Freedom can be a wonderful thing that is often not appreciated until it is lost. Paul warns the Galatians of this danger in chapter 5 verse 1, “For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.” Christ rescued us from being slaves both of the old law as Paul is referencing in this chapter and also of sin as Romans 6:7,22 and 8:2 teach. 

It is terrible that so many times those who are freed turn back to the slavery the came out of or turn to some new form of slavery. The Israelites who came out of Egypt whined to return to Egypt and when that didn’t happen they enslaved themselves to sin by worshiping the golden calf. They didn’t appreciate their freedom. Within 2 generations of entering the promised land they had fallen into slavery again to some of the inhabitants of the land that they should have conquered and driven out or killed. How sad that they were now slaves in the land that God had intended for them to rule.

The same can happen to us after being made free from the law of Moses and free from sin. As Paul says to the Galatians we were set free for freedom. He is concerned that even though they are supposed to be free they might go back to the law and be enslaved again. Christ set us free so that we could live a life freely devoted to serving God. Stories are told of those who would go to the slave auctions and buy slaves to set them free. On one occasion when the newly-freed, former slave realized what had happened he told those who had emancipated him, “I will serve you for the rest of my life”. 

Christ has freed you at the cost of leaving Heaven, becoming human, and dying a cruel death won’t you serve him for the rest of your life?

The Bible describes Christ in many different ways. Dozens of times in 19 books from Genesis to Revelation God uses imagery related to sheep and shepherding to explain his relationship with his people. We have already seen Jesus as the Chief Shepherd and we will see more of these images later, but in John 10 almost the entire chapter revolves around sheep. 

In John 10 Jesus describes a sheep fold and how it is protected. Of course there is a wall or fence around most of it with only one entrance. At the entrance there is a gate or door that can be opened and closed for the sheep to go in and out. Jesus describes himself as that door or gate. There is also a gatekeeper that seems to simply be mentioned to complete the story. 

Jesus explains that the sheep and shepherd only go in and out at the door and anyone who is trying to get in some other way is a thief. Since Jesus is the door anyone who wants to be one of God’s sheep has to come in through him. In his day there were many who didn’t want to come through him and many false shepherds were trying to steal or destroy God’s sheep. 

We need to remain in the sheepfold where Jesus is our door and he can protect us from those who would do us harm. In verse 9 he says, “I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture.” Salvation is only available by going through the one door, Jesus Christ. There are many who want to try to be saved in other ways, but Jesus makes it clear that salvation is exclusive to him and none others can offer it. He is not just a door, he is THE door. There is no other.

Have you come to God and been saved by going through Jesus Christ? Are you remaining in God’s fold protected by Jesus, the door?
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​Quite simply Christ is God. Being divine and being deity are really just two more ways of saying that Christ is from God, like God and that he is God. 2 Peter 1:2-4 records, “May grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.  3  His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence,  4  by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire.” Notice that in verse three his power is divine. It is a power from God, and yet it says this godly power is his. Not only is it his, but he makes it possible for us to take part in his godly or divine nature.

In Colossians 2:8-9 Paul writes, “See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ.  9  For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily,” Paul makes it clear that deity, God completely and fully lived in the body of Christ. This may be impossible for us to fully comprehend or explain, but the fact that Jesus Christ was God in the flesh is an essential foundation of our faith. Paul proposes that if we are not living according to the one who had deity filling his body then we are following after something that is empty, deceitful, human tradition, from this world, and something that will take us captive. 

There are many who don’t want Christ to be deity or divine. There are some who don’t even want to admit he ever lived at all, but if we want to receive the precious and great promises, escape the corruption of the world, take part in his divine nature and be filled in him (Col. 2:10) then we must hold fast to the truth of his divinity and deity.

Are you holding on to Christ as the one deity that came bodily to Earth? Don’t let go!

There are 3 passages in the New Testament that discuss Christ as our deliverer. Let’s consider each of them.

In Romans 7:24, after describing the human inability to overcome sin on his own, Paul asks, “Who will deliver me from this body of death?” The answer for all who are unable to deliver themselves is made abundantly clear throughout the New Testament: Jesus Christ. So first we see that Jesus can deliver us from our own sinfulness.

Paul addresses the issue again in Galatians 1:3-5 where he explains that the Lord Jesus Christ gave himself for our sins to deliver us from the present evil age. Here we see that Jesus not only delivers us from our own sinfulness, but rescues or delivers us from the evil all around us in this wicked world.

In the final passage, Hebrews 2:14-15, We see humans enslaved not just by their sinfulness, but also by the fear that they will have to face physical death. Christ is shown becoming flesh and blood like us and then facing physical death so that he could destroy the devil and his power of death. In the process of that he delivers all of us from having to be afraid of death because seeing him conquer the grave gives us the confidence and courage to face our own graves knowing that he can raise us up.

How much of your life have you spent being afraid of death and even enslaved by that fear? Death is not our friend, but Christ has conquered it and we don’t have to fear this enemy any longer. Have you allowed Christ to deliver you from yourself, the evil world around you, and the fear of death? Let him be your deliverer.