You've got an issue. Your issue's unforgiveness. It's YOUR issue. You've got to deal with it and people - but that's not fair! So unfair! And so we say we have to forgive - that's unfair, you know, because we're locked in self-pity and locked in the issue of injustice. We're not willing to bring injustice to the cross and move on, so we've got a key to all freedom. You can't have authority over what you don't take responsibility for. I may get a chance to speak on another area that every area that God has given you responsibility for where you've failed to have dominion, demonic spirits will occupy that and use that base to give you a hard time. Think about that.
So whatever God gave you responsibility for, if you abscond from your responsibility something will occupy that seat of authority and use it against you. This is why - I'll just give a hint on this one - this is why many men live very passive and shut down because at the core they haven't understood and recognised and stood up in the spiritual responsibility God gave them, so a demonic spirit enters that office and uses it against them to keep them oppressed. You've got to understand that's how it works. Either you're in the place God called you and you're guarding and governing it, or something else is and it's using it against you. There's never a vacuum. Something is always there. Okay, we'll just keep away from that for the moment. ... [Laughter] ... So number one, you need to recognise - [Laughs] Wives, I saw wives go [motions] Listen up! Listen up! This is for you. ... [Laughter] ... We'll get onto that - so just if he doesn't take responsibility for it don't try and push it. You listen! You get the tape on this one, you know. Don't go that kind of thing... [Laughs] Moves into witchcraft you know ... [Laughter] ... so recognising your need means just stop pretending, stop covering, just face what's there. You have what you have. If it stays in the darkness you have no power. Bring it to the light. That's what I love about Jurgen he just is transparent about things in his life and you know what happens? As soon as you bring stuff to the light it just breaks its power. Its power lies in secrecy and darkness. Okay?
So you take responsibility - it means you stop making excuses, minimising it, stop blaming someone else. You stop thinking like a victim - it's not my fault, I'm just like this. I'm Irish, we all drink, you know? ... [Laughter] ... You can't get into that sort of stuff. You've got to take responsibility you know. It's my red hair - that's why I'm so angry all the time. ... [Laughter] ... You can't use this as an excuse. Just call it what it is and face it, say I need to deal with my anger. Okay.
So second thing is we need to repent of sin. We need to honestly in our heart repent of sin. We need to repent of sin. Proverbs 28:13, whoever covers his sins won't prosper, but if we confess and forsake them we'll have mercy. Proverbs 28:13, if we cover we can't prosper, but if we confess and forsake - so covering. Covering leaves you in bondage and there is a covering God has provided. The covering He's provided is the blood of Jesus Christ and it's applied by bringing the issue to the light. If we walk in the light as He's in the light, then our relationships - we have fellowship with one another and the blood cleanses us. We've got to be transparent about the issue, just straight up. God's not condemning you. He's made the provision and wants us to come out of the darkness. If you hide you can't prosper because that's where demon spirits have their power.
They operate in a kingdom called the kingdom of darkness. What's in the dark has power. As soon as you bring it to the light a lot of it's power's broken. Getting the idea? So we need to repent of our sin and that means we just abandon - we've got to abandon what we're involved in. Now for many people that's a problem because sin's a great comfort. They've got issues and stuff, secret stuff going on and so it's a comfort to them, so we turn back to sin because of a comfort zone. It could be alcohol, it could be all kinds of things, we go back to comfort - we've got to actually turn from it, got to abandon finding comfort and refuge in sin and come and say God, this is the new life I want to live now. You've got to turn right around and so make a stand against it, so you've got to stand against things.
So the third foundational pillar in the freedom is this and that is I must release forgiveness. I have to release forgiveness to people that hurt me. Now this is a bit of an issue for people, but let me just give you a couple of scriptures just to help you understand this. When you've been deeply traumatised - suppose you've got a very abusive family situation or a have been in a violent physical or verbal or sexual abuse, people are traumatised by that and they've got to save themselves and they're deeply hurt, deeply wounded. One of the worst things you can hear or the most painful things you can hear is some Christian saying well you've got to forgive, you know. You've got to forgive brother, you've got to forgive. You hear that and you think forgive? I think I'll smash you in the face, you know? ... [Laughter] ... right now - because yes, it's true that the person must come to the place of forgiveness, but often coming to a place of forgiveness is preceded by acknowledgement of pain, acknowledgement of exactly how this has impacted me.