Spiritual Growth Lessons
from Christian Ambassadors
Lesson 26
Leave Your
Life Of Sin (Bondage)
by Sharon K. Griffee
Proverbs
14:12-14 (Amplified Bible) - There is a way which seems right
to a man and appears straight before him, but at the end of it is the way of
death. Even in laughter the heart is sorrowful, and the end of mirth is
heaviness and grief. The backslider in heart [from God and from fearing God]
shall be filled with [the fruit of] his own ways, and a good man shall be
satisfied with [the fruit of] his ways [with the holy thoughts and actions
which his heart prompts and in which he delights].
If a man chooses the way that seems right to him,
without any regard to the will of God, he is walking on a land mine, a
concealed pathway of destruction. This is a frightening thought, that sin can
have such hold on us, blinding us from seeing God, who can save us. It’s as
though our spiritual eyes have been glued shut by the enemy, and we’re just
wondering about in stupidity trying to find our way. Unable to see God who can
bring clarity and purpose to our lives, we grope in the darkness desperately
searching for someone or something to cling to, to make us feel good about
ourselves.
The prophet Isaiah describes our dilemma this way, “All we like sheep have gone astray; we have
turned every one to his own way...” (Isaiah
53:6) Man’s own way is actually the broad way that Jesus speaks about in
the parable of the “narrow and wide gates” (Matthew 7:13-14). This broad way seems easy, with no restraints.
Whatever feels good, do it! Wickedness can be had in abundance, because it’s
appeal is to the carnal (fleshly) nature. The attitude is one of, “I don’t have to answer to nobody for
nothin.” Since it is Satan’s power that lies behind human rebellion against
God, these children of disobedience can only get by with that attitude for so
long. (See: Colossians 3:6) When
sin has run rampant, the broad way suddenly narrows down ending in death, or
eternal separation from God.
Thank God for Christ’s glorious gospel! Even though
man deserves God’s punishing wrath, God’s love and mercy led him to send Jesus
to save those who would turn to him. Jesus came to confront mankind with a
choice. No one has to live in bondage to sin, being led around by the nose,
following the lies of the devil who says, “You
are no good, you can’t change, you
won’t be forgiven; why even try?”
Praise God, there is a way out of sin’s bondage, the
narrow road that leads to life. This road can only be entered onto by faith in
Jesus Christ. If you want Jesus to be Lord
of your life, it is impossible to follow him from a position of bondage. This
issue has to be settled up front; you cannot stay on the broad road. Before you
can go anywhere with Jesus (follow his lead), you have to exit the broad road,
leaving your old life behind. Jesus pleads with us to make the right choice.
Matthew
7:13-14 (NKJV) - Enter by the narrow gate;
for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there
are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way
which leads to life, and there are few who find it.
I am thankful for those who find the narrow road and
are willing to talk about their conversion experience. A prison inmate recently
shared his testimony of how God opened his eyes to the truth, that the broad
road he was on was headed toward destruction. He said,
“I’m hard headed and in need of a hard lesson. They are the only ones that do me any good. The Lord had to get my attention and that took some doing. Looking back on it now I can only shake my head in wonder. Like, I wonder what I was thinking? You know? As everything slowly began to unravel, I started to justify my actions to myself, convinced “I” knew what was best for me. It wasn’t until recently that my eyes were opened and I saw the road I was on, and way over yonder the road I was supposed to be on. It is a very humbling experience. One of your spiritual growth lessons played a big part in my awareness. But, like I said, I’m hard headed and it takes a wop with a big stick to get my attention. God has my attention now, and I am humbled. I am very sincere about this. I will follow His lead.”
“I will follow His lead!” These are action words,
spoken by one whose blind eyes were opened to the truth. These are words of
conviction spoken by one who has been saved by God’s grace from the bondage of
sin and from Satan’s lordship. Through repentance and acceptance of Jesus as
Lord, he is now free to enter the narrow road that “leads” to eternal life.
II Corinthians
3:16-18 (NIV) - But whenever anyone turns
to the Lord, the veil is taken away. Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the
Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we, who with unveiled faces all
reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with
ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who
is the Spirit.
These verses of scripture reveal an important truth
about repentance. Whenever anyone “turns” to the Lord - the veil is taken away!
How does one turn to the Lord? This inmate said he had gotten down on his knees
beside his bunk and asked God for forgiveness and begged him for direction. He
told God, “I will follow your lead.”
He is following the steps Jesus laid out in scripture and which are necessary
for anyone to build a good spiritual foundation. These steps are found in Luke 6:47.
1.
Whoever comes to me...
2.
Hears my sayings...
3. And does them...
All three steps are necessary. It is not enough to come
to Jesus. We must also listen to what Jesus has said. But coming and listening
are not enough. We must also take personal action. A person can come to Jesus,
hear what He has to say, but still not respond. Jesus puts us on the spot with
a piercing question:
Luke 6:46
(NIV) - “Why do you call me,
‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say?”
There is no way we can fool Jesus. Jesus is not
truly Lord of our life until we personally respond to his teachings.
Many people claim to be Christians, yet they are still living in bondage to
sin, held prisoner on the broad road that leads to destruction. Their fear
keeps them from coming to Jesus, from making a movement from the broad road to
the narrow road. If the truth is to be known, the basis of much of their fear
is laziness. Why? It takes time and energy to sit under the teaching
instructions of Jesus. It takes effort to seek God’s direction, to listen to
and then follow the leading of the Holy Spirit. Those who are lazy, avoid
asking God too many personal questions, because they fear he will ask them to
take the narrow, more difficult road, rather than the road of less resistance.
The bottom line is; to grow spiritually we need to come face to face with our
own laziness.
Proverbs 6:9 (NIV) - “How long will
you lie there, you sluggard? When will you get up from your sleep?”
Satan holds people in bondage by playing on their
fears, encouraging their laziness by telling them, “Why bother to pray? It is so
much easier if you just get on everyone else’s prayer lists.” Satan
wants to hide the truth that, “The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and
effective.” (James 5:16b - NIV)
Satan wants people to think they are not good enough to pray, that God will not
hear their single prayers. The truth? We don’t need a million people praying
for us in order to get God’s attention! God wants us to grow up into the image of
Jesus Christ! To grow up, we need to personally go to God in prayer. The
righteous man is not one who has no faults. On the contrary, the righteous man
is one who personally seeks to discover the will of God; he seeks to gain
strength to obey the will of God; and finally, he will obey God, because he
gives weight to his prayers with his very life.
Romans 8:14-15
(KJV) - For as many as are led by
the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. For ye have not received the
spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption,
whereby we cry, Abba, Father.
Questions for
Personal or Group Study:
1. What power lies behind human rebellion against
God, blinding man to live a life of sin?
2. No one has to live in bondage to sin. What road
must one take to get out of sin’s bondage? What is the only way this road can
be entered? (See: John 14:6)
3. Before we can go anywhere with Jesus, what must
we leave behind?
4. What happens when someone “turns” to the Lord? (See: II Corinthians 3:16-18)
5. What three steps are necessary for a person to
build a good spiritual foundation. (See:
Luke 6:47)
6. Many people claim to be Christians, yet still
live in bondage to sin. What does Satan use as a basis of fear to keep them in
bondage? (See: Proverbs 6:9)
7. What truth about prayer does Satan want to hide
from us? (See: James 5:16b)