When the Lord gave me the messages on freedom, I discovered that freedom is defined as the state of being exempt from the control of another. The opposite of freedom is bondage. Bondage is defined as subjection to captivity or restraint. If you’ve been a slave to the bondage of oppression and depression, then today is your day to decree that you are free . . . at last.
Can you imagine someone walking into a prison and saying, “I have come to announce today that you are free?” What do you think would happen in that place? “Oh, thank you, let me get my bag.” I don’t think so. I think there would be a riot.
If somebody walked into the finest hospital in your city and announced to every person who was sick, diseased, dying of incurable diseases: “I have come to announce to you today that you are healed. You are free. Go home and live a normal life.” What kind of response do you think you would hear from those people? Shouting, dancing, screaming, jumping; excitement everywhere!
Yet, we read passages from the Bible that clearly declare that we don’t have to live oppressed and miserable, we are free in Jesus, and what do we say? “Oh, let’s see what else I can find.”
“The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me; because the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of prison to them that are bound; To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn; To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called the trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he might be glorified.” – Isaiah 61:1-3.
Jesus came to announce your freedom. He came to proclaim freedom to every captive of oppression, depression, loneliness, hopelessness, misery, etc. That includes you. . . today. Notice that it says, “He changed their mourning to comfort.” He will comfort you. He will change your mourning to joy. He will give you the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness. Apparently, these words spirit and garment are interchangeable in this verse because when the spirit of heaviness is on you, you wear it like a coat. If you see a person who has oppression and heaviness on them, it is as if they are wearing a garment of heaviness. It weighs them down. Jesus was saying, “I am going to redress you. I am going to change your attire. I am going to take off that old garment of heaviness, and I am going to put on you the new garment of praise” (Author’s paraphrase).
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