If It
Causes You to Sin – Get Rid of It!
Mark 9:43-47
And if thy hand offend thee, cut it off: it
is better for thee to enter into life maimed, than having two hands to go into
hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched: Where their worm dieth not,
and the fire is not quenched.
And if thy foot offend thee, cut it off: it
is better for thee to enter halt into life, than having two feet to be cast
into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched: Where their worm dieth
not, and the fire is not quenched. And if thine eye offend thee, pluck it out:
it is better for thee to enter into the kingdom of God with one eye, than
having two eyes to be cast into hell fire.
My
Experience, Strength & Hope
Mark 9 is a
section of scripture that hits us where it counts – among others. The Lord was
not actually telling people to cut off their limbs! Of course not. But what He
was illustrating is this: If there is something in our lives that causes us to
sin, we need to get rid of it. We are looking at how to use the word to
overcome addictions, like a tool. I have struggled with food addiction and
busyness, among other things for several years and I believe I am healed. I am
in a stage of ‘fine tuning’ you might say. Nowadays, I stand in faith on His
word to maintain my healing.
As an
addict, whatever it is we have been addicted to is an idol. Idolatry is sin. In
this passage, Jesus is telling us to throw the stuff out if it is causing us to
sin. If it is alcohol, the booze has got to go. If it is gambling, we must stop
going to the casino. Likewise, anything that we are clinging to that we are
cherishing more than our Savior must be disposed of – and the sooner the
better.
Right now,
I will speak to food addiction, however, you can apply it to anything that has
bound you. I believe I have a very large audience of people who are addicted to
food and sugar. How does a person get rid of food or stop eating? This
addiction is probably the most common and widely accepted form of idolatry
within the church around the world today. And its very close neighbor is
busyness. Obviously, we can’t stop eating. But what we eat must be strictly
monitored. We must exercise self-control.
If we went
to a person who really likes ice cream for example, and told them to stop
eating it, they would probably laugh us out of the room. Why? Because it has
become very dear to them. Ask another to stop drinking coffee because it is
full of addictive caffeine, and again you might hear, “No way!” But Jesus is
calling us to turn loose of anything that takes His place in our hearts. For me
it was food/sugar, staying overly busy and my daughters, among several other
things.
I have had
to work hard at letting go of them and I can assure you it has not been easy on
my flesh. All the sacrifices Jesus made for us were not easy. Jesus knows hard.
He understands. After all, He was praying and resisting sin so intensely in the
garden before He went to the cross that He sweat great drops of blood. Jesus
understands hard my friend.
In the case
of the rich young ruler, Jesus was not asking the man to take a vow of poverty.
He was asking him to let go of what he was clinging to above God. He put His
finger on the one thing that had a hold of his heart – money. If he had done
what the Lord said, he could have reaped a tremendous harvest and been able to
plant even more seed into kingdom work.
But he was
not willing. He walked away sad because the thought of parting with his money
was too much for him. Sadly, it is this way for many Christians today. They
will not part with the things they hold dear even though they call Jesus
“Lord.”
Jesus is
asking us all in the church to walk away from the desires of the flesh and take
up our cross and follow Him. But many will not choose to do that. They will
miss the blessings and rewards that were in store for them. They will miss out
on being used for great kingdom work. Jesus wants us to love Him willingly and
make the choice to walk with Him of our own volition. After all, two cannot
walk together unless they both agree to, right?
It is that way in any relationship – including
our relationship with the Lord. The Father has asked me to follow a certain
food plan. It is a well-balanced diet. It includes healthy choices for every
day of my life. It is not a fad diet. It is a plan for life. I have had to let
go of sweets and excessive carbohydrates. I am quite limited on what I can eat
pertaining to fruit and carbs, but that is what is keeping my weight under
control along with a regular exercise program.
At the time
of this writing, I paid a visit to the Dr. for my annual physical. I take no
medications by mouth and live a healthy lifestyle. The Dr. was surprised to see
that my bloodwork looked “squeaky clean.” She even asked if I exercise. A doctor
can tell by the bad cholesterol numbers that a person does a regular workout
because that is one of the only ways those numbers can be maintained at proper
levels.
I have to
give this good report as a praise to God. Without Him, I would never have made
it. Because of Him, even though I have to deny myself a lot of eating and many
foods, I consider myself blessed to be able to eat a lot of good healthy stuff.
I am blessed to be able to do a hearty workout most days of the week. I am
blessed to be able to run with my puppy and keep up with a hectic schedule at
age 61 (when this was written). I always say I am going on 20, LOL! He renews
our youth like the eagle! Hallelujah!
