Lesson 6 This is War Soldier, Time to Fight!
Question 1 and 2
Hello friend, welcome back!
Review
At this point in the course, you know that we are at war! We have mighty enemies who seek to destroy us. They want to drag us into sin, causing us to live under guilt, condemnation, and shame and weaken us so that we look and live much like the world. But God has not left us without resources; He equips us for battle and calls us to learn how to fight!
Learn How to Fight
Many Christians do not even know they are supposed to fight, but that is what this Christian life is! It is fighting! It is war! Pastor John Piper says, “There should be a violent, mean streak to every Christian as we go to battle against our sinful desires.”
Oh, may we never be mean or violent to any other human, for our war is not with flesh and blood (Ephesians 6:12), but instead, our violence should be directed at our wrong desires because they war against our souls.
“Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul.”
1 Peter 2:11
Dear brother or sister, make war! Learn to fight in the Lord’s army by crucifying your evil desires and in killing your sins! Put on the full armor of God and stand up and fight for Christ’s sake. Don’t ever run naked into battle again, there to be shot through with enemy arrows and lie bleeding on the battlefield. That is not your calling! No, wear your armor, learn how to fight like a soldier, and start beating your enemy.
That’s the life of a Christian. It is using spiritual power to fight spiritual battles and overcome spiritual enemies. Let this victory characterize you by fighting your lusts to the death.
“I am writing to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one.”
1 John 2:13
Question 1. Are you aware that you are at war, and that you are responsible to learn how to fight so as to win? What are your thoughts?
Log in / create an account to enroll or continue where you left off.
The third foundational principle of freedom is “Warring against the flesh,” and today, I want to look with you at how to win this battle against substance abuse.
LETTING GO OF WORLDLY THINKING
Did you know that you are not only at war with substance abuse but with worldly thinking, lies of Satan, and the wisdom of the world? Paul writes In Colossians 2:8, “See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the elemental spiritual forces of this world rather than on Christ.” Do you see how believing “hollow and deceptive philosophy” can “take us captive”?
The “addiction/recovery” belief system is full of error, always leading to captivity. Here are just a few of the errors you might be believing:
- “Once an addict, always an addict.” Wrong! “If the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed” (John 8:36). Learn to stop referring to yourself as an “addict” (who is hopeless to get free) and instead refer to yourself as a “sinner” who has been rescued at the cross and set free.
- I am “in recovery.” No, the truth is that you have died and risen with Christ. “Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. 3 For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God” (Colossians 3:1-3). If you have been used to telling people that you are “in recovery,” you can learn instead to say your old self died with Jesus and you are now “resurrected” with Him.
- I can be “triggered” to get drunk (or smoke, do drugs, or any other sin). This statement is a lie from Satan! The Bible says, “No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear” (1 Corinthians 10:13). To be “triggered” is to HAVE to sin and then blame other things, circumstances, or people for it (I was “triggered” after all), but you and I never HAVE to sin. If you have been used to using the word “triggered,” change it to “tempted.” Just because we are tempted does not mean we must sin.
Question 2. What worldly terms can you think of that lead to ongoing slavery rather than freedom? Please share:
Log in / create an account to enroll or continue where you left off.
Sharon shared these worldly solutions:
“Must work the steps repeatedly the rest of your life to not relapse.” False. The Bible says, “To him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy” (Jude 1:24). The way God keeps us from stumbling is to anchor us to the cross of Christ and fill our hearts with His love there, not strand us on working some program of man the rest of our lives. “You’re only as sick as your secrets. Call your sponsor every day.” This statement is half true. “Whoever conceals their sins does not prosper…” (Proverbs 28:13). However, the solution is not to “call your sponsor every day” but instead “fix your eyes on Jesus, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross” (Hebrews 12:2), confessing your sins to Him and rejoicing in the forgiveness He purchased for you. We confess that our sin died on the cross, that our guilt was assumed by Jesus and removed from us, that we are free from sin’s penalty and sin’s power over us. As you look long at the cross, you see that through His suffering and death, you are healed from sin: “He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds, you have been healed” (1 Peter 2:24). “Alcoholism is a lifelong disease. The whole family is sick too.” Satan crafted this lie to keep us trapped and enslaved. Speaking to those who were previously in bondage to drunkenness (among other sins), Paul wrote: “And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God” (1 Corinthians 6:11).
Karen says:
1. "Quitting smoking is one of the hardest addictions to stop." The truth is, "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me" (Philippians 4:13). 2. "If I don’t smoke, I immediately am obsessed with having another cigarette." This does not have to be. I can learn to "fix my eyes on Jesus, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross" (Hebrews 12:2). 3. "Using nicorette patches or gum can help you quit smoking." "Anyone who has died has been set free from sin" (Romans 6:7). 4. "You can take a drug to help calm you while you quit." Here is how to quit: "Walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the lusts of your flesh" (Galatians 5:16). 5. "You can use e-cigarettes to avoid smoking regular cigarettes. They are smokeless." What would you say to this one?
We must let go of worldly thinking and replace it with the truth of the gospel before we can effectively war against the flesh.