The 8 Rs to Freedom
Dr. Henry W. Wright

1. Recognize - You must recognize what it is.

2. Responsibility - You must take responsibility for what you recognize.

3. Repent - Repent to God for participating with what you recognize.

4. Renounce - You must make what you recognize your enemy and renounce it.

5. Remove it - Get rid of it once and for all.

6. Resist - When it tries to come back, resist it.

7. Rejoice - Give God thanks for setting you free.

8. Restore - Help someone else to get free.
 

#1 Recognize
You must recognize what it is

Recognize the problem - have discernment. Isaiah 5:13 says: (God said) my people have gone into captivity because they have no knowledge. They had no discernment. Hosea 4:6 says: (God said) my people perish for lack of knowledge. They had no discernment. Hebrews 5:14 tells us: but strong meat belongs to those that are full aged, even those that by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil. Not just good, you must be able to discern evil also.

Therefore my people are gone into captivity, because they have no knowledge: and their honourable men are famished, and their multitude dried up with thirst. Isaiah 5:13

My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee, that thou shalt be no priest to me: seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I will also forget thy children. Hosea 4:6

But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil. Hebrews 5:14

You say, "Pastor, I'm afraid of evil." Shame on you. Where did you get that from? Watching too much of the Exorcist? Why would you be afraid of evil? Are you telling me Satan is greater than God? "Well, Pastor, something bad might happen to me." Yeah, it might. So what? Why are we afraid of evil?

If I told you that you had a particular disease because you had a root of bitterness against someone and had not resolved it, what would I have given you? Discernment.

If I told you that your Breast Cancer is because you hated your Mama, what would I have given you? Discernment.

All right, so what's going on if you have hatred toward Aunt Sally? The principality that brought the hatred into play was Bitterness. Hatred is one of the fruits of bitterness.

If you have somebody who is angry and hostile, what can you tell them? "You have a root of bitterness." If you find someone who has resentment, what could you tell them? "You have a root of bitterness." When you see that, you can also tell them this: "that if you don't get this under control in your life, the chances of you getting a disease as a bad fruit of this is very likely in your lifetime."

Now what have you given them? Wisdom. Knowledge to put into action.

There are two gifts of the Holy Spirit taught in 1 Corinthians 12. One is the gift of Wisdom and the other is the gift of Knowledge. What am I giving you now? I'm operating in the gift of Knowledge and the gift of Wisdom in your life right now. I'm also operating in the gift of Faith, Discerning of Spirits, Knowledge, Wisdom and if needs be I can operate in the gift of Healing and the gift of Miracles.

Do you know that every believer should be participating at some lever in this area? 1 Corinthians 12 teaches that the Church is designed to heal the Church. Ephesians 4 says that, as a pastor, I'm supposed to equip you and bring you to the place where you can do that (regarding the body of Christ healing itself). I first have to be able to demonstrate it.Knowledge ties the past to the present but Wisdom takes the presence and moves it to the future.

We're taking your past, and bringing it to the present so you can see what in the world is going on in your present state. Then God, through Wisdom, can take you into the future to change your circumstances. Now it's going to take Faith and the work of the Holy Spirit to do the rest of it, but we have to be able to teach first because faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God (Romans 10:17).

So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. Romans 10:17

Remember that in Jeremiah 3, God said He would give you pastors according to His heart that would teach you, lead you, and give you understanding.

And I will give you pastors according to mine heart, which shall feed you with knowledge and understanding. Jeremiah 3:15

I am a pastor; you are the sheep of His pasture and I'm an under-shepherd that cares for you just as much as He does. I'm not here to fill your head with a bunch of knowledge. I came here to break the power of the devil over your lives and release you. Your freedom was paid for 2,000 years ago on the cross, and the power of God was released into your life so you can get on with it. He wants you to be free.

I've found many people like being sick because it is the first attention they have received in their life. Do you want to be well? Do you want to be sane? GOOD! If I come along and put my finger on that stuff that's making you sick, those creatures from Hebrews 4:13, what are you going to do with it? You say, "Pastor, that was a nice time, I'll see you" and you walk out the door and take all those crispy critters with you. It's a lot of work keeping up with a zoo like that!

Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do. Hebrews 4:13

#2 Responsibility

You must take responsibility for what you recognize 

After you recognize, the Holy Spirit comes to convict you from discernment and then the second "R" is takeResponsibility. Not everybody wants to take responsibility after discernment. It really bugs me when somebody says to me after discernment, "Well, Pastor, bless God, that's just the way I am." What happened to the scripture that says, "From glory to glory we're being changed?" (2 Corinthians 3:18).

