Tag Archives: Freedom

Forgiveness Keeps on Giving

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A year or two ago, I wrote a post about forgiveness and sin. I feel led to continue the conversation. Matthew 6:14, NLT shares “For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your father forgive your trespasses.”

God teaches us that forgiveness is a gift—one that continues to give. When someone forgives, they become the giver, and another person becomes the recipient. This recipient may then reflect on the gift they received and choose to pass on the gift of forgiveness to someone else. By forgiving, your heart softens, allowing you to open the door to receive God’s forgiveness.

If you do not forgive others, the Lord will not forgive you. How can He? Sin and forgiveness cannot coexist. To be forgiven, you must let go of the sin that is holding you captive. Many of us know someone who is imprisoned by hate, anger, and disdain for someone who has wronged them. Who is truly hurting in this situation: the person harboring hate or the recipient of that hate? God does not want us to be bound by hate; instead, He desires for us to release it through repentance and forgiveness of those who have wronged us. He wants to set you free through your forgiveness.

Unforgiveness is sinful and stems from a lack of faith. This lack of faith robs you of your joy. It is impossible to feel hate and joy simultaneously; they cannot coexist. On the other hand, forgiveness is liberating. It is an expression of love, not directed at the person you are forgiving, but offered to our Lord and Savior. In turn, He acknowledges this change in your heart.

When you create space by forgiving others, God fills that space with His forgiveness for your own sins. This divine love fills you with joy, and that joy has a powerful impact. It opens the door for your renewed self to take control of your life.

Charles Stanley summarized it this way, “Through the grace of Jesus Christ, you have the spiritual resources to forgive others. When you release someone of a debt he or she owes, you were no longer bound by the spirit of unforgiveness or bitterness. You are free to see that individual as Christ does, anger no longer has the power to rule your life and decisions.

Forgiveness does not mean that what the person did was right. It means that you have turned him or her over to God. You are no longer holding on to the unforgiveness, and you are free to live fully for Jesus Christ.” (Life Principles Bible, Second Edition. pg. 1492)

The Misery of Sin, by Pastor Greg Laurie, Daily Devotional, April 22, 2022. Harvest Church.

“Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and make me willing to obey you.” Psalm 51:12

There’s a difference between sinning, knowing it, and being sorry for it and intentionally, habitually sinning again and again. If you’re a child of God, then you won’t habitually sin. You won’t be sinless, but you will sin less.

If you really have accepted God’s gift of salvation, then you will be unhappy and miserable when you’ve sinned. The Bible tells us in 1 John 3:9, “Those who have been born into God’s family do not make a practice of sinning, because God’s life is in them. So they can’t keep on sinning, because they are children of God” (NLT).

This verse doesn’t say that if you’re a child of God, you won’t sin because everyone sins all the time. But if you’re a child of God, then you won’t be happy after you sin, you’ll feel convicted and you’ll want to get right with God.

There are sins of commission and sins of omission. A sin of commission is when you do what you should not do, while a sin of omission is not doing what you should do. The Bible says, “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us” (1 John 1:8 NKJV).

If you want to be unhappy, then have unconfessed sin in your life. Happiness does not come from sinning. Misery, guilt, and repercussions come from sinning. That is why the Bible says, “Oh, what joy for those whose disobedience is forgiven, whose sin is put out of sight!” (Psalm 32:1 NLT).

After David sinned against the Lord, he wrote, “Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and make me willing to obey you” (Psalm 51:12 NLT).

Jesus said, “Apart from me you can do nothing” (John 15:5 NLT). It isn’t hard to be a Christian—it’s impossible . . . without the help and power of the Holy Spirit.

Forgiveness is a difficult undertaking, however, if you trust in the Lord the difficulty will melt away. 

God Given Authority

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God gave us the authority to free ourselves from the shackles of the evil one. ~ Lisa Blair

Freedom is the response to faith and prayer. We pray and pray, but do we operate in God’s authority when we pray? As Christian’s we are seated with Christ in the heavenly place above all principalities and power. Paul pronounces this truth in Ephesians. 

“And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus,” Ephesians 2:6 NIV

We sit in a place of authority. When we recognize we have authority, then we should also recognize our prayers are powerful prayers, prayed by a person in authority – you. This power was bestowed upon us when we received Christ as our Lord and Savior. We are authorized to pray using the power bestowed upon us. In short, we all have the potential to be prayer warriors. Galatians explains that we are not weak, but strong. Paul tells us to be strong in the Lord. We are encouraged to pray with authority. We must learn to operate in God’s authority.

