A pastor decided to use a visual illustration to make a point in his message. He placed four earthworms into four separate jars. The first worm was put into a jar of alcohol. The second worm was put into a jar of cigarette smoke. The third worm was put into a jar of chocolate syrup. The fourth worm was put into a jar of good clean soil. At the conclusion of his message, the pastor reported the following results. The first worm in alcohol – dead. The second worm in cigarette smoke – dead. The third worm in chocolate syrup – dead. The fourth worm in good clean soil – alive. So the pastor asked the congregation “What can you learn from this demonstration?” A person in the back quickly raised their hand and said “As long as you drink, smoke and eat chocolate, you won’t have worms!” That was not the answer the pastor was expecting.
God created worms to live in a healthy environment of good clean soil and God created people to live in a healthy environment of freedom. Freedom to live a happy life of following God’s purpose. However, all too often people are making wrong choices in their lives, choosing environments and actions that are harmful and hurtful both to themselves and to their families. Many people in America today are choosing to be in bondage rather than to be free. They are choosing addictions like drinking, smoking, drugs, overeating, undereating, sexual addictions, pornography, excessive television, overspending, gambling, workaholism, internet addiction, sports addiction, anger, bad language and addictions to hurtful people, choosing bondage over freedom.
Since everybody seems to be addicted to or in bondage to something, it doesn’t seem so bad. The trouble is, addictions will ultimately kill you. An addiction is any habitual, systematic pattern of sin. Addictions put you under the influence of evil and God wants you to be free, truly free. Those who are in bondage to various addictions or habits need a supernatural miracle to be set free. NLT John 8:36 So if the Son sets you free, you will indeed be free. Jesus wants you to choose the door that leads to freedom and that door is Jesus. Only Jesus can truly set you free. What is ironic is that so many people today define freedom as the right to choose to be in bondage. True freedom comes only through Jesus.
If some of you think that you are truly free, that you’re not addicted to anything, that you have no habits that keep you in bondage, think again. The only person who was completely free from evil influences was Jesus. All of us have many bondages, many habits that keep us in prison, that keep us from fully realizing the freedom that God has for us. I want to ask three questions about freedom and find answers from God’s Word that will help us to live in the freedom that God has for us.
To hear more about this topic, listen to my April 24, 2005 message entitled Experience Supernatural Freedom
Consider:
The way we define ‘human’ determines our view of self,
others, relationships, institutions, life, and future.
Important? Only the Creator who made us in His own image
is qualified to define us accurately. Choose wisely…
there are results.
Human is earth’s Choicemaker. Psalm 25:12 He is by nature
and nature’s God a creature of Choice – and of Criteria.
Psalm 119:30,173 His unique and definitive characteristic
is, and of Right ought to be, the natural foundation of his
environments, institutions, and respectful relations to his
fellow-man. Thus, he is oriented to a Freedom whose roots
are in the Order of the universe.
Complete message at Homesite. jfb