Sermon Overview Scripture Passage: Ephesians 4:27 Ephesians 4:30 says, “And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.” It is unthinkable that a child of God could give a place in his life to the devil and grieve the Holy Spirit of God. However, there are many of us caught in Satan’s strongholds, and we cannot get out. There are three steps to break Satan’s strongholds in our lives. Repentance “...that you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts…” (Ephesians 4:22) Repentance means to be done with sin and deal with our old self; there is no other way around it. Resistance “Be angry, and do not sin… nor give place to the devil.” (Ephesians 4:26-27) Unconfessed sin is legal ground for the devil to take over; we resist by confessing and resisting the urge to sin. Renewal “...and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness.” (Ephesians 4: 23-24) Renewing our minds means pursuing righteousness and holiness. There is no way we can cease to grieve the Holy Spirit until we repent, resist, and renew our minds; this is why we must know exactly what sin is. Ephesians 4:25-29 reveals that lying, thievery, gossip and filthy speech all make room for the devil. But perhaps the most egregious stronghold we could fall into is bitterness. Bitterness will take away our joy and our victory and sabotage our prayer life; it ruins relationships and churches. The slow burn of bitterness quickly ramps up to clamoring, hostility, and evil speech. This breaks the heart of God, grieves the Holy Spirit, and gives place to the devil. Adrian Rogers says, “Repentance is not just being broken over your sin; it is being broken from your sin.” The devil does not leave willingly; with the authority of the name of Jesus, we must chase him out. We do this by repenting of our sins, resisting the urge to sin again, and renewing our minds with the Spirit of God. Adrian Rogers says, “When we are filled with the Spirit, there is no more room for Satan.” Apply it to your life How do we break Satan’s strongholds? Repent of all known sin, resist the temptation to sin again the moment you become aware of the temptation, and renew your mind with the Spirit of God.