An article entitled What does Ephesians 2:6 mean? Knowing-Jesus.com explains it this way:

As believers we are united with Christ, and because the Lord Jesus broke the power of sin and death and hell when He rose from the dead, the strength of sin in our lives has also been broken and we have been raised up into newness of life, in Him.

But God did so much more for us when the Lord Jesus died and rose from the dead (and then ascended into heaven, to sit at the right hand of the Father in great glory and majesty), we discover that we have a new and eternal position, simply because we believe in Jesus. We have been positioned in Christ and exalted together with Him into heavenly places, IN HIM. We have been seated spiritually in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus.

Source: https://dailyverse.knowing-jesus.com/ephesians-2-6

Further, Ephesians commands us to be strong…

“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people. Ephesians 6:10-18 NIV

John Eckhardt author of Routing Out Demons, explains that “we have the authority to tread on serpents and scorpions”, not because it’s is a mortal thought, but our responsibility as children of God. We are his ambassadors on earth. We are his workers. God gave us authority to overcome the evil ones’ intent to kill, steal and destroy. He empowered us with His Word with is our manual to operate while we live on this earth. The Bible is our shelter. His promises protect us. His commands empower us. I believe that anything that confronts us can be considered serpents and scorpions. We suffer the onslaughts because we fail to live in God’s authority. We do not pray in His power, or His hope for our futures. We do what many call, ‘hoping and a prayin’, as if we are reciting something outside of ourselves. When we treat this as an intellectual practice, we fail to operate un the authority bestowed upon us. We do not do this on our own accord, the Holy Spirit guides our prayers. His Word is nestled in us. His power and authority is in us. We must operate in His power and authority. Jesus shared with his disciples in Luke 6, “I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you. We are the Lord’s present day disciples. Luke explains the same in Luke 10:19,21 NKJV. “Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you.” 

We have the authority given to us through the resurrection of Christ and at the direction of the Holy Spirit to loose ourselves and our loved one from illness, financial burden, loss and spiritual darkness. We have been empowered to pray in God’s Name through continuous and fervent prayer. We are to confess His Word and the promised outcomes for his people. This is not magic. It is not some self proclaimed power. It is a gift from God. His Will may not always align with ours. Our prayer may not be answered immediately. It may not fall in the scope of what God wants for us at a particular time. There will be times that the answer is ‘no’ or ‘not now’. But it is His desire for us to, in modern terminology, activate the promises He has given us. In the Book of Matthew, we read how Christ empowered His disciples with the authority to heal, spiritually and physically. We are His spiritual children and He has empowered us through the Word to do the same, use His authority in praying and confessing His promises when we pray other ourselves and others.   

We can proclaim freedom from the shackles of the evil one, we can tread on serpents and scorpions through prayer with conviction. 


Scriptures – Bible.com

Excerpt – God Focus, from Our Daily Bread

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This morning I flipping through my copy of the June edition of Our Daily Bread and stopped on the June 4, 2022 Devotional, God Focus by Adam Holz. The scripture reference is 1 Timothy 6:6-11.

Our Daily Bread

I am sharing this because the title immediately captured my attention. Some 26 days later it was speaking to me and as you read this, most likely many of you. You see, I fall in the category of being a maximizer. My husband is a satisfacer. It worked well when I was younger or so I thought. Actually it kept me up nights. I was never really content. The truth is, I was always envious of my husband who was as a satisfacer and was content with life as it was, not to overlook the fact that he slept well. There is a saying that I guess satisfacers understand and live, ‘let go, and let God’. Others of us hear it, but are not ensconced in it.

In delving into my past, I now realize you can be a satisfacer, content with what you have and where you are in life and still pursue the path of your God given destiny. Wanting more is not wrong if you do not allow it to govern your life, as the money pleasers in the Bible learned being driven by greed and the need for attention is nothing more than an albatross around your neck.

It is time for me to transition from being a maximizer, always seeking more, perfecting more, and needing more and begin to open my life to being a satisfacer. How many of us are loosing time being maximizers? In looking back being a maximizer caused me to loose time, and the enjoyment of life. When you are a maximizer you are in the maximizer prison, striving for more and missing out on life. As you read this, think about my last post, do you need to view life through a new lens, a new perspective? Is it time to look through our makers eyes as Paul was instructing Timothy to consider. Is contentment all you really need?

EXCERPT, Adam Holz

When I was shopping for engagement rings, I spent many hours looking for exactly the right diamond. I was plagued by the thought, What if I miss the best one?


