Let Freedom Ring

John 8, 36 reads, If the Son therefore shall

make you free, you shall be free indeed. And

then Galatians 5, verse 1, Stand fast therefore

Galatians 5:1

in the liberty wherewith Christ has made us free,

and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.

Here's the thought I'm going to talk about for

a little bit this morning. Let freedom ring.

Let freedom ring. Father, I love you this morning.

So grateful for the power of your presence in

this house today. Lord, as we break the bread

of life, which is your word, let this word be

life, health, peace, nourishment to every heart,

every body in this place today. In Jesus' name.

And everybody say it. Amen. Tell your neighbor,

let freedom ring. Let freedom ring. Y 'all don't

get too far because I don't know how far I'll

get. If y 'all just want to sit right here, just

sit up here just a minute. Go ahead and sit down,

baby. Sit down. I'm about to preach, darling.

She's ready to stand and help me all the way.

Hallelujah. Give the Lord another praise in his

house. As a nation, we're about to celebrate

our 250th birthday as a nation. It's quite a

milestone. If the Lord doesn't tarry, I don't

know if she'll make another 250 in the condition

she's in and getting in. At least not in the

condition that you and I know it. And as we know

the freedoms that we have and that we enjoy.

It's all bought with a price. The declaration

of separation. We think the war began in 1776.

It did not. It actually began in 1775, the American

Revolution. The Battle of Concord in Lexington,

Massachusetts is where it all began. All we get

stuck in our mind is 1776 where that second Continental

Congress brought forth that beautiful document

that we know as the Declaration of Independence

where that all of mankind is given the right

to pursue life, liberty, And happiness. It took

eight years for that to finally end. It wasn't

a very quick ordeal. It was a long ordeal. 1783

was when the American Revolution ended. And in

the ensuing 250 years, there's been some very

bright moments for this nation, but there's been

some dark moments as well. There's some things

that we are ashamed of. I am for us as a nation.

Some of the atrocities that we've put on people.

But thankfully, that's all hopefully behind us.

And we learn from our history. I think if anything

we learn from history is that we don't learn

from history. And there's a grave danger to repeat

it. But as for now, freedom still rings. We're

still here today with the ability to do what

we have just done, to worship the Lord in spirit

and in truth. Amen? That's the reason I think

every week we should really exercise that ability

to its fullness. Hopefully you're worshiping

at home. Hopefully you sing at home. Hopefully

you praise and pray and get in your word at home.

But if you wait till Sunday, at least get it

all built up and let's get in here and give it

all. Jesus said here in John's Gospel in this

8th chapter, whom the Son sets free, they are

free indeed. He had earlier in this chapter told

the Pharisees and all who were listening that

he is the light of the world. And then he goes

into this discourse about the heavenly father

and who he is and as he is related to the father.

And they're all confused and they're not getting

it right. They're not understanding everything

the Lord is telling them. And he says, well,

you're never going to figure it out. You're going

to be lost in your sins. You just won't accept

the fact. If you've seen me, you've seen the

Father. I am of the Father, sent from him. And

same token in Galatians, Paul writing to the

people of God there about their freedom and liberty

in Christ. He encourages them to stand fast in

the liberty. wherewith Christ has made us free.

And then he encourages them and instructs them

not to be entangled with the yoke of bondage

again. Don't get caught back up in the mess that

you've been set free from. Hello? That's a danger

for us all today, and it's an encouragement we

should hear. As believers, we're giving... I

think a far more important declaration of independence

than even what we enjoy as a nation. The deliverance

and victory that you and I have through Christ

is better than any freedom that any government

of this world could offer you. And it's important

for us to understand that as we see the days

grow and time begins to pass, it's important

for us to stand firm in the liberty of Christ

with every fiber of our being. We do so through

the enabling power of the Holy Ghost so as not

to relinquish. this freedom again to the enslavement

of the world, meaning any worry, any fear, any

anger, any resentment, any type of lust, any

type of greed, or any other sin which besets

us and moves us off of the pathway of this liberty

that we have in Christ. And always remember that

liberty in Christ is not a license to sin. Hello?

Just because grace abounds, should we continue

in sin? God forbid, no. The author of Hebrews

in the 12th chapter puts it this way, Wherefore,

seeing we also are compassed about with so great

a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every

weight in the sin which doth so easily beset

us, and let us run with patience the race that

is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author

and the finisher of our faith. who for the joy

that was set before him endured the cross, despising

the shame, and is set down at the right hand

of the throne of God. For consider him that endured

such contradiction of sinners against himself.

Least you be wearied and faint in your minds.

