Operation

Most of us know what it feels like to carry more than we should.

Not tragedy. Accumulation.

One more purchase.
One more scroll.
One more bite.
One more yes.

None of it feels dramatic. It just slowly adds up. And one day you realize you are not starving. You are stuffed. But still empty.

Jesus speaks with startling clarity in Matthew 5:

“If your right eye causes you to stumble… cut it off.”
“If your right hand causes you to stumble… cut it off.”

Not because He is harsh. Because He is serious about freedom. What you refuse to cut off will slowly cut you off from God.

This week we talked about gluttony. Not just food. Excess. Gluttony is overconsumption driven by misplaced desire. It is appetite without trust. The problem is not that we enjoy things. The problem is when good things begin to rule us.

You can overconsume:

Comfort
Approval
Money
Control
Entertainment
Success

The issue is not hunger. The issue is mistrust.

In Exodus 16, God gave Israel manna daily. If they hoarded it, it rotted. Fear feeds gluttony. Trust starves it.

Jesus said in John 6:

“I am the bread of life.”

Daily bread requires daily trust.

We also looked at Lot’s wife. She was physically leaving Sodom. But her heart was still looking back.

You cannot walk into freedom while staring at excess.

Some of us do not need more self-control. We need surrender.

Then we saw Mary in John 12. She poured out a year’s wages at Jesus’ feet.

Judas called it waste. Jesus called it beautiful.

Gluttony tightens fists. Worship opens hands.

Hoarded manna rotted. Poured-out worship filled the house with fragrance.

You do not defeat gluttony by obsessing over appetite. You defeat it by redirecting desire toward Christ.

At the end of the service, we asked a simple question:

What do you need to cut off and leave at the cross?

Approval.
Comfort.
Control.
Comparison.
Spending.
Distraction.

You were not nailing yourself there.

You were laying down what has been crushing you.

More of ______ will never fill that void.

Only more of Jesus.

He is not trying to restrict your joy.
He is trying to restore your freedom.

And He is very, very good at setting people free who finally decide to let go.