This is the beginning of an all new series!
We'll start in John 19:28-30:
Jesus knew that his mission was now finished, and to fulfill Scripture he said, “I am thirsty.” A jar of sour wine was sitting there, so they soaked a sponge in it, put it on a hyssop branch, and held it up to his lips. When Jesus had tasted it, he said, “It is finished!” Then he bowed his head and released his spirit.
Christianity is all about Jesus. It all comes back to Jesus. We've talked about a lot of issues here at Revolution Church, but what it all comes down to is Jesus. It is finished, complete and whole in Him; nothing more is needed.
We all need reminding now and again how big a deal it is that Jesus died for us; what we have in Christ. He changed history, He forever changed us and who we could be through the cross!
There are many different benefits of the cross we can talk about, but this week we are focusing on mental freedom.
Isaiah 53:1-6 talks about Jesus. Check it out:
Who has believed our message?
To whom has the Lord revealed his powerful arm?
My servant grew up in the Lord’s presence like a tender green shoot,
like a root in dry ground.
There was nothing beautiful or majestic about his appearance,
nothing to attract us to him.
He was despised and rejected—
a man of sorrows, acquainted with deepest grief.
We turned our backs on him and looked the other way.
He was despised, and we did not care.
We'll start in John 19:28-30:
Jesus knew that his mission was now finished, and to fulfill Scripture he said, “I am thirsty.” A jar of sour wine was sitting there, so they soaked a sponge in it, put it on a hyssop branch, and held it up to his lips. When Jesus had tasted it, he said, “It is finished!” Then he bowed his head and released his spirit.
Christianity is all about Jesus. It all comes back to Jesus. We've talked about a lot of issues here at Revolution Church, but what it all comes down to is Jesus. It is finished, complete and whole in Him; nothing more is needed.
We all need reminding now and again how big a deal it is that Jesus died for us; what we have in Christ. He changed history, He forever changed us and who we could be through the cross!
There are many different benefits of the cross we can talk about, but this week we are focusing on mental freedom.
Isaiah 53:1-6 talks about Jesus. Check it out:
Who has believed our message?
To whom has the Lord revealed his powerful arm?
My servant grew up in the Lord’s presence like a tender green shoot,
like a root in dry ground.
There was nothing beautiful or majestic about his appearance,
nothing to attract us to him.
He was despised and rejected—
a man of sorrows, acquainted with deepest grief.
We turned our backs on him and looked the other way.
He was despised, and we did not care.
Yet it was our weaknesses he carried;
it was our sorrows that weighed him down.
And we thought his troubles were a punishment from God,
a punishment for his own sins!
But he was pierced for our rebellion,
crushed for our sins.
He was beaten so we could be whole.
He was whipped so we could be healed.
All of us, like sheep, have strayed away.
We have left God’s paths to follow our own.
Yet the Lord laid on him
the sins of us all.
It was our sorrows that weighed Him down. Our worries, stress, grief, guilt, embarrassment, anxiety.
Back in the Garden of Eden there was no stress, no guilt, no shame. Then once sin was introduced into the world, embarrassment came. Stress, guilt, shame; sorrows. It's all the result of sin; either sin we've just committed or the sin nature that is a part of all of us. When Adam and Eve sinned, sin became a part of them. Sort of like spiritual DNA, it was passed down to all of humanity. Many of the negative things we face are the result of this.
Jesus came to take upon Himself all the results of our sin.
On New Year's Day, 1863, Abraham Lincoln declared that all slaves in the United States were free. Do you think the slaves became free instantly? No. It took a long time; years, before they became technically free, even longer before they were treated like humans. This little history lesson applies to what we're talking about.
There's a parallel between that struggle for freedom and our own as Christians. Though we've been declared free, we are still walking in bondage.
Even though our mental freedom has been declared, the task masters of sin are still trying to control us. We have to refuse to remain in slavery to those things!
So, how do we deal with sin?
1. Recognize and confess our sin.
2. Believe that we are free through Christ.
3. Don't let the thoughts of sin's oppression dominate your mind.
It can be easy to let your mind be dominated by anger, lust, depression, etc. It is a slippery slope, and at the bottom is death.
Instead of letting the thoughts of sin dominate your mind, renew your mind with God's thoughts. Getting God's thoughts changes who's in charge and what's dominating your mind.
Romans 8:12-16 says: Therefore, dear brothers and sisters, you have no obligation to do what your sinful nature urges you to do. For if you live by its dictates, you will die. But if through the power of the Spirit you put to death the deeds of your sinful nature, you will live. For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God.
Back in the Garden of Eden there was no stress, no guilt, no shame. Then once sin was introduced into the world, embarrassment came. Stress, guilt, shame; sorrows. It's all the result of sin; either sin we've just committed or the sin nature that is a part of all of us. When Adam and Eve sinned, sin became a part of them. Sort of like spiritual DNA, it was passed down to all of humanity. Many of the negative things we face are the result of this.
Jesus came to take upon Himself all the results of our sin.
On New Year's Day, 1863, Abraham Lincoln declared that all slaves in the United States were free. Do you think the slaves became free instantly? No. It took a long time; years, before they became technically free, even longer before they were treated like humans. This little history lesson applies to what we're talking about.
There's a parallel between that struggle for freedom and our own as Christians. Though we've been declared free, we are still walking in bondage.
Even though our mental freedom has been declared, the task masters of sin are still trying to control us. We have to refuse to remain in slavery to those things!
So, how do we deal with sin?
1. Recognize and confess our sin.
2. Believe that we are free through Christ.
3. Don't let the thoughts of sin's oppression dominate your mind.
It can be easy to let your mind be dominated by anger, lust, depression, etc. It is a slippery slope, and at the bottom is death.
Instead of letting the thoughts of sin dominate your mind, renew your mind with God's thoughts. Getting God's thoughts changes who's in charge and what's dominating your mind.
Romans 8:12-16 says: Therefore, dear brothers and sisters, you have no obligation to do what your sinful nature urges you to do. For if you live by its dictates, you will die. But if through the power of the Spirit you put to death the deeds of your sinful nature, you will live. For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God.
So you have not received a spirit that makes you fearful slaves. Instead, you received God’s Spirit when he adopted you as his own children. Now we call him, “Abba, Father. For his Spirit joins with our spirit to affirm that we are God’s children.
We had no hope. We were slaves; doomed. Until God came and offered us freedom! Our minds, our hearts are free!
How much of your time is spent worrying, angry, stressed, depressed? If that no longer has power over you, it changes your life! Through Christ, through the Cross, we have mental freedom!
How much of your time is spent worrying, angry, stressed, depressed? If that no longer has power over you, it changes your life! Through Christ, through the Cross, we have mental freedom!
