Three Stages of Bondage
There are three stages of bondage in the believer that needs to be addressed. I highly recommend attacking stage one first, then stage two, and then if there are still bondages left, proceed to stage three. Even if you need deliverance from level three bondages, attacking the first two stages will prepare you for a successful and lasting deliverance from stage three bondages. If you try to attack stage three without getting stage one and two dealt with, you could be in for an unsuccessful and disappointing deliverance session that takes you nowhere. The enemy can often use stage one and two bondages to fuel his ability to hang a stage three bondage over you. Stage one gets your facts and beliefs strait, stage two cuts off any legal rights the enemy has on you, and stage three is the work of casting him out.
Before I begin I want to make a point very clear, this is only a brief look into the basics of how these three bondages work and how to be freed from them. I highly recommend further reading in some of the books I have recommended at the end of each section. Especially before attempting the stage three of deliverance! Deliverances can be scary, and dangerous if you go into one without knowing what you are doing, or having God's hand guiding you, and therefore I highly recommend reading at least a couple good solid books on deliverance before attempting to cast out demons, unless you know the Holy Spirit is leading you through the whole process.
Stage One: Ignorance, strong holds and deception
The first stage of bondage is caused by ignorance, strong holds, and the enemy's greatest weapon in this stage is deception. Understanding a correct picture of who God is, and who we are in Christ will dissolve a lot of cases involving stage one bondages.
The primary weapon of the devil to put a person into stage one bondage is deception. It is extremely common and there isn't a person alive who hasn't been deceived in one way or another. If you keep in God's Word, which you use to pull down strong holds, Jesus said that you shall know the truth and the truth shall set you free. Stage one bondages are caused by deception and lies from the devil, so the way to combat them is with the truth, which is found in God's Word. God also says that, "My people are destroyed by lack of knowledge." Ignorance is a nasty disease that we need to defeat!
Your picture of God: If you see God has a taskmaster, you will act like He's one, and you will hurt the intimacy that God wants to have with you. You will put up a wall between yourself and God when you don't see Him as a loving God. Is there one person in your life that you know loves you to pieces? Maybe it's your spouse, parent, friend or even your pet. You can feel that person's love, and have a very special relationship with that person (or pet). Now think if you saw that person as a cruel taskmaster with a cold personality? Even though it's not true, it would kill your relationship, wouldn't it? Think how God feels when you see Him as a cold and cruel taskmaster? It kills the relationship that He gave His son so that you could have with Him! Why did He give His son? So that we could be reconciled with Him, like it was before Adam sinned! Our relationship with God means so much to Him, that He gave His son so it could be restored!
Who you are in Christ: If you think of yourself as an evil and worthless piece of meat, you will live like it. You cannot live contrary to what you believe. The truth is, you have died to the old self, you are no longer associated with your past! If you have accepted Christ, you are a whole new person! The Bible refers to us believers are saints! We are not simply sinners who are forgiven, we are saints! It may be true that we 'were' sinners, and that we've been forgiven, but we are no longer sinners, we have been washed by the blood of Jesus, and we are whiter then snow! You are not just a servant of God, but you have been adopted into God's royal family as a child of God!
Legalism verses the law of grace: This is a vital thing you need to understand; it's the law of grace. Many Christians feel they must goto church every Sunday, and keep a list of laws in order for God to accept and love them. This is not true, God has already accepted you just as you are, and He loved you so much while you were a sinner, that He sent His son to die for your sins! Our good deeds should be a result of our love for God. Scripture says that we have died to the law, and are no longer subject to it. We are under a new law now. It's a law of grace, and it's worked out through love. When we realize the love God has for us, and the hate that God has for wrong, we not only stop sinning, but develop a hatred against that sin. This breaks the power of sin in our lives. It's not a question of doing right, but a question of why you are doing right. Are you doing it because you feel obligated and are trying to earn favor with God? Then you have fallen from the law of grace and into legalism. The reason we are to do what is right should come out of our love for God and as we realize His love for us, we will naturally become more like Him and do what's right because we want to, not because we feel obligated to.
