Have you ever faced a problem in your life that felt completely impossible, a situation so tangled up, so knotted you couldn’t even even find a loose end to begin pulling on? If so this post is for you.

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THE GORDIAN KNOT—A LESSON IN CUTTING RATHER THAN UNTYING

History tells of King Gordius of Phrygia, whose ox-cart was fastened to a post with an intricate knot. It was said that whoever could untie this knot would rule all of Asia. Many tried and failed, for the knot was so tightly wound that its ends were hidden. When Alexander the Great encountered it, he did not waste time puzzling over the cords. He drew his sword and cut through it in one stroke. The so-called Gordian Knot was not solved by untying but by decisive cutting.

The most celebrated classical account of the Gordian Knot appears in Plutarch’s Life of Alexander (section 18). Dryden’s translation, as rendered on Livius.org:

“Then he subdued the Pisidians who made head against him and conquered the Phrygians, at whose chief city, Gordium, which is said to be the seat of the ancient king Midas, he saw the famous chariot fastened with cords made of the rind of the cornel-tree, which whosoever should untie, the inhabitants had a tradition, that for him was reserved the empire of the world. Most authors tell the story that Alexander finding himself unable to untie the knot, the ends of which were secretly twisted round and folded up within it, cut it asunder with his sword.”

This ancient story is more than a curious legend. It is an image of the spiritual life. In many occult traditions and shamanistic practices, it is believed that one must first study darkness to overcome it—that you must know how to tie the knot before you can untie it. In an interview, a voodoo priest said that they learn black magic first, before practising white, “because you must know how to tie a knot before you can untie it.” But Scripture reveals a different way. While this typifies worldly thought, we as believers do not need to acquaint ourselves with darkness in order to overcome it. Rather, we need only to acquaint ourselves with the sword that severs the knot’s the devil ties: the Word of God.

The enemy ties knots in the soul—fear, shame, guilt, deception—and in the circumstances of life—relationships, finances, advancement, health, destiny, etc. These cords seem hopelessly bound and perhaps even impossible to solve.

Today, a “Gordian Knot” has come to mean a seemingly unsolvable or intractable problem, and “Cutting the Gordian Knot” means solving such a problem by bold, decisive action rather than traditional methods.

The Bible shows us that our calling is not to study the knots endlessly and so tire ourselves needlessly, nor to master their pattern, but instead, simply to wield the sword of the Spirit with confidence. The problem may be complicated, but the solution is not. Enforcing the Word is more important than understanding the mechanics of the problem.

“My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge.” —Hosea 4:6

The devil exploits ignorance, and in that sense knots are formed because we did not know or did not walk in what God has already said. The knots he ties are ultimately knots of ignorance. Yet the good news is that the devil has been disarmed and defeated.

“He disarmed the spiritual rulers and authorities. He shamed them publicly by his victory over them on the cross.” —Colossians 2:15

We are not fighting for victory; we are enforcing the victory Christ has already won. Thus we are “more than conquerors” (Romans 8:37), because we do not have to conquer afresh—we rest in faith in Christ’s declaration on the cross.

“It is finished” (John 19:30), is the eternal verdict.

THE ENEMY’S TACTICS—SEEING THE KNOTS (1 PETER 5:8)

“Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.” —1 Peter 5:8 (ESV)

Peter portrays the enemy as active, intentional, and predatory. The knots in our lives rarely appear by accident. They are strategically set against what gives us life: health, well-th, relationships, courage, integrity, etc.; basically anything to steal our love, faith, joy and peace.

Matthew Henry (on the devil as a lion)

In his Commentary on 1 Peter 5:8, Henry writes:

“The devil is a subtle and spiteful enemy, and he seeks whom he may devour. He is a roaring lion, not always attacking with open violence, but often terrifying with his roar, and by frightful suggestions shaking the faith, disturbing the peace, and frightening the minds of God’s people.”
(Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary on the Whole Bible, 1 Peter 5:8)

Knots can look like:

• A lie about identity that keeps you in shame.
• A cycle of fear that silences truth.
• A generational mistrust that poisons relationships.
• A secret addiction that binds time and talent to emptiness.
• Agreeing with a lie (illusion) about your situation.

The enemy ties cords that tangle us in repeated outcomes. But the very recognition of these knots points us toward God’s counter-measure: the sword that cuts.

RESPONSIBILITY AND LEGALITY—JAMES 4:7

“Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” —James 4:7 (ESV)

James does not call us to wrestle with the knot endlessly. He offers a sequence: submit to God, resist the devil, and the enemy must flee. The key here is submission—placing ourselves under the authority of God’s Word and Spirit. Submission here means standing in agreement with God’s word i.e. His judgment about our position in all areas of life. Only then does resistance carry divine force.

When we submit to God and resist the devil we live in freedom, however, when we submit to the devil and thus resist God, our lives are bound with demonic knots.

PETER HASERT

Matthew Henry comments that resistance without submission is ineffective. You cannot resist a stronger adversary unless you stand under the shield of One who has already conquered. When we submit to (agree with) God, we enforce Christ’s finished victory. Restless working, fighting and grasping only prove we have not agreed with God’s truth ie. submitted to His word. The devil technically has no legal hold. Ignorance may allow him to tie knots, but once knowledge dawns and faith is enacted, the cords lose their power. That is why Paul writes:

“…do not give the devil a foothold [opportunity]” —Ephesians 4:27

Thus, our task is not mental analysis of darkness but heart obedience to light. We do not need to learn how the devil ties knots; we need to know the authority and duty Christ has given us to cut them.

