​FREEDOM PRINCIPLE 5

THE PAINFUL CONSEQUENCES OF THE BEHAVIOR



Sometimes this is not immediately obvious to the one in bondage, but it is definitely obvious to others (either directly or indirectly).  As the saying goes, “No man is an island”.  The quotation from Romans 14:7 fits here also:  “For none of us lives to himself, and no one dies to himself”.



This factor was important for Jack, who severely harmed his family through an addiction to pornography.  Through God's power and grace, he has been restored and they allowed his wife to put their story (and God's remedy) in print.  He confesses, “My wife has been writing this book for over two years now... She has suffered more than I'll ever understand.  I pray that God will show me the suffering and pain she and the children have endured.  It's essential to have a strong idea of what your family has gone through in order for the addict to take responsibility, start giving back, and start healing.  My wife and children have shed many, many tears over this addiction…  Just as Nehemiah and the children of Israel needed to see the damage to Jerusalem before they could start to rebuild the wall, when I began to see how hurtful I'd been to everyone, the healing began to take place.  The Lord gave me courage to go through this difficult process…” 7

After being sensitized to this we are to resolve to “not put a stumbling block or a cause to fall in our brother's way” (Romans 14:13).  When we avail ourselves of freedom in Christ, we become available for His divine purposes in the lives of others:  “In a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver, but also of wood and clay, some for honor and some for dishonor.  Therefore if anyone cleanses himself from the latter, he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified and useful for the Master, prepared for every good work” (2 Timothy 2:20-21).  This equips us to love our neighbor as we love ourselves.

Imagine God's will as a beautiful, framed picture.  When you get a framed picture and want to put it on the wall of your house, you choose the right spot and put a nail there to hang it on. Now consider God's promises as “NAILS” to HANG YOUR FAITH upon.  “The words of the wise are like goads, and the words of scholars are like well-driven nails, given by one Shepherd” (Ecclesiastes 12:11).




 

FREEDOM PRINCIPLE 6
CLAIMING GOD'S PROMISES



The apostle Peter affirmed the importance of God's promises:  “His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue, by which have been given to us exceedingly great and PRECIOUS PROMISES, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust” (2 Peter 1:3-4).

How about doing a Bible study and recording the promises of God that are most relevant to your situation?  Here's a head start:  Philippians 4:13, 19; 1 Corinthians 10:13; John 8:32.