But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord. 2 Corinthians 3:18

"Well, that's for somebody else, Pastor. If God wants to change me He's just going to have to do it." God couldn't do it if He tried. You won't let Him.

"Bless God I'm angry, I always have been angry, and I always am going to be angry, and if you don't like it, I'll eat you for lunch." Are you going to lock yourself into, "Well I'll forgive them if they forgive me first." What are you going to do?

For I acknowledge my transgressions: and my sin is ever before me. Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight: that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, and be clear when thou judgest. Psalm 51:3-4

Somebody's going to have to get spiritual. Do you think the other person needs to get spiritual first, or do you need to get spiritual first? Take responsibility.

#3 Repent

Repent to God for participating with what you recognize 

Repent is the third "R" that you need to be free. Acts 3:19 says:

Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord; Acts 3:19

Do you want the times of refreshing to come from the Lord in your life? Are you tired of the blistering heat of disease? Are you ready for that oasis? You won't get there unless you go here first - repent.

Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, every one according to his ways, saith the Lord GOD. Repent, and turn yourselves from all your transgressions; so iniquity shall not be your ruin. Ezekiel 18:30

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 1 John 1:9

And the seed of Israel separated themselves from all strangers, and stood and confessed their sins, and the iniquities of their fathers. Nehemiah 9:2

Remember from whence thou art fallen, and repent and do the first works; or else I will come upon the quickly:

Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent. Revelation 2:5

Repent or else I will come quickly:

Repent; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will fight against them with the sword of my mouth. Revelation 2:16

And I gave her space to repent of her fornication and she repented not.

And I gave her space to repent of her fornication; and she repented not. Behold, I will cast her into a bed, and them that commit adultery with her into great tribulation, except they repent of their deeds. Revelation 2:21-22

Remember and hold fast, and repent:

Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee. Revelation 3:3

As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Be zealous therefore and repent.

As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent. Revelation 3:19

#4 Renounce

You must make what you recognize your enemy and renounce it.

After you have repented, which means taking responsibility after recognition and discernment, the next step is toRenounce. A lot of people repent but they don't mean it. A lot of people have remorse but they don't change on the inside. To renounce literally means to "turn away from." There are many scriptures in the Bible where God said - get away from idols and heathen practices because they will be your ruin.

Ye cannot drink the cup of the Lord, and the cup of devils: ye cannot be partakers of the Lord's table, and of the table of devils. Do we provoke the Lord to jealousy? are we stronger than he? 1 Corinthians 10:21-22

Get away from evil, renounce it as fast as you can. Develop a perfect hatred for evil in your life. Separate yourself from evil. Love yourself, but hate the evil. Love your neighbor, but hate the evil he does. Learn to separate yourself and others from their sin.

#5 Remove it

Get rid of it once and for all.

The fifth “R” to Freedom is Remove what you have renounced. I can bring you to a place of recognition (which is discernment) responsibility, repentance and renouncing openly what evil stands for in your life, but have you removed it? Removing sin is this: not only do I renounce you, but you and I cannot exist at the same place at the same time together. I’m removing you; you have to go.

In Ezekiel 18, God’s people were complaining that it was not fair that God would bless and forgive the unrighteous that repent, yet but not forgive them, the chosen ones. After all, they were the children of covenant. They also continued to live in their sin. They were wondering why God did not bless them. God’s response to them was very clear.

“Cast away from you all your transgressions, whereby ye have transgressed, and make you a new heart and a new spirit: for why will ye die O house of Israel?” Ezekiel 18:31

That is: remove it. Get it out of your face and make yourself a new heart and spirit.

#6 Resist

When it tries to come back, resist it

Number six of the 8 "R's" to freedom is to Resist. James 4:7 says, "Submit yourself, therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you."

Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. James 4:7

What comes first? Resist the devil and he will flee or submit to God. Submission to God first; then you have power over your enemies, not before.

Remember, earlier I quoted from 2 Corinthians 10:6; "Having a readiness to avenge all disobedience after your obedience is fulfilled." Do you remember what Samuel told Uncle Saul? 1 Samuel 15:23 - "Obedience is better than sacrifice, for rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as idolatry." (Self-will, self-exhortation, witchcraft and idolatry." That's a tough scripture isn't it? "Obedience is better than sacrifice."

What you have dealt with will try to come back. That is why we need God and each other.

When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places, seeking rest; and finding none, he saith, I will return unto my house whence I came out. Luke 11:24