TODAY’S SIGNATURE VERSE ••• Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed. (John 8:36 NKJV)
PRAISE & PRAYER PROMPT ••• This week, we celebrated America’s 246th birthday — 246 years of freedom. But the freedoms Americans take for granted aren’t given to us by the government. Correctly credited in the Declaration of Independence, our freedoms are “endowed by our Creator.” It’s only the government’s job to uphold them. Given the instability of our government, I’m very grateful to know that my rights aren’t contingent upon them.
Instead — God gives all mankind freedom. But our God-given freedoms have far bigger implications than our Freedom of Speech, Right to Bear Arms, or any of the other Constitutional freedoms we have.
If we choose Jesus — we are freed from the bondage of sin. We are free to enjoy the gift of salvation because His death paid the penalty we owed for our sins. We are free to enjoy peace and have hope, no matter our circumstances, because of the Holy Spirit living inside us. True freedom is found when we surrender at the feet of Jesus.
If we don’t choose Jesus — well, it’s every person’s God-given freedom to reject Him. But those people aren’t free from the consequences of their choices… and with the rejection of Christ, they face an eternity separated from Him. It’s the wrong choice. But it’s one God gives people the freedom to make.
The Bible is clear: the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23). And we are all sinners (Romans 3:23). But yet while we were still sinners, Christ died for us (Romans 5:8). And in Jesus’ own Words, “Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed” (John 8:36).
Though the freedom to choose is our own, we live in a world where the Blame Game is everyone’s favorite pastime. And many people ask, “Why does God send people to hell?” And the answer is: He doesn’t. People choose their eternal destination in this lifetime. Make no mistake — God created hell as a punishment, but it wasn’t designed for people. It was designed for Satan and his demons… Hell became a place for humans when sin entered the world because sin must be punished. And it’s eternal punishment. Matthew 25:46 says, “And these will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.” God gave us a way to escape the punishment when we put our faith in Jesus Christ. We just have to choose it.
He gave us the freedom to choose because He didn’t create us to be mindless robots. God loves us and wants our love in return. But true love always gives a choice… we choose to love Him, or we choose to love ourselves.
So in the words of Joshua — “…Choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve…But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord” (Joshua 24:15).
Today, as you pray, thank God for your freedom! Thank Him that in His grace and mercy, He gives His own creation (you and me!) the freedom to choose. Pray for those who haven’t yet accepted Christ to choose wisely. This world is so temporary and eternity is so long… 2 Corinthians 4:17-18 reminds us, “For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.”
Choose well.
SHARING ••• My Grace-Full Life is written by Denise Heidel. You are welcome to share anything I write, but please credit my writing and graphics accordingly. Visit www.MyGraceFullLife.com to read past blogs. Subscribe through my website to have My Grace-Full Life delivered to your email. You can unsubscribe at any time. Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture references are from the NKJV translation.
