Freedom from Sin

Whenever we find ourselves without full control due to a bondage of body or mind, we are in captivity.  It is always easier to appreciate something that you no longer have, and freedom is definitely one of them. But ironically, it is when we subject ourselves to, or submit to a captor that it becomes worse, because not only are we at war with that which is oppressing us, but we are at war with ourselves.
"Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage."
Galatians 5:1 KJV
Through his sacrifice, Christ has made us free from the ultimate consequence of sin. He has also given us access to God the Father who can give us peace of mind in a world and time saturated with confusion from the desires brought on by sin. When we acknowledge that we are indeed free from the bondage of sin, we must pursue God, who has given us this freedom. As with anything in life that we are trying to turn away from, the pursuit of sin must be replaced. And in order to grow and elevate spiritually, we should set our eyes toward God. If we realize our freedom and independence, yet still continue to sin, confusion will prevail and our testimony is more faint. As Christians, our job here on Earth is to bring souls to Christ. And the only way to bring souls to Christ is to share Christ through love.
"For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another.  For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. But if ye bite and devour one another, take heed that ye be not consumed one of another.  This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh."
Galatians 5:13‭-‬16 KJV
We are Christians, and as such we need to show it and act like it. Once again remembering that in reciprocity for the freedom, we should honor God and be like him, and show others God through us.

"As free, and not using your liberty for a cloak of maliciousness, but as the servants of God."
1 Peter 2:16 KJV
Perhaps the most important aspect of freedom is to be accountable to maintain it and embrace the responsibility of remaining free. Having been in bondage, we should know when we are walking the edge or seeing red flags that may lead us back to the very thing that so recently controlled our lives. Bondage via music, food, television,  speech, thoughts- those things that ultimately influence an area of our lives where God should be dominant. To stay free of these things, we should remain in prayer to God, to change our hearts, that we might desire only those things that God has for us, and surround ourselves in God's way. For it is only in Gods way that we are and will truly remain free.

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Sacrifice (pt.2): Right Reasons. Right Heart.

SACRIFICE (pt.2): Right Reasons. Right Heart.

As with anything that we do for God, others and even ourselves, we must be cautious to be sincere and true in our intentions. In other words, we must do so honestly and with a good heart. G. Batiste said, “Sacrifice means nothing if you are doing it for the wrong reasons.” In relation to this, it is perhaps best if first we establish the “why” and determine further if the course of action is pleasing to God.

In Genesis 4, Cain and Abel gave a sacrifice to God from the best that they had to offer. But reading this passage, we find that God rejected Cain's sacrifice (v.3-5). It was not said exactly why God rejected Cain's sacrifice, but no doubt, it had something to do with his heart. Perhaps his intentions on some level or another were not righteous. In later verses, we see God warning Cain to guard his heart from evil, lest it consume him (v.7). His intentions at that moment were about himself, and he slew his brother. Perhaps his heart had already been tainted with a self-serving drive even before giving his sacrifice. We do not know for sure, but God knew. And He still knows now the longings and intentions our our hearts today. It is great to follow God's commands, but it is empty unless we have our hearts in the right place. Our service is useless without substance.

Later in the Old Testament, the wise King Solomon stated, “The sacrifice of the wicked is abomination: how much more, when he bringeth it with a wicked mind?” (Proverbs 21:27)
An abomination is something that God detests or makes him want to turn his face from. If God were to turn from us, we would have no hope of peace and no substance. We need God. Therefore, all that we do should be for him. All sacrifices should be modeled after the sacrifice given for us- with not only good intentions but aided with a righteous heart. Good intentions are not enough, but acting also, with good Christian thoughts will bring good intentions to a righteous destination. God wants our sacrifice. And when done with the right reasons and the right heart, God will accept it and favor us.

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Sacrifice (pt.1): The Example

As we have recently been discussing value some things in life are so because we have worked hard for them or hard to become them. But when we have things that we cherish or we give that value too it is very difficult for us to let them go. When we give those things up, whether willingly or under difficult circumstances, this is considered to many to be a Sacrifice.

Jesus's sacrifice was given to atone for our sins and, as such, it is not only a sign of reverence, but our duty to show thanks to God for that sacrifice. When something is given to us, our thanks shows respect to the person that gave it to us, and when this giving is done sacrificially then, accordingly, the thanks should be that much more. In regards to the sacrifice given to us from God, a reciprocity is necessary for us to complete that process of being given a blessing and saying thank you. We should give our lives to God as the life of the God-Son was given for us. We are not being told to give up life and our bodies necessarily, but we are called to do what is necessary to honor and praise God and bring others into a relationship with him as well.

