I have been drawn to Western shows since I was a young boy. Whether it was Gunsmoke, The Rifleman, Bonanza, or The Lone Ranger – I could watch them all! In many of these episodes, one thing stood out. I noticed how little it took to tie up a cowboy’s horse. The rider would simply loop the halter over a hitching post or a small tree branch once or twice, and the horse would stay right there; this always confused me. Even as a child, I would think, “Surely that horse is strong enough to simply back up and walk away; he didn’t even tie the strap in a knot.”
Later in life, it began to make sense when I heard the story of how baby elephants were tied up with strong chains when little so that as they grow older, it was possible to restrain them with simply a small rope and a tiny stake in the ground. Even though the elephant could easily pull the stake out of the ground, it was conditioned to believe that it didn’t possess the strength to loosen itself from its bonds and access its freedom.
Sadly, I believe this accurately represents where many in the body of Christ find themselves today. They’ve been conditioned to believe they don’t possess the power or authority to break free from the things entrapping them and access their freedom. As such, they accept their imprisonment even though Jesus has paid the price for their complete and total freedom.
Did you catch that? Jesus has paid the price for His followers to live in complete and total freedom, and if He is your Lord and Savior, that includes you!
John 8:36 tells us, “Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed.” Look at it from the Amplified Classic Version, “So if the Son liberates you [makes you free men], then you are really and unquestionably free.”
I love that last part, “If Jesus liberates you, then you are really and unquestionably free!”
If we go back to verse 2 in John 8, we see even more evidence that we have access to absolute freedom in Jesus.
“Because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death” James 8:2 (NIV)
Those of us who have accepted Jesus as our Lord and Savior and purpose to follow Him have access to freedom for every area of our lives. Yet, Satan is busy trying to convince us otherwise. He roams around trying to convince believers that they aren’t good enough, smart enough, consistent enough, or loved enough for God to set them free and they must remain enslaved. But he’s a liar and a deceiver! Freedom is not something that has to be earned or even achieved. It’s already been freely given through Jesus by our Heavenly Father. God is not holding back on you. He already provided everything you’ll need in this life when He gave His Son Jesus to pay the price for your (mine, and the world’s) sins.
I love Romans 8:32 (AMPC), “He who did not withhold or spare [even] His own Son but gave Him up for us all, will He not also with Him freely and graciously give us all [other] things?”
Based on this verse, let me ask you one question: When did God freely give us all things? This passage says, “Will He not also WITH HIM freely and graciously give us all [other] things?” That means that God has already given us everything when He gave us Jesus! Wow, and praise the Lord!
Come on, say it with me, “God isn’t holding back on me!”
Did you know that’s scriptural as well? Psalm 84:11 (KJV) says, “No good thing will He [God] withhold from them that walk uprightly.” Your Heavenly Father isn’t in the ‘holding back business.’ He’s in the ‘giving and blessing business’…and that includes your freedom! Your Heavenly Father has already freely given us (and Jesus already paid the price for) freedom for every area of our lives.
We have access to freedom from sin, addiction, anger, pain, sickness, poverty, spiritual death, loneliness, depression, anxiety, mental illness, fear, and the list goes on and on, including every other curse the adversary would try to put on us. However, Galatians 3:13 tells us that Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law, and His sacrifice has paid the price for us to live free. We just have to believe and receive it until we are fully convinced. Our conviction in this area needs to be strong enough to withstand the enemy’s attempts when he brings his lies and torment so that we won’t be confused, distracted, or lose heart.
An awesome example of this is found in Acts 16 when Paul and Silas were stripped naked, beaten, and imprisoned for casting a spirit of divination out of a little girl entrapped in slavery who was being taken advantage of by her masters. Look at Paul and Silas’ responses to being wrongly tortured, chained, and imprisoned.
“But at midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them. Suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened, and everyone’s chains were loosed. And the keeper of the prison, awaking from sleep and seeing the prison doors open, supposing the prisoners had fled, drew his sword and was about to kill himself. But Paul called with a loud voice, saying, “Do yourself no harm, for we are all here.” Then he called for a light, ran in, and fell down trembling before Paul and Silas. And he brought them out and said, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” So, they said, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household” Acts 16: 25-31 (NKJV)
Something stood out to me years ago when I read this; why didn’t Paul and Silas run when the Lord removed their shackles and opened their prison doors? Then, the Holy Spirit showed me that the chains and prison bars didn’t determine their freedom!
Despite being stripped, beaten, and imprisoned, they prayed and worshipped God. They understood that despite what happened to them in the natural – they were already free in the spirit. Jesus had already set them free! So just because the prison doors were open, they weren’t in a hurry to escape because they didn’t consider themselves in bondage – WOW!
This is what I call unbridled freedom. Complete and total freedom that is so real and evident to you that no situation or condition can cause you to question your freedom or become upset at what’s happening to you. This is the complete opposite of the horse and elephant (and all the children of God), who determine their freedom based on natural evidence.
The Word of God calls us to live by faith, not by sight (or any of our other natural senses). God calls us to believe His Word and live according to how He sees our situation and defines our condition. That’s what living by faith requires.
Seek Unbridled Freedom
So, as we celebrate our nation’s freedom on the 4th of July, I challenge you to seek the Lord about areas of your life where you can enjoy more freedom. Allow Him to show you areas where you have forfeited your freedom and accepted bondage.
Once He reveals it to you, ask Him to show you in His Word where He deals directly with that specific area of freedom. Then saturate yourself in that Word by reading it, praying it, meditating on it, and allowing the Holy Spirit to cause that Truth to become so real to you that a new conviction rises up inside of you. When that takes place, it’s only a matter of time until you experience the peace and joy that comes from total freedom.
Don’t accept the conditioning of the enemy and remain imprisoned any longer. Through Jesus, your freedom has already been paid for. With Him as your Savior, you are already strong enough to break out of your restraints and walk right into your freedom. Create a battle cry from Philippians 4:13 and John 8:36: “Jesus has absolutely set me free, and I can do ALL THINGS through Him because He strengthens me.”
Feature Image: Cowboy sunset GENAI Text to Image; Scripture quotations marked NIV are taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.; Scripture quotations marked (AMPC) are from the Amplified Bible, Classic Edition Copyright © 1954, 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation.; Scripture quotations marked NKJV are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
