From the Pulpit: Freedom!

By: 
Pastor Richard Gordon, Living Springs Church

My family and I used to live on a large lake that was surrounded by many homes. On July 4 this lake became a total war zone – explosions, booms, whistles, light, smoke, floating confetti, and sparkles … everywhere! Beautiful and LOUD – and this would go on for hours, even to 2 or 3 in the morning! It was hard to take it all in! 

As we celebrate our nation’s birthday, we’re reminded of the precious freedoms we enjoy. “Freedom” of course, is not free, but has been bought with much blood. My utmost respect and thankfulness for all those throughout our history as a nation that put their country ahead of themselves. Many gave the best of their lives if not their lives to give us the freedom we have today. Our freedoms didn’t happen naturally, and they are indeed precious.

As we enjoy our freedoms of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, we can however, still feel the chains of guilt, anxiousness, and heaviness of soul because inwardly, we’re not free. We’re weighed down by sin! That’s a problem none of us can conquer on our own. But the Good News is that God can and already has done so – on the cross!

Galatians 4:5(NLT) God sent him (Jesus) to buy freedom for us who were slaves to the law, so that he could adopt us as his very own children.

Jesus came to take every wrong thing we’ve ever done – selfishness, foul language, lust, deception, impure thoughts, rudeness, treachery, theft, slander, gossip, greed, course jokes, foolish talk, even murder – you name it, He took ALL our sins upon Himself on the cross.

What would motivate God to buy our freedom – to allow His Son to bear all our sin? LOVE! From the very beginning – God planned to rescue us! 

Ephesians 1:4,5,7(NLT) Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family… he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins.

To receive God’s forgiveness through His Son is to have true freedom, freedom that’s forever and freedom that’s impossible any other way! 

This Fourth of July, celebrate well this precious freedom we enjoy. All our freedom has come at a tremendous price!

 

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The Brandon Valley Journal

 

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