July 4 and Freedom in Christ

Freedom to Worship and Serve God

In my painting above, God uses old Moses and his staff to part the Red Sea and deliver the Hebrew people from 400 years of slavery in Egypt. They are freed to worship and serve God. The prophet Miriam leads the festal procession with tambourines and dancing (Exodus 15:20).

This is the Exodus—God leading the people out by the hand, through deep waters and into freedom. The waters point to our baptism in Christ—dying and rising with the Victorious Lamb of God who conquered sin, death, and evil.

In Christ we renounce all the powers of darkness and sin and enter a new life of freedom. We are free to become the true selves God has created us to be, and to delight in knowing God in an intimate way. We are free of sin, death, evil, fear, worry, regret, and free of meeting others’ expectations.

God stepped down into our place and time in the person of Jesus Christ. Our Lord is a humble and gentle King, who will return in glory.

We join with Christ-followers around the world from all peoples and nations to love and serve God and one another.

Thanks be to God for leading us out into freedom!

Join the conversation: How is God in Christ leading you out into freedom? How has God called you to lead out others, to “set the captives free (Luke 4:18)”?

Today I also would like to share ancient wisdom with a quote by Clement of Rome (d. c. 96).

“This is the way, dear friends, that we find our own salvation, even Jesus Christ, the high priest by whom our gifts are offered, and the protector by whom our feebleness is aided. Through him we can look up to the highest heaven and see, as in a glass, the peerless perfection of the face of God. Through him the eyes of our hearts are opened, and our dim and clouded understanding unfolds like a flower to the light; for through him the Lord permits us to taste the wisdom of eternity. He is the spendour of God’s majesty; and as much greater than the angels as the title he has inherited is a loftier one than theirs.

So now, my friends, let us get on resolutely with our warfare under his unerring directions…

Our Maker and Creator brought us out of darkness into his universe as were out of a tomb; even before our birth he was ready with his favours for us. To him we owe everything, and therefore on every count we are under an obligation to return thanks to him. Glory be to him forever and ever. Amen.”