don't care who you are or what it is, we all love something that is free.
In addition to gravitating towards free gifts and items, we also all desire
freedom. We enjoy having the freedom to make our own choices, do our own
thing, and be who we are without fear of consequences. That's why we love
America so much… The land of the FREE!
With this natural affinity that we have towards free things, it baffles me
how many of people reject the freedom that is in Christ and the free gift
of salvation available to us all. I'm guilty of it too. For the longest
time I rejected His salvation; when I did finally receive it, I rejected
His freedom. I still lived a life of fear and bondage. I was not free to
love Him and I was not free to be me.
One of the reasons why I believe we reject the freedom that Christ offers
us is because we don't perceive it as being free. We feel that it costs us
something. Often times something that we don't want to give up. For me,
it was fun (or the idea of what fun meant to me at the time). I didn't want
to give up my fun, my friends, the partying, my reputation, people liking
me, and the attention. After years of trying to be in the 'in crowd', I was
finally living "The Good Life" and I did not want to give that up! So I
understand how one could feel that Christianity is deceptive when we say
"There is FREEDOM in Jesus!" and "Accept this FREE gift of salvation! The
price has already been paid!" You don't think the full price has been paid,
but you do believe that you'll be responsible for the remaining balance.
Here's the truth… Maybe it IS a little deceiving. Maybe there is some
fine print that you need to be made aware of. Although you don't have to
pay anything, you may be required to give up something. Those things that
you so desperately want to hold on to – those are actually chains. They
rule over you. They control your decisions. They keep you from moving
beyond a certain radius, and the freedom that you believe you have now is
actually a facade. You see, in order to be truly free you MUST give up the
chains, the burdens, and the strongholds. When you do, I guarantee that
you will experience a freedom like never before!
The fun and partying that I thought I would have to give up… Never
happened! I still went on vacations with friends, I continued to have fun,
and I still enjoy life. I'm truly happy. The only difference is that now I
don't feel like I have to do or act a certain way (for the benefit of
others) in order to have fun. Now I don't rely on people or substances to
make me believe that I'm having fun. Now I don't desire the attention and
accalades of others telling me that I'm the life of the party. When I
needed those things, I was enslaved by those things. But now, I'm FREE to
enjoy the things that I want to enjoy, regardless of what others think. I
have given up those chains and am free to be me!
I read a Joyce Meyer devotional that deeply resonated with me, and I wanted to share:
Free to Be Relentless
Relentlessly pursuing God is not necessarily easy, but it's definitely
worth it. However, you can't really pursue God until you've first
experienced real freedom.
God is in the business of setting us free, and it's glorious to be free
from guilt, condemnation, and always wondering what people are thinking of
us.
We're set free from the concern of failing when we know who we are in
Christ. This brings us the courage to be able to step out and pursue God's
promises.
One of the greatest freedoms God has given me is the freedom to be me. For
years I tried to be something I wasn't, feeling like I needed to be like
this or like that, all the while knowing I wasn't like everyone else. Yet,
I kept trying to be like others until I learned through my relationship
with God who He created me to be. This also set me free from me, so I can
focus on Jesus and reaching out to others the way He wants me to.
Philippians 3 says Paul was determined, or relentless, to have the things
that Christ Jesus died for, to know Him and the power of His resurrection.
I believe when we are born again, there is a spirit of determination that
rises within us. We can call it Holy Spirit passion or zeal, and it's what
gives us the 'oomph' we need during hard times to say, 'I will not give up
on having an intimate, passionate, deep, personal relationship with God. I
will not give up on being all that Christ wants me to be.'
Be relentless to stay in faith and receive God's promises. Remember, you
belong to Him and He's given you a relentless spirit!
Christ died to give us true freedom. Freedom that the world can not offer. Whom the Son has set free, is free indeed.
