Freedom in Christ – Session 10
Walking in freedom every day Babies are so adorable, I hugged a 6 week old at Bulrushes on Thursday, till he fell asleep. If I said I’d been down to Klubb on Friday night and hugged one of the lads till they fell asleep you would be rather worried. We are meant to grow up, to mature. That’s what God intends for his children in terms of faith. He wants us to grow up. The verses in Hebrews speak about those who haven’t grown up, they are older but they are still babies. Paul says the same in 1 Corinthians 3:1-3 mere infants, being given milk not solid food, because they are not able to receive it. Indeed you are still not able. New Christians don’t have a clear button that deals with everything from their past, there will still be unresolved conflicts in them but the Corinthians were not new Christians. Babies are cute but if people are still, behaving like babies when they are 20 its not attractive! The writer to the Hebrews is understandably frustrated because they are not taking hold of all God has promised them. How can we ensure that’s not us. God always has more for us, how can we embrace that fact? How can we take hold of all God has promised us? (click x 2) Take hold of freedom Take personal responsibility Know the basic truths Identify faulty thinking 1/9
Freedom in Christ – Session 10
Train ourselves to distinguish good from evil
Take hold of our spiritual freedom ‘His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness.’ 2 Peter 1:3 Steps to freedom – choose to confess, repent, renounce and command the enemy to leave your presence. Freedom is a position we take in response to Christ’s victory over sin and Satan. We are either free or bound in various areas of our lives. We are either free or not. Maturing in our faith is a process of choosing to believe you have the freedom and living like its truetaking hold of the freedom you have – getting out of the prison cell – like a prisoner released its not easy and if we don’t do something positive will just go back to believing the same lies. Take personal responsibility All I can do is help you see the truth, you have to choose to act on it. Repentance and faith are necessary – only you can do that. Do need other people but God wants to deal directly with you. ‘It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm then and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery’ Nothing from your past can stop you from standing firm, nothing and no one can prevent you from becoming the person God wants you to be ONLY YOU! 2/9
Freedom in Christ – Session 10
God has given us everything we need. We will not mature until we make the decision to take God at his word even when our feelings scream at us that it’s not true. It takes effort and commitment. It is so important that we grasp what’s God’s responsibility, what is ours and what is other people’s. When we mix these up we will find us trying to be God and us thinking others are God. He wants to deal with us directly not through others, and he wants us to trust him completely not ourselves and not others. Know the basic truths Heb 5:12-14 12 In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God’s word all over again. You need milk, not solid food! 13
Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. 14 But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil. One of the reasons that the Hebrews were not moving on to maturity is that they had not taken the trouble to make deep connections with the elementary truths, specifically the truth about righteousness,(righteousness is a description of our relationship with God – its who we are and what we do) so they were going round and round in circles getting confused about the same old issues and never making real progress. We are saints; in Christ we are completely righteous: 3/9
Freedom in Christ – Session 10
‘now he has reconciled you by Christ’s physical body through death to present you holy in his sight without blemish and free from accusation’ Col 1:22 The key issue is: ‘Do you really know the truth that in Christ you are righteous, or is it just head knowledge? Does it feel like you need to do a good job for God to accept you? Are you still believing condemning thoughts about yourself, even though God never ever condemns you? (Rom 8:1) Identify Faulty Thinking Heb 6:1-2 Therefore let us move beyond the elementary teachings about Christ and be taken forward to maturity, not laying again the foundation of repentance from acts that lead to death,(or religious practises) and of faith in God, 2 instruction about cleansing rites,(or baptism) the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment. how do we leave elementary teaching behind – come to a settled position in our own mind on what makes us pleasing to God – Jesus did it on the cross. Full stop! We each carry around unhelpful ways of thinking based on our past experiences. These are strongholds, and often we have carried them so long they feel utterly true. The good news is we have weapons to deal with them 2 Cor 10:4-5 By the humility and gentleness of Christ, I appeal to you—I, Paul, who am “timid” when face to face with you, but “bold” toward you when away! 2 I beg you that when I come I 4/9
Freedom in Christ – Session 10