→ “Again he said, Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I am sending you.” —John 20:21

→ “Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall hurt you.“ —Luke 10:19

GOD’S COUNTER-MEASURES—PSALM 149:6–9

“May the high praises of God be in their mouths, and a double-edged sword in their hands, to inflict vengeance on the nations and punishment on the peoples, to bind their kings with chains and their nobles with shackles of iron, to execute [enforce] the judgment written against them. This honour is for all His saints.” —Psalm 149:6–9 (ESV)

This psalm fuses worship and warfare. Praise is not escape from reality but an entry into God’s reality. Henry points out that worship realigns the heart, and when coupled with the sword—God’s Word—it becomes a weapon that dismantles spiritual opposition.

“The praises of God in the mouths of good people will be to them as a two-edged sword in their hand. The word of God gives us authority, and the praises of God give us boldness; and both together will be a mighty weapon [mechanism] for the pulling down of strongholds.”
(Matthew Henry, Commentary on Psalm 149:6–9)

Notice the pairing: high praises in the mouth, swords in the hand. One without the other is incomplete. Praise awakens faith; the Word strikes the knot. This is God’s counter-measure: worship + Word = victory enforced.

THE SWORD OF THE SPIRIT—WHY WE CUT, NOT UNTIE

Ephesians 6:17 names the Word of God as the “sword of the Spirit.” A sword does what a patient untying never can: It applies legal decree to the situation the devil is trying to maintain through deceit.

When Alexander cut the Gordian Knot, he demonstrated decisiveness. Likewise, when we proclaim God’s Word against fear, shame, or lies, we cut rather than fiddle with cords. We act not in curiosity but in authority. We don’t need to study occult mechanics; we only need to know the promises of God and declare them.

What we are saved into is far greater than what we have been saved from.

PRACTICAL FRAMEWORK FOR CUTTING KNOTS

1. Recognition — Ask God to expose the knot (fear, shame, deception).
2. Submission — Place yourself under God’s authority (James 4:7).
3. Confession & Repentance — Bring sin into the light.
4. Scriptural Rebuttal — Find the verse that contradicts the lie.
5. Proclamation — Declare that verse aloud over your life.
6. Worship — Sing praises, shifting atmosphere and perspective.
7. Boundaries — Remove footholds (habits, contacts, secrecy).
8. Community — Invite accountability and prayer.
9. Deliverance Prayer — Where oppression lingers, seek pastoral prayer.
10. Replacement — Replace lies with truth, habits with holiness.
11. Perseverance — Some knots take time; continue cutting.
12. Rest — Trust the finished work: “It is finished.”

WHY WE DO NOT STUDY DARKNESS

Because it is forbidden. You can’t play with fire and not get burned. Some argue that to master warfare, one must first know the enemy’s arts. But Scripture forbids dabbling in darkness (Deut. 18:10–12). Studying knots endlessly is wasted energy; wielding the sword is sufficient. Colossians 2:15 tells us that Christ has “disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them.”

Why, then, would we study the weapons of a disarmed enemy? The only knowledge needed is of the power of the weapon entrusted to us to enforce God’s will on earth.

We are not called to plat the devil’s knots game; we are called to wield the truth that cuts through them.

Our focus is not knots (the devils lies) but Christ’s victory (God’s promises secured for us).

“All God’s promises are yes [to those in Christ], and [but must] we speak the amen [add our agreement to those promises] which glorifies God [and enforces the devils defeat].” — 2 Corinthians 1:20

To ‘amen‘ or agree means we say, “it is so,” not “It will be so,” or “God make it so.”

Each case was not about mastering the knot but enforcing the cut.

CONCLUSION: ENFORCING THE VICTORY ALREADY WON

We have travelled from the tangled knot of Gordius to the sharper cut of Alexander’s sword, and we have seen that our calling is not to study the knots of darkness, but to wield the sword of the Spirit. Too many believers still live as if they must fight their way into victory, when the truth is far more liberating: the victory has already been secured. Christ has disarmed principalities and powers. The empty cross and the rolled-away stone are Heaven’s declaration that the war is finished.

The Scriptures are not mere inspirational sayings; they are legal decrees from the High Court of Heaven. When we speak them, we are not wishfully hoping—they are binding verdicts, enforceable in our lives, our families, our nations. We do not conquer by our sweat or striving; we conquer by standing. We do not plead for victory; we enforce the victory. The devil’s knots of fear, shame, poverty, sickness, and delay are not puzzles we must solve—they are lies we must expose by the Word.

From this day, stop asking “How do I gain the victory?” and begin declaring, “I will enforce the victory already written in the eternal decree.”

The paradigm must shift for our circumstances to transform

The Bible is Heaven’s signed, sealed, and delivered document—a covenant that no force in hell can annul. To walk in it is not arrogance; it is obedience. To enforce it is not presumption; it is faith. It is the Christians’ duty!

So rise. Shake off the dust. Take the sword in your hand and the praise in your mouth. Not to fight for victory, but to walk as one who is already more than a conqueror. For it is written: “It is finished.”

SPIRITUAL WARFARE FLOWCHART

DEVOTIONAL PRAYER

Lord Jesus Christ,
You are the One who declared, “It is finished.”
Teach me not to be entangled with the knots of fear, shame, guilt, or deception.
Open my eyes to where ignorance has allowed the enemy to bind me.
Grant me boldness to wield the sword of the Spirit, declaring Your Word with faith.
Help me fill my mouth with high praises and wield the two-edged sword of your Spirit.
I rest not in my struggle but in Your finished victory.
Amen.

QUESTIONS FOR REFLECTION

1. Where in your life do you recognise a “knot” of fear, shame, or deception?
2. How might you submit afresh to God so that resistance carries authority?
3. What Scriptures can you wield as the sword against the knot you face?
4. How can worship become an act of warfare in your daily life?
5. Do you truly believe that Christ’s victory is finished, and are you resting in it?