ARE YOU FREE?

MEMORY VERSE: If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed. John 8:36

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: 1 John 1-3

BIBLE READING: Mark 5:1-20

Most young people clamour for freedom or independence. They want to be free from dad and mum or their guardians. They want to be responsible to no-one, report to no-one, answer to no-one, and take instruction from no-one. They want to able do their own thing without anyone questioning them. They don’t want to be told how to dress, speak, or conduct themselves in the public. They want to be free to express themselves especially through their appearance, actions, words, etc. They no longer want to be confined or tied down by so-called “constraints”. They argue that “freedom” is necessary for them to be creative and to maximise their potential. You don’t have to be free to be creative. You can be creative whilst you are being discipled. One of the most creative kings in the history of man is King Uzziah. 2 Chronicles 26:15 says: “And he made in Jerusalem engines, invented by cunning men, to be on the towers and upon the bulwarks, to shoot arrows and great stones withal. And his name spread far abroad; for he was marvellously helped, till he was strong.” He invented all those powerful engines whilst he was being discipled by Prophet Zechariah (2 Chronicles 26:5).

One thing I want you to know is that there are people whom God has ordained to disciple you. You need to be under certain people at certain times so as to become who God created you to be. If not for Eli, Samuel wouldn’t have learnt how to hear the voice of God. Just as you can’t be a medical doctor without going to the medical school, you can’t be who God created you to be without attending the school of disciples. It is a dangerous thing not to have someone you report to. A lot of social ills can be traced back to the lack of discipleship or mentoring. A man who is responsible to no-one may end up becoming irresponsible if care is not taken. From time to time, I hear people mention names of authors, they have neither met nor spoken to, as their discipler. That’s not possible. A discipler should be someone you can walk to and ask questions. A discipler should be someone who knows you personally. A man without a discipler is an easy prey for the enemy. Satan has put many, as a result of not being discipled, into bondage without knowing. A lot are in bondage without knowing. For instance, a lady who wears a short skirt she has to pull down every minute is not free. Or, one who can’t sit properly because of her skirt. Why make life difficult for yourself? Behind the clamor for freedom to do anything you want is the spirit of rebellion.

The first step in securing freedom is to accept that you are in bondage, just as the first step in solving any problem is to accept that there is a problem. God have been unable to help many because they have not accepted that they need His help. I hope our leaders will one day realise that they need God to solve our problems. The mad man of Gadara had to first accept that He was in bondage before Christ could help Him. The second step is run to Jesus. John 8:38 says: “If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.” That mad man saw Jesus and ran to Him. If you are yet to give your life to Christ, do so now. And if you have backslidded, you need to return to Him today. Once Christ sets you free, you need to walk in that freedom. One way to stay free is run from sin. Sin complicates your life.

QUESTION: Are you free? Not until you accept Jesus as your personal Lord and saviour, you are not free.

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Bro Samuel | Reaching the world

Freedom indeed

John 8:36 says if the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.

The first thing to learn from this verse is there is no freedom anywhere else except in Jesus . One of the names of Jesus is the Truth ,John 14:6 . John 8:32 says And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free .There is no freedom in joining the occult because it is selling ones life to the devil. At times there is no freedom in divorce because in a bid to become free through divorce, one rather ends us up in a bigger bondage. Malachi 2:16 says For the LORD, the God of Israel, says that he hates putting away: For one covers violence with his garment, says the LORD of hosts: therefore take heed to your spirit that you deal not treacherously. There are many teenagers who see moving out of their parent’s house as means of getting freedom. Most of them later find out twenty, thirty years later that the decision to leave home at a early age restricted them and set them in bondage one way or the other. Freedom only comes from Jesus. Romans 8:2 say because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death.

Another thing to learn is there are two types of freedom. According to John 8:36,  there is one called ordinary freedom and there is freedom indeed.  In Luke 5:1-7, Peter received freedom from fruitless efforts. In Luke 13:10-17, the woman with the bent back received freedom from her sickness of eighteen years. In Luke 17:11-19, out of the ten lepers Jesus healed, nine of them received freedom but the one that came back to praise God received freedom indeed. The bible says he was made whole. One way to receive freedom indeed is to be thankful for the freedom we have received in Christ.

Do you know that it is possible for Jesus to set a man free and the man still remains in bondage? Proverbs 23:7 says as a man thinks, in his heart so is he. Gideon was born a warrior –mighty man of valor but his self limiting belief put him in bondage. Imagine the one whom the angel of God addressed as a mighty man of valor calling himself a weakling (Judges 6:11-15) , so also Moses and Saul. They were all born to achieve mighty things but their self limiting believes worked against them.

ACTION POINT: Jesus has set you free; do not put yourself in bondage with your thoughts.