The terms "binding" and "rebuking" have risen to the forefront in spiritual warfare and deliverance ministry teaching. The words are most often used to teach that the devil can be "bound" or that angels can be "loosed." This study today is about what the Bible says.
The verses most often cited for having the authority to bind the enemy are:
"I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven." (Matthew 16:19 ESV)
"Truly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven." (Matthew 18:18 ESV)
It is important to note that to "rightly" handle God's Word, it must be understood that the written word can only mean grammatically what the original author intended it to mean in the historical context they wrote it (2 Timothy 2:15). A verse can never mean what was never meant. Those who try to give words different meanings that what they actually mean in the context of the original language are guilty of committing nescient eisegesis and contextomy, which is defined as 'reading one's own presuppositions and personal theological perspectives into a passage to make it say what they want it to say.' A person can't take a word from the original Hebrew, Greek, or Aramaic and try to give it a meaning from a modern dictionary that is in the language it was translated into.
Let's look at the verses in context:
"Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, "Who do people say that the Son of Man is?" And they said, "Some say John the Baptist, others say Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets." He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?" Simon Peter replied, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." And Jesus answered him, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven." Then he strictly charged the disciples to tell no one that he was the Christ." (Matthew 16:13-20 ESV)
"If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother. But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every charge may be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses. If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. Truly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. Again I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them." (Matthew 18:15-20 ESV)
Matthew 16:13-20 is about Peter's confession that Jesus is the Christ, the promised Messiah of God. Matthew 18:15-20 is all about forgiveness and reconciliation.
The words, "binding and loosing" in verses 16:19 and 18:18 are a Jewish idiom translated word for word from the Hebrew into the Greek. Jewish texts show that "binding and loosing" were the terms applied to the work of the Rabbis in interpreting Scripture, allowing some things but denying others based on their interpretation of the meaning of the law. If the Rabbi said that a person was not allowed to walk more than a few hundred yards on the Sabbath, he was "binding" certain behavior. Although Jesus criticized the Pharisees for their hypocrisy, He required His disciples to obey their interpretations.
Jesus came to earth for two purposes. The first was to reconcile people to God. Once they become Born-Again, they are given the ministry of reconciliation.
"All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation" (2 Corinthians 5:18 ESV)
The second reason was to destroy the "devil's work" by offering forgiveness and reconciliation to everyone.
“Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil. 9No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God’s seed abides in him; and he cannot keep on sinning, because he has been born of God. By this it is evident who are the children of God, and who are the children of the devil: whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is the one who does not love his brother.” (1 John 3:8-10 ESV)
The good news is that Christians have a Savior, the Creator of the universe, living inside them, and the power of His forgiveness has already defeated satan! When we walk in forgiveness, we are doing what pleases the Father and displeases the enemy.
Note what Jesus says next,
"Again I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them." (Matthew 18:19-20 ESV)
Here, we learn something incredible in the context of what Jesus is teaching. If two or more Christians come together in His name - that is to say, if they come together to ask of the Father with a humble and forgiving heart toward others as He has forgiven them - the Father will give them anything they ask for. That is because they have come together with the understanding of His name, and all that His name represents, which includes forgiving the unforgivable.
Following this, Jesus said to the crowds and His disciples,
"The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses' seat, so do and observe whatever they tell you, but not the works they do. For they preach, but do not practice." (Matthew 23:2-3 ESV)
To "sit in Moses' seat," was to have authority regarding interpretation of the law. Later, at the Council of Jerusalem, the Apostles were to do this very thing by not requiring Gentiles to be circumcised or to follow other aspects of Jewish law. Acting in this capacity, the Apostles were "binding and loosing" in true rabbinical fashion. When a person doesn't forgive, they are serving as both Judge and Jury. They have the power to "loose" the blessings of God upon the one they forgive or to "bind" the person from experiencing forgiveness, thereby blocking God's blessings.
After reading the verses in context, it can be clearly seen that Jesus, as the great Rabbi, was teaching two important principles of forgiveness: first, by showing the need to avoid offending others, and second, calling all to humility.
When a person doesn't forgive, they "bind" the Holy Spirit from working in their heart, in the lives of their family, and for the unity of all Christians. Nothing hinders the work of God more in a church than unforgiveness. By not forgiving, they are "letting loose" the old fleshly nature and giving place to the enemy to wreak havoc in their midst.
