided not to go to college right after high school or right when I was still in high school decided to I decided to you know, open up businesses and I was reading a lot of business books going to a lot of different business seminars and doing um A lot of those things, you know by by the age of in 1920 had multiple businesses A few years later had six or seven five or six businesses Well, most of them were doing really well and was making really good money But there was certain things in my life And I didn't I don't understand it Back then but there were certain generational curses were operating in my life The generational curse of of lust and other things that were Laying dormant for some time or or or they were um, it was it was hidden for some time and On outside, maybe I looked strong on outside. Maybe I looked successful and honestly To to to some manager if people look at my life, they'd said I was I was making very good money every single month I was making a month what people were making a year or more Take home pay and I was doing very well You know, uh, things were doing well owning, uh, real estate and and I trade I have having a hedge fund The competent and straight in markets are doing very well for my age and what I was I was very well on the way to hit my goals and my targets becoming a millionaire owning these real estate properties owning these things and everything Right at the peak of all things Things just came crumbling down. It's like in 2005 six and seven. It's like The rug was pulled under me everything that I worked for worked really hard Everything that accumulated for those years all the plans that I've made were just simply Taking from underneath of me like unexplainably I mean, it's just it was I was just like it's like I was watching a movie And I had no control of what's happening My marriage went down Finances completely destroyed. I mean everything was brought down because of that bondage of that generational curse That was following my family And I thank god for for our pastor I think that he for my dad that realized that this problem was spiritual problem and begin to seek spiritual solutions And not until I've received my deliverance from that bondage from that generational curse that things begin to work Things I begin to put things together my life. I begin to put those Those goods like what what we read in my life back into my house. God began to bless me Open up the businesses again. Things begin to prosper things begin to go God began to open the doors. God began to bless me with resources and connection and life turned around I want to tell you today if you notice in something in your life that you're working hard You're pushing forward it, but there's constantly something pushing you back. Maybe there's a bondage in your life Maybe a generational curse. Maybe it's nothing to do like we've just heard a testimony of a person It's not necessarily something that he did. It was just a generational thing that passed on to him But he was constantly held back in his life. He's struggling here in voices. God today can break that over your life The spirit of the lord is here in this place and any kind of bondage Whether it's some kind of sin that you constantly find yourself falling back into it constantly falling back into it You constantly being set back in your life. God can break that tonight in jesus mighty name Maybe it's constantly you're with your career or your business you you're taking a step forward It seems like you're right about to graduate or it seems like you're right about to get that promotion get that job You write you just write about to secure that to secure that business deal and things just keep falling back I want you to examine your life And see maybe there is a bondage in your life that satan uses to plunder your life and god says That today it can be broken in jesus mighty name Today it can be broken. I read first john first john 2 13 for you. He says Young man for you. You have overcome the devil. You can't overcome the evil one today. We we can overcome Jesus said I give a new authority to trample and triumph over every power of darkness every scorpion every snake Jesus said about himself that the spirit of the lord is upon me He is anointed me to declare the liberty to the captives and open the prison doors to the bound God is getting ready today tonight to break the bondage over your life so that you can So you can store up your house with the goods so that you can store up your life with good things that god has for you So you can receive what god has for you and not being stolen from underneath of you in jesus mighty name I believe I prayed for today and I believe that god as we're gonna pray god's gonna break some bondages today That god's gonna break some chains today that holy spirit will set somebody free today And you will leave those chains today here at this place walk out being completely free person Living full potential that god has for you in jesus mighty name