Northland Church
How to Lose Your Family in 10 Easy Ways: Let the Cancer of Sin Spread
A message from Senior Pastor Josh Laxton
Locations & Times
Northland Church
522 Dog Track Rd, Longwood, FL 32750, USA
Saturday 5:00 PM
Sunday 9:00 AM
Sunday 11:00 AM
Welcome to Northland!
Northland Church exists to glorify God as we participate in His mission of redeeming a people from all peoples by engaging neighbors and nations to be fully alive in King Jesus through the power of the Spirit.
NorthlandChurch.net
Northland Church exists to glorify God as we participate in His mission of redeeming a people from all peoples by engaging neighbors and nations to be fully alive in King Jesus through the power of the Spirit.
NorthlandChurch.net
If you want to lose your family… Let the cancer of sin spread.
Sin = LOVING something or someone else more than GOD.
If you want to build a healthy, vibrant, long-lasting marriage… Let the Spirit of God REBUILD what Sin TORE DOWN.
I. Let the Cancer of Sin Spread
Five Stages of the Sin of Cancer
Five Stages of the Sin of Cancer
1) Find Out—each other is a SINNER.
“The eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked.”
“The eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked.”
2) Help Out—covering up each other’s SIN.
“…so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.”
“…so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.”
3) Check Out—hiding in your SIN.
“Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the Lord God….”
“Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the Lord God….”
4) Come Out—swinging defending your SIN.
“And he said, ‘Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?’ The man said, ‘The woman you put here with me—she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it.’”
“And he said, ‘Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?’ The man said, ‘The woman you put here with me—she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it.’”
5) Have it Out—holding the other in contempt because of SIN.
“To the woman he said, ‘I will make your pains in childbearing very severe; with painful labor you will give birth to children. Your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you.’”
“To the woman he said, ‘I will make your pains in childbearing very severe; with painful labor you will give birth to children. Your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you.’”
II. Let the Spirit of God REBUILD/RESTORE what Sin TORE DOWN
1) Get in the COOL ZONE.
“The man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day….”
“The man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day….”
What are some practical things we can do to live and engage in the Blue Zone?
- Breathe
- Rest well
- Eat well
- Spend time with Jesus well
- Manage schedule well
- Don’t engage when you’re tired or depleted
- Try to avoid tough conversations when emotions are already high
- Don’t sweat the small stuff (many of the stuff that irks us, is small)
- Breathe
- Rest well
- Eat well
- Spend time with Jesus well
- Manage schedule well
- Don’t engage when you’re tired or depleted
- Try to avoid tough conversations when emotions are already high
- Don’t sweat the small stuff (many of the stuff that irks us, is small)
2) Ask TENDER QUESTIONS.
“But the Lord called to the man, ‘Where are you?’”
“Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?”
“But the Lord called to the man, ‘Where are you?’”
“Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?”
What are some tender questions when your spouse has wronged you, or what they are doing is not sitting well with you?
- I’m concerned about you, what’s going on?
- Can you help me understand why you did this?
- Did you mean for it to come across the way it did?
- Are you doing ok?
- I want to understand your side, would you help me?
- I’m sensing something is wrong. Is there?
- You’ve seemed distant lately?
- When you did this, I felt disrespected.
- I’m concerned about you, what’s going on?
- Can you help me understand why you did this?
- Did you mean for it to come across the way it did?
- Are you doing ok?
- I want to understand your side, would you help me?
- I’m sensing something is wrong. Is there?
- You’ve seemed distant lately?
- When you did this, I felt disrespected.
The key to tender questions:
- You want to disarm, not destroy
- You want to inquire, not accuse
- You want to connect, not condemn
- You want to disarm, not destroy
- You want to inquire, not accuse
- You want to connect, not condemn
3) Give them the GOOD NEWS—BAD NEWS.
“And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.”
“I will make your pains in childbearing very severe.”
“Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil….”
“And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.”
“I will make your pains in childbearing very severe.”
“Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil….”
4) Focus on [Positively] MOVING FORWARD.
“Adam named his wife Eve, because she would become the mother of all the living.”
“Adam named his wife Eve, because she would become the mother of all the living.”
5) Take off the SHRUBBERIES of SHAME and put on the GARMENTS of GRACE.
“The Lord God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them.”
“The Lord God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them.”