Mastering the Heart: Finding True Freedom in Christ

Devotional

Day 1: The Illusion of Autonomy

The pursuit of autonomy, the freedom to do as we please, is a common desire. However, true freedom is not found in external control but in managing the internal emotions that distort our reality. Often, we believe that having complete control over our lives will lead to better decisions, but history and personal experiences show otherwise. Even those with great autonomy can make choices that undermine their freedom. By silencing the toxic voices within us, we can make wiser decisions and live more fulfilling lives. This involves recognizing the emotions that vie for control and learning to manage them effectively. [01:29]

"For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another." (Galatians 5:13, ESV)

Reflection: What internal voices or emotions are currently influencing your decisions? How can you begin to silence them to make wiser choices today?

Day 2: The Source of Our Actions

Our actions and words are often filtered through emotions that distort our perception of reality. Jesus teaches us to monitor our hearts, as they are the source of our behavior. By understanding and managing our internal dialogues, we can transform our relationships and live in alignment with God's will. This requires a deeper level of self-awareness, where we not only focus on our behavior but also on the emotions and thoughts that drive it. By doing so, we can live more authentically and in harmony with God's purpose for our lives. [06:17]

"Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life." (Proverbs 4:23, ESV)

Reflection: What emotions or thoughts are currently influencing your actions? How can you begin to monitor and manage them to align with God's will?

Day 3: The Power of Words

What defiles us is not what enters our bodies but what comes out of our mouths. Our words reflect the state of our hearts and can put us at odds with others and God. By being mindful of our speech, we can foster healthier relationships and live in harmony with God's love. This involves recognizing the impact of our words and ensuring they align with the love and grace that God extends to us. By doing so, we can create an environment of peace and understanding in our interactions with others. [21:35]

"Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear." (Ephesians 4:29, ESV)

Reflection: Reflect on a recent conversation where your words may have caused harm. How can you seek reconciliation and ensure your speech reflects God's love?

Day 4: The Invitation of Jesus

Jesus invites us to follow Him and take on His way of life. By doing so, we can find rest and peace, even amidst life's challenges. His teachings offer a path to inner peace that transcends external circumstances. This invitation is not just about following rules but embracing a lifestyle that prioritizes love, grace, and compassion. By aligning our lives with His teachings, we can experience a profound sense of peace and fulfillment that is not dependent on our external situation. [34:19]

"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." (Matthew 11:28-29, ESV)

Reflection: What burdens are you currently carrying that you need to bring to Jesus? How can you embrace His invitation to find rest and peace today?

Day 5: Monitoring the Heart

The practice of monitoring our hearts, rather than just our behavior, is crucial for personal growth. By identifying and addressing the emotions that vie for control, we can live more authentically and in alignment with God's purpose for our lives. This involves a continuous process of self-reflection and adjustment, where we remain vigilant about the state of our hearts and the emotions that influence our actions. By doing so, we can ensure that our lives reflect the love and grace that God desires for us. [32:26]

"The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it? I the Lord search the heart and test the mind, to give every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his deeds." (Jeremiah 17:9-10, ESV)

Reflection: What emotions are currently vying for control of your heart? How can you begin to monitor and address them to live in alignment with God's purpose?

Sermon Summary

Beginning a new series titled "You're Not the Boss of Me," we explore the concept of autonomy and the emotions that vie for control over our lives. The allure of autonomy, the freedom to do what we want when we want, is a universal desire. Yet, this pursuit often leads to misguided decisions, as we assume that with complete control, we will make all the right choices. However, history and personal experiences show that even those with great autonomy can make decisions that undermine their freedom. This series aims to address the internal voices and emotions that distort our reality and lead us astray.

The key to overcoming these emotions lies in silencing the toxic voices within us. Our need for supervision diminishes when we learn to manage these internal dialogues. Often, we find ourselves in trouble not because we ignore advice but because we follow our own, which is frequently filtered through emotions that distort our perception of reality. Jesus invites us to monitor not just our behavior but also our hearts, the source of our actions and words. This deeper level of self-awareness can transform our relationships and lives.

Jesus teaches that what defiles us is not what enters our bodies but what comes out of our mouths, as it reflects the state of our hearts. Our words and actions can put us at odds with others and, consequently, with God. The challenge is to monitor our hearts and not let emotions like anger, envy, or fear become the boss of us. By following Jesus, we can find rest and peace, even amidst life's challenges. His invitation is to take on His way of life, which promises inner peace and rest.

Key Takeaways

1. The Illusion of Autonomy: The desire for autonomy, the freedom to do as we please, is a common pursuit. However, true freedom comes not from external control but from managing the internal emotions that distort our reality. By silencing these toxic voices, we can make wiser decisions and live more fulfilling lives. [01:29]
2. The Source of Our Actions: Our actions and words are often filtered through emotions that distort our perception. Jesus teaches us to monitor our hearts, as they are the source of our behavior. By understanding and managing our internal dialogues, we can transform our relationships and live in alignment with God's will. [06:17]
3. The Power of Words: What defiles us is not what enters our bodies but what comes out of our mouths. Our words reflect the state of our hearts and can put us at odds with others and God. By being mindful of our speech, we can foster healthier relationships and live in harmony with God's love. [21:35]
4. The Invitation of Jesus: Jesus invites us to follow Him and take on His way of life. By doing so, we can find rest and peace, even amidst life's challenges. His teachings offer a path to inner peace that transcends external circumstances. [34:19]
5. Monitoring the Heart: The practice of monitoring our hearts, rather than just our behavior, is crucial for personal growth. By identifying and addressing the emotions that vie for control, we can live more authentically and in alignment with God's purpose for our lives. [32:26]
** [32:26]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[00:09] - Introduction to the Series
[00:39] - The Allure of Autonomy
[01:29] - The Illusion of Control
[03:04] - Silencing Toxic Voices
[04:44] - Monitoring Our Hearts
[06:17] - Jesus' Invitation
[08:00] - The Pharisees' Challenge
[12:22] - Jesus' Profound Insight
[18:00] - What Truly Defiles Us
[21:35] - The Power of Words
[26:38] - The Role of Religious Rituals
[28:45] - Practicing Heart Monitoring
[32:26] - The Overflow of the Heart
[34:19] - Finding Rest in Jesus

