Week 6 - REPLACE
CONNECT
What are you thankful for?
What challenge are you facing?
Have there been any answers to prayer?
Pray for each other.
Did anything stand out to you from last week’s follow-up Bible readings?
Last week you renounced evil. How has your week gone in terms of freedom from the influence of this evil? Is there any other evil you need to renounce?
How did your “I will …” statement from last week go?
How did your sharing goal from last week go?
How’s your memory work coming along?
John 8:31-32 (NAB)
31 Jesus said to those who believed in him, “If you remain in my word, 32 you will truly be my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
DISCOVER
Let’s start with a review. We’ve worked through these freedom truths and freedom responsibilities:
OBEY
Obedience leads to freedom while disobedience leads to bondage, so obey the Lord and be free.
RESIST
Jesus resisted Satan by reciting the truth of God’s Word, so resist Satan by reciting the truth of God’s Word.
FORGIVE
God has forgiven you, so forgive others.
RUN
We are to be holy as God is holy, so run from temptation and sin and run to God for help to be holy.
RENOUNCE
Involvement with evil spiritually pollutes us, so renounce (openly confess and verbally reject) any current and past involvement with evil and in Jesus’ name break its power over your life.
And now …
REPLACE
Satan uses lies to control our lives, keeping us in bondage, so replace these lies with God’s truth and find freedom.
Ask God to speak to you as you read His Word.
John 8:31-45 (NLT)
31 Jesus said to the people who believed in him, “You are truly my disciples if you remain faithful to my teachings. 32 And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
33 “But we are descendants of Abraham,” they said. “We have never been slaves to anyone. What do you mean, ‘You will be set free’?”
34 Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave of sin. 35 A slave is not a permanent member of the family, but a son is part of the family forever. 36 So if the Son sets you free, you are truly free. 37 Yes, I realize that you are descendants of Abraham. And yet some of you are trying to kill me because there’s no room in your hearts for my message. 38 I am telling you what I saw when I was with my Father. But you are following the advice of your father.”
39 “Our father is Abraham!” they declared.
“No,” Jesus replied, “for if you were really the children of Abraham, you would follow his example. 40 Instead, you are trying to kill me because I told you the truth, which I heard from God. Abraham never did such a thing. 41 No, you are imitating your real father.”
They replied, “We aren’t illegitimate children! God himself is our true Father.”
42 Jesus told them, “If God were your Father, you would love me, because I have come to you from God. I am not here on my own, but he sent me. 43 Why can’t you understand what I am saying? It’s because you can’t even hear me! 44 For you are the children of your father the devil, and you love to do the evil things he does. He was a murderer from the beginning. He has always hated the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, it is consistent with his character; for he is a liar and the father of lies. 45 So when I tell the truth, you just naturally don’t believe me!”
Have someone retell the passage in their own words.
What stands out to you in this passage?
What does this passage say about God (The Father, His Son Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit)?
What does this passage say about people, including ourselves?
What does this passage say about the life God invites us to live?
Digging Deeper
Jesus and the devil couldn’t be more different. Jesus is all about the truth and Satan is all about lies.
How does Satan use lies to put us in bondage?
How does Jesus use the truth to set us free?
Unfortunately, when we trust and follow Jesus, not all lies simply evaporate from our minds. Some lies persist. Lies we’ve picked up from our families, our education, our culture, our experiences (pleasurable and painful), our personal reflections and conclusions on life and Satan himself. Lies that relate to our priorities, our values, our identity, our failures, our successes, our illnesses, our traumas, our ethnicity, our nationality, our thoughts about God and so on. The problem is these lies can keep us in significant bondage.
But Jesus has promised that If you remain in my word, you will truly be my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free (John 8:31-32-NAB). This isn’t automatic though. It’s not the truth that sets us free, but the truth THAT WE KNOW that sets us free. And that’s why we have to REMAIN in Jesus’ word. Only by remaining in Jesus’ word can we know the truth that sets us free.
2 Corinthians 10:3-5 (NIV)
3 For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. 4 The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. 5 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.
Why is the battle in our minds?
Why do we need to take every thought captive and make it obedient to Jesus?
A stronghold is something that has a strong hold over us. Often these are lies that become our “truths”. We believe these lies so strongly they take control over our lives.
Romans 12:2 (NIV)
Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.
Why do we need to not conform to the pattern of this world (lies entrenched within a culture) but be transformed by the renewing of our minds?
Keep in mind that not every thought you may have originates from you. A thought could come from the world or Satan or a putdown from a parent or a memory from a past trauma or yourself. The source of the thought may vary, but our response shouldn’t. Our responsibility is always the same—Take EVERY thought captive to make it obedient to Christ. So don’t beat yourself up for having a thought. Instead, get your fight on. Exert your energy in controlling that thought and applying God’s truth to it. Think about what you're thinking about and replace the lie with God’s truth.
Philippians 4:8 (NIV)
Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.