The Holy Spirit longs to bring healing and blessing into every Christian's life. When they don't forgive another, they bind and imprison that person. However, by not forgiving, they also do the very same thing to themselves. Forgiveness loosens and breaks the chains that shackle them to the sins of their past and from the hurts and pains caused by those who have sinned against them.
Once a person commits and agrees to forgive, they "loose" the Holy Spirit to bring His presence and His glory into the church, into their home, and into the world. By doing this, they "bind" the works of the flesh and the enemy so that they might both receive and offer the blessings of healing and deliverance.
One of the hardest struggles of being a disciple of Jesus is to win the battle of forgiveness because it goes on in the mind and in the thoughts. True spiritual warfare must be targeted at breaking spiritual strongholds, not people. Anger, bitterness, hate, and unforgiveness all originate in the mind. We must pray fervently to avoid these strongholds in our lives as well as in the lives of others. We must never give up; rather, we should be confident that we have been promised the victory already as we walk daily in humility, yielded to the Lord.
Binding the Strong Man
Another verse that is quoted to validate the belief that we can 'bind' the enemy is:
"Or how can someone enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man? Then indeed he may plunder his house." (Matthew 12:29 ESV)
In context, the verse is regarding the unforgivable sin of Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. The Pharisees had made the blasphemous accusation that Jesus was doing the work of satan and not God. Let's take a look at the verses in context:
"Then a demon-oppressed man who was blind and mute was brought to him, and he healed him, so that the man spoke and saw. And all the people were amazed, and said, "Can this be the Son of David?" But when the Pharisees heard it, they said, "It is only by Beelzebul, the prince of demons, that this man casts out demons." Knowing their thoughts, he said to them, "Every kingdom divided against itself is laid waste, and no city or house divided against itself will stand. And if Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then will his kingdom stand? And if I cast out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your sons cast them out? Therefore they will be your judges. But if it is by the Spirit of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. Or how can someone enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man? Then indeed he may plunder his house. Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters. Therefore I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven people, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. And whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come." (Matthew 12:22-32 ESV; see also Mark 3:22-30; Luke 11:14-23)
Jesus shows us only a superior power can drive out another. The point of the passages is not about "binding," but about the effect of superior power. Jesus had many contacts with demonic spirits, but it is never said that He went about "binding" them.
The Bible says that satan will be "bound" before the thousand-year reign of Jesus, and then "loosed" for a season AFTER it is fulfilled. This future tense is the only proper application of this concept to spiritual warfare.
"Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding in his hand the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain. And he seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil and satan, and bound him for a thousand years, and threw him into the pit, and shut it and sealed it over him, so that he might not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were ended. After that he must be released for a little while" (Revelation 20:1-3 ESV).
The adversary, and his minions, are not omnipresent. They can't be in two places at once. There is only one satan, and he is limited to one place at a time. If a single Christian could "bind" satan or a demonic spirit, then they would be prohibited from doing anything to anyone else from that point on. "Binding" and "loosing" is directly related to the effects of forgiveness by showing the need to avoid offending others, and calling people to humility (See Matthew 16:19; 18:18-20).
The Born-Again Christian is the “house.” Our Creator lives inside us!! The physical body, which includes the flesh and not just the spirit or soul, is His dwelling place and is now His Temple - the Holy of Holies (See Luke 9:1-2; 1 John 2:13-14, 3:8, 4:4). There is no basement, attic, hidden room, or unguarded area where God does not dwell. There can be no squatters or tenants sharing the residence with Him. The Bible makes it absolutely clear that no unclean spirit can co-habitate, live, or reside in the same place as the Holy Spirit.
Rebuking the Enemy
Another common phrase used against the enemy is "I rebuke you in the name of Jesus!" Sadly, too many Christians think that "spiritual warfare" is simply using the words "I bind you" or "I rebuke you" like some magical mantra.
The Bible says Jesus gave His disciples the "authority to drive out evil spirits and to heal every disease and sickness," but He said nothing about how to 'rebuke' an evil spirit (Matthew 10:1 ESV). It is the responsibility of God alone to rebuke anything, and punish the enemy (Matthew 8:26, 17:18, Mark 1:25, 4:39; 9:25, Luke 4:39, 8:24, 9:42; Revelation 3:19).
God will "fight those who fight you" (Isaiah 49:25 TLB). No one should ever attempt to war against the enemy in their own strength.
