Be Set Free

Be Set Free
Author: Andrew Archer, Student Ministry Director
Through Thick & Thin - Part 6
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It was the summer of 2009 at a Young Life camp in New York called Lake Champion, about 9:30 at night, and I was sitting at the water’s edge, taking in the incredible sights before me. The still lake. The towering trees surrounding it. The vast mountains that encompassed us all. The moon and the stars that lit the night sky. And that’s when it hit me. The God who created everything before me cared about me. He cared about me enough to forgive everything I had done and ever will do against Him and His creation; which, trust me, was a lot. It was at that moment that I was set free.

There is something that happens when we are forgiven. We no longer have to lug around the ball and chain of debt that we once owed the One we sinned against. And there is no greater ball and chain than that of our sin. Only when we realize the gravity of our offense toward God can we truly experience the freedom that comes with His forgiveness. And make no mistake, as it says in Galatians 5:1, “It is for freedom that Christ set us free.”

When was that moment for you? Think back. Picture it as best as you can. Maybe it was with your parents kneeling in prayer before bed one night. It may have been during a worship service in a crowded room. Or perhaps, it was at the end of a crazy night of games and fun at youth group. Even if you can’t remember a specific time that you placed your faith in Christ, think about the first time you remember truly experiencing the immense relief of the debt of your sin being lifted from your back.

When you know and recognize you are forgiven from your sin, you are set free to forgive those who have wronged you. You understand that no harm anyone can do to you compares to the offense of your sin against God. And you have a newfound appreciation as the recipient of the seemingly reckless grace of God for what it feels like to be on the other side of the equation.

– Matthew 18:27

I encourage you to do two things. First and foremost, know that you have incurred a debt you could never repay – not in a million lifetimes. But the incredible news of the Gospel is that God sent His Son Jesus to pay that debt for you. He offers you forgiveness, the opportunity to take off the chains and live free. Remember that truth each and every day. Secondly, live out that freedom and offer the same freedom to others. Who is someone in your life that you could set free from their wrongdoings against you? Pray for them. Pray and ask God to help you see the situation in light of His forgiveness for you and forgive them.

This doesn’t necessarily mean that the relationship has to be restored or look the same as it did before the offense. It doesn’t mean that you can no longer have emotions like anger or sadness toward them. But what it does mean is that you hold the keys and have the opportunity to do what Jesus did and set them free. Who knows, maybe you setting them free from their sin against you could be the very thing that leads them to accept Christ’s forgiveness and be set free from their sin against Him.