31.

Expressing Christ Among Captives: Setting Them Free Through God’s Grace (Part 5)

Matthew 21:1-22

  • Session: 31
  • Week: 5
  • Day: 3
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Introduction

In Matthew 21:1-22 we explore the stumbling blocks that hinder making Christ known, particularly to those imprisoned—Part 6. Jesus teaches His disciples about the grace and truth of giving freedom to those who are bound or imprisoned, illustrated by the example of loosening a bound donkey. The devil uses three major gates of hell to imprison God’s people: 1) the spirit of empty religion, 2) the spirit of racism and hostile culture, and 3) the spirit of the dark world of witchcraft. Jesus called His disciples to be with Him and then sent them to free those bound by the strong man, empowered by the Holy Spirit. Freely you have received; freely give freedom.

Objectives

By the end of this session, you will have:

  • Appreciated the grace of receiving freedom from Christ and giving freedom to those who are bound by examining the parable of untying the donkey used by Christ.
  • Discussed the knowledge needed by agents of change before starting the mission of Christ.
  • Understood the doctrine of loosening the bound and setting them free to worship God by profiling the oppressed, identifying the enemy who binds God’s people, and recognising the resources (Holy Spirit and prayer for victory) and the agents of change.

Outline

  • The grace of receiving freedom and the grace of giving freedom to the captives.
  • Dealing with the three gates of hell in the last days.
  • What information is needed before giving freedom to the captives?
  • Excuses that Moses gave when sent by God to deliver His children.
  • Profiling the oppressed and their stakeholders before the deliverance session begins.

Group Study Time

Matthew 21:1-22

Connecting

  • Gather with two or more people for a community discovery bible study session.
  • Start with a heartfelt prayer, inviting God to guide and bless your understanding.
  • Explore the passage by reading it at least twice, using different Bible versions if available, then retell the story together as a group.
  • Reflect and share the challenges and blessings you experienced from the previous study.

Comprehending

What do the verses mean?
(In small groups, attempt the following questions):

  • What did you discover about God, His people, and the enemy in this passage? What lessons have you learned from the passage?
  • What is a prison? What types of prisons do you know? What must you understand to be part of the rescue mission team?
  • Read Matthew 21:1-7. List at least five truths the disciples needed to know before obeying the command to untie the donkey. (Compare with Moses’s commissioning at the burning bush in Exodus 3:1-15)
  • Read Matthew 21:8-16. The tied donkey could represent the tied people. List three categories of people who are imprisoned by the spirit of religion.
  • What are the proofs or indicators that the people were freed before Jesus? What did the people start doing? (See Matthew 21:8-9; Matthew 21:14; Matthew 21:15-16)
  • List three ways the Pharisees and teachers of the law had denied the people access to the House of Prayer for all nations. What two dangers does Hosea 4:6 highlight for God’s people who fail to know God as the only source?
  • Read Matthew 21:17-22. List three truths you learned from the withering of the fig tree. (The fig tree represented Israel and its leadership, which was rejected—not as God’s people, but as His representatives to the nations at this time.)
  • List four lessons learned about being God’s representative to the nations (i.e., receiving the grace of representing Christ to the nations of the world).

Committing

  • Engage with the Bible—read, study, memorize, meditate, pray, listen, and live it out.
  • List three lessons you have learnt as an agent of change that you would like to put into practice and teach others about.
  • Take time and worship Jesus with the attributes revealed about Christ.
  • Use the SPACEPETS model, to assist you in putting God’s word into practice. Look for:
    • Sin to confess
    • Promise to claim
    • Attitude to change
    • Command to keep
    • Error to change
    • Prayer to make
    • Example to copy
    • Truth to obey and
    • Something praiseworthy

Communicating

  • Identify one person you can connect with and share the valuable insights and lessons you gained from this session.
  • Reach out to a new believer—either in person or by phone—and pray with them to support them through their challenges, including any concerns about attending church.
  • Create a new group and guide others through this study to help them grow in their understanding.