You have not yet resisted unto blood, striving

against sin. Look to Jesus. Maintain the liberty

and the freedom that you have been given from

the bondage and the power of sin. In the joy

that we have in Christ. There's good news for

us today. And that news is this. Jesus is the

expert in deliverance. 2 Peter 2 .9, Peter puts

it this way. The Lord knoweth how to deliver

the godly out of temptations. And for us, it's

good for us to understand that Christ didn't

intend for you and I to stay captive to the forces

and the influence of this world or the shifts

that occur in this world or the sway and the

lean of culture. 1 John 3 and 8 declares, for

this purpose the Son of God was manifested that

he might destroy the works of the devil. Now,

it's important we understand what the word destroy

means, right? Destroy means to dissolve, to break

up, or to melt, or to put off. In other words,

Christ came to liberate humanity from the works

and the power of Satan. Isn't that wonderful?

And when we begin to understand it's for the

entirety of the human race, and when we begin

to think about All of mankind is seeking deliverance.

They just don't know really what they need to

be delivered from. And the main thing we have

to be delivered from, first of all, is ourself.

Where we acknowledge our need. When we begin

to think about life and all the things that transpire

in and through life. There are lion's dens. There

are fires. There are pits. Amen. From which everyone

needs some type of deliverance. We're contending

with the forces that stifle us at every point.

But there is good news. And that good news is

clear. And it is the theology of deliverance

through Jesus Christ. And that theology dominates

the scripture and those promises which offer

us help. I got to stay on track right here because

we're going to get going here in just a second

as we're laying this framework. And what we have

begun to experience in here this morning, somebody

said, well, you've killed a spirit. If I've killed

that spirit, then it need killing. Because the

word does not. The word edifies, it comes together

with, and when we come back to the point here

in just a moment, we have a mental concept and

we have a biblical understanding that what I

am longing for, he has promised to me. And the

enemy cannot take it away from us. He cannot

rob. Why? Because we have been liberated through

Christ. So we stand fast, therefore, in the liberty

that Christ has given us. And that is the power

of the theology of deliverance. Deliverance that

is dominated throughout Scripture, my Lord. So

what we would use as a term is, Lincoln used

the emancipation. Emancipation, which simply

means to liberate. It means freeing. It means

releasing. It means unshackling. It means unfettering.

It means untying. Jesus Christ is the ultimate

one who brings about emancipation for humanity.

Oh, my Lord, this morning, there is a great anointing

in this house today. The Spirit of the Lord is

here, and we're declaring the emancipating power

of Jesus Christ who sets liberty on all. So there's

the liberty for healing where there's the bondage.

It's time to get some folk unshackled here today.

It's time that we see. the shackles and the chains

of bondage of sin and disease begin to break

and fall and crumble. Why? Because we are declaring

let freedom ring and the sun sets free is free

indeed. It's 1863 when Lincoln declared the Emancipation

Proclamation, setting humans who were enslaved

free. But the saddity of it is, that was 1863

in January. And it took till June of 65 for it

to fully spread across this nation. Let me tell

you something, it don't take two years for the

Lord to declare some emancipation in our life.

Woo, my Lord. Yeah, when he declares it, it's

a done deal for you. Amen. When he proclaims

it over our life, then it takes place at the

very moment of his declaration over you. When

we think about how that the Bible just brings

this deliverance and emancipating theology together.

In the first five books of the Torah, we'll read

and you'll see how that he delivers from chaos,

bondage, anarchy, disease. And he'll deliver

out of the wilderness and deliver into a promise.

Amen. It's in his word. The historical books

of Joshua, Judges, 1 Samuel, 2 Samuel, the Kings,

the Chronicles, Esther, Nehemiah, and Ruth. Reveal

how he delivers and rescues us from our enemies.

Hallelujah. When you read the Chronicles of the

Kings, it's about defeat and victory. Defeat

and victory. Sin and rebellion and victory. How

that God liberates, amen, and brings about the

victory for the life of the people of God, amen,

on those who are his covenant. You've got the

poetic books, the books of Psalm, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes,

that beautiful song of Solomon, which reveal

his liberating power. as he frees us from affliction,

contempt, and distress. I'm telling you, it's

a thread throughout the whole book. The books

of the prophets announce his deliverance from

a backslidden condition. You're gonna be in bondage

70 years. Go ahead and build some houses. Go

ahead and plant your garden. But don't get too

comfortable. 70 years, I'm coming back after

you. And I'm going to bring you out, amen. Look,

when God says I'm coming to get you and he sets

a timeline, when the timeline is fulfilled, look,

we used to put it this way, there ain't no devil

in hell can hair lip it. God's going to do it.

