Day 1 -- PRINCIPLES OF EMPOWERMENT -- Free Indeed: The Beginning of Empowerment
Welcome to Day 1 of the devotional, "Principles of Empowerment!"
Day 1 has been posted early to help you get started. Selected lessons will be posted on this page many days this month. To follow daily, you can download the free PDF of the Principles of Empowerment ebook or purchase the Kindle or print edition on Amazon. A link to the devotional ebook is available at www.NewCovenant.org.
____________
John 8:31, Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. 32 And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”
Say this out loud: “In Christ I am free indeed and free forever!”
Freedom is a treasure and a legacy. It is a treasure because it is valuable. It is a legacy because we did not create it, we only inherited freedom. Freedom and responsibility go hand in hand. We have the responsibility to live a certain way and we have the responsibility to share our blessings with our family and with others.
When Jesus says He makes us “free indeed” He is talking about freedom in the total sense, at every level. The word “indeed” means: Truly, in reality, in point of fact, as opposed to what is pretended, fictitious, false, conjectural.
God’s word provides the basis and operating manual for freedom of the spirit and soul.
Psalms 119:98, Your commands make me wiser than my enemies, for they are my constant guide.
Many people are not living in freedom at the foundational level because they have not experienced freedom indeed through Christ.
There is a catch: With freedom comes responsibility. It is our faith followed by actions that determine if we are experiencing God’s best. Everything we enjoy may not always be God’s best for us.
Looking again at our text in John 8, notice how the Jewish people responded to Jesus’ statement about truth and freedom, They answered Him, “We are Abraham’s descendants, and have never been in bondage to anyone. How can You say, ‘You will be made free’?” (v. 33)
They felt that their religious and racial affiliation with Abraham was enough. They reasoned they already possessed all the truth and freedom they needed. We don’t want to make that same mistake in leaning only on our feelings, on mere religious traditions, or what our society defines as freedom.
To be “free indeed” requires a Savior. Jesus is the beginning of true empowerment and association with God’s brand of truth and freedom.
Reflection Question: What have I substituted for the true freedom that only Christ can give?
Key insight I gained today:
Today’s action item based on insight:
