Breaking Every Chain

 

Breaking Every Chain: Christ’s Strength in Our South African Struggle

A Personal Encounter with Limitation

The darkness seemed to swallow our neighborhood whole. I sat in my Akasia home, the familiar hum of appliances silenced by yet another bout of load-shedding. My smartphone's glow illuminated frustrated faces in our living room—my youngest daughter anxiously glancing at her uncharged tablet, my wife mentally rearranging the meals that would spoil in our dormant refrigerator. In that moment, the chains felt tangible—not just of Eskom's failure to keep the lights on, but of a broader limitation that weaves itself into our South African consciousness. We know the ache of unfulfilled potential, the weight of historical baggage, the frustration of systems that fail despite our best efforts. And I wondered, as the candlelight danced shadows on the walls: Is this all we were made for? A life of coping with breakdowns, both literal and metaphorical?

Then my eyes fell on the familiar words etched into a wooden plaque on our wall: "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me" (Philippians 4:13). And I realized with startling clarity that we had domesticated this radical promise into a Christianized version of positive thinking—a spiritual catchphrase for minor inconveniences rather than a declaration of war against every chain that binds humanity.

The Context of True Strength

Beyond the Prosperity Gospel

We must sound the alarm against the dangerous distortion of Philippians 4:13 that circulates in our preaching and prosperity gospel literature. We have treated this verse like a blank check from heaven—claiming luxury cars, promotion at work, and trouble-free lives. But this interpretation collapses under the weight of its context. Consider Paul's situation when he made this declaration: imprisoned, chained to Roman guards, uncertain of his future . This was no triumphant apostle celebrating his breakthrough to greater wealth and comfort. This was a man who had learned the secret of contentment in both abundance and scarcity, in both freedom and imprisonment.

The apostolic claim isn't that Christ strengthens us to acquire all things, but to endure all things—to remain faithful in every circumstance. True biblical strength isn't measured by what we accumulate but by what we can sustain without compromising our faith. This distinction matters profoundly in our South African context where prosperity preaching often exploits the vulnerable with false promises of wealth in exchange for faith.

The African Reality Check

Imagine, if you will, the single mother in Alex township who wakes at 4 AM to queue for water, then navigates three taxis to reach her domestic work in Sandton. She returns to a shack without running water, worried about her children's safety, yet she clings to Philippians 4:13. What does this verse mean for her? Not that Christ will suddenly transport her to a mansion in Bishopscourt, but that His strength will sustain her dignity, her hope, her capacity to love despite her circumstances. Christ's strength doesn't always remove the chains immediately, but it always provides the strength to break their power over our souls.

The Chains That Bind Us

Historical and Spiritual Strongholds

In our South African experience, we understand chains both visible and invisible. We remember the shackles of apartheid—that systematic attempt to limit human potential based on pigmentation. We recall how theology was twisted to justify these chains, creating a heresy that required prophetic confrontation . Though those particular chains have been legally broken, their psychological and economic remnants persist in our unequal society.

But our chains extend beyond our history. We face new bindings:

· The chain of corruption that has stolen our national potential

· The chain of fear—gender-based violence that keeps women imprisoned in anxiety

· The chain of economic exclusion that perpetuates poverty

· The chain of spiritual syncretism that dilutes the gospel with traditional animism and prosperity teaching 

These are not challenges we can overcome through mere political action or positive thinking. They require supernatural intervention—a power beyond our own.

Philosophical and Theological Foundation

The Logic of Liberation

Let us define our terms clearly. A "chain" is any reality—spiritual, psychological, social, or physical—that limits human flourishing contrary to God's design. Christ's mission was fundamentally one of chain-breaking: "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me because he has anointed me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed" (Luke 4:18).

The argument can be formulated thus:

1. Major Premise: All things that limit human flourishing contrary to God's design are opposed to Christ's redemptive purposes.

2. Minor Premise: Social injustice, personal sin, systemic evil, and demonic oppression all limit human flourishing contrary to God's design.

