When Your Garment Changes, Your Life Changes: How Invisible Garments Can Keep You from Fully Walking in God's Promise
The Working Word | July 2025
Imagine this! Someone has just been released from prison, but as he walks out through the city streets, he's still wearing his prison uniform, complete with his inmate number printed on it.
What would you think if you saw him? Most likely, you'd assume he escaped from prison and might even feel the need to alert the police, right? This was exactly the state Lazarus was in after Jesus raised him from the dead.
John 11:44 (NKJV) says:
“And he who had died came out bound hand and foot with graveclothes, and his face was wrapped with a cloth. Jesus said to them, ‘Loose him, and let him go.’”
Lazarus had been called out of the grave, but he was still bound, wrapped in graveclothes. He had received life again, but outwardly, nothing had changed. He didn’t look different from a corpse. If you saw him in that condition, you might have run away, thinking a ghost had appeared!
Just imagine Lazarus walking through the city with white burial cloths still draped over him, cotton wool sticking out of his nostrils and ears. In many parts of the world, especially ours, where people strongly believe in the supernatural, this would surely cause panic. People would flee, convinced that a spirit was roaming the streets.
Lazarus was alive, yes, but his freedom wasn’t complete.
As I reflect on this picture of Lazarus, I can’t help but see how many believers today are just like him. They’ve been called out of spiritual death and given new life in Christ, yet the graveclothes still cling to them. Their salvation is real, but their freedom is not full. Lazarus, still bound after resurrection, is a powerful picture, a prototype, of many Christians today.
Here are four ways in which his condition might reflect yours:
Lazarus Was Still Reflecting His Past
The grave was Lazarus’ past. Jesus had called him out of it, but even though he was out, everything about him still reflected where he had come from. Anyone who saw Lazarus in that state would have no doubt he belonged in the grave. If you moved close, you might even perceive the lingering smell of the embalming chemicals used to preserve his body.
Lazarus is a powerful prototype of many believers today; people whom Jesus has saved and delivered, yet whose past still clings visibly to them. There are Christians who are haunted by events from two, three, or even ten years ago. Though those things are behind them chronologically, they are not free from their influence. That’s who Lazarus was—called out of the grave, but still wearing its clothes.
Maybe for you, it’s a heartbreak, a disappointment, a sin, or a mistake from years ago that’s still affecting how you live. Jesus may have saved you, but the trauma or memory still casts a shadow over your life.
Isaiah 43:18–19 (NKJV) says:
“Do not remember the former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold, I will do a new thing, now it shall spring forth; shall you not know it? I will even make a road in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.”
Notice that before God talks about the new thing He wants to do, He first addresses the past. You can’t fully perceive what’s ahead if your eyes are still fixed behind. It is impossible to look forward and backwards at the same time.
Here’s what I’m learning: If you don’t intentionally partner with God to confront and deal with your past, it will sabotage your future. If you fail to resolve the issues in your background, you're likely to repeat them. May God deliver you completely from the grip of your past so you can fully step into what He has in store for you.
Lazarus Was a Prototype of What God Has Done but Hasn't Yet Manifested
Years ago, I received a university appointment. I got the letter, and the appointment was even regularised immediately, a process that normally takes months. But then, we were told to go back home. So, I had the job... but I wasn’t in the classroom teaching students. Months passed, and there was no word. Eventually, after a whole year, I began to think the opportunity was a fluke.
Something similar happened to a woman in Ramsbottom who had a large goitre. After receiving prayer, she boldly testified that she had been healed even though the goitre was still visibly there. For twelve months, she continued to declare her healing, despite the doubts of those around her.
Why share these stories? Because they mirror the reality of many believers, and they mirror Lazarus’ experience. Lazarus had been made alive, but he wasn’t yet living free. God had done the work, but it hadn’t fully manifested. He was alive, but still wearing the clothes of the dead. He was delivered, but not yet walking in full deliverance.
Right now, you may be holding on to promises and prophecies from God that you haven’t seen fulfilled. You believe them in your spirit, but you can’t yet see them in your reality.
In my case, after one year, I was finally called to resume that teaching job. And for the woman with the goitre, one morning, she woke up to find the swelling completely gone. Her healing had fully manifested.
So I pray for you: May every promise and prophecy from God concerning your life find full expression. May you not only believe it in your heart but also see it with your eyes and live it in your daily experience.
Lazarus Was a Prototype of People Whose Deliverance Has Been Declared but Who Are Still Hindered by Spiritual Forces
Jesus didn’t just call Lazarus out; He gave a command: "Loose him, and let him go.” That reminds me of God’s command to Pharaoh through Moses: “Let my people go!”
Like Lazarus, many believers have been spiritually set free, but demonic or oppressive forces are still holding on to them. These forces resist the manifestation of what God has declared over their lives.
