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An
Outreach Publication of the Church of Christ at
Creekwood |
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Let Me Out! Jack
Reece of Panama City, Florida, recounts his experience
of helping a friend who lived on a farm.
They were working on a barbed-wire fence which
surrounded a lush green pasture.
As Reece worked alongside his friend, something
peculiar caught his attention. He couldn’t help but
notice that between each of the barbs, there were
several strands of differently colored hair. He
wondered about this and decided to ask his friend
about the strange sight. He was told that no matter how wide an area the fence
covered, or how much green grass there was in the
center of the field, the cattle will graze just inside
fence, right along the edge. Often, the cattle will
even stick their heads through the fence to eat the
grass on the other side. And as they press against the
fence, their hairs would become trapped between the
barbs. Concerning
this experience, Reece made the following observation: Freedom
is a precious commodity for the human race as well.
Yet, as is inscribed on a Korean War memorial
in Washington D.C., "Freedom is not free."
Someone has to pay the price for our liberty. What
is true of our national liberty is also true for each
of us, spiritually! Due to our sin, NONE of us is free; we are ALL "shackled"
by sin. Jesus
said, “Whoever commits sin is a "slave" of sin” (John 8:34). Now
“ALL have sinned and fall short of the glory of
God” (Romans 3:23), and the wages
or "PAYCHECK"
that we receive for SIN - is DEATH (Romans
6:23). Thankfully,
someone HAS paid the price for our liberty!
His name is Jesus, and He paid the price
for our redemption when He died on the cross for our
sins (Ephesians 1:7).
And that is GOOD
NEWS!! EVERY
man and woman in bondage to sin who is crying on the
inside, "LET ME OUT!" needs to know
that he/she can be set FREE because of what Jesus did
on that Roman cross. We receive the benefits of Christ’s sacrificial death when we respond in faith: (Romans 5:1), placing our trust in Him (Acts 16:31), repenting of our sins (Acts 2:38), confessing Him before men (Romans 10:9-10), and being baptized (immersed) so that our sins can be washed away (Acts 22:16). Christ KEEPS us free from the bondage of sin... as long as we continue to put Him FIRST and live according to His will (1 John 1:7). "Therefore... if the Son makes you FREE, you shall be FREE INDEED!" (John 8:36). You
don’t have to LIVE and DIE in chains! God bless you.
David A. Sargent,
Minister To Subscribe to "Living Water" send a blank e-mail to:
HTML version: subscribe-livingwater@lyris.dundee.net Follow this link to locate the church of Christ nearest you: www.churchsearch.org Archived issues of "Living Water" can be accessed from our website at: www.creekwoodcc.org
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