Prayer
Briefly prepare your heart in silence, and ask the Holy Spirit to awaken your sense of anticipation that God is about to speak to you through His Word. Then, before you read, I invite you to pray this prayer based on Psalm 2:11.
Lord, I long to submit to You
and serve You
with joyful reverence
Come and take Your rightful place.
Amen.
Reading
Today we continue listening in as Jesus speaks about discipleship to a group of people who had come to believe in Him. They had a visceral reaction to Jesus having told them, “The truth shall set you free” (John 8:32). They reacted so strongly because the Jewish people had such a fiery sense of independence. Even when they were under Roman occupation, they still considered themselves to have no allegiance but to Yahweh. They might be under military domination but they were still determined to be a free people. Historically, that’s also why there were constant uprisings and rebellions against Rome (which never ended well for the Jews).
In John 8 Jesus makes the point that true freedom is not political or military freedom. True freedom comes when we are liberated from slavery by having no other Lord but Jesus Christ. Yesterday we saw how Jesus promised to set us free from being ruled by fear. In today’s reading, He focusses on setting us free from the power of sin. As Socrates once wrote, we cannot call someone free while he or she is ruled over by desires and pleasures. We are never truly free when we are enslaved by our self-centred desires.
So, true Christian discipleship involves dethroning every other lord but Jesus. It involves willingly and joyfully surrendering to Jesus’ Lordship. It involves inviting Jesus to be enthroned in the very command-centre of our lives and to dethrone and disempower our sinful selves. It involves inviting Him to dethrone every lust, desire and self-indulgence from their position as false-rulers and overlords of our lives.
When finally Jesus is fully enthroned in us, the Son will set us free and we will be free indeed.
Contemplation
Please take time to ponder what Jesus has commanded us. Turn these declarations over and over in your mind. Keep them in mind throughout the day and live in step with Your King, Jesus.
As a disciple of Jesus Christ:
- I will consciously refuse to accept the lordship and domination of my own sinful desires.
- I will willingly enthrone Jesus as Lord and joyfully surrender to His desires and purposes!
Lord Jesus, come into the very control centre of my life. Please evict every other “overlord” you find there and set me free to truly be Your disciple. Amen.
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