"But when the archangel Michael, contending with the devil, was disputing about the body of Moses, he did not presume to pronounce a blasphemous judgment, but said, "The Lord rebuke you." (Jude 1:9 ESV - See also Zechariah 3:1-2)
Michael did not dare to insult the enemy by fighting with his own authority. He recognized that it was God alone who gave to the enemy the power he has in this world, and therefore, it was only God who could rebuke and cast him and his accusations away. God's Word is "like fire" that will consume and break the enemy "like a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces" (Jeremiah 23:29 ESV).
RESIST
The Bible says that the way of dealing with demons is to submit to God in humility and resist the enemy, which will drive or cast them out. "God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble." Then, as they "draw near to God," He will "draw near" to them (James 4:6,8,10 NKJ).
The word "resist" means to take up full battle armor and stand in an offensive position. When a Christian walks in pride, God actively resists and will not show them favor in any situation. When they walk in holiness and humility, submitting themselves to God, He lifts them up so that they will be able to resist the devil. Then the devil has to flee from them. By living in the "meekness and gentleness of Christ," they find the "divine power to demolish strongholds" of "arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God." Humility is what is able to help them "take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ" (2 Corinthians 10:1-5 NIV).
When feeling the pressure of temptation, Christians are to
"Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you." (James 4:7 ESV)
"Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you. Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world." (1 Peter 5:6-9 ESV)
Resisting the devil so that he will flee is more than just saying "no." There is a condition that must first be met in order for the devil to flee. A person must first "submit" themselves to God.
Submitting to God means to lay aside personal agendas and aspirations so that they will do His will. By submitting, the Christian is, in essence, surrendering all to Him. They are saying, 'You know what is best for me,' and, "Not my will, but Yours be done."
Spiritual authority is given to those who commit their lives to holiness.
"Since all these things are thus to be dissolved, what sort of people ought you to be in lives of holiness and godliness, waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be set on fire and dissolved, and the heavenly bodies will melt as they burn!" (2 Peter 3:11-12 ESV)
Humility
Nothing does more to block the advancement of the enemy than the praise and worship of a thankful heart that is walking in humility. The enemy is always trying to distract and ensnare. He wants to lure people away from worshipping God. His primary method is through the pride of unforgiveness.
Humility is the strongest weapon Christians have to fight against the enemy because it is the exact opposite of him. They overcome the enemy "by the blood of the lamb" through humility and their "testimony" by living a life of repentance and laying down their life for others; "for they did not love their lives but laid them down for him" (Revelation 12:11 TLB. See also Revelation 2:4-7, 14-17).
When a Christian humbles themself before God in prayer, repent of their sin and seek His face, He "will hear from heaven"… "and heal their land" (2 Chronicles 7:14-16 NLT).
When Christians fight against another, when they don't live a life of holiness, or they don't forgive, satan is given a temporary victory. In addition, they also give him a stronghold from which he will be able to attack again. Christians are admonished to:
"Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world." (1 Peter 5:9 ESV)
If one is not submitted and obedient to the Lordship of Jesus in their life; if they are leaning on their understanding and strength, and they attempt to resist and drive out the enemy, the only response they will get is the sound of satan's laughter echoing through the halls of hell.
It doesn't matter what someone has done to another or why something happened to them. What matters is how they respond to it. Even in those times of suffering, one "should commit" themselves to their "faithful Creator and continue to do good" (1 Peter 4:17-19 NIV). They will never be able to "resist the devil" and have complete victory unless they surrender themselves totally and entirely to the will of God. The enemy finds much pleasure when Christians don't forgive, and when there is no reconciliation with those who have hurt them or those they have hurt.
The Armor of Light
Christians don't battle against flesh and blood, "but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. (Ephesians 6:12 NIV) so they need spiritual weapons. God has given them His "armor of light" (Romans 13:12 NIV) to prepare and protect against the onslaught of the enemy. Jesus "lives in unapproachable light." (1 Timothy 6:15-16 NIV)
He has made His "light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ. (2 Corinthians 4:5-6 NIV) The greatest weapon Christians have is the beauty of God that will blind the eyes of any enemy; "For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness? (2 Corinthians 6:14 NIV) All Born-Again Christians are "sons of the light and sons of the day." They don't "belong to the night or to the darkness" (1 Thessalonians 5:5-6 NIV). They must learn to place their "trust in the light" each day (John 12:36 NIV).
"Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power." (Ephesians 6:10 NIV)
