I’m not sure about how much you may have heard about Jesus Christ or even what you know about him, but I wanted to share with you something interesting that he said. He said he was sent to proclaim freedom for the prisoners. I know each and every single one of you here knows what it means to be a prisoner, whether you deserve to be here or not. You all understand what it means to be guilty and to fall short of perfection. The Bible calls this sin and none of us are perfect.
Yet Jesus said he came to proclaim freedom for the prisoners. What does that even mean? Each and every single one of us was being held captive and Satan was our jailer. The price to bail us out was steep. No one could pay it but God alone and God was the one we wronged. We were on death row awaiting execution, dead men walking with not a single hope on the horizon.
But then, the unthinkable happened. God himself, in the person of Jesus Christ, paid us a visit while we were still prisoners. He came with the message that he had come to set us free. He paid the price to bail us out. He paid it with his own blood as he died on the cross. God, who should’ve demanded to see us die because of the wrong we’ve caused him, instead sent his only Son to set us free. No longer will we die because of our sins, but now, we will experience eternal life with him.
As a Christian, that is someone who follows Christ, we love God because he first showed his love for us on the cross as he died to set us free. We do two things in response to God’s love. First, we acknowledge that Jesus is the one who saves us and we give him thanks and praise for it. We simply give credit where credit is due. We just simply recognize who God is and what he has done for us. We seek to know who this God is by reading God’s Word, and by praying, that is, talking to God. God wants us to be able to know him, and has given us the Bible and prayer so that we might understand who He is.
Secondly, we remain in faithful obedience to him. If not for God, we are as good as dead, but now we have a second chance at life. How many of you would have loved a second chance during your trial? How many would, if they could, take back the wrong that they have done and start over again? God has given us that second chance so now we live new lives for God to further show our appreciation for all that he has done.
But maybe you don’t believe it. Maybe you don’t know if God is even real or if he is even here with us. But I guarantee you if you want proof that God exists, live like he does. Once you begin to look for him, you will surely find him. Ask God to reveal himself to you and you will not be disappointed. Test out the promises God makes in the Bible. I am not asking you to believe blindly or just on my word alone. Investigate God and see if he is legit before you put your trust in him. Or just take it from me that there is a God who is real and who has died to set you free. Now the only question that remains is “What are you going to do about it?”