According to economic psychologist Barry Schwartz, my chronic indecision indicates that I am what he calls a “maximizer,” in contrast to a “satisficer.” A satisficer makes choices based on whether something is adequate for their needs. Maximizers? We have a need to always make the best choice (guilty!). The potential outcome of our indecision in the face of many choices? Anxiety, depression, and discontent. In fact, sociologists have coined another phrase for this phenomenon: fear of missing out.


We won’t find the words maximizer or satisficer in Scripture, of course. But we do find a similar idea. In 1 Timothy, Paul challenged Timothy to find value in God rather than the things of this world. The world’s promises of fulfillment can never fully deliver. Paul wanted Timothy to instead root his identity in God: “Godliness with contentment is great gain” (6:6). Paul sounds like a satisficer when he adds, “But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that” (v. 8).


When I fixate on the myriad ways the world promises fulfillment, I usually end up restless and unsatisfied. But when I focus on God and relinquish my compulsive urge to maximize, my soul moves toward genuine contentment and rest.

Reflect – Would you say you tend to be a content person? Why or why not? How do you think your relationship with God affects your overall contentment in life?

Pray – Father, help me to remember that only You can fill my soul.

Insight – One of the most misquoted statements in Scripture is 1 Timothy 6:10: “The love of money is a root of all kinds of evil.” Notice that money itself isn’t the root of evil, but when it becomes the object of our love, that’s when the problems begin. Because money is so seductive, Jesus addressed this issue at the launch of His public ministry. In the Sermon on the Mount, He spoke of the value of pursuing treasure in heaven rather than money. Why? Matthew 6:21 explains that “where [our] treasure is, there [our] heart will be also.” Jesus also addressed a primary reason we seek security in money—worry. He reminded us that the God who cares for “the birds of the air” values us and can be trusted to provide for our needs (vv. 25–27).

I highly recommend downloading the Our Daily Bread App from your App Store or visiting their Website – https://odb.org/. It is a great tool to begin your day.

WE ARE COMMANDED TO LOVE ONE ANOTHER—PLAIN, NOT NECESSARILY SIMPLE

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Each day should be a demonstration of what Gods’ love does for us and through us. Let others see His light shine through you. After all, we have been charged with the responsibility to do so.

~ Lisa Blair
@YouVersion

What is agape love, and why are Christians responsible for sharing it with others?

AGAPE LOVE

Agape love is the highest expression of love, it is selfless, pure, and unconditional. We are the recipients of God’s love, and as recipients of His love, we are freed through it. His agape love indwells in us in the form of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is our light that shines through us into the outside world. This love is demonstrated daily through our words, thoughts and actions. We can either interact using our carnal character, our attitude, as our guide, or display the virtues of Christ, that inform our behavior.

Jesus speaks about our attitude towards one another and how love is unconditional and expresses the nature of God, 1 John 4:8m NIV.

8 Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. 9 This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. 10 This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. 11 Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.

VEIL LIFTED

The main reason unbelievers don’t see Jesus is because a veil is covering their hearts and their “spiritual eyes.” They cannot see Jesus through the veil. Their hearts are covered and their minds are blinded. Says who? Says God. He tells us in His Word, “The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the Gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.” (2 Cor. 4:4)  [Christian Post, Dan Delzell, Contributor. Turning To The Lord Lifts The Veil. July 2013]

We are charged with and commanded to love. We can longer view the world, our family, friends, and associates through carnal (human) eyes. The veil has been lifted from our eyes. We are commanded to love unconditionally. We can no longer focus on situations, or circumstances;we can no longer hate others, lie (little lies are often more deadly than pronounced lies because they are more difficult to discern), cheat, or steal. Stealing can include stealing someone’s happiness with foul words discrediting them, or frowning at them to unsettle their continence.

LIFE BY THE SPIRIT

Galatians 5 explains why we can no longer rely on our old behavior to govern our lives. My last Post was about being freed, we are free of our sins, because Christ died on the Cross for us and is now sitting at the right hand of God. Freedom comes at a cost, we must shed our old selves for our new selves. We are children of Christ, and we belong to a new family. This means we have to exchange our old behaviors for our new virtues. Paul wrote in Galatians,

13 You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh[a]; rather, serve one another humbly in love. 14 For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.”[b] 15 If you bite and devour each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other. 16 So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. 17 For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever[c] you want. 18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.

ACTS OF THE FLESH, OUR CARNAL SELF

19 The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; 20 idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions 21 and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.