If he's declared it, he will prove his point

that he's coming to deliver. There's no king,

there's no nation, there's no one can stop God

from liberating whom he's already prophesied

a liberation to come to. Don't get too comfortable.

I'm coming after you in 70 and we're going out

and you're coming back to my city. Oh, it doesn't

stop with the Old Testament. The liberation moves

on through the New Testament. His emancipation

continues. The Gospels exhibit his deliverance

from sickness. Sorrow and pain. But the gospels

also reveal to us our liberation from the power

of sin itself. How so, pastor? I'm glad you asked.

As John, standing in the Jordan about waist deep,

declares, behold, the Lamb of God, which takes

away the sins of the world. My God, there's liberation.

There's a liberation theology. There's a declaration.

Let freedom ring. The Lamb of God takes away

the sin. Woo! My Lord, that's just the four gospels.

Acts pours out the Spirit. And the church is

freed from complacency. Hey, Lord, couldn't I

put both feet and grind a little right here?

We need a little freedom from complacency. What's

that mean? We've got lazy in our relationship

with God. We take things way too for granted.

Like the liberty that we have. All that COVID

garbage and shutting down church and all that

stuff was a test run to see if we'd actually

do it. Well, they're gonna have a different story

next time they try that because I don't think

it's gonna be so easy. It ain't gonna be easy

to shut the church down again. Nope, it's not

gonna be so easy. My Lord, we gotta leave this

world from something. Hello? And if I don't have

enough faith in God, I had all three versions

of it. Well, didn't you hang a shot? No, I did

not. I didn't. Didn't want one. Now look, I won't

take their next one either. Why? It might help

you, yeah, but it hurts when they give it to

me and I'm not into pain. It's the needle. I'm

sorry. You say, well, I took it, Pastor. Are

you talking down on me? No, I am not. You do

you. Hello? The way all that came about, if I

was his oldest brother, Ron, I'd have took one.

He didn't hear me, I'm glad. You don't have to

tell, you don't have to tell him. My Lord, they

had a demographic of our people scared to death.

Stayed locked up at home for a year. It was dangerous

and many people lost their life. Preachers of

the gospel, men I know, faith preachers, anointed

men of God. But I don't think it's going to be

so easy to shut the doors of the church the next

time. It ain't going to be that easy to close

these. I'm not shutting them. Not doing it again.

We're not doing it again. Not doing it again.

I'll be in here by myself. The Spirit pours out

the freedom from complacency of people empowered

for service and anointed. To issue the kingdom

dictates of the most high God. empowered to see

that they be fulfilled. It's not the acts of

the apostles. It's the acts of the Holy Spirit

through the apostles. It is the Holy Ghost who

poured out on men and they begin to believe that

exactly what the word declares, Jesus actually

told them, it's expedient that I go away because

if I don't go away, the promise can't come. But

when the promise gets there, you're gonna be

empowered to do greater works than I do. You're

gonna do because I'm going to the Father and

he's dispatching the enabling power. to move

upon your life, to invade the darkness that is

around you and do these great and mighty works.

Deliverance, the 21 epistles express deliverance

from sin's mastery. Stand fast, therefore. Revelation,

Christ completely liberates from the world's

power. And the influence of Satan. He who stood

with his vesture. Dipped in blood. Changed the

bloody vesture for a white one. Took those crowns

of thorns that they placed. And replaced them

with the crown of glory. Takes the sword of the

spirit to his hand and begins to proclaim with

a new name on his thigh, my God. He begins to

announce judgment on the world, but liberation

to the bride. God himself delivers. And nothing,

nothing. is beyond his power to emancipate your

life. Nothing. Nothing and no one is able to

stand. Psalm 3 and 8 says, salvation belongs

unto the Lord. Thy blessing is upon thy people.

And there's nothing the enemy can do about it.

Job 5, 19 declares, he shall deliver thee in

six troubles. Yeah, in seven there shall no evil

touch you. 91 and three, that beautiful psalm,

the 91, he that dwelleth in the secret place

of the Most High shall abide in the shadow of

the Almighty. The third verse says this, surely

he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler

and from the noisome pestilence. Don't you want

to get rid of the noisome pestilence of the voice

of the enemy? My, my, my. All he does is run

his mouth. Don't you ever just want to say, shut

up? Would you please shut up? And if you'll come

behind that with, in the name of Jesus, please

shut up. He'll shut up. He has to. Because he

knows he's not the ultimate authority. The emancipator

is the ultimate authority. He delivered. God

just delivers. I mean, that's just what he does.

