It Was for Freedom

On this day after July 4th, I am meditating on what it means to be free. We truly are free in this country. Free to worship our God, free to conduct business, free to come and go, etc. How blessed we are! But how many of us are free indeed? As blessed as we are in this country, many Christians remain in jail cells of hell. Many are in illogical and irrational slavery. The internal kind, of course. How many Christians are slaves to their sins (Jn 8:33-34)? Many are in spiritual and emotional chains. (Ex. lust, fear, anxiety, bitterness, greed, gluttony, lying, etc.). Jesus said that He came to make us FREE INDEED (Jn 8:36). It was for FREEDOM that Christ came and set us free. It is up to us to avail ourselves of this freedom and live in it (Gal. 5:1). In John 8:31-32, Jesus said that IF we live by His teachings and Word, then we would know the Truth and the Truth would set us free. So, our first plan of action would be to learn God's Word and make every effort to live it. Pleading ignorance isn't good enough. Secondly, we must admit when we are in bondage. We need to confess our faults to someone and have them pray for us (James 54:16). Thirdly, we must take the promises of God in faith (reliance of our entire being on God), line ourselves up with the conditions, and apply them to our life (Rom 4:21). When we do this, God will be there for us! God's Hebrew names reveal these truths. #1. Jehovah Shammah-means "God is there or present"; #2. Jehovah Shalom-"God is peace"; #3. Jehovah Jireh-"God will provide"; #4. Jehovah M'Kiddesh-"I Am the Lord that sanctifies you", to name a few. He's everything we need! After a war, the occupational troops must go and establish the victory. The enemy soldiers will not necessarily accept their defeat. Now that you have been delivered from the kingdom of darkness, demand your freedom in Christ. Take back what the devil stole from you. Established your victory! It's your right and duty! I am in awe at what Jesus has done for us and how worthy He is to receive our victorious lives as an offering of gratitude and praise! Revelation 1:5-6, "...Jesus Christ the Faithful and trustworthy Witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the Prince of the kings of the earth. To Him Who ever loves us and Who has loosed and freed us once for all from our sins by His own blood, and formed us into a Kingdom (royal race), priests to His God and Father-to Him be the glory, and the power, and the majesty, and the dominion thoughout the ages and forever and ever. AMEN"