JOURNEY TO FREEDOM
UNIT V Key 1 DESIRE
SCRIPTURE PRINCIPLE: And if you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more shall your Father Who is in heaven give what is good to those who ask Him! Matthew 7:11
READ: Experience God’s Power and Receive Victory (at the end of this Key)
SCRIPTURE: Write what each of these verses or passages means to you and your situation.
Romans 5:1
Romans 5:6
Romans 5:18-20
Luke 7:41-43, 47-50
Mark 8:31-38
STUDY GUIDE (Note: the questions in this Study Guide ask for Scripture references, and there may be several for each question. Feel free to write on the backside or use additional paper if necessary.)
1. On a scale of 1-10 (1 is lowest, 10 is highest), how much progress have you made toward overcoming ssa/ma/tx temptations, including actions, visual lusts, and fantasies? What Scriptures have given you the strongest motivation?
2. On a scale of 1-10, how much progress have you made toward total freedom from sins of words, such as unkind remarks, gossiping, swearing, etc.? What Scriptures have given you the strongest motivation?
3. On a scale of 1-10, how much progress have you made toward total freedom from sins of the mind, such as envy, self-pity, cynicism, attitude of superiority, etc.? What Scriptures have given you the strongest motivation?
4. On a scale of 1-10, how much progress have you made toward total freedom from pride, comparing of self with others, fault-finding, judging, criticizing, etc.? What Scriptures have given you the strongest motivation?
5. On a scale of 1-10, how much progress have you made toward total freedom from hidden motivations, secret agendas, and temptations to manipulate others for your own advantage? What Scriptures have given you the strongest motivation?
6. On a scale of 1-10, how much progress have you made toward total freedom from resentments? What Scriptures have given you the strongest motivation?
7. On a scale of 1-10, how much progress have you made in identifying the lies of the devil that you have believed and speaking God’s truth against them? Please share as many as you can think of.
8. How do you deal with stress these days, without using ssa/ma/tx to cope?
9. On a scale of 1-10, how much do you like the person you see yourself becoming as God works His changes into your life?
10. Is anything getting in the way of your journey to freedom from ssa/ma/tx, if so, what?
11. Did you use any memorized Scripture to battle temptation lately? What was the result?
12. How is your spiritual life in general, how are your private devotions, and how are things at your church/fellowship group?
Plan of Action:
EXPERIENCE GOD’S POWER AND RECEIVE VICTORY
By Rhonda Marie
What kinds of thoughts come to your mind when you hear the words of John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son . . .” Have you ever put your name in this passage? “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son for me . . . ,” and in place of the word “me”, said your name right out loud?
You should. We all should. John 3:16 is speaking directly to you and to me. So often we forget that we have a God Who loves us so much that He gave us His Son, to live, to suffer, and to die for each one of us personally.
When we are addicted to sin, God knows what we are going through.
When we are addicted to the sin of homosexuality or lesbianism, we think that no one understands the pain we feel. We forget that Jesus knows about our struggles because He felt every last one of them on the cross.
At Gethsemane, Jesus pleaded with His Father to take away His pain, but God did not take away Jesus’ suffering. God had a plan and purpose for everything that Jesus would have to endure. The plan was for His Son to suffer and to die to take away the sins of the world. It was the greatest expression of love and mercy the World would ever see.
Still, we sit on this earth feeling sorry for what we must endure. We do not feel fulfilled or whole. There’s something missing in our lives. We pray to God and He does not deliver us; and we feel rejected and unloved.
What is wrong with us? Can’t we see what God has done for us? Can’t we feel the proof of God’s love for us through Christ? Are we really so self-centered and concerned with our “sexuality” to the point that nothing else sinks into our minds and hearts?
Jesus pleaded for deliverance, but instead God gave Him the power to rise in VICTORY!
The same God Who showed such great love for us could never reject or neglect us. Knowing this should free us from the bonds of homosexuality and lesbianism. So, why aren’t we free? Perhaps it is because we have been concentrating too much on Christ’s death and not enough on His resurrection.
We feel God’s love at the cross, but we experience His power at the tomb.
As we kneel at the foot of the cross, we feel God’s love, but it isn’t until we stand before the empty tomb and look inside that we experience God’s power and the VICTORY won for us through Christ.
Christ endured pain, so we know that He understands and feels our pain. We know that God did not deliver His only Son from pain, but gave Jesus the courage and strength to endure pain and receive power to rise victorious. It is feeling and believing God’s power personally through the resurrection of Christ that will at last give us VICTORY!
Keys Ministry 