Why do we need to be concerned with being free? For those living in a country where slavery, as we envision it, has been a thing of the past; grasping what it means to be a slave is not easy. Many have been caught up in the enemy’s deception that the world wasn’t created by God. In that scenario there is no original sin, no bondage to this world. So in essence there is no reason to believe we are in slavery to something that doesn’t exist. But just because we don’t believe it doesn’t make it true.
It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourself be burdened with the yoke of slavers. Galatians 5:1
Looking back to the beginning, God made man and woman and declared that they were good. In fact, he put us above everything else he created and said it was very good. He had a relationship, a direct connection with Adam and Eve, they walked and talked in the Garden. He gave them responsibilities to care for the garden, name things, only giving them one restriction to follow. One day mankind would choose to disobey God. We often hear that words can’t hurt us, but the enemy used words that day to forever change history. The moment Adam and Eve disobeyed Gods command we were put in the bondage of slavery to sin.
IF that was the end of the story then everything else we do wouldn’t really matter. If God had that day said ‘okay nice knowing you, you are on your own now’ I truly think we would be extinct by now. But God had other plans for mankind, he had an idea that this was going to happen, and he had a plan. Don’t think for a moment that God was caught off guard by what Adam and Eve did. Like any parent he was hoping they would stay away from this temptation but when they didn’t his plan to redeem them started. God gave us free will so that we would make the choice to follow him and make good choices, but with making good choices we also have the ability to make bad choices. God never made us to be puppets to control. We have an important role to make choices.
Because of the choice that was made for us we are born into the slavery of sin. Sure, it sucks that the choice of two people over 5000 years ago affects our eternity but thankfully for us, we can break free. God’s plan to set people free was one that took almost 3000 years to fulfill but in that time, he help mankind understand what sin was and why we must be freed from it. God played an intricate role in freeing us from sin. He sent his Son to earth as a man to live among us. (sometimes hard to grasp, but God unlike man, is three persons in one, God the Father, God the Son or Jesus and God the Holy Spirit, yet still all God.) Ultimately God came to earth to walk with us again. He did everything that those around him did, yet he did not sin, as he was born without sin. When he was taken, beaten and died on the cross he took on the sins of the world. Not just the sins that were of the people of that time, but past present and future sins, all sin was put on him. Almost like a magnet it was drawn to him as he was sinless.
If it was to end there one might think that would be enough. God removed from us what we did to ourselves. Yet it wasn’t enough, Jesus dead for three days, many theorize what happened those three days, but does it matter? He rose from the dead, no Dr. reviving him, not a person praying for him, he rose victorious over the bondage of sin. All the sin that was heaped on him destroyed he was freed from the bondage that tried to hold him down. But why then if Jesus is the victor over sin are we still in bondage to sin? Why didn’t Jesus just remove it from the earth then and there? Remember we mentioned free will above? God desires to have a relationship with each and every man or woman on earth. To remove sin would have returned them to that relationship, but the choice would have been God’s and not mans. Sin remained as to give mankind a choice to follow Him. This choice is made by accepting what Jesus has done. We accept that he died for us and that our yoke of sin is removed.
So how can you be freed from the bondage of sin? By asking Jesus to free you of it. Asking him to become your friend and guide your heart. Talking with him daily and he will show you how to live a life of freedom. Then you can show the world his love. Free people can free people.
Father, thank you for giving us free will. It may feel that your playing with us, but the truth is you love us so much that you gave us choice. I choose to follow you with everything I am. Help me to share this freedom with others. Thank you for the choice you made to redeem us from our bondage of sin. Reveal yourself to the world through your people. Amen