Your sins are forgiven: If you aren't sure your sins are forgiven, you will be experiencing guilt, and a feeling of unworthiness to live in victory. The enemy moves right in on this weakness and fault in your belief system, and uses it against you. Guilt gives the enemy room to move in and make you feel worthless, and therefore he keeps you fighting from a defeated position. You must know that your sins are forgiven so the enemy won't hang guilt over your head! Look at Luke 7:47, where Jesus forgave that woman who lived a very sinful life, with no strings attached! Also look at other stories where Jesus said "Your sins are forgiven" with no strings attached. And Paul is another great example of how he was moved from a sinful lifestyle right into the kingdom of God without any strings or conditions attached!
Recommended reading: The Bible, the Bible, and the Bible!! The Word of God is the single greatest way to combat the lies and deceptions of the devil! A great book to help you realize who you are in Christ is Victory over Darkness by Neil T. Anderson.
Some other good books to read are on spiritual warfare and include Basic Training by Kim Freeman, Spiritual Warfare Derek Prince, Battlefield of the Mind Joyce Meyer, The Beginners Guide to Spiritual Warfare Nail T. Anderson & Timothy M. Warner
Stage Two: Legal rights are involved
Stage two bondages have a root and that root could be unforgiveness in a person's heart, un-repented sins in that person's life (things they are hiding that they know is wrong), ties which need to be broken (cursed objects, soul ties, etc.) and things which may need to be renounced (vows made with Satan, spirit guides/demons that a person has welcomed into themselves, etc.). The goal of addressing stage two bondages is to break yourself off from any legal grounds that the enemy has gained in your life. This list is not a complete and detailed list, but it's goal is to give you an idea of some of the things which can give legal grounds to the enemy in our lives.
Unforgiveness: Unforgiveness is one of the biggest tools the devil uses against God's people. It not only cuts us off from God's forgiveness (Mark 6:15), but it also turns you over to the tormenters (Matthew 18:23-35), which are demons. You give demons legal grounds in your life when you are bitter and unforgiving against others. Unforgiveness is a sin which can defile a person (Hebrews 12:15). Unforgiveness in itself is a sin which should be repented of.
Unconfessed sins: If you confess your sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us (1 John 1:9), but if you hide your sins, you are giving the enemy ground in your life (Proverbs 28:13). Act 3:19, "Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord."
Unholy soul ties: 1 Corinthians 6:16, "What? know ye not that he which is joined to an harlot is one body? for two, saith he, shall be one flesh." When two people become very close, especially though sexual relationships, soul ties are formed. If the soul tie is unholy, it can serve as a demonic spiritual bridge between the two persons. This can allow the demons tormenting one person to torment the other person. These soul ties should be renounced and broken in Jesus' name and the sins which have caused the soul ties should be repented of and forsaken. Also, if any gifts or objects (rings, personal gifts, etc.) were given to you from the person whom you may have had an adultery or committed similar sins with, they should be sold or destroyed. Even a harmless thing like a watch can hold a soul tie together formed from an adultery, fornication or a similar sin.
Cursed objects: Deuteronomy 7:26, "Neither shalt thou bring an abomination into thine house, lest thou be a cursed thing like it: but thou shalt utterly detest it, and thou shalt utterly abhor it; for it is a cursed thing." Cursed objects such as idols, occult books, rings, etc. can bring a curse upon your life and your home. Land can also be cursed as a result of the sins of it's inhabitants (Leviticus 18:27).
It is Biblical to burn occult or cursed objects. Deuteronomy 7:25, "The graven images of their gods shall ye burn with fire... for it is an abomination to the LORD thy God." It's also evident in the NT as well, Acts 19:19, "Many of them also which used curious arts brought their books together, and burned them before all men..." Ezekiel 20:7, "Then said I unto them, Cast ye away every man the abominations of his eyes, and defile not yourselves with the idols of Egypt: I am the LORD your God."
Spoken curses: Your words have the power of life and death (Proverbs 18:21), and if you have said something that has bound your soul (such as declaring, "I'll never amount to anything" or "I want to die"), then you should repent of it and take it back (renounce it out loud). Matthew 12:37, "For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned."
Generational curses: The sins of your ancestors can also attribute to your spiritual bondages and troubles (Exodus 20:5). The remedy to break this, is to repent on behalf of your ancestors for their sins (Nehemiah 9:2), and to break any curses (in the name of Jesus) that may have come upon you as a result of their actions.