3. Conclusion: Therefore, Christ's redemptive work opposes these limitations and provides liberation.

A common objection arises: "If Christ breaks chains, why do believers still suffer?" The answer lies in the already-but-not-yet nature of God's kingdom. Christ has decisively broken the power of sin through His cross and resurrection—the chains are ultimately doomed—but we still live in the period between D-Day and V-Day, where we experience both liberation and ongoing battles.

African Cosmology and Christ's Supremacy

In our African spiritual context, we understand the reality of spiritual forces and powers. Traditional cosmology recognizes that humanity exists in a world of visible and invisible realities . The gospel doesn't dismiss this awareness but rather confirms it while proclaiming Christ's ultimate supremacy over all powers: "Having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross" (Colossians 2:15).

This is why the early African church fathers like Augustine of Hippo (from our own continent!) insisted that true philosophy finds its fulfillment in Christ . The longing for liberation that echoes through African traditional religion finds its answer not in appeasing spirits but in the victorious Christ who has triumphed over all spiritual powers.

Breaking Chains in Practice

The Pathway to Freedom

How then do we experience this chain-breaking power? Not through mere positive confession, but through practical reliance on Christ's strength. Consider the remarkable statement Paul makes just before his famous declaration: "I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation" (Philippians 4:12). The chain-breaking begins internally before it manifests externally.

The process unfolds thus:

1. Acknowledgment: We must honestly name our chains rather than spiritualize them away. Are we bound by fear? By addiction? By prejudice? By materialism? By bitterness?

2. Surrender: We must stop trying to break chains through willpower alone and instead surrender our weakness to Christ. His power is "perfected in weakness" (2 Corinthians 12:9).

3. Resistance: We actively resist the devil (James 4:7), renounce sinful patterns, and confront unjust systems—relying on Christ's strength rather than our own.

4. Community: Chain-breaking happens in community. The African concept of ubuntu—"I am because we are"—finds its fulfillment in the body of Christ where "we carry each other's burdens" (Galatians 6:2).

5. Perseverance: Some chains break instantly; others require persistent obedience amid ongoing struggle.

South African Stories of Liberation

I think of my friend Thabo, once chained by addiction to nyaope—a devastating street drug that has ravaged our townships. Through twelve steps of recovery and a growing dependence on Christ, he found liberation. Today he runs a rehabilitation center in Mamelodi. His freedom wasn't instantaneous, but Christ's strength sustained him through the painful process of recovery.

I think of the congregation in Diepsloot that confronted the chain of water injustice in their community. They didn't just pray; they organized, advocated, and partnered with engineers to develop sustainable water solutions—relying on Christ's strength throughout their struggle.

These examples illustrate that Christ's strength operates not only in spiritual matters but in the totality of human experience—psychological, social, and physical.

The Witness of a Chain-Free Life

A Testimony That Shocks the World

When we live in authentic dependence on Christ's strength rather than our own resources, we become living witnesses that shock the world. Our South African society is weary of empty religion and political promises. But a community that demonstrates genuine freedom from resentment, greed, fear, and prejudice? That gets attention.

The recently concluded "Pretoria Consensus" dialogue on reimagining democracy in Africa identified the need for "substantive democracy" that delivers justice and inclusion . As Christians, we affirm this desire but recognize that true justice ultimately flows from hearts transformed by Christ—hearts that are no longer chained by the greed and prejudice that perpetuate injustice.

Conclusion: Living Unchained

The lights have come back on in Akasia as I finish writing. But the greater light has been the Holy Spirit's illumination of what it means to truly appropriate Christ's strength in our South African context. We are not called to a trouble-free life but to a chain-free heart—a liberation so profound that it empowers us to face trouble without being defeated by it.

Prayer: Lord Jesus, you entered our world to break every chain. Forgive us for domesticating your radical liberation into comfortable slogans. Give us the courage to name our chains honestly and the faith to rely on your strength completely. Make our lives such stunning testimonies of your power that others are drawn to your freedom. Amen.

Challenge: What chain is Christ inviting you to break through His strength today? Is it the chain of resentment toward those who wronged you? The chain of fear about South Africa's future? The chain of materialism that equates worth with wealth? Bring that specific chain to Him now and take one practical step of reliance on His strength.