A Healthy Christian Life

Psalm 147:1–3 ESV

1 Praise the Lord! For it is good to sing praises to our God; for it is pleasant, and a song of praise is fitting. 2 The Lord builds up Jerusalem; he gathers the outcasts of Israel. 3 He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.

Last week I preached on “The Church that Christ built” from and I talked about the importance of knowing the foundation of the church that we are a part of:

Last week I preached on “The Church that Christ built” from and I talked about the importance of knowing the foundation of the church that we are a part of:

Image of my functional church here.

The big idea of my message was that since we are a part of the CHURCH that Jesus Himself built, we are not to remain on the defensive against the attacks of the enemy but rather we are to take the fight into enemy territory.

After all Jesus said, the gates of hell shall not prevail.

I hope that this message resonated in you..

Before I prepare Sunday’s message I always pray that God will give me the very word that He wants the church to hear. That I will deliver His very word that is needed at that very hour.

I also contemplate the word that I delivered the past Sunday..

That while the message was taught to inspire and to encourage, to remind you of who you are in Christ. As a pastor, I also ask did I really minister to those among us who are emotionally wounded, the broken among us today?

The reality is that while you hear messages on the Kingdom of God, a lot of you are still struggling just to live for today.

Many of you are thinking just where to pay next bills, how to get along with their spouse, raise your kids, how to keep your jobs and how to do a good job at work.

Then there is the challenge of living as a Christian in a complex world of technological innovations. The world of mobile apps and social media, that’s full of distractions and drama.

We live in a time when we are so connected to the world more than ever, yet we are so disconnected to the people around us.

Young people yesterday on their smartphones..

Then there are those among you that are emotionally damaged, hurt by an abusive situation or relationship. You sincerely want to serve God, go on missions..

But let us face it you are so emotionally unhealthy to take up the challenge you hear from this pulpit much less to fulfill the Great Commission.

This may sound controversial:

Before you can become a victorious Christian, you have to be a healthy Christian.

Even more controversial:

You cannot be spiritually mature until you are emotionally assured.

You have to take care of your emotional health and well-being.

The Bible has the answer to this, and I would call it tough love from the word of God.

Before I get to the keys to attaining to emotional health and well being, and this will be a tough subject to swallow to many let me again remind you...

“Have I told You lately that He loves you?”

It is not a Rod Stewart song, it is truth from the Word of God. Jesus loves you with an everlasting love.

He knows your condition, He understands you more than anyone, God will not condemn you, rather He wants you to be healed today.

So what are the steps to be emotionally healed? Are you ready?

Steps to Emotional Healing:

Admit that you are sick.

Why is this important? If you don’t admit you are sick then you won’t seek healing.

My cough and Guia.. God healed me this week

admit that you are sick

John 5:1–6 ESV

1 After this there was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. 2 Now there is in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate a pool, in Aramaic called Bethesda, which has five roofed colonnades. 3 In these lay a multitude of invalids—blind, lame, and paralyzed. 5 One man was there who had been an invalid for thirty-eight years. 6 When Jesus saw him lying there and knew that he had already been there a long time, he said to him, “Do you want to be healed?”

Steps to Emotional Healing:

2. Seek help.

Share your problems with someone you trust and (most importantly) someone who can help.

Galatians 6:2 ESV

2 Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.

Matthew 11:28 ESV

28 Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

God made us relational creatures and there are wonders that happen when we are able to verbalize our emotions to someone, but exercise caution and use wisdom.

God made us relational creatures and there are wonders that happen when we are able to verbalize our emotions to someone, but exercise caution and use wisdom.

Make sure you confess to someone you can trust. that it won’t end up on social media...

If you are emotionally wounded, don’t seek the company of people who are just as emotionally wounded as you are.

There is a saying: “Misery loves company”.

How about AA, or SAA?

Steps to Emotional Healing.

3. Move Forward.

This is key.

Philippians 3:12–13 ESV

12 Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. 13 Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead,

:!2-13

This means you have to take personal responsibility for your healing.

This means you have to take personal responsibility for your healing.

Avoid going on a digging expedition.

Pop culture and Hollywood had taught us many things that are not only false but also very harmful to us.

You’ll see movies that tell us to retrace your steps, your childhood, relive your hurtful experiences, find the person that wounded you and find — this is a big word CLOSURE.

The Bible simply teaches us to forgive.

It doesn’t teach us to go look for the person in your past and desire to hear the person verbalize in detail what he had done to you, until you hear it from this person’s mouth I will not find healing!

Guess what that will do to a wounded soul that needs healing, it just reopens wounds in your past some of which you have already forgotten.

We cleaned our storage, and we found items that have been forgotten for many many years.. found a lot of good stuff, brought good memories,, also reminded me of some unfinished business..

Jesus’ words run counter to what the culture teaches us..

He told us to forgive.. if the other person does not admit to his faults, that is his or her own prison to worry about. Now be free from your own prison.

You can forgive the person, but you are not commanded to bring them back to your life. It really depends on their own journey with God.

Be intentional with your healing process and move forward.

Come to Jesus and be Healed.

Matthew 11:28–29 ESV

28 Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 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.

Come to Jesus and stay with Jesus and you will be healed and you will be set free.

John 8:36 ESV

36 So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.

John 8

Now when you are free indeed you can be a victorious Christian. You can roll up your sleeves, because there is Kingdom work ahead of us. We have souls to win and enemy territory to conquer. Come, join the army of God and take up the Higher call to fulfill the Great Commission.

End of message:

Prayer:

Lord I respond to your question, “do you want to be healed?”

I come to you O Lord.

Surround me with people I can trust and can help me with my healing.