“It was for freedom that Christ set us free…” Galatians 5:1a (NASB)
What is a primary reason that a person doesn’t feel that they can be who they really are? Fear! Why can’t they do what they want to do? Fear! What holds them back from having what they want to have? Fear! What are we so afraid of that we let fear keep us from being ourselves?
There is a fear of being controlled. There is a fear of being hurt and a fear of being taken advantage of. There is a fear of failing. There is a fear of succeeding. There is a fear of rejection and a fear of abandonment. There are fears of the past, fears of the future and fears of the unknown. There are fears of being criticized, judged or misunderstood. There are fears of being inadequate or insufficient. There are many, many fears!
Fear will immobilize a person from going where they want to go in life. Fear will quench the fire of our desire, disguise our identity, stunt our growth and steal our goods. Fear is the opposite of free, and Christ wants us to be free!
In freedom we have the liberty to be who we were uniquely created to be. We can live and love without limits. We can expose our passion without the fear of ridicule. We can reach higher with our dreams and wider with our influence. We can release our confidence and expect our reward!
Christ wants us to know the freedom that we can have through faith in Him. Freedom has a price, and Christ paid that price for us. We are no longer slaves to fear. Our prison door has been opened, and we are free to walk out of it. We are free because we are in Him – we don’t stand in our own strength; we lean on His strength. Through His strength we can do anything and go anywhere. We can have what He tells us we can have and we can be who He tells us to be!
Our faith in Him will liberate us to action. Not only do we know that the prison door is open, but we will have the boldness to step through that door into all God has for us. We are free!
Application: II Timothy 1:7 says, “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.” It is our choice whether or not we are going to accept the freedom that Christ gave His blood for. Today, choose to receive His freedom and shake off those chains of fear that have tried to hold you down. Be all God intended for you to be in the freedom of His love!