The longer we struggle in addiction and the more often we relapse, the less likely we will believe that there is hope for us to get free from the bondage of addiction and have a purposeful life.
Yesterday we considered the story of a woman whom Jesus healed. She had been disabled by an evil spirit for 18 years. She desperately wanted to straighten up but she could not. For many years she struggled with this disorder. She likely suffered pain, both physical and psychological. Her disability made it impossible for her to do many everyday things she needed to do as well as those things she might like to have done. People in her community probably wrote her off as someone who was of no use to society. You can bet the evil spirit that brought about the disablement was also busy on a daily basis whispering ugly words of condemnation and despair in her ears.
Only one person could make a difference in this woman’s life – Jesus Christ. Everything changed when she encountered Jesus. Jesus saw her. He asked her to come to him. He said to her, “Woman, you will no longer be disabled. I am about to set you free.” Then he put his hands on her. Right away she stood up straight and praised God. (Luke 13:12-13 NIRV)
Jesus told this woman who had struggled for 18 years that she would no longer be disabled and that he would set her free. How many doctors had offered her cures that hadn’t worked? How much medicine had she taken only to discover it didn’t have any impact? How many hours of painful exercises and hard work did she endure on her own to try to straighten up, only to fail over and over again? Could she dare to hope that Jesus might help her, or was this one more disappointment waiting to defeat her? Whatever doubt or fear this woman might have had, she came to Him in response to Jesus’ call. Today, Jesus Christ promises you and me that He will set us free and that we will live in freedom, if we will come to Him and surrender our will and our lives into His care.
So if the Son sets you free, you are truly free. (John 8:36 NLT)
We can’t do much for ourselves. Jesus knows that. All He asks us to do today is to come to Him and let Him set us free. When this woman came to Him, she was immediately set free to walk straight. God promises that He will do the same for us if we will just have faith and come to Him.
And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him. (Hebrews 11:6 NLT)
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