I have had many people who come to me right after coming out of prison, after serving time, looking for some help. They begin with good intentions, they want to start life over , they need a job , a place to stay , and a chance to start life over.
In the weeks just following, some of the same people come up to me and say , Pastor Mike, forgive me , because I’m going to go and commit a crime .
I have to go get myself arrested, thrown in jail because I just can’t make it out here, it is too hard. I’m not good enough to find a job or a place to stay.
Sounds pretty tragic, doesn’t it. We think that type of punishment is reserved for those who don’t know any better, or that lack the proper morals or upbringing
Today you will find out that this behavior isn’t so rare, but effects many people that you know , your family , friends , neighbors , and even yourselves.
Even more people, have people told me I can’t handle the Christian life . It is too hard, I can do it for a little while, but I’ll never be good enough , I need to go back into the world, and you know what , I never see them again.
The reason for this is sin. Sin is a battle, it is an all out war , that is launched on believers. And we all know what happens war, people get hurt, people get robbed, some people lose everything.
This is the one area where Christians and the church have it all backwards, when they see someone fall, when they see someone fail , they treat them like the enemy , the instinct is to run away, and leave them on their own .
Now what would happen in the army if a soldier saw another under attack on the battlefield, wounded , and ran away and left him on his own ? He would be labeled a coward, a deserter a traitor, He would be kicked out of the military.
Israel had 6 cities that were called cities of refuge where people who made an accidental crime could run to for shelter.
Isn’t that what the church should be , a place where people can run to when they need forgiveness ?
Mark 2:17 And hearing this, Jesus said to them, "It is not those who are healthy who need a physician, but those who are sick; I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners."
That’s why Jesus said It’s not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick .
Sin is the evidence of a battle raging on a believer; a person under attack by Satan, and then what do most Christians, Avoid them, distance from them , and desert them.
When this happens , the person is now being attacked on all fronts, Satan is attacking them on one front, and the church is attacking them on the other.
You know why you feel so bad when you sin? it’s not that complicated, it’s because you lost a battle, you have been defeated. But take heart the all is not lost , it’s not over yet , you will come back , you will saher in the victory .
1 Peter 2:11 Dear friends, I urge you, as foreigners and exiles, to abstain from sinful desires, which wage war against your soul.
When I hear of a believer that has fallen into sin the first feeling is heart break. The wounds of sin cut so deep, they penetrate the soul , and believers find themselves in the spiritual war of their life .
Then Sin turns into bondage, sin holds people prisoners.
Peter calls us foreigners and exiles. That we are in a foreign land.
Remember when Israel was in a foreign land, they were in Egypt held captive by Pharaoh
We all know how they got there, there was a great famine in the land, life was extremely tough .
What Egypt promised was relief from troubles, Egypt had everything needed , grain, fields and water fruits . But just a short time things took a change for the worse. The king had died , the Jews outnumbered the Egyptians and the Egyptians felt threatened
Exodus 2: 23Now it came about in the course of those many days that the king of Egypt died. And the sons of Israel sighed because of the bondage, and they cried out; and their cry for help because of their bondage rose up to God.
Israel got trapped in a bad situation, stuck in bondage, slaves to the world.
You ask yourself, why don’t people just turn and walk away from sin? Just stop and leave that bad world and that bad behavior behind?
Because that’s not how the slavery operates, Sin is a prison, and you know what happens when someone is caught trying to break out of prison, they are punished with even harder time .
Exodus 5:6So the same day Pharaoh commanded the taskmasters over the people and their foremen, saying, 7“You are no longer to give the people straw to make brick as previously; let them go and gather straw for themselves.8“But the quota of bricks which they were making previously, you shall impose on them; you are not to reduce any of it. Because they are lazy, therefore they cry out, ‘Let us go and sacrifice to our God.’ 9“Let the labor be heavier on the men, and let them work at it so that they will pay no attention to false words.”
At this point you can take the idea of free will and through it out the window.
What the people of Israel didn’t realize was, like many of us, they had surrender their free will, and now had become slaves .
Look at how telling verse 9 is those false words. This is what the world says to Christians battling sin. “And you call yourself a Christian, Christians should know better, Where is your Jesus now, that Bible is just false words.
When Christians see other brothers and sisters stuck in this world, getting beat down , we need to run to them not away from them.
I know God has had patience with me, I know I have sinned against Him. He has waited on me. Can’t I at least need do the same?
We need to arrive at a place where we see some of ourselves in other people and they see some of Jesus in us.
The number one question is How can I break out of this prison, how can we break the chains of sin?
You are not going to break out of the prison of sin by yourself; We need to call on God to rescue us.
Exodus 6:5“Furthermore I have heard the groaning of the sons of Israel, because the Egyptians are holding them in bondage, and I have remembered My covenant. 6“Say, therefore, to the sons of Israel, ‘I am the LORD, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will deliver you from their bondage. I will also redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great judgments. 7‘Then I will take you for My people, and I will be your God; and you shall know that I am the LORD your God, who brought you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians.
There is only one way out and only one way to get out of the bondage of sin , we need to be rescued , we call on the Lord for help.
Everyone knows what Apostle Paul wrote in Romans
Romans 10:13 for "WHOEVER WILL CALL ON THE NAME OF THE LORD WILL BE SAVED."
But not many know where he got that verse from, it comes from ,from the book of Joel.
Joel 2:32 "And it will come about that whoever calls on the name of the LORD Will be delivered; For on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem There will be those who escape, As the LORD has said, Even among the survivors whom the LORD calls.
The only reason for an escape is because someone is held captive beyond their will, and survivors only come from the attacks and battles of this world . Tell your neighbor I’m a survivor, tell them God has rescued me .
There is a only one way out, there is only one an escape route and that is with Jesus .
This is the whole reason God sent Jesus to us to rescue us .
Remember the first thing Jesus did in His ministry was to walk into the Temple and read
Luke 4: 17And the book of the prophet Isaiah was handed to Him. And He opened the book and found the place where it was written,
18“THE SPIRIT OF THE LORD IS UPON ME,
BECAUSE HE ANOINTED ME TO PREACH THE GOSPEL TO THE POOR.
HE HAS SENT ME TO PROCLAIM RELEASE TO THE CAPTIVES,
AND RECOVERY OF SIGHT TO THE BLIND,
TO SET FREE THOSE WHO ARE OPPRESSED,
Jesus has come to free you, no amount of self control, no amount of free will, will set you free , only Jesus can break you out, Only Jesus can set you free .
Call your neighbors, call you friends, tell your family, let freedom ring. Jesus will break those chains,
