Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave of sin. 35 A slave is not a permanent member of the family, but a son is part of the family forever. 36 So if the Son sets you free, you are truly free. 37 Yes, I realize that you are descendants of Abraham. And yet some of you are trying to kill me because there’s no room in your hearts for my message. 38 I am telling you what I saw when I was with my Father. But you are following the advice of your father.” John 8:34-38
Yesterday day I started this new bible study with the women in the work release center where I do studies and it referred to these verses above. I just want to share with you this one paragraph from the study.
We’ve heard and gained hope from this verse: “Ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free” (John 8:32). Why, then, do many of us-even though we know the truth-not walk in the freedom that is available to us? Later in the passage, Jesus tells us why: “I know that ye are Abraham’s seed [those entrusted with God’s Word]; but ye seek to kill me, because my word hath no place in you” (John 8:38, italics added). When we know the truth (His Word), but it has no place in us, we are not set free by it. We must apply the truth to our lives, taking it into ourselves. We’ll be set free only as completely as the truth is applied in our lives. (Exert from Uprooting Anger- by Kay W. Camenisch)
These verses and this paragraph above ministered to my heart deeply because of certain struggles that I am seeing other believers go through, as well as myself. These verses remind me that no matter what we are facing, no matter what our struggle or vices are as children of God we have been set free. We are no longer slaves to sin or our old sin nature. However, many of us have not allowed the Word of God to truly have a place in our heart regarding whatever that struggle or hindrance is. Therefore we can not experience the freedom from that bondage because we have not applied the Word of God to our situation. So we continue to be dominated or enslaved by it.
What I find awesome about serving Christ and overcoming the battle against my fleshly sin nature and the battle in my mind is that I do not have to do it on my own and neither do you. God is working in us, giving us the desire AND the power to do what pleases Him. He equips us with everything we need to do His will and produces in us everything good that is pleasing to Him through the power of Christ Jesus. Our heavenly Father is faithful! He will not ever allow the temptations and struggles in our life to be more than we can stand. When we are tempted, He WILL show us a way out so that we can endure through the power of the Holy Spirit and the application of the truth of God’s Word in our life. The choice is ours daily, to abide in Christ or to go it alone. (Philippians 2:13, Hebrews 13:21, 1 Corinthians 10:13)
As I sat preparing and studying for lasts night’s study with my sister in the Lord and dear friend she said, “As we go over this I am reminded again that Christianity is a choice.” She’s right! Our daily Christian walk is a choice to walk on the narrow road that leads to life and freedom or on the broad road that leads to bondage, destruction, and death. Will we serve our selfish and sinful desires or will we chose to be doers of the Word, applying the truth of God’s Word to every area of our lives? Every area? Yes...especially the ones that we want to keep control of. We have to choose to allow God’s Word to have dominion in our hearts and life.
We are foolish if we ignore the Holy Spirit when He ministers to us about specific concerns that He has about our lives. He will gently, patiently, and lovingly prompt us to change or leave something behind that will hinder our walk and chip away at our testimony. The Holy Spirit uses the Word of God to set us free. The Word of God was given to us as a gift from God to help teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right. God uses it to prepares and equip His people to do every good work. However, it’s not enough for us to know the Word or hear the Word, we MUST DO whatever the Word says if we are going to live our life more abundantly here and now. (2 Timothy 3:16)
James 1: 22-25 “But don’t just listen to God’s word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves. 23 For if you listen to the word and don’t obey, it is like glancing at your face in a mirror. 24 You see yourself, walk away, and forget what you look like. 25 But if you look carefully into the perfect law that sets you free, and if you do what it says and don’t forget what you heard, then God will bless you for doing it.”
My prayer for us…
Lord, as we draw closer to you through reading your Word and prayer help us to not just read or listen but to apply the truth of Your Word to our lives. We want to live free from anything that will prevent our light from shining bright for You. Let us always remember that we can do nothing of fruitful eternal value apart from the Word of God. We need you now more than ever in this world full of sin and evil. Thank you for your power and grace which is sufficient to help us in our time of need. We will run to you daily not just in our times of crisis. In Jesus name…Amen
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7 comments:
Wow, loving this one. You are very right; he has given us all the tools to equip us for the times we are tempted by the enemy.
