Binding and Loosing

Through Jesus Christ, we are given the authority to bind Satan and his demons and set free those held in captivity. When Peter declared Jesus as “the Christ, the Son of the living God,” Jesus confirmed this power and promised, “On this rock I will build My church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. I give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven. What you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and what you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven” Matt 16:18-19.

This means the Church is unstoppable! We hold the keys to God’s kingdom and are empowered to overcome all darkness. The gates of hell cannot stand against us. We reign with Christ now, as Rom 5:17 affirms, with the power to enforce His victory over the enemy.

Many Christians don’t fully grasp this authority. Instead of passively waiting for God, we must rise up and act. Jesus said, “Whatever you bind on earth is already bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth is already loosed in heaven” Matt 16:19. This means we can bind demonic forces and release captives, just as Jesus did. He declared in Matt 12:29 that the strong man (Satan) has already been bound, and we are to enforce that defeat.

Binding Satan means rendering him powerless. Paul did this in Acts 16:16-18 when he commanded a spirit of divination to leave a young girl, and it fled instantly. This authority is ours today—demonic forces have been defeated by Jesus (1 John 3:8), and we are called to enforce that victory.

Loosing on the otherhand is the breaking of Satan’s chains. In Luke 13, Jesus freed a woman bound by a spirit of infirmity for 18 years, declaring, “Woman, you are loosed!” This same power is given to us to set others free from Satan’s grip. The word used in Greek “luo” means “to release or set free,” and that’s exactly what we are called to do. Victory over Satan is already accomplished in heaven. Our job is to enforce it on earth. Just as salvation requires our faith, deliverance demands action on the authority we’ve been given. We are called to bind the enemy and loose the captives because the battle has already been won in heaven.

James 4:7 instructs believers to submit to God and resist the devil, who will then flee. So when you see fear and anxiety in people you are dealing with, you should resist it; binding fear, you could declare 2 Timothy 1:7, “God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, love, and a sound mind.” if someone is bound by sin, you can declare, “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free” (Gal 5:1) and pray for the loosing of that person’s spirit.

Let’s be clear—this power does not refer to releasing the Holy Spirit or angels, as some have suggested. Luo means freeing what is bound, and neither the Holy Spirit nor angels are bound. Angels serve God’s purposes, not ours (Heb 1:14), and Scripture warns against exalting them beyond their God-given role (Col 2:18-19).

Binding Satan restricts his power, and loosing sets people free. Satan’s defeat is final in heaven, and it’s time for us to enforce that victory here on earth. We have been given the authority—now, it’s time to rise up and use it!