That's just who his being is. He delivered Noah

from a flood, right? Didn't he not? Moses from

an Egyptian. Joshua from some Canaanites. Samson

from Philistines. David from a Goliath and on

and on and on it goes. Elisha from King Ahab.

Gideon from an army. It's what he does. So what

are you saying, Pastor? Whatever it is, it's

got you cornered up. Whatever it is has you bound

up, tied up, shackled up. Whatever it is, it's

keeping you from exercising your faith in the

liberty that has been proclaimed over you. Just

show of hands real quick. Who's the child of

God whom the Son has set you free? I mean, you're

not living under the bondage of sin anymore.

Then if the Son has set you free, then you are

free indeed. Then you have to stand firm. Get

your mind made up that I'm going to stand in

the liberty and I'm going to take the word of

God into my heart and know and declare that I

am free. I'm going to jump over all of this and

get over to where we can move on. We're moving

past this. The Lord's on me. He's known me to

preach. Gospel to the poor. Sent me to heal the

brokenhearted. Preach deliverance. Oh, preach

deliverance. Luke 4, 18 and following. Those

are my, that's my life. These are what I hold

my everything on. How many of you know what your

life verse is? You got one. Well, if you hadn't

read enough to get one, let me encourage you.

To start reading your Bible and get a hold of

one. Well, what's a life verse? It's that one

when it doesn't matter what's going on, you can

go to it. You can go to it. You can go to that

place and you can begin to read right there and

you can feel your help show up. That verse, that's

the one I'm talking about. 30 years of pastoral

ministry, I got Luke 4 .18 following. For the

spirit of the Lord is upon me and he has anointed

me to preach. Amen. I didn't call me. I didn't

anoint me. And when all hell's breaking loose

and folk really don't like you much and things

aren't going too well, Brother Green, you've

been there. I always go to here. I always go

to here. I don't have to read it. It's branded

on my mind and it's branded on my soul. But there's

something about turning it over there and just

reading it again to reiterate to me that the

son has set me free and I am free indeed. And

there is no bondage. There is no power. The spirit

of the Lord is on me. My God, the spirit of the

Lord is on me. And because him being on me, he

has anointed me to preach, preach, preach. Preach

what? That he is the ultimate emancipator. There's

no bondage in your life that he doesn't have

power over. Let freedom ring. Hallelujah. I wish

somebody would praise him like he know what I

am talking about. Well, hallelujah. We are. The

Holy Ghost has freedom among us to move on us.

Well, to preach the acceptable year of the Lord,

delivering of captives, recovering of sight to

blind, setting at liberty those who are bound,

bruised. He commissioned the 12 disciples. When

he sent them out, go heal the sick, raise the

dead, cleanse the leper, and drive out the demons.

He called the 70, paired them up, sent them out

two by two with the same directive. Before his

ascension, Matthew 28, Mark 16. He broadened

the scope to include every believer. You and

I. I want you to go preach the gospel. Teach

them what I taught you. Baptize them. Mark gives

even more deep. Cast out devils. Lay hands on

the sick. Jesus said they shall speak with new

tongues. It's in the book, folks. They drink

any deadly thing, it ain't gonna hurt them. They

can take up serpents, and you can do that at

your own liberty. But I'm free. The Son has set

me free. And I endeavor daily to stand fast,

to stand firm, to stand fixed, concreted in that

liberty. No license other than to be licensed

to live as he lived. To be the image that he

is trying to transform me into, which is his

own likeness. That's the liberty. That's the

liberty. We're free. We're free from failure.

Somebody needs to hear this today. Why? Because

the word declares it. Philippians 4 .13, you

can do all things through Christ who strengthens

you. I can do all. It's that little 10 -finger

prayer, right? How many knows that one? Anybody

that does not know? You never heard that. Anybody

never heard that, that 10 -finger prayer? Well,

good. I don't have to explain it again. You're

free from want. You're free from want. My God

shall supply all of your need according to his

riches in glory by Christ Jesus. Philippians

4, 19, 2 Timothy 1, 7, you're free from fear

because God hath not given you a spirit of fear

but of power and of love and of a sound mind.

You're not going crazy. I don't care what that

voice in your ear is declaring. Tell him to shut

up because you have been liberated by the power

and the Son has set you free. You don't have

to live in the darkness of depression. You don't

have to live through the weight of oppression.

You can arise to the joy and the light of the

glorious love of God through his Son. Christ

Jesus who has liberated you and set you free.

