Joseph was 17 when the Lord gave him two dreams. Each spoke about something that would happen 13 years later. Psalm 105:17-19 says, “He sent a man before them—Joseph—who was sold as a slave. They hurt his feet with fetters, he was laid in irons. Until the time that his word came to pass, the word of the Lord tested him.”

Joseph was imprisoned because of a false accusation. He paid the penalty of another’s sin against him. Joseph is a type of Jesus, as He who knew no sin, took our place.

Romans 3:23 says, “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” An archer who misses the bulls eye ‘falls short’ of the target. Sin is missing the mark.

At salvation, we are set free from sin’s condemnation. We are forgiven  all of our past, present, and future sins. Galatians 5:1 says, “Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage.”

I want to remind you that our thoughts precede our actions. We have the opportunity to turn away sinful thoughts before we actually take that step into sin.

Isaiah 5:13 says, “Therefore My people have gone into captivity, because they have no knowledge…” Hosea 4:6 says, “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge…” 

There are consequences when we resist the law of gravity. There are also consequences when we resist God’s law, by not making personal application. Exodus 15:26 says, “…If you diligently heed the voice of the Lord your God and do what is right in His sight, give ear to His commandments and keep all His statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you which I have brought on the Egyptians. For I am the Lord who heals you.”

Here are seven sin-areas that affect our health if we engage in them: envy, guilt, lust, anger, bitterness, fear, and greed. God’s word speaks to each of these issues. All seven are spiritual roots to disease.

We are created to fully function from birth to death so that we might glorify the Lord. Isaiah 43:7 says, “Everyone who is called by My name, whom I have created for My glory; I have formed him, yes, I have made him.”

The burden of health lies within us—our heart’s reservoir. It is not our circumstances, nor our genes, but our choices in our thought processes. Our choices in how we engage or resist each temptation to sin, affects every aspect of our lives.

John 8:36 says, “Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed.” That is our positional standing in Christ. However, our state is a work in progress through our sanctification which is a process!