Scripture: Romans 7:15-8:11
DEAD BECAUSE OF AN ADDICTION
I opened our local paper and saw the headline: “Retired Sports Editor Collins Dies at 68.” Bob Collins had had an illustrious career as sports editor for The Indianapolis Star. He had, as the news report put it, “filed stories from the gold greens of Augusta [Georgia], under the Olympic torch, the finish line of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and anywhere a basketball hoop was hung in Indiana.”1
Collins died of cirrhosis of the liver. He died on the eve of two sports events that he would have enjoyed covering, an Indiana Pacers playoff game and the Indianapolis 500-Mile Race. At age 68 he could have been enjoying both of these events he loved, instead of being viewed at a funeral home.
A month before his death, Collins wrote a straightforward article for the Indianapolis Monthly describing what it was like to die. In it, he discussed his alcoholism diagnosed some 30 years earlier when he was only about 37. He concluded by saying, “The aggravating thing is that I did this to myself.”
According to Bob Collins’ own self-description, he died prematurely as a result of an addiction.
MANY KINDS OF ADDICTION
There are many kinds of addiction. We think first of all of alcoholism, drug addiction, and tobacco addiction. There are others, however, such as the addictions to work, to television, to coffee, to music, or to pornography.
An addiction is anything that so controls us that we cannot live a full and wholesome life.
Is there any hope for those who are addicted?
I’m glad to tell you that there is.
ADMISSION
First, there is hope whenever the addicted admit that they do, indeed, have an addiction. As long as we are in denial, help will not come. Sure signs of addiction are these: you can’t get along without something. We are not talking about the needs for food, water, or sleep. We are talking about anything other than such basic needs that you feel you cannot get along without. They have become so necessary that you are willing to sacrifice other things in order to have them. For instance, those addicted to work are willing to forfeit all vacation time in order to continue working. Those addicted to gambling are willing to mortgage their homes in order to pay for their losses and try again to win. Those addicted to pornography are willing to get up in the middle of the night to look at their materials. Those addicted to drugs are willing to steal in order to buy them. Those addicted to alcohol are willing to drink on the sly.
Often, the intervention of loved ones is necessary before a person is brought face to face with the reality that they are, in fact, addicted. It is very painful to confront someone about these matters, but true love is willing to do so. Addictive behavior does not evaporate on its own. It has to be his head on; otherwise, it is never dealt with.
NEED FOR DIVINE HELP
Second, there is hope whenever the addicted realize that they need God’s power to liberate them. Romans 7:15 says “I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate.” Verses 18 and 19: “I can will what is right, but I cannot do it. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I do.” Verses 24 and 25: “Wretched man that I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!” Chapter 8, verse 2: “For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death.” Verses 5 and 6: “For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. To set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace.” Verse 11: “If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will give life to your mortal bodies also through his Spirit that dwells in you.”2
What we can not handle in and of ourselves, God can handle. Before God will handle it, though, we must come to the point where we cast ourselves on his mercy and avail ourselves of his redeeming power.
As long as we concentrate on the addiction, we are in a hopeless condition. It is when we begin concentrating on the power of God that liberation comes. We have to turn our lives over completely to Christ our Savior.
Here is a little boy who is trying to get the knot out of his shoe laces so that he can put on his shoes, but the knot is too complicated for him. Nevertheless, he continues jerking and pulling which, of course, makes the knot even tighter and more impossible to undo. In angry frustration he begins kicking the shoes and crying. “Dumb old shoes” he yells.
“Let me help you,” his mother says, but he resists and continues yanking the laces and kicking the shoes. Finally, however, in total exasperation he throws the shoes into his mother’s lap, and sits at her feet while she patiently begins untying the knots.
That is the way it is with our addictions. As long as we are concentrating on the addiction itself by simply lamenting, yanking and kicking, so to speak, the addiction goes from bad to worse. It is only when we cast it into the lap of God and begin trusting his power to untangle the mess that we can begin experiencing the liberating power of having the knots, so to speak, untied.
We need to remember that the power of God works in connection with our willingness to accept it. One of the saddest dilemmas of the modern world is the idea that we are little more than machines with no will power. Such an attitude leads to the paralysis of the soul. It produces the idea that we have no part to play in the restructuring of our lives by God’s power.
God, though, does not treat us like machines. Instead, he relates to us as persons with a volitional nature created in his image. We are made in such a way that when God’s power is at work in us, we have the ability to make decisions that are harmonious with his will.
The Holy Spirit will give us the power to live the disciplined life, but we are the ones who have to live it. The Spirit will give us power to say no when we should say no, and yes when we should say yes, but we are the ones who have to say the “no” and the “yes.” The Spirit will give us the power to pray and to commit ourselves to new ways of living and to discover new interests and to establish new friendships, but we are the ones who have to do these things.