Sermon Clips

Our need of supervision may someday come to an end if we silence the toxic voices that come from within. [00:03:28]

Our need of supervision will never come to an end until we silence the toxic voices that come from within. Because the truth is, for all of us, we don't get in trouble because we won't take advice. Most of the time, we get in trouble because we take our own advice, and our own advice is always... I mean, there's no way around this. Our own advice is always filtered through the emotions that distort reality for us, or our sense of reality. [00:03:57]

Jesus invites us and He invited His first-century followers, He invites every century followers. He invites us to begin to take monitoring to a whole new level, to look past simply monitoring how we behave, and begin to monitor what's going on inside of us. In fact, His suggestion, His suggestion, and if you're a Jesus follower, it's kind of a command, but His suggestion or command is so profound, it has profoundly shaped my life. [00:06:06]

What comes out of our mouths can put us at odds with people, which puts us at odds with God. This was the theme of Jesus's teaching. That God loves the you behind you, next to you, in front of you, and beside you at work, beside you in the car, beside you in your neighborhood. God loves those people. So when you do anything to hurt someone God loves, God is concerned about that. That's how you defile yourself. [00:22:04]

The source, the source of your defiling, the source of your offenses, the source of your problematic words and deeds is within you. Now, when you hear that, I don't know how you respond to that. You may go, "Oh, duh. You haven't told me anything I don't know." Or you maybe push back and say, "No, no, no, no, no. Come on, Andy, not everything I say comes from my heart, and sometimes I say things I don't mean." I think Jesus would push back. [00:23:19]

For out of the heart come evil thoughts. Now, we're not gonna get into the specifics of, is our heart here, is it our physical heart? You know, He's talking about this thing, He's talking about human experience, that there is something in us that we are aware that's in us and we are aware of when it's coming out of us and we're even aware of when it's like, "Oh no, oh no!" And then it comes out of us and it's like we're a third party watching ourselves totally undermine our marriage or our relationship with one of our kids or something at work, and it's like, "(gasps) How did I say that? Why did I say that?" [00:24:26]

Jesus says, "Come on, come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I'll tell you what. I'm gonna give you something those inferior bosses will never give you. I'm gonna give you, on the inside, (sighs) rest." In another time, Jesus said this. I love this. "My peace I give you, not as the world gives you." What do you mean, not as the world? Well, the world peace is you only have peace when everything's great on the outside. Jesus says, "I've got something better for you. I'm gonna give you peace on the inside when things aren't good on the outside." [00:34:19]

Take my way of life upon you, "and learn from me." This is why I invite everyone all the time to be a follower of Jesus whether you believe He's the Son of God yet or not, whether you ever believe. Jesus says, "If you will just learn from me, for I am gentle and I am humble. I am not maybe like some of the religious leaders you felt manipulated by. I'm not like the guy that did the thing and you had to leave the church. I'm not that guy, I'm not that woman, I'm not that person, I'm not that system. For I am gentle, I am humble in heart, and you if you follow me," here's a promise. "You will find rest on the inside." [00:35:03]

The people closest to you are, listen, the people closest to you are experiencing the overflow of your heart right now, every single day, and you're experiencing the overflow of their heart as well, but you can't do anything about that, so for some of us, we need to look in the mirror and we need to get better at monitoring our hearts than we are simply monitoring our behavior. Now, that's true of all of us, but if you're a Christian, or if I like to say, if you're a Jesus follower, this is an even bigger deal, because we already have a boss of us, a better boss, a better boss than anger, a better boss than envy, a better boss than greed, a better boss than lust. [00:32:26]

How different would your life be if as a middle schooler, maybe a high schooler, maybe a college student, you had learned to monitor your heart and to decide that those raging emotions, whether it's for you, fear, envy, or greed, or lust, or whatever it might be, what if you had learned not to allow it to be the boss of you? For some of you, imagine how different your upbringing would have been if your father had not allowed his anger to be the boss of him, or his guilt to be the boss of him, or your mom's fear to be the boss of her, or her envy to be the boss of her, or maybe her anger, whatever it might be. [00:30:45]

Jesus says, "If you will just learn from me, for I am gentle and I am humble. I am not maybe like some of the religious leaders you felt manipulated by. I'm not like the guy that did the thing and you had to leave the church. I'm not that guy, I'm not that woman, I'm not that person, I'm not that system. For I am gentle, I am humble in heart, and you if you follow me," here's a promise. "You will find rest on the inside." Who doesn't want that? That's worth a try. That's worth considering Jesus. [00:35:03]

Jesus says, "If you will just learn from me, for I am gentle and I am humble. I am not maybe like some of the religious leaders you felt manipulated by. I'm not like the guy that did the thing and you had to leave the church. I'm not that guy, I'm not that woman, I'm not that person, I'm not that system. For I am gentle, I am humble in heart, and you if you follow me," here's a promise. "You will find rest on the inside." Who doesn't want that? That's worth a try. That's worth considering Jesus. [00:35:03]

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