In my case, I had a constant battle in my mind and it was a battle I never felt I could win. I used to say to myself...how can I call myself a Christian and have perverted thoughts and thoughts to take my own life. I didn't get it; I was in church almost every Sunday and I constantly read my Bible, but felt like I could never stay consistant in my Christian walk. I was having horrible dreams that involved demons..and I was sometimes scared to even go to sleep at night...they would torment me...sometimes I couldn't tell if the dreams were an actual dream..or if they were real. A close friend of mine went into a Christian book store one day and God spoke to them and told them to buy me the book "Pigs in a Parlor". She gave me the book and I thought she was crazy...I said to myself...I'm saved...I don't need deliverance from demons...but God drew me to read just one chapter and it was "Self Deliverance" I read just that chapter and found myself a few weeks later on my dining room floor...repenting to God and telling him how sick I was of all of the sin and screaming and crying and praying in the spirit...while praying..I began vomiting and coughing.....it went on for what seemed to be forever, but I truly experienced self deliverance. This will sound crazy to you...but after all of the coughing and vomiting..I had the worst taste in my mouth...it tasted like sewage...nothing I had ever tasted in my life..When I got up off of my floor...I felt so light and so free...it was the best day of my life...I could feel him all over me...I felt like a young child who had been running in an open field. I was delivered. The battle in my mind was over. I have never been the same since that day. A week later I met my husband...and I had been waiting on God for years to meet him....he was waiting on me the whole time...when I thought I was waiting on him. He made me new again and whole again. What the church needs today is deliverance...but no one wants to talk about demons. The truth is a saved person cannot be possessed by demons because the holy spirit lives within them, so the demons cannot take total control of a saved person, but we can be demonized. I am living proof of that. If you feel the battle is so strong that you can't get a grip on it....seek deliverance..He has given us all the tools we need. We can take authority over the enemy, but you have to find yourself at a crossroad where you choose God over your sin...over your worldly fun...so many of us are not 100 percent ready to surrender everything...we think that we will be bored....and we won't have any fun any more....but that is a lie from the enemy...I live with so much joy now. So many of us still want to live in this world, but when we reach a place that we are truly done with the world...and at a place where we truly hate the sin in this world...that's when...GOD WILL HAVE HIS WAY WITH YOU!!! Be blessed. Thanks for letting me share that.
So well put. Thanks for your faithfulness to remain in the Word and your willingness to press forward onto what the Lord Jesus has for you. It helps everyone around you. I love the scriptures from James as they are applied here! What a confirmation. Love u girl.
Thank you both for your comments. You are such an encouragement to me Beloved By Him.
And Kristin wow...that was great! i love it!!! Everything you said is true. thank you so much for sharing it..
The part about the world has been on my heart for a minute now. Hopefully I can get it out of me and on Consecrated To Him this week. Our love for this world will most certainly be our down fall. We are to love the souls of men not the world that corrupts them.
Thank you both..
God's will is awesome. It has always been my own imopatience for his will to happen that I need to work on.
I can definitely relate Miles. May the Lord help all of us in this area of our lives.
HE is amazing. God has been showing me that when i let Him to be in total control, everything is going to be fine, He will never let me down.
I was reading Isiah Chapter 58 and this chapter really made me think of what i am doing. We have to love him wholehearted.
Hi Lisa:
Thank you so much for being so kind. I haven´t found a church yet. My sister and i are looking for one.. but nothing yet, we are praying for that.
About my grandma she is doing fine for now she is under treatment (medicines) we have to wait until she is done with them to see how she is doing.
About my thesis, i am praying a lot about that. Hopefully the thesis theme will be approved without trouble. And the other thing is that i have to find a good adviser-Professor.. I have no idea who to choose. Please pray for that!
Thanks again.
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