Christians experience true freedom in Christ only through a
disciplined, lifetime commitment to renounce whatever holds them in bondage,
Elizabeth Luter said.
Christians experience true freedom in Christ only through a
disciplined, lifetime commitment to renounce whatever holds them in bondage,
Elizabeth Luter said.
Pride, fear and a failure to seek forgiveness are common sources
of bondage among Christians, explained Luter, whose husband, Fred, is pastor
at Franklin Avenue Baptist Church in New Orleans.
“I didnt think I was guilty of false pride, because
I wasnt boastful with it,” Luter said, adding that God nevertheless
showed her where she had problems and guided her in addressing them.
And while people sometimes say fear makes a person humble,
Luter disagreed during her presentation at a Southern Baptist gathering for
black church leaders.
“Fear paralyzes us and keeps us from experiencing the
fullness of God,” she said.
Failure to trust God to forgive and forget sin represents another
stronghold on the lives of some Christians, Luter continued. “Daily, we
have to denounce things that trap us. For years, I believed in God, but I didnt
believe him.”
Luter distinguished between sin and iniquity – sin as
wrongs people commit that are not habitual and iniquity as hidden things that
control a person and may go back generations in the family.
“We confess sin, but iniquity has to be broken,”
Luter said. As examples, she mentioned alcohol, gambling, pornography, involvement
in cults, astrology and others.
Luter said her life changed in 1994 when nationally-known speaker
Beth Moore spoke at Franklin Avenue Baptist Church and videotaped segments for
her discipleship course on breaking free. “That (course) immediately broke
some chains for me,” Luter said.
More came later as she started on a journey toward greater
freedom in Christ, she explained.
At that time, Luter said God also called her to a ministry
of intercessory prayer. She embarked on a more disciplined pattern of Bible
study. Three years later, Luter said she quit her job as a pharmacist to concentrate
more on ministry.
“I am freer in my spirit this year than Ive ever
been,” Luter said, acknowledging the journey toward freedom in Christ includes
bumps along the way.
“There are still places in our lives that are empty, shallow
and bound,” she noted. “Until we ask God to come in and fill those
places, we are only one minute away from sin.”
A Christian never fully arrives on the freedom journey, she
said, noting that more progress always remains.
“Almost yearly now, Im learning things that take
me to a new level on the ladder. You surrender and surrender and God takes you
to a new place, but then he wants to take you to another,” Luter said.
She praised churches that are creating an atmosphere where
people feel free to acknowledge sin and pain and ask for help.
“You dont have to be an evangelist to help people,”
Luter emphasized. “Just reach over and hold the hand of someone who is
hurting. Take the focus off yourself and begin to help others.” (BP)