RECOVERY Part 3

Commit to the Cure

In the last couple of weeks, we have been looking at the steps of recovery through the acrostic, RECOVERY. As a quick review, the first step is:

R ealize I’m not God. I admit I’m powerless to control my tendency to do the wrong thing and my life is unmanageable.

The first step recognizes that we cannot control everything in our lives. In fact, there is actually very little we have control over. Additionally, we tend to do the wrong thing when we do exert control. We are not God, and we have to stop acting like we are. The second step is:

E arnestly believe that God exists, that I matter to Him, and that He has the power to help me recover.

We are not God, but God is there. We matter to Him, and He does have the power to help us. In fact, the Good News is that Jesus came to us while we were lost in our self-destruction. God understands our situation, and He has already made help and recovery available for those who will seek it. And that leads us to today’s step:

C onsciously choose to commit all my life and will to Christ’s care and control.

Jesus came to offer true healing for all who would seek it. He did not come to establish another set of rules or another even another religious system. He came so that we can know our Creator and be restored by Him. Jesus says in Matthew 11:

Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

Matthew 11:28-30

The offer of Christ is rest—rest from sin, rest from trying to control this life, and rest from the ever-present guilt of our failures.

Now, if Christ offers such rest, why is it that many people, even many church-goers, never seem to find that rest?

What keeps people from surrendering to Christ for rest?

The first one, and I would argue the main one, is pride.

Pride keeps a person from admitting they need help.

Many have heard the verse, “Pride comes before the fall,” (Proverbs 18:12) but consider this other Proverb:

The wise of heart will receive commandments, but a babbling fool will come to ruin.

Proverb 10:8

I normally am not a fan of some modern translations, but the Living Bible has a humorous interpretation.

The wise man is glad to be instructed, but a self-sufficient fool falls flat on his face.

Proverb 10:8 (TLB)

The lesson is very simple—if you are lost, get help. Do not be the guy who turned off the GPS and ignores his wife because “I know the way!” No, you don’t. You are lost and getting more lost. I heard a speaker say God is kind of like a GPS. He will point the way you are supposed to go, and if you turn wrong, He doesn’t just leave the map the way it was. The GPS will re-calculate based on where you are now, and then get you headed the right direction again. God won’t leave you completely lost and say, “Well, you should’ve listened way back there!” He will meet you where you are, and then tell the way the way out.

But we can’t find the right direction if we are too busy holding on to our pride.

The second reason people will not surrender is because of guilt.

Guilt keeps a person from receiving help.

Psalm 40:12 says,

For evils have encompassed me beyond number; my iniquities have overtaken me, and I cannot see; they are more than the hairs of my head; my heart fails me.

Psalm 40:12

Have you ever felt this kind of guilt—the kind of guilt where all the evil things you have ever done seem to pile up all around and on top? It’s the kind of guilt where you can’t even see straight. That’s the kind of guilt David felt when he wrote this song. But, I want you to see the verses before and after this one.

As for you, O Lord, you will not restrain your mercy from me; your steadfast love and your faithfulness will ever preserve me!

For evils have encompassed me beyond number; my iniquities have overtaken me, and I cannot see;
they are more than the hairs of my head; my heart fails me.

Be pleased, O Lord, to deliver me! O Lord, make haste to help me!

Psalm 40:11-13

In the midst of this guilt, David recognizes that God does want to show mercy—that even if David’s guilt seems to overtake David, it is not too much for God! Too many people believe God can never forgive them, because their sin is too much. Jesus came to bring restoration to all who call on HIs name! The Gospel is not about us getting right for God. It’s about God coming to us when we were all wrong!

The third reason people will not surrender is fear.

Fear drives people away from help.

What are you afraid will happen if you fully surrender to Christ? Are you afraid you’ll turn into some kind of religious fanatic? Perhaps God will make you take a vow of poverty, or you’ll be sent to some far off nation with bad plumbing and no Internet? Some people believe they would give up control of their life, so they are afraid to lose their freedom. I have bad news, we already established in Step 1 that any sense of control you have over your life is false. Sure, we make our own decisions, but those decisions are based on opinions of other people, hurts you can’t forget, habits you never conquered, and the wide array of societal influences, many of which happen without us ever really seeing them.