Free from doubt. God has given to every man the

measure of faith. Faith cometh by hearing and

hearing by the word of God. Free from weakness,

Psalm 27, one for the Lord is the strength of

my life. Huh? He'll pick up our weary heads and

our hands that hang low. Free from the power

of the enemy. For greater is he that is in you

than he that is in this world. Would you please

kindly stop diminishing the power of Christ that's

in you. And just release what is in you. What's

in me, Pastor? It's Christ who is in us. The

hope of glory. That's who's in you. You remember,

he went down and took the keys away. Yeah. He

lives in you, free from defeat. 2 Corinthians

2 .14, now thanks be unto God, which always,

that's a pretty good word, I think, in this text,

which always causes us to triumph in Christ.

Better stand where I won't get wound up. I'm

on. Come in. I got both wheels down, but we may

have to circle. Excuse this, your captain speaking.

There's a storm down below. As soon as the weather

clears and clouds are gone, we'll be coming in

for our approach. Until then, we're going to

hover 22 -5. Keep your seatbelts on. Hands in

the seat at all times. Thank you. It's your captain.

Come on, buckle up. 1 John 1, 7 declares there's

some freedom from sin. For the blood of Jesus

Christ cleanses me from all sin. If a man sin,

he has an advocate with the Father, Christ Jesus

the righteous. And if we are faithful and just

to confess our sins, he is faithful and just

to cleanse us of our sin and all unrighteousness.

What are you saying, Pastor? Stay repentant.

Stay repentant. Well, we don't have to fight.

Well, I've been waiting on the segue. Here it

is. We don't fight the devil anymore. Hogwash!

You fight him every day! Here's something for

somebody. You've been emancipated from worry,

unshackled, untied, released, let go from worry.

1 Peter 5, 7 says, cast all your care upon him,

for he careth for you. For those of you that

don't feel worthy, man, I used to battle that

one. I used to really battle that one. Anybody

else? Unworthiness. You just felt unworthy. Man,

I used to fight that. Because I know a lot of

preachers forget who they were. I remember what

I am. Because I haven't left from what I were.

I'm still it. Just a sanctified Holy Ghost feel

version of it. There is therefore now no condemnation

to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not

after the flesh, there's the kicker, but after

the Spirit. You don't have to be condemned of

your past. We all got one. Ain't nobody in here

any less sinner than what you were. Humanity,

we put grades, levels on sin. We do that. Oh

man, that's a... Man, that's bad. Well, no, all

sin's bad. Some sin are atrocious. Right? Against

humanity. They will be judged accordingly. But

all sin, any sin, is a mark against God. You're

free from discouragement. Because there's encouragement

in Christ, consolation of love, fellowship in

His Spirit, affection and compassion. So we can

make our joy complete by being of the same mind,

maintaining the same love, united in and by the

same Spirit. That's why Paul told the Philippians,

let this mind be in you. This is so much. Lord,

I love you today. I thank you so much for your

goodness and your mercy. Lord, as your spirit

was moving in this place, you still reside. Now

we even have more upon which to stand. We have...

the confirmation of your word over our dilemma.

So I speak it, Lord, let freedom ring. Let freedom

ring in the hearts and minds of your people.

Let freedom ring. If you need a touch this morning

to continue to stand, I want you to come on.

in the liberty that you've been given. If somewhere

through the process of this message, the Lord

has brought your attention to whatever might

be binding you, tying you, restraining you, restricting

you, and you won't free from it, come on. Sickness,

disease, emotional scarring. Mental suppression.

Oppression. The devil trying to just wear you

out and wear your mind down. I just wonder. Been

how I had to cross it a couple times. Evidently

the devil's been whispering in somebody's ear.

Now here's where the rubber meets the road. What

are you going to do about it? You just going

to keep listening? You know, it's like a skeeter.

You're sitting out on the porch trying to drink

your evening coffee. And you do that. And the

little wind off your hand blows him over here

about two feet. You get another sip and then

you hear... And you do that again. You know when

that stops? For me, let me tell you when that

stops for me. When I put my glasses on. Because

he's within two feet. I get my glasses on and

I hear... And I turn around and look. That's

when the noise stops. That's when the buzzing

stops. Well, that's what you need to do today.

That buzzing that you hear, come let the devil

just get smacked in the mouth by the Holy Ghost

this morning. Just shut him up. But now see,

it's only you. If you want free from his voice,

come on. If you don't, just sit there and do

this all week. And then come Sunday, you say,

boy, I wish I'd come down there. Anybody else?

You need prayer today. Sickness, disease, whatever,

whatever, whatever. Doesn't matter. If it's binding

you, holding you, restricting you, the immense

impending power of Christ is here to set you

free.