I sat at the table in the sunroom and watched as a moth beat its wings tirelessly on the window screen. My heart was torn. I wanted to scream at this little insect to turn around. I wanted to yell at it - "YOU ARE OUTSIDE! The entire world is behind you." Without hesitation and with keen determination this moth relentlessly kept trying to force itself inside the room. Open space surrounded him. Miles and miles to fly. Sights to see. Adventures to appreciate. Yet, as if controlled by some invisible force, all day this moth did not stop its frantic pursuit. He didn't understand his reality. He was already free!
Freedom. Its cost brings with it sacrifice and implies bloodshed. A battle was fought and a life was given, not taken. Jesus' death was not the result of man, but of love. A love so unfathomable that it will never be comprehended, but it can be received and accepted. Do we appreciate and value the freedom we have received?
His ammunition was truth. His opponent, the father of lies. The battle raged, but victory was determined before it began. Rising as King and Conqueror, Jesus paid the price for our freedom. Through the agonizing separation from His Father as our sins were cast upon Him, Jesus experienced something we will never have to endure. Yet, have we embraced our freedom?
Too often we are like that moth. We are beating our wings against prison walls that can hold us captive. If we would just turn around and with the same energy, embrace Him. God's Word tells us that it is for freedom that He has set us free (Galatians 5:1). "Has set us free." Past tense. The work has been completed. Any stronghold that binds us is our choice, for it is not necessary. Freedom is our portion and God's plan. May our lives not nullify all that Christ accomplished so we can live free.
Psalm 68:18 tells us that Christ has led captivity captive. The state, place or period of being imprisoned is being held restrained through Jesus. Confinement by sin becomes impossible as He declares forever our liberty.
Think of it...captivity is captive. If something is held or contained, bound or behind bars, it has no access. Through His Son, the Lord has made freedom possible to us all. Any opportunity for imprisonment, whether in body, soul or mind, is being held by nail-scarred hands declaring that we can live without sin's control. We are not bound by evil, nor can it impose boundaries of fear, insecurity, worry, anger etc... We are no longer servants to sin.
So, if we are truly no longer servants to sin, why is it still such a struggle to live free? If Christ has declared captivity captive and commanded us to leave our captivity, why do so many still not walk in liberty? Why are days spent in despair? Why is sin rampant? Why are we beating our wings against the slavery of sins for which Christ died to set us free? The lure of the enemy is strong. As captor, he is unwilling to see anyone free from slavery to sin. Christ destroyed sin's power over us at the cross, as well as the effects of sin, death and hell, but its presence is still palpable. As a believer, sin cannot bind us for eternity, but as it rattles the prison doors and shakes its chains, it sure can distract us.
What "window screen" is enticing us as it did my little insect friend? What holds us prisoner? Is it a feeling, a circumstance, a habit? What makes us feel captive today?
There are choices we need to make daily. We can be lured by evil's enticement or we can be held by the One who holds captivity and instead be captivated by Him. May He alone capture each heart today. As our focus remains on Him, we will respond to the call of freedom.
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