USA (MNN) — Your church may be packed on Sunday. But how many people are actually living in the freedom of Christ?
According to Pete Noor of Set Free Ministries, spiritual bondage is stifling discipleship in churches across America. And unless something changes, sermons will keep hitting walls instead of hearts.
Noor says, “I wonder how many preachers are coming up with these wonderful sermons and wonderful teachings — [yet] what percentage of their congregation is able to even take in what they are preaching because they’re not free yet? They are bound by some lie or sin that they believe. Until they’re free, they can’t take things in.
“You can only disciple a captive as far as he or she can stretch the chains.”
(Photo courtesy of Terren Hurst/Unsplash)
Set Free Ministries helps individuals find spiritual freedom through Christ. Now, they’re turning their focus toward churches — partnering with pastors to equip congregations with a tool called the Freedom in Christ course.
“What would happen if more and more churches got more and more of their congregants set free first?” Noor asks. “Then their messages, I believe, that are being preached would be so much more clearly understood and applied.”
The Freedom in Christ course is an 11-session journey centered on discovering identity in Christ and breaking free from spiritual lies and sin. Part way through the course is the “Freedom Appointment.”
Noor explains that the Freedom Appointment in this context takes place in a small group setting. “They’ll have group prayers and group declarations together. But then individuals split off into private areas where they can quietly pray to God for Him to continue to reveal to me areas in my life where I’m out of line…so that I can confess, renounce, and repent…. Then they come back together as a group and finalize that step, then go to the next step.”
The idea isn’t new — Freedom in Christ Ministries developed the Freedom in Christ course for churches in Europe and “it’s been effective,” says Noor. “So we’re thinking that this should work very well in the United States as well.”
(Photo courtesy of Jon Tyson/Unsplash)
Set Free is already working with several congregations. Noor says, “We would be happy to talk to more churches. They can contact us for more information. At Set Free, we’d be happy to talk to them, share our experiences, and maybe put them in contact with the resource.”
Click here to contact Set Free about the Freedom in Christ course for churches!
“Pray that the Holy Spirit would continue opening up the eyes of churches so they can understand the freedom that’s available to them and the beauty of walking out of their identity in Christ… and that we can continue to help more and more people find freedom in Christ.”
Header photo courtesy of Vlad Shalaginov/Unsplash.
