Freedom In Christ

When Christ saved us, He freed us from more than we can possibly imagine. The power that held us in bondage was crippling. Our sin nature infected the entirety of who we were. Our thoughts, our motives, our actions were all drenched in the thick mire of sin. We truly were as dead men. Unable to reason. Unable to save ourselves. Unable to do or think anything that would be pleasing to God. The stench that emitted from our souls reached to high heaven and demanded justice to be dealt upon it. God, because of His great holiness, must punish sin. It is due to His very nature that He must. Sin cannot exist without the due penalty for it also existing. They must go hand in hand. They cannot be separated from each other. God knew this. He knew we were completely unable to do anything about our circumstances. He knew. He cared. He sent Christ. Jesus paid the debt. He took the nails. He took Hell for us and with a great cry, He fell into the depths of death for those that He loved. In doing so He freed us. He made us free who were once prisoners to a great many masters.

Christ Freed Us From The Curse

We were a people under a curse. This curse has been part of mankind since that fateful day that Adam and Eve ate the fruit and disobeyed their Creator. It is a dark, powerful curse that engulfs the bearer’s being in a way that even the darkest nightmares cannot bring to realization. This curse is sin. This sin is within all from the moment of conception. It reeks havoc within the soul, mind and heart. It infects everything throughly and causes the individual to think and act in a way that they were not designed to. This curse of sin is the reason we need a savior. When Jesus died, He took this curse and drank it to the dregs. He took it from us and became it Himself. He became the curse in order to free us from it. When regeneration occurs, this curse is lifted and we can begin to live in the way that we were designed to live. Glorifying God and living for Him. Although we still fight against this curse in our lives, the penalty for it is gone. We are no longer defined by its presence. The curse was broken and shattered under the foot of Christ. He pulled us from the depths of death and broke the cursed chains that held us there. Christ freed us from the curse.

Christ Freed Us From The Law

Christ also freed us from the law. Colossians 2:13-15 says,

“And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This He set aside, nailing it to the cross. He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in Him.”

I love the phrase here is Colossians “nailing it to the cross.” As if with every stroke of the hammer driving the nails deeper in our Savior’s hands and feet, the law was satisfied and our debt was paid. The law stood against us with its legal demands. It condemned us with the standard of perfection that it required. It accepted nothing less that complete and total adherence. One mistake, one diversion from its course and the hammer of the law came crashing down with its right and sure judgment. This was the standard set by God Himself in order for us to dwell with Him. Sin cannot be allowed in God’s Heaven. God’s holiness cannot and will not be tainted by sin. The demands of the law had to be met in order for us to enter into God’s presence again. We were not able to meet them. Jesus was. He came and followed the standard of the law perfectly in our place. Every law, every standard and every line He followed to the letter. After all, He is the one who wrote it. We do not need to be afraid of the law or its consequences. Christ freed us from the law by fulfilling its demands on our behalf. What a Savior!

Christ Freed Us From Ourselves

God knew that we were a faithless people. We are quick to anger, quick to unbelief, quick to doubt and quick to forget. The Israelites were a forgetful people. They could hardly go a few days before it seemed that they forgot the last miracle and fell into despair and disbelief. Christ’s disciples were the same way. They would forget and doubt even in the presence of God Himself. We are no different. We stumble. We fall. We forget who is within us. We forget that Christ is our advocate. We forget that He has paid the price, and we try to live in a way that justifies ourselves. We forget God’s sovereignty in all things as we fall into fear. We forget that Jesus is our comforter and great healer. We forget that our salvation is secure and there is nothing that can steal us away. Yet now that we have Christ, He is the one that gives us confidence in all these things. He is the one that comes to us in our distress and sorrow and holds us in the dark. He is the one that drives the fear away. We are frail and fragile people. We break easy. We crumble at the smallest test. We forget and forsake Christ just as His disciples did. We need saving. Our hearts are our own worst enemy. Jesus knows this. He is the one that saves us from ourselves.

So live in a way that shows you are free. Live in confidence, not fear. Hope, not despair. Humility, not pride. Love, not hate. Free, not condemned. This is what Christ did for us. This is what He is still doing for us. This is who He is. Breath the free air again my friends.

“Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.” Colossians 2:6-7.