Freedom Study - Week 6

Hey everyone, welcome back to our freedom study. You are well over halfway through this class and my prayer is that you are already experiencing a shift in your spirit, that you're feeling a newfound strength rising up within you as we fight for freedom and we fight for the John 10 10 life that Jesus promised us. Well for the past five weeks we've talked about how to break free from the sins we can't leave and the hurts that we've received. So this week I want to talk to you about one more thing that actually stems from both of those and it's this, we want to talk about how to get free from the lies that we believe. See we've talked about breaking free from the sins that we can't leave and forgiving the hurts that we received but what about when we're held hostage many times even unknowingly because of the lies that we believe. Now by this point in the class I feel like we can all get real and agree that we've got some issues right? I mean all of us, it's part of being human but here's the deal with our issues that when we don't address them these issues they can lead to insecurities which over time become part of our identity. Labels placed on us even as a child can become lids on our growth decades later and you know this that words from a bully on the elementary school playground can become the basis for a belief system you still cling to as an adult or words, critical words spoken by a teacher or a trusted parent. Words like I'm not good enough, I'm not smart enough, I'm not pretty enough, I'm not athletic enough, nobody likes me, nobody wants me. These thoughts actually shape our lives in ways that we can't even imagine. Why? Because our lives they move in the direction of our strongest thoughts. I'm going to say that again because I think it's worth repeating. Our lives move in the direction of our strongest thoughts and here's the deal. We have a real enemy whose scripture tells us is a liar and the father of lies and he tries to get us to believe lies and if our lives move in the direction of our strongest thoughts that means that if we believe a lie we will eventually find ourselves living in

a lie or actually living a lie and I think some of the lies that I'm most tempted to believe are actually lies about myself and about God. In moments of weakness, pain or failure I don't know about you but I can be so hard on myself. I start marinating on thoughts like someone else could do this way better than me. I'm just not cut out for this. I'm always going to struggle in this area. If people knew how unqualified I feel they would never want to hang out with me again. Nobody understands what this is like. No one understands what I'm going through. One of the worst is this that I'm all alone. Because these destructive thoughts are lies from the enemy meant to keep us from stepping into all that God has for us. You see one of the reasons our lives move in the direction of our strongest thoughts is because our thoughts shape our attitudes and our attitudes inform our actions and our actions impact every relationship that we have including our relationship with God. So your inner monologue can lead to your own imprisonment. So today I want us to think about what we think about. And this isn't just a good idea, it's a God idea. Because we're told to do this all throughout scripture. This is what it says in 2 Corinthians chapter 10 verses 3 through 5. It says for though we live in the body we do not wage war in an unspiritual way. Since the weapons of our warfare are not worldly but are powerful through God for the demolition of strongholds. We demolish arguments and every high minded thing that is raised up against the knowledge of God. Taking every thought captive to obey Christ. You see the reason we must address the lies we believe is because they can become strongholds in our minds. That word stronghold is from the Greek word akamoro.

And it means a prisoner locked by deception. When we're deceived by a lie and that lie becomes a label, we're in a dangerous spot because the story that we tell ourselves begins to be the life that we live. If you tell yourself you're terrible at relationships, guess what? You're probably not going to be very good at relationships. If you tell yourself that you're not good enough, then you'll never be brave enough to step out and face the truth. faith to do what God has prepared for you to do. It's impossible to walk in freedom when you're chained to lies. Now, when it comes to our thoughts, we obviously can't control everything that pops into our heads. I wish we could, but we can't. But while we can't erase a thought, we can replace a thought. Remember that 2 Corinthians verse that said that we can demolish strongholds? Like this is like active warfare, right? Strongholds are those lies that we believe because we've been given spiritual weapons. And one of those weapons is God's word. So how do we fight the lies that we believe? We fight it with the truth from God's word. Listen to what Paul says in Romans 12 chapter two. He says that do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. See, Paul is saying that we have the power to transform our thinking, to renew our minds. You do not have to be a victim of your own thought life.

We don't have to be held captive by our thoughts. In fact, we're called to take our thoughts captive. That's what we just read in 2 Corinthians. We can take every thought captive and then make it obedient to Christ. But maybe you're wondering, what does this practically look like? And I'm so glad that you asked, right? This is something that Jesus actually showed us how to do. See, right after Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist, this voice from heaven could be heard saying, this is my son whom I love and with him I am well pleased. I love that God the Father was affirming his son in that moment. But immediately after Jesus' baptism, he was led by the spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. And do you know how the devil attacked Jesus? Do you know how he tempted him? With lies. He tried to get Jesus to question the words that God had just spoken over him at his baptism. Three times, Satan tries to get Jesus to believe a lie by saying, hey, if you're God's son, do you see how he was calling out Jesus' identity? He was calling his identity into question. But Jesus didn't buy the lie because Jesus didn't dwell on the lie. He couldn't stop the lie from coming his way, but he could choose to replace the lie with the truth.

Jesus didn't argue with Satan, he didn't debate Satan, or even try to prove him wrong. Instead, he simply responded to each of Satan's lies with scriptures from the book of Deuteronomy. And when faced with the truth of God's word, the devil eventually had to leave. And that same strategy still works today. That's why I wanna give you four truths that I believe you can use to fight almost any lie the enemy will try to plant in your mind. If you can get these four truths from your head to your heart, I believe that you will be able to demolish every destructive thought that tries to invade your brain and derail your life. Are you ready? The first truth is this, you are a deeply loved child of God. You know, this is a theme all throughout scripture, but one of my favorite stories where this is so loud and clear is in the New Testament, and it's found in Mark chapter five. And in most versions of the Bible, this whole section of scripture would be entitled the woman with the issue of blood. See, she had been hemorrhaging for 12 years and under the law, this forced her to live in isolation. And this meant that she would have either never been married or her husband would have every right to leave her. She could have no children, no family dinners.

She couldn't even go to the synagogue to celebrate religious holidays. Let that sink in. This issue became her identity. It impacted every area of her life. Her identity would have been unclean and uninvited. She would have been labeled by others as an outsider, and she probably started labeling herself as an outcast. Have you ever had an issue or a problem like that? An issue that touches every area of your life? One that shapes maybe how you see yourself? And this issue could be a result of some bad decisions that you've made, or an issue like depression or abuse or a diagnosis that you feel like has limited you. Or maybe it's a rejection that someone walked away that you thought that time would heal, but just like this woman with her issue found that time is not a healer. There's only one that can heal. But see, what happens over time, if the healer isn't invited in, this issue becomes a label, right? This issue becomes a label. I am depressed. I am an addict. I've been rejected. I've been abused. Divorce has become my identity. And what happens is, is that we carry this around

and it becomes who we are, and that is not God's plan for you. And for this woman that was struggling with her issue. issue, she had heard that even though time doesn't heal, there is someone that does, and his name is Jesus. And she heard about Jesus, she thought, man, if I could just get to Jesus, if I could just touch the hem of his garment, then surely that I am going to be healed. And so she pressed to the crowd, and she got so close, and she finally touched the hem of his garment, and the Scripture says in verse 29, it says that immediately, immediately the bleeding stopped, and she could feel in her body that she had been healed from her terrible condition. And that could have been a really great ending for this miracle story, but for Jesus, it was not enough that this woman would experience his power. He wanted her to experience his presence. He wanted so much more than just physical healing. God is more than just a cosmic healer passing out miracles and making dreams come true. He's a good father who invites his people into a deep relationship. And so Jesus didn't just move on, he kept on looking around to see who had touched him. And he even, he asked his disciples, who touched me? And they're like, are you crazy? Everybody's touching you. But he persisted until finally, finally the woman came forward, fell at his feet in fear and trembling, and she told him that she was the one that touched him. And see, she had every reason to be afraid, but the moment that Jesus looked in her eyes, all those fears disappeared. All the fears disappeared when he said this. Look at verse 34, he said to her, daughter, daughter your faith has made you whole. And I just have to stop right there, because that one word, daughter, says so much. It says that daughter, you are not your issues, you are no longer an outsider or an outcast, and even though there are crowds pressing in, you are worth stopping for. And as my daughter, you have access to everything I have. You have access to my healing, my power, my love, my full, and you have full access to me. Daughter is this identity word. It's not about what you do, it's about who you are. And there's so much definition and destiny wrapped up

in that one word. He knew her name, but he could have called her by her name, and yet he chose to call her daughter. And I believe with all my heart that what Jesus was saying to her is what Jesus wants to speak to you today. Daughter, son, I see beyond your issues and your labels. You are valuable, you are priceless, and you are worth stopping for. So before anybody ever gave you a name or a label, I called you mine. You are my child, and as my child, you have full access to the riches of my kingdom. And my deepest desire is to give you peace and freedom. John chapter 1 verse 12 says, but to all who believe in him and accepted him, he gave them the right to become the children of God. You are a deeply loved child of God with an inheritance of purpose, peace, and supernatural strength. So you can take off the name tags. Don't settle for any lesser or limiting labels. Okay, so I'm going to move on. The second truth is this, that you are chosen. You are not here by accident. Sure, some of you in this room are here because of an unplanned pregnancy, probably most of us. But make no mistake, you were created by a holy God who wasn't surprised at all when you stepped onto the pages of history. Psalm 139 tells us that no matter what the circumstances were that surrounded your conception, that God was there. In John 15, it says that you did not choose me, but I chose you. I appointed you that you should go out and produce fruit and that your fruit should remain so that whatever you ask of the Father in my name, he will give you. What is God saying? He's saying, I choose you and I've got your back. God chose you before you were born, before you took your first breath, before that person rejected you or that person left you. God chose you and he chose you to do good things in this world for his name's sake. You are chosen. So the next truth I want you to write down and memorize is this, your best days are out ahead of you. I want you to believe this because I believe one of the most dangerous lies that the enemy tries to deceive us with is that our best days are behind us, that there's no hope for our future, that we've messed up too much or made too many mistakes. And that is a lie that is meant to keep you stuck in your past, paralyzed in your present. You may not have done it perfectly. Spoiler alert, nobody has. And I'm here to remind you that you are a beautiful work in progress. Ephesians chapter two says that you are God's masterpiece. He has created you anew in Christ Jesus so that you can do the things that he planned for you long ago. You are a masterpiece and you have a job to do, a job that God prepared.

