True Freedom

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Scripture: John 8:34-36 (ESV)

Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin. 35 The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son remains forever. 36 So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.

Devotion:

            In these verses Jesus gives us the bad news first then the good news second. The bad news is that our sin causes us to be slaves to sin. We are held in bondage to the sin of Adam that courses through whole human race throughout history. On our own we simply lack the ability to be free from the curse of sin earned for us in the Garden of Eden by our ancestors disobedience to God.

            Our circumstance as slaves to sin made our position with God fragile and uncertain. A slave may please or displease the master. However, once Jesus came and freed us from slavery to sin our position changed. No longer would we be seen by God as slaves, but we would be seen as sons and daughters. This is the good news of the gospel that we have been saved from a lifelong slavery to sin and as its wages of death. Now we are seen as sons of God adopted into God’s family through the blood of our Savior Jesus Christ and we receive from God the gift of eternal life with him.

            The freedom we receive from Jesus life, death, and resurrection is a true spiritual freedom. We become adopted sons and daughters of God because of Jesus’ unique role as the true Son of God. Our freedom is more than just spiritual freedom from the law of sin and death. It lays the framework of freedom in every area of our lives. We do not have freedom to do whatever we want as is noted in this commentary: “True freedom is not the liberty to do anything we please, but the liberty to do what we ought; and it is genuine liberty because doing what we ought now pleases us.”[1]

            It seems as if the world is more and more rejecting the true freedom given by God through Jesus Christ. As it does this the world becomes less and less free. It is up to us as Christians to stand up for the freedom that was won for us on the bloody cross of Christ.

            The state of the world spiritually affects the state of the world physically. We who know the Lord are ambassadors for the true new world order that Jesus inaugurated while he was here on earth. Our lives simply cannot be the same since we were liberated at such a high cost. There is a Christian organization whose motto is “Christ is counting on you”. Christ is indeed counting on his children to change the world. Let us pray.

Prayer:

            Heavenly Father we worship you today. We give you thanks that we are now adopted into your family. We pray that you will give us the strength and courage to live transformed lives that through us you would transform other peoples lives and your kingdom would be brought here on earth. Grant us wisdom and confidence we need to be world transformers on your behalf. Amen

[1] D. A. Carson, The Gospel according to John, The Pillar New Testament Commentary (Leicester, England; Grand Rapids, MI: Inter-Varsity Press; W.B. Eerdmans, 1991), 350.

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