Fear vs. Freedom: How the Enemy Uses Fear to Keep You Bound

Fear is one of the enemy’s most effective weapons. It paralyzes, distorts truth, and keeps us from walking in the freedom that Christ has given us.

The past often has a way of resurfacing, whispering lies about our worth, our future, and even God’s faithfulness. And the past comes not only through our own thoughts, but through people close to us who should be supporting us in our breakthrough but instead decide to keep digging us further into a dark hole.

But thanks be to God we can draw for that will in our spirits and recognize that we don’t have to accept the lies of the enemy. Indeed, we have a choice. We can either remain bound by fear or step into the freedom that God has already provided.

We are reminded today that fear is a stronghold.

A stronghold is a fortified place, often built to defend or imprison. Spiritually, strongholds are mindsets or beliefs that keep us trapped. Fear is one such stronghold, and the enemy uses it to try to make us doubt God’s power and love.

The Bible tells us in 2 Timothy 1:7 (NKJV) – “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.”

So fear is not from God. Therefore, if fear is consuming our thoughts, we must recognize that it is a tool of the enemy, designed to keep us from experiencing the fullness of God’s love and power.

We have to recognize, Family, that fear is not just a personal battle, but it can be a generational stronghold. 

Many families struggle with patterns of fear, anxiety, and doubt that have been passed down from one generation to the next. These are known as generational curses—cycles of destructive thinking and behaviour that keep families bound in spiritual bondage. If our parents and grandparents operated in fear, we may have inherited that same mindset without even realizing it. 

But the good news is that in Christ, we have the power to break every chain, including those that have been in our bloodline for generations.

Galatians 3:13-14 (NIV) says: “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: ‘Cursed is everyone who is hung on a pole.’ He redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit.”

As mentioned earlier, the past is a weapon of the enemy.

One of his tactics is to remind us of our past failures, sins, and regrets. He wants to keep us shackled to shame and insecurity.

I have had to shut down instances where people try to keep me feeling guilty because of the sins of my past. People would keep raising what you did or what happened, very often leaving out what they did to contribute to the dirtiness of that same situation. 

That is a trick of the enemy Family and we must rebuke it, in Jesus Name.  We have to be strong in the Lord, and determine that when the past tries to rear its ugly head, we will counter it with the truth of God’s Word. We have been delivered. Glory hallelujah.

Isaiah 43:18-19 (NIV) says we should “Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.”

God wants us to let go of the past because He is always doing something new. If we stay stuck in what was, we might miss what God is doing now.

Just as fear can be a generational curse, faith and freedom can be a generational blessing. When we choose to walk in faith instead of fear, we are not only setting ourselves free, but we are also breaking the cycle for our children and future generations. 

Deuteronomy 30:19 (NIV) reminds us, “This day I call the heavens and the earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live.” 

Family, every time we reject fear and choose faith, we are sowing seeds of blessing that will impact our families for years to come.

Freedom is already ours in Christ, but we must actively walk in it.

John 8:36 (ESV) – “So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.”

We don’t have to earn this freedom; it’s a gift. The enemy wants us to believe we’re still in bondage, but Jesus has already broken the chains. Our job is to believe and walk in that truth.

How do we do that? How do we overcome fear and embrace freedom?

1. Replace Fear with Faith – When fear arises, declare God’s promises over your life. Psalm 56:3 (NLT) – “But when I am afraid, I will put my trust in you.”

2. Reject the Lies of the Enemy – Speak God’s truth over yourself. Romans 8:15 (CSB) – “For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear. Instead, you received the Spirit of adoption, by whom we cry out, ‘Abba, Father!’”

3. Fix Your Eyes on Jesus – Fear fades when our focus is on Christ, not our circumstances. Hebrews 12:2 (NIV) – “Fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith.”

Family, we have to make up in our minds to break free from this generational curse of being fearful so that this and future generations can be set free. 

The enemy wants to keep us bound in fear by reminding us of our past. If he can keep us enslaved to the fears of our parents and grandparents—fear of failure, fear of rejection, fear of lack—he can stop us from fully receiving the blessings that God has prepared for us. 

But today, we can declare that the curse ends with us. We will not let fear dictate our future. Instead, we will stand on the truth of God’s Word and walk boldly in the freedom that Christ has given us.

We declare that we will not be kept bound in the fear of our past. We have a choice: dwell in fear, or step into the freedom that Christ has given.

Will we choose to believe the truth God’s Word today?

aub - Fri21Mar25

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