for you before you ever fell short. So you can't quit where you are because you bought into the lie that you blew it. You've got to keep going because God's not done working in you and through you. You know, I was thinking about my mom and my mom had a lot of painful experiences early in life. By the age of 30, after losing two full-term babies, she found herself with four children, divorced, hurt, broken, and there was a lot of pain that led to a lot of bitterness over the next several years. And this bitterness was not only towards people, but it was also bitter towards God. And I remember at the age of 77, she sat in a room much like this and she found freedom and forgiveness from all the bitterness that had held her captive for years. And I could see a marked difference. You know, a couple months ago, my mom passed away and at her celebration of life, I can't tell you how many people, how many people came up to me and told me that she had helped them find freedom. She had helped them to be set free from bitterness and unforgiveness. And my mom was like not a person on the platform. She didn't preach or even lead big Bible studies, but she was a friend who had a testimony and a story. And I just started thinking, well, God, you're so good

because you redeem the time. And I really believe that it's never too late to be who you could have been. It's never too late to be who you could have been. Ephesians 3.20 says, now to him who is able to do above and beyond all that we ask or think according to the power that works in us. See, this means that God is working in ways that we can't even imagine. So when the enemy whispers in your heart, it will never be better than this or no good can ever come of this. You need to take that thought captive and make it bow down in the presence of truth because God says, oh, you can't even imagine what I've got planned for you. No eye has seen it, no ear has heard about it, what I've got up my sleeve for you if you will just keep your eyes on me and keep moving forward in faith. See, you silence the enemy by reminding him of Romans 8.28, that it doesn't have to feel good to work for my good, that our God is so great, he can take the hard parts of our story and redeem them and repurpose them so we can walk in a brighter future. See, before we move on, turn to the person sitting beside you at your table and tell them, your best days are ahead of you. Okay, the last truth I wanna give you

might be the most important truth of all and it's this one, you are never alone. Today you may feel lonely, but your feelings are not the facts. You are never alone. I can remember when Todd and I were walking through a season of suffering with our son Jefferson and some of the health issues that he was dealing with at the time. And it was a time when it felt like God had forgotten us. Our prayers weren't being answered how we wanted them to be answered or when we wanted them to be answered and the pain that we were walking through made it really hard to trace God's hand in our story. But this is what I learned during that season. If you think that God has forgotten you, then you've forgotten who God is. Sometimes we just have to remind ourselves who God is and remember the good things that he's done. See, I actually have that written down on my bathroom mirror. If you think that God has forgotten you, then you have forgotten who God is. I don't know what your situation looks like today, but I can promise you this, you've never been left alone, not even for a moment. God tells us in Hebrews 13 five that I will never leave you or forsake you. Isaiah 43 two says I will be with you when you pass through the waters

and when you pass through the rivers. They will not overwhelm you. You will not be scorched when you walk through the fire and the flame will not burn you. You see, scripture doesn't say that because God is with us that we'll never have to endure the fire or walk through deep waters. It says that when we pass through the fire and when we're in deep waters, in other words, it's not if, it's when. It's like God's trying to warn us, hey, you're gonna endure some struggles and some suffering, but it's gonna be all right because I'm gonna be with you every step of the way. But it's in these moments that the enemy loves to whisper lies about God into our spirits to convince us that God has left the scene. But evidence of a problem does not mean the absence of our God. So I've given you four truths to stand on and fight with, but in your workbook, you're gonna find even more, and all of them are supported by scripture. So I want you to dig into these verses this week and begin replacing the lies that you believe. with the new truth that you've received. Jesus actually prayed this over us. He said, sanctify them by the truth. Your word is truth. To be sanctified is to be set apart. God wants you to be set apart from the anxiety

and depression and insecurities that plague our culture today. He wants you to be set apart from any of the labels that somebody else has placed on you or maybe you've placed on yourself. And the way to do that is through the truth of God's word. So that's my prayer for you, that as you continue on this journey, that you will be sanctified, set apart by truth. And as you go throughout this week, I want you to remember that the truest thing about you is not what your mama said or your daddy said or your spouse or your ex-wife or that teacher back in middle school. It's not what they said about you. It certainly isn't what the enemy says about you. The truest thing about you is what God says about you. Let me say that again. The truest thing about you is what God says about you. And God says that you are a deeply loved child of God. You are chosen and your best days are ahead of you. And most importantly, you are never alone. Today, your group time is going to be so powerful. So make sure that you lean in and make the most of it. Can't wait to see you next week.