Freedom

“I am the Lord, who brought you up out of Egypt to be your God; therefore be holy, because I am holy” (Lev. 11:45, NIV).

I grew up in church. Through the years, I remember hearing preachers say, “If you come across a ‘therefore’ in Scripture, then find out what it’s ‘there for.’” Here in our verse for today, we have one of those. So let’s dig into why Holy Spirit put it “there for” us.

“Therefore be holy…” Be holy! Does that feel like a tall order? In fact, this Scripture takes the pressure off, rather than putting it on. The “therefore” is there because holiness rolls out of the preceding phrase. The Lord Himself brought us up out of Egypt. He did the heavy lifting to set us free from slavery. The order is so important here. First comes the mighty intervention of God, setting us free from sin. Then comes the grace-empowered result: living in that freedom.

“It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery” (Gal. 5:1, NIV).

Our Lord conquered sin for us, and in us, when He died and rose again. He is proclaiming to our hearts here the amazingly good news that we don’t have to live in slavery anymore. It’s done. It is finished. Freedom is beautifully available for our daily living.

How do we apply this? Continue reading Living Egypt-Free