Your House

Reading Time: 4 Minutes

When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own house, his possessions are safe. But when someone stronger attacks and overpowers him, he takes away the armor in which the man trusted and divides up his plunder. Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters. Luke 11:21-23 NIV

In this scripture I believe the “house” Jesus is talking about is our personal life– our heart. If Jesus is not the Lord of our “house” we are subject to demonic break-ins. Jesus goes on to say:

When an evil spirit leaves a person, it goes into the desert, searching for rest. But when it finds none, it says, ‘I will return to the person I came from.’  So it returns and finds that its former home is all swept and in order. Then the spirit finds seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they all enter the person and live there. And so that person is worse off than before. Luke 11:24-26. NLT

After Deliverance

Deliverance is available for Christians and unbelievers. If there are strongholds in your life such as addictions, anger, offense, etc., God wants to free your “house” of them. Deliverance is a free gift of God just like forgiveness, healing, protection, etc. We don’t deserve deliverance or earn it by being good enough. All God’s gifts of grace are available to us when, by faith, we exchange our old dead life of sin for His righteousness.

So, if we willingly hold on to trauma, anxiety, un-forgiveness, etc., our faith is not in God’s love and grace but in something else. By holding anything back from God, we reject the gifts God wants to bless us with. Trying to earn God’s favor is perhaps one of the greatest strongholds of all. So, sit down with God and renounce (reject) anything that brings darkness to your heart. Ask Holy Spirit to deliver you. This can take more than one sitting, or two or ten. It’s often a process in our walk with God. So in all the turning over to God, the dying to self, do not be discouraged but keep your eyes on Jesus who freely gives His life, love and light!

But deliverance is only part of our freedom! Our “house” must be filled with the Holy Spirit and protected by God’s Armor. When we yield to Jesus, our body, soul and spirit is filled with God’s light. No demon of darkness can penetrate a “house” fully given over to God.

Be Filled With God

Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. The lamp of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is good, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness! No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon. Matthew 6:19-24 NKJV

Where do we store up treasures? God invites us to be seated with Him in the heavenly realms where there is no darkness. The Lord loves us and is patient with us as we grow! That is why He is giving His people time to repent of darkness and to be filled with with Him– His light!

If God’s love for others is increasing in your heart, His light is most likely increasing. We keep the lamps of our “house” burning for Jesus not only by saying that we love Him, but actually spending time with Him– obeying Him and His Word.

Light in the House

Your “house” and mine can be filled with light and free of darkness! God is our Protector! It will be worth every sacrifice we make in this life to know God intimately and yield to the ways of His Kingdom. Jesus is the object of all our affection and devotion. He is King of kings and Lord of lords! If He is Lord of our “house,” we have nothing to worry about!