Freedom

May 20, 2015

Freedom

So if the Son sets you free, you are truly free.

John 8:36

“For freedom Christ has set us free” (Galatians 5:1a NRSV). Jesus has set us free from sin and free for life as his followers. By his death, resurrection and ascension, he has set us free from sin and death: “And because you belong to him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you from the power of sin that leads to death” (Romans 8:2). This freedom from sin and death makes possible our relationship with God. We get to be in an everlasting right relationship with our Abba Father because Jesus has set us free from the sin that had separated us from God.

When Jesus walked on earth, he was truly free. His freedom was rooted in his belief that he indeed was the beloved child of God. He knew in the very depths of his being that he belonged to God before he was born, that he was sent into the world to inaugurate God’s New Creation, and that when his mission was completed he would return to God his Father. This abiding belief in his core identity set him free to fulfill God’s purpose.

We too, as the followers of Jesus, are asked by God to accept our core identity as His beloved children with whom He is delighted and upon whom His favor rests. In our acceptance of God’s love, we are set free to fulfill God’s purpose for our lives without regard to popular acclaim, or the lack thereof. I have found the following prayer helpful in ordering my life as one who has been set free:

O Lord, how excellent is your name in all the earth;

I worship you. With all angels and saints I adore you.

I acknowledge you to be my Creator and my God.

I render to you the reverence of my being and my life.

I am not my own. I am yours.

By creation and redemption I am yours.

I will devote myself to your service this day and forever.

O Lord, grant grace for this I pray

in the name of my Savior, Christ Jesus.

Amen

Sē’lah

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(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

These meditations are written by Alex M. Knight as he seeks the life in Christ as his way of life.  The meditations are published on the BLOG, http://seekingthelifeinchrist.blogspot.com/ and they are also distributed on the Constant Contact email server. You may subscribe to this email service by sending an email to: amkrom812@gmail.com. The BLOG is also available on Amazon Kindle, by subscription.

Publications by Alex M. Knight:

·        Seeking the Life in Christ, Meditations on the New Testament and Psalms is available at Amazon.com in paperback and Kindle.

·        The second edition of First Think – Then Pray is available on Amazon Kindle.

·        Meditations on The Story of My Life as told by Jesus Christ is available as an e-book on Amazon Kindle.

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188.