There are many things that are around us that may hinder us from doing this. But the bottom line is that we should only focus on the things that will bring others to Christ and we should sacrifice the satisfactions and the entertainment of our own bodies and our own minds to bring others into a close relationship God. We may have to sacrifice our time for God, but this is something that He has already done. He takes his time to properly build up the blessings that we need. We may need to sacrifice the things that we say, but this is something that God has already done for us, because in the beginning God spoke all things into existence. And in the Bible, which is his a compilation of his powerful Words, He has promised on so many occasions, that He would look out for us. We may have to sacrifice the things that we think for God. But this is something also that he has done for us because he was thinking of us when he gave up his precious Son. He is giving us a blueprint of things that we also should think on, so as to praise him and grow our relationship with him in thought, to be privy to the blessings that He has promised that are waiting for us. God sacrificed Jesus and Jesus sacrificed his relationship with his family and friends here on Earth, so that we could strengthen ours with the Father up in Heaven.

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Boldly Before the Throne

“ Let us therefore come boldly before the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” Hebrews 4:16 KJV

To be bold means to be daring, courageous. Not hesitating or fearful in the midst of danger or situations containing an unknown resolution.

What would we have to fear? Why would we hesitate? To be in the presence of He who created all things, who has all knowledge and power. Power to do what He so chooses at a whim, and knowledge of all our faults and thoughts. To come before Him would be ever so slightly[sarcasm]... intimidating. Yet this scripture says, “ Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne,...” When we think of a throne, we think of a King or Queen or someone who has power and control. Perhaps one who has control of important aspects of our lives- finances, food, clothes, shelter, or even whether we live or die. For some, that throne maybe the La-Z-Boy in the living room, and the ruler, if you will, was Mama or Daddy, and all things mention were under their control from the food and shelter to life and death. The latter because of the phrase “I brought you into this world and…” That was something to fear. But I digress. This fear would be more so an awe-inspired respect. To know what the King has done and is capable of doing should slow us down, if but for a moment, to give him the impression that we are giving Him his just due. To come boldly would show confidence in a situation of unknown resolution. But is the resolution really unknown? Upon showing our confidence or being bold, we do so, not based upon our own merit, but…

Though Jesus.

Hebrews 10:19,20 says,”Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the Holiest by the blood of Jesus,  By a new and living way, which He hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, His flesh…”

Once again we are told of the boldness. This passage verifies that it is solely by the blood of Jesus that we can be bold in the first place. Throughout Hebrews, there is mentioned a reference to Jesus as being likened unto a high priest. But the greatest difference was that Jesus was perfect. Never had their walked such a man as He. Not only perfect in his ways, but He Himself becoming the Way, the Truth, and the Life. Giving intercessions for us, providing us a way to have relationship with the Father and Eternal Life. And for this, He was the perfect sacrifice...

For us.

If and when we accept the blood, accept the sacrifice and realize why we needed it, we become new. 2 Corinthians 5:17 says “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature. Old things are passed away; behold all things are become new.” We have a new life, a new direction, a new method of reaction towards things and people that, simply put, rub us the wrong way. He has consecrated this newness or made it sacred and holy because He Himself is Holy. It’s like the Midas touch. Everything it touched turned to gold. Well, everything that Jesus touched with His life became new. It became better than it ever could be and we can be the same way if we just open our hearts and open our minds to the sacrifice- the acceptance and giving through normally unbearable circumstances. His body, much like the veil in the temple, was broken, torn and fell. And because of this, we have been given access to a new life, a new direction, new grace, new mercy, new help, new healing, new sight, new love, new joy. Old things are passed away, and through Christ's perfect blood, we too are made new and can therefore, boldly come before the throne of grace…

With God.

Value

You and your life have value. This holds to be true because Jesus Christ made it so. We have all equally come short of God's glory because we are sinners but Jesus paid the ultimate sacrifice for us all to become valuable. And he did so because of love. An unconditional love that had no boundaries and no special circumstances. Because His love is unconditional and without boundaries we should not hold boundaries to ourselves. Because we are valuable in the sight of God already through the sacrifice of Jesus, we should not depend on what others say to us or what others consider us to be to give us worth or value.
What we possess and what actions we have taken does not determine our worth. Good deeds do not increase my worth. The use of foul language or the consumption of alcoholic beverages does not diminish my worth. Having a certain body shape or certain physical attributes does not increase or diminish value. Past life experiences, misguided decisions made- none of these things determine value. But it is Jesus that determines our value.
My value comes from my acceptance of what Jesus did for me and my life in correlation with my repentance from the things that caused Him to be sacrificed in the first place. I am by no means perfect and in some ways I am no better than I was before, but healing is a process, change is a process, Christianity is a process on a path that I have chosen to take for myself. We are special because we are valuable to God and not because someone else says that we are. And no one can take that away from us.