BREAKING FREE FROM SPIRITUAL PRISONS

BREAKING FREE FROM SPIRITUAL PRISONS

By Rev. Samuel Arimoro

Main Text: Acts 12:5-11

Supporting Texts: Isaiah 42:6-7, Luke 4:18, Psalm 142:7, Zechariah 9:11-12, John 8:36

INTRODUCTION:
Spiritual prisons are invisible cages where the enemy keeps lives bound—limiting movement, hindering purpose, and frustrating destiny. These prisons may manifest as persistent sin, demonic oppression, fear, sickness, unexplainable delay, poverty, or stagnation. Many people walk freely in the physical but are captives spiritually.

Throughout Scripture, God has always been in the business of delivering people from bondage. Jesus came to set the captives free and open prison doors to those who are bound. Freedom is a covenant right for every child of God, and spiritual imprisonment is illegal when the believer stands in faith and authority.

This message is a call to rise in prayer, power, and revelation—to break free from every spiritual prison and walk in the liberty Christ has purchased for us through His blood.

1. IDENTIFYING THE NATURE OF SPIRITUAL PRISONS
Before one can be free, there must be a recognition of what constitutes a prison in the spirit.

a) Spiritual Prisons Can Be Mental or Emotional (2 Corinthians 10:4–5)
Fear, anxiety, depression, and negative thought patterns can keep the mind in captivity.

b) They May Be Caused by Sin or Disobedience (John 8:34)
Living in sin brings spiritual bondage and invites satanic influence.

c) They May Be Ancestral or Generational (Lamentations 5:7)
Some bondages are inherited through family covenants and curses.

d) Bondage Can Be Due to Spiritual Blindness (2 Corinthians 4:4)
When people are blind to truth, they remain prisoners of lies and darkness.

Biblical Example: The demoniac of Gadara was physically roaming but spiritually imprisoned until Jesus intervened (Luke 8:26–35).

2. RECOGNISING THE SIGNS OF SPIRITUAL IMPRISONMENT
Spiritual prisons have visible and tangible effects in a person's life.

a) Repeated Failure Despite Effort (Haggai 1:6)
When someone labours consistently but sees no fruit, a prison may be in place.

b) Inability to Progress or Move Forward (Deuteronomy 1:6)
Being stuck at the same level year after year is not normal for a child of God.

c) Chronic Sickness Without Medical Explanation (Luke 13:11–13)
Some ailments are rooted in spiritual oppression, not biology.

d) Frequent Oppression in Dreams or Night Terrors (Job 7:13–14)
Dream attacks and night battles may signify spiritual imprisonment.

Biblical Example: Peter was chained and watched by guards in prison, yet through prayer, God broke him free (Acts 12:5–11).

3. KEYS TO BREAKING FREE FROM SPIRITUAL PRISONS
God has provided the means for deliverance, but the believer must engage them intentionally.

a) Embrace the Truth of God’s Word (John 8:32)
Truth is the weapon that shatters deception and opens prison gates.

b) Engage Fervent and Strategic Prayer (Acts 12:5)
When the church prayed, the prison shook, and Peter was released.

c) Apply the Blood of Jesus and Declare Freedom (Revelation 12:11)
The blood of Jesus is the legal basis for your deliverance.

d) Live a Life of Holiness and Obedience (Isaiah 59:2)
Sin can open doors to imprisonment; righteousness shuts them.

Biblical Example: Paul and Silas worshipped in prison, and the doors flung open supernaturally (Acts 16:25–26).

4. MAINTAINING YOUR DELIVERANCE AND FREEDOM
After being set free, the believer must learn to walk in sustained liberty.

a) Fill Your Life with the Word of God (Colossians 3:16)
Let the Word dwell in you richly to resist re-entry of bondage.

b) Cultivate a Life of Worship and Fellowship (Psalm 22:3)
God’s presence keeps darkness at bay and sustains liberty.

c) Guard Your Heart and Associations (Proverbs 4:23)
What and who you allow into your life determines what stays in your spirit.

d) Be Spiritually Watchful and Discerning (1 Peter 5:8–9)
Freedom can be lost when vigilance is replaced with complacency.

Biblical Example: Jesus warned the healed man at the pool of Bethesda to sin no more so worse things won’t come (John 5:14).

CONCLUSION:
Spiritual prisons are real, but so is our God who sets the captives free. Whatever cage the enemy has used to limit you—whether through ignorance, fear, curses, sin, or demonic forces—there is power in Christ to break every chain.

Now is the time to arise in prayer, in faith, and in revelation knowledge. You are not created to be imprisoned spiritually. You are redeemed to walk in freedom and fulfil destiny. By the power of God, you shall break free and never return to bondage again!

PRAYER POINTS:
1. Lord, open my eyes to identify any area where I am in spiritual bondage.
2. Father, by the blood of Jesus, break every chain limiting my life and destiny.
3. I receive grace to walk in truth, righteousness, and obedience.
4. I cancel every ancestral or generational curse working against my freedom.
5. Let every prison door the enemy has locked against me open now by fire.

PROPHETIC DECLARATIONS:
1. Every spiritual prison holding you shall break open today in Jesus’ name!
2. You are coming out of every form of captivity—spiritually, emotionally, and physically!
3. The chains of stagnation and delay are shattered over your life!
4. From today, you shall walk in the liberty of the Spirit with no more oppression!
5. What held you down before will see you rise into your prophetic destiny!