You are Set Free - Jeff and Alyssa

Thank you for joining us for the Devotional Spoken For Blog Tour! Robin and I are taking turns posting daily devotionals, going deeper into each chapter of Spoken For. We would love for you to study these truths with us and post in the comment section as we are all reminded that we are truly spoken for by our Relentless Lover! If you’d like to order Spoken For click here. SpokenForBlog_Day7_AJB

Freedom. I don’t know if I even let this word become part of my vocabulary until a few years ago. Yes, I knew that God had set me free from sin and death-that He had saved me from my sin, paid my debt that I could not pay- but I never let that truth enter into my daily life.

During my time with the Lord one morning, it hit me- God does not want me to live in the condemnation of my sin. He has set me free.

I AM FREE.

My sin no longer defines me.

Your sin no longer defines you if you’ve placed your life in His strong hands. You are not a mess up. You’re not the worrier, the fearful, the dirty one…no! You are a child of God, a son or daughter of our Great Father. You are made new. Set apart. You have a new identity, and one that allows you to live freely. You are no longer in the shackles of your shame, but rather you are clothed in His robe of righteousness, seen through Jesus’ eyes. YOU. ARE. HIS. And He delights in you.

“He rescued me, because he delighted in me.” Ps. 18:19b

God has delivered us from sin, from our past, from our shame, our guilt- but He has gone even further and has set us free to life. He wants us to live. To thrive. To have abundant life. I’ve been chewing on this truth for a couple of months now, and it’s still hard for me to swallow. Yes, I know that I am set free, but I also am still flesh and I sin. I still mess up. I’m sensitive. Prideful. Fearful. Insecure. I put others and other things before Jesus. My heart often loves stuff more than God. I get easily frustrated, disappointed, discouraged. And often, even though I know that I can call on God- and I do- I just stay in the mire and focus on the yucky. I let these things define me, instead of setting my mind on the things of Jesus- on the Spirit, and living in the freedom that Christ has called me into.

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So how do I let go of those things when they come up during the day? I have to fight for faith. I have to do battle with my flesh. And do it through the Spirit, in the Spirit, by the Spirit. I must cry out to my God who is my Rock- who is higher than I. And then remind myself of what He says of me- that I have been set free. That’s not me anymore. Let Him fill me with His good fruits. Replace the bad, for the good. Put off, put on.

I must learn to live as I’ve been called to- learn to live in my true identity.

“For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, ‘Abba! Father!’” Romans 8:15

Tuesday, April 22, 2014