may not have to be as bold as I expect to be toward some people who think that we live by the standards of this world. 3
For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. 4 The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. 5 We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. Its our responsibilkity - we are to fight, to take captive every thought. Wielding the weapons God gives us takes effort and intentionality and practise. One of the main weapons is truth. Look back at the lists in your books pp 12-13,22,30-31 – need to do more than read them once and intellectually agree with them! Psychologist say it takes us about 6 weeks to form or break or form a habit. Once you have dealt with any footholds of the devil, a mental stronghold is simply a habitual way of thinking. Can you break a habit? Yes but ti takes effort and time. The best way to renew your mind is to take a truth from the bible and work with it over a 6 week period, actively renouncing what you used to believe and announcing what is really true – out loud!!! This isn’t some magic formula or religious practise. Its rejecting lies and committing yourself to truth. Train ourselves to distinguish good from evil 5/9
Freedom in Christ – Session 10
Heb 5:14 - But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil. personal responsibility. Remember how people who work in banks are taught to recognise a forgery by looking at genuine notes, become intimately aquainted with the characteristics of the real thing so they can instantly spot a counterfeit – same with truth. Strategies for growth Uncovering lies a) During the steps become aware of lies you have been believing for years – write them down. Step 3 forgiveness – how did they make you feel? If the same word or idea keeps occurring then you may well have uncovered a lie, a stronghold. b) Fears. Allow God to show you what you are afraid of, work out the lie behind that fear, see how it is holding you back. Dealing with lies If you have uncovered some lies, thank the Lord for leading you into truth. Then you need to replace them with truth. Stronghold busting: a) Determine the lie(any way you are thinking that is not in line with what the bible says about you. Ignore what you feel, commit to believe the truth 6/9
Freedom in Christ – Session 10
b) Find as many bible verses as you can that state the truth and write them down c) Write a prayer: I renounce the lie that……… I announce the truth that…. d) Read the bible verses and say the prayer every day for 40 days. Remember it takes time to demolish a stronghold and get rid of negative thinking. Thoughts will reoccur, that doesn’t mean it’s not working, you have to keep choosing the truth. E.g. water into coffee pot, demolition ball. e.g. I am no good, I feel like what I have done makes me unacceptable to God, I can’t stop doing something that I know is wrong, I am a failure, This works for others but it won’t work for me. Work through an example Determine the lie (any way you are thinking that is not in line with what the bible says about you). Ignore what you feel, commit to believe the truth I am not good enough
. Find as many bible verses as you can that state the truth and write them down Romans 8:37 In all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us
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Freedom in Christ – Session 10
Philippians 4:13 I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength Ephesians 2:10 We are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do Write a prayer: I renounce the lie that### I am not good enough I announce the truth that#. I am God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for me to do Determine the lie (any way you are thinking that is not in line with what the bible says about you). Ignore what you feel, commit to believe the truth Overeating brings lasting comfort Find as many bible verses as you can that state the truth and write them down Psalm 63:4-5 I will praise you as long as I live, and in your name I will lift up my hands. My soul will be satisfied as with the richest of foods; with singing lips my mouth will praise you. Jeremiah 5:25 Your bad behaviour blinds you to all this. Your sins keep my blessings at a distance. Write a prayer: I renounce the lie that### Overeating brings lasting comfort I announce the truth that#.
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Freedom in Christ – Session 10
You are the one who will satisfy and if I turn for comfort elsewhere it will keep your blessings at a distance Read the bible verses and say the prayer every day for 40 days. Taking a long term view Deal with one thing at a time, Phil 3:13-15 – stick on the race, think a year ahead, could deal with 8 areas of your life in a year. Ask for help a) Ask a friend you trust to keep you accountable. b) If a major trauma has come to mind talk it through with a mature Christian, to help you process your painful memories not from the perspective of who you were then but from the perspective of who you are now. Keep reading the bible verses How can we take hold of all God has promised us? Take hold of freedom Take personal responsibility Know the basic truths Identify faulty thinking Train ourselves to distinguish good from evil
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