Addiction

(Romans 7:21-24) “So I find this law at work: When I want to do good, evil is right there with me. For in my inner being I delight in God’s law; but I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within my members. What a wretched man I am!” 


 It becomes a part of my identity. 

 When I try to quit but fail, I feel increasingly hopeless. 

 Any threat to my addiction becomes a threat to me. 

 I begin to lose my life. 

 I ease the pain by getting my next fix. 


(Isaiah 44:9-20 NLT) How foolish are those who manufacture idols. These prized objects are really worthless. The people who worship idols don’t know this, so they are all put to shame. Who but a fool would make his own god— an idol that cannot help him one bit...? He uses part of the wood to make a fire. With it he warms himself and bakes his bread. Then—yes, it’s true—he takes the rest of it and makes himself a god to worship! He makes an idol and bows down in front of it! He burns part of the tree to roast his meat and to keep himself warm. He says, “Ah, that fire feels good.” Then he takes what’s left and makes his god: a carved idol! He falls down in front of it, worshiping and praying to it. “Rescue me!” he says. “You are my god!” Such stupidity and ignorance! Their eyes are closed, and they cannot see. Their minds are shut, and they cannot think. The person who made the idol never stops to reflect, “Why, it’s just a block of wood! I burned half of it for heat and used it to bake my bread and roast my meat. How can the rest of it be a god? Should I bow down to worship a piece of wood?” The poor, deluded fool feeds on ashes. He trusts something that can’t help him at all. Yet he cannot bring himself to ask, “Is this idol that I’m holding in my hand a lie?” 



OVERCOMING ADDICTION 


(Matthew 17:14-18) When they came to the crowd, a man approached Jesus and knelt before him. "Lord, have mercy on my son," he said. "He has seizures and is suffering greatly. He often falls into the fire or into the water. I brought him to your disciples, but they could not heal him." "O unbelieving and perverse generation," Jesus replied, "how long shall I stay with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring the boy here to me." Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of the boy, and he was healed from that moment. 


 Unbelieving: not connected to God. 

 Perverse: too connected to the world. 


(Matthew 17:19-21) Then the disciples came to Jesus in private and asked, "Why couldn't we drive it out?" He replied, "Because you have so little faith. I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you. But this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting.


 Prayer connects us to God. 

 Fasting disconnects us from the world.


Chris Hodges, Church of the Highlands

Video
https://www.churchofthehighlands.com/media/message/addiction

Overcoming Addiction

Breaking Free

(2 Corinthians 10:3-5) For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.

A prisoner locked by

 deception.

An addiction is anything that I do that I don't want to do, but I won't stop doing. 

Living life by something that is not true.

The Addiction Lies

(Romans 7:21-24) So I find this law at work: When I want to do good, evil is right there with me. For in my inner being I delight in God’s law; but I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within my members. What a wretched man I am!

• It becomes a part of my identity.

• When I try to quit but fail, I feel increasingly hopeless.

• Any threat to my addiction becomes a threat to me.

• I begin to lose my life.

•I ease the pain by getting my next fix.

(Romans 7:24-25 MSG) I've tried everything and nothing helps. I'm at the end of my rope. Is there no one who can do anything for me? Isn't that the real question? The answer, thank God, is that Jesus Christ can and does. He acted to set things right in this life of contradictions where I want to serve God with all my heart and mind, but am pulled by the influence of sin to do something totally different.

Overcoming Addiction

(Romans 8:1-2) Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death.

Idolatry is anything we allow to sit on the throne of our hearts other than God.  We are a slave to whatever is on the throne of our hearts.

  

1. Put God first in every area of my life.

(Exodus 20:1-3) And God spoke all these words: “I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. You shall have no other gods before me.”

(1 Peter 3:15) But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord.

• Give God the first of everything.

2. Say no 

to the flesh.

(Romans 6:12-14) Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires. Do not offer the parts of your body to sin, as instruments of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God... For sin shall not be your master.

(Galatians 5:24) Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires.

• What I starve dies.

3. Go all in with Jesus.

(Romans 12:2 MSG) Fix your attention on God. You'll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you.

• What I feed thrives.

Chris Hodges, Church of the Highlands

Video

https://www.churchofthehighlands.com/media/message/overcoming-addiction

Discussion Guide

https://www.churchofthehighlands.com/files/groups/guides/1-14-18.pdf

Are Entertainment Drugs Okay?

Don't substitute substances for God! If you do, the substance has become your God.  

Chris Hodges