The Holy Spirit is not an anemic Spirit. Romans 8:11 says that the Spirit who raised Jesus from the dead is the same Spirit who indwells us as believers. It is a strong Spirit who is able to raise someone from the dead, isn’t it? The good news for the addicted is that the same Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead indwells those who believe in Christ as their Savior and Lord. The one who raised Jesus from the dead can surely enable us to overcome any addiction we may have. The Spirit is the victor not only over death but also over destructive behavior.
When we yield to the Spirit, he brings us life and peace. Notice what Romans 8:6 says: “To set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace.”
Addictions lead to death and to turmoil. If our minds are fixed on our addictions, there is no hope. But if, by God’s grace, our minds are set on what the Spirit can do for us, in us and through us, then it is that we have hope for life and peace.
HELP FROM OTHERS
Third, there is hope when the addicted are willing to link up with a community of persons who will support them in the liberation from their struggles. Often we fail in our battles with addictions because we don’t avail ourselves of the support of those who are committed to helping us with the reorientation of our lives.
A listener in England wrote to me some time ago to say that as he was listening to this program he became convicted about his addiction to tobacco. Then and there he recognized that smoking was more than a mild pleasantry; it was an addiction. With that realization he turned to God and availed himself of divine power. Then he called our telephone ministry where he received further help. At the time of his writing, he had been liberated from the addiction for over six months.
YOU CAN BE LIBERATED, TOO
Victory can be yours, too, my friend. Life is too precious to waste it on addictions. There is hope for you no matter what your addiction is. Do you want life instead of death? Do you want peace rather than turmoil? Life and peace can be yours. There is hope for the addicted!
PRAYER
Let us pray:
Gracious God, our hearts are gladdened to know that you are the liberating God. So work in our hearts, that we will set our minds on the Spirit and find freedom from whatever addiction enslaves us. We pray this in the name of Christ our Lord. Amen.
1 The Herald Bulletin (Anderson, Indiana), May 29, 1995, p. C2.
2 New Revised Standard version used here and throughout.
DEAD BECAUSE OF AN ADDICTION
I opened our local paper and saw the headline: “Retired Sports Editor Collins Dies at 68.” Bob Collins had had an illustrious career as sports editor for The Indianapolis Star. He had, as the news report put it, “filed stories from the gold greens of Augusta [Georgia], under the Olympic torch, the finish line of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and anywhere a basketball hoop was hung in Indiana.”1
Collins died of cirrhosis of the liver. He died on the eve of two sports events that he would have enjoyed covering, an Indiana Pacers playoff game and the Indianapolis 500-Mile Race. At age 68 he could have been enjoying both of these events he loved, instead of being viewed at a funeral home.
A month before his death, Collins wrote a straightforward article for the Indianapolis Monthly describing what it was like to die. In it, he discussed his alcoholism diagnosed some 30 years earlier when he was only about 37. He concluded by saying, “The aggravating thing is that I did this to myself.”
According to Bob Collins’ own self-description, he died prematurely as a result of an addiction.
MANY KINDS OF ADDICTION
There are many kinds of addiction. We think first of all of alcoholism, drug addiction, and tobacco addiction. There are others, however, such as the addictions to work, to television, to coffee, to music, or to pornography.
An addiction is anything that so controls us that we cannot live a full and wholesome life.
Is there any hope for those who are addicted?
I’m glad to tell you that there is.
ADMISSION
First, there is hope whenever the addicted admit that they do, indeed, have an addiction. As long as we are in denial, help will not come. Sure signs of addiction are these: you can’t get along without something. We are not talking about the needs for food, water, or sleep. We are talking about anything other than such basic needs that you feel you cannot get along without. They have become so necessary that you are willing to sacrifice other things in order to have them. For instance, those addicted to work are willing to forfeit all vacation time in order to continue working. Those addicted to gambling are willing to mortgage their homes in order to pay for their losses and try again to win. Those addicted to pornography are willing to get up in the middle of the night to look at their materials. Those addicted to drugs are willing to steal in order to buy them. Those addicted to alcohol are willing to drink on the sly.
Often, the intervention of loved ones is necessary before a person is brought face to face with the reality that they are, in fact, addicted. It is very painful to confront someone about these matters, but true love is willing to do so. Addictive behavior does not evaporate on its own. It has to be his head on; otherwise, it is never dealt with.