Remember the woman who had been bent over for 18 years? Jesus called her a “daughter of Abraham”—a covenant child. Yet, she was bound. Jesus asked, “Should not this woman... whom Satan has bound, be loosed?” (Luke 13:16)
Likewise, Jeremiah 50:33–34 (NKJV) says:
“The children of Israel were oppressed, along with the children of Judah; all who took them captive have held them fast; they have refused to let them go. Their Redeemer is strong; the Lord of hosts is His name. He will thoroughly plead their case...”
These were God’s chosen people, yet they were still being held captive. But thank God! Their Redeemer is strong. The Lord of Hosts will plead your case and overthrow the grip of every oppressor.
This month, I see God arising as the Lord of Hosts on your behalf. Just as Michael was sent to fight for Daniel’s breakthrough, I see the Lord dispatching His angels to contend for your freedom. Whatever force is holding you back, I hear the Lord saying: "Loose him, and let him go!"
Lazarus Was a Prototype of People Who Are Physically Delivered but Psychologically Bound
John’s account makes special mention of the cloth wrapped around Lazarus’ face. That detail is significant. When a person’s face is covered, their vision is impaired. They cannot see clearly, and that’s both physical and symbolic.
Psychological bondage can keep people from fully stepping into what God has done for them. If your mindset, beliefs, and paradigm don’t align with God’s promises, you’ll find it difficult to walk in His reality.
This was the exact problem with the Israelites in the wilderness. Though they were physically free from Egypt, their minds were still bound. Despite God’s promises and even visible evidence from the land of Canaan, they saw themselves as grasshoppers. They couldn’t imagine freedom, victory, or abundance, only slavery, fear, and defeat.
That’s why psychological deliverance is often more critical than physical liberation. A person can leave bondage physically and still be trapped mentally. Until you make that shift in your thinking and begin to see yourself through the lens of God’s Word, you may remain stuck in the wilderness of unfulfilled potential.
So I pray for you today: May God remove every cloth from your face. May your vision be restored, your thinking renewed, and your mind aligned with His promises. May your thoughts reflect His thoughts and your ways reflect His ways in Jesus' mighty name.
A Change of Garment Is a Change of Destiny
Meanwhile, all of this was happening to Lazarus because of the graveclothes still on him. No wonder Jesus immediately commanded that the cloth be removed. As long as those graveclothes remained on him, he would continue to be treated as though he were dead, even though Jesus had already brought him back to life.
Clothes speak. They reflect your identity, your condition, and your current season. People can tell a lot about you based on what you wear. We identify professionals by their uniforms—a soldier, a doctor, a judge. The clothes you wear in winter are different from what you wear in summer. Even social and economic status can often be inferred from clothing.
That’s why the graveclothes had to come off Lazarus. He couldn’t wear the clothes of the dead and expect to function among the living. This truth runs throughout Scripture.
Joshua, the high priest, had to undergo a change of garments. As long as the filthy clothes remained on him, Satan stood at his right hand to accuse him (Zechariah 3:1–4). But once the garment was changed, his status shifted.
Joseph, before appearing before Pharaoh, had his prison garments removed and was given new clothes. Only then could he step into his destiny.
And now, in Lazarus' case, Jesus didn’t stop at raising him from the dead. He also gave a specific command: “Loose him, and let him go.”
Remember the picture I painted at the beginning? A man walks through the city in prison clothes, even though he's been released. What do people think? That he escaped. They might even call the police and have him arrested again, not because he isn’t free, but because of what he's wearing.
Could it be that your current experiences in life are reflections of the spiritual "clothes" you are still wearing? I’m not talking about literal clothes. I mean the invisible garments: spiritual labels, past identities, and outdated mindsets that are still clinging to you.
You’ve prayed, desired a better experience in your life, your family, business, or ministry, yet nothing seems to change. Perhaps it’s time to ask God for a change of garment. Because when your garment changes, your experience will change.
As I studied Scripture, I noticed a pattern: In every case where someone needed a garment change, others were involved in facilitating it. From Joseph to Mordecai, from Joshua the high priest to Lazarus, someone was instructed or positioned to assist in changing their garments.
I believe God is sending people into your life this season; people anointed and assigned to help change your garment so you can enter your next phase. This month, you will no longer be held back. It’s time to fully experience everything God has spoken concerning you. I declare to you: Your garment is changing. Your season is shifting. Your experience is transforming. In Jesus’ mighty name, Amen.
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The Working Word is a section in the Fresh Bread Publication that delivers a monthly prophetic promise, insights and faith-building principles to help you pray, believe and see God’s Word fulfilled.
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This is so profound! God bless you for sharing
Bless you sir, more grace to you in Jesus name Amen. Happy new month to you.