Unholy vows: James 5:2, "But above all things, my brethren, swear not, neither by heaven, neither by the earth, neither by any other oath: but let your yea be yea; and your nay, nay; lest ye fall into condemnation." Any unholy vows you have made need to be repented of (Leviticus 5:4-6), and renounced (taken back) and broken in the name of Jesus.
There's also a teaching specifically on Legal Rights.
Recommended reading: Spiritual Housecleaning by Alice & Eddie Smith is a great book on cleaning your home of cursed objects. Free at Last by Larry Huch is a great book on breaking free from generational curses. Seductions Exposed by Gary L., Dr. Greenwald is a great book on the transferring of spirits and soul ties. How to Cast out Demons by Doris Wagner is a great book at uncovering the legal roots of your spiritual problems and casting out demons. Breaking Generational Curses & Pulling Down Strongholds by Vito Rallo is another really good book to get ahold of. The Bait of Satan by John Bevere will show you the dangers of unforgiveness in the spiritual realm.
Stage Three: Demons must be driven out
Stage three is when strong enough demons are encountered that are not leaving automatically and must be driven out. Even after a demon's legal grounds have been removed, they often do not leave on their own. Some of the lesser demons may, but it's not that common for a stronger demon to pack up and leave on it's own. This is why Jesus made it clear that there is a need for the deliverance ministry (Mark 16:17). If demons automatically left a person when they accepted Jesus, then why did Jesus tell us to cast out demons? The solution to demonic bondages would instead be just to accept Jesus and the demons automatically leave. The problem is, it doesn't work like that in real life, and that's why we there are times when it's necessary to drive out demons. Jesus referred to the casting out of demons as children's bread, which means it's not even for un-believers, but for us believers.
Prayer and fasting: Some demons are so strong that not only is it necessary to cast them out, but a higher then usual level of faith, which is only obtained through prayer and fasting, is required when getting them out. After the disciples tried to cast out a stronger demon(s) and were unsuccessful, Jesus told them that there are some demons that will come out by nothing by prayer and fasting (which builds one's faith to the high levels that is required when casting some demons out). Mark 9:29, "And he said unto them, This kind can come forth by nothing, but by prayer and fasting."
Understand your authority: As children of God, we are given authority over all powers of the enemy. Some people wonder why the demons seem to ignore them, sometimes it's because that person doesn't have enough faith in their authority and the demon is strong enough to resist what little authority that person is exercising. The more faith in your authority you have, the more of your authority you will be able to use. It is therefore important to understand and stand firm on the authority that God has given you.
Binding and loosing: Binding is like spiritual handcuffing. It's temporary and it's very useful when a demon starts manifesting and you aren't ready to actually cast it out (let's say you are winding down a deliverance session and you need your sleep, and the demon(s) begin to manifest and raise their ugly heads). Or perhaps, the demon is interfering with the deliverance and it needs to be bound. Another good use of binding, is to bind the evil spirits that are preventing a person from accepting Jesus.
Loosing is when a captive is loosed from something. For example, in Luke 13:12, Jesus loosed the women who was bound by Satan and had the issue of blood for 18 years.
Identifying the demon by it's name: If you are privileged to know the name of the demon(s) you are facing, it is very helpful to cast it out by it's name. For example, "Spirit of lust, come out in the name of Jesus!" If somebody yells out "Hey you!" in a crowd, would you respond? Likely you wouldn't even pay attention to them. But if they yelled "Hey Bob!" (providing that was your name), they would have your attention in no time. Same is true when dealing with demons, which is why it is so helpful to know their name when dealing with them.
Casting it out: Contrary to what many may think, there's nothing magical about this step. It's a matter of standing on your authority and commanding the evil spirit (by name if possible) to leave in the name of Jesus.
Demon groupings: Often, demons will group, and there will be a strong man. The strong man could be hate, while the lesser demons could consist of anger, bitterness, jealousy, envy, etc. Sometimes it is better to cast out the strong man first, and therefore the lesser demons give you little or no hassle in wanting to leave, while other times it is better to get rid of the lesser demons first, and therefore the leader can no longer draw power from them and it makes it easier for the leader to be cast out. This is a more complicated area of deliverance, and is best led by the Holy Spirit. Always pray and ask for the Holy Spirit's guidance whenever attempting a deliverance.