Our carnal nature ensnares us to follow the world, we are bound to it. We are either God’s’ children, continually fighting against the carnal pull, or we are the evil one’s children embracing our own demise.

FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT

As Christians, we can strive to overcome our carnal nature, crucify our flesh and live by the spirit. This is accomplished by changing our attitude, our behavior, to align with the Fruit of the Spirit. As we do so, we mature and become more Christ-like through our walk.

22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. 24 Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. 25 Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. 26 Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other.

THE CLOSING POINT

God so loved us He gave us His only Son, who suffered for us in human form to experience trials, temptations and failures to free us of sin. Our suffering will never equal or come close to His, nor will our love for others, nonetheless, when we receive Christ as our Lord and Savior we are bound to spread the Good News that is based on agape love. Our veil has been removed and we shed the shackles of sin. It is time that we love our neighbors and those of this earth as God does. My mother once told me, ” never hate, love everyone as God does, it is not the person but the behavior that keeps them bound to the flesh.”

Every person has the birth right of redemption if they received Christ as their Lord and Savior. As Christians, we continually receive God’s love, despite our sins. As Christians, we have been commanded to love one another unconditionally. No excuses. The world has been in turmoil throughout history. We are but a vapor that appears for awhile and then vanishes away, 1 John 4:14, paraphrased. Our Lord is the High Priest. He is eternal, and so is His Word. Again, we are commanded to love one another as He loves us.

References – Biblegateway.com; GotQuestions.org; The Christian Post; BibleHub.com

Scriptures: Biblegateway.com

Image – YouVersion, Bible.com; LAB PHOTOS

Freedom From Sin Requires Work

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‭‭John‬ ‭8:36‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

Once we have been freed, we are not to return to the servitude of our sin nature, our carnal man framed in lust, ego, material gains, and all that aligns with the evil one’s motives to destroy us and separate us from a Godly life.

Maintaining freedom from sin is a daily struggle; it is easy to slip back into our old ways like Peter who later became Christ’s (primary)Apostle. The beauty is that Jesus has freed us and; we have been given the gift of sanctification and redemption.

Not to sound preachy, but we must remain alert and operate in clarity to overcome the old shackles of sin and continue to live by God’s Will and His Way.

When we find ourselves falling prey to temptation, we must immediately self-correct. It is easier to do if the act or thought requires significant input, but much more difficult if it is subtle.

The new decade allows us to walk down the path of obedience, especially during this time of global uncertainty. We must always stay alert. We are Gods’ children. We have been freed by the Son. We are free from our shackles of sin.

COMPASSION

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Compassion is part of our Christian lifestyle. Why aren’t we living the precepts we are governed by?

Lisa Blair

A few Wednesdays ago, my BSF small group discussed compassion as part of lesson 10. Living as Christ’s Followers, 1 Peter 3-5.

During the discussion, compassion was trending as predominately a Christian behavior, more so than any other religion. I believe most religions encourage their members to become more compassionate, this also includes secular groups, such as schools. Compassion is sought after by most people. It is a common theme among humanity.

Compassion is a feeling of deep sympathy and sorrow for another who is hurting, in pain, or has misfortune and is accompanied by a strong desire to help those who are suffering. (Bible Verses for Compassion. Biblestudytools.com)

      The Lord is good to all; He has compassion on all he has made. Psalm 145:9 NIV

When he saw the crowds (in the towns he visited), he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like the sheep without a Shepherd. Matthew 9:36 NIV

The difference between Christians and others and every other religion is that it is more profound, in that it is part of the makeup of our living God. The key is ‘living’ God who exudes compassion as part of who he is and the inspiration that we, too, internalize as part of His righteousness in the Holy Spirit who dwells in us.

The Lord is gracious and righteous; our God is full of compassion. PS 116:5 NIV

Natalie Dorin, Psalm 116:5-8 Twitter

Only Christians have a God who lived on earth without sin, was persecuted, suffered for us, died on the cross, and rose to heaven promising He will return someday to retrieve all believers and carry us to heaven with Him. He washed away our sins to give us new life and promises to return to earth and collect us (the believers) upon His return to usher us into heaven.

And as if that wasn’t enough, He returns a second time to receive those who had a change in heart and received Him as their Lord and Savior after the first were ushered into heaven. Our Lord is compassionate to the point of saving the least of us. We cannot earn His compassion; it is ours despite our flaws. He left the 99 sheep to go after the single lost sheep and carry him home.  No other religion can share our testimony about compassion.

Reference – BSF, Bible Study Fellowship, mybsf.org; Scriptures – Bible.org; Images – Google Images