The morning
I wrote this, it was raining so hard that I literally had to just about drag
our puppy around the lake so he could go to the bathroom. He needed to go. It
would be good for him. But he didn’t want to. After trying several times to
turn back toward home – his place of comfort, he finally eased up and stopped
resisting me so much. When we got to that point in our walk, I could hear the
Lord speaking to my spirit, saying, “That’s how you have been with Me much of the
time. You have drug your feet but now you are finally starting to walk with Me
the way I am asking you to.” That really hit me where it counts.
I confess
that I have struggled and been rebellious and I am not pleased to announce
that. I have had to cut many things out. As I have come to learn that rebellion
is of the devil, I have decided more and more to follow Jesus and His wonderful
plan for my life. I also realized how selfish and self-centered I had been. I
was thinking more of myself and the desires of my flesh than the desires of the
Lord’s heart or how He wants to use me to bless others. If I am swallowed up in
thinking of myself, I will not be able to be used to help you, and that would
be very SADD-U-CEE! I have decided to just let it go. I tell myself that it is
only food. And food is only supposed to be fuel to keep our ‘engine’ running.
It was never intended to be a comforter. There is only one Comforter – Holy
Spirit.
For the
Christian, we have to look at the whole counsel of God on a daily basis in
order to keep our flesh in check and our spirits alive and obedient unto the
Lord. We may have to put scriptures up all over the house – even the ones we
don’t prefer to look at – the really meaty ones that speak to addiction, flesh
and rebellion.
It is God’s
Spirit and His word that gets the job done. I confess it out loud over my life
and agree with it daily. In so doing, I know it will come to pass. That is how
we can all make the word work for us. Read it, speak it out loud, think about
it and hear it from the Lord personally in our prayer time with Him. If we will
commit to doing that, we cannot possibly fail. The choice is always ours. Which
god will we serve? Our stomachs (flesh) or the Lord – the One True God? My
friend, God’s Spirit and His word will bring results when we use it – like a
faithful tool. Let’s not leave our tools in the ‘tool shed’! Get out your Bible
and agree with it by faith.
Scriptures from This Message…
Mark 10:17-22 (NKJV)
Now as He was going out on the road, one came
running, knelt before Him, and asked Him, “Good Teacher, what shall I do that I
may inherit eternal life?” So Jesus said to him, “Why do you call Me
good? No one is good but One, that is, God. You know
the commandments: ‘Do not commit adultery,’ ‘Do not murder,’ ‘Do not steal,’
‘Do not bear false witness,’ ‘Do not defraud,’ ‘Honor your father and your
mother.’” And he answered and said to Him, “Teacher, all these things I have
kept from my youth.” Then Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to
him, “One thing you lack: Go your way, sell whatever you have and
give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, take up the
cross, and follow Me.” But he was sad at this word, and went away sorrowful, for he had
great possessions.
Matthew 6:24
No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love
the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot
serve God and mammon.
Hebrews 12:4
Ye have not yet resisted unto blood, striving against sin.
Luke 14:33
So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath,
he cannot be my disciple.
Ephesians
4:17-24
This I say therefore, and testify in the Lord,
that ye henceforth walk not as other Gentiles walk, in the vanity of their
mind, having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God
through the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart:
Who being past feeling have given themselves over unto
lasciviousness, to work all uncleanness with greediness. But ye have not so
learned Christ; If so be that ye have heard him, and have been taught by him,
as the truth is in Jesus: That ye put off concerning
the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the
deceitful lusts; and be renewed in the spirit of your mind; and that ye put on
the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.
2 Corinthians 5:9
Wherefore we labour, that, whether present or absent, we may be accepted
of him.
Hebrews 12:1
Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a
cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and
the sin which so easily
ensnares us, and let us run
with endurance the race that is set before us,
In reviewing what we have been touching, where we have been going and
what we have been looking at:
·
Will you take the time to
honestly asses what you have been doing, where you have been going and what you
have been looking at this week to determine where you may be off?
·
The first step to resolving a
problem is to recognize that we have one. Then, we need to find out what the
solution is (seek the Lord) and do what He says.
·
Being honest with yourself. What
are some things in your life right now that you know you need to get rid of? It
could be things in your heart, in your home, workplace or car; even in your
relationships.
·
Will you go to the Lord in
prayer and ask Him to cleanse you from any unrighteousness as you confess your
sin to Him? Wash it all in the blood of Jesus – that is the purest and only
form of true cleansing.
**If you would like to join our weekly call, please send an email to the following:
The3rdJohn2Program@yahoo.com
Be blessed!
Hanny
Hanny
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