NEED FOR DIVINE HELP
Second, there is hope whenever the addicted realize that they need God’s power to liberate them. Romans 7:15 says “I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate.” Verses 18 and 19: “I can will what is right, but I cannot do it. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I do.” Verses 24 and 25: “Wretched man that I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!” Chapter 8, verse 2: “For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death.” Verses 5 and 6: “For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. To set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace.” Verse 11: “If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will give life to your mortal bodies also through his Spirit that dwells in you.”2
What we can not handle in and of ourselves, God can handle. Before God will handle it, though, we must come to the point where we cast ourselves on his mercy and avail ourselves of his redeeming power.
As long as we concentrate on the addiction, we are in a hopeless condition. It is when we begin concentrating on the power of God that liberation comes. We have to turn our lives over completely to Christ our Savior.
Here is a little boy who is trying to get the knot out of his shoe laces so that he can put on his shoes, but the knot is too complicated for him. Nevertheless, he continues jerking and pulling which, of course, makes the knot even tighter and more impossible to undo. In angry frustration he begins kicking the shoes and crying. “Dumb old shoes” he yells.
“Let me help you,” his mother says, but he resists and continues yanking the laces and kicking the shoes. Finally, however, in total exasperation he throws the shoes into his mother’s lap, and sits at her feet while she patiently begins untying the knots.
That is the way it is with our addictions. As long as we are concentrating on the addiction itself by simply lamenting, yanking and kicking, so to speak, the addiction goes from bad to worse. It is only when we cast it into the lap of God and begin trusting his power to untangle the mess that we can begin experiencing the liberating power of having the knots, so to speak, untied.
We need to remember that the power of God works in connection with our willingness to accept it. One of the saddest dilemmas of the modern world is the idea that we are little more than machines with no will power. Such an attitude leads to the paralysis of the soul. It produces the idea that we have no part to play in the restructuring of our lives by God’s power.
God, though, does not treat us like machines. Instead, he relates to us as persons with a volitional nature created in his image. We are made in such a way that when God’s power is at work in us, we have the ability to make decisions that are harmonious with his will.
The Holy Spirit will give us the power to live the disciplined life, but we are the ones who have to live it. The Spirit will give us power to say no when we should say no, and yes when we should say yes, but we are the ones who have to say the “no” and the “yes.” The Spirit will give us the power to pray and to commit ourselves to new ways of living and to discover new interests and to establish new friendships, but we are the ones who have to do these things.
The Holy Spirit is not an anemic Spirit. Romans 8:11 says that the Spirit who raised Jesus from the dead is the same Spirit who indwells us as believers. It is a strong Spirit who is able to raise someone from the dead, isn’t it? The good news for the addicted is that the same Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead indwells those who believe in Christ as their Savior and Lord. The one who raised Jesus from the dead can surely enable us to overcome any addiction we may have. The Spirit is the victor not only over death but also over destructive behavior.
When we yield to the Spirit, he brings us life and peace. Notice what Romans 8:6 says: “To set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace.”
Addictions lead to death and to turmoil. If our minds are fixed on our addictions, there is no hope. But if, by God’s grace, our minds are set on what the Spirit can do for us, in us and through us, then it is that we have hope for life and peace.
HELP FROM OTHERS
Third, there is hope when the addicted are willing to link up with a community of persons who will support them in the liberation from their struggles. Often we fail in our battles with addictions because we don’t avail ourselves of the support of those who are committed to helping us with the reorientation of our lives.
A listener in England wrote to me some time ago to say that as he was listening to this program he became convicted about his addiction to tobacco. Then and there he recognized that smoking was more than a mild pleasantry; it was an addiction. With that realization he turned to God and availed himself of divine power. Then he called our telephone ministry where he received further help. At the time of his writing, he had been liberated from the addiction for over six months.
YOU CAN BE LIBERATED, TOO
Victory can be yours, too, my friend. Life is too precious to waste it on addictions. There is hope for you no matter what your addiction is. Do you want life instead of death? Do you want peace rather than turmoil? Life and peace can be yours. There is hope for the addicted!
PRAYER
Let us pray:
Gracious God, our hearts are gladdened to know that you are the liberating God. So work in our hearts, that we will set our minds on the Spirit and find freedom from whatever addiction enslaves us. We pray this in the name of Christ our Lord. Amen.
1 The Herald Bulletin (Anderson, Indiana), May 29, 1995, p. C2.
2 New Revised Standard version used here and throughout.
Script 2582 (GWS)
June 23, 1996
SERIES: HOPE FOR ALL OF US
4. Hope for the Addicted
Scripture: Romans 7:15-8:11
June 23, 1996
SERIES: HOPE FOR ALL OF US
4. Hope for the Addicted
Scripture: Romans 7:15-8:11
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