Good morning my “Walking with Jesus” friends as we welcome the month of July!
THIS will be a big month for many people in our world, do you know why?
For global sports fans the FIFA World Cup is capturing the world’s attention and on Sunday July 19 a new world champion will be decided in a final match. For soccer fans this will be a wonderful month, but in truth, it’s only a game! The moment of holding the golden trophy and the exhilaration of victory will fade. Four years from now July ’26 will be a distant memory as another global tournament will be crowning a new champion.
For American’s, this July 4 has been anticipated for a very long time as it will be the 250th anniversary of the American Declaration of Independence. Have you ever considered how different our world would be if that American fight for Independence, 250 years ago had failed! FREEDOM is a very powerful reality but so is bondage! And if you’ve ever lived in bondage, freedom is all the sweeter. Have you ever met someone who was rescued from terrible bondage, enjoyed delicious freedom for a while, but then started to drift back into the darkness of bondage?
As we rejoin the apostle Paul today, he has picked up his stylus and is writing his fifth chapter of his letter to the people he met, and helped them find FREEDOM in Jesus Christ, while on his first missionary journey. Paul is writing in about 48ad from Syrian Antioch. Listen to these powerful words: “It is for FREEDOM that Jesus Christ has set us free. Stand firm then and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.“ (Gal. 5:1) This is not a political statement but rather a profoundly spiritual and moral statement… which has the power to affect every person on our planet! Do you understand how important it is for people IN Freedom to stand strong and work to remain FREE? Why?
I’m sure you know we are all born into the slavery of our sin nature. It’s part of being human. Our minds, our desires, our attitudes, our choices, our relationships, our objectives in life…everything about us is inescapably enslaved by our selfish, sinful nature. We all know what it feels like and how it has affected our lives, from the time of our childhood.
So, I have three questions:
First… Are you LIVING these days in the FREEDOM only the powerful resurrected Jesus can accomplish for, and in you?
Are you delivered from the suffocating power of your sinful nature and are you living joyfully FREE in a love filled relationship with Jesus Christ, empowered by the Holy Spirit of God living within you?
Second question… Is it possible you once lived in that freedom, but things have changed, your heart has been drawn AWAY from Jesus?
Have you been making choices that are actually re-enslaving you again in bondage to the darkness? Do you recognize that you are drifting back into bondage? Can you reverse course, can you rescue yourself? Or are you already too deep back into the darkness?
Third question… Do you NOT understand what I’m talking about?
If you don’t it’s because you’ve probably never turned from your self-enslavement and invited Jesus to deliver you from the bondage of your sin nature?
The primary theme of Paul’s letter to the Galatian Christians has been a ‘wake-up call’ to their dangerous drift AWAY from their Jesus earned, Jesus accomplished DELIVERANCE, back into BONDAGE. But unlike most slaves, Paul calls them to consider they are not being attacked, captured and shackled into slavery by some powerful enemy or some invading army. No, they are actually re-enslaving themselves! On my! Have you ever witnessed or experienced that?
Self-enslavement? YES! Have you ever spent time with a drug addict or an alcoholic or a porn addict or a gambling addict? None of those people were captured and forced into bondage by someone else. Every one of them enslaved themselves by doing what they knew was very dangerous, but for the temporary thrill, they were willing to take the risk. That’s why Paul writes: “You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be FREE. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh, rather serve one another humbly in love.” (Gal. 5:13)
Oh my, we understand that don’t we? Every day, many times a day, you and I have the freedom to choose… what we eat or drink, what we look at or listen to, what we meditate on and especially what we say. We have the freedom to choose who we hang out with, where we go, what we do with our time. That’s the wonder and beauty of FREEDOM. So, are you willing to look in the mirror closely my friends? What is happening to YOU as you exercise your freedoms each day?
A few years later Paul wrote another letter, this time to the Christians in the wicked, sophisticated, fast living city of Corinth. Continuing this theme of freedom Paul wrote: “I have the right to do anything, but not everything is beneficial and constructive… I have the right to do anything, but I will not be mastered by anything.” (1 Cor. 10:23 & 6:12) So, my friends, how are you handling the freedoms you have, every waking moment? Are you drifting toward self-enslavement or standing strong against those temptations and living in vibrant, God honoring freedom?
Paul closed his 5th chapter with a strong call to every person to look closely at our personal reputation, our legacy, the fruit of our lives. You understand that the fruit a person’s life bears is evident to everyone, right? So, as we look closely at our fruit, it will be glaringly evident if we are living enslaved, FREE, or drifting back into bondage. Paul declares: “Walk led by the Holy Spirit and you will not gratify the desires of your sinful nature. For our sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit of God, and the Spirit desires what is contrary to our sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other…” (Gal. 5:16,17) Oh my we all understand that don’t we?
Paul doesn’t have to, for we all know bad fruit, but in Galatians 5:19-21 Paul gives us a partial list of the living evidence, the life fruit of people living in bondage to the darkness of their sinful nature! It needs no explanation; we’ve all lived in that sewage.
But then Paul shows us what a rescued life, lived in the Spirit filled Freedom of Jesus should be like: “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.” (Gal. 5:22,23)
Let’s pause right here and I urge you to take your pen and journal and make two columns. Put ‘sinful nature bondage’ atop on one column and ‘living Jesus Freedom” above the other column. Then list what you see in these two sets of verses under the appropriate column. Then start ADDING words to both columns. Words you’ve seen in your own life that fall in either column. Then spend a few moments asking Jesus to help you understand what your columns show you as you consider if you are really free in Jesus or drifting back into slavery.
The ‘lessons learned’ will help you dig into these important truths today and the worship song will of course draw us to Jesus, and tomorrow we’ll pick it up right here.
Today’s Scripture: Galatians 5.
Choose below to read or listen.
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Bible images provided with attribution to www.LumoProject.com.
Have a comment or question about today’s chapter? I’m ready to hear from you, contact me here.
Pastor Doug Anderson
“Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, with our eyes fixed on Jesus…” (Heb. 12:1,2)
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