Q109_0700926 Big Reasons For Believing We Are Freed From The Judgment Of Sin

Q109_0700926 Big Reasons For Believing We Are Freed From The Judgment Of Sin

How do people find strength in their journey to sobriety? This episode of *How it Happens with Colin Cook* leans hard into that question by grounding recovery in deep Christian theology rather than sheer willpower. Colin walks through Romans chapters 3, 4, 5 and 6, showing how they fit together as a big picture of God’s action on behalf of broken humanity.

He explains that God’s righteousness comes in the person of Jesus Christ, not through human effort, and that this has everything to do with addiction and shame. As he puts it, God "took his wrath and judgment upon himself that we might be freed, that we might be counted righteous." Instead of focusing on personal victory over sin, Colin talks about being freed from the *judgment* and *identity* of sin.

You’ll hear him unpack how Abraham was "justified by faith" and how that same pattern applies to anyone who feels trapped in destructive habits—counted righteous and freed in God’s eyes, even while still struggling in daily life. He stresses that this freedom doesn’t mean sin suddenly becomes less tempting.

Rather, knowing that "we are counted in Christ as righteous" gives a stronger mental base to say no to harmful behaviours, especially when guilt, fear and shame would normally push someone back into old patterns. Faith, he says, lets you call yourself "freed from sin" before it looks or feels that way.

For anyone wrestling with alcohol, drugs, food, sex, or obsessive worry, this episode offers a different angle: you’re invited to see recovery as living out an identity already given, instead of trying to earn one. It’s theology aimed at people in real pain. If you’ve ever wondered whether God is against you because of your addiction, this conversation might help you ask a better question: what if you’re already reconciled, even while you’re still struggling?