Are you truly set free?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living

Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
(John 8:31b-32 (NIV))

This is probably the easiest saying of Jesus to comprehend, yet the most difficult to actually fulfill. Each of us wants to hold onto Jesus’ teachings, yet, we are only human, and are not capable of the perfection that Jesus modeled. Luckily, we are not held to this perfection. This perfection was modeled through the Law of Moses. We are still to model ourselves after this law, but, God knows that this law is impossible to perfectly keep by people who have inherited imperfection. This imperfection is due to the introduction of sin into the world by Adam and Eve.

Jesus was and is the perfect person. The ONLY perfect person to have ever lived. Since He was perfect in God’s eyes, He is the perfect Lamb of God who was sacrificed for atonement for all sin, EVER! How awesome to have someone perfect in God’s eyes on our side!

If we accept that Jesus is the perfect Lamb of God, then we must accept His teachings. If we accept His teachings, then we must accept the truth that Jesus brought to earth. This truth truly does set you free.

Free from sin and death!

Are you truly set free?

Copyright 1998 – 2019 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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Have you received adoption to sonship?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living

But when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship.
(Galatians 4:4-5 (NIV))

Do you like to live under laws?

Think about that in relationship to what a law actually does. A law, any law, God’s Law, basically says what you cannot do. It also sets out the punishment for disobedience, for missing the mark, for sinning.

for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
(Romans 3:23 (NIV))

For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
(Romans 6:23 (NIV))

Even if it is worded in a positive tone, the end result still limits you in some aspects. Human nature has always been rebellious when told what we can or cannot do. Think about that in relationship to the fall from grace in the Garden of Eden. Adam and Eve only had one rule, one law, that they had to obey. They could not eat of the fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. We all know how that turned out! We have been paying the price for breaking God’s law ever since.

Since we have proven ourselves to be rebellious, God had to give us more laws. After all, we have proven that we can’t be trusted to do the right thing. God created these laws after one or more of our ancestors did something wrong in His eyes. He gave us commandments that tell us how we are to respect Him by not having other gods, by not making images, by not misusing the name of the Lord, and by setting aside one day to rest and be in His presence. He also gave us commandments that tell us how to deal with each other. We are to honor our father and mother. We aren’t supposed to murder. We are to abstain from having sex with someone who is not our spouse. We are told not to steal, and we are told not to lie. We are also told not to long for or lust after something someone else has.

I realize that these laws are intended to be good, for they define sin, but have you ever stopped to consider what heaven is like? It is a place where God’s perfect presence exists. Sin is not present! If sin is not present, there is no need for a law that defines sin. There is no need for punishment to be defined. We will be filled with an amazing peace and an amazing freedom from sin and law! All of this is a gift of grace!

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
(John 3:16 (NIV))

We will be called sons and daughters of the most high God! We will be co-heirs with Christ!

Have you received adoption to sonship?

Copyright 1998 – 2018 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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Jesus offers grace from the Law!

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living

“Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. Anyone who breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.
(Matthew 5:17-20 (NIV))

Many people read the Old Testament and the Laws and think that they do not apply to them because they are under the blood of Jesus.

On the contrary, they still apply. What God gave man through the Law still applies. We must live by the Law. They are guidelines for how God wants us to live. But, unlike the Jews before Jesus came, we are granted salvation from the consequences of our inability to uphold the Law.

God knew that man could not uphold the Law on his own. He knew that we would need a means of grace in order to be righteous. Thank you God for sending us Your Son, Jesus Christ.

When you are faced with things of this world, remember that Jesus is our example! Jesus offers grace from the Law!

Copyright 1998 – 2018 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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I am so thankful for grace!

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ^©

“Woe to you experts in the law, because you have taken away the key to knowledge. You yourselves have not entered, and you have hindered those who were entering.”
(Luke 11:52 (NIV))

I am afraid to say that we still have people alive today who fall into this category. These people take what should be simple, God-given guidelines on how we are to live our lives and turn them into legalistic ritual controlled by man.

God did not intend for us to spend so much time worried about the details that we miss the grace and the joy that He has freely given to us. How can we be joyful in our salvation if we are worried about following legalistic rituals that are human traditions and not required of God? If you remember, the word “sin” is an archery term that means to miss the mark. Legalism holds us to the judgement of missing that mark.

The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.
(1 Corinthians 15:56 (NIV))

Jesus came into this world so that we would be free from the law of sin and death. He did not mean that we could continue to sin. He gave us freedom to escape the consequences of sin and death. We are to follow the law, but since we are not perfect, we cannot uphold the law in all things. Legalism requires that we be letter perfect in all things and at all times. People who become experts in the law seem to like to point out the flaws of others. They don’t offer guidance and grace, only condemnation. Through the law, there is no victory.

But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
(1 Corinthians 15:57 (NIV))

Copyright 1998 – 2016 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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