OPEN HEAVENS DAILY DEVOTIONAL. FRIDAY 5 SEPTEMBER 2014.

THEME : FREEDOM.
MEMORISE : And ye shall know the truth, and
the truth shall make you free. JOHN 8 : 32.
READ : JOHN 8 : 31 - 36.
31 Then said Jesus to those Jews which
believed on him, If ye continue in my word,
then are ye my disciples indeed;
32 And ye shall know the truth, and the truth
shall make you free.
33 They answered him, We be Abraham's
seed, and were never in bondage to any man:
how sayest thou, Ye shall be made free?
34 Jesus answered them, Verily, verily, I say
unto you, Whosoever committeth sin is the
servant of sin.

35 And the servant abideth not in the house
for ever: but the Son abideth ever.
36 If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye
shall be free indeed.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR : JOHN 19 : 17 - 21 : 25 &
JOB 33 : 19 - 33.
Freedom is generally defined as the power of
self-determination attributable to the will. It
is the power to act, speak or think as you want
without hindrance, constraint or restriction.
However, the freedom that Jesus promised is
freedom in which a man is set free from the
power of the devil, sin, sickness, poverty and
failure. It is a freedom that is the possession
of born-again children of God who have been
liberated through the blood of Christ. It is a
freedom that doesn’t rule out obedience to the
commandments of God and submission to the
will of God. This freedom is a freedom of
choice: a choice to submit to Jesus and follow
Him all the days of our lives; a choice to live a
holy and righteous life, and a choice to reject
the devil, his demonic activities and their
influences in our lives.
There are lots of misconceptions about the
freedom that Jesus promised His followers. It
is definitely not an invitation to lawlessness
and self-will as some Christians suppose. The
freedom Jesus promised comes through strict
obedience to the word of God and its
conditions. Jesus says, if you continue in His
word, you will come face to face with the truth,
and the truth in the word of God will then set
you free ( John 8 : 31 - 32 ). This passage
was written for believers. Anyone that is yet to
believe and trust in the Lord Jesus may find
this principle of freedom promised by our Lord
Jesus very difficult to understand. This
freedom comes as a natural response to the
grace of God; it is not a system that forces
anyone to live in any particular way. The
submission and commitment of Christians to
Jesus is simply out of love and appreciation
for what God did for us. However, anyone who
claims to be a Christian, and yet finds it
difficult to accept the freedom offered by our
Lord Jesus Christ with thanksgiving, is only a
pretender. James 1 : 25 says :
“But whoso looketh into the perfect law of
liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a
forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this
man shall be blessed in his deed.”
This concept of freedom is not easy to
understand. It offers us freedom from religious
systems, the devil, sin, unrighteousness, self
and demonic powers. The Spirit guides us and
leads us to make required sacrifices, but these
sacrifices are for our own gain. We strive to
make these sacrifices consciously and willingly
out of love and appreciation for the salvation of
our soul. This is the freedom of the Spirit
offered by Jesus Christ to anyone who wants
to be free from the devil and his works.
PRAYER POINT :
Father, please let the truth of your word
continue to make me free, in Jesus’ Name.
AUTHOR : Pst E. A ADEBOYE.