MONDAY: IT’S FOR FREEDOM THAT I’M SET FREE

Sep 19, 2022
2 min read

Lord, I do not want to be burdened by a yoke of slavery to sin. Please let Your Holy Spirit shine within me, so I feel the refreshing gift of Your righteousness.

Galatians 5:1-6

It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery. Mark my words! I, Paul, tell you that if you let yourselves be circumcised, Christ will be of no value to you at all. Again I declare to every man who lets himself be circumcised that he is obligated to obey the whole law. You who are trying to be justified by the law have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace. For through the Spirit we eagerly await by faith the righteousness for which we hope. For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.

The Apostle Paul has a gentle way of reminding people what they need to know. If I have been set free, I shouldn’t strive to be burdened again by the yoke of slavery. That yoke is a heavy one. When I was burdened by anxiety, I was weighed down by this yoke. When I was burdened with anger and unforgiveness, that yoke suffocated me. When I was carrying around the strain of hopelessness, that yoke afflicted me, so I couldn’t move forward.

Paul also tells me I shouldn’t attempt to be justified by the law. The law is not a bad thing: Without it we wouldn’t know what sin is. However, if I put my whole heart and soul into fulfilling the law and think that will get me into heaven, I am deceiving myself. The only way to heaven is through a relationship with Christ. If I put my faith in Christ, He will deliver to me His righteousness, which is my hope.

All my efforts to be worthy of heaven will fail. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through the love of Jesus Christ.

THINK ABOUT THESE THINGS: The temptation to backslide into the pit of slavery is constant. If I allow doubt to creep into my heart, it will confuse my mind and dilute my faith. Diluted faith sends me on a journey of hopelessness, through which I cross rivers of anxiety and mountains of anger.

The same yoke of slavery is also placed upon me if I think too much of myself. If I believe my good works can justify my way to heaven, I am no better off than the Pharisees. There is nothing I can do to earn my way to heaven. Lord, allow me to see that the only way to enter heaven is to confess Jesus is the Son of God, to believe He died for my sins, and to believe He rose from the dead. Through this belief, You give me Your righteousness, and I have hope in Your salvation and in eternal life with You.

May you be blessed,

Chaplain Wayne Ruckman