SET FREE

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In Christ, Mark

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

Since the children have flesh and blood, He too shared in their humanity so that by His death He might break the power of him who holds the power of death—that is, the devil—and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death.

Hebrews 2:14-15

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

Imagine life without Jesus for a moment...that is if you dare.

All people, and that includes you and me, would be sinners living a life that would one day end with the ultimate judgment of an omnipotent God who despises sin. No one would be able to claim innocence and all would be given the penalty of eternal damnation in Hell.

It’s an utterly terrifying image and one that would leave any person going through each day with a sense of dread and fear that their punishment could come at any time as no one knows when they will die.  

The bottom line is that we serve a God of perfect judgment who will send His wrath on anyone who willingly chooses sin and its associated wickedness and evil over the righteousness He expects. However, He is also a God of love and mercy and forgiveness and grace, a God who so loved the world that He didn’t wish for its people to perish and so He made a way for redemption and pardon possible. This truth is affirmed by the scriptures:

For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16

In the greatest rescue mission within human history, God came to earth in the form of His Son, the One He was one with (John 10:30). He became “flesh and blood” just like His “children” and left His throne in Heaven to share in “their humanity”. In other words, He fully lived the human experience, the full gamut.

Jesus experienced danger from his youngest days which included people wanting Him dead.

He went through rejection, mistreatment, and heartbreak.

He encountered people of great faith and others that refused to unharden their hearts.

He felt the full range of emotions from joy to utter sadness and despair.

And He ultimately suffered and died, His body giving way to death.

He went through it all, sacrificing Himself fully, so He could set His people, you and me and anyone who would believe in Him as Savior, free.

Through His death, Jesus broke “the power of him who holds the power of death—that is, the devil” and made the way for possible liberation from sin and death for anyone. All they had (and have) to do is simply believe in Him.

That’s it.

Once that is done, once a person has decided to follow Jesus and become His disciple, amazing things happen immediately.

They are given the gift of the Holy Spirit to lead and guide them in the ways of right and righteous living, to live just as Jesus did.

They are justified, or made just as if they had never sinned. This means that when they do come before God in judgment at this life’s end, they will receive pardon instead of an eternity in Hell.

Indeed, as Paul writes to the Corinthians in his first letter, death no longer has any “sting” for anyone who has gained the victory over the grave through their Savior Jesus. Once “held in slavery by their fear of death”, the Christian believer can now live every day with the peace of knowing their life after death is secure. The best life they have ever had is still yet to come.

Friends, Christ Jesus has set us free from the penalty of sin and the trepidation of death. Let us rejoice and be glad today and every day forward for this good news and give thanks to God for His indescribable gift of salvation (2 Corinthians 9:15).

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.