Some define freedom as a lack of control, but a better definition would be choosing who takes control.

Jesus said,

For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul?

Mark 8:36

Even if you got everything you ever wanted in this life, what good is it if you still lose your soul? Fear of losing out or giving up aspects of your self will keep you from getting help. But, as you cling to that fear and those things, you are keeping yourself from finding true freedom. You have become a slave to the very things you believe give you freedom.

The last one is doubt.

Doubt keeps us from believing in the process of help.

Sometimes doubt manifests as ‘worry’, but the two are very similar. In either case, the task of healing seems too insurmountable for us. It seems like too much, and we may say God is big enough to help, but we feel too small to do our part.

To that, I want to give you two verses.

First, Philippians 1:6, the same verse I gave you last week, says:

And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.

Philippians 1:6

God will not start the process of healing and then leave you alone. If He has allowed you to come this far, and if you surrender to Christ, God will complete the process of restoration. It is a guarantee!

Now, that sounds good on paper, but what if your emotions get in the way? Let me introduce you to a father who needed help with unbelief.

In Mark 9, Mark recounts a time when the religious scribes were getting in the way of a miracle. Turn with me to Mark 9:14, because I want you to see this passage.

At this time, a crowd is with the disciples, and the scribes are arguing with them. Mark doesn’t tell us the details of the argument, but it certainly has to do with the man who has brought his son to be healed by the disciples. Unfortunately, the disciples were unable to heal the boy of the spirit that has left him mute and gives him seizures. Jesus laments about this generation’s lack of faith (an example of how even Jesus grew frustrated with His people), and then tells them to bring the boy to him.

Now, the key verse in this story is 23, but let’s start with 22.

And it has often cast him into fire and into water, to destroy him. But if you can do anything, have compassion on us and help us.” And Jesus said to him, “‘If you can’! All things are possible for one who believes.” Immediately the father of the child cried out and said, “I believe; help my unbelief!”

Mark 9:22-24

Notice the father has his doubts. He says, “If you can.” Jesus corrects this doubt with a verse you should highlight. “All things are possible for one who believes.” The miracle that you need, God can make it happen, but our doubt gets in the way. The father has a wonderful response in return—“I believe; help my unbelief!”

Doubts can happen to even the best of us. God can work through those doubts, but we have to be willing to surrender even our doubts. Perhaps you are doubting whether God can, or will, bring you restoration. Pray the prayer of this father—“help my unbelief!”

How do I surrender to Jesus?

It begins with accepting Jesus as the Savior.

Jesus is God’s Son and the only means of salvation.

We have to recognize that we need to be saved. We have to recognize that Jesus is the only way to be saved. Step 1 is letting go of the belief that we are in control. When we surrender to Jesus, we are saying that He is in control.

And they said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved.”

Acts 16:31

The second part of surrender is admitting that your standard for living isn’t working, and you want to use God’s design for life. God has left us a guidebook for life. It’s the Bible.

God’s Word gives us God’s design for living well.

All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness,

2 Timothy 3:16

All the Bible is inspired by God and is useful for getting on the right track—and staying on the right track. The more we dig into our Bibles, the more we can understand God’s design for ourselves, our families, our workplaces, and everything else this life can throw at us.

Now, if we accept that Jesus is the only means of salvation, and we accept that God’s Word is the standard for our life, then that leads us to the third part.

We must accept God’s will as the strategy and goal for our lives.

If we trust Jesus to take care of our eternity, then we can trust Jesus to guide us day by day. As we read the Bible and stay in constant prayer with God, He will guide our daily decisions. Paul calls this “walking with the Spirit.”

But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.

Galatians 5:16

The last part of surrender is one that Christians tend to forget. After some time walking with Jesus, we start getting a big head about our spiritual walk. We think we have it figured out, and we start to stumble. We forget a very important verse.

I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

Philippians 4:13

But just in case you get the idea that the Christian life is filled with unicorns and rainbows, look back a couple of verses in Philippians. Paul writes,

Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need.

Philippians 4:11-12

Then Paul says, “I can do all things through him who strengthens me.” God does not promise life will always be easy with Jesus. He promises that life will be bearable. And when it isn’t bearable, Jesus will still be with us to carry us through. We will learn contentment in all circumstances, because we know the One who gives us life and only wants good for us.