Today is…

a glorious day to enjoy freedom.

“Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.”  2 Corinthians 3:17 NIV

It would probably be difficult to find somebody who enjoys being in prison.

To have our movements restricted; to be deprived of the ability to go where we wish, when we wish; to be surrounded by negativity and the ever-present possibility of danger; to be frightened and alone – thoughts of those things make us shudder and be thankful that we are not in that situation.

And yet, in a way, many people are in that situation, or worse, and haven’t figured it out yet.

When people live without Jesus Christ in their lives, they occupy a “spiritual prison.” They are chained by their sins, and kept prisoner by their sinful words, thoughts and actions. Before Christ died on the cross, we were all slaves to sin and were held prisoner by it.

But now, by accepting Christ and following His light, we can enjoy freedom, “For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death.” (Romans 8:2 NASB).

Many people have not accepted the Truth that is Jesus Christ, and are still held prisoner. We must all work to reveal the truth to those who are not aware so that they, too, can enjoy the freedom that Jesus offers to everyone.

Some of us, even knowing the truth, still voluntarily live our daily lives in a spiritual prison. Held there by the darkness of our sins, we forget that with Christ in our hearts, the shackles that bind us just fall away. Allowing ourselves to be filled with the Holy Spirit frees us from a self-imposed ‘jail cell’ that limits our ability to love others and live in a world inhabited by honesty, truth and sincerity.

We rob ourselves of happiness and we deny it to those closest to us.

Freeing ourselves from self-inflicted bondage should be something each of us desires more than anything else, for it is only when we are absent of a chained spirit that we are truly free to do the things that God expects from us.

If you are feeling a little closed in, it might be because you are allowing your sins to deny you your freedom. Ask Jesus to come into you and help you to change that.

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Taken from “TODAY IS….A Gift From God”, (C) 2013 Tony Casson