Opening illustration: You ever watch those shows about these submarines that go down 2 and a half miles to the wreck of the Titanic? That’s one thing that I think I could never do. To be crammed into a machine not much bigger than a telephone booth with 2 other guys, 2 miles below the surface of the water, with the incredible pressure of that water just trying to squish the vessel. Well, let’s say that you were down there, and you just couldn’t take it anymore. You were going nuts, and you said, “I have to get out of here!” Opening the hatch would be about the stupidest thing you could do. Yeah, you might get out of the sub, but you’d be crushed by the water before you got the chance to drown. The apparent captivity of the submarine actually gives you freedom. That confinement preserves your life. And it’s the exact same thing when we talk about Christian living. Living the way that God wants you to might seem restricting, but it’s sure a lot better than the alternative.
Introduction: Jesus’ ministry grows rapidly, healing, deliverance … He tells that He is the Son of God. Many Samaritans believe in Him. Jesus feeds the 5,000. He walks on water and discloses that He is the living water and bread from heaven. He also tells that He is the light of the world. There is conflict and disagreement amongst the Jews. The Jewish leaders attempt to arrest Christ but there are some who believe in Him that He is the truth and set them free, even though some fell away, and it is here He addressed them.
What is the problem that restricts our freedom?
1. The CAUSE of our problem: OUR SINFUL NATURE
We get into trouble because of our tendency to go our own way rather than God's way. The Bible calls this tendency to go our own way rather than God's way, our sin nature. My sin nature gets me into all kinds of trouble. I do things that aren't good for me. I do them even when they're self-destructive. I don't do things that are good for me. I act in ways when I'm hurt that only increase my hurt; and then hurt others around me. I try to fix problems and often make them worse. Sin is the reason why the entire world is a mess, including my own private world.
"There is a way that appears to be right, but in the end it leads to death." - Proverbs 14:12 (NIV)
A person without Christ has but one way to live: by the dictates of their sin nature. That's why Christ came, to make it possible for us to be delivered from sin's penalty - hell. He took our hell for us at Calvary, so we wouldn't have to. Now He calls as many as will receive Him to do so before He returns, so heaven rather than hell, will be their eternal home. One day He will return and make this world new by removing sin, Satan, and Satan's people. We'll be delivered from sin's presence. But until then, those who have trusted in Christ as our Savior must learn how to walk in the freedom from the power of sin in our lives.
As we said, sin is our going our own way, rather than God's way. It's our wanting to be God instead of letting God be God in our lives. People say "I don't want anybody telling me what's right and what's wrong. I want to call my own shots; make my own rules, be my own boss. I want to put myself at the center of the universe. I want to live my own way, I don't want anyone telling me what to do with my life." That's called playing God. And it says, "I want to control." And we try to play God by trying to control people, our problems and our pain.
• We try to control what other people think of us. We play games, wear masks, pretend, we fake it, we want people to see certain sides of us and we hide other parts, and we deny our weaknesses and we deny our feelings: "I'm not angry; upset; worried; afraid."
• We try to control how other people behave around us. Parents try to control kids; and kids, parents. Wives try to control husbands; and husbands, wives. We try to control others at work, school, and church. We use guilt, fear, praise, silence, or anger.
• We try to control our problems. We say: "I can handle it, I'm O.K. Really, I'm fine. I don't need any help and I certainly don't need counseling." But the more we try to fix our problem, the worse it gets.
• We try to control our pain. We try to run from it, avoid it, deny it, or escape it. We deal with our pain by eating or not eating; by getting drunk; by smoking; by taking drugs; by getting in and out of relationships. We develop compulsive habits. We become angry and abusive or critical and judgmental. We get depressed.
There are many destructive ways we deal with people, problems, or pain. But God offers a better way. That way is found in Christ and be begin our discovery of the freedom we have in Christ by realizing the cause of our problems - our sin nature. That's the first step to recovery. You're not going to better on your own, face it. Don't deny it.
2. The CONSEQUENCE of our problem: DEATH
"For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." - Romans 6:23
Death is the absence of life; and when we do things our way rather than God's way, when we try to play God, there is an absence of life, leaving us to deal with . . .
• Fear: You see, when I try to control everything, I get afraid. We're afraid someone's going to find out that we're phony, that we really don't have it all together, that we're not perfect. We're afraid that someone might reject us, not like us, or not love us if they knew the "real" us. Our lives are filled with fear when we try to play God.
• Frustration: It's frustrating trying to control everything. Life's a lot like the old "whack a mole" game. The moment you knock one down other pop up. It's frustrating because every time you slam something down other pops up and you slam that one down . . . that's life. It's frustrating trying to be God, when you're not God. If you're frustrated with life, it's a symptom of a deeper problem that you need to come to grips with: you're not God.
• Failure: Trying to be God is one job you're guaranteed to fail at.
"He who covers his sins will not prosper, But whoever confesses and forsakes them will have mercy." - Proverbs 28:13
• Fatigue: Pretending you got it all together and trying to control everything, takes a lot of energy. "Be Real. Because Fake is Exhausting" by Rick Bezet
"For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me; My vitality was turned into the drought of summer. " - Psalms 32:4
Sin always leads to an absence of life. Not only is your life negatively affected, but so are the lives of those around you. Some will seek to engage you about your issue, but if you are in denial, they will simply be frustrated. Others will enable you: they will partner in your denial. This is usually your spouse or kids, who will only become fatigued by the effort.
The best thing others can do for you is encourage you to let the Lord empower you to change! Rather than continue to struggle with fear, frustration, failure, and fatigue, God wants us to find our freedom in Christ over our sin nature and its consequences.
3. The CURE for our problem: JESUS
"For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that you through His poverty might become rich." - 2 Corinthians 8:9
Providing a cure to the cause and consequences of our sinful nature so that our lives might be changed was the purpose of the cross. Adequate provision has been made for our absolute transformation! By the grace of God made available through the cross of Christ, I can be changed!
Grace is the power God gives to not only save me from sin's penalty and presence, but also from sin's power. It is the power to overcome the hurts overwhelming me, the habits overtaking me or the hang-ups overshadowing me. But to access God's grace to change my daily life, I need to humble myself by recognizing three important facts:
• I am powerless to change my past. It hurt, I still remember it, but all the resentment in the world isn't going to change it.
• I am powerless to control other people. I am only responsible for my actions, not theirs.
• I am powerless to cope with my behaviors. Good intentions and willpower aren't enough. I need a source of power beyond myself. I need the grace of God.
Application: You can find freedom in Christ over whatever hurt, habit, or hang-up fills your life with fear, frustration, failure and fatigue. The first step is humbling yourself and admitting your need.
For some that means accepting Christ as your Lord and Savior so you might be set free from the penalty and presence of sin, and then learn how to live each day free from sin's power.
For others it means moving beyond your faith in Christ concerning your freedom from sin's penalty and presence to walking in freedom from sin's power today.
Today needs to be a day to take your step toward freedom in Christ. "But now having been set free from sin, and having become slaves of God, you have your fruit to holiness, and the end, everlasting life. For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." - Romans 6:22-23
