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Jesus says in John 8:31-36 that whoever commits sin is a slave of sin, but then gives one of the great promises of the gospel: “Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed.” This Men’s Breakfast message brings that truth very close to home through a personal testimony of three chains that once exercised enormous power – lust, addiction, and a false view of self caught between pride and shame. The point is not to blame circumstances, other people or the past for sinful choices. It is to recognise honestly what has held us, bring those things into the light, and understand that freedom does not ultimately come from becoming a stronger or more disciplined version of ourselves. It comes from Jesus Christ.
The first chain was lust. Jesus takes adultery beyond the outward act in Matthew 5 and exposes what is happening in the heart. Pornography can feed what is already disordered within us, and sexual unfaithfulness can become its outward expression, but Christ calls us to deal honestly with the source rather than simply manage appearances. His severe language about removing the eye or hand that causes us to sin is a call to deal radically with access to sin, not a command to physically harm ourselves. Paul gives the same practical urgency in 1 Corinthians 6: “Flee sexual immorality.” The believer’s body belongs to God, has been bought at a price and is the temple of the Holy Spirit. Freedom therefore involves honesty, removing access where necessary, fleeing rather than negotiating with temptation, seeking help from trusted believers and learning to honour others as people created by God rather than objects for our desire.
The second chain was addiction. Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 6:12, “I will not be brought under the power of any.” That sentence captures what addiction eventually does – something we thought we controlled begins controlling us. In this testimony, alcohol brought devastating consequences to health, family and freedom before the truth of that mastery could no longer be denied. Yet the story does not end there. Practical help from others played an important role, but confidence ultimately turned toward the Lord, His mercy, and His power to change a life. Ephesians 5 offers a striking contrast: rather than being controlled by wine, believers are commanded to be filled with the Spirit. Freedom does not mean pretending temptation, weakness or triggers no longer exist. It means learning where pressure comes from, getting appropriate help when needed, staying in God’s Word, and repeatedly returning to Christ rather than to the thing that once mastered us.
The third chain reaches into identity itself. Pride says we are greater than we are; shame says our past means there is no hope for us. Romans 12:3 calls us instead to think soberly, while Galatians 2:20 moves the centre of identity away from self altogether: “It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me.” The Christian answer is neither self-exaltation nor self-hatred, but truth – acknowledging sin, receiving mercy and learning who we are in Christ. That is why the closing words of 1 Corinthians 6 are so powerful: “And such were some of you. But you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified.” Freedom begins when we stop defending what has mastered us, bring it honestly before the Lord, repent and trust the Saviour who died and rose again for us. We do not have to repair ourselves before coming to Him. Come into the light, receive His grace and take the next faithful step of obedience – because if the Son makes you free, you are free indeed.
The message moves through four major truths:
1. Freedom begins in Christ – John 8:31-36
Sin enslaves, but Christ sets free. That freedom is experienced as we continue in His Word, receive His truth and allow the Holy Spirit to correct and reshape us.
2. Lust must be brought into the light – Matthew 5 and 1 Corinthians 6
Jesus addresses the heart behind sexual sin. Paul adds the practical command to flee. Freedom requires honesty and sometimes radical changes to what we allow access to our lives.
3. Do not be mastered again – 1 Corinthians 6:12
Addiction exposes the difference between something we believe we control and something that actually controls us. The Christian belongs to Christ and is called to live under His lordship rather than another master.
4. Pride and shame must both submit to truth – Romans 12 and Galatians 2
Pride exaggerates self; shame condemns self. Biblical humility receives God’s verdict instead – acknowledging our sin while resting in who Christ has made us.
The central thought is:
Our chains may look different, but our freedom is found in the same place – Jesus Christ.
What Does Freedom Begin to Look Like?
The message gives a particularly practical description of freedom.
A free man increasingly becomes:
A man who tells the truth sooner.
A man who accepts correction.
A man who takes responsibility rather than blaming his wife, circumstances or past.
A man who recognises what has mastery over him and brings it into the light.
A man whose identity is increasingly rooted in Christ rather than pride, achievement or shame.
A man who takes a clear step of obedience when God exposes something that needs to change.
The orange illustration captures another important truth: pressure reveals what is already inside. If anger, bitterness, or envy spills out when life squeezes us, Scripture functions like a mirror, showing us what still needs to be brought before God rather than simply blaming the pressure itself.
Read John 8:31-36 and then ask yourself honestly:
What still has a hold on me?
Perhaps it is something you keep returning to even though you know the cost. Perhaps it is something you still defend, an area where you resist correction, or an image of yourself that you feel compelled to protect.
Bring it into the light.
Name it honestly before God. Stop defending it. Ask for forgiveness where repentance is needed, and then ask the Lord for one clear step of obedience – removing access, seeking help, making a phone call, speaking with a trusted brother or beginning to put something right.
You do not need to fix yourself before coming to Christ. The invitation is to come to Him in truth and trust the One who loved you and gave Himself for you.