Truth & Responsibility
This week’s freedom truth is:
Satan uses lies to control our lives, keeping us in bondage.
This week’s freedom responsibility is:
So replace these lies with God’s truth and find freedom.
Not Able but Enabled
You won’t be able to replace lies with the truth on your own. That’s why we support each other. But more importantly, that’s why we rely on God’s Spirit and Word. God never intended for us to live the Christian life in our own strength. Instead, He calls us to live by His Spirit and remain in His Word. Then what we could never do on our own, we do through the power of the Spirit and the truth of the Word.
John 6:63 (NIV)
The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you—they are full of the Spirit and life.
Ephesians 6:17 (NIV)
Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
Notes on FREEDOM
As always, what’s shared here must stay here. Please practice strict confidentiality.
Satan doesn’t want you to be free. And he’ll do everything he can to discourage and distract you. For example, you may experience mental oppression as you go through today’s freedom exercises. Thoughts like, “This isn’t going to work” or “God doesn’t love you” or “Don’t believe this stuff or this person” may come to you. Resist these lies and trust God’s truth. If you’re experiencing mental oppression, it’s important to tell the others in the group so they can pray for you and help you stand firm on God’s truth.
These freedom exercises may take some time, maybe more time than one week’s meeting. Especially if you have several people working through these exercises, it may take more than a week. There’s no need to rush. Just take the time you need.
These freedom exercises may bring up some very personal and painful issues. Going through these exercises will give you greater freedom in Christ. You may, however, need additional help from a Christian support group, pastor, counsellor or therapist. Your group can help you discern if you need additional help.
Feel free to modify the prayers below to fit your situation and communicate your heart.
Find a Lie
What follows is adapted from The Steps to Freedom in Christ by Neil Anderson.
Pray this prayer out loud:
Lord, I know that Your truth hasn’t penetrated or permeated every aspect of my life and there are still lies that I believe and live from. Show me what these lies are and then show me Your truth so I can believe that truth and walk in greater Kingdom freedom. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
From what God is revealing to you, from what you know of the Bible and from where you see spiritual struggles and bondage in your life, what is a lie you are believing and living?
“Like a bend in a fishing pole tells us that there is something hooked under the surface of the water, repeated and exaggerated bends in our emotions and reactions tell us something has been hooked under the surface in us. There may be a lie lurking in our hearts that’s controlling our responses.”
Answer these four questions:
What lie do you believe about God? Possible answers …
God is distant
God is condemning
God is permissive
God can’t be trusted
God owes me
Other?
What lie do you believe about yourself? Possible answers …
I’m unlovable
I’m a failure
I’m hopeless
I’m all alone
I need to do everything myself
I need the approval of others
Other?
What lie do you believe about others? Possible answers …
I don’t need others
No one cares about me
I’m worse than others
I’m better than others
Authorities can’t be trusted
This type of person (name characteristic) can’t be trusted
Other?
What lie do you believe about life? Possible answers …
Acquiring money and things brings happiness
Consuming excessive food and alcohol brings relief
Gratifying sexual lust brings lasting satisfaction
Physical appearance is more important than spiritual maturity
There are no consequences for sin
Life isn’t worth living
Other?
This may help you find a lie. Think about a recent conflict (mental or relational) that bent your “fishing pole”. What was the conflict about? What was your exaggerated reaction? Why do you think you reacted that way? What lie may have fueled your reaction?
Pick one lie …
How does this lie impact your life?
Where do you think this lie comes from?
How has this lie become a stronghold—a lie that has become your “truth”?
Replace Lie with the Truth
What truth from God’s Word could replace this lie?
If possible find a passage from the Bible that addresses this lie.
How would believing this truth instead of this lie impact your life?
Memorize the passage you have chosen and recite it often, especially when you are tempted to fall back into the lie you’ve believed.
Psalm 119:11 (NLT)
I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.
How about filling out an index card or making a calendar event alert with this lie and this truth?
Pray this prayer out loud:
Lord, I have believed the lie that ______ (name lie). This lie has impacted my life by ______ (name impact). I now replace this lie with this Your truth that ______ (name truth). Help me now to believe Your truth and walk in the freedom of Your Kingdom. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
There may be other lies that you have found and need to replace. Just use the same process. How can your group help you with this?
LIVE
What truth have you discovered from today’s Bible passage(s) and conversation?
What would stop you from believing and obeying this truth?
How will you live out this truth this coming week? Finish this statement: “I will ….”
Who else needs to hear this truth? How could you share it with them?
When will we meet again?
Who will facilitate that meeting?
Pray for God’s help as you seek to follow Jesus this coming week.
WEEKLY BIBLE READINGS
Here are the Bible passages you are encouraged to read this coming week:
BUDDY SYSTEM
Connect with your buddy this week and ask each other these questions:
How are your readings going?
How’s your “I will …” statement coming along?
How’s your sharing goal coming along?
How can I pray for you?