Setting the Captives Free

Context

Jesus did a lot of miracles. He also had many disciples. Far more than the 12 that were with him at the last supper.

I was reading Luke and noticed that out of all His disciples, He gave 12 special authority to enable them to do miracles and drive out demons.

Luke 9:1
When Jesus had called the Twelve together, he gave them power and authority to drive out all demons and to cure diseases.

It is in God’s gift to give to each of us that asks, if He is willing (and He is willing if our hearts are right and our motives are pure). So, I asked the Lord for the same authority that I may do the same. That night I had the following dream.

The Dream

I’m in a large house. It is more like a compound. The place is like a huge maze and I sneak around and try not to be seen. I’m not sure where I am going or what I am doing there.

Someone is walking around near where I am, and I hide in various places from them but they do eventually see me and command me to follow them.

The man is leading me somewhere, so he is in front of me and I am walking behind him. I realise that I might be able to just walk off quietly and perhaps he won’t notice. I keep an eye out for an opportunity to sneak away.

Eventually I see a place to hide and try to sidestep into it as we pass but the man I am following notices me do this. He grabs me tightly by the collar and forcibly leads me to a corner of a large room and starts to tie me up.

The man leaves me tied up and goes on his way and I am on my own.

For some reason I suddenly find myself free again. I start to sneak around again but this time I notice other people are tied up. I go over to one of these people and start pulling at their ropes trying to free them but I’m worried about the man coming back.

I focus on the ropes around this person’s feet. The rope is very thick and too tight that my hand can’t loosen it, so I start using my teeth to chew through the rope.

The man comes back and I go to hide again but he has seen me and what I was up to.

He tells me to turn around, but I refuse. He seems surprised at my response and that I am standing up to him.

He goes to grab me again, but I push him. The man seems shocked that I won’t do as he says.

I then realise that the man is smaller and skinnier than me and I have no reason to be afraid of him or do what he says. I start to beat him, and he runs away from me.

I can now focus on setting this person free without worrying about the man coming back.

Interpretation

I was walking around aimlessly with no real purpose at the beginning and I was terrified of being caught, which inevitably happened.

The man seemed authoritative and I feared him and what he would do to me.

When I was set free, I could have walked about aimlessly again but I noticed the other people captive and I couldn’t just leave them there.

It was only when I was actively involved in setting these people free that I was able to stand up to the man and saw that he wasn’t really that tough at all.

The fact that I was still worried about the man appearing means that we should still be watchful when going about the Lord’s business. If opposition comes then we need to deal with it, before returning to our work. If we are doing the Lord’s work, then we will be given what we need to deal with it.

It is interesting that I couldn’t untie the person’s ropes with my hands. The ropes were too tight, and I had to use my teeth.

Teeth are part of the mouth and it is by the word of God, spoken through the mouth, that we can set people free by leading them to Christ.

This dream was in response to my prayer to walk in the same authority as the disciples and the apostles. We are given authority in Christ Jesus, but this authority is not automatic. The police have authority, but only when they are working. Judges have authority, but again, only when they are doing their job. They don’t walk in that authority in their civilian life. It is only when they are at work.

If we want to see a manifestation of the greater gifts in our lives, then we need to be actively involved in setting people free by bringing the lost to Christ. It is in this work that healings and other miracles